Jump Start # 1641

Matthew 5:1-2 “When Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain; and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him. He opened His mouth and began to teach them.”

It’s Monday morning. Back to work. Back to our routine. The busy weekend is over. Sunday worship is over. A young preacher recently asked a class he was teaching, “What makes a good sermon?” Are the things taught on Sunday remembered and carried over on Monday and the rest of the week? Just what does make a good sermon? Preachers think about this often. When the preacher has preached well, the compliment is often, “You sure hit that one out of the park.” That makes the preacher feel good on the inside, but it also creates great pressure because he knows that he needs to do the same again the next week.

What makes a good sermon? Superficially, the answer may be nothing more than how the preacher preached. Some would answer that question based upon “the delivery” and not the content. Was he passionate, energetic, and easy to listen to? Was it short? Often the measure of the sermon is solely based upon the “performance” of the preacher. A good public speaker doesn’t always make a good preacher.

What makes a good sermon? Is the answer based upon how easily it is to remember what was said? Were there certain catch phrases that just stuck with me and I will use those phrases myself?

What makes a good sermon? How about how Biblical the sermon was? Did it teach God’s word? Was it honest with what the Bible says? Did it explain things that I did not know about the Bible? Did I learn anything?

What makes a good sermon? Did it affect me in any way? Did it challenge me and move me to change and be like Christ? Did it open my eyes to what God is expecting of me? Was there application and relevance to the world we live in? Sermons are more than college lectures that give out facts and information. Sermons are the bridges to Christ. They are the means to persuade people to be like Christ.

Our verse this morning, is how the sermon on the mount begins. That sermon, preached by Jesus, is commonly considered to be the greatest sermon preached by the greatest preacher of all time. The sermon on the mount covers three chapters in Matthew’s Gospel. It moves quickly. There are many little subjects that are addressed. At the end of the sermon, Matthew tells us that the crowd was amazed because Jesus taught “as one having authority.” This is especially true early in the sermon. Multiple times in Matthew 5, Jesus would preach, “I say to you…” The audience hadn’t heard rabbis teaching that way before. Most rabbis quoted old dead rabbis. Their lessons were generally dry like toast. Jesus’ sermon moved along. It was personal. He didn’t talk about Israel, but instead, “you.” I say to “you.” Over and over it was “you.” Jesus was talking to the audience. He knew where they were. He used comparisons. He told them what not to do but also, what to do. The sermon ends with stories about what they would do with those words. Would they use those words to build their lives upon or would they continue on as they were?

What makes a good sermon? People have their favorite sermon for different reasons. It may have been a sermon that opened up things and changed them. It may have just been the right time in life and they were going through some valleys and it touched their hearts.

It has been said that there is Five sermons in every sermon. First, there is the sermon that the preacher wants to preach. Second, there is the sermon that the preacher studies to preach. Third, there is the sermon that the preacher actually preached. Fourth, there is the sermon that the audience heard the preacher preach. Fifth, there is the sermon that the audience wished the preacher preached. On a good day, all five are the same.

Some of my favorite sermons that I have preached, few people said anything about. Some sermons that I really didn’t like, it seemed the audience loved. Which really gets to the answer to this question, “what makes a good sermon?”

The answer is any sermon that is Biblical and helpful in getting me where I need to be with the Lord. There isn’t one single step to making a good sermon. It’s the combination of the preacher, the delivery, the content, the audience, and the situation of the moment. Some will remember what is said at a funeral much longer than what they heard in a Sunday sermon. It was the moment and what was said. What one person thinks is a good sermon, someone else may not like. There may be one person who leaves on Sunday and declares that is one of the best sermons he has ever heard. The next guy that leaves, slept during the sermon. That’s always a mystery to me.

Those of us that preach, we work hard in trying to make every sermon great. We do this, not for the accolades or job security, but rather, because we want to help people and we want to do our best for the Lord. There are many, many truly dedicated men preaching. I’m honored to know so many personally. I know that they work very hard to do the best that they can do on Sunday. Monday comes, many of them are drained, tired and wondering if they did anything worthwhile on Sunday. Immediately, the thought comes to their minds, Sunday is coming again, what will I preach on this week?

Have you told your preacher that you appreciate the work that he does each week? Preaching a good sermon once in a while is not all that hard. But to do it week after week, often twice every week. That’s hard stuff. Finding the right ideas. Finding the right way to say things. Making things interesting, challenging and Biblical. Digging. Researching. Studying. Then, there are all the other things he must do during the week. It’s not easy. God bless those who are pouring their all into what they are doing. They are making a difference. It is because of their hard work that the word of God is sinking deeper and deeper into our hearts. It is because of their hard work that we are getting stronger in faith.

What makes a good sermon? Great question. I believe the best answer is simply, a sermon that did something for me.

Catch your breath, preacher, then get back at it. We need another good sermon this week!

Roger