Why Do We Preach?

For any practice within the Church, it is important to ask: “Why?” Preaching is no different. However, as Peter Adam notes, preaching finds its “why” in God’s revelatory initiative: “God is the source of our preaching: he provided his words, spoken long ago and written down for us, and he has instructed his servants to preach and teach them to his people.”[1] John Stott concurs with Adam, writing, “Behind the concept and the act of preaching there lies a doctrine of God, a conviction about his being, his action, and his purpose. The kind of God we believe in determines the kind of sermons we preach.”[2]

The practice of preaching, then, is rooted in a doctrine of the God who desires to make himself known. He has revealed himself through the inspired Scriptures, which make known his plan of salvation and provide instruction for his people (2 Tim. 3:15-17). Furthermore, God’s self-revelation climaxes in the incarnation of his Son, who is the very image of God (John 1:1-18; Col. 1:15). Thus, preaching is grounded in God’s desire to make himself known as evidenced in both the inspiration of the Scriptures and the incarnation.

However, as Jonathan Griffiths points out, God does not merely desire to be known; he continues to work through the Scriptures to reveal himself. Griffiths writes:

Scripture has its origin directly in God, such that the words of the Bible are God’s words. However, the striking thing we discover as we look more broadly through Scripture to discern the theological character of the Word is that God continues to speak today through the words that he once spoke. Scripture is not simply a depository and record of words that God spoke at some time in the past; it is the script that he continues to speak today. Scripture presents itself as a living thing.[3]

Within the pages of Scripture are the very words of the living God. As the author of Hebrews points out, God recorded his words for the original audience of Scripture, but he continues to speak through the Scriptures to the contemporary audience (Hebrews 3:7-15). Preaching then, to the degree that it is faithful to the Scriptures, is a continuation of God speaking to his people.[4]

Furthermore, Gustaf Wingren beautifully explains how God speaks through preaching: “It here becomes plain why we preach from a passage of Scripture…the voice must be heard, and it is a man on a journey who must hear it…If preaching makes the passage speak, then the living God speaks, and there is forward movement towards the goal of the great chain of actions, and man, as he listens, is led on his way towards life.”[5] Preaching must take place because, as Wingren notes, it is through preaching that God speaks to his people and works through his Word to carry out his purposes (Isaiah 55:8-11). Additionally, God commands pastors to proclaim his Word (1 Timothy 4:1-5) and the Apostles prioritized the ministry of God’s Word (Acts 6:4). In summary, God’s self-revelation, through his written and incarnate Word, forms the foundation for preaching; we preach, then, out of obedience to his divine initiative.

So, what does this mean for the church’s worship? This brief article argues that preaching is essential to the Church’s worship. Preaching is essential because it is grounded in God’s divine prerogative to reveal himself to his people. Through preaching, the Church hears God’s voice and follows him. While the Word of God informs all aspects of the Church’s liturgy, preaching is the means by which God calls men to repentance and faith. Therefore, preaching is central to the worship gathering and is not dispensable for the Church’s worship (cf. Nehemiah 8). Without preaching, the Church’s worship is incomplete.

Pastor, you have been called to perform a weighty yet joyful task. It is not a light thing to proclaim God’s Word to God’s people.

Pastor, you have been called to perform a weighty yet joyful task. It is not a light thing to proclaim God’s Word to God’s people. However, take heart that God in his grace has decided to work through you to minister to his people. While some may say that preaching is outdated or ineffective, God continues to work through preaching to build and sustain his Church. As Paul reminds us, “For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe” (1 Cor. 1:21).  So, preach this Sunday with great confidence and expectation that God will continue to honor his Word and build up his people. This is why we preach.

[1] Peter Adam, Speaking God’s Words: A Practical Theology of Preaching (Vancouver: Regent College Pub., 2004), 55.
[2] John R. W. Stott, Between Two Worlds: The Challenge of Preaching Today (Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1982), 93.
[3] Jonathan I. Griffiths, Preaching in the New Testament: An Exegetical and Biblical-Theological Study, New Studies in Biblical Theology 42 (London: Apollos, 2017), 9.
[4] Griffiths concurs, “If it is the word of God that preachers preach, then insofar as they are saying what the Bible passage is saying, it follows that God is speaking and his voice is heard.” Griffiths, Preaching in the New Testament, 10.
[5] Gustaf Wingren, The Living Word: A Theological Study of Preaching and the Church (Eugene, OR: Wipf and Stock, 2002), 191–92.