Book Review: Spirit-Empowered Preaching

In the last year or so, I became aware of the ministry of Art Azurdia, and the treasure of sermons available from his ministry as a pastor for some 20 years. Having heard a number of his sermons, I purchased his book, Spirit Empowered Preaching.

After hearing a broad variety of other preachers and kinds of preaching over the past three Sundays, I picked the book up this morning, and devoured it in two sittings. The reason I picked it up was the reason articulated in the Foreword to the book:

Preaching, in our time, has clearly undergone significant change. Often the preacher, even the evangelical preacher, is not more than a dispenser of new data (biblical or otherwise), or a motivator and spiritual counselor for spiritually starved and confused people. What is most obviously missing is 'the burden'. There is no 'woe' to be felt int he preacher's tone or spirit.

This is the malady addressed by Azurdia's book. It is no "how-to" book of preaching. It is an appeal that "the efficacious empowerment of the Spirit of God is indispensable to the ministry of proclamation." In other words, we don't need preachers with more style or gimicks or tighter outlines or more impassioned pleas or detailed application. We need men more full of the Holy Spirit.

• Men full of the Holy Spirit will accomplish "greater works" than Christ (Jn. 14:12)
• Men will accomplish those greater works by means of the the Spirit of God communicating through the Word of God — "the burden of the preacher is to experience the power of the scriptures in his own life before he stands at the sacred desk. 'The Word must become flesh again; the preacher must become the vehicle of the Holy Spirit, his mind inspired and his heart inflamed by the truth he preaches.'"
• The communication of the Holy Spirit is centered on Jesus Christ — the Spirit is given for the express purpose of revealing and glorifying Christ, which in turn is also the framework for all Spirit-empowered preaching. "…the vitality of the Spirit is His effectual work of glorifying Jesus Christ through fallible men who faithfully proclaim the Christocentric scriptures."
• An apostolic ministry (1 Cor. 2:1-5) is "characterized by a determination to (1) proclaim a foolish message; (2) appropriate a foolish method; and, (3) rest upon a foolish means. That is, the message is the "foolishness" of the cross (the gospel is not for unbelievers only), the method is preaching and proclamation because the method must correspond to the message, and nothing else — not drama, not music, not video — fits the message of the Word like preaching, and the means of accomplishing this evangelical ministry is through dependence on the power of the Holy Spirit of God alone.
• To minister in the Spirit's power, "the preacher must devote himself to a consistent pattern of fervent intercession,…prepare himself by the means of the diligent study of the scriptures,…[and he] must recognize, and even revel in, his own human inabilities.

And Azurdia also notes how important the listener and congregant is int his process:

• "the congregation must consciously refrain from any kind of attitude or activity that might contribute to a withholding of the effects of the Holy Spirit."
• "the congregation must earnestly take up its mandate to make intercession for the effects of the Holy Spirit through the preaching of the word of God."

This book is a petition for holy men to preach a holy Word. Azurdia is thoroughly biblical in his approach and explanation, and penetrating in his challenges. He not only provides a lens through which to view and evaluate preaching, but offers a seldom-spoken model of how to do preaching to the glory of God. It made me yearn to both get back into the pulpit, and to fill my mind and ears with good preaching.

Why I (and others) appreciate Piper’s preaching

Mark Dever wrote this about John Piper in the Introduction to Preaching the Cross (which C. J. Mahaney also quoted in his recent interview of Dever):

What a gift John is to the church. While too many of us are saying a lot of things quickly and running on to the next, John stops. And stands. And stays. And stares at God’s Word. Sometimes he stares at something that seems so obvious, but he keeps staring until it begins to expand and fill the horizon of his sight. It becomes rich and detailed and luscious and intricate and full and demanding and hope-giving and life-affirming and sin-denying and sacrifice-requiring and adjective-adding. John prays and thinks until the part of God’s Word which seems simple and obvious becomes fresh and powerful.

The cross and preaching

God did not ordain the cross of Christ or create the lake of fire in order to communicate the insignificance of belittling his glory. The death of the Son of God and the damnation of unrepentant human beings are the loudest shouts under heaven that God is infinitely holy, and sin is infinitely offensive, and wrath is infinitely just, and grace is infinitely precious, and our brief life — and the life of every person in you church and in your community — leads to everlasting joy or everlasting suffering. If our preaching does not carry the weight of these things to our people, what will? Veggie Tales? Radio? Television? Discussion groups? Emergent conversations?

God planned for his Son to be crucified (Rev. 13:8; 2 Tim. 1:9) and for hell to be terrible (Matt. 25:41) so that we would have the clearest vision possible to what is at stake when we preach. What gives preaching its seriousness is that the mantle of the preacher is soaked with the blood of Jesus and singed with the fire of hell. [John Piper, in Preaching the Cross.]

Sunday Leftovers (6/10/07)

Call this, "How to listen to a sermon about marriage (or any sermon)."

There is a temptation when a pastor announces his sermon topic as being "the roles of husbands and wives in marriage," for a husband or a wife to inwardly cheer, thinking, "Wonderful! I am so glad we came this morning for my wife/husband to be able to hear this. She/he needs to change…"

Is this profitable listening and worship?

I am struck by the fact that God approaches the subject of marital roles and attitudes in the same way through two different pens: Paul and Peter. In Ephesians 5:22ff and 1 Pt. 3:1-7, both writers address both husbands and wives separately and distinctly. Both write in this manner: "In the same way, you wives…" (1 Pt. 3:1). And, "Husbands, love your wives…" (Eph. 5:25). With those particular addresses, God is not only drawing the attention of both husbands and wives to their particular responsibilities and calling them to be especially attentive to the words, but is also affirming that the words are for husbands or wives alone. The wife is not responsible to obey the words to the husband, nor is the husband responsible to follow the words to the wife. That's obvious enough.

But this is also true: nor are these words written to give the husband a figurative hammer to hold over his wife's head (nor a wife over the head of the husband). The husband should be encouraged that God has clearly written about the role of the wife, but it is not his "responsibility" to enforce her obedience. That is not worshipful listening to a sermon.

Worshipful listening to a sermon says, "This word is being spoken to me. How can I take this truth and use it to be transformed into greater Christlikeness this week?"

The Word of God is powerful and able to do at least four things in the life of the believer. As we listen to sermons, we should always be asking at least these four questions:

• Is there some truth being revealed which I did not know? (Learn it!)
• Is there some sin in my life which needs to be addressed? (Confess it!)
• Is there some spiritual weakness which needs correction? (Obey it!)
• Is there some righteousness which I need to put on and in which I need training? (Put it on!)

So, go back to the moment when a husband and wife, who are struggling in their marriage, here this topic announced by the pastor: "This morning's sermon addresses a Biblical understanding of how a husband graciously leads and a wife humbly submits in a godly home." How shall they respond? "Wonderful! I am so glad we came this morning, because we are struggling in our marriage, and I know that the primary responsibility is mine. I want to hear this word so that I can be changed and honor God more righteously in my home. Lord, will you give me ears to hear and a heart to obey the truth that I hear this morning?"

That will be both profitable listening and worship!