Year ago, I received some criticism from my ten year old daughter after one of my sermons. “They are sooooo long,” she said. Wishing I were the wise and patient father that I am not, I asked, “Well, if you were the preacher, what would you say to the congregation?” Without hesitation she answered, “Everyone can go home now!”
I was in the balcony of First Baptist Church Raleigh yesterday when Pastor Chris Chapman shared the story of hearing about a Pentecostal Preacher in Argentina who stood for his sermon and said only three words: “Love one another!” He sat down, only to get up a second time to say “Love one another!” After sitting another moment, he stood a third time and preached loudly, “Love one another! And we are not leaving here until you do!” The congregation then began stirring about, talking about mutual needs and concerns as they attempted to “love one another.” They conversed, prayed, and then mobilized to meet the needs they had just learned about as they related to one another.
As I left the balcony of the Church, I looked more closely at the people around me, observing their needs and wondering what kind of love they needed in their lives. We are dismissed after hearing of community needs (deaths, illnesses, opportunities to minister to one another, mission opportunities, etc). I imagined that I was doing what the pastor asked us to do, look right around us to share love with those close by who need it. We are to be “missional” as we meet needs wherever we happen to be.
We can all preach sermons of love. The best ones, from my experience, are the ones that are short. Sometimes, we preach the best sermons when we use no words at all.
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