A Focus on Preaching

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

by Dr. Paul Chappell

"Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed."

John 6:27

A pastor of a large church was dedicated to preaching God's Word as he began his ministry. As the ministry began to grow, he realized that not everyone agreed with the strong preaching of God's Word. Every week he'd receive letters criticizing his messages. Some said they were too strong. Some said they should be mellowed out to appeal to a wider base. And some said the pastor should take a more loving approach. As time went on, the pastor soon noticed that the letters became fewer and the criticism was less. Convicted that this was a sign he had not been challenging his congregation enough, he stated, "I'm afraid that when I'm pleasing everybody, I'm not pleasing the Lord and pleasing the Lord is what counts."

Church is a great place to gather and fellowship with like-minded people. It's great to develop friendships with people who are saved and seeking to live holy lives. But when attending church, there should be a focus on preaching.

Sometimes we can become so caught up in the events of church that we forget the focus of church-listening to God's Word. The preaching of God's Word is one of the most important weekly activities in our lives. It strengthens us for battles, cleans us from the world, equips us for living, and guides us on our journey.

Value the preaching of God's Word. Open your heart to God's leading before every message and make preaching a priority. God's Word is a great asset in life, but it does no good if you aren't actively listening to it and heeding its commands.

Evaluate your attitude toward preaching. While working in the activities of the church is great, keep your focus on the meat of God's Word during preaching.

Today's Growth Principle
God's Word can help you in every aspect of life but only if you're allowing it into your life.

Old Testament Reading

Exodus 27-28

CHAPTER 27

¹ And thou shalt make an altar of shittim wood, five cubits long, and five cubits broad; the altar shall be foursquare: and the height thereof shall be three cubits. ² And thou shalt make the horns of it upon the four corners thereof: his horns shall be of the same: and thou shalt overlay it with brass. ³ And thou shalt make his pans to receive his ashes, and his shovels, and his basons, and his fleshhooks, and his firepans: all the vessels thereof thou shalt make of brass. ⁴ And thou shalt make for it a grate of network of brass; and upon the net shalt thou make four brasen rings in the four corners thereof. ⁵ And thou shalt put it under the compass of the altar beneath, that the net may be even to the midst of the altar. ⁶ And thou shalt make staves for the altar, staves of shittim wood, and overlay them with brass. ⁷ And the staves shall be put into the rings, and the staves shall be upon the two sides of the altar, to bear it. ⁸ Hollow with boards shalt thou make it: as it was shewed thee in the mount, so shall they make it.

⁹ And thou shalt make the court of the tabernacle: for the south side southward there shall be hangings for the court of fine twined linen of an hundred cubits long for one side: ¹⁰ And the twenty pillars thereof and their twenty sockets shall be of brass; the hooks of the pillars and their fillets shall be of silver. ¹¹ And likewise for the north side in length there shall be hangings of an hundred cubits long, and his twenty pillars and their twenty sockets of brass; the hooks of the pillars and their fillets of silver. ¹² And for the breadth of the court on the west side shall be hangings of fifty cubits: their pillars ten, and their sockets ten. ¹³ And the breadth of the court on the east side eastward shall be fifty cubits. ¹⁴ The hangings of one side of the gate shall be fifteen cubits: their pillars three, and their sockets three. ¹⁵ And on the other side shall be hangings fifteen cubits: their pillars three, and their sockets three. ¹⁶ And for the gate of the court shall be an hanging of twenty cubits, of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen, wrought with needlework: and their pillars shall be four, and their sockets four. ¹⁷ All the pillars round about the court shall be filleted with silver; their hooks shall be of silver, and their sockets of brass. ¹⁸ The length of the court shall be an hundred cubits, and the breadth fifty every where, and the height five cubits of fine twined linen, and their sockets of brass. ¹⁹ All the vessels of the tabernacle in all the service thereof, and all the pins thereof, and all the pins of the court, shall be of brass.

²⁰ And thou shalt command the children of Israel, that they bring thee pure oil olive beaten for the light, to cause the lamp to burn always. ²¹ In the tabernacle of the congregation without the vail, which is before the testimony, Aaron and his sons shall order it from evening to morning before the LORD: it shall be a statute for ever unto their generations on the behalf of the children of Israel.

