If I could sit across the table from a young man preparing to preach his first sermon, there is one thing I would want him to understand before anything else: the people sitting in front of you do not need to be impressed with you. They need the Word of God.
The pulpit is not a stage, and preaching is not entertainment. You are not there to prove how smart you are, show how funny you can be, or keep everyone interested with one story after another. You have been given the serious responsibility of opening God’s Word and helping people understand what God has said.
Paul told Timothy in 2 Timothy 4:2, “preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; correct, rebuke, and exhort, with great patience and instruction.”
Notice what Paul told the young preacher to preach: the Word.
That sounds simple, but it is easy to get away from it. A preacher can spend twenty minutes telling stories, making people laugh, talking about current events, or sharing his opinions and then add a few Bible verses at the end. That may be a speech, but it is not what Paul told Timothy to do.
Young preacher, feed the flock.
Jesus told Peter in John 21:17, “Tend My sheep.” A shepherd does not entertain hungry sheep. He feeds them. In the same way, the people God places before you need spiritual food. Some will walk into church discouraged. Some will be struggling with sin. Some will have questions they are afraid to ask. Some may not know Christ at all. They need more than something that makes them feel good for thirty minutes. They need truth.
Do not be afraid of the hard parts of Scripture. If the Bible speaks about sin, preach about sin. If it speaks about repentance, preach repentance. If