Words of The Day

Sound Preaching

1 Corinthians 2 (King James Version)

 ¹And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God.

 ²For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.

 ³And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling.

 ⁴And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power:

 ⁵That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. 

I greet you in the name of Jesus Christ: Beloved like many Churches today the Corinthian Church was deeply divided. Two of the issues dividing it were a dispute over what kind of preacher should fill the pulpit, and which former minister had contributed the most to their church. (1 Corinthians 11-16). The church desperately needed to understand what preaching really was. Only if they understood what God intended preaching to be could they hope to solve their differences. One of the strong solutions to divisions is sound preaching. But what is sound preaching? That is a question that needs to be answered by us today. 

1)     Sound preaching is not eloquence or human philosophy.

2)     Sound preaching is one great theme: Jesus Christ and Him crucified.

3)     Sound preaching is proclaimed with a great sense of inadequacy.

4)     Sound preaching is not persuasive words, but a demonstration of the Spirit and power.

5)     Sound preaching leads to faith.

Paul stresses a critical fact: the concern of preaching is not to be eloquence or human wisdom or philosophy. Paul faced the kind of situation that we face today, and in reality, the same kind of situation that every generation of believers faces: a world that stresses the philosophy of humanism.

The world, not matter its generation, is constantly seeking more and more wisdom, education, science, technology , and new novel ideas, in particular ideas dealing with reality and truth. Nothing is wrong with seeking knowledge, but we must be careful. All of these pursuits are not only worthwhile, they are absolutely essential for man’s welfare. The problem is this: man seeks these pursuits within the framework of this world. He forgets God entirely.

As a result, the world’s wisdom, education, science, technology, reality, and truth are only of this world. And, of course, the destiny of all that is within the world is corruption and death. Everything within the world is unfulfilling within it, passes away, and ceases to exist. Sound preaching is declaring the testimony of God. The word testimony (marturion) is the mystery or revelation of God. The glorious testimony or revelation of God is Jesus Christ and Him crucified.

God Bless You.