I was thirteen years old when the school nurse told me, “Chris, I think you need eyeglasses.” The optometry appointments to follow would confirm this suspicion. Ever since that day, I have viewed the world through a particular set of lenses that make blurry images come into focus. Everything I see is interpreted through the lenses of my eyeglasses or contacts. In the work of preaching, is there a lens that preachers should adorn as they prepare for and deliver a sermon? Is there a certain perspective or principle that should focus every word the preacher speaks? This entry in the theology of preaching will explore the Scriptures and supporting texts to reveal the lens which sharpens and defines the exercise of preaching.
The writer of the book of Hebrews notes: “Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.” (Hebrews 1:1-2, ESV) This passage illustrates God’s revelatory nature. Jesus Christ is “the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature,” and represents the climax of redemptive history (Hebrews 1:3). In his book, Folly, Grace, and Power, Dr. John Koessler writes that Jesus is “God’s final and best word about himself.” The book of Hebrews goes on to feature the absolute supremacy of Christ’s person and work over all things.
This supreme message of the person and work of Jesus is most often described as the gospel. From his book and study Two Ways to Live, Philip Jensen recognizes the gospel as “the announcement that God's kingdom has arrived in the person of his Son, the powerful Messiah, who inaugurates his worldwide reign by dying and rising again so that repentance and forgiveness can be preached to all nations.” Christ would often preach, teach, and proclaim the kingdom of God. Jensen indicates that God’s kingdom is most clearly seen by the person and work of Christ. This is similar to the view of Lutheran pastor Helmut Thielicke, who notes that God’s kingdom “is where Christ Jesus is.” In other words, Christ’s presence brings, represents, and is the kingdom of God. The rule and reign of God is seen in no more tangible way than in Christ himself. The gospel, therefore, brings the kingdom of God into focus around the person and work of Jesus.
The gospel is also a message of power and efficacy. The apostle Paul describes the gospel as “the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes” (Romans 1:16, ESV). Paul’s words illustrate the active and powerful nature of the gospel. In the same way, Paul reminded the Thessalonians that the gospel came to them “not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction” (1 Thessalonians 1:5). Preaching the gospel is not an exercise in futility. Rather, preaching the gospel demonstrates the power of God through the work of the Holy Spirit, as dead hearts come to life in Christ. The effects of the gospel are revealed by saving faith in the Son of God.
What then, does all of this mean to the sermon? Is there some application that the preacher should make considering the nature of the gospel? Next to Christ, the apostle Paul is arguably the most influential preacher in the New Testament. How did he allow the gospel to shape and influence his preaching? To the Corinthian church, Paul writes: “And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.” (1 Corinthians 2:1-2, ESV) The centerpiece of Paul’s message to the Corinthians was the person and work of the Lord Jesus, the heart of the gospel. Christ and His cross permeated Paul’s ministry at the deepest level.
Did this elevation of Christ and the cross mean that Paul did not engage in any other subject of life or doctrine while he was at Corinth? A survey of the rest of Paul’s letter shows that he did address other topics: church discipline, marriage, sexuality, spiritual gifts, orderly worship, and many others. However, as Brian Chapell notes in his book, Christ Centered Preaching: “In Paul’s mind every subject, every address, and every epistle had a focus. Everything he did centered on making the cross and its implications evident.” The implications and results of the gospel are deep and wide. However, the core of Paul’s preaching was the gospel root of Christ and his work. Koessler illustrates it this way, again from Folly, Grace, and Power: “What is clear from all of Paul’s writings is that Christ is at the center of his theology and the cross is the anchor which holds its application in place. For Paul, all preaching was gospel preaching.”
The gospel is not a required pitch that should appear only at the end of the preacher’s message. It is not the addendum to the “real” message. On the contrary, the gospel is the lens through which every word of the sermon should be examined and presented. Koessler says everything “we know about God must be seen and understood through the lens which Christ provides.” In the same way that eyeglasses bring blurry images into focus, the gospel brings focus and clarity to every word, topic, illustration, and application of the sermon. If “faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ,” then preachers everywhere must embrace every opportunity to present and proclaim the gospel of Jesus.
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