Preaching the Gospel!

Thursday morning, March 27, 2008
Yesterday, I met with a pastor from another town for lunch; he wanted to talk with me about the possibilities of my preaching a “revival” (I put that in quotes because that word bugs me, especially in this context) at the church where he is pastor. The more I listened to him share his heart, the more convinced I became that the Holy Spirit is in this—a Divine appointment, indeed.
Just for the record, this is what Paul had to say about preaching: “For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was well-pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. For indeed Jews ask for signs, and Greeks search for wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block, and to Gentiles foolishness, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men” (1 Corinthians 1:21-25; emphasis, mine).
To be sure, I get the message and it is this: If anything worthwhile happens during this time of preaching, it will be His doing and NOT mine! Furthermore (and this is really neat!), ONLY those who are “the called” will benefit; the rest will either stumble over the message or see it as foolishness—in either case, they will reject it. Fortunately, God will enable “the called” to see beyond the foolishness of the message preached, not to mention the foolishness of the preacher, and to, thereby, experience the power and wisdom of God! I must admit that, as a preacher, that stirs my heart with a renewed passion for the preaching of the good news, the gospel of Jesus Christ, which by the way is the power of God for salvation!
Again, and for the record, this is what Jesus said, soon after His resurrection, about preaching: “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned” (Mark 16:15-16; emphasis, mine). Please notice that His instructions were very clear—preach the gospel!—and in His mind, when He referred to the gospel, He had something very specific in mind. Notice that He did NOT tell them to go out and preach the gospel, feeling free to adjust it along the way, in order to attract the masses; instead, He said, “Preach the gospel.”
To be sure (again!), I get the message and it is this: If this time of preaching is going to be powerful unto salvation, then all the promotional gimmicks that are usually used prior to these kinds of meetings, in an effort to attract the masses, to draw crowds, to “get people saved,” must be abandoned, and in their place, the gospel be allowed to be what it is—the power of God for salvation. In my mind, nothing could be more fulfilling than for the gospel to be preached during the first service and, as a result, the people go out into the highway and hedges (with passion!) to bring others to the next service, so they, too, can hear the gospel, and, then, to watch as He is calls “the called” unto Himself! Remember: the “called” are attracted to the gospel and offended by the gimmicks; however, the rest are attracted to the gimmicks and offended by the gospel!
For some reason, I would really like to see a genuine spiritual awakening, one that would be remembered for a long time to come, one that would attract the called and, thereby, honor Him!
Would you please begin to pray with me concerning this venture? I really would appreciate it. As I get more information, I will pass it on to you-