I'm embarrassed

[Hekuran]

I've been an occasional preacher for quite a long time -- maybe 15 years. Whenever I preach I pray and prepare well. I listen carefully to what God is saying to me -- and to the church -- through scripture, and how to apply that to our particular situation.

I am a flawed speaker, I know, but I have always preached with the conviction that I am bringing a message that is the word of God.

Problem is, I look back on what I have preached five years ago and I feel embarrassed about it (not just because my voice is boring, some bits of the talk don't fit together well, my choice of illustrations is clumsy) because I have matured in my faith and my understanding of God and the gospel.

As I prepare to preach again I do so with the expectation that I develop and refine my understanding and in the future be not too happy about what I say today.

In a way that's a good thing: it will show that I am growing. But it leaves a big question about my role in bringing the Word of God.

 

[Hashe]

I think this shows that when preaching, we need to have a humble heart and acknowledge that we are sharing the best of what we know.
We also trust that God will take what we share and use it for his glory. Most people hear what they want or need to hear. Let's trust that God helps them hear what they need to hear, even if it isn't what we share!

 

[Hekuran]

Yes that happens. More than once someone has spoken to me afterward I've preached saying, "God really spoke to me when you said..." and then go on to say something that I never said at all. Sometimes it's throw-away lines that have the most impact. If God needs something said to an individual or a group, then I am confident it will be said, somehow.

 

[NetChaplain]

I've been an occasional preacher for quite a long time -- maybe 15 years. Whenever I preach I pray and prepare well. I listen carefully to what God is saying to me -- and to the church -- through scripture, and how to apply that to our particular situation.

I am a flawed speaker, I know, but I have always preached with the conviction that I am bringing a message that is the word of God.

Problem is, I look back on what I have preached five years ago and I feel embarrassed about it (not just because my voice is boring, some bits of the talk don't fit together well, my choice of illustrations is clumsy) because I have matured in my faith and my understanding of God and the gospel.

As I prepare to preach again I do so with the expectation that I develop and refine my understanding and in the future be not too happy about what I say today.

In a way that's a good thing: it will show that I am growing. But it leaves a big question about my role in bringing the Word of God.

Hi Hekuran - I find humility in your acknowledgement, which indicates to me you're in the right motive. As you've indicated concerning growth, God is always teaching us more, and the two key practices I've found to accompany my humility are "humbleness in pride, and patient on the Lord in trials."

 

[NoHype]

Humility and a pure heart towards our Heavenly Father is always going to be the best approach when speaking His Word. But one will still be judged on whether or not what they're preaching is actually God's Word.

I recall a time when my sister invited me to a new Church she was attending. The pastor had a Ph.D. from Vanderbilt. I told her I didn't really care how much education the guy had, but whether or not he was going to be covering God's Word or not.

The pastor said he was going to cover a matter in Timothy, so I opened up my Bible to 1 Timothy 1, ready to check him out. He did not read or quote one word from the New Testament. Instead, he went on a rampage based on the idea some have that Apostle Paul adopted Timothy, and then preached that we in the U.S. needed to adopt all these children from Russia, and foreign countries and such. His preaching was nothing but New World Order hype. And it was a really large congregation and brand new expensive building enough to seat a couple of thousand.

What really irked me about that was around that time a fellow-worker and his wife had just adopted two children from Ukraine. They had tried for years to adopt American children but there so much paperwork and difficulty involved that it was much easier to adopt children outside the U.S.

 

[DHC]

I've been an occasional preacher for quite a long time -- maybe 15 years. Whenever I preach I pray and prepare well. I listen carefully to what God is saying to me -- and to the church -- through scripture, and how to apply that to our particular situation.

I am a flawed speaker, I know, but I have always preached with the conviction that I am bringing a message that is the word of God.

Problem is, I look back on what I have preached five years ago and I feel embarrassed about it (not just because my voice is boring, some bits of the talk don't fit together well, my choice of illustrations is clumsy) because I have matured in my faith and my understanding of God and the gospel.

As I prepare to preach again I do so with the expectation that I develop and refine my understanding and in the future be not too happy about what I say today.

In a way that's a good thing: it will show that I am growing. But it leaves a big question about my role in bringing the Word of God.

Hello Hekuran.

Philippians 3
12 Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that
for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. 13 Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet;
but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the
goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

 

[Hekuran]

Thanks,

I don't have any internal conflict over the fact that I am imperfect. ;-)

It's more a question about the word of God and authority. When I preach I stand in the authority of scriptures to bring the word of God to life for people - to understand more of God and to follow Jesus more closely.

I believe that the main purpose of all preaching is to reveal God. The problem is that I know that my best understanding of any passage of scripture is flawed: I misunderstand things, misjudge the context of the passage, apply lessons inappropriately, pass over aspects of God's nature and will that I should not, and so on.

How can anybody preach the word of God with confidence when they know that their audience may have to unlearn things that we teach them.

Anybody else gone through this issue?

I ought to say that by and large when I preach, people are appreciative and say that my messages are helpful, thought-provoking and challenging. So this is a problem that is mostly inside my head rather than throwing churches into turmoil.

 

[clark thompson]

It is normal for me to get nervious before bringing the word before my church, this allows me to focus on Him and not my own ablity.

 

[Trax]

Thanks,



Anybody else gone through this issue?

.

Well, its not limited to just God's word and such, but all your life in general. As you get older, you learn more.
When I was 20, I thought I knew it all. At 50, I've gained so much knowledge, that I now know
I don't know much about a lot of things. I have looked back every 10 years and understand I wasn't
as smart as I thought I was then. But I'm pretty smart now, until I hit 60 and realize I'm wasn't.

 

[Hekuran]

I have looked back every 10 years and understand I wasn't as smart as I thought I was then. But I'm pretty smart now, until I hit 60 and realize I'm wasn't.

Yes that expresses it perfectly. I am four decades into this process now. At least we both find that we are wiser than our former selves, not dumber.

I think the next time I preach, I'll take a slightly different approach in my preparation. Rather than taking the position of administering the infallible word of God, I'll think of the congregation and myself as fellow explorers after God's wisdom and truth. I have the opportunity to share with others what I have discovered so far, and offer it with the hope that it helps us all in our walk with Christ.

This does not mean that I am taking a weak view of the authority of scripture, but a more realistic view of my capacity to preach the word of God. Despite my failings, I am convinced that the Holy Spirit can do all the revelation, encouragement, challenging and guidance that is necessary.