As a teacher of preaching, I think a lot about the task of training preachers.
What are the non-negotiable aspects of a sermon? Are illustrations nice but not necessary? Is personal application absolutely required? And then there is the question of delivery: is a preacher’s style of sermon delivery inseparable from his character or temperament, or where can we push someone to step outside himself to be a more effective messenger?
Even a single sermon requires so many elements to be held together in sometimes delicate balance. You are balancing law and gospel, promise and obligation, poetry and precision, exposition and application, to say nothing of delivering a sermon in a way that is intentional yet still comes across as natural.
The conundrums around training preachers are many. This reality led John Broadus to say in his classic work on homiletics: “It is a solemn thing to preach the gospel, and therefore it is a very solemn thing to attempt instruction or even suggestion as to the means of preaching well.” What sinful and broken man dares tell another how to be an ambassador for the preeminent Christ? Yet we must.
Training Preachers
It is a solemn task—teaching preaching—and for centuries this training has been part of a formal theological education. Students will receive lectures in homiletics, just as they will receive lectures in dogmatics, and church history, Old Testament history and Greek grammar. Yet historically, instruction in preaching has always been a hands-on endeavour.
We see indications of this already in the early church. In those first centuries, the church favoured an apprenticeship model for developing new preachers. Augustine, for instance, “urged that preachers learn from other preachers, coming under the tutelage of an experienced man to learn how to preach.”
Directly relevant for preacher training are the first and second letters of Paul to Timothy. Young Timothy had been entrusted with the difficult task of leading a congregation that was beset with a number of problems, not least of which was a critical attitude towards their pastor.
So Paul has been discipling Timothy, his spiritual “son,” teaching the attitudes and activities that are essential for Christian ministry. In that context, Paul says something significant in 1 Timothy 4:15,
Practice these things, immerse yourself in them, so that all may see your progress.
The apostle has just reminded Timothy of the heavenly gift which has qualified him for ministry, a gift symbolized in the laying on of hands. Now Paul urges Timothy to be diligent in his ministry so that he may progress.
For any teacher, the question of student progress is paramount. For the Grade 1 teacher, what does it mean for a student to progress in reading? No less for the homiletics professor: What does it mean for a student to progress in his preaching, and how can that progress be achieved?
Let’s first consider what Paul means when he says to Timothy, “so that all may see your progress.” Progress in what? One essential aspect of desired growth was in his Christian faith and character.
A few verses before, Paul exhorted, “Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity” (4:12). He is to grow in virtue. Notably, Paul expects that Timothy’s spiritual progress will be visible. He will show himself to others as a model of holy conduct, a servant of Christ (4:6), a man of God who pursues “righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness” (6:11). This is the kind of progress that everyone should be able to see in the young minister: progress in sanctification.
Besides developing in godliness, a second growth area for Timothy is in the competencies of ministry. “Until I come,” the apostle has also just said, “devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching” (4:13). Front of mind for Paul is the work done in the pulpit: reading the Scriptures well, teaching them faithfully, bringing exhortations boldly.
When in the pulpit, the preacher is to be riveted on the task at hand, faithfully proclaiming the Word of God. When he is out of the pulpit, he is to be planning, preparing, and praying about his next sermons.
In short, a young preacher must pursue growth in both character and competence. Maybe Timothy’s obvious progress in faith and ministry will shut the mouths of his critics; more importantly, it will bless his congregation and glorify God.
Character and Competence
For a pastor, progress surely ought to comprise the same two aspects: character and competence. Regarding character, a preacher ought to be growing in his righteousness, advancing in godliness, increasing in love for other people, in steadfastness in trials, developing a spirit of trust.
Surely this kind of progress in godliness is inseparably connected to his progress in preaching. It’s when a preacher sees more clearly the implications of the gospel for himself that he will preach the gospel more urgently, more attractively.
When a preacher is himself walking closely with Christ, he will be prepared to teach others to do the same.
For progress in competence, and progress in character, we depend on the blessing of the Holy Spirit. Yet there remains a responsibility for which we must answer: “Immerse yourselves in these things,” says Paul; in other words, “Here is an assignment for you!”
This is what pastors must desire, to progress in godliness, and in the discipline of preaching—that they will get better at teaching sound doctrine, that they will grow in their use of language, and become more pastoral in application, and always be attentive to preaching Christ. And by God’s grace, and with hard work, preachers will progress.
And so pastors should. God has given preaching an integral place. Faithful preaching will build up the congregation. Strong preaching will attract some of those who are still strangers to Christ, or who are searching for a more faithful church.
So it is right for preachers to keep reflecting: How can I progress in the pulpit?