Good morning.

A man in the church choir couldn’t sing.  Several people hinted to him that he could serve in other places, but he continued to come to the choir practices.  The choir director became desperate and went to the pastor.  “You’ve got to get that man out of the choir,” he said.  “If you don’t, the choir members are going to quit.  Please do something.”

So, the pastor went to the man and suggested, “Perhaps you should leave the choir.”  “Why should I get out of the choir?” he asked?  “Well, to be honest with you, 5 or 6 people told me you can’t sing,” answered the pastor.

“That’s nothing,” the man snorted.  “At least 50 people have told me that you can’t preach!”

Well, this morning we are continuing our series that asks the question “Why?”  Why do we do the things that we do here at Fly Branch Church Of Christ.  Here is a quick review of what we have taken a look at in previous weeks.  We began with, why do we spend time in worship each week?  Then we moved on to, why do we take communion each week?  Following that, we looked at, why do we take up an offering each week?  And then last week, Brenda shared with us, why we help support missions?

Today, we come to our next thing in the order of service, the sermon.  Today, I want to address the question, and some of you may have this question from time to time, but, why do we have a sermon each week?

Well, as I try and address that question, let me just say that I believe there are a couple good reasons why we have a sermon each week.  But, before we share that, allow me to share with you, a passage of scripture.  If you have your Bibles with you, go ahead and turn with me to II Timothy 4:1-5.  In that passage, the apostle Paul gives the young preacher Timothy some advice.  II Timothy 4:1-5 says, “1”

Now, before we go any further, let’s open with a word of prayer.  Let’s Pray!

So, why do we have a sermon each week?

One of the reasons that we have a sermon each week, is to bring about life change!

Throughout the scriptures, anytime God’s men were instructed to preach, to teach, to proclaim, to instruct, or to admonish, they were instructed to do so with the goal of seeing the lives of those listening changed.  I have had a lot of people tell me at different times over the past 5 or 6, “You sure did step on my toes today.”  Or, “Have you been hiding in my house this week?”

Well, that’s fine unless it doesn’t produce the effects of seeing lives change or to see spiritual growth take place in your lives.  You see, God gives us His word to change us and to draw us closer to Him.  But we have to take the first step.  We have to want to change.

If God has called me to help you grow, then my job as a preacher is to preach in such a way that you know what to do, why you should do it, and how you can do it.  I think that whenever we hear the word of God delivered, we each have a responsibility to do something with it.

Now, granted there are many things I can do to be a better preacher.  I will continue to study.  I will continue to work on better delivery.  I must continue to surrender my life to God.  I must try and remove the sin in my life so that it doesn’t hinder my message.

But, there are also a number of things that you have to do.  Whether you have thought about it before or not, you have certain responsibilities before, during, and after the sermon that will help you to not only hear the preaching, but to make better use of the word that is preached.

So, since I mentioned it, let’s take a quick look at some of your responsibilities when it comes to before, during, and after the sermon each week.

First, let’s look at you responsibilities before the sermon is preached each week.

If God desires that I would come prepared to peach each Sunday, then doesn’t it make sense that God would expect you to be prepared as well?  But, the truth is, that most people don’t come to church prepared to encounter the word of God with the intent to change their lives.  In fact, most people wake up an hour or 2 before the sermon, skip breakfast, come in with foggy heads and sleepy eyes, and leave with grumbling stomachs.

But, with a little effort, you can change all of that and create an atmosphere where you study the word of God each week through a personal encounter with God.  An encounter that has the potential to change your life for the better.  So, how do we do that?  What must you do in before the sermon, in order to be ready for it?

1. Focus on preparation.
I believe preparation for all of us begins on Saturday night.  Don’t stay out to late on Saturday, then you won’t be so tired when you come to church on Sunday.  When you get here and see what the scripture is, open your Bibles to that scripture and begin reading it.  Maybe even consider praying that the scripture will touch you in some way.

2. Pray for something significant.
One of the greatest things you can do leading up to a worship service is to pray and trust God for His Holy Spirit to fill you up.  When you take time to pray, you are aligning your heart with God’s.  You are saying to Him that you want what He wants, and that you are preparing your heart to meet with Him in His word.

3. Pray for the minister.
If you are looking for rich sermons from me, then pray about it.  Pray that God would teach me what I need to know.  Pray that God would give me to words to say that will connect with you.  The greatest encouragement, and the greatest thing that you can do for me, is to pray for me week after week in your prayers.

So, before the sermon, you can focus on preparation, you can pray for something significant, and you can pray for the minister.  Now, let’s move on and take a look at what you can do during the sermon.

Secondly, believe it or not, you do have some responsibilities during the sermon each week as well.  But what are they?

I think that the easiest answer would be that you need to listen.  Sometimes, we have a tendency to sit there and act like, and look like we are listening.  There are times that Nellie can sit next to me on the couch and tell me something very important.  I look like I’m listening.  I act like I’m listening.  I might even think I’m listening.  But, the truth is, sometimes I’m just going through the motions.  So the obvious responsibility that you have during the sermon is to listen.  But aside from that:

1. You need to worship.
Every part of the worship service must be thought of as an act of worship.  The singing, your giving, and even the very act of listening to the sermon are all small acts of worship.  When you participate in each of these with your whole heart, you are worshiping God in many different ways.

