TAKING NOTES

Do you take notes when you listen to sermons? Many people do. And it is a spiritually healthy practice. For those of you who do, and for those who would like to start taking notes on sermons, let me suggest some guidelines.

• Soak Up The Pictures.

When your pastor tells a story about the Bluetick Coonhound that his grandfather had as a boy, don't try to write that down. That is good preaching. Jesus taught and preached with stories. In fact, you will remember that anyway. I used to ask people in our Wednesday night services what I preached Sunday. More often than not, someone would remember a story I told. Sometimes it was a joke that I told to keep their attention. 

• Set down the principles.

I don't recommend that you try to write down everything your pastor says in a sermon. If you try to do this you will probably miss the next crucial thing he has to say because you are trying to write out the last thing his said. But you need to make notes of principles that will transform your life. If your pastor has points, and most of us do try to write out his major points.

• Seal In The Prophecy.

We often have a very unbiblical notion of prophecy. When we hear or read the word, we think of something like crystal balls which come out of witchcraft. While biblical prophecy includes prediction, prophets in the Bible usually preached against sin. The word means to proclaim. When it is used in scripture, it refers to God speaking through someone. And you need to be aware that God will speak to you through a sermon. And while some preachers are more gifted than others, God is not limited by how good of a speaker he is.

I highly recommend that you get alone that same day to recap what God is saying to you. This may simply be a new truth. 1 Corinthians 2:14 says the things of God are "spiritually discerned." If you understand any spiritual truth, it is because the Spirit of God spoke personally to you.

This may not even be a new truth that He wants you to see. This morning in my quiet time God spoke to me through John 12:27,28. In it Jesus said,

“Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? But for this purpose I have come to this hour. Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven: “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.”

God reminded me that there is a purpose to difficult things that I face. And I can pray for Him to be glorified through my failures, embarrassment, and heartache. But this is not a new truth to me. I pray over this passage every day. But it is important for me to hold on to it today.

I suggested that you do this alone. And I believe that is important. But you can also benefit by talking to someone else about what God may have been saying to you. My wife takes much better sermon notes than I. She often shares them with me. Last week our pastor preached on the Magi from Matthew. She mentioned that the oral tradition of the Kurds says they were the Magi. She told me that the translation of the Bible into their language was recently completed. By the time she was finished sharing with me, we were both stirred to pray for the Kurds to come seeking Jesus again.

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PRAYING IN A WORSHIP SERVICE

     

Last week I shared a prayer that I invited people to pray every Sunday when we come together. "Lord, let me hear your voice." I actually began that by suggesting that people pray, "God, speak to me." Then I realized that God always speaks when His word is read and preached. That would be like asking Jesus to be present in a worship service. He told us in Matthew 18:20, that He is aready there.

"Where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”

But many things can keep us from experiencing Him. And we may be prevented from hearing His voice. So I encouraged people to pray for their hearts to be opened.

I also urged people to pray the same prayer for persons on either side of them. I would sometimes say, "You may know that person so well that you don't know where to start. But God knows. You may even be seated near someone you don't know at all. Begin by asking God to speak to them. He knows just what they need.

I challenged people make sure we had prayed for everyone in the building. I think this was our best way of welcoming others. People sensed the love of God as those around them prayed for them.

I also tried to teach people that we need to pray throughout a worship service. In Isaiah 56:7 God said,

"My house shall be called a house of prayer."

Jesus re-emphasized this in the New Testament. And the Holy Spirit recorded those words in Matthew, Mark, and Luke. I believe He was applying this to the gathering of the church every bit as much as He was the Temple.

In 1 Thessalonians 5:17 we are commanded to pray without ceasing. I do not come close to doing that. But praying throughout a worship service stretches me closer to that kind of prayerfulness.

Let me suggest two facets of prayer that will bless a worship service.

THE WORSHIP OF PRAYER
Praise is an important facet of prayer. We are so blessed to sing worship songs that praise and glorify God. Ephesians 5:18 calls us to be filled with the Spirit. Ephesians 5:19 gives us one application of that by saying we are to "make melody in our hearts to the Lord."

THE WITNESS OF PRAISE
Worship is also a means of bearing witness to those around us. The first part of Ephesians 5:19 continues the command to be filled with the Spirit,

"Addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs."

When you worship, especially with music, you encourage everyone around you to glorify God. Some of them may never have sensed His presence.




Next week I want to give you a practical guide for listening to the voice of God in a sermon. I have not written it out yet, but I intend for it to be brief and easy to share and teach people in your church.

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PRAYING IN A SERMON

There are, of course, two sides to preaching. It is like a dance where the preacher and the people come together in the music of the Scripture and stirring of the Holy Spirit.

