Lesson Goal
I want to encourage the preaching of Jesus, the gospel, evangelistic preaching from every part of the Bible.
Lesson Intro
Our planet is bombarded by dozens of important messages. Reversing dangerous global climate change is a message that is very prominent. Saying no to drugs is an important message. Feeding the world is an imperative. Protecting endangered species before they are lost forever is a vital message. A community on the alert for signs of terrorism is an important message. Not drinking and driving is an important message. However, there is one message that is far more important than them all, the gospel, the saving of all human life, not just temporarily, but forever.
Lesson Plan
We will look at how the gospel can be preached from even the Old Testament and how to preach an evangelistic message.
Lesson Body
The gospel is not only the gospel of the kingdom, but also the gospel of Jesus Christ (Mark 1:1; Romans 1:16; 15:19, 29; 1 Corinthians 9:12, 18; 2 Corinthians 4:4; 9:13; 10:14; Galatians 1:7; Philippians 1:27; 1 Thessalonians 3:2).
Preaching is for the Gospel
In English the word “preach” is ambiguous. However, the Greek word translated as preaching is not ambiguous. The Greek word usually translated as preach is ????ss? (kerusso) and means to proclaim like a herald, openly and in public. In Greek, preaching is mainly public proclamation of the gospel. If we do a word search throughout the Bible, we will see that preaching is mainly used for spreading the gospel (Matthew 4:23; 9:35; 11:5; 24:14; 26:13; Acts 8:25; 14:7, 21; 16:10; Romans 1:15; 10:15; 15:19-20; 1 Corinthians 1:17; 9:14-18; 15:1). Certainly we can also teach the gospel (Acts 18:11). Most sermons do not actually preach or teach the gospel directly, but teach other related things.
Much of what we have popularly called preaching in this manual is actually teaching, along the lines of a one-room discipleship class, in obedience to Jesus' mandate to teach what he commanded (Matthew 28:19-20). It doesn't matter if the teaching is loud or soft, animated or calm, it is still teaching. It only becomes preaching in the sense of the Greek word kerusso, when it is public proclamation of the gospel.
Some churches have two services on the weekend, one for teaching and one for preaching. The teaching service is for the church and the homily is a teaching sermon. The preaching service includes a gospel presentation for the public. Other churches include an evangelistic preaching message at regular intervals as part of their regular Sunday service, perhaps once a month or once a quarter. Still others schedule an annual "revival" for a dedicated period of evangelistic preaching.
Preaching the Gospel from the OT
How can we preach Jesus from the Old Testament you may ask? When the church began, that was the only Bible the church had. The New Testament was largely unwritten at first. So they preached Jesus out of the law of Moses and the prophets (Acts 28:23), what we call the Old Testament. How can this be done? The following is only a very brief outline, highlighting only some of the many possibilities throughout the Old Testament.
Genesis
Jesus is Creator (Genesis 1; John 1). Jesus is the seed of the woman (Genesis 3:15) that will destroy evil. As the ark saved Noah through water, Jesus' resurrection saves us through water (1 Peter 3:20-21). Jesus is the seed of Abraham (Genesis 22:18; Galatians 3:16-19). Christ's followers are inheritors of the promises to Abraham (Romans 4:11-12; Galatians 3:14, 29).
Exodus
Jesus liberates us from bondage (Exodus 13:3, 14; Romans 8:21; Galatians 4:3; Hebrews 2:15). Jesus is our Passover lamb (Exodus 12; 1 Corinthians 5:7; Revelation 5). Christian Passover is Easter. As Israel was baptized to Moses in the sea and the cloud (1 Corinthians 10:2) so we are baptized in the name of Jesus (Acts 2:38; 8:16; 19:5) and into Jesus (Romans 6:3).
Leviticus
Jesus is our sacrifice (Leviticus 1-5; Ephesians 5:2). Jesus is our High Priest (Leviticus 21; Hebrews 4:14-15). Jesus is our festival bread (Leviticus 23:6; 1 Corinthians 11:24). Jesus made us clean (Leviticus 16:30; John 15:3).
