Sermon Work

An oxymoron - "sermon work"? It can be. It is easy to get sermons via the internet. One pastor used to say that he did not work his sermons up, he got his sermons "down". Meaning they came directly from the throne room of the Lord. That would be nice. And, in some ways, the Word and the Spirit do work together to produce the message through a human vehicle. More often than not, however, rather than receiving post cards from heaven messages arrive through the work of study, prayer, and thought.

Sometimes I am asked how difficult it really is to prepare a sermon. Sometimes it is very difficult and sometimes not so much. Occasionally it just flows. More often than not, however, it is laborious. I say it is a bit like giving birth, but saying that gets me in trouble every time. (We'll see!) The hardest part for me is the application. I mean that in two ways. How does this sermon apply to the hearers? What should they do with the truth of this text? The second struggle with application is more personal. How does this text apply to me and how am I seeking to live out the reality of it? Jesus warned about those who teach one thing and live another. There are certain topics that I blanch about when I preach on them. Suffering, for one. All people suffer to some degree or other. But, in the face of the catastrophic suffering some folks in the congregation go through, my pain seems a bit trivial.

As Tommy Snooks and Bessie Brooks

were walking out on Sunday,

Said Tommy Snooks to Bessie Brooks,

Tomorrow will be Monday.

And that is in the front of my mind - tommorow is Monday and what will this message mean then - when the saints move out into the homes and jobs. That is the application. Living out our faith in the context of the world into which God has called us with His glory in mind.