People love stories. Allow me to explain. I once had a job working in a bookstore—not just any bookstore, but Barnes & Noble at its flagship store in New York City, situated on 46th Street and 5th Avenue. Imagine walking to work and looking up at the Empire State Building every day. As you can imagine, we had people from all over the world coming to purchase books. One thing I noticed was the rush to purchase new releases, especially if they were by a famous author like J.K. Rowling. Upon the release of a new Harry Potter book, people would queue outside the store before it opened to get their copy. Fictional books sell extremely well, surpassing every other genre. Incidentally, Amazon, the largest retailer on the planet, was founded as an online bookstore in 1994; today, it sells practically everything.
Fictional books take people’s imaginations hostage, taking them to other worlds and thus subverting the Kingdom of God. Escapism has become a multi-billion-dollar industry worldwide; books, Netflix movies, and computer games have become the twenty-first century’s solution for coping with life’s problems. Reading to escape has become the norm for millions. When asked why customers read certain books, they say, “Well, my job is so stressful, I simply want to escape. And reading a novel helps me do that.” Or “I just want to switch off from all the bad news in the world.” Or “Reading a book helps me enter another world.” These people read primarily to escape from the reality of day-to-day living. Reading helps people cope in a world that offers increasing uncertainty, threat, panic, and fear that leads to despondency. In most of the world, anxiety, depression, and suicide rates are skyrocketing. This is nothing new; the Roman Empire was built on
ruthlessness and brutality. Persecution of the Christians was the hallmark of Rome. Despite persecution in the early church, the apostles, filled with the Holy Spirit, turned the Roman Empire upside down sufficiently for the rulers to take notice. Fueled by the Holy Spirit and the good news of the risen Christ, Christianity ran rampant throughout the Roman Empire. The twenty-first century church needs to impact the world once again, just as it did in the book of Acts.
As a rule, the context informs the content. Read the room. Knowing your audience helps shape the sermon content.
As a rule, the context informs the content. Read the room. Knowing your audience helps shape the sermon content. (An exception may be if you have been invited to speak on a certain subject.) The apostle Paul was fully aware of the importance of understanding his listeners. On one specific occasion, the apostle Paul went to Athens. In Athens, Paul observed and identified the Athenian culture and its worship practices, then built a bridge to make a connection. Paul proclaims, “Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious. For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription: ‘To the unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you” (Acts 17:22–23).1 Paul had intentionally wandered around Athens to see what was important to the Athenians of his day. Paul simply read the room and took notice; this gave him the content of the message. Paul specifically sought to make a connection with the people of Athens.
“All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work” (2 Tim 3:16–17).
Whenever one is preaching, it is helpful to know the composition of the congregation. Unclear about what to preach on, Paul wrote this to Timothy as he awaited his impending death. “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work” (2 Tim 3:16–17). Paul, who once persecuted followers of Christ, suggests, “Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ” (1 Cor 11:1, NIV). Paul helped shape and establish the early church, and visited cities and seaports around the Mediterranean.
Ellen G. White, one of the Seventhday Adventist Church’s founding pioneers, agrees with Paul. Writing in the March 20, 1894, Review and Herald under the heading “Christ, the Center of the Message,” she gives guidance on what content to preach. She writes, “The third angel’s message calls for the presentation of the Sabbath of the fourth commandment, and this truth must be brought before the world; but the great Center of attraction, Jesus Christ, must not be left out of the third angel’s message.”2 So many sermons fail to center on Christ.
When visiting Martha and Mary, Jesus gave Martha a gentle reminder of what is important. “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her” (Luke 10:41–42). It is so important to keep the focus on Christ. Jesus’ own advice is, “And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself” (John 12:32). The strategy is easy: follow Christ and lift Him up. What could be simpler?
In John, we learn about Nicodemus, a well-read and scholarly Pharisee who was a member of the elite Sanhedrin. We know that Nicodemus had an inquisitive and perceptive mind because he visited Jesus one night. Recognizing Jesus’ divine qualities, he stated, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him” (John 3:2). Nicodemus knew Jesus was more than just an ordinary man. The Bible does not mention whether Nicodemus crossed the line to faith at that time; all we know is that he showed up at two pivotal moments in Jesus’ later life. Defending Jesus before the Sanhedrin, he pointed out that the law requires the right to a fair hearing. “Does our law judge a man without first giving him a hearing and learning what he does?” (John 7:51). At Jesus’ burial, Nicodemus, along with Joseph of Arimathea, sought to give him a proper burial. “Nicodemus also, who earlier had come to Jesus by night, came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds in weight” (John 19:39). Nicodemus had head knowledge, but he needed to meet Jesus on a dark night in Jerusalem to impact his heart. If you preach to the head, you will only reach the head by simply offering information. If you preach to the heart, you will reach only the heart by simply producing emotion. The preacher’s task is to reach both the head and heart simultaneously, wherein the information and the emotion produces transformation. Preaching is all about transformation.
Transformation is the goal of preaching. We are called to impact people’s lives for eternity. Zacchaeus, the tax collector, thought he would just get a glimpse of Jesus by climbing a tree. Instead, he gave his heart to Jesus. “But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, ‘Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham’” (Luke 19:8–9, NIV). What an honor to be called the son of Abraham by Jesus! It could not have gotten better; imagine the pure joy on Zacchaeus’ face when Jesus said that. When you preach to transform people’s lives, you are not only bringing joy to their lives; you are also bringing heaven down to earth, ushering in the Kingdom of God, fulfilling Matthew 6:33: “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” Transformation offers men and women a spiritual rebirth. There is power in the name of Jesus, which is why it needs to be preached so passionately without any hesitation.
Jesus transitioned from the head to the woman’s heart, and then the transformation occurred.
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She was merely going to get some water from a well at an odd hour in the day, but what happened next is the stuff of fairytales. When Jesus conversed with the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well, He first caught her interest by having a casual conversation and then introduced a spiritual component to the conversation. Jesus transitioned from the head to the woman’s heart, and then the transformation occurred. “When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, ‘Will you give me a drink?’” (John 4:7, NIV). Obviously, she was puzzled that a Jew would hold a conversation with her. Furthermore, He wanted a favor by asking for a drink. What cheek! “The Samaritan woman said to him, ‘You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?’” (John 4:9, NIV). After realizing that she herself was the thirsty one, “the woman said to him, ‘Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water’” (John 4:15, NIV). Still operating on the information level, Jesus then introduced the spiritual component which the woman gladly accepted, realizing her life of sin could be removed forever. Jesus offered her a new start to a pure, transformed life. Her newfound faith became a witness to her community. We read, “Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, ‘He told me everything I ever did.’ So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. And because of his words many more became believers” (John 4:39–41, NIV). When you preach to transform lives, it results in witness. That’s the power of preaching the good news of Jesus Christ.
1 All Scripture references are from the ESV, unless otherwise indicated.
2 Ellen G. White, “Christ the Center of the Message,” The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald, March 20, 1894.
Malcolm Perry, DMin, is a retired pastor and teacher, residing in Crieff, Scotland.
