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Great
Expectations
Jason Hardin
Expectations. Everyone
has them. Husbands. Wives. Parents. Children. Employers. Employees. Teachers. Students.
We all anticipate certain things from the people
around us. Expectations have actually been around longer than
mankind. They began with God. As the Creator, He had every right to
make His expectations known, and has done so in the book we call
the Bible. One of the Father’s expectations is that we, as His
children, would have expectations of one another.
Specifically, what do you expect when
it comes to preaching? May I suggest the expectation that preaching
be both practical and persuasive? The responsibility of any proclaimer of the “good news” is to challenge his audience to
consider God’s message to mankind and how it must be applied to
everyday life. Examine the great speeches made throughout the
Scriptures and you will find calls for courage, pleas for
faithfulness, and challenges to change or continue, as the need dictated. Simply stated, preaching is intended to ignite the will of people
(persuasion) either to make corrections or to persevere in their
habits of living (practicality), using God’s Word as the source.
An excellent example is Titus
2:1-10 where Paul commands Titus to “speak the things which
are fitting for sound doctrine” and goes on to detail the
intended result – a practical change in the lives of older men,
older women, younger men, and younger women. Isn’t that the ultimate
goal? Even today, God’s people should not only expect, they should
demand that evangelists “preach the word; be ready in season and
out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and
instruction” (2 Timothy 4:1-2).
Today marks a new beginning. A fresh
start. A new chapter. But in whatever way the situations and people
change around us, two things remain constant. The glory belongs to
God and He is most glorified when His will is faithfully proclaimed
and applied. Don’t ever lose that expectation. |
