“If I preach voluntarily, I have a reward; if not voluntarily, I am simply discharging the trust committed to me.  What then is my reward? Just this: that in preaching the gospel I may offer it free of charge, and so not make use of my rights in preaching it.”   - 1 Corinthians 9:17-18 continue

Titus 1:3 – “and at his appointed season he brought his word to light through the preaching entrusted to me by the command of God our Savior…”

In this passage, Paul first mentions that his preaching “brought the Word to light.”  It was the revealed Word. Paul’s preaching was all from the Old Testament, of course, and his preaching opened up the Word and showed the Light, which is Jesus, in every story.  The New Testament did not yet exist (in written form) when Paul started preaching, so he was limited to the 39 books of the Old Testament – but this tells us something about the usefulness of these Scriptures in bringing people to Christ.  They were sufficient for Paul to preach and present Christ everywhere he went in a way that touched hearts and produced conversions.  Some denominations today preach exclusively from the New Testament, not understanding that the Old Testament also presents Jesus, when we have revelation.   continue

2 Corinthians 10:10 - For some say, “His letters are weighty and forceful, but in person he is unimpressive and his speaking amounts to nothing.”

Here we get a glimpse of what other people – including Paul’s critics – were saying about his preaching back then.  Apparently, he was not a forceful, aggressive preacher.  He tried to be clear, simple, and focused.  His writing – the tone of his Epistles – are not exactly the way he preached.  He was gentle, calms, and humble enough when he preached that his critics said it was actually unimpressive. continue

“My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power.”   - 1 Corinthians 2:4-5

There is a famous quote attributed to Augustine of Hippo (from around the year 400 AD) that there were three things he longed to see with his own eyes, but could not – “…the Lord Jesus during his earthly ministry, imperial Rome in all its splendor, and Paul preaching.”  People tend to think of the Apostle Paul as an impressive preacher, or a great orator (like Augustine, who was a professor of “rhetoric” before his conversion), because the Bible gives us more stories about Paul’s preaching, and more references to it in the Epistles, than any other character in the New Testament.

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“For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” - Hebrews 4:12

The Bible is the basis for all of our messages in our services and meetings.  Usually we preach on a single verse or passage, although sometimes a topical teaching (say, on angels or salvation) merits references to a number of relevant texts.  In Maranatha churches, we do not preach on other books (even popular Christian books) or have study groups to discuss “hot” publications in the contemporary culture around us.  We believe that only the Word of God can feed a person’s soul or satisfy one’s spiritual hunger.  The Holy Spirit speaks to our hearts through His Word.   continue

Titus 2:7-8 – “In your teaching show integrity, seriousness and soundness of speech that cannot be condemned.”

The Lord wants us to teach the classes with an attitude of humility and gratitude in our hearts.  We have seen those preachers on television who confuse their own egotistical self-confidence and aggressiveness with unction.  We do not teach like this. 

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HOW TO PREACH

1 Timothy 4:13 – “Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching.”

Galatians 1:11 – “I want you to know, brothers, that the gospel I preached is not something that man made up.”

Every church or religious movement has its own style of preaching. In fact, many full-time ministers are just professionals at public speaking and oratory. In Maranatha, the Lord has challenged us to lay aside traditions and avoid imitating the preaching styles we see around us, especially with “celebrity” preachers. Humility is key. The Lord has called us to abandon our fleshly desire to impress the congregation with our public speaking abilities, and focus instead on transmitting God’s message to the church for that day – no more and no less. The preaching in all our Maranatha churches – thousands of congregations – is rather uniform. We operate as a Body. We do not permit preachers in our churches to deviate from the pattern the Lord has showed us – it is a simple matter of obedience to His Word. Our entire goal is to do what the Lord wants, not what man wants. The following are some guidelines that we give to our newer preachers about the expectations we have in our churches.

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Maranatha Church Services Description

“For God is not a God of disorder but of peace…everything should be done in a fitting and orderly way.”  - 1 Corinthians 14:33, 40

PLEADING THE BLOOD OF JESUS TO BEGIN: The brother who is designated beforehand to lead the worship in that service (usually a deacon or worker) goes to the pulpit at the exact moment the service is supposed to begin.  The worship leader greets the church briefly (one sentence) and asks everyone to kneel together to plead the Blood of Jesus.  Of course, people can stand if they find kneeling difficult.   continue