REFLECTIONS ON PREACHING #2

Forging The Blade

The blade is not only beautiful it is hand crafted and forged with just the right balance of strength and flexibility. If the metal is, too hard it becomes brittle and breaks easily. If the metal is, too soft it will fail to hold an edge and will be dull and useless. In either case, the sword becomes useless. Finally, the sword must be tested by a blade master to determine if it is suitable for the task for which it was made. A sword, even one that is perfectly made, is only a tool. This tool when wielded by the hand of a master swordsman can faithfully accomplish the task for which it was made. Becoming a master artisan or a master swordsman both take time and effort. While a preacher will unlikely, become a complete master of the craft, never the less he must strive to achieve that goal.

In the art of preaching, the preacher is an artist who is both the sword maker and the swordsman for both are art forms. The art of preaching must be approached as a spiritual endeavor. From the selection of the right text (the ore) to the study and research (heating, forging and hammering out and shaping the metal on the anvil) to the delivery of the sermon (the testing and use of the tool that was forged in the fires and tempered in the waters) this is from beginning to end a spiritual undertaking. Preaching then, is to take this sword of the Spirit and wield it with skill and strength against the forces of darkness and evil in such a way that it transforms the people of God.

Preaching must never destroy the people of God. It must be used to decapitate and destroy the multi-headed hydra, which is evil in our world. Evil like the hydra of myth will often replace the decapitated heads with multiple replacements. As a result, the craft of preaching is continuing process, a spiritual battle against evil for the hearts and minds of the people of God. Preaching must be transformational for the people of God not destructive to them. That means proclaiming good news that changes hearts, minds and the lives of God’s people.

The people of God should rightfully expect to hear a word from God when they come together. Preaching must begin with the scripture and proceeds with the great physician’s prescription to heal the disease of sin that plagues humanity. This word from God will mend the broken hearted and bind up that which is broken. This is an illusion to scripture found as a part of the message Jesus sends to John the Baptist. The disciples of John whom he had sent to ask if Jesus was the messiah or should they expect another. The last part of the quote from Jesus is that “the poor have the good news preached to them.” Mark tells us that Jesus “preached the good news.” Jesus is the preacher with a word from God (good news) to the people of God.

That word from God must begin with “the Word of God” (scripture) and not with the human condition. The text of scripture is the raw material from which the sermon must come. It is the approved workman who handles correctly the word of God. One should be as passionate about the process of drawing out from the scripture that unique word from God. It is something that the preacher must live with, meditate upon and pray over, because as he hammers and shapes the sermon it is also molding and shaping the preacher. It is a unique symbiotic relationship between preacher and sermon. While the preacher shapes and sharpens the sermon, the sermon also shapes and sharpens the preacher.

The preacher should refrain from bringing his own agenda to the text but rather, listen attentively to the word from God. The art of truly listening is much neglected discipline in our age. It is even more neglected and difficult when it comes to listening to the small still voice of God. This is a most difficult task. Listening to the text will help the preacher hear the questions that the text presents and provide the answers for troubled souls. There are so many competing voices to contend with in our lives. The preacher should resist the persistent and almost oppressive urge to listen to the voices of pop-culture, pop psychology and pop theology. Despite the fact that these are interesting, intriguing and as tempting as these all may be to pursue in another venue, they are not the source of our message. They are not the source of the questions or the answers, they are the dilemma and the disease to be addressed and healed. Listen to the text first and the culture second, then you have a word from God to the people of God (good news).

The television programs “The Office, Lost, Ugly Betty or even My Name is Earl” or other pop cultural programs are all the rage as resources for preaching material. However, the preacher should be cognizant that these events or programs are not where the sermon must begin. It is a simple and frequently a popular approach to grab a story or maybe theme from one these programs as an idea for a sermon. Then proceed to the concordance to find some scriptures that validate the theme and develop the idea, then present it as a sermon. This too, it would seem fails to measure up to the standard of “correctly handling the word of God,” “the sword of the Spirit.” Start with the word and bring its healing message to the present human condition, which is often well illustrated by pop culture images and stories. However, they are not the ore from which the craftsman forges the sword. That ore is the scripture. The preacher must begin with the scripture.

To be continued....

Bob Phillips

REFLECTIONS ON PREACHING

A PHILOSOPHY OF PREACHING

“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15) “After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. The time has come, he said. “The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news.” (Mark 1:14-15) There are two ideas embodied in these passages that set the tone and tenor for what will follow. The first is found in the phrase “correctly handles the word of truth.” The second is “Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming (preaching) the good news of God.”

While watching an educational program on the ancient art of Japanese sword making, my thinking began to coalesce around a philosophy of preaching. Admittedly, I stumbled over this idea and over a period of several years. However, I must admit that I do not have a deep or abiding believe in coincidence, so I feel compelled to attempt to glean from this story a spiritual application. I have over the years frequently ruminated on, reflected upon and considered the implications of this story. In so doing, I have been able to formalize and synthesize my thinking in regards to the art of preaching. I have devoted considerable intellectual energy and exerted tremendous effort in the process to develop this philosophy yet it occurs to me that it continues to be a work in progress. In the final analysis preaching, I am firmly convinced, is truly an art form.

Consider then, the following propositions, first, that the art of preaching has become a poorly practiced and second, often-neglected discipline in our post-modern age. Aristotle (the father of Western Philosophy and Rhetoric) proposed that oral address and persuasive writing contained three elements. From this evolved the erroneous or distorted application of a concept called the three-point sermon. I would assert that it is erroneous or distorted because, the three-point sermon of today shows very little resemblance to Aristotle’s concept of three points. His three points were not an outline with one, two and three or A, B, and C nor was it about three blank spaces on a power point presentation.

Aristotle proposed that every writing and oral discourse or in our case, sermon consisted of three points or elements that have remained a constant for almost 2500 years. These he postulated or proposed were the ethos (ethical or moral appeal, for him this included the credibility of the speaker or writer), logos (logical or rational appeal for him this was the most important) and pathos (an emotional appeal). In our post-modern culture, logic and reason are rejected and ethics and morals have become subjective. The emotional appeal has become dominate in this culture to the exclusion of the reasonableness of the argument or the credibility of the speaker. What is left with then, is an over emphasis on emotion. Frequently this results in an unbalanced incorrect handling of the word of God. This lack of balance is I believe detrimental to the art of preaching.

In the story of Japanese blacksmith (sword maker), an aged sword master spoke humbly and with great reverence and respect for his art. He said, that he viewed it as a spiritual endeavor from beginning (selecting the right piece of ore) to end (a razor sharp, ornate, beautifully crafted blade). In his view, it was much more than a job. It was both a spiritual calling and a labor of love. The master blacksmith prayed as he selected just the right piece of raw ore. He prayed as he smelted the ore in a hand made furnace, a process that takes days. He prays as he forges the metal. As he hammers it out on the anvil and continuously folds the hot steel into the shape and strength desired, he prays. At the end of this spiritual process, we are left with a beautiful razor sharp, perfectly balanced sword that glistens in and reflects the sun light. We posses a blade that is useful and powerful in finding off and destroying the forces of darkness and spiritual evil, wherever they may rear their ugly heads. There are two passages of scripture, I suggest, that are applicable to the story.

Ephesians 6:17b “…the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God.” Hebrews 4:12, “For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”

To be continued....

Bob Phillips