What would it be?
I was reminded this week of Paul’s statement in 1 Corinthians 2:1-2 where he wrote, “1 When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. 2 For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified”
I can’t help but think his encounter with the risen Lord in Acts 9 was part of the motivation for this statement. When you have come face-to-face with the Lord and walked away blind for a few days until one of the guys you were persecuting takes you in and takes care of you, you have the makings of a very memorable day!
Some times we weave Christ into our sermons but how often do we just preach about Jesus Christ? So that is my goal this Sunday. I am going to talk about who Jesus is and what he did and what that means for us. If that won’t preach, I don’t know what will!
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You’ve echoed a concern I’ve had for some time, Matt: https://keithbrenton.com/2009/09/09/what-should-we-preach/ and https://keithbrenton.com/2010/03/11/preaching-jesus/ .
I don’t know if you’ve heard this or not, but I thought of this message from a Canadian woman who was dying of cancer a few years ago: https://deathisnotdying.com/fullvideo/.
I think we spend too much time focusing on other stuff. Jesus is the reason we have hope and peace. Shouldn’t grace be the focus of most sermons? We’re nothing without the death of Jesus and the grace of God.
I guess you’re correct about preachers not preaching just about Christ, but is that a bad thing? Most of the listeners are believers who do need reminding but need instruction in living more than the story of salvation. The Epistle of James is a good example. Too often, I get bored listening to a ‘seeker’ message and leave feeling as though nothing said applies to where I am now.
Oh, I never said preaching on anything else was bad. I was just saying Jesus is still the main thing. Paul taught on all kinds of things and still made that statement in 1 Cor 2. So I wasn’t trying to exclude other topics. If you read this blog you know that not every post is directly about Christ. Hope that helps and thanks for sharing your thoughts!
I have been reading your blog. And my comment wasn’t about your general blog content. It was in response to the last paragraph of this post and only that.
Gotcha, thanks for clarifying and thanks for reading the blog. I re-read that paragraph and I see where you are coming from. I am still not trying to say that there is no room for any other topic, just trying to get focused myself. Have a good night.