Tag: persuasion

Painful, But Exhilarating

Neal Pollard

    On a particular occasion, I was listening to a great sermon on worship. It was interesting and, in a very real way, enjoyable.  But it was also forceful and convicting.  The longer he preached, the more the message kept penetrating and pricking my heart.  His sermon consisted of two points, that worship is an intentional meeting with God and, when we come, we must bring an offering.  That may sound somewhat plain, but it was powerful.

   Do not think that my view is that it is not a good sermon if your toes have not been crunched and you have not gone on a guilt trip.  I love feel good sermons on grace and heaven, the same as the next brother or sister.  However, as I listened to him preach that night, I thought of so many sermons by Camp, Clark, McCord, Winkler, Nichols, and others of their ilk.  The rich overflow from a man who has studied, prepared, and honed his ability to present gospel truths reaches into the heart of a hearer.  If we open our hearts during such sermons, we will be convicted by our shortcomings but motivated by the lesson to improve, grow, and increase what is good. 

   As he spoke about the “bucket,” I thought about the fact that more times than I want to admit I have come with an empty or nearly empty bucket.  But hearing him preach about it, I felt resolve to fill it up next time I meet God in worship.  In fact, that was what struck me most about his sermon.  The more I heard, the more I wanted to please, love, and obey my Lord.  It was painful, but exhilarating!

   In our dramatically consumer-centric culture, you and I must break out of such selfishness and humbly approach the Audience of worship and give our everything to please Him.  We need to come with our prayers, praise, thoughts, longings, meditation, money, and the like, urgently desiring to give and give some more to our great God!   That will do more than transform our worship.  It will change our very beings to the core! 

A Uniting Emphasis

Neal Pollard

Inevitably, every congregation of God’s people has an overriding emphasis. It’s probably the thing that the community, if it knows about them, associates them with. It could be the thing that the entire brotherhood associates them with. It’s almost certainly the thing those who attend there understand it to be. The same is true of you and me. It’s true of our families, our marriages, and our individual selves. Something is so important in our lives that it is what people think of when they think of us. What is that? What should it be?

Corinth had developed a reputation, as Chloe’s household reported, for quarreling (1:12). That was a problem! Paul is writing this letter, in part, to help them right the ship and move in the proper direction (1:10). How did he propose to do that?

WHAT NOT TO EMPHASIZE

  • Superiority Of Speech (1)–This was not going to help. His goal was proclaiming to them the testimony of God. Saying it in high, lofty ways would be a hindrance rather than a help. The remedy was much, much simpler. 
  • Human Wisdom (1)–He has already told them why this was counterproductive. Human wisdom led to thinking the cross of Christ is foolish (1:22-23). Two, the “foolishness” of God (1:21) was wiser than men (1:25). Third, not many who are wise according to the flesh answer God’s call (1:26). Fourth, God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise (1:27). Fifth, Jesus became wisdom from God to us (1:30). So often, the foundation of man’s capacity to understand and function from that understanding is faulty. Logic, reasoning, and understanding devoid of God’s wisdom is destined to destroy and divide. 
  • Persuasive Words Of Wisdom (4-5)–If human wisdom is the cause, persuasive words of wisdom is the effect. Listen to the world’s experts in just about any discipline. If they do not ignore God’s plan and His way, they mock and ridicule it. They even rail against it. To those who refuse to take the time and effort to scrutinize those persuasive words, it may sound intelligent or at least adequate to build their lives on. Tragically, their persuasive words are spiritual sand (Mat. 7:24-27). 

WHAT TO EMPHASIZE

  • Jesus Christ And Him Crucified (2)–Paul has laid the groundwork for this at the very beginning of the letter. When a people are known for divisiveness, they need to train their eyes on the crucified Lord. If we let His love and sacrifice dominate our thinking and focus, there is NO WAY we will let our selfish agenda, pride, or hunger to be in charge. This emphasis trumps being entertained, being unconditionally tolerant, being Pharisaical, being comfortable, or being a social club. 
  • Demonstration Of The Spirit And Of Power (4)–What will happen if we base our plans, our budgets, and our works on what God can do through us? What if what we hear when we assemble for worship or get together for fellowship is God’s thoughts and ways? That’s what Paul wanted Corinth’s faith to be in.
  • The Wisdom Of God (5-9)–Human wisdom led Jesus to be crucified in the first place. God accomplished His eternal purpose through it, but the rulers of Jesus’ day did not kill Him on a cross with that understanding. It was God’s wisdom, revealed by the Spirit, that Paul is speaking about when he says, “Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, And which have not entered the heart of man, All that God has prepared for those who love Him” (9). This quotation of Isaiah 64:4 is not a reference to heaven. Many have quoted 1 Corinthians 2:9 to say that heaven is going to be greater than anything we’ve seen, heard, or even dreamed of. That’s a true sentiment, but it is NOT what Paul is talking about here. He’s talking about something the Spirit has already revealed (10), the revelation of God’s Word. That must be our emphasis!
  • The Spirit’s Revelation (10-16)–This is what to preach and practice. Paul gives insight into the process that brought us Scripture. The Spirit searches the deep things of God (10), gives it to us (12), teaches us, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words (13), and reveals the mind of Christ (16). Jesus promised that this would come to fruition (John 14:26; 16:13), and this letter to Corinth was part of that process. How do we know what we SHOULD emphasize? We need to consult the “mind of Christ” found on the pages of the New Testament. 

Wouldn’t it be great if our congregation, with every single member in it, had the reputation in our brotherhood and our community as a people so full of the saving message of Jesus and Him crucified that it consumed our thinking and actions and drove our purpose and our mission? I want to be able to say with integrity, “I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.” 

The Power Of The Word

Wednesday’s Column: Third’s Words

Gary III

Gary Pollard

Angels are not the dainty, long-haired Western Europeans they’re often depicted as being. In Matthew 28, their appearance was like lightning and they had white clothes. Evidently their appearance was other-worldly enough to frighten these soldiers almost to death (28.4). Whether this was some cardiac event or simply shock we cannot know. But to frighten someone that tough to that extent would take something pretty crazy. 

But some of these same guys still went straight to the chief priests and took a bribe to keep quiet and spread disinformation (28.11-15). After what they had just seen and experienced, you’d think they would run to a therapist and not the chief priests to help perpetuate something they knew to be false. 

We can be tempted sometimes to think that evangelism requires more than just showing someone the word. We might think the miraculous or incredible could persuade even the most stubborn non-believer. The power of our job (making disciples) is in the Word and in faith. The Bible has many accounts of people seeing incredible feats of supernatural power with their own eyes and still rejecting God. Abraham informed the rich man in Luke 16.29-31 that God’s Word is what saves; if that is rejected, no miracle will change this. 

If we place our faith in the power of the Word and work to deepen our understanding of the Word, we have all we need to show the power of Jesus.