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Preaching vs. Teaching


OldSchool2

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On 3/14/2018 at 11:15 AM, Albert Finch said:

Lack of teaching is the biggest problem facing the church.  New believers are not discipled (taught) into (1) their inheritance in Christ (2) their right standing with God, and (3) Walking in the spirit.

The church somehow thinks that they will pick these things up as they go along.  This attitude explains the Laodicean mindset that is rampant in the church and the routine acceptance of the "nominal" Christian who has absolutely no idea of their calling in Christ Jesus.

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It's so sad. On judgement day, it won't matter how many people you got in your church.

It will all be worthless.

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Getting back to the original question of this thread, I would like to add my view on preaching vs teaching.  An older preacher once told me his guidelines for homiletics:

1.) What does the Bible say? 

2.) What does the Bible mean by what it says? 

3.) To whom is it speaking? 

4.) How does this apply to us? 

I try to use these principles for preaching or teaching.  So what is the difference?  Preaching seems to call for a response, while teaching imparts knowledge.  For instance, I can teach what the Bible says about hell for the purpose of informing the listener, or I can preach about hell for the express purpose of compelling the listener to avoid it.  Does this make sense?

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The gravity of standing in the place of God proclaiming what He has said is terrifying

James 3:1-5
3 My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment. 2 For we all stumble in many things. If anyone does not stumble in word, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle the whole body. 3 Indeed, we put bits in horses' mouths that they may obey us, and we turn their whole body. 4 Look also at ships: although they are so large and are driven by fierce winds, they are turned by a very small rudder wherever the pilot desires. 5 Even so the tongue is a little member and boasts great things.
NKJV

if one is s/Spiritually discerning this is a grave responsibility with the exception of false teachers for they are a god unto themselves... a s/Spiritual born man knows that if he, in anyway, exercises himself outside of Spiritual reliance to the objective source of God's written Word his error could be profound to others for whom Jesus died...
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To Old School.

 

The subject you had touched is indeed very important but is overlooked by the church. According to your post, it seems I little bit strange that some of the theological “giants” could not tell the difference between preaching and teaching! It looks like conversation between two Talmudists who tried to figure out of how many angels can be fit on the needle tip, and still couldn’t come up with any reasonable or logical answer.

 

Just recently we have discussion in my church about attracting and inviting people to the church, and as it is expected many suggestions had been made, but it looks like that none of them really work.

 

And the reason perhaps lies in the old fashioned format of the church which does a lot of preaching but no teaching. Preaching became like one size “shoe” that suppose fit all, and such approach never work before and does not work today.

 

The reason is simple, because preaching is inspirational entity and designed to inspire people, in order to keep people perfecting themselves, those who knowledgeable in the Bible Scriptures, and to grow spiritually in Christ. How then a person who just visits a church for the first time, who has a minimal or no knowledge of the Bible and practically no understanding of its Scriptures can be “inspired” without knowing the Holy Book?

 

Practically in every church I ever been, ¾ of the service dedicated to songs, some other entertainment, announcements, and the last part to preaching, and even that part often sounds confusing, pastors jumping all over different subjects, many pompous words, and has no meaningful context and no point made, just meaningless theology.

 

2Peter 2.18

18.For they speak bombastic nonsense and with licentious desires of the flesh they entice people who have just escaped from those who live in error. (NRSV).

 

 

Some churches conduct morning Bible study before major sermon, but this is hardly can be called as “study.” Many churches using their corporate booklets there the questions and answers and explanation already given. This form of study looks like a bull with the nose ring and wherever the master of the bull pull the ring the bull follows his master, or just like a train on its rails. In such “study” there is no deep though or essence given of the Word of GOD, it just like a boy who stuck in the first grade for life.

 

Real education in such traditional format of the church is completely absent. And no wonder, how then the church itself, that have not much to give to others except monotony and meaningless of theology, can actually attract and welcome those whose knowledge and understanding of the Bible at its minimum? Is it not the Paul who had rebuked church members of being passive and be still “infants” in Christ, means that they have no spiritual growth themselves?

 

1Corinthians 3.1-2

1.And so brothers and sisters I could not speak to you as spiritual people, but rather as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ.

2.I fed you with milk not solid food, you were not ready for solid food. Even now you are still not ready.

 

2Timothy 3.7

7.Always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

 

Hebrews 5.12-14

12.Though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic elements of the Oracles of GOD. You need milk, not solid food,

13.everyone who lives on milk being still an infant is unskilled in the Word of Righteousness.

14.But solid food is for mature, for those whose faculties have been trained by practice to distinguish good from evil.

 

 

So according to these passages it seems like the problem lies with the pastors and the hierarchy of the church. They are not able to teach and give good education to those who are coming to the church. True education in the church does not exist, only inspirational preaching conducted, which of course any newcomer does not understand. And this is why people coming in and going out of the church and never returned back. For a newcomer church’s preaching like Chinese into their ears.

 

In the churches, in which the education of the Bible is absent, there is neither knowledge nor understanding of GOD. Above all, far not everyone who wants to be a pastor shall teach.

 

James 3.1

1.Not many of you should become teachers my brothers and sisters, you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.

 

And so let it be!

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I believe if a well-prepared Sermon produces the following outcome or result"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock"(N.I.V Mt 7:24), then the Sermon would have reached its objective. Hearing here includes "'understanding" according to the Greek word for hearing "akouo" used in this verse.Of course different denominations praise and worship the Lord in many different ways.Some emphasize the "experience" element with music.Others strike a balance between Sermon and music. The true test I believe is not only the effect or experience in the gathering itself ,with everybody "sprouting angles wings"(Billy Sunday) but have the congregation really put into practice what they have "heard" and maybe "understood" (Mt 7:24) when they return to the home,place of work or any other activity they find themselves in and beyond the Church precinct.? Are we really behaving like Christians as expected by Christ?

From my experience I have noticed that like any monologue lecture ,the average listener can only effectively understand in a  20-25 min framework.One can only do so much in that limited framework.There are other means getting the message across , Bible study Q&A, Questions after the Sermon or whatever method of communication is used.Bearing in mind each has its drawbacks and limitations.The bottom line though, in my humble opinion is ,if nothing has been taught and understood then no matter how "huge" the "experience" was, one could just as well attend a "Rock Concert" or experience a "Super Bowl" event with thousands of folks having a great rave.

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