while today

“I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction.” (2 Timothy 4:1-2 NASB95)

Paul was quickly nearing the end of his life when he penned these words to the young preacher, Timothy.  He lays before Timothy a very solemn charge in the strongest possible terms about a matter of extraordinary importance.  It is a charge in the presence of God. It is a charge in the presence of Christ, the judge of the living and the dead.  It is a charge by the appearing of Christ and by His kingdom. What is the charge?  Preach the word!  Preach the word when it is popular and when it isn’t.  Preach the word whether people want to hear it or not.  Preach the word to both correct and to encourage.  Preach the word patiently to instruct those who hear.

Those who preach and teach today have the same charge, and there is a great need in the church for biblical preaching and teaching. Why is it so important? Because it is the word of God that breathes life into us. It is the word of God that will renew our minds and transform us with the Spirit’s help. There is nothing else in the world that can do that. When we faithfully preach the word, we are hearing the voice of God! What an amazing thought that we have the words of God Himself handed down to us. And what a tragedy it is when the word of God is not proclaimed! When the church is not fed with the word, spiritual malnourishment quickly begins to set in.

I remind myself of this often, and ask myself: what is biblical preaching and teaching? What is it not? I have observed over the years that there is a type of preaching that seems biblical at first glance but is not very biblical at all. This type of preaching (and teaching) gives a nod to the word of God and then goes its own way. It is a type of preaching that only uses the Bible to prove what we think we already know. There is very little actual listening to God. There is very little dealing with the text and wrestling with its meaning. The listeners can come away with a good feeling that “God agrees with us,” but we never carefully listened to what God had to say. Instead, we passed over the scripture like a stone skipping over the water—touching upon it here and there but never getting into its wonderful depths.

To those who preach and teach among us: let us heed the solemn charge of God. Preach the word! To all of us who assemble to hear the word of God proclaimed: cherish the word and take it into your heart! May God bless us all in this endeavor.

—Scott Colvin