CHAPTER 28

¹ And take thou unto thee Aaron thy brother, and his sons with him, from among the children of Israel, that he may minister unto me in the priest's office, even Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron's sons. ² And thou shalt make holy garments for Aaron thy brother for glory and for beauty. ³ And thou shalt speak unto all that are wise hearted, whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom, that they may make Aaron's garments to consecrate him, that he may minister unto me in the priest's office. ⁴ And these are the garments which they shall make; a breastplate, and an ephod, and a robe, and a broidered coat, a mitre, and a girdle: and they shall make holy garments for Aaron thy brother, and his sons, that he may minister unto me in the priest's office. ⁵ And they shall take gold, and blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen.

⁶ And they shall make the ephod of gold, of blue, and of purple, of scarlet, and fine twined linen, with cunning work. ⁷ It shall have the two shoulderpieces thereof joined at the two edges thereof; and so it shall be joined together. ⁸ And the curious girdle of the ephod, which is upon it, shall be of the same, according to the work thereof; even of gold, of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen. ⁹ And thou shalt take two onyx stones, and grave on them the names of the children of Israel: ¹⁰ Six of their names on one stone, and the other six names of the rest on the other stone, according to their birth. ¹¹ With the work of an engraver in stone, like the engravings of a signet, shalt thou engrave the two stones with the names of the children of Israel: thou shalt make them to be set in ouches of gold. ¹² And thou shalt put the two stones upon the shoulders of the ephod for stones of memorial unto the children of Israel: and Aaron shall bear their names before the LORD upon his two shoulders for a memorial. ¹³ And thou shalt make ouches of gold; ¹⁴ And two chains of pure gold at the ends; of wreathen work shalt thou make them, and fasten the wreathen chains to the ouches.

¹⁵ And thou shalt make the breastplate of judgment with cunning work; after the work of the ephod thou shalt make it; of gold, of blue, and of purple, and of scarlet, and of fine twined linen, shalt thou make it. ¹⁶ Foursquare it shall be being doubled; a span shall be the length thereof, and a span shall be the breadth thereof. ¹⁷ And thou shalt set in it settings of stones, even four rows of stones: the first row shall be a sardius, a topaz, and a carbuncle: this shall be the first row. ¹⁸ And the second row shall be an emerald, a sapphire, and a diamond. ¹⁹ And the third row a ligure, an agate, and an amethyst. ²⁰ And the fourth row a beryl, and an onyx, and a jasper: they shall be set in gold in their inclosings. ²¹ And the stones shall be with the names of the children of Israel, twelve, according to their names, like the engravings of a signet; every one with his name shall they be according to the twelve tribes. ²² And thou shalt make upon the breastplate chains at the ends of wreathen work of pure gold. ²³ And thou shalt make upon the breastplate two rings of gold, and shalt put the two rings on the two ends of the breastplate. ²⁴ And thou shalt put the two wreathen chains of gold in the two rings which are on the ends of the breastplate. ²⁵ And the other two ends of the two wreathen chains thou shalt fasten in the two ouches, and put them on the shoulderpieces of the ephod before it. ²⁶ And thou shalt make two rings of gold, and thou shalt put them upon the two ends of the breastplate in the border thereof, which is in the side of the ephod inward. ²⁷ And two other rings of gold thou shalt make, and shalt put them on the two sides of the ephod underneath, toward the forepart thereof, over against the other coupling thereof, above the curious girdle of the ephod. ²⁸ And they shall bind the breastplate by the rings thereof unto the rings of the ephod with a lace of blue, that it may be above the curious girdle of the ephod, and that the breastplate be not loosed from the ephod. ²⁹ And Aaron shall bear the names of the children of Israel in the breastplate of judgment upon his heart, when he goeth in unto the holy place, for a memorial before the LORD continually. ³⁰ And thou shalt put in the breastplate of judgment the Urim and the Thummim; and they shall be upon Aaron's heart, when he goeth in before the LORD: and Aaron shall bear the judgment of the children of Israel upon his heart before the LORD continually.

³¹ And thou shalt make the robe of the ephod all of blue. ³² And there shall be an hole in the top of it, in the midst thereof: it shall have a binding of woven work round about the hole of it, as it were the hole of an habergeon, that it be not rent. ³³ And beneath upon the hem of it thou shalt make pomegranates of blue, and of purple, and of scarlet, round about the hem thereof; and bells of gold between them round about: ³⁴ A golden bell and a pomegranate, a golden bell and a pomegranate, upon the hem of the robe round about. ³⁵ And it shall be upon Aaron to minister: and his sound shall be heard when he goeth in unto the holy place before the LORD, and when he cometh out, that he die not. ³⁶ And thou shalt make a plate of pure gold, and grave upon it, like the engravings of a signet, HOLINESS TO THE LORD. ³⁷ And thou shalt put it on a blue lace, that it may be upon the mitre; upon the forefront of the mitre it shall be. ³⁸ And it shall be upon Aaron's forehead, that Aaron may bear the iniquity of the holy things, which the children of Israel shall hallow in all their holy gifts; and it shall be always upon his forehead, that they may be accepted before the LORD. ³⁹ And thou shalt embroider the coat of fine linen, and thou shalt make the mitre of fine linen, and thou shalt make the girdle of needlework.

