The Solution is Preaching. Preaching is central in how God communicates to us. Preaching solves our spiritual problems and brings blessings.

The Solution is Preaching

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The Solution is Preaching. Preaching is central in how God communicates to us. Preaching solves our spiritual problems and brings blessings.

What many people think

In many people’s minds, even many preacher’s minds, is that the solution to their problems and their lack of desires fulfilled is to get out and “make things happen.” This attitude manifests itself in a strong will, and usually the person “strong-arms” others to be a pawn in fulfilling their desires. When this thinking enters a church, whether it is applied to actual problems (think a church split) or perceived problems, (people need to volunteer more for the nursery) the result is the same. It is the pastor’s will against the people’s will.

What is a church?

To get our feet back on the ground and keep them there, we need to keep clear in our heads, what is a church? A church is a community of people who VOLUNTARILY come, give, participate and do everything that is done in the name of the church. Perhaps the pastor and the church secretary are the only ones who are paid to be there and doing what they do. But in reality, the church secretary works Monday through Friday, and she can come, or she can stay home on Sundays, and as a rule, most church secretaries do nothing as far as “ministry” on Sundays. That would seem to be because they are burnt out from what they do all week long (like most people), and they use that as an excuse for not doing anything on Sundays.

But to capture the idea here, the pastor is really the one person THAT HAS TO BE PRESENT ON SUNDAY, and that is because that is his job. He cannot just decide not to show up and go fishing instead. All the rest can do just that.

The entire foundation of a church is to convince all people involved to “be on the same page” as far as what the church is doing, what the individuals are doing. This convincing is preaching.

What makes a Church Function?

Pastors so often forget the principle thing that makes the church function. But we have to be careful here. It is not the pastor. It is not some energizer bunny person that is constantly “working” and active doing things. Any church that has somebody like that has a blessing from God. But the motivator of the church is the Word of God. I consider John 1:1-2, 14 as linking the Word of God with Jesus Christ.

John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John 1:2 The same was in the beginning with God.
John 1:14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

The word for “word” here is logos, which is a principle functioning in the real world. We understand that cardiology is the “principles of how the heart functions” as in live pumping hearts. That “ology” comes from the Greek “logos” or “logia”. If a church is doing what God wants it to do, that church has the principles of Christ working actively in it.

In like fashion, the Holy Spirit is also the motivator of the church. In a study on the Holy Spirit, what I observed is the “spirit” is what motivates and gives life and breath to a person (expression).

But while the Word of God is linked to Jesus and the Holy Spirit, the actual words of God are the key. The words of God in the Bible are actually spiritual and moral principles that, if obeyed, they give life, breath, and expression to the church.

The Focus on Preaching

What so many people fail to realize is that preaching has to do ONLY with the Word of God. God’s message to us is in the Words of the Bible. Your or my opinions and thoughts really do not work the work of God, and this is important. In a sermon, a good powerful and effective sermon that pleases God, the key element that pleases God is His own Word, the Bible.

Preaching fixes in us an understanding that causes faith. Faith changes our lives and brings us into conformity with the will of God. The Word of God fixes our problems and sets our lives straight in the sight of God.

Let me put this another way. People who believe in a form different than you, and you as pastor disagree with them, these people really do not resolve the problem by shutting up, by not pressing their opinions and views, by not arguing, nor even by leaving your church and going to another church. They suppress the problem and the problem will pop up again.

Harmony and Fellowship are Dependent on “Like Mindedness”

The KJV Bible has 3 places with the word “like mindedness“.

Romans 15:5 Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus:
Philippians 2:2 Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.
Philippians 2:20 For I have no man likeminded, who will naturally care for your state.

The concept is also very apparent in these verses.

