It Takes a Village to Make a Sermon

 By Pastor Benjamin Glaser - Posted at Thoughts From Parson Farms:

How Elders and Deacons Can Have a Role in the Preaching of the Word

Howdy,

We have about three more weeks in the Directory for Worship’s section on preaching. Spending this amount of time on it can seem a bit self-serving since a preacher is writing these Thursday devotions. However, for most Christians the vast majority of their education as a believer is going to come in the 30-40 minute window in morning service when the pastor is expositing God’s holy and perfect word. For us to understand the purpose and how we can benefit from the word as it is brought to us from the mouth of the minister on the Lord’s Day is worth our time. Another aspect of this worth noting is that the more we grasp in our mind and soul about what is happening the easier it will be for our hearts to by feed by faith through the preached word.

Let’s go ahead and read what the DPW has to say:

If any doubt obvious from scripture, reason, or prejudice of the hearers, seem to arise, it is very requisite to remove it, by reconciling the seeming differences, answering the reasons, and discovering and taking away the causes of prejudice and mistake. Otherwise it is not fit to detain the hearers with propounding or answering vain or wicked cavils, which, as they are endless, so the propounding and answering of them doth more hinder than promote edification.

He is not to rest in general doctrine, although never so much cleared and confirmed, but to bring it home to special use, by application to his hearers: which albeit it prove a work of great difficulty to himself, requiring much prudence, zeal, and meditation, and to the natural and corrupt man will be very unpleasant; yet he is to endeavour to perform it in such a manner, that his auditors may feel the word of God to be quick and powerful, and a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart; and that, if any unbeliever or ignorant person be present, he may have the secrets of his heart made manifest, and give glory to God.

There is an old quip that there is a thin line between a sermon which goes long and a hostage situation. That line is whether or not the preacher is revealing meat from the Bible or if he is rambling on like an uncomfortable best man’s speech. Underneath the concerns of the opening sentences is that the minister needs to be aware of the spiritual needs of the people. It is a part of the importance of visitation, Christian fellowship, prayer meetings, and other means of conversation. We also see part of the role elders play in assisting the minister to preach well. If the session is doing their job of checking in on members and reporting that to the shepherd then when matters come up in sermon preparation the pastor knows better about those things that need touched on, and those things that do not, in the limited time he has on the Lord’s Day.

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