Preaching Guidelines

HOW TO CONDUCT YOURSELF DURING PREACHING

“But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth” (1 Timothy 3:15).

1. SIT RESPECTFULLY AND ALERTLY

Examples of what not to do: leaning on your elbows with your head down and chewing gum. Such things send signals that you are not interested in what the preacher is saying. Remember that others are watching you. Your attitude and very bodily posture affects the preacher, those sitting around you, and the entire atmosphere of the service

2. DON’T DISTRACT OTHERS

Examples of things that distract others are talking and writing notes back and forth between persons, making noise (i.e., cracking your fingers), playing with babies, and children looking at the people behind them. Parents need to be aware of what their children are doing and make certain that they are not distracting someone. Another example is leaving the service to go to the restroom. Parents should make sure that their children don’t develop this distracting habit. It is extremely dishonoring to the Word of God that is being preached. There is plenty of time to go to the bathroom before and after the services. Of course, if an individual has a medical or health problem that requires him or her to leave the service, that is a different matter altogether. Such a person can sit in the back and slip out quietly.

3. LISTEN WELL

LISTEN WITH COMPASSION TOWARD THE PREACHER. God uses all kinds of men and not all are powerful, fascinating speakers. It appears that Paul wasn’t (2 Cor. 10:10). Jonathan Edwards preached one of the most famous of sermons, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God,” but Edwards was not a great speaker. In fact, he simply read the sermon. The preacher who was instrumental in the conversion of Charles Spurgeon was not a mighty speaker. Spurgeon described him as a very simple, uninteresting speaker, yet how greatly God used him! Remember that God can use weak men. An example is Solomon. He had tremendous problems, but God used him to write three important books of the Bible, including the book of Proverbs, which is the book of wisdom. Our eyes must be upon God and not upon the preacher. Listen to the preacher as you would want people to listen to you. Avoid a critical attitude.

LISTEN PRAYERFULLY. Nothing significant is accomplished apart from prayer (Rom. 12:12; Eph. 6:18; Col. 4:2; 1 Thess. 5:17). Pray for yourself. Pray for the preacher. Pray for others who are in attendance.

LISTEN ATTENTIVELY. Listen as if Jesus Christ were speaking. 1 Peter 4:11 says the speaker is to be the very oracle of God, meaning His mouthpiece. If you listen carefully and seek something from the Lord, you can be edified even from a seemingly boring message. Don’t let your mind wander to other things. Don’t do something else when you should be listening to the preaching. I have seen people read novels in church! More often they read the hymnal or pass notes or other such things. You won’t get anything from the preaching if you don’t listen attentively.

LISTEN WITH AN OPEN, SUBMISSIVE HEART. God’s invitation is extended throughout the message and not merely at the end. Let God speak to you, reprove, rebuke, and exhort you. Don’t think that the preaching is for someone else. Don’t make excuses for your sins and faults.

LISTEN WITH FAITH (Heb. 4:1-2). The Word of God is ineffective unless it is “mixed with faith.” Some listen to preaching as a form of entertainment. They enjoy it but they don’t believe it enough to change how they live. This was how the Jews were listening to the prophet Ezekiel: “And they come unto thee as the people cometh, and they sit before thee as my people, and they hear thy words, but they will not do them: for with their mouth they shew much love, but their heart goeth after their covetousness. And, lo, thou art unto them as a very lovely song of one that hath a pleasant voice, and can play well on an instrument: for they hear thy words, but they do them not” (Ezek. 33:31-32).

LISTEN DISCERNINGLY. The Bible warns that we must not put our trust in man (Jer. 17:5). We must carefully test all preaching by the Word of God (Acts 17:11; 1 Cor. 14:29; 1 Thess. 5:21).

LISTEN STUDIOUSLY (2 Tim. 2:15). Have paper and pen ready so that you can capture something from the message. Write things in your Bible (important things, such as cross references, definitions, important thoughts). By the way, you should have your own Bible rather than merely looking on with someone else. Take notes of the important points. Write down things to study later, things to check later, and things to share with others. This will help you remember what is preached.

4. TREAT THE INVITATION SERIOUSLY

Respond to the invitation as Lord leads, and pray for others. Be careful