Up to now in this series on preaching, I have only addressed the preacher. But I would like to write several blogs in the next few weeks on receiving what God has for you in a sermon. A pastor needs to teach and encourage some, if not all of what I write.

It is crucial for preachers to understand that they are joining God in a work that is beyond them. It is also important for members of the congregation to understand that God is at work in the entire gathered body when your pastor preaches. This begins and ends with prayer.

Even before you leave home, pray for God to remove the distractions and barriers in your heart and life. If you are part of a family pray for God to prepare the hearts of your spouse and children. When you arrive at the place of worship, pray that you will not miss what God is doing in the entire service.

For many years as a pastor, I encouraged people to pray something like, "God, let me hear your voice today." I would also tell them, "It will not offend God for you to pray, 'God, if you are real, let me hear your voice,' or 'God, if you are really here, open my heart to you.'"

I did not just encourage guests to pray such a prayer. I asked everyone to do it. And I always prayed something similar for myself.

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KEYS TO PREACHING WITHOUT

It has been some time since I have written a blog on preaching. In fact, you will have to scroll down past 10 blogs to May 9, in Thinking In The Spirit to find my last entry in this series. You have to scroll down 5 more to find the first of them. But I recently heard a sermon that made me long to emphasize keys to preaching without notes. The sermon I heard was taken from Colossians 3 & 4. And it contained vital truths for our lives. The preacher’s text began at Colossians 3:12 and reached down to 4:6. Earlier someone else read the entire passage. And he did not read its entirety in the sermon. This worked well. The preacher began by noting verse 16 of chapter 3 which begins,

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly.”

And he correctly pointed out that the the gospel informs every area of our lives. I thought his introduction was good. He related the word of God dwelling in us richly, to a feast. If I were only preaching on this verse, I would have noted thatthe gospel dwelling in us means it makes itself at home in our lives.

But from here he wandered through the verses bringing out some good truths. This is the Bible after all. But he could hardly remember what came next, with long pauses to find where he was in his notes. By the time he finished, the rest of us were as confused as he was.

1. The first thing I would have suggested to him would have been to ORGANIZE POINTS to Clarify His Thoughts.
If your thoughts are not clear, you will not remember them. And neither will anyone else. A great way to do this is to develop a sentence out of the central idea of his sermon, so he could state each of his points with a slight word change in that sentence. The central idea of his text would have been, “The gospel drives everything in our lives.” He could have begun his sentence, “The gospel drives. .”

The first point would be,

“The Gospel Drives Our Worship.”

Verse 16 continues,

“teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.”

I would point out that teaching and encouraging one another are part of worship. This thought is continued in verse 7. But worship does include music. And our singing must be driven by the gospel. You may preach to people who feel like our musical worship should be driven by our emotions. But our emotions should be stirred by what we sing. Can you worship when you are in a bad mood? Of course. Grace is still amazing when you feel down. And when worship focuses on God’s love or His grace, they lift your emotions by the gospel.

The next point would be,

“The Gospel Drives Our Relationships, or maybe Family Relationships.”

Verse 18 reads,

“Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord.” 

Verse 19,

“Husbands, love your wives, and do not be harsh with them.” 

Verse 20 says,

“Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord.” 

Verse 21,

“Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged.” 

You might include the next verses in relationships, or you might make it a new point.

“The Gospel Drives Our Work Life.”

The next five verses from 3:22 through 4:1 deal with this subject.

“Bondservants, obey in everything those who are your earthly masters, not by way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord. Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ. For the wrongdoer will be paid back for the wrong he has done, and there is no partiality. Masters, treat your bondservants justly and fairly, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven.”

The next point would be,

“The Gospel Drives Our Prayer Life.”

Verse 2 of chapter 4 reads,

“Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.”

This point could easily be the last. But as the sermon I heard treated the passage, it would have another point

“The Gospel Drives Our Passion For Missions.”

4:3,4 read,

“At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison—that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.”

2. My next suggestion for preaching without notes is BREVITY.

I need to admit that my primary reason for thinking preaching should be shorter than the current trend is not so you can remember what you want to say. My main reason is that people will get more if you do not overwhelm them with material. If you take several weeks to preach through a subject, they will remember more. They will even have opportunity to put some of what you tell them into practice This should be encouraged as an important part of learning. But I don’t believe this is the law of the Meads and Persians. I just heard the testimony of Becket Cook as Eric Metaxis interviewed him. He said after he was saved, his pastor preached hour long sermons, and he just couldn’t get enough. I also found that preaching in many places overseas needs to be longer. There I preached as many as three sermons at once. Or even better, we had three or four preachers.

