THE GREATEST SERMON EVER PREACHED

 

Matthew 5-7 contains the greatest sermon ever preached. It was preached by the greatest Preacher, the Lord Jesus, and is called the Sermon on the Mount. While we may never be elevated to the status of a great preacher, we can strive for great content—and know that the Spirit of Christ indwells the servant of Christ who has given is this subject matter. Let’s learn from Him, though we will certainly fall short of the standard the Perfect Preacher set.

He CARED FOR THE MULTITUDES, “seeing the multitides.” His message was evangelistic. Jesus never neglected the masses of humanity. They were lost in sin, and He would call them to repentance and faith. His compassion for sinners was communicated with an invitation to enter the Kingdom of God. Every preacher should have a heart to evangelize the sinner and proclaim the Gospel in each sermon.

Jesus COMMUNICATED WITH GREAT CLARITY. “He went up on a mountain.”  Whether using a mountain for a pulpit or sitting in a boat where He employed the acoustics of the lake to carry His voice—the content needed to be communicated with clarity. What He said needed to be heard and so Jesus would employ the laws of nature to amplify His voice to speak the laws of the Kingdom of heaven.  Preacher, pronounce your words and proclaim the truth with clarity. Don’t let how you say it obscure what needs to be heard.

Jesus CONCENTRATED ON HIS DISCIPLES, “His disciples came to Him. Then He opened His mouth and taught them…”.   As previously noted, Jesus cared for the sheep wandering on the mountain, who needed to be summoned into the fold with a Gospel clarion call. Yet, He had a special concentration on the men who would be trained to be shepherds and extend His ministry after His departure back to glory. The preacher must also be a teacher. Edifying disciples must be the concentration of our communication. The Great Commission goes beyond the need to reach the world, to then teach the Word.

In these ways, we can be like the greatest Preacher who proclaimed the greatest sermon ever!

ALL ON THE ALTAR

The Old Testament sacrificial system with its priesthood, altar, and sacrifices foreshadowed Christ, the Great High Priest, who offered Himself as a Lamb on the cross in fulfillment.  Yet, what Christ did absolutely, we are as His followers to do spiritually as  a kingdom of priests, offering spiritual sacrifices on the altar of our commitment.  That is the imagery Paul uses in this text.  Paul so describes the sacrificial gift of money brought by Epaphroditus from the Philippian church. There is a principle that we may apply to any gifts God graces us with—and how we may worship Him through the sacrificial offering of those for God’s glory.  Allow me to specifically speak to the preacher.

THERE IS THE SCENT OF THE SERMON. It is to be “a fragrant offering.”  Now, some sermons just stink! That brings no honor to God or help to the congregation. In contrast to that, If you have smelled a steak cooking on a grill—an aroma that makes you salivate—this should be akin to the scent of our sermon. In our prayerful preparation and passionate presentation, the offering of the message can make each one attending hunger for God and His Word—as Psalm 34:8 says to, “taste and see that the LORD is good!”

THERE IS THE SACRIFICE IN THE SERMON. It is “a sacrifice.”  The Old Testament worshipper was not to bring the worst of the flock, but the best. God was to get the firstfruits and not the leftovers. As David declared, “I will not offer burnt offerings to the LORD my God that cost me nothing,” (2 Sam.24:24). There is a price to pay for preaching that is for the glory of God and good of man. You don’t grab sermon scraps from a book or podcast, stick it in the microwave and go through the motions from the pulpit!

THERE IS THE SATISFACTION FROM THE SERMON. It is “acceptable and pleasing to God.”  If meant to only satisfy yourself in doing your job, or to tickle the ears of the people so they magnify you, then as a preacher your motivation is deadly. We pray that people will be touched by the truth, but it is not that they will always react with acceptance, they may respond with anger. We will find joy if the sermon is acceptable to God. Fundamentally our focus is on God being satisfied. If God is pleased, it ultimately matters not whether anyone else is.

Dear God, may the preacher offer in the sermon his all on the altar—a living sacrifice to You, that is holy in its conception and acceptable in its communication—as his spiritual act of worship!

PREACH LIKE JESUS

People gathered—not in an air conditioned auditorium in comfortable seats, but on a hillside in open air to sit on the grass—all to hear Jesus. They were captivated by His words and “astonished at his teaching.”  It was the greatest sermon ever preached by the greatest Man who ever lived. 

We will not preach a sermon to compare to that one, but there are some things we can learn that will help us be more like Jesus in our preaching.  Let me begin with the foundational principle mentioned in these verses.  It is stated positively and negatively.

The negative aspect stated was, “not as their scribes.”  The manner of the scribes was to do meticulous research and ground their authority in what other scholars had said—to quote from this rabbi or that rabbi as they droned on. While there is nothing wrong with quoting commentators and doing research as to what others have said about the text, when we get up to preach it is likely no one will be impressed by the underpinnings of the sermonic house you have constructed. If you moved into a new home, would you expect to take people into the crawl space, shine a spotlight, and say to your friends, “Would you look at those floor joists! Man, they nailed them! Have you ever seen any like them?”  Rather, I would expect you to show them the rooms and furnishings where you will live.

That brings me to the positive dimension of this—that the people were impressed “for he was teaching them as one who had authority.”  Our Lord’s authority did not rest in human opinion about God, but in heavenly revelation of God. Now, before you protest that Jesus had the advantage of being God—I know.  He spoke directly from the Father for whatever the Father said to Him, He spoke. This we cannot claim and we cannot do.

Yet, we do have His Gospel. We have the Word of God. Our authority rests in God, if we begin with study of the text for God’s Spirit to teach us and guide us into all truth. Then as we preach, we expound the text—with illustration and application that connects eternal truth with the daily life of the audience. Jesus certainly did that—using salt and light to explain influence and fowl and flower to discuss faith, for instance.  People will respond to such clarity and authority.

Let us preach with the confidence that Christ indwells us to speak through us and that we have an authoritative Word that when proclaimed in the unction of the Spirit will make an impact.

LABOR AND DELIVERY

It is Saturday as I pen these words, and every pastor knows what that means: it’s approaching Sunday’s sermon time!  Like a pregnant woman, the sermon has been conceived, developed and now with labor must be delivered.  We do not want our church family to experience the tragedy of anticipation, only for the message to be stillborn!  Our prayer is for a living Word for the people of God to celebrate!  The big difference is that our sermon doesn’t have nine months to mature.  The due date comes once a week—even multiple times during the week!  Not even the Duggars can claim that!

That’s a pressure pastors must live with—but it is also a privilege they enjoy.  Mothers certainly have some problems and pains in pregnancy—more pronounced and intensifying exponentially as the infant makes its debut.  But, how quickly that is forgotten when the wee one arrives—with joy the child is embraced!

So, my brother, I pray that you are almost ready for the trip to the delivery room that we call the auditorium, and tomorrow afternoon will find you exhausted, but exhilarated.  Once more God has enabled a miracle of life we call preaching to be birthed.  Having been in the delivery room as our children have arrived, it can be described in no other way.  You are caught up in the moment, lost in wonder, heart racing, and I don’t know how the human body can do what it does as a woman delivers a child—or a man delivers a sermon—but new life is ushered into the world.

For almost forty years, I have gone through this cycle.  I wish I could say that none of the sermons were stillborn, but I can say that few have been.  The Father has been faithful to implant the seed of Scripture in my mind, fertilize it by His Spirit, and then the remarkable creative act is completed as the labor and delivery of the message brings another living Word into the world.  To God be the glory!

GET TO THE POINT!

Clarity and brevity are essential in the delivery of sermons.  While we may dispute the precise length of the sermon, none ought to debate that enough is enough.  If you are painting a picture, you must apply enough color to the canvas to connect with an observer, but apply too much paint and it is only a muddy mess that breeds confusion.  So, the delivery of sermons is an art, where the preacher is the artist, and the Word of God is the brush.  You simply cannot say everything you would like to say about a text, but must say those things that must be said and may be remembered so that they demand to be applied by the listener that week.  No one should leave the church building, scratching their head, and asking, "What's the point?"  Sharpen it, get to it, illustrate, apply and reinforce it.  Stand up, speak up and shut up--and the people will leave with a clear and compelling message indelibly marking their soul.