So you want to be a preacher...

The first task of the preacher is to be loved as they are by Jesus Christ. Whether the preacher feels superbly saintly or seriously sinful, Jesus has already bought them with his own blood on the cross in as-is condition with no returns or exchanges. So they’d better get used to it. In case of emergency or dark nights of the soul, the preacher can look long and hard at themselves in the mirror and boldly say to the person staring back at them: “Hey buddy. You’re a child of God. You’ve been sealed by the Holy Spirit and marked with the cross of Christ forever. Full stop. Deal with it and get comfy because Jesus played for keeps with you.”

The next task is for the preacher to approach the text and let the text approach them. Other voices should be consulted in text and conversation. Hunches that crop up should be investigated and rabbit trails should be explored. Then thoughts need to simmer with the Holy Spirit keeping things cooking. Now it’s time to cobble their thoughts together.

Finally, at some point it’s “pencils down.” The preacher should feel some fear and trembling because the proclamation of the Hope for this universe is about to be proclaimed. The preacher has a wall of time that they get to decorate with the Word of God for the people of God.  Now preacher, go give ’em the Gospel as best you can manage and trust that the Spirit is already at work.


P.S. - Hey preacher, you can hit ‘em with law and that’s all fine and dandy, but don’t deprive them of the Gospel. Otherwise it’s Gilligan’s Island; which is fun and all, but doesn’t deliver the castaways to freedom.

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