Many pastors of the Reformed Church have been understanding
the Christian sermon as an ethical teaching or dogmatic discussion
based on the following passage: “All Scripture is God breathed and is
useful for teaching, rebuking, correction and training in righteousness
(Dim 3:16).” According to “Dim3:15,” however, it is “the holy Scripture,
which is able to make you wise for salvation through faith in
Christ Jesus.” This means, it is “preaching” that declares the congregation
of the church about the evidence and the witness in the
bible(premise based on Christology and Soteriology). Further, the
ultimate purpose of the creation of the bible is to certify the congregation
that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and our Redeemer (Cf. John
20:30-31).
Hence, in the following passage I would like to propose some
premises for the pastor’s preaching in the everyday life worship
nowadays. All premises shall be based upon the purpose of the
message in the Scripture. According to the conclusion of my research,
first, the bible testifies the concept “God with us:” The God of the
Christian and Israelite chosen by Yahweh God. This means that the
preacher declares “God with us” in today’s world which in turn
indicates “Immanuel”Jesus Christ. This is because the concept “God
with us” has been recognized as the salvation of God through the
history. The message that “God with us” is equivalent to Jesus Christ
is testified through the bible to all of us in the world. For this reason
“Immanuel,” in other words, “God with us” is the ultimate hope for
people under a depressive, autocratic and destructive environment and
a definitive evidence of the salvation of the mankind.
Second, the bible states about the resurrection of Jesus Christ, three
days after his death. Hence, the news of the resurrection of Jesus
Christ became the first “Kerygma” preached in the early Christian
Church. In this sense, every preacher should transmit it to the next
Christian generation about the Gospel, or better, the resurrection of
Jesus Christ, testified by the first eyewitnesses. Preaching is the
theological hermeneutic of the message in the bible and also a
testimony to the congregation in today’s world so that people nowadays
also can understand the good news about the resurrection of
Jesus Christ.
By preaching, all preachers should not quit declaring the kingdom
of God, because nearby us, Jesus Christ has declared the coming of
God’s kingdom. In this way, the kingdom of God should be expanded
which can be posed as the third premise. The extension of the
kingdom of God and the witness of the resurrection of Jesus Christ is
the duty of all preachers and pastors in the Christian Church. Because
Jesus Christ said to his disciples as following: “You will receive
power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my
witness in Jerusalem, and in all Judae and Samaria, and to the ends of
the earth” (Acts 1:8). Based on this ground, the preacher has to ask
for help from the Holy Spirit because the spirit himself is the inner
witness of the bible message. This is the forth premise.
According to the premises above and the precedent argument,
Christian preaching can just be right if it is about the redeemer, Jesus
Christ who has given himself for the salvation of us, the sinners.
Because the Christian sermon should be based on the occurrences of
God, Jesus Christ as the “God with us” and all witnesses in the bible
about him. In conclusion, all preaches aside from the four foregoing
theological premises cannot be judged as a Christian sermon.
Many pastors of the Reformed Church have been understanding
the Christian sermon as an ethical teaching or dogmatic discussion
based on the following passage: “All Scripture is God breathed and is
useful for teaching, rebuking, correction and training in righteousness
(Dim 3:16).” According to “Dim3:15,” however, it is “the holy Scripture,
which is able to make you wise for salvation through faith in
Christ Jesus.” This means, it is “preaching” that declares the congregation
of the church about the evidence and the witness in the
bible(premise based on Christology and Soteriology). Further, the
ultimate purpose of the creation of the bible is to certify the congregation
that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and our Redeemer (Cf. John
20:30-31).
Hence, in the following passage I would like to propose some
premises for the pastor’s preaching in the everyday life worship
nowadays. All premises shall be based upon the purpose of the
message in the Scripture. According to the conclusion of my research,
first, the bible testifies the concept “God with us:” The God of the
Christian and Israelite chosen by Yahweh God. This means that the
preacher declares “God with us” in today’s world which in turn
indicates “Immanuel”Jesus Christ. This is because the concept “God
with us” has been recognized as the salvation of God through the
history. The message that “God with us” is equivalent to Jesus Christ
is testified through the bible to all of us in the world. For this reason
“Immanuel,” in other words, “God with us” is the ultimate hope for
people under a depressive, autocratic and destructive environment and
a definitive evidence of the salvation of the mankind.
Second, the bible states about the resurrection of Jesus Christ, three
days after his death. Hence, the news of the resurrection of Jesus
Christ became the first “Kerygma” preached in the early Christian
Church. In this sense, every preacher should transmit it to the next
Christian generation about the Gospel, or better, the resurrection of
Jesus Christ, testified by the first eyewitnesses. Preaching is the
theological hermeneutic of the message in the bible and also a
testimony to the congregation in today’s world so that people nowadays
also can understand the good news about the resurrection of
Jesus Christ.
By preaching, all preachers should not quit declaring the kingdom
of God, because nearby us, Jesus Christ has declared the coming of
God’s kingdom. In this way, the kingdom of God should be expanded
which can be posed as the third premise. The extension of the
kingdom of God and the witness of the resurrection of Jesus Christ is
the duty of all preachers and pastors in the Christian Church. Because
Jesus Christ said to his disciples as following: “You will receive
power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my
witness in Jerusalem, and in all Judae and Samaria, and to the ends of
the earth” (Acts 1:8). Based on this ground, the preacher has to ask
for help from the Holy Spirit because the spirit himself is the inner
witness of the bible message. This is the forth premise.
According to the premises above and the precedent argument,
Christian preaching can just be right if it is about the redeemer, Jesus
Christ who has given himself for the salvation of us, the sinners.
Because the Christian sermon should be based on the occurrences of
God, Jesus Christ as the “God with us” and all witnesses in the bible
about him. In conclusion, all preaches aside from the four foregoing
theological premises cannot be judged as a Christian sermon.