Who is the Hero?

 ² For I decided to know nothing among you except ^z Jesus Christ and him crucified. ³ And I was with you  in weakness and in fear and much trembling, ⁴ and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of  the Spirit and of power, ⁵ so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.     1COR 2:2-5

I once saw a coffee mug with an artistic depiction of David and Goliath. Over the picture of David standing with his sling was an arrow pointing down to him with the words, “Not you.” The mug, of course, is a reminder and warning for preachers who might employ allegorical interpretations of Scripture in their application. You, preacher or congregant, are not the hero of the story.

In our pastor’s meeting this week, the review of the previous week’s message hovered on the experience of sharing a deeply personal illustration. We posed the question, “What was it like to share with the congregation the manifestation of pride and covetousness?” The concern by the preaching pastor, justifiably, was the oft-cited danger of making the message too personal and coming across as the point being mainly about the preacher. I’ve heard that warning before and I understand the danger and concern.

A review of 1 Corinthians 1:26-2:5 is helpful here. Remembering the ways of God in calling whom he will, equipping whom he will, using whom he will is a truth we can and should be dwelling upon and praying over regularly. We who were not wise according to worldly standards, we who were not powerful, nor of noble birth, God chose. He chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise, what is weak to shame the strong and on and on, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. The Chooser is the hero of the story.

So how can we avoid the pitfall of “pastor centered preaching” or preaching something other than Christ and him crucified? I don’t think it is mainly by NOT sharing your sanctification stories. Rather, it’s being a living, breathing sanctification project that our congregations can see and interact with. Borrowing from Paul here, our speech and our message are not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of Spirit and power (1Cor 2:4). The message of a pastor standing before his flock, points to his flesh and says, “God is changing me...and he wants to change you, too!” is worth listening to. The demonstration of Spirit and power come as we explain that journey, from sin producing sin, through faith and repentance, to fruit bearing for Christ. By walking through our weakness, the strength of our resurrected Christ is on display.

Our congregations need a hero, and it’s not you or me. So, preach from your weakness and show them a demonstration of Spirit and power. Show them how, in the strength of Christ you put off the old man and put on the new man. Apply God’s word by sharing the illumination of the Spirit on the scripture, how you exchanged lies for truth, how you repented and turned and began bearing fruit that lasts. Show them how you feast heartily and drink deeply from the the Word of God consistently.

Show them that Jesus is the hero of the story.