“It has been well said that nobody goes to church to find out what happened to the Jebusites,” opined Warren and David Wiersbe in their fine little book, The Elements of Preaching.
The Wiersbes continue with this advice, “A sermon that lingers in the past tense is not really a sermon at all; it is either a Bible story or a lecture. We live in the present tense and we need to hear what God has to say to us today.”
I recognize that opinions about the method and manner of preaching are like noses…everybody’s got one.
Wiersbe is not advocating a modern style of preaching with platitudes that ignores what the Bible says. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 “points the way for practical biblical preaching.”
“All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
When we correctly apply this passage to our challenges in the 21st century, the God-breathed Scripture will..
…Help you get right.
—Help you stay right.
–Equip you for every righteous work.
Both Old Testament narratives and New Testament directives find their application in our personal, social, cultural, family, and business activities. The Bible may be an old book. But it’s not an outdated book.
When we meet today for worship, it is the role and responsibility of preachers to lead the minds and direct the hearts of the worshipers toward a personal application that meets our individual and collective needs.
May all of us who preach today, preach in the present tense.
And may all who listen give an ear to “hear what the Spirit says to the churches” (Rev. 2:7).
–Ken Weliever, The Preacherman
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