Part A
1.
Before studying pastoral preaching I thought that pastoral care and preaching were mutually exclusive. I believed that pastoral care was concerned about meeting the needs of the people by shepherding them. This entailed visitations, be it at homes or hospitals, funerals, weddings, and doing things that are expected from a pastor. I believed the preaching was for the edification of the saints. The preaching is a herald of God’s word. The preacher spent a majority of his time in exegesis and studying to present a contemporary sermon from which the Lord would speak through him by the Spirit that Christ might be glorified. I believed that the two would not have time to deal with the other areas; therefore one must make a decision as to be either a pastor or a preacher. I have come to find out that they are not mutually exclusive. The pastor is a preacher and the preacher is a pastor. God calls the pastoral preacher to a specific congregation at a specific time to deliver a specific message. Dr. Joe Cothen’s The Pulpit Is Waiting helped me to understand that the Lord has given the pastor the task of proclaiming a specific message to a specific people. Therefore the pastor must know what his people need to hear. …show more content…
For one, I have a strong sense of calling, knowing that God has called me to preach. It is this call that keeps me going no matter how hard things may get. With this call is a sense of urgency. I know that people are facing eternity, either in the presence of the Lord’s grace or his wrath. It is this truth that forces me to rightly divide the text. I am diligent in my sermon preparation, trying to discern what the Lord has to say to my people. Another strength I have is discipline. By God’s grace I have developed a lifestyle of devotion to the Lord. It is important for me to spend time with the Lord, allowing him to speak to my heart before I can go and preach to
1.
Before studying pastoral preaching I thought that pastoral care and preaching were mutually exclusive. I believed that pastoral care was concerned about meeting the needs of the people by shepherding them. This entailed visitations, be it at homes or hospitals, funerals, weddings, and doing things that are expected from a pastor. I believed the preaching was for the edification of the saints. The preaching is a herald of God’s word. The preacher spent a majority of his time in exegesis and studying to present a contemporary sermon from which the Lord would speak through him by the Spirit that Christ might be glorified. I believed that the two would not have time to deal with the other areas; therefore one must make a decision as to be either a pastor or a preacher. I have come to find out that they are not mutually exclusive. The pastor is a preacher and the preacher is a pastor. God calls the pastoral preacher to a specific congregation at a specific time to deliver a specific message. Dr. Joe Cothen’s The Pulpit Is Waiting helped me to understand that the Lord has given the pastor the task of proclaiming a specific message to a specific people. Therefore the pastor must know what his people need to hear. …show more content…
For one, I have a strong sense of calling, knowing that God has called me to preach. It is this call that keeps me going no matter how hard things may get. With this call is a sense of urgency. I know that people are facing eternity, either in the presence of the Lord’s grace or his wrath. It is this truth that forces me to rightly divide the text. I am diligent in my sermon preparation, trying to discern what the Lord has to say to my people. Another strength I have is discipline. By God’s grace I have developed a lifestyle of devotion to the Lord. It is important for me to spend time with the Lord, allowing him to speak to my heart before I can go and preach to