⁴⁰ And for Aaron's sons thou shalt make coats, and thou shalt make for them girdles, and bonnets shalt thou make for them, for glory and for beauty. ⁴¹ And thou shalt put them upon Aaron thy brother, and his sons with him; and shalt anoint them, and consecrate them, and sanctify them, that they may minister unto me in the priest's office. ⁴² And thou shalt make them linen breeches to cover their nakedness; from the loins even unto the thighs they shall reach: ⁴³ And they shall be upon Aaron, and upon his sons, when they come in unto the tabernacle of the congregation, or when they come near unto the altar to minister in the holy place; that they bear not iniquity, and die: it shall be a statute for ever unto him and his seed after him.

New Testament Reading

Matthew 21:1-22

¹ And when they drew nigh unto Jerusalem, and were come to Bethphage, unto the mount of Olives, then sent Jesus two disciples, ² Saying unto them, Go into the village over against you, and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them unto me. ³ And if any man say ought unto you, ye shall say, The Lord hath need of them; and straightway he will send them. ⁴ All this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, ⁵ Tell ye the daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass. ⁶ And the disciples went, and did as Jesus commanded them, ⁷ And brought the ass, and the colt, and put on them their clothes, and they set him thereon. ⁸ And a very great multitude spread their garments in the way; others cut down branches from the trees, and strawed them in the way. ⁹ And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna to the Son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest. ¹⁰ And when he was come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, Who is this? ¹¹ And the multitude said, This is Jesus the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee.

¹² And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves, ¹³ And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves. ¹⁴ And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple; and he healed them. ¹⁵ And when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying in the temple, and saying, Hosanna to the Son of David; they were sore displeased, ¹⁶ And said unto him, Hearest thou what these say? And Jesus saith unto them, Yea; have ye never read, Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise? ¹⁷ And he left them, and went out of the city into Bethany; and he lodged there.

¹⁸ Now in the morning as he returned into the city, he hungered. ¹⁹ And when he saw a fig tree in the way, he came to it, and found nothing thereon, but leaves only, and said unto it, Let no fruit grow on thee henceforward for ever. And presently the fig tree withered away. ²⁰ And when the disciples saw it, they marvelled, saying, How soon is the fig tree withered away! ²¹ Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done. ²² And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.

Proverbs Reading

Proverbs 1

¹ The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel; ² To know wisdom and instruction; to perceive the words of understanding; ³ To receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and equity; ⁴ To give subtilty to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion. ⁵ A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels: ⁶ To understand a proverb, and the interpretation; the words of the wise, and their dark sayings. ⁷ The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction. ⁸ My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother: ⁹ For they shall be an ornament of grace unto thy head, and chains about thy neck. ¹⁰ My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not. ^¹¹ If they say, Come with us, let us lay wait for blood, let us lurk privily for the innocent without cause: ¹² Let us swallow them up alive as the grave; and whole, as those that go down into the pit: ^¹³ We shall find all precious substance, we shall fill our houses with spoil: ¹⁴ Cast in thy lot among us; let us all have one purse: ¹⁵ My son, walk not thou in the way with them; refrain thy foot from their path: ¹⁶ For their feet run to evil, and make haste to shed blood. ¹⁷ Surely in vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird. ¹⁸ And they lay wait for their own blood; they lurk privily for their own lives. ¹⁹ So are the ways of every one that is greedy of gain; which taketh away the life of the owners thereof. ²⁰ Wisdom crieth without; she uttereth her voice in the streets: ²¹ She crieth in the chief place of concourse, in the openings of the gates: in the city she uttereth her words, saying, ²² How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge? ²³ Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you. ²⁴ Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded; ²⁵ But ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof: ²⁶ I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh; ²⁷ When your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you. ²⁸ Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me: ²⁹ For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the LORD: ³⁰ They would none of my counsel: they despised all my reproof. ³¹ Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices. ³² For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them. ³³ But whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet from fear of evil.