What Kind of Preaching Does the World Need Today?

2020. 2021. What is even going on? What do people need to hear in times like these? What do we need to hear from our preachers?

SIMPLE PREACHING

It is the age of Fake News. Who knows what to believe? And who really knows what is actually going on? It can all be so confusing and discouraging. In times like these, we need God’s men to tell us what God says as plainly as possible. People are filled with questions; God has provided many answers. It is a day for preachers to make their sermons easy to follow, so that God’s truth may ring out powerfully in our minds and hearts.

TRANSCENDENT PREACHING

The pandemic has pushed us home. Being isolated has pushed us to social media. Social media has pushed us to outrage (pro tip: the key to social media zen is to throw everything into meme acquisition). This tends to lock us into worldly mindsets. What we need most every week is to see Christ in all his heavenly goodness. He has overcome the world; he reigns now from on high. What is a true sermon but a transportation to the realms of God? This is the preaching we desperately need, now and always.

GOSPEL PREACHING

When bad news fills the headlines, we must hear good news from heaven. Gospel preaching is refreshing to weary earth-travelers: “Like cold water to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far country” (Prov 25:25). It satisfies. It nourishes. It rejoices the heart, and it makes us grow. We must often hear of God’s mighty love for sinners and of Christ’s completed work for us. It is what the world needs most of all.