Should we be preaching to Christians?
David Allis makes a strong (but long) case against preaching in Christian assemblies:
Recently, I studied the biblical passages about preaching, and was surprised at what I found - that the preaching that is referred to in the New Testament (NT) bears little resemblance to the practice of preaching in churches. I also looked through the shelves of a good Bible College library - there were about 1,000 books on how to preach a good sermon, yet I could find nothing that attempted to clearly justify why sermons should be preached.HT: Anti-itch Meditation.
posted by Milton Stanley at 6:23 PM
2 Comments:
Well, I think we should teach Christians, and preach to the "lost". But preaching to Christians -- hortatory, encouraging preaching -- could not hurt (unless it's shaped into an it's-all-about-me methodology).
Perhaps the Church universal would not feel so beleaguered and beat up right now if it began to simply preach to the those who are outside the kingdom: seeing the power of the gospel work its mighty wonders would fan the flames of hope and excitement that have been smothering beneath Christian narcissism, the Church's direct competition with (and imitation of) the 'winning' ways of the world, and the preoccupation with celebrity.
Plus, a little healthy dose of orthodoxy rather than a dalliance with progressivism would have a truly salvific and salve-like effect on a world -- and a Church -- with far too many wounds.
We need to see the "power of His mighty strength" once again.
Or else.
But I am speaking, really, from a position of weakness.
Peace, always.
Gnade
Amen. A "little healthy dose of orthodoxy" would indeed do us a great deal of good. Peace.
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