The Sanctity of Preaching
not
Foolishness in the Pulpit
By
Bishop Melvin L. Maughmer, Jr.
SCRIPTURE: - Nehemiah 8:4, “And Ezra the scribe stood upon a pulpit of wood, which they had made for the purpose…”
PRAYER: -
DEFINITION: - Sanctity: holiness of life and character: GODLINESS: the quality or state of being holy or sacred.
OPENING: - The Hebrew (godesh) and Greek (hagios) are words used for holy or sacred they mean to be set apart. As an attribute of God, holiness means to be totally and utterly set apart from all creation and from evil.
Holiness is used of God’s Word similarly to the way it is used of God, namely, to be set apart from other things, to be sacred, to be exalted. 2 Timothy 3:15 says, “And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus”. Growing up the son of a preacher and then getting in the ministry myself this scripture is so true in my life. In my walk with God and especially in the ministry I have strived to know the scriptures, respect the scriptures, and teach the scriptures.
The Bible says in Deuteronomy 31:24-26 “And it came to pass, when Moses had made an end of writing the words of this law in a book, until they were finished, That Moses commanded the Levites, which bare the ark of the covenant of the Lord, saying, Take this book of the law, and put it in the side of the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, that it may be there for a witness against thee”.
God’s Word is not only Holy itself, but it is able to make us Holy. Jesus prayed, John 17:17, which is really the Lord’s Prayer says, “Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth”. The Bible is set apart above all other books in the world, because it alone is able to save Romans 1:16 says, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek”. 1 Peter 1:23 says, “Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever”.
Recently I came across something that just didn’t sit right deep down in my spirit, when I saw it the first thing that came across my mind was foolishness. It hit me so hard like someone talking about my wife or mother and I felt I just needed to address it. The Bible says in Ecclesiastes 1:9 “There is nothing new under the sun” there is no new theology, there is no new doctrine, there is no new standard, holiness is right. This message today is directed towards preachers because we have a lot of so-called preachers that are saying a bunch of nothing, edifying no-one and preaching nonsense.
Listen: - This man who so-calls himself a preacher is literally fussing at the congregation saying junk “What I ain’t worth your McDonalds money” “I ain’t worth your Prada” He is upset because he asked for a Movado watch last year and no-one has bought him the watch, so he calls himself chastising the congregation. He calls them his cheap sons & daughters. Well, if they are his sons and daughters then this is spiritual child abuse to the umpteenth degree to say the least. It is repulsive, disgusting and in NO WAY HOLY.
What I find sad about this atrocity is the ones that are sitting there and agreeing with this nonsense. You hear them saying Amen and agreeing with him and if you could see the video, they are standing on their feet clapping and saying preach like he is preaching the house down because they have not studied and had the Word of God revealed unto them.
Preacher - If you want a Movado, a BMW, a plane, a house Go to Work, save your money, get your credit right and buy what you want. Don’t try to take the Word of God and manipulate it for your personal desires, that’s what was done all through slavery, but that is another lesson.
There is a sanctity of the Word of God and unless that sanctity is upheld, unless it is defended, unless the people of God stand for Holiness souls will be lost and spend eternity in Hell because of foolishness like this that is coming from pulpits of charlatans – Charlatan is a person falsely claiming to have a special knowledge or skill; a fraud a false prophet. Deuteronomy 18:20 says, “But the prophet, which shall presume to speak a word in my name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, even that prophet shall die”.
QUESTIONS: - Preacher and we are all preachers rather we stand in the pulpit or not for we all have been given the ministry of reconciliation 2 Corinthians 5:18. When you walk into the church and see the pulpit from which you will preach from or since we are living in the technological world, when you approach a media outlet such as Facebook, what do you see? Do you see a place filled with awe and wonder as you present to the people of God the Unadulterated Word of God. Do you see the place where people’s needs are met, spirits are uplifted, encouragement is proclaimed, lives are transformed, and hope is manifested through the powerful Word of God or do you see a platform to showcase YOU?
PURPOSE OF PULPIT or MEDIA PLATFORM - The text Nehemiah 8:4, “And Ezra the scribe stood upon a pulpit of wood, which they had made for the purpose…” Understand this was a most solemn and important time in the life of Israel. We find the Priest/Scribe, Ezra, climbing upon the pulpit made especially for the purpose of reading the Law in a “restored” Jerusalem. From this pulpit Ezra read and proclaimed the Law to the people of the tribes of Israel who had gathered to hear the Law of God and it was Ezra’s responsibility to proclaim the Law to the chosen people of God. Here, for the first time, after many years, the Law was going to be publicly read and heard by the Children of God while the very soles of their feet stood upon the ground of the City of Peace.
Ezra 7:10 says, “For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the law of the Lord, and to do it, and to teach in Israel statutes and judgments”. Ezra knew what he had to do was very important and he could not take it lightly. He knew he must prepare himself before he walked upon that platform and stood as the mouthpiece of God before the people of God.
Imagine if you will what Ezra must have felt, holding the book of the Law in his hands, and watching as his fellow brothers assemble this pulpit for him to preach to them from. They were not building it for him just to be seen above the people, they were not building it because he was the star of the show, they were not building it because he was going to perform, they were not building it for him to say he wanted a gold chariot and a white horse, but they had an intended purpose, and that purpose was to read the Law of God. Many, maybe even thousands upon thousands of people, who had been stripped of life because of their sin, would gather expecting to hear the Words of God expecting to hear words of life and encouragement expecting from his mouth words that would either lift people up bring restoration and hope. It is that same feeling every preacher that brings the Word of God must feel that sense of awe and wonder, respect and reverence.
The pulpit is not just a place where someone once or twice a week stands and gives a sermon to people from the Bible on a spiritual topic which may help them make better decisions in life. It’s the place where God has entrusted earthen vessels to be used by the Holy Spirit in such a way as to communicate His unadulterated Word the Word of God to souls that have been stripped of life abundantly because of sin.
When bringing the Word of God forth the preacher/minister/evangelist must have an awe-inspiring feeling come over them that renders them totally dependent upon God to communicate the Word of God. There must be a complete reliance on God and total denial of self, or the pulpit is nothing more than a place where an exercise of emptiness and uselessness abounds. That’s what the man in the video was practicing emptiness and uselessness.
I don’t believe Ezra would have been standing upon the pulpit in a lackadaisical manner without any since of awe and wonder as he read the Word of God to the people.
Preaching the Word of God demands that the preacher takes heed of its meaning, its purpose and reason for being understanding that it is not about them but all about God and saving souls! Romans 10:13-15 says, “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent”. How shall men and women be saved unless the preacher is sent?
WATCH THS: - Preacher you are responsible for the eternal life or death of every man, woman, boy and girl that hears the words that come from your mouth over the pulpit or through a media outlet.
The preacher that stands before the congregation is ministering to people that are in need encouragement, edification, conversion, hope, deliverance, and salvation. The privilege given to the hearer is to receive the words spoken as “the oracles of God.” But what can be said of the preacher?
When the people of God look at the preacher, they need to see one who understands the importance of the task before them, be responsible and accountable and understands that the goal is Worship and Glorifying God. They don’t need to see an egotistical, self-willed, apostate that is propagating their own personal agenda.
The pulpit or that media outlet is that sanctuary where a truly called minister of the Gospel exercises their God-given gift and above all else Glorifies God.
While preaching they act as God’s divinely appointed heralder, portraying the image of Christ as the living Word in the message they bring. The preacher ought to be gripped with a sense that they are delivering Christ to the people through his preaching.
Preaching is not just a morally edifying speech that just makes you feel good and think that God just wants you to be happy. It is not a pep-rally to excite people to feel good for a few days. True Gospel preaching is taking the dominion and power of God and placing it within the deepest reaches of the souls ministered too. Psalm 42:7 says, “Deep calleth unto deep at the noise of thy waterspouts: all thy waves and thy billows are gone over me”. When you preach the unadulterated word of God you are planting seeds deep in the lives of people expecting fruit to come forth. When you plant good seed good fruit will come forth, but when corrupted seed is planted the fruit that comes forth is deadly.
Unadulterated Gospel Preaching should impregnate the one who hears the word with the life, hope, strength, and the encouragement, of God and Christ. When the preacher realizes this, they know this is nothing they have accomplished, but appreciates the fact that they are simply the vessel that has been prepared to pour Christ into the empty vessels that want to be filled with living water.
CLOSING: - As preachers, our primary responsibility is to herald forth and publish God’s truth. It is not a call to performance or showmanship. It is not a call to self-glorification or authoritarianism. It is a sacred mission to speak the truth. Remember John 17:17 says, “Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth”.
2 Timothy 2:24 says, “And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient”.
Charles Spurgeon wrote, “Sermons should have real teaching in them, and their doctrine should be solid, substantial, and abundant. We do not enter the pulpit to talk for talk’s sake; we have instructions to convey important to the last degree, and we cannot afford to utter pretty nothings.” He also wrote “Whatever else may be present, the absence of edifying, instructive truth, like the absence of flour from bread, will be fatal.”
Many preachers have mastered the homiletical technique, but their messages lack power. We have preachers that can stir emotionalism in people, but their messages will not keep you. Preachers, the Word of God is alive it is “quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword”. It has the power to discern “the thoughts and intents of the heart” Hebrews 4:12 and it must be delivered to people liberally and upbraideth not. God’s Word alone has the power to change hearts and effectually work in people’s lives; so, every preacher must embrace the Biblical call to preach and to teach God’s Word and not a personal agenda, pretty words, and nonsense.
The centerpiece of preaching must be the Bible, and sadly like in the case I presented in the beginning it is not! 2 Timothy 4:2-5 says, “Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long suffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables. But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry”.
We must make sure to keep the Sanctity of the Word of God, to preach the unadulterated truth, to stand for Holiness and not have foolishness in the pulpit.
Bishop Melvin L. Maughmer, Jr.
