Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Henry H. Mitchell is the author of Celebration and Experience in preaching, Black Preaching, Black Belief, The Recovery of Preaching, and Soul Theology. He teaches and supervises students at the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta, Georgia. He was Professor of Homiletics and History and Dean of the School of Theology at Virginia Union University. 1994 MLK Jr. Emeritus Profess of Black Church Studies, Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School. 411 Angier Court, NE, Atlanta, GA 30312-1082

Auszug. © Genehmigter Nachdruck. Alle Rechte vorbehalten.

Celebration and Experience in Preaching

Abingdon Press

Chapter One

Actually, God gives experiential encounters in the Spirit and with the Word. Yet, quite often, these experiences occur in apparent connection with the efforts of thoughtful servants of God. It is a fact that we are commanded to go into all the earth and preach and teach and witness as if it all depended on us, while trusting that it all is in the hands of God. For the homiletical studies outlined in this work, then, preaching is defined as follows:

To preach is so to be used by the Holy Spirit that the gospel is communicated, to the end that hearers are saved and then helped to grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord. It is the hope of every preacher that every sermon will be used by the Spirit to move Christians to grow from point A to point B, in the direction of the life modeled by Jesus Christ. And every sermon should focus on one such behavioral goal as stated or implied by the biblical text.

The first element of meaningful experiential encounter is a biblical text, the basis of the authority that distinguishes the sermon from a secular essay. Texts should be chosen with careful thought, as well as divine guidance. In the thoughtful aspect, a text should be chosen for clarity of behavioral purpose and memorable brevity, as well as for helpful guidance in a specific human need. Some texts literally are behavioral purposes: "In every thing give thanks" (1 Thess. 5:18). Other texts imply or exemplify behavioral purposes (b.p.). In Romans 8:28, Paul exemplifies a b.p. of trust in all situations when he says, "We know that God works in everything for good (author's translation; emphasis mine)." Because so many texts imply trust, this b.p. should be more specific: "Regardless of fearful appearances, God works in everything!"

Jesus' Parables have implied b.p.s. For instance, there is no direct admonition to "be compassionate," but the parable of the good Samaritan (Luke 10:33) says it all in a human example of compassion. This one-purpose focus is characteristic of all of Jesus' parables, and Matthew, Mark, and Luke all testify that this is how Jesus preached (Matt. 13:34; Mark 4:34; Luke 8:10). He employed concrete images that had parallels to spiritual meanings, otherwise expressible only in abstraction.

To attempt more than one purpose is likely to achieve neither or none, because of lack of focus. It is a great and sufficient blessing when the gospel concerning even one needed behavior is actually received and the hearer is motivated and empowered to obey. For example, "Blessed are the meek" (Matt. 5:5) is a great challenge. One hardly dares ask the Spirit for more in a single sermon. (Notice, Jesus didn't say, "You ought to be meek.")

One is not necessarily called to preach all of even one text verse if it contains more than one behavioral goal. Paul's great list of the fruits of the Spirit includes seven goals in Galatians 5:22, with two more in verse 23. I have been known to preach for two weeks, with introductory and concluding sermons and a different fruit from the text for a b.p. each night of a ten-night revival.

These guidelines of brevity and clarity are often challenged in class on the grounds that all of a verse ought to be treated. A long, Paul-type sentence (Ephesians 3:15-19 is just one sentence) offers many possible b.p.s. Students feel obligated to preach all of them, exhausting all possible meanings. Of course, even for one brief verse, this just simply may be impossible. But the most important response to the challenge to exhaust meaning is that the goal of one sermon is not comprehensive knowledge of so little as one whole verse; it is the faithful change of life in the direction of no more than one Christlike characteristic, as called for in the Word.

As stated before, there is a need to avoid confusing mental agreement or affirmation with living, obedient faith. In this vein of thought, students often submit sermon texts that seem to suggest as their b.p. a goal using verbs like "to know" or "to show." They want the hearer to "know" that God is provident—and this is good as far as it goes. Every b.p. requires some form of idea knowledge, but the bottom line is not just "knowing" and reciting a text. The bottom-line b.p. is trusting and obeying that text. One may agree that God is provident (Rom. 8:28), but the real test is whether or not the hearer can be calm and trust God's providence in times of hard trial. So to speak, this is a behavior at "gut level," a holistic confidence. About doctrines like God's providence, sermons on trust texts seek not so much theological knowledge as spiritual power that radiates from print and pulpit, out of the idea stage and into gut-level trusting under stress.

No less misleading than "to know" is the students' submitted b.p. "to show." The preacher, not the hearer, does the showing. It assumes intellectual processes and seeks agreement. Showing is what a lawyer does to convince a jury, from whom to win a decision. With a similar b.p., the preacher would be "showing" in a sermon while the audience or jury in the pew would listen passively and be expected to do no more "behavior" than a yes or no. The world needs good lawyers "to show," but not in the pulpit. Preaching is art, not argument. Spiritual encounters are not legislated or decreed; they are experienced.

THE LESSON AND LECTIONS IN WORSHIP

The usual Scripture lesson read in public worship is the one from which the text and b.p. have been drawn. However, there are occasional exceptions. These come from a text containing a well-stated b.p., but without supportive material in its biblical context. Such is the case with Romans 8:28, Paul's classic word about the providence of God. As will be stated in chapter 9, such a text may call for a lesson to be read from a different pericope that embodies this same b.p. In this case, Romans 8:28 calls for Genesis 50:14-21 as a lesson, with emphasis on verse 20, used in the sermon's celebration: "God meant it for good" (NKJV). This is not proof-texting; it is enriching an encounter by means of powerfully illustrating a similar and otherwise contextually isolated text about providence.

A widely utilized factor in the choice of sermon texts and lessons is the Revised Common Lectionary, offering preaching lections for a three-year cycle, including every week a reading from the Hebrew Bible, a psalm, an epistle, and a reading from the Gospels. Although some consider this restrictive, others, including whole denominations, see it as a safeguard against a temptation to stay on one theme and to overemphasize one part of the Bible. In any case, lectionaries have passages from all four parts of the Bible, each of which has verses from which the Spirit may guide a text to be found that fits a congregation's needs, and a given preacher's gifts and passionate convictions.

For those who resist the lectionary itself, lectionary-type options include the individual's own design of a year's preaching plan or a series of sermons on the life of Christ, the great prophets of the Old Testament, or exciting characters like David and Deborah, Priscilla and Paul. The main concern is to preach from a whole Bible in all its aspects, reaching the whole gamut of...