God Tends to Use Failures to show His Greatness

God is so merciful and gracious to provide his Son Jesus as the atonement for our sins.  Certainly, God could have written us a Bible with one statement that said, “It’s your fault you are sinners, so get back on your feet by yourself.”  I’m so thankful he doesn’t say that.  For those who have faith in Christ as the payment for their sin, they are perfectly accepted by the Father.  Romans 8 says that “nothing in all creation” can separate us from God’s love if have been justified by Jesus’ death. 

The body of Christ is made up of people who fail all the time, in order that God’s grace may be praised all the more.  I love the Switchfoot song “Beautiful Letdown” that reminds us this: “[We are] the church of the dropouts, the losers, the sinners, the failures, and the fools.  We are a beautiful letdown.”  Sadly, so many people still try to do good things and earn acceptance through hard work, religion, or managing sin.  Some of these people call themselves “Christians” and say, “I read my Bible.”  I wonder, though, do they actually pay close attention to the people in the Scriptures they are “reading” about?

Had God wished to communicate to us that our acceptance hinges on our goodness, he would have chosen another sort of person than those he most typically uses in the Bible to reveal the basis for our faith. But then he would have revealed himself to be a different kind of God.

- Bryan Chapell, Christ Centered Preaching

God’s Redemptive Plan in All of Scripture

All Scripture reveals God redemptive solution for man. Not every Scripture reveals it evenly however. Some passages are in full bloom and give the plain, clear account of Christ’s work on the cross for our sins. Other passages (most Old Testament passages) are in seed-form that are in some way connected to the mature message of God’s redemption. Bryan Chapell, of Covenant Seminary, provides a vivid illustration in his book Christ Centered Preaching.

You do not explain what an acorn is, even if you say many true things about it (e.g., it is brown, has a cap, is found on the ground, is gathered by squirrels), if you do not in some way relate it to an oak tree. In a similar sense, preachers cannot properly explain a seed of biblical revelation, even if they say many true things about it, unless they relate it to the redeeming work of God that all Scripture ultimately purposes to disclose.

And later, he writes:

Christ-centered preaching rightly understood does not seek to discover where Christ is mentioned in every text but to disclose where every text stands in relation to Christ.

Preaching with a Tender Fierceness

This morning, John Piper posted a short blog on what preachers should aspire for.  I think it’s extremely valuable:

Especially on Sundays, preaching is paramount in a pastor’s life. When we prepare to preach, we remember that our words should fall “as gentle rain upon the tender grass” and “like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces.” Such speaking is not simple. Pray for us.

Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak;
and let the earth hear the words of my mouth.
May my teaching drop as the rain,
my speech distil as the dew,
as the gentle rain upon the tender grass,
and as the showers upon the herb.
For I will proclaim the name of the LORD.
Ascribe greatness to our God! (Deuteronomy 32:1-3) 

Is not my word like fire, declares the LORD,
and like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces? (Jeremiah 23:29)