Numbers
Jesus was lifted up on a pole (Numbers 21:9, John 3:14). Jesus is the true manna (Numbers 11; John 6:31-58).
Deuteronomy
Moses wrote about Jesus (Deuteronomy 18:15-18; John 5:46; Acts 3:22; 7:37).
Ruth
Jesus is our kinsman redeemer (Ruth 4:6-7; Galatians 3:13; Ephesians 1:7; Titus 2:14).
Psalms
Jesus is the Son of God (Psalm 2:7; Matthew 3:16-17; Hebrews 1:5-6). Jesus was resurrected (Psalm 168-10; Matthew 28:6; Acts 2:25-32). Jesus is our shepherd (Psalm 23). Jesus returned to heaven (Psalm 68:18; Luke 24:51; Ephesians 4:8). Jesus is exalted to the right hand of God (Psalm 110:5; 1 Peter 3:21-22).
Song of Solomon
Jesus is the bridegroom of the church (Matthew 25:1-10)
Isaiah
Jesus was rejected by his own (Isaiah 6:9-10; John 12:37-40). Jesus was born of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14; Luke 1:34-35). Jesus is the prince of peace (Isaiah 9:6; 2 Thessalonians 3:16; Hebrews 7:2; 13:20). Jesus would be despised, rejected, denied and suffer great sorrow and grief (Isaiah 53:3; Luke 4:28-29; Matthew 27:21-23; Luke 19:41-42; Matthew 26:37-38; Mark 14:50-52). Jesus would bear our sorrows, sufferings and penalties (Isaiah 53:4-5; Luke 6:17-19; 1 Peter 2:24; Hebrews 9:28; Ephesians 2:13-18). Jesus would provide salvation for all humanity (Isaiah 59:15-16; 1 Thessalonians 5:8-10).
Daniel
Jesus is the stone that breaks all human empires (Daniel 2:34-45). Jesus is the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven (Daniel 5:13; 7:13-14). Jesus is the anointed one killed (Daniel 9:26).
Zechariah
Jesus entered Jerusalem on a colt (Zechariah 9:9; Luke 19:35-37). Jesus was betrayed for 30 pieces of silver (Zechariah 11:12-13; Matthew 26:15). Jesus was pierced (Zechariah 12:10; John 19:34).
The Subject of Evangelistic Preaching
The Greek word which we translate as gospel is e?a??????? (evangelion) and means good news, news that makes one happy, information that causes one joy, words that bring smiles, or a message that causes the heart to be sweet, according to the Louw-Nida Lexicon.
This is the subject matter of evangelistic preaching. It is not about anything else. It is about Jesus and his kingdom (Matthew 4:17). It is about salvation and repentance and the forgiveness of sins (Mark 6:12; Luke 24:47; Acts 13:38). It is about the resurrection (Acts 17:18). It is the word of God (Acts 13:5-7; 17:13; 1 Thessalonians 2:13). Part of that message is the things concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus (Acts 8:12; 11:20). It must be in demonstration of the Spirit and power (1 Corinthians 2:4). It will be preached in the whole world (Matthew 24:14). It is preached to the poor (Luke 7:22). It concerns peace (Ephesians 2:17). It concerns Jesus as judge (Acts 10:42). It is about the cross (1 Corinthians 1:23). It must be preached in season and out of season (1 Timothy 4:2).
The Gospel Preacher
In Ezekiel 2:1-10, we see that when Ezekiel was called to preach, he preached continually and with courage. He did not preach his own words, but God's, and he preached with conviction. This is how God's preacher is to be.
The gospel preacher is an important link on the road to faith (Romans 10:14). He must not preach his own message, but must be faithful to the message received from faithful servants beforehand (2 Corinthians 11:4). Paul as a preacher was specially ordained, appointed (1 Timothy 2:7; 2 Timothy 1:11).
