Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. - 2 Timothy 4:2
This morning we look at Question 159 of the Larger Catechism, which asks, “How is the
word of God to be preached by those that are called thereunto?” It gives the answer, “They
that are called to labour in the ministry of the word, are to preach sound doctrine,
diligently, in season and out of season; plainly, not in the enticing words of man's wisdom,
but in demonstration of the Spirit, and of power; faithfully, making known the whole
counsel of God; wisely, applying themselves to the necessities and capacities of the
hearers; zealously, with fervent love to God and the souls of his people; sincerely, aiming at
his glory, and their conversion, edification, and salvation.” Last time we saw the importance
of a man being duly called by God to preach His Word. Today we consider the way in
which God commands that His Word be preached.
I am convinced that some of the most severe judgments that will be announced on
Judgment Day will be those that are directed against preachers of God’s Word. What
could be more offensive to God than for someone to come into the organization which
Jesus died to build, to take up the all-important task of proclaiming God’s Word to His
beloved children, and to do it in such a way that is diametrically opposed to the way God
commanded it to be done? No wonder James warned: “My brethren, let not many of you
become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment” (Jam. 3:1). Moreover
God has made it abundantly clear how He demands that His Word be preached. Thus,
almost every phrase in today’s answer comes directly from the pages of Scripture.
First, there is the substance of the preaching itself. Four times Paul exhorted his young
protégés Timothy and Titus of the importance and need of “sound doctrine.” The word
means “healthy teaching,” in that it is without error or defect. Sound doctrine does not add
to or take from, but faithfully retains and communicates only and all of the meaning that
God conveyed when he first inspired the original giving of the text. Moreover, he must
preach “the whole counsel of God.” Not just the good parts, the happy parts, not just the
love and mercy, but also the judgements, warnings, rebukes, and as Calvin liked to say so
often, the “threatenings” of the Word of God. Ministers must be faithful to preach all the
doctrines of the Bible, for God gave all of them to us for our good. Therefore, I must first be
personally convinced and persuaded that what I have to say is truly the Word of God and
that He will make it prosper by His power, not mine.
Next, we see the method in which preachers are to preach. They are to be diligent in their
study and preparation. They must answer the call to preach even when it is inconvenient.
They must strive to speak plainly in a way that their audiences can understand, not trying
to manipulate through clever tricks of emotional and psychological play acting in words,
gestures, or styles but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power. That is, ministers must
set forth and show the truth of the message, that it is from God and that it is true and
dependable. They trust the Holy Spirit to convict, convert, and sanctify those who by His
grace He persuades to believe what they now have seen to be true and from God. So that
the power demonstrated is not that of man’s art and devising but of God’s grace:
sanctification in truth (John 17:17). The minister is to be zealous and wise as he does all he
can to show that the Word is true, that it applies, and must be applied to and by everyone
who hears and believes it, and with the same meaning in which God originally gave it, so
that they would know and be assured that they are believing in and obeying what God has
actually said.
Finally, we see the motivation of the preacher. He is to preach out of love for God and out
of love for the souls of His hearers. If I truly love God when I preach, I will seek to glorify Him
by saying only what He says, and aiming only at what He meant in saying it. And if I truly
love the souls of those who hear, then I will sincerely desire and aim to see people
converted, sanctified, and saved by what I say and how I say it. Thus, I will intentionally
speak out of a real desire to see people come to and grow in their faith in God and in His
perfect word. May God grant us a generation of faithful preachers of His holy word!
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