What Are the Biblical Means?

It has been a long time since I took internet classes from SWBTS. I felt the leading of the Spirit in a different direction. So now I am taking classes from Founders, a ministry within the SBC.

There were four classes being offered. One of them being Preaching and Preachers. I quickly signed up for that one. I am very glad I did. I have finished the first chapter of the text book Preaching and Preachers by Dr. Martin Lloyd-Jones moments ago, and I just had to share a couple of quotations and thoughts.

"What is the cause of the present reaction against preaching? Why has preaching fallen from the position it once occupied in the life of the church and in the esteem of the people? You cannot read the history of the church, even in a cursory manner, without seeing that preaching has always occupied a central and a predominating position in the life of the church, particularly in Protestantism."

He goes on to make some interesting observations as to why preaching has declined. First is that there is "the loss of belief in the authority of the Scriptures, and a diminution of the truth." Second is that "Pulpiteering" has dominated congregations with elements of showmanship and entertainment (much like modern TBN and Osteenism).

Although Martin wrote his book in 1971, he seems to be writing to us today even more so. Many would rather blend into the world around us rather than preach. Many leaders today believe we just need to engage the culture in new ways. Page 19 states:

"If only these men who have been set aside as preachers, and others who are prominent in the church, were to go out and take part in politics and in social activities and philanthropic works they would do much more good than by standing in pulpits and preaching according to the traditional manner."

I have been struggling with this very issue. I have noticed this problem for quite some time even before reading this chapter. If we just give things to people as some kind of welfare state, maybe they'll come to our churches. If we are just clever enough with our rhetoric, maybe they will come into our churches. If we just play more music, maybe they'll come into our churches. If we just give more entertainment, maybe they'll come into our churches. If we do anything but preach, maybe they'll come into our churches.

Is this the model of the New Testament church every denomination loves to pretend they are imitating? Sometimes I wonder if we truly believe that it is the power of the gospel that saves. I am not saying that we should cease doing the above, but it is painfully obvious to me that we do the above at the cost of the Gospel.