One can always ask questions about preaching. And questions are being asked. We can be grateful for this. At times, asking questions can result in even more questions.

One of the questions we are confronted with is this: is the element of the struggle of faith missing or lacking in our sermons? It seems this element used to be emphasized in the past and received attention in preaching, but now we are beyond this struggle. The idea that arises and is nurtured is that everything runs smoothly.

A Standstill?⤒🔗

From God’s Word we know that there is sometimes a kind of standstill. Christ even has to shake up a church with his incisive word, “You have abandoned the love you had at first!” (Rev. 2:4). Sharply it sounds from his mouth, “You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead!” (Rev. 3:1). That is a terrible verdict, not from any person but from the King of his church.

Thus we can be (or become) a self-assured congregation that feels they have reach their destination. It seems that we assume that everyone is a child of God. In the worship services there is only thanksgiving for the fact that we are his church, as if everything is in order. As far as the organization is concerned, everything runs smoothly, but you can feel that the life is missing. Everything is taken for granted.

On the other hand you may notice there are congregations where you have the impression that there is a certain resignation. The thought may have taken root that the ideal is beyond reach, and people have resigned themselves that it is what it is. Of such a congregation Christ might say what he has said before, “You are lukewarm; would that you were either cold or hot! Now because you are neither I will spit you out of my mouth” (Rev. 3:15, 16). That too is a terrible judgment, from him who knows and sees everything. If he has to speak in this vein about his congregation…

A congregation that no longer makes any effort because they feel it doesn’t help. A congregation without any life, if it ever even existed. Such passivity, either developed and sometimes promoted, gives rise to the debilitating thought: if God is no longer at work in us, what can you do? In both congregations there is a standstill. And we know: stagnation means deterioration!

Influences←⤒🔗

The question can be asked how this could have happened. All sorts of factors can give rise to the one or the other scenario. One of the causes that can be mentioned is the preaching. In this respect, entire congregations or even denominations may have gone awry.

When the call to battle is no longer sounded clearly, or it has become weaker or has altogether disappeared, it can cripple a large portion of the congregation. So strong that it affects the entire church. When a congregation no longer hears and heeds the call for the struggle of faith, or when it is no longer armed for the spiritual battle, it can happen that everyone is lying down instead of being armed with the whole armour of God.

It can happen that slowly – for usually it doesn’t happen all at once – the thought arises that everyone in the congregation is already a child of God. Or that one assumes that the entire congregation lacks any spiritual life.

The thought can also arise that once you have come to faith, the struggle is over and you can rest on your laurels.

In both cases the devil is enjoying himself. He does not like it when the call for battle is sounded, and he absolutely despises it when people start to involve themselves in the spiritual fight. He would rather disable them, or extinguish them altogether, and has his arrows on his bow, also through the sermons. He does not leave any method untested and has centuries of experience in how he can remove entire congregations off the battlefield.

Warnings←⤒🔗

When dangers are threatening or present, it is essential that we are warned. This is true for any roads we travel. We are not always happy about warning signs. However, they are necessary and are positioned to protect us and others.

Thus Peter warns about the devil prowling around like a roaring lion. It is entirely biblical to warn of the dangers that threaten the Lord’s church.

If we want to preach biblically, we must also sound warnings.

In the sermons the congregation will be stirred up to fight to come to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. “Strive to enter,” Jesus himself said emphatically.

No less should the believers be called to engage or to remain engaged in the battle against everything that is not in harmony with the will of the Lord. That is a battle directed both inwardly and outwardly, which can flare up at any time. There was every reason that Paul wrote to Timothy, “Fight the good fight of the faith.” And in another letter the congregation is warned, “Contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints.”

The prophet Ezekiel sounds a serious warning for the shepherds of the flock. When you are active in the service of God, you have a duty on behalf of your Chief Shepherd to warn the people. If you neglect this, God will demand the blood from your hand. Again, a serious alert is sounded.

In other words, the congregation must always be warned. For you can falsely presume that you yourself are one of God’s children. You can also have the false notion that it will turn out well in the judgment of God. The unconverted must not ignore the warning signs and the alerts. Those who have come to faith must take each warning signal seriously.

Thus preaching can be wholesome and lead to spiritual well-being, precisely by calling us to participate in the struggle to come to faith as well as the struggle to remain faithful.

It is a good struggle, to which all of us are called.

This article was translated by Wim Kanis.