1. Could Jesus preach for “your”
church?
Is “your” church, “His”
church?
The day our church “fired”
Jesus!
2. • I have come to believe that the “feel good”
religion now sweeping our churches in the
name of Christianity is to the church what
drug addiction is to society at large. Once
these churches are infected, they rapidly
become addicted. They become filled with a
very shallow people, wanting ever more
dramatic events to make us “feel” fulfilled
• Once addicted, hype replaces substance.
Sounds like somewhat of a reversed substance
abuse?
3. • Churches abuse their members from a lack of
substance. Drug addicts abuse their bodies by the
invasion of harmful substance. These churches
are always looking for the innovative method of
church growth. “Children’s church” replaces
training your children to worship and respect
their creator.
• As the youth move into teenage, entertainment
replaces serious Bible study and effective spiritual
growth. In other words, the original call of the
gospel is often replaced with an offer of
entertainment or treats.
4. • Most of the religious leaders involved in these
changes know that what they are presenting is
different than what Jesus presented. Their
justification (once called on the issue) will
remind you of all the “medical” marijuana
arguments raging in the secular world. The
bottom line is really the same. Worship
becomes about “us,” rather than about
offering ourselves to our sovereign Creator. A
shocking reality is it not?
5. • I believe that Jesus would be run clean out of
the pulpits of most churches today. At best He
would be relegated to some small country
church, known for it’s “backward” ways!
Jesus’ “brand” of Christianity is very different
from today’s brand. He is the founder of
Christianity!
• This study will be an in depth look at Jesus'
actual preaching style. I will be asking
directly... could you handle it? I am also
asking you to consider carefully what you
think "should be" the nature of the preaching
(it's tone and content) in the church today.
6. Have you attempted to discover from scripture
what “should be” in the churches?
• These movements afoot in our generation
causes us to preach what “should not” be…
• Today I will share what I have discovered in my
own study what “should” be. and take you on
a journey that perhaps you, like I, have never
been on.
7. In our mind’s eye
• let’s try to picture what would happen if Jesus
was hired as preacher of some local
congregation. Would Jesus be able to last?
• Wouldn’t it be horrible if that congregation
fired Jesus as their preacher…What if “they”
never even realized what they had done? Why
would they not be “satisfied” to have Jesus as
their preacher?
8. • Actually this scenario is not as absurd as it
may sound. Jesus’ description of the judgment
in Matthew 25 carries this very kind of
imagery. Doing (or not doing) for Jesus and
never even realizing it
– “Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it
unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye
have done it unto me.” (25:40)
9. • In Luke 24 Jesus appeared to two men on the
road to Emmaus and discussed scripture with
them. Scripture describes how “their eyes
where holden” Luke 24:16. Jesus started His
discussion with them with
– “O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the
prophets have spoken!” (vs25)
• He continued till they recognized him and
then He disappeared. As we observe Jesus’
method of teaching;
10. • The one major Characteristic of Jesus’
teaching style is that He was incredibly blunt.
– Could we tolerate Him in our pulpits today?
• Another surprising characteristic to many was
that His normal mode is to end a discussion
(or sermon) on something powerfully
provoking but… negative.
• As Jesus preached week after week and kept
sending us home to think on something
negative, (with a sour taste in our mouth)…
how long would the congregation tolerate it?
11. Consider the sermon on the mount
(Matthew 5-7).
• It starts in Matthew 5 with the pleasantries of
the beatitudes. Many sermons have been
based on the beginning (Matthew 5) portion
of this sermon. It is after all the most famous
sermon of Jesus’ ministry. The last portion is
often ignored
12. Now notice
• The sermon ends with the prophecy of the
judgment, and most of the people there
assembled would be condemned while
thinking they were serving Jesus.
• Jesus sent them home with….
– Matthew 7:23. And then will I profess unto them, I
never knew you: depart from me, ye that work
iniquity
13. • Jesus followed this comment with the parable
of wise man who built his house on the rock
and the foolish man who built his house on
the sand. Then, Jesus sent them home to think
about it. Consider Nicodemus John 3. I tend to
think the tone of Jesus’ voice was tender in
this discussion… but the message is as direct
as ever.
14. • Jesus first response to Nicodemus was that
unless he was born again, he would not even
see the kingdom of God. Following Nicodemus
puzzlement Jesus says he cannot enter the
kingdom without being born of the water and
the spirit.
– “ Nicodemus said to Him, "How can these things
be?" Jesus answered and said to him, "Are you the
teacher of Israel and do not understand these
things?” John 3:9-10
15. • Jesus went on to explain further and sent
Nicodemus home with . . .
– "This is the judgment, that the Light has come into
the world, and men loved the darkness rather than
the Light, for their deeds were evil. For everyone
who does evil hates the Light, and does not come
to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.
But he who practices the truth comes to the Light,
so that his deeds may be manifested as having
been wrought in God." John 3:19-21
16. • Notice that even when Jesus is dealing with
godly, seeking people… His usual method is to
send them home with some powerful but
negative truth to chew on.
• This is exactly backwards of what
“professional” preachers are taught today. To
“grow” a church must leave everyone with
something positive
17. Consider the woman at the well in
John 4
• Her discussion with Jesus rapidly focused on
pointing out she was living with her 6th man who
was not her husband. She eventually ran into
town still pondering this and exclaiming such to
the townspeople
• Consider the healing at Bethsaida John 5
• Jesus healed the man then, “Afterward Jesus
found him in the temple and said to him
– "Behold, you have become well; do not sin anymore,
so that nothing worse happens to you."”
18. Do you see the pattern emerging
• one after another are sent home with something
serious/negative/ or harsh to ponder?
• Let’s consider the aggressive style of Jesus’ preaching
in Matthew 23…
• The first segment is to the effect that the Pharisees
actually preach it generally right… but they just don’t
live it. That’s a bit surprising from the rhetoric of today
isn’t it?
• If Jesus came to preach a “meeting” at a congregation,
Then…culminated the week’s series of lessons with this
sermon as the climax, Would He be invited back?
19. Using Matthew’s order of sermons
• Verse 1-12 Is the introduction. It is pretty stiff in it's own
right, but note what happens after the introduction
• 13. "But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites,
because
• 1 4. ["Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites,
because
• 15. "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because
• 16. "Woe to you, blind guides
• 17. "You fools and blind men!
• 19. "You blind men,
20. • 23. "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees,
hypocrites!
• 24. "You blind guides,
• 25. "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees,
hypocrites!
• 26. "You blind Pharisee
• 27. "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees,
hypocrites!
• 29. "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees,
hypocrites
• 33. "You serpents, you brood of vipers, how
will you escape the sentence of hell?
21. The reality
• even though we are created in the image of
God…We keep trying to re-create God in our
own image
• Do we recognize Jesus as He is revealed in
Scripture... Or do we change him into
something we perceive as more acceptable?
22. • If Jesus continually sent us home with
negative thoughts… (His normal method of
teaching) Then preached His “final” public
sermon in a congregation…. Would He ever be
invited back?
• Let's close by considering Paul's assessment of
what happened to the Gentiles. With a
realistic view of how people would really react
to Jesus if He were their preacher today, Can
we realistically see this kind of thing
happening to us all over again?
23. Romans 1
• 21. For even though they knew God, they did not
honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became
futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was
darkened.
• 22. Professing to be wise, they became fools,
• 23. and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God
for an image in the form of corruptible man and . . .
• Does this fairly describe the real reaction that would
occur if Jesus preached in some of His own churches
today?
