Preaching is an Act of Persuasion

One of my favorite quotes about preaching comes from Richard Baxter, the 17th century English Puritan pastor and writer. He described his mode of preaching like this:

I preached as if never to preach again; as a dying man to dying men.

That quote conveys the sense of weight and urgency that a Christian sermon must have. This sense of weight and urgency can be seen in the preaching of the prophets, of Jesus himself, and in the preaching of the Apostles, recorded in the Book of Acts.

“Knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade others“

In 2 Corinthians 5, the Apostle Paul is writing about the incredible hope that we have because of the gospel. It is a hope that enables us to live free from the fear of death, because we know that eternal life awaits us as a result of what Jesus accomplished for us.

And then, in 2 Corinthians 5:11, Paul declares: “Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade others.”

To persuade means to convince someone to accept or adopt a certain point of view, belief, opinion, or course of action. It involves presenting arguments, evidence, or appeals that are designed to change someone’s mind or motivate them to take a particular action.

What is it then, that we are called to persuade people to do? In 2 Corinthians 5:20, Paul says that it is as if God is appealing to people through us: “We implore you, on behalf of Christ: be reconciled to God!”

“I have written these things so that you may believe”

At the end of the Gospel of John, the Apostle John lays his cards on the table and says,

Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

John 20:30-31

In other words, John was trying to do something more than just convey true information. He was seeking to convey true information in a way that would compel and persuade people to believe.

Persuasion Versus Manipulation

There’s a difference between persuasion and manipulation.

Paul the Apostle, in 1 Corinthians 1-2, says that when he came to Corinth, he did not seek to manipulate the Corinthians in any way by use of rhetorical techniques. Rather, he preached Christ, and Him crucified, and he did so with a demonstration of the Spirit and of power.

So, while we do seek to persuade, we must never be manipulative. How does that work out practically?

The Power of Expository Preaching

John Scott explains the power of expository preaching in this way:

The skillful expositor allows the text to open itself up before our eyes, like a rose unfolding to the morning sun and displaying its previously hidden beauty.

John Scott, Between Two Worlds

So, the job of a faithful Bible teacher is to help people to see what the Bible is saying in a way that is clear, and in a way that helps them see that it is not only true, but why it matters for them.

It is not our job to make the Bible “seem” compelling, rather it is our job to help people understand why it is compelling, by helping them understand and even feel the importance and urgency of what the text is saying and how it pertains to their lives.

Our goal is to help people understand the badness of sin, the hopelessness of the curse — and the greatness of Jesus, and the goodness of the gospel, in a way that compels them to believe and to act.

Augustine’s Preaching Manual

Augustine of Hippo, the famed church father, wrote a manual, to instruct other preachers how to preach.

In that manual, Augustine said that the duty of a preacher is not only to instruct and teach, but also to “rivet and delight” – and to “stir and move people to action.”

The goal of preaching, therefore, is not only to pass on true information about the Bible, but to affect the beliefs, actions, and even emotions of those who are listening.

Ultimately, we want to be used by God to reshape the foundations of our listeners’ hearts; to change what they most fundamentally love, desire, hope in, and trust in — so that by seeing what God’s Word says they are compelled to love, desire, hope and trust in Him, rather than in idols of this world.

Compelling Preaching is Born Out of Two Loves

Compelling preaching is born out of two loves: love for God, and love for people.

Because we want to honor God by rightly dividing His Word, and because we care about the fate and destiny of people, we don’t just want our sermons to be informative lectures, but we desire to bring the “words of life,” the Holy Scriptures, to bear on people’s lives in such a way that they are compelled to respond by trusting in and worshiping Jesus.

Expositors Collective Webinar w/ Ryan Huguley

Because of the ongoing Coronavirus situation we postponed the Expositors Collective in-person two-day training weekends in Seattle and Honolulu, but we continue to look for ways to continue our mission to equip, encourage, and mentor the next generation of expository Bible teachers and preachers.

Our next webinar will be on September 19, 2020 from 9:00-10:00 AM Pacific Time (10:00-11:00 AM Mountain Time), and the theme is: Preaching to the Heart of Our Hearers.

We will be joined by pastor and author Ryan Huguley. Ryan is the pastor of Ridgeline Church in Salt Lake City, Utah and is the the author of 8 Hours or Less: Preparing Faithful Sermons Faster.

Ryan has a heart to help teachers and preachers grow in their calling. He has been a guest on the Expositors Collective Podcast and we are excited to have him join us for this webinar which will include a short message followed by an opportunity to ask questions and discuss topics.

Here’s an audio clip from Ryan introducing the webinar:

This is a free event, but is limited to the first 100 who sign up, which you can do by clicking the button below.

