Why Preaching?

Bill Brinkworth

There’s a whole world out there, professing Christian and not, that do all they can to avoid getting the preaching they should be receiving. God deems this method of hearing what He has to say through a local pastor, so important that He has called many to minister to a local “flock”.

When the gathering of people listens to the preacher, here are some of the benefits that those that do not attend miss when they do not hear regular preaching:

Not every preacher that goes to the pulpit is in communication with God; however, they should be. If the congregation is getting what God wants the local church to hear for that day through preaching, then when folks do not hear God’s message, they are missing what they are supposed to hear!
Teaching from the Word of God is usually included in the sermons. When it is missed, people miss important lessons from God’s Word that they would not have gotten, even if they were faithfully reading the Word of God for themselves.
Most people, unfortunately, do not read the Bible for themselves. So, without preaching, they are getting no spiritual input in their lives at all. It should not be wondered at all, without any spiritual input and mostly worldly input, why so many live God-dishonoring lives!
Preaching promotes spiritual growth in the believer. When we are saved, there is a lot of spiritual house cleaning in our lives that we must do. God knows our limits, and that we cannot change all at once. Being there for every sermon is an opportunity to grow in the things of the Lord, at the rate God desires for us.
If they do not hear the preaching of the Word of God, they will miss out on much of what God’s will and direction are for their lives.
Much of preaching puts the spotlight on the listener’s sins and weaknesses. The intent of preaching is to warn the hearer of his errors and sins, so he can make changes in his life. Those that do not hear preaching continue in their sin and error and wonder why their lives are such a mess!
When people miss preaching they are missing the opportunity to be obedient to at least one of God’s commands.
“Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.” Hebrews 10:25
When a believer misses preaching, many unsaved see he is missing. Those that miss church are being bad examples to the unsaved!
Preaching can also be an encouragement. In a world that does not encourage godly behavior, the only place where Christians can be encouraged if they are living the way God desires, is through preaching. Not only can preaching be a checklist of what we are doing wrong, it can be a list of what we are doing right in God’s eyes.
Being amongst Christians is about the only place one will be encouraged to live for the Lord.
When a church-member is faithfully attending preaching, he is encouraging others that are also attending. Little attendance to preaching discourages those that do go. It does go through some minds at least once, “Why should I attend? So-and-so never comes. Why should I?”
If a person is unsaved, preaching may be the main way they will hear the saving Gospel in a language that they can understand. Preaching has saved and changed the lives of billions!

This world can be very hard, and God knows it. That is why He has provided a way for man to hear from Him daily through prayer, Bible reading and preaching!

“Be in church every time its doors are open!”

This article was featured in The Bible View #235.