I read this quote in Steven Lawson’s book on George Whitefield and found it encouraging:
“The Archbishop of Canterbury in the year 1675 was acquainted with Mr. Butterton the [actor]. One day the Archbishop…said to Butterton…’pray inform me Mr. Butterton, what is the reason you actors on stage can affect your congregations with speaking of things imaginary, as if they were real, while we in Church speak of things real, which our congregations only receive as if they were imaginary?’ ‘Why my Lord,’ says Butterton, ‘the reason is very plain. We actors on stage speak of things imaginary, as if they were real and you in the pulpit speak of things real as if they were imaginary.”
How true is that?
I by no means am the best preacher or teacher although I aspire and work hard to be the best that I can be. However, if there is one thing that I want to excel in, it’s passion…not passionate acting, but passionate preaching!
I want to speak of eternal realities with eternal passion. I want to preach on real joys with real joy! I want to speak of sad futures with sadness. I want to preach on God’s love with love! I want to preach the powerful Word of God with a powerful voice!
As 1 Peter 4:11 says, “Whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God.”
As my pastor once told me, ‘find the mood of that passage of Scripture and then preach with that mood.” In other words, the tone of preaching ought to match the tone of God’s Word.
It’s true that God’s Holy Spirit can impact a person greatly through a monotone discourse on John 3:16 BUT I don’t think it’s typical. He does work through human instruments.
Now I understand that every personality has a different display of passion, or a different potential for expressing passion. Some people are a bit weaker than others.
Personally, I’m weak in many ways as I preach from the pulpit but I’m beginning to embrace my weaknesses not as an excuse to settle into my own natural limitations, but rather, in order to lean hard into God’s supernatural enablement!
We fail to realize often that God’s choice method of strength is weakness. Yes, it’s a paradox. It might even look like a typo but it’s not. God delights to use weakness in such a way that show off His power, not ours, without a shadow of a doubt.
So my friend, whatever your weakness is, insofar as it isn’t sin, embrace it for the glory of God.
BUT, live passionatly, speak passionately and preach passionately if that’s your calling in life.
I should add, live, speak and preach passionately in proportion to how God has designed you to express yourself. Live and speak and teach in such a way, though, where people take you seriously.
As Romans 12:6-7 says, “having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith, if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching…”
In other words, use your gift, specifically in regard to teaching, in proportion to your full potential given to you by Christ! Teach and preach with as much skill, passion and gusto as God has gifted your personality with!
I once had a family friend join our Church for a service and she made this comment on my preaching: “you were very passionate. I sometimes wish that our pastor was a little more serious in his preaching sometimes because he’s really funny.”
There is no doubt a time for jokes. As one guy said, “hook’em, hold’em, hold on to’em, humor ‘m and hit em.”
However, when it comes to the Word of God, it really isn’t written like a joke book. It is written as a book where God’s Word speaks life into your hurting soul, God’s Word exhorts you to correction, God’s Word disciplines you when you’re off track and God’s Word assures you do indeed belong to Him…no joke! It’s not a joke book. It’s a book of death & life. It’s a book that God uses to speak seriously to people. As for the humor, you can find it in Scripture, but it’s always for a point. It’s usually satire or exaggerations for illustrations. the humor in Scripture is always used to get your attention on divine realities. Therefore, ultimitely, Scripture speaks seriously and passionately.
Consider Ezekiel 33:11 which says, “As I live, declares the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live; turn back, turn back from your evil ways, for why will you die, O house of Israel?”
That describes passionate preaching. Can you imagine what the voice behind those words would sound like? He’s PLEADING for people to turn back from a pathway that leads to destruction.
And such should be the case with preaching…passionately pleading with people to turn to God, turn back from their evil ways, and LIVE!
This is no joke and it ought not to be acting! Preaching ought to be heartfelt. Lord, grant me the heart to feel what I preach. Amen!
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