I got an email earlier this week, reminding me that I owe Headway an article on preaching- something I promised months ago. So, I've had a shot, please give it a read and let me know your thoughts, baring in mind our readership is fairly trad...
Having been guided by Shirley through my time as a local preacher, it is interesting to note the similarities between her call to preach and mine. In particular, I too was given the responsibility of delivering the Word when my youth group led a Sunday service. But it was a few years after this first attempt, before I took the call to preach seriously…
Truth be told I blame Pete Phillips. One month into my three-year stint at Cliff College, we began planning our first faith-sharing mission, to St Mark’s in Scunthorpe. I had known Pete for sometime, particularly through my involvement at the Derwent Convention, so it was rather surprising that he suggested that I, an innocent, under-educated, theologically naive, first year, preach on the Sunday night what was effectively the keynote address. Why me when he was there? Why me when I had only preached once before? Why me Pete? Why me?
Besides telling some funny story about driving at the night, I can’t remember much about the sermon, but I do remember feeling a surprising level of peace as I shared what I felt God had put on my heart. I also remember Pete encouraging me afterwards to pursue this calling further, so I did. Five years later I’m a fully accredited local preacher and hope very much that like Shirley, one day I too will get a certificate for 40 years of faithful service. However, if that is to happen and if preaching is to remain a part of how we ‘do church’ then I am acutely aware of the need to understand my call to preach in view of those I am called to preach to. In a complex culture, which is sceptical of authority and often dismissive of truth, a ‘call to preach’ is no longer satisfied by the delivery of the traditional didactic sermon. In proclaiming the Word, God is calling me to something else.
In little under two years time, I will get married. Sometime after that Zoë and I will, God willing, have children- ideally two little boys and a girl but we’ll leave that up to the boss. So all being well in about twenty years time I might have the job of parenting rebellious teenagers. In doing so a decision will have to be made (or more likely several decisions), either Zoë and I lay down the law or we create a safe context in which mistakes can be made and lessons learnt.
In living out my call to preach similar decisions must be made. In the (post)modern climate the former approach will perhaps keep some on what we consider the straight and narrow but it is increasingly likely that this approach will exclude those on the fringes of the church who question our motives, authority and interpretation. So instead, in my call to preach I will endeavour to take the latter option not just because that is what I think is necessary, but because that was the approach of Christ who when asked to lay down the law often responded “Let me tell you a story…”
I don’t know what preaching in forty years will look like but if it is to relate and captivate, as with the first-century synagogues and indeed much of early Christian history, values of openness and interaction will be central. Through story-telling, testimony and conversation, I hope that I, along with local preachers across the land, might be able to foster such values as we work out our own call to preach in the third millennium.
Not especially dynamic I fear. But it should rattle a few evangelical cages I think. Interesting to see that jonny also has an article on preaching, looking forward to reading that later, might even blog about it tomorrow!
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