Sermon Listening

Weekly Update – September 30th, 2021

When it comes to the topic that we considered last Sunday, the topic, “Why Preach?”, not only should we understand why it is that we value preaching as the central part of our service, but then, how do we actually listen and benefit from preaching. I wrote and posted this a few years ago, but in light of last week’s message, it seemed appropriate to post it again. Consider the following article:

“Many times we may leave a sermon thinking that it was a great explanation of a certain text or a helpful insight into the character of God, but what does it mean to me?  Or how is this going to help me through my week?  There are five helpful tips in Thabiti Anyabwile’s book titled, “What is a Healthy Church Member,” that I want to present to you that might help aid our sermon times together. 

First, meditate on the sermon passage during your devotional time.  Several days before the Sunday morning sermon, start spending some time in the passage that is going to be preached.  Begin digging into the passage by highlighting some of the major points and think about what the author of the passage is trying to say.  You can even begin to incorporate some of the verses into your prayer time.  To aid you in this, the next week’s passage is listed in the previous week’s bulletin. So save the bulletin and pull it out during one of your Bible reading times and begin to mediate on the scripture that is going to be preached. 

Second, talk and pray with friends about the sermon after church.  After service you might ask someone, “Was there anything unique or challenging that stood out to you this morning?  Or, was there anything about God’s character that surprised or encouraged you?  It is encouraging to others to hear what the Lord may have taught you during the sermon, as well as helpful for you to hear from them.   

Third, listen to and act on the sermon throughout the week.  Don’t let the Sunday sermon be a one-time event that fades from memory as soon as it is over.  Choose one or two points of application to think on and try to find ways to put it into practice.  Discuss these points with others, write them down in a journal or even a note card and keep them before you throughout the week.  There are many ways to keep the sermon alive, so be creative and seek to live out the word of God. 

Fourth, address questions you may have about the sermon text.  Scripture is so vast with application that it is often difficult to address every single aspect in the course of one sermon.  There may be lingering questions or thoughts that are still in your mind after a sermon is preached.  It will be beneficial to your soul to seek out those answers.  One way to do so is to talk with me or another teacher and address those questions.  Or you could simply talk about them one night with friends or family and study the scripture together to find your answers.  Writing down questions will help you to think through the text clearly, it will encourage me and it will be beneficial to your soul. 

Lastly, cultivate humility.  As you dig into God’s word, listen for his voice.  Don’t listen to a sermon and think about how well this applies to the person next to you, but seek to break down your own pride with how God might be speaking to you.  It is easy to become “a professional sermon listener” who is always hearing but never learning.  So beware of false knowledge that “puffs up” and seek to be drawn to Christ during our times together in the word. 

These are just a few ways to aid you in listening and gathering as much as possible from the sermon that is preached every Sunday.  I pray that we will all grow in our knowledge of the truth and in love for God and one another as we seek His face through Christ and his word.”

Serving Him with You,
Pastor Michael Nelson