I have been up this morning since 3:45 a.m. and have been reviewing a
number of websites and researching on this mini series “THE BIBLE”. If
the Lord willing, I am going to address this series tonight in Bible
Study at 6:30 p.m.
Sometimes I am quick to speak and write before I do a more in-depth
study of the subject at hand. I am challenged to research and find the
right answers to the subject at hand.
I am confident in teaching the word of God but in matters of the
culture sometimes I am a little less confident as to what to say. Of
course sometimes I am quick to say what I think too.
Generally I have had little problem with just coming out and stating my belief. I am quick to say SIN is SIN.
And as a Pastor/Teacher/Shepherd over the Flock that God has made me
the Overseer (Acts 20) I am supposed to lead the church into holiness
and righteousness and obedience.
In my earlier years in ministry I believed that I was supposed tell
the flock just how to live holy and be obedient. You know, cut your
hair men, and women don’t cut your hair, kind of thing. What to watch
on TV if you were even to watch TV. Don’t go to movies and don’t dance
on Saturday night. And make sure you don’t read those devil versions of
the Bible. You know the kind of preaching that the Independent
Fundamental Baptist Preachers will do.
Then after going to the Shepherd’s Conference at Grace Community
Church in Sun Valley, CA. in 1982 I changed my ideas about preaching and
how to preach and what to preach.
Let the Bible speak for itself on issues. When I began a series from
Matthew and Romans I was forced to teach from the book, chapter and
verses. I was forced to try to say what the writer was saying when he
said it. I found that some verses did not say anything about TV and
wearing a tie to church. That was a shock for sure. Now what am I going
to preach about? How am I going to get the flock to live right and be
obedient and be holy? To go a whole sermon without mentioning SIN was a
new challenge.
Then I discovered that I was not the Holy Spirit trying to get people
to do what I believe they were to do. My preaching was to be what the
chapter said and then leave the results up to the Holy Spirit to direct
the Flock in the way the Holy Spirit desired. That was different.
I thought that at the end of the sermon I was to do my best to persuade
the Flock to come to the altar and get their lives right with God. I
would have a good song ready and I would get people to raise their hands
(well I didn’t do that much) and then come to the altar. If someone
did not come I was a failure I thought.
Well that all changed with a new view of my position as a pastor/teacher/and shepherd of the flock.
John MacArthur can be credited for this new approach to preaching and
teaching. He said that our responsibility is to teach the Word of God
in the context of the text that we are teaching. And do the best we can
to explain the text. This required a little study you know. I was to
give the Flock what the Bible was saying and not what I wanted them to
know about living life. This called for 80% interpretation of the text
and then 10% or more application of what the text was telling us.
I am supposed to believe that the content of Matthew, Romans, Acts, I
Corinthians, Philippians, Ephesians and Revelation (books that I have
taught) are what God wants the Flock to know. Here I thought I knew
more than the Bible on how to live. (kidding, dry sense of humor). I
thought I was saying what the Bible was saying.
There is a difference I learned from what I would say and what the
Scripture is saying. This is called Biblical Counseling I learned.
“Let’s see if we can see and learn what the Scripture is saying about
this matter at hand.” That was a new approach I might add.
Well I could go on with this but that was not the purpose of this blog.