I don’t disagree with preachers who say, “We should be willing to listen longer to spiritual things.” But I am convinced that people retain more, if we break what God gives us to say into several sermons. I know people can watch a three hour movie, or binge watch an entire TV series in a week. But those are different mediums. You have heard the phrase, “Cut to the chase.” Motion pictures are more action than intellectual content. I have said, “If I were approached by someone who wanted to turn one of my novels into a motion picture, I would be reluctant. That is because, with a few exceptions, movies don’t deliver spiritual depth very well. Your sermon needs some excitement. But even your stories are illustrations of deeper points.

And, yes, if your sermons are not quite so long, you will be less likely to need notes.

3. Finally, one of the most important factors in preaching without notes is PREPARATION.
I always composed my sermons out loud. But when I had time, I would still preach them over, usually several times. If your sermon is haphazardly organized, this won’t help as much. You would have to memorize every word. I know preachers who do this effectively. But I honestly don’t know how they do it. But if your points fit together, you can go over them when you drive or mow the lawn.

I appreciate all the feedback I got on the earlier blogs on this subject. One of the men who commented on a Facebook page where I posted them said, “This wouldn’t work for me.” He may have been right. But he may have been saying, “That is out of my comfort zone.” Communicating the gospel is important enough that it is worth stretching yourself to see if it makes your sermons better. I am convinced that it will, even if you do not adopt my methods in the long run.

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FOOTNOTES IN THE BIBLE

Do you ever follow out the footnotes in your Bible? We don't read or write footnotes much in these days? We are conditioned to read as fast as possible. I need to be honest here. I am a slow reader, so I might have a tendency to justify my weakness. But taking the time to follow out a footnote broadens understanding and enjoyment.

Most English Bibles have three kinds of footnotes. They usually have different markings that you may have to read the introduction to your edition to discern.

First there are notes for Clarification.

These often explain the broader use of a word in the original language. They may point out differences in some early manuscripts.

Some are interpretive Comments. Your Bible may have only a few, if any of these. If you have a Study Bible, these will make up most of the comments. They may be explanations, or arguments for a certain point of view. These notes should not be taken as Scripture, but they can be very helpful. And as a writer of books on the Scriptures, I have to admit that you probably get better insights by reading notes right in your Bible. When you read something in a book, you may say, "I understand that." When you read a note in your Bible, you might say, "I understand that the Bible says this."

Most of your footnotes will be Cross References. Some Bibles have so many of these they need a center column. I think these may be the most valuable notes in your Bible, even though following them out takes time. For most of my adult life I tried to read the Bible through every year in my daily devotional time. That was good for me. But once you have done it several times, I think it is much more beneficial to read less, and go deeper. And following the cross references is a good way to do that.

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Talitha Cumi טְלִיחָא קוּמִי

The Gospels were written in Greek. But in all of them certain Aramaic or Hebrew words are included and are usually translated.

One of the reasons for this is that the writer was present when striking Hebrew words were spoken. They were so vivid in Mark's mind, that he quoted them. I believe that is true when Matthew and Mark quote Jesus on the cross saying, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani," "My God, my God, Why have you forsaken me!" Although this is also a quote from the 22nd Psalm.

One particular case of this is found in the raising of the daughter of Jairus. Jesus had entered the home of Jairus the Synagogue Ruler whose daughter had died. Jesus allowed no one to go with Him into the girl's room, but her mother and father, Peter, James, and John. There Jesus raised the child from the dead. Mark 5:41-42 reads,

"Taking her by the hand he said to her, “Talitha cumi,” which means, “Little girl, I say to you, arise.” And immediately the girl got up and began walking (for she was twelve years of age), and they were immediately overcome with amazement."

But we know Mark was not there to hear those words spoken by Jesus. Jesus only allowed the child's parents, and three Disciples into that room. However, what is considered to be reliable tradition tells us that Mark was the protege of Simon Peter. I suspect Peter's description of this event was so vivid that Mark couldn't help repeating it. And we see several things from this.

First we have an eye witness reflection of the tenderness of Jesus. "Talitha" was an Aramaic endearment for a little girl. I cannot read this story from Mark without melting at our Master's tender voice. I would like my voice to reflect His love as I tell His story.

We have here an eye witness reflection of the authority of Jesus. The authority of Jesus is reflected in who people were saying He was. People were perplexed about who Jesus really was. He didn't just heal a person here and there. When He entered a town or region, hundreds of sick people were brought to Him and He healed them all. But this healing was different. The little girl was dead. And while Jesus charged them not to tell anyone, those in the room witnessed His authority over life and death. I want to know and share the One with that authority.