Example Sermon
Title: "You are not Free, Unless..."
Goal
Preach the gospel as liberation from bondage.
Intro
Much of our western world prides itself on being free. Yet, our nations are not free, not in the sense that God would call us free. We are in bondage to sin, miserable, chasing empty materialistic gods, busier and wealthier than past generations, but unhappier and far less fulfilled.
Plan
Jesus is the answer. He alone can liberate us from bondage of modern, western material captivity. We will examine how ancient Israel was in bondage to slavery, compare that to our modern western world and see that it too is in slavery. Then we will see that only Jesus can deliver us from this bondage.
Body
1. Israel's Bondage (Exodus 13)
Israel was a slave class in ancient Egypt. They worked long days in the hot sun making bricks for Pharaoh's ambitious building projects. Egypt was for them, the house of bondage. They needed a special miracle to escape and become an independent nation.
2. Human Corruption (Romans 8:21)
We may wallow in western materialism, but we are slaves. Whenever I visit certain parts of our materialistic west, I hear of people wasting their lives sitting for hours each day in a car. Cars are only a luxury if you don't need to drive an hour each way through angry traffic to work five or six days a week. If you do, a car is no longer a luxury, but a prison on four wheels, a financial drain, an ozone destroyer, a waste of a life. We are in bondage to the corruption that causes us to have to drive rather than walk to work.
Even if we could solve all the world's problems and live in beautiful gardens with no pollution or crime, we are still in bondage to the corruption we call getting old. I occasionally visit friends in nursing homes, and as I do, I observe. I often see people who are out of it, no longer able to even know where they are. I often wonder what these people did in their earlier lives. Were they famous? Wealthy? Important? Influential? Whatever they were, they are now living in a body that has about gone past it's use-by date. They are in their final exams. They will not outlive their current condition. They only hope of escaping these corrupted material bodies of ours is salvation in Jesus.
3. Human Bondage (Galatians 4:3)
We may live in politically free countries, but no country is free. There is no such thing. Try crossing the border into another country at will. Birds do it every day. They are free, but we are not. We have to line up like cattle and pass security and immigration. We get a little stamp in our passports, which if we lose we are in deep trouble. We are not free from the necessity of carrying that passport and its little stamp. We must guard it carefully in case it gets lost or stolen. The same is true of all our other accoutrements which we must constantly guard, our private information, our wallets, our bank accounts, our homes, our cars, our families. How many locks, keys, passwords, and security codes must we guard. We are not free to just forget about all these things. We are plagued by them. We are indeed under bondage to the elements of this world, just as Israel was in bondage to the laws of the Old Testament. We need Jesus to set us free from the penalty of the law, and give us free passage into heaven.
4. Fear of Death (Hebrews 2:15)
We spend how much of our lives worrying about death? We are concerned that we might get cancer, or have a heart attack. We are concerned that a terrorist might blow us up, or a burglar might enter our homes and rape and murder our family members. We are suspicious of strangers because we have heard too many stories of strangers damaging or even murdering families. We buckle up in our cars so that we don't die in a car wreck. We live in fear of our lives and that is promoted nightly for us on the news. Even if we have lived a life of total precaution and managed to survive to retirement, we can't escape the inevitable can we? No we can't! We will all die, but through Jesus we can live again. Notice verse 14. Jesus died in order to destroy death.
5. Free at Last (John 8:32-36)
The truth is that there is only one way to be free. When Jesus frees us, we are free indeed.
Outro
Jesus is the answer. He alone can liberate us from bondage of modern, western material captivity, from our ultimate death. Jesus has solved the problems of bondage to materialism and fear of death. He alone can deliver us from this bondage.
Suggested Assignment
Prepare a gospel sermon that begins in the Old Testament.
Lesson Outro
We have looked at how the gospel can be preached from even the Old Testament and how to preach an evangelistic message. Every part of the Bible can be used as a starting point from which to preach the gospel.
