Paul writes in Ephesians 3:8-11: “To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, and to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God who created all things, so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. This was according to the eternal purpose that he has realized in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
The church was in the eternal plans of God. During the Old Testament times, it was a mystery, hidden for ages. But, God chose Paul, among others, to share His grace with mankind. Notice that Paul was given grace: 1.) to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; and 2.) to bring to light for everyone what is the plan.
Those two purposes of God giving grace to Paul highlight for us the importance of preaching in God’s plan of salvation. He was called to “preach” and to “bring to light.”
The church picks up where Jesus left off in His teaching. Let’s turn to the book of Acts. As we seek to follow the blueprint Jesus left for the church, we observe that our preaching and teaching…
NEEDS TO BE FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT:
When the church of Christ begins in Acts 2, the Holy Spirit guided Peter and the rest of the apostles to preach, to teach the Gospel.
The first thing Peter does is quote from the Old Testament – from Joel 2:28-32. In verse 25, Peter quotes David in Psalm 16. In verse 30, he quotes 2 Samuel 7. In verse 34, he quotes Psalm 110. There are some 36 explicit citations of the Old Testament in the book of Acts. That’s more than one per chapter. Clearly the Old Testament was an important source of authority and teaching for the apostles and they believed that their audience needed to know the Old Testament.
NEEDS TO BE ABOUT THE LIFE OF JESUS:
Peter taught about the life of Jesus – “a man attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God performed through Him in your midst” (2:22). See also Acts 10:38.
You can’t build your life on jokes or anecdotes or history or warm-fuzzy stories. The only foundation that is sure and stable is Jesus Christ. That’s why we’ve got to study and preach and teach the life of Jesus.
NEEDS TO BE ABOUT THE CRUCIFIXION:
Peter moves from the life of Jesus to the crucifixion in Acts 2:23 – “this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men.”
But, before we can understand the significance of the crucifixion, we’ve got to understand the significance of sin. This is the part of preaching and teaching that so many people do not like. We do not like to be corrected. We do not like to be rebuked. We want to think that whatever we are doing is fine. So, the preaching of the church of Christ must preach on sin.
NEEDS TO BE ABOUT THE RESURRECTION:
The bad news is the crucifixion. The good news is in verse 24 – “God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it.”
The resurrection. What does it mean that the resurrection is a central part of our preaching? It means death to sin. Death to temptation. Death to the very process of dying.
NEEDS TO TELL US ABOUT SALVATION:
When Peter had grounded his preaching in the Old Testament, and told about the life of Jesus, His crucifixion, and His resurrection, he draws his lesson to a conclusion in verse 36: “Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”
The Jews then understood that they needed to respond. Faith demands a response. If you don’t obey, then you don’t really believe. So, they asked Peter what to do to be saved. And Peter told them (2:38).
So, preaching has to do with more than just preaching the crucifixion and resurrection. It also involves answering the question “What must I do to be Saved?”
–Paul Holland