Romans 12:16 Be of the same mind one toward another. Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits.
2 Chronicles 30:12 Also in Judah the hand of God was to give them one heart to do the commandment of the king and of the princes, by the word of the LORD.
Jeremiah 32:39 And I will give them one heart, and one way, that they may fear me for ever, for the good of them, and of their children after them:
Ezekiel 11:19 And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh:
Acts 4:32 And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common.
1 Corinthians 1:10 Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.
2 Corinthians 13:11 Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you.
Philippians 1:27 Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;
Philippians 2:2 Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.

The problem with most churches and people’s thinking is that they think that uniformity, harmony, communion comes because people obey the overbearing authority of the leaders. That is actually wrong. That is not where unity, harmony, and peace among us comes from. It comes from all parties “thinking the same way, the same thing.” So when we think alike, we believe the same truths the same way, that is where unity comes from.

Convincing everybody to Think the Same Way

So how do you convince everybody to think the same way? This is where preaching comes to bear and becomes the prime active element in establishing the thinking, beliefs, and way of acting out that faith, that believing. The first thing that is essential here is that you “unconvince” yourself as to things. You must blank out your own opinions and build new opinions and understandings based solely on what God tells you through hard Bible study. It is only when you personally, individually have done extensive study in the Bible, and constantly doing it every day, that you will begin to grasp what and how God wants things. If you did this, and it convinced you, then you need to share the same verses and passages and convince everybody in your church. When you accomplish this, conflict and differences begin to disappear.

There are some rules though. The authority has to be in the Word of God, not in a human person, not in their likes or experiences. We are all sinful, so nobody except Jesus Christ is without error. So, inherently, you are extremely wrong when you teach others to obey you because “you are in charge”. When there is not a reference to the authority of God, the Bible, then it is your will against mine. This causes extreme problems in the long run.

For the Word of God to take over and impose authority, we must follow some rules.

  1. The actual Bible must be read. It must be read often, it must be the same version of the Bible. It must be respected.
  2. The Bible must be explained so that everybody “is on the same page”, everybody understands the key passages the same way. This means that accurate exposition must be taught, and interpretations must be followed according to correct exposition.
  3. The authority of the Word of God must overtake everybody’s opinion, including the pastor’s. What is not explicitly said and correctly understood from the Bible, is opinion, and everybody has their right to their own opinion, and to live their own opinion. That should be respected among the brethren.
  4. The Bible must be interpreted correctly, but even obeying correctly without the proper spiritual motives and understanding is still going to cause problems.

Is it good that everybody thinks the same way? No.

Actually, no, it is not good. In many historical cases, the strong authority of a central figure or organization was wrong, and it was only when people respected each other and heard the reasoning of others with different points of view that truth was arrived at. In the time of Martin Luther, the Catholic Church held the absolute authority. They didn’t listen to Luther (who was right), and as such, the Catholic Church continues in error even unto this day.

But it is a testimony to the spirituality of the group, of the leaders and key figures in the group when they tolerate certain differences of opinion, that is where the Bible is not explicit on those points. The key is to separate things accurately into two difference groups. One thing is what the Bible clearly declares, and it is another thing entirely where the Bible is silent on a matter.

Deference, or giving others the Preference

Deference is defined as “Submission or courteous respect given to another, often in recognition of authority. A yielding of judgment or preference from respect to the wishes or opinion of another; submission in opinion; regard; respect; complaisance.” (Wikipedia.org)

The first thing to understand here is that we are to be like Jesus. This is to be like Him in moral character and in our personal character. Jesus was a picture of meekness, of humility, of humble service one to another. When you place a person of this character in a leadership, in an authority position, you get what pleases God.

Even when that leader has to rebuke and correctly others, he does it humbly, kindly, gently, with tenderness, courtesy, and thought for the other person.

As Abraham pleaded, “let there be no strife between us” (Genesis 13:8). That is the way godly leaders handle things.

See my tract…

The take-away

But we must understand that preaching the Word of God is what changes people morally. When you preach the Word of God and make it clear to everybody present, they are convinced, and then the conflicts will begin to disappear, and the cooperation begins to be voluntarily introduced again.

The Solution is Preaching

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