Calvary Chapel + CGN International Conference 2020: Online August 10-13

Every summer Calvary Chapel puts on a conference for pastors and ministry leaders in Southern California. This year the conference has been moved online because of COVID, but one of the benefits is that this opens up the opportunity for those who can’t easily take a week off and travel to California to be able to join and be encouraged. 

This year’s conference will be August 10-13, 2020. The cost is $10, which gives you access to all of the bonus content, including a seminar I was part of with Expositors Collective on the topic of expository and Christ-centered preaching and teaching.

We are using a platform for the conference which allows a lot of interaction as well as multiple “rooms” you can join during the conference for different seminars on topics those in ministry will surely find helpful and interesting for the areas where you lead.

Click this link for more information and to register: https://conference.calvarychapel.com

Writing Faithful Sermons Faster: Discussion with Ryan Huguley

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Click this image to listen to the episode

It was the day after Thanksgiving in 2017, and we were in San Diego, where my wife Rosemary is from. The next day, Saturday, we were driving back to Colorado, so I could make it back for church on Sunday, which meant that I had one day to prepare my sermon for that Sunday.

Rosemary and the kids decided to go to the zoo, which gave me 12 hours to prepare. At this point, I usually spent 20-25 hours preparing each sermon, so this was a daunting task.

8 Hours or Less: Writing faithful sermons faster by [Huguley, Ryan]

After they left our AirBnB for the day, I was scrolling Instagram (instead of studying!), and came across a post of someone holding a copy of the book: 8 Hours or Less: Writing Faithful Sermons Faster by Ryan Huguley.

I immediately did the math in my head: If this book could really help me do what the title claimed, then that would give me 3.5 hours to read the book, and 8 hours to write my sermon! I purchased the book on Amazon, read it, wrote my sermon, and made it back to Colorado on time for church that Sunday. That sermon can be found here: 5 Solas: Soli Deo Gloria (Colossians 3:16-24)

Since that time, I have implemented Ryan’s process, and shared about my growth in this area at the Expositors Collective training weekends.

Related post: How Much Time Should a Pastor Spend Preparing a Sermon?

Recently I had the opportunity to chat with Ryan over Zoom about doing ministry in Salt Lake City, his method for sermon preparation, and what advice he has for those who teach and preach.

The recording of that conversation was just released on the Expositors Collective Podcast. You can listen to it here: Expositors Collective Podcast: Writing Faithful Sermons Faster – Ryan Huguley, or click here to listen on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

Check it out, and I’d love to hear your feedback on in the comments!

Online Events: Expositors Collective Webinar & Prayer Around the World

Expositors Collective Webinar: May 9, 2020

The world as we know it is always changing. We have all experienced that recently with the COVID-19 crisis. In order for us to preach and teach God’s Word faithfully in an ever-changing world, we need to be led and empowered by the Holy Spirit.

As part of our ongoing mission to help equip the next generation of expository Bible teachers, we are excited to announce our first-ever online event: an interactive webinar on May 9, 2020 from 9-11 AM Pacific Standard Time (10AM-12PM Mountain Time)

Similar to our training weekends, the webinar will include short messages from experienced Bible teachers, and interactive opportunities to ask questions and discuss topics.

Schedule

There will be two talks, interspersed with opportunities to ask questions and discuss topics.

  • Brian Brodersen: “The Holy Spirit & Preaching”
  • David Guzik: “Consistent Message, Changing Styles”

For more information and how to join, visit ExpositorsCollective.com

Prayer Around the World Extended for Another Week

For the past 3 weeks Calvary Global Network leaders around the world have been leading live prayer on the Calvary Chapel Facebook page.

I have been leading from 1:00-2:00 PM Mountain Time each day, and it has been encouraging to see God use it.

It would be great to have you join me for these times of prayer; it has certainly been good for me to spend an hour in prayer each day for all that’s going on. I’m sure God would use it in your life as well.

Ministry in the COVID-19 Crisis and Beyond

This past week I was honored to be interviewed by David Snead on his podcast. David is a missionary in Lviv, Ukraine – and he is one of the most organized people I know.

We had a great discussion about my background in ministry, ministering in the COVID-19 crisis and beyond, Calvary Chapel, and expository preaching. Check it out:

Preaching Funerals

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In the latest episode of the Expositors Collective podcast, Mike Neglia and I discussed preaching funerals.

Click here to listen: Episode 100 – Preaching Funerals. Click here to listen on Apple Podcasts, or on Spotify.

As it so happens, this is the 100th episode of the podcast. As Mike shares in the intro to the episode, he had planned some fanfare and celebration for this milestone, but with the current COVID-19 crisis, it seems that an episode on preaching funerals is more apropos.

