The Four Questions
A follow up to "The Four Sermons"
Two weeks ago I spoke about four different sermons styles, Expository, Topical, Evangelical, and Christ Glorified (though after some thought, a better name for the last might be “Christ Adored”). In that letter, I spoke about their significance and necessity to be used from the pulpit. Today I want to follow up with a guideline to approaching sermon messages from a congregational standpoint. These are a few questions that were presented to me, in order to help one better discern the health of the preaching within one’s own church.
1. How long before Scripture is spoken?
This question is slightly disassociated with the other three, however it was originally presented to me by a mentor of mine, who cared exceptionally well for my soul. A sermon ought to make scripture the foundation and forefront of the argument that it presents. Often times, I’ve sat in a sanctuary where the speaker had spent at least 30 minutes speaking before ever having read from God’s word. This is a dangerous message. It can all be done with good intent, however, if God’s word is not at the forefront of the message, then the message is no more than a pep rally, no matter the encouragement one might receive from it. Answering this question helps determine the importance that the speaker places on God’s word.
2. How am I saved?
This is a question that ought to be answered on a regular occasion from the pulpit. You can make Christian arguments all day, teach morals, philosophy, and any other Christian doctrine or jargon, but if your church’s message in not regularly confessing that we are saved by grace, through faith, in the person, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, then your church is leading you astray. As sinful human beings, we often times try and earn our salvation, and without the reminder of the gospel and how we are actually saved, then we can be led to many false gospels that are pervasive amongst the church today. I’ve known many circumstances in which it is often preached that we can be saved by our works, financial prosperity, or otherwise, and these gospels belong to the devil. Again, to reference back to my former letter about The Four Sermons, we often forget the gospel every week. If your church is not clarifying how salvation comes, through faith by grace in Jesus Christ alone, as a gift from God, on a regular occasion, then your church is not fulfilling its duty. Listen closely to the message shared, and be sure that hope for salvation is not put into anything else but Christ.
(As an extended resource, there is a book called Counterfeit Gospels by Trevin Wax, that does a wonderful job at helping breakdown some of these false gospels that may be difficult to identify)
3. What am I saved from?
We are saved from a just judgement for our sins that is delivered to us by eternal damnation unto hell. Often times, it is easy to forget this. Many false teachers out there have done a multitude of damage to souls due to their unwillingness to speak this answer clearly. There are an unfortunate amount of pulpits out there that answer this question by “once saved, you will no longer have troubles” or “once saved, you will receive blessings” or some other form of this substance as if we are rescued from turmoil. Though, as Christians, we do believe that we do receive the blessings of God, however our idea of a blessings can be significantly different than what God defines as a blessing for our lives. Same too, Christians believe that we will ultimately find peace and rest in Christ Jesus, but that does not mean that we will not experience pain and hardship while still here on this earth. J.I. Packer once said “A half-truth masquerading as a whole truth becomes a complete untruth.” and these sort of “profits of salvation” are used to draw people to a consumer relationship with God. It is a tactic applied by some to persuade an unbeliever to faith. However, due to its poor foundation, once that “new believer” first experiences the troubles that this world continues to bring, they cast faith aside, claiming Christ false, though it was not Christ who was false, but rather the practitioner of the pulpit. As 2nd Corinthians 4:2 says “But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God's word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone's conscience in the sight of God.”
4. What am I saved for?
There’s a classic question in the church which goes “what is the chief end of man?” with the answer being “to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.” We are saved for God’s glory. Not that He wouldn’t be glorious without us, but rather our being saved brings glory to His name. Our purpose, once a christian, is to bring honor and glory to God and seek our fulfillment in Him. How that plays itself out in each individual’s life can be different depending on your affinity, however, the foundation remains the same. This message can often times be misinterpreted. If there is a consistent pressing of a particular good action, such as the great commission for example, we can sometimes view the answer to this question as “we are saved for the spreading of the Gospel.” Though spreading the gospel is certainly an important part and command that we have been given to do by God, that’s not the exact reason why He has chosen to save us. At the center of everything we do, whether that’s by thought, word, or deed, ought to be the desire to bring glory to God. Asking ourselves, “how can I bring glory to God in this?” It is certainly possible for an individual to follow Christ’s commands, with the intentions of bringing glory to oneself such as if you care for the needy, and use it as an opportunity to draw attention to yourself, rather than bringing attention to God. Philippians 1:15 says “Some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from good will.” Our intentions matter when it comes to what we say and do, and even though Christ is preached and the hungry are fed, which are wonderful things indeed, as for the individual who is doing so, if done with wrong intentions, they bring judgment upon themselves, to the degree in which Christ might even say “I never knew you” just as He did in the book of Matthew (7:21-23). We serve an omnipotent and perfect God, and therefore, we add nothing to God when we are brought into peace with Him. God does not need us, but rather, He wants us. God is more than capable of spreading His Gospel without us, however, in His grace, has chosen to involve us in His plans. In so doing, we now seek enjoyment in Him and work to glorify His name.
Now let me repeat myself once more, these are guidelines, not a strict ruling. These are meant to help a listener along, but not every sermon will answer these four questions every time. However, on the opposite end, if these questions are never answered by your church, then there certainly is an issue that ought to be addressed. The answers to these questions are often forgotten, but are foundational to a Christian’s saving faith. These questions were also originally brought to my attention by Tony Reinke from an article he wrote for Desiring God published in 2016. They have helped me along my journey as a Christian, and my hope is that they will help you as well.