When a preacher preaches, he must preach the Word of God (2 Timothy 4:1–4). Unfortunately, we know that’s not always the way it goes. From the beginning of time, false teachers have taught their own ideas instead of God’s. Jesus confronted the Pharisees and scribes of His day, quoting the prophet Isaiah, saying, “This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far away from Me. But in vain do they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the precepts of men.” And the Lord added, “Neglecting the commandment of God, you hold to the tradition of men” (Mark 7:6–8). False teachers are present throughout the entire New Testament. Sadly, in the book of Revelation, followers of Balaam, the Nicolaitans, and Jezebel were allowed by the churches in Pergamum and Thyatira to teach their false doctrine from inside the churches (Revelation 2:14, 15, 20).
Today, there are so-called preachers who continue to neglect the Word of God and instead peddle self-help tips, moral lessons, ecstatic experiences, political and social agendas, pseudo-Christian practices, and health and wealth promises—none of which have anything to do with the gospel of Jesus Christ which is a message of reconciliation between man and God. At best, they are distracting, man-centered talks. At worst, they are damning heresies taught by wolves in sheep’s clothing.
There are of course many faithful preachers who have as their main goal the reading, interpretation, explanation, and application of the written Word of God. I trust you’ve settled into a gospel-centered church and submitted yourself to a pastor and church leadership who faithfully teach and preach the Scriptures each and every week. If your pastor is a faithful preacher of the Bible, your right response is to acknowledge that what you hear from his pulpit is in fact God’s Word, not just a man’s. In other words, when we listen to a sermon, we are not listening to the word of a man, we are listening to God Himself, through the agency of that man. Biblical preaching necessitates that we understand whose mind is actually being revealed—it is the “mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2:16). Continue Reading →