Mike and I recorded this episode in Austria back in January during the Calvary Chapel European Pastors Conference in Millstatt.

Whether you find yourself in the position of preaching or leading a funeral, or if you simply want to listen in to my process and insights, I encourage you to check out this episode.

Ministry Trip to Hungary and Ukraine

When I left on March 5 to Hungary and Ukraine, there was no recommendation not to travel to those areas – and even now there are very few cases of COVID-19. I am deeply concerned by the threat that this virus poses to the vulnerable and immune-compromised around the world, and am committed to doing my part to prevent the spreading of the virus.

That being said, here is an update on what Mike and I were up to in Hungary and Ukraine:

Expositors Collective Budapest

The Expositors Collective is a growing network of pastors and leaders who are committed to raising up the next generation of Christ-centered Bible teachers and preachers through interactive training seminars and a weekly podcast. 

Just last week, the Expositors Collective celebrated two years since our first training weekend in Thousand Oaks, CA! 

Since that first event, we have hosted 8 training seminars, the latest being the one in Budapest, which was a bit of a hybrid: as opposed to our usual 2-day format, we condensed it into a 1-day event, which required leaving out some aspects of our usual training. 

Budapest was also our first time working in a bilingual setting, as we had people in attendance not only from Hungary, but from surrounding countries, including Slovakia, Serbia, and Romania, as well as students from Calvary Chapel Bible College Europe.

The training went very well, and there is interest for Expositors Collective events in other European countries, as well as for the full 2-day version in Budapest at some point in the future.

Visiting Missionaries & Speaking at Churches

White Fields supports several missionaries around the world, mostly in Eastern Europe. (See: White Fields Missions) On this trip, I was able to visit all of our European missionaries except one, beginning with the Németh family in South Budapest. I had the opportunity to preach at their church, Golgota Dél-Pest. I loved getting to preach in Hungarian again. The video of that sermon is embedded below.

On Monday, March 9, Mike and I flew to Kyiv, Ukraine – where we were met by missionaries and friends: George Markey (senior pastor of Calvary Chapel Kyiv), and Nate Medlong, who serves in Kharkiv, Ukraine with Calvary Chapel Kharkiv and Fostering Hope ministry to children in foster care. Mike then took a train to Ternopil, in western Ukraine to visit missionaries there, and I went to Kharkiv with Nate to spend a few days with him, his family, and people from their church.

I taught the Thursday night service at the church in Kharkiv, after a quick trip up to Kyiv Thursday morning to speak at Ukrainian Evangelical Theological Seminary, where I taught two 80-minute classes on Spiritual Formation.

This past Sunday I taught at Calvary Chapel Kyiv, their last service before the national quarantine began. Video of that message is embedded below as well.

Calvary Chapel Ukraine Leadership Conference

On Friday-Saturday we had 65 Calvary Chapel leaders from all over Ukraine gather in Irpin for the annual leadership conference. This was a time of teaching, training, and discussing leadership principles from God’s Word in order to help us lead our churches well. Click here for photos of the conference.

With the spread of COVID-19, these gatherings are no longer possible or wise, but in God’s providence we were able to hold them while it was still safe and wise to do so.

It was a fruitful time of ministry, and great times of fellowship with people who are doing important work in a place where it is very needed. Please keep the work of these leaders and churches in your prayers that God would bless and use their ministries for His glory and for the good of many people!

Upcoming Expositors Collective Training Weekends: Las Vegas, Budapest – and More

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The Expositors Collective is a growing network of pastors, leaders, and laypeople which exists to equip, encourage, and mentor the next generation of Christ-centered preachers through two-day interactive training seminars, a weekly podcast, and ongoing mentoring relationships.

Our training weekends are open to men and women ages 18-34 who want to grow in teaching and preaching the Word of God.

These are regional events which many people fly in for, so even if you don’t live in area where an event is being held, consider joining us for a weekend. We always have discounted hotel rates for those who attend.

Las Vegas, Nevada: February 21-22, 2020

Our next event will be in Las Vegas, Nevada on February 21-22, 2020 at Calvary Chapel Las Vegas.

Click here for more information and registration.

Budapest, Hungary: March 7, 2020

This event will be a little bit different from what we usually do; it will be a one-day event, and will be bilingual: English and Hungarian.

For more information and to register, click here.

Upcoming Events in 2020

If you can’t make it to Las Vegas or Budapest, consider joining us later this year at one of these events:

  • May 8-9, 2020 – Seattle, Washington
  • October 2020 – Honolulu, Hawaii

Giving Tuesday

adult birthday birthday gift box

For Giving Tuesday, if you would like to help support some great causes today, please consider these:

Thanks and God bless you!