Faithful preaching leads to, through the grace of God, the repentance of sinners, the birth of faith and the nourishment of believers. It can also evoke hostility from unbelievers.
The basis of effective preaching
It depends upon the grace of God
Acts 4:33 See also Isaiah 55:10–11; Acts 14:26–27; 1 Corinthians 15:10–11
With great power the apostles continued to give their testimony about the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And abundant grace was upon them all.
It depends upon the power of the cross, not human wisdom
1 Corinthians 1:17–25 See also 1 Corinthians 2:1–5
It depends upon the power of the Holy Spirit
Luke 4:18–19 See also Isaiah 61:1–2; Acts 2:1–11, Acts 10:44–48; 1 Corinthians 2:4–5
“The Spirit of the Lord is on Me, because He has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
It requires effective, supporting prayer
Colossians 4:3–4 See also Acts 4:29–31, Acts 6:2–4, Acts 13:1–5; 2 Thessalonians 3:1
as you pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray that I may declare it clearly, as I should.
It needs to be received with faith
Hebrews 4:2 See also 1 Thessalonians 2:13
For we also received the good news just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, since they did not share the faith of those who comprehended it.
Preaching and the repentance of sinners
Matthew 12:41 parallel Luke 11:32 See also Jonah 3:1–10; Matthew 3:1–6 parallels Mark 1:3–5, Luke 3:3–6
The men of Nineveh will stand at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now One greater than Jonah is here.
Preaching and the birth of faith
Acts 4:4 See also Acts 2:38–41, Acts 8:9–13, Acts 17:11–12; 1 Corinthians 15:1–2
But many who heard the message believed, and the number of men grew to about five thousand.
Preaching and the nourishment of believers
Acts 14:21–22 See also Romans 16:25–27; Ephesians 4:11–16; Colossians 2:6–7
They preached the gospel to that city and made many disciples. Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch, strengthening the souls of the disciples and encouraging them to continue in the faith. “We must endure many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” they said.
Effective preaching and its authentication by miracles
Mark 16:20 See also Matthew 4:23–25; Luke 9:1–6 parallels Matthew 10:5–14, Mark 6:7–11; Acts 4:29–30, Acts 8:5–8, Acts 14:1–3
And they went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked through them, confirming His word by the signs that accompanied it.
Inappropriate responses to preaching
Amazement
Matthew 7:28–29 See also Luke 4:31–32 parallel Mark 1:21–22; Acts 2:5–12, Acts 4:13–14
When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were astonished at His teaching, because He taught as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.
Offence
Mark 6:1–6 parallel Matthew 13:54–58 See also 1 Corinthians 1:22–23
Jesus went on from there and came to His hometown, accompanied by His disciples. When the Sabbath came, He began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard Him were astonished. “Where did this man get these ideas?” they asked. “What is this wisdom He has been given? And how can He perform such miracles? Isn’t this the carpenter, the son of Mary and the brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? Aren’t His sisters here with us as well?” And they took offense at Him. Then Jesus said to them, “Only in his hometown, among his relatives, and in his own household is a prophet without honor.” So He could not perform any miracles there, except to lay His hands on a few of the sick and heal them. And He was amazed at their unbelief. And He went around from village to village, teaching the people.
Mere academic interest
Acts 17:16–32 Paul in Athens and before the Areopagus; Acts 24:22–26 Paul before Felix and Drusilla
Mockery
Acts 17:32 See also 2 Chronicles 36:15–16; Acts 2:13
When they heard about the resurrection of the dead, some began to mock him, but others said, “We want to hear you again on this topic.”
Hostility
Acts 17:13 See also Acts 4:1–3, Acts 5:27–40, Acts 7:54–60, Acts 13:49–51, Acts 17:5–9
But when the Jews from Thessalonica learned that Paul was also proclaiming the word of God in Berea, they went there themselves to incite and agitate the crowds.
Related themes
Dictionary of Bible Themes © 1999 Martin Manser, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Bible Aquifer. Formatted for this site, with Scripture from the Berean Standard Bible.