Referees and Preachers: It is all about location, location, location

A retired gentleman in a study I participated in the other day stated that he was a basketball referee as a younger man and as he grew older he would then train other referees. In his training he would tell new referees that when they are in a game they need to know that any call they make they will upset half of the people. Since that will be the case it is important to not try to please the crowd as you will fail in your task. As such there are a few rules that he would tell his referees:

1. Be where you need to be
2. Make the call
3. Trust that your location has given you the best location to make the call, even if people walk out of the game cursing your name

Not bad rules for a preacher in training as well. 

1. Be where you need to be - practice the disciplines, be in people's lives, read the news, repent and reflect
2. Make the call - preach the message that you have been given
3. Trust that your location has given you the best location to make the call - Trust that God is working in and through you such that even if people curse your name you can stand confident that you were as faithful as you could be to the message delivered

Referees don't always get the call right, they are human and they are subject to all human failings. Preachers are the same. We don't always make the right call. We are subject to all human failing. But it is often not for lack of trying but because we are not always in the best location. When preachers fail to practice the disciplines you can be sure preachers will no be in the right location to make the call. 

A Chef and A Rabbi Help Explain Preaching

Not long ago I was eating with a chef and it reminded me of a Jewish Rabbi. Here is what happened. 

The chef and I were eating and she began to talk about how she would have prepared the dish differently. She had comments on the quality of ingredients and the role of salt at different stages of cooking. Due to her training and love of food, she could see and taste things that I could not. While she was talking about the brilliant use of the kalamata olives to balance the dish, I was thinking about why some olives are sold in cans while others are in jars. 

She and I were on different levels. And then I recalled Rabbi Joel Nickerson's interview by Rob Bell. 

In the interview Rabbi Joel said that in his tradition there is a way to do exegesis of the scripture and it has four layers: 

• simple
• hints
• commentary
• mystery

Here is a quick breakdown of these layers as I understand them (which is limited as I am not Jewish): 

The simple layer is just that. When you read a text there is a simple (literal) understanding. It is when you read the story of the good Samaritan and hear God saying it is good to take care of those in need. 

The "hints" layer is what many preachers do in their sermons. The preacher will then go though the scripture then point out all the other scripture that is "hinted" at in the particular preaching text. So when you hear about John the Baptist, the text hints at the story of Elijah. For many, this is the essence of what passes for "biblical preaching."

The commentary layer is that layer where one finds their own voice in the text and contributes to the story. It is the layer that some fear as "diverging" from the Word and is sometimes met with resistance with phrases like, "where in scripture do you read that?" or "The Bible says ..." Commentary is something that we all do, but not every tradition values as commentary.

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Let me tell you a mystery...

The mystery layer is that layer that needs the Spirit of God to breathe upon us in order to expose. It is that layer that we get glimpses of at and it is this layer that makes Scripture the inspired word of God. It is a layer that is hidden in plain sight but we are often looking for other things or just plain blind to being able to see it. It is this layer that Jesus exposes the world to when he says, "you have heard it said... But I say..." or "Blessed are the poor..."

When I listen to a preacher, much like the chef I ate with, I too am busy analyzing the sermon, commenting on the delivery, making note on the way the "salt" was used. I am constantly in search of the preachers who expose the mystery. And too often I find myself frustrated at my own inability to expose the mystery as I only stay at the other levels. 

And so, for those who are feasting on the word of God in Christ it is my prayer that we may all find ourselves exposed the the deep mystery and not just fill up on the simple, hints and commentary.

Preaching - what is it and what it is not

The more that I am in local church ministry the less I am drawn to talk about preaching because the more I am in local church ministry the more I understand the shelf life of a sermon. Despite what preachers want to admit, the shelf life of a sermon is like that of a cracked egg. It is good for breakfast, bad by lunch.

So why preach at all?

I would submit there is a role for preaching that is rooted in the ministry of Jesus – preaching gives language.

There is a reason when Jesus taught few understood what the heck he was saying; he was using a language that would be the mother tongue of the culture of God (which he called the Kingdom of God). He spoke in parables and cryptic sayings. He re-appropriated words like blessed and mustard seed. He was creating a lexicon that would be bedrock of this thing called the church. Notice that he gave Peter a new name, he called tax collectors disciples and he called sinners children of God. He was a walking translator.

This is the role of preaching – to translate this new language. With that in mind I would like to share what the role preaching is not.

The role of preaching is not to try to inspire people. That is the role of the Holy Spirit. What that means is that the preacher must trust that the Holy Spirit is working among the people and not try to manipulate a pre-determined outcome. The pre-determined outcome can often time narrow the range of imagination of those listening to do only that which the preacher hopes you will do. If preachers want people to trust in the power of God in their lives, then we must being by trusting the Holy Spirit to inspire.

The role of preaching is not a sales pitch. Preachers have a captive audience and have been trained to point out to that audience what they are missing or what is wrong with them. Then, after the problem is articulated, the preacher is then trained to pitch the product – Jesus. The commodification of Christ is what marketers do - preachers do not. Jesus is not a solution but a companion who sojourns with us. Or as the great preacher William Sloane Coffin said after the death of his son, God provides minimum protection but maximum support.

Finally, the role of preaching is not to give the answers. This may be obvious, however preachers are often tempted to give the congregation solutions to money problems or marriage situations or even how to vote. To put it most succinctly I give you Kallistos Ware who when talking about the faith said, “It is not the task of Christianity to provide easy answers to every question, but to make us progressively aware of a mystery. God is not so much an object of our knowledge as the cause of our wonder.”