Every person you know is (for the most part) doing the best they can with their perspective, skills, and experience. How would your preaching change if you believed that?
We usually look at our own struggles with understanding, because we know our own lives. We don’t volunteer in the community because we’re too busy; we don’t spend time in prayerful discernment because whatever silent moments we get need to be filled with sleep or study; we don’t spend time with our neighbors because we’re drained after a long day.
But when we craft sermons, we often approach the congregation without the same kind of empathy. We often preach with an assumption that our people would live out the Gospel if they just tried harder. So we describe Christlikeness by general principles—“God invites us to live a generous life,” “God invites us to practice obedience.” “God commands us to love the people around us,” as if our people 1) Already know how to do these things, and 2) Do not want to practice them.
Besides being condescending, this kind of preaching is unhelpful. If your congregation is already doing their best, they need specific ways of approaching their lives through the lens of the Gospel—not an admonition to “do more,” “try harder,” and “spend more time with God.” Here are a few ways to approach preaching as Good News for our habits, practices, and relationships:
Explicitly address core human needs: If the Gospel is Good News, it offers the real and solid fulfillment of every desire we have. Even those impulses that we gratify through sinful behavior are twisted forms of desires God planted within our hearts. What, then, would happen if you built core human needs into your interpretation of Scripture? Instead of condemning desires, talk about the Gospel as the best strategy to meet a desire (even if it required sacrifice) in a way that leads to wholeness. How might your preaching change if you helped your people see how the Gospel provides the most solid fulfillment of their desires—even the ones that seem to pull them away from God?
The Center for Non-Violent Communication defines the core human needs as “Connection, Physical Well-Being, Honesty, Play, Peace, Autonomy, Meaning.” How does the Gospel apply to those things?
Assume positive intent: Most people come to church because they have some interest in being fashioned in the image of God. If somebody in your congregation already believed the value of what you’re preaching about (“Being generous,” “Having good relationships,” “offering forgiveness,”) it can be helpful to approach people from alongside, as someone who also struggles to live out the Gospel—rather than talking down to your congregation, or using yourself only as a positive example of the Gospel’s transformative ability.
Talk about resistance: What resistance will Gospel-centered people feel as a result of this text? How will this truth chafe against other values they have—even if those values are rooted in Scripture? (Example: Jesus saying, ‘Whoever does the will of God is my mother and brother and sisters.’ will be met with resistance from people who have been taught the church is centered around the nuclear family. So how will your congregant decide whether their extra time should be dedicated to community service, or discipling their family?) Talk about the apparent contradictions in Scripture, and how to make sense of them in living a faithful life.
Use contextual examples (during the sermon and after): Paint a before/after picture of what obedience looks like. What habits can an accidentally stingy person do (this week) to build generosity? What would this do to their life over the course of five years? Talk about a few people (maybe in your church, without mentioning their names) who exemplify generosity. Use vignettes that reflect your community. If you live in an urban area, situate your examples within this context. (Example: It might be a mistake to build your examples around inviting people into your yard, or giving time to help others do your yard work.) And if you live in a rural area, situate your examples within this context. (Example: it might be a mistake to focus only on examples situated in apartments, or in coffee shops in close reach, etc.) Beyond sermon illustrations, celebrate specific examples of faithfulness that appear in your church, whether during a testimony time, or on social media. Facebook groups and pages are great places to celebrate people in your congregation who have found ways to live out the Gospel in their own neighborhoods, workplaces, and relationships.
© 2023, Ethan Linder