Finally, we have an eye witness reflection of the reality of the event. The use of the very words of Jesus brings us into that room as well. I think it is interesting that Mark tells us that she got up and walked because she was 12 years old. Have you ever addressed a 12 year old as a little child? If so, you did not please the child. Of course it was fitting for Jesus to call her talitha in the aftermath of the tragedy. But Mark explains that she was nearly grown. Luke also records this event. He tells us Jesus told the parents to give her something to eat. They were evidently too overcome with joy and amazement to think about what they needed to do for her. That would have been a detail too mundane for a myth. This is evidence of the reality of the event.


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GLORY IN THE CROSS

Mostly because of medical treatments, I don’t preach much any more. But from time to time, God still encourages me with a sermon idea. And at least with this one, I decided to publish a brief of the sermon in this blog.

Glory In The Cross

(C.I.T.: Paul wanted to avoid glorying in anything but the cross of Jesus.
Focus: Glorying
PEOPLE:
PURPOSE: Consecrative; I want my hearers to desire to glory in the cross.
THRUST: We need to glory in the cross alone.
PICTURE: "Well done good and faithful servant. Enter into the joy of your master.")

Please look with me at Galatians 6:14

"But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world."

Many years ago I was pastor of a church that built a new worship center. And I got to pick the pulpit. I had seen one that was shaped like a cross. I told the builder what I wanted, and he found one for me. When it was installed, I went to a store that made plaques and got a small brass plaque and mounted it permanently to the pulpit where anyone who stood behind it could see. It read, "God forbid that I should glory. . ."

The translation of Scripture that I read from used the word boast. But the word in the original language is, "glory." This is a problem because we never use the word glory as a verb in modern English. The Classic Amplified Bible expands this verse to express its meaning.

"But far be it from me to glory [in anything or anyone] except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah) through Whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world!"

Let me connect this verse with its context by reading chapter 5, verse 26.

"Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another."

But just as the word boast gives evidence of a struggle to translate 6:14 from the original language to modern English, the word conceit does not quite get the meaning in 5:26. The Greek word here is a compound word made up of the word glory and the word for vanity. So the Classic Amplified Bible read,

"Let us not become vainglorious and self-conceited, competitive and challenging and provoking and irritating to one another, envying and being jealous of one another."

We are tempted to come at one another in competition, seeking our glory from or instead of them. My wife recently gave me a copy of C.S. Lewis's book, The Weight of Glory. In the introduction, Lewis' secretary, Walter Hooper, said he and Lewis once discussed Mallory's Morte d' Arthur. At one point Lancelot said with his selfless acts, he was "winning worship," that is increase his reputation. They agreed that statement was inherited from paganism. But Hooper asked if Lewis was aware that, however unintentionally, he was "winning worship" through his marvellous books.

Lewis responded in a low still voice, and with the deepest and most complete humility Hooper had ever seen in anyone, "One cannot be too careful not to think of it." But you cannot simply avoid vainglory. You must focus on higher glory.

This relates to a deep need in our lives. Jesus painted a picture of the ultimate fulfillment of this truth. In the Parable of The Talents in Matthew 25 He said the master would say to those who invested and increased what had been entrusted to them, "Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master." We all desperately need to hear God's words, "Well done." That is our glory. No other glory will satisfy our need.

Our true glory comes to us through the gospel. Our glory is the cross. It begins by calling us to admit we are nothing. Galatians 6:3 keys on this in the fellowship as Paul seeks to bind the church family together.

"For if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself."

But Jesus died for us to give us His glory. That is the glory of the cross. Let me give you six applications of the glory of the cross in our lives. I promise I will not preach to you for an hour on each of these points. But I earnestly desire for you to grasp each of these applications of your glory of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Recognizing The Glory of The Cross

As long as the cross is merely the beginning point of your faith, you have not grasped much of its meaning.


Receiving The Glory of The Cross

John 1:12 says,

"But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God."

To receive Christ is to put your faith in Him and in what He did for you on the cross.


Reveling In The Glory of The Cross

To grasp the depth of what Jesus did for you at the cross, you must meditate on it. Think about it and soak up its reality in your life.


Rejoicing In The Glory of The Cross

And meditating on the wonder of it, should cause you to rejoice in all that God has done for you. If you cannot rejoice over what God has done for you, you have an intellectual disconnect. You just don’t get it.

Boasting About The Glory of The Cross

We ought to desire that God be glorified because of the cross. It is certainly worth telling others about.


Sharing The Glory of The Cross

And we should be prepared to help people come to know the glory of the cross for themselves.

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