Preacher: Salesman or Herald?

The church is in great need today of recapturing Paul’s theology and practice of preaching. I will never forget the brazen words of a pastor of one of the large seeker-sensitive/church-growth churches in Kansas City. He was lecturing a classroom full of pastors and students when he said: “Yeah we dim the lights, yeah we play the music repetitively… We are trying to manipulate people into believing and walking the aisle."

One should pause for a moment and consider the reality that this man’s idea of what was a good and ethical practice in the church is directly against Paul’s theology of preaching, which is elaborated on in 1 Cor. 1- 4. (Go read it.) Now that you’ve read Paul's words for yourself, if you are interested in a thorough examination of 1 Cor. 1-4, Duan Liften has written a helpful book entitled Paul’s Theology of Preaching that can assist in that need.

On Paul’s theology of preaching, Liften's thesis is clear when he writes:

"He argued his case on fundamental theological premises about God’s chosen modus operandi in the world in general. The Corinthians were only another example of what God had already universally demonstrated in the crucified Christ, his determination to frustrate humanity's pride by accomplishing his purposes, not through those human efforts the world considered impressive, but through Spirit-empowered means the world considered of no account—so that when those divine purposes were accomplished no mortal could boast."[1]

God’s chosen medium through which the Gospel advances is that of a herald and not a manipulative rhetorician.

I contend that Paul’s theology of preaching necessitates that pastors should and must consider and evaluate his own sermonic style and content against Paul’s example. To be a herald and not a rhetorician is the aim. Therefore, I argue for two areas of self-examination: 1. Having the same epistemology as Paul, and 2. Understanding style and delivery appropriately.

Epistemology is the field of philosophy that seeks to understand how we come to believe what we believe. It is the study of how knowledge is acquired. Paul’s theology of preaching is the natural outworking of Paul’s epistemology. Paul’s epistemology comes to us by Divine inspiration and is recorded in several texts in the Bible. This means Paul’s epistemology, or understanding of knowledge and how humanity acquires it, is God’s own understanding of epistemology. This means it should be the same epistemology of every preacher of the Bible.

Paul discloses in Romans 1 that man has suppressed the truth of God and embraced a lie, leading to false worship (Rom 1:18). Adam’s fall into sin has totally corrupted mankind, rendering all guilt in him and likewise culpable of their own sin, demonstrated by the universal spread of death (Rom. 5:12). Mankind, in its fallen condition, has a major epistemological problem—we are hostile to God and unable to submit to his word.

Romans 8: 7-8 says: "For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God." Does this horrible news leave Paul hopeless? No, Paul believes that the gospel itself is the power of God to salvation which breaks through our deadness in sin (Rom. 1:16).

1 Cor. 1- 4 is in perfect agreement with Romans as demonstrated by several texts. 1 Cor. 2:14 says: “The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned." Clearly, no amount of persuading or attempted manipulation is going to change a person's mind and transfer them from unbelief to belief when what is preventing their understanding is a moral condition.

This is why Paul's statement in 1 Corinthians is so crucial to our understanding of a biblical theology of preaching:

"For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. "(1 Cor. 1:21-25) [1]

The clear, unvarnished preaching of Christ crucified may be foolishness to a world that loves to hear rhetoric and can be persuaded by lofty arguments. However, to the elect of God who are called, it is the very power that transfers them from death in Adam to life in Christ.
 
Preaching the gospel is God's chosen medium to bring dead sinners to faith in Jesus Christ. Paul's epistemology shaped his theology of preaching. It should all preachers as well, which means any form of manipulation must be jettisoned and replaced by simple, clear heralding of the gospel. Human cunning and rhetoric are powerless, but God's medium is powerful.

Naturally, this impacts how we should understand the place of style and delivery. Considering and even seeking to improve our style and delivery should not be abandoned because of the reality of Paul’s theology of preaching; instead, style and delivery have an essential role to play. But, instead of the natural mans' paradigm of communication being Audience + Servants’ Efforts = Results, the preacher's paradigm should be Faithfulness + Conviction = The Glory of God.

We preach ultimately for the Glory of God. Preachers should seek to improve delivery for the express purpose of accurately communicating the text with conviction for God’s glory. This will take homiletical study and practice. But the purpose is not to produce some result. The preacher's goal is to be faithful and clear and leave the results up to the Holy Spirit as He brings sinners to Christ through the Word of God.

Concerning style, preachers should be who God created and designed them to be. They should be true to themselves. But they should also seek every opportunity to be the best communicators they can be with the gifts God has given them.

One of the most critical elements for any preacher to communicate through their style of preaching is a real and burning-hot conviction that what they preach is in fact God's Word. The preacher must have so much conviction that, though there may be a doubter present in the church, the one thing they won't doubt is that the preacher believes what he is preaching is from God and that it is urgent that they listen. To be faithful to the Word and to have conviction are two elements of style and delivery that every preacher should consider.

Paul’s theology of preaching has several implications for preaching that can correct the manipulative strategies of our day. These same implications should be considered as helpful in shaping a preacher’s understanding of sermon content as well as style and delivery of that content.

Paul’s epistemology influences his theology of preaching. All preachers should adopt Paul’s theology of preaching as it is Divinely inspired. His theology both warns against manipulation in preaching and simultaneously frees the preacher and gives him boldness as only God has the power to save a sinner and grant belief. Paul's theology of preaching mandated that style and delivery be considered as well.

Preachers are not responsible for producing results. Therefore, they must only be faithful to preach God's word clearly and with conviction. God will not hold preachers accountable for results, just for faithfulness.

Final thought: Faithfulness in preaching looks more like a town crier than a car salesman.


[1] Duane Litfin, Paul’s Theology of Preaching: The Apostle’s Challenge to the Art of Persuasion in Ancient Corinth, Revised, Expanded edition (Downers Grove, Illinois: IVP Academic, 2015), 339.