Worship is not just accomplished by singing a song.  It is done through prayer, through giving of your finances, through giving of your time, through giving of you abilities, and yes, even through listening to God’s word being spoken.  So, during the sermon, you need to worship.

2. You need to think.
You are responsible, before God, to think as you hear the sermons.  I will do my best to deliver thought provoking messages, but I cannot MAKE you think.  You have to be willing to do that.  Thinking during the sermon is going to require that you tune in both to God’s word and to yourself.

Each week when I get up here, or when someone else is up here sharing a message from God’s word, you have to be willing to think about how it applies to you.  You have to be willing to think about how you can use what you are being told.  And you have to think about what it s that God wants you to do with what is being said.  So, during the sermon each week, you have to think.

3. You need to take notes.
Whether you like it or not, I am convinced that taking notes, even in the form of a few simple statements, can greatly enhance the benefit a sermon has in your life.  Those who take notes will remember a sermon longer than those who don’t.  And taking notes moves you from being a passive listener, to becoming an aggressive listener.  Taking notes means that you are going to write down key thoughts, primary points, and those things that God impresses upon you during the process.

It is a proven fact, that when a person is involved in more way than just listening, they retain what is being taught a little better.  So, during the sermon, it would help if you took notes of some kind.

4. You need to fight distractions.
One of Satan’s greatest tools during the service is to distract you.  There are always going to be distractions, so do your best to listen and stay focused on the message.  I would also encourage you not to be a distraction to someone else.  Every one of you can help keep distractions down by learning and training yourself to turn off the sound on your phones and pagers, to bring some cough drops, go to the bathroom before we start, use the nursery, and don’t start putting your things away until we are through.  So, during the sermon, you can help yourself, and those around you by fighting distractions.

Now, we have taken a look at what to do before the sermon, and we have just seen a hand full of things that you can do during the sermon.  All that leaves is what you do after the sermon.

And I think a second reason we have a sermon each week is to help us to reach and teach others.

After the sermon is over, I believe that we can take what we learn here at church and share that with our coworkers, our neighbors, our family, and our friends.

In the early 1950’s, Polio was one of the most feared and crippling diseases in the world.  Thousands of kids used to die from it every year.  Parents were even afraid to let their kids play outside in the summertime.

But this burden of fear was lifted forever when it was announced that Dr. Jonas Salk had developed a vaccine against the disease.  He became a household name overnight.  And he could have become a millionaire overnight.  He could have put a patent on the vaccine, and he would have become rich beyond anyone’s dreams.

But, he had no desire to profit personally from this discovery.  The only thing he cared about was getting the vaccine to as many people as possible.  He wanted to save as many people as he could.

My prayer is that we would feel the same way about the word of God.  If you have a relationship with the Lord, you have something more powerful than the polio vaccine.  Something more wonderful than any of the medical discoveries ever made.  And since the gospel has changed our lives, we owe it to the rest of our world to pass it on.

That’s how Paul felt.  And that’s why he says in Romans 1:14, “I am obligated to both Greeks and non-Greeks, both to the wise and the foolish.  That is why I am so eager to preach the gospel also to you who are at Rome.”

In other words, because my life has been transformed by the power of God, because we are servants of Jesus Christ, we have an obligation to tell the whole world about it!  We have a mission from God to share the message of Jesus with those we come in contact with.

In fact, Paul will say later on in Philippians 2:16 that you and I are to, “… shine like stars in the universe as we hold out the word of life.”  Some of you are thinking to yourself, “Josh, you can count me out!  I don’t have the boldness, the ability, or the knowledge to do what you’re talking about.  Evangelism is just not my thing.”

But let me tell you something.  To a certain extent, you practice evangelism every day whether you realize it or not.  You do it by the way you live your life.  There’s an old poem that says, “Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are read by only a few.  But the one Gospel people will read is the Gospel According to You.”

If you live a life of integrity, and if you love God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself, your faithful example will reflect Christ to those around you.

Just as we all want what is godly and best for our kids, Paul wanted what was godly and best for the people of the world.  He wanted everyone to have a chance to hear the word of God.  And hopefully you feel the same way he does.

Some of you may be afraid, or ashamed to share the word of God with others.  If so, then maybe you should pray that God would give you a heart like Paul’s.  Paul was not ashamed of the word of God.  In fact, in scripture he says, “I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ.”  Why was he not ashamed?  Because he knew for a fact that this message can change people’s lives!

That’s the life changing power of the word of God.  You and I don’t have to be ashamed of it.  Because the scripture says that it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.

It’s obvious that God is calling us to hear His message of the good news of salvation.  And I hope that He is calling you to share God’s word with your neighbors, you’re your friends, and with your coworkers.

So, now that we know why we have a sermon each week, we can begin to do the things that we need to do on our own.  We can do things before, during, and after the sermon to make it more meaningful for each of us as individuals.

So, in closing, I do not know anything that can change lives more than the word or God.  Tony Abrams says this, “It can unite broken homes, draw the alcoholic from the cup, the gambler from the cards, the addict from the needle, the prostitute from the streets, and it can draw all people into the Kingdom of God.”

II Corinthians 5:17 says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!”

John 5:24 says, “I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life.”

You see, the word of God has the power to truly change lives.  It changed my life and it can change yours as well.

Let’s Pray!