Inspiring sermon
These past few post I am talking about speakers in church (at least in my church:P ). I am writing this on Sunday afternoon after attending the morning service. This time, the sermon was quite ok except for one part. The speaker said, "The committee asked me to speak an inspiring sermon this morning (it was a Sunday to sort of promote Christian discipleship through Bible study)". And he said nothing more. Not long after that , in the opening prayer, he said, "Lord, may you speak your Word to us". [the words are not exact].
So, I am wondering, is the words of the sermon the speaker's own inspiration or is it truly from God? In my view, the speaker's own mouth has spoken that its because of his skill that makes his sermon inspiring. This leads to a question: is a sermon good because of the speaker's public speaking skills or is it good because God is truly speaking through the speaker?
I acknowledge that a certain degree of skill in speaking in front a lot of people is good but one must acknowledge that in the end, God is the one who speaks to the hearts of the people. One can be the best public speaker with fiery speeches but if God is not in there, it will not make a lasting impact on people. The speaker will only be remembered as a good and powerful speaker but whatever he said may not be remembered.
3I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling. 4My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, 5so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power.
1 Corinthians 2:3-5
The verse above is self-explanatory. Think about it.
Soli Deo Gloria!
So, I am wondering, is the words of the sermon the speaker's own inspiration or is it truly from God? In my view, the speaker's own mouth has spoken that its because of his skill that makes his sermon inspiring. This leads to a question: is a sermon good because of the speaker's public speaking skills or is it good because God is truly speaking through the speaker?
I acknowledge that a certain degree of skill in speaking in front a lot of people is good but one must acknowledge that in the end, God is the one who speaks to the hearts of the people. One can be the best public speaker with fiery speeches but if God is not in there, it will not make a lasting impact on people. The speaker will only be remembered as a good and powerful speaker but whatever he said may not be remembered.
3I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling. 4My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, 5so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power.
1 Corinthians 2:3-5
The verse above is self-explanatory. Think about it.
Soli Deo Gloria!
posted by child_of_God at 12:48 AM
3 Comments:
I believe that God helps us to find the words we need. I recently wrote a book and I had to go back to listen to the audio version - narrated by someone else.
As I listened, I was surprised by some of the words and phrases I wrote. I don't believe the words are God's words, but God inspires us to find the words we need, whether it is for a sermon or not.
When I teach about the fear of public speaking, I mention about several famous people who have had the fear of speaking. I then tell about Moses.
"And Moses said unto the Lord … but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue."
-Exodus 4:10
Yet, he freed the slaves and led them to the promised land.
I don't believe you have to be a powerful public speaker to hear God's words. You only need to speak from the heart (which is where God is)
One last thought. I haven't heard a professional speaker who didn't believe in God and didn't believe that God has inspired them. Again, the words are not necessarily God's words, but they are words inspired by God.
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hi! thanks for your comments. I appreciate it very much. I agree with what you said i.e. that God inspires us to find the words we need. Then the words that come forth is inspired of God. But the problem with the speaker in my article is seems that he is claiming all the credit for himself. Note the part I wrote '...he didn't say anything else'. It seems the prayer was either: a means to cover up or just going through the mantra of the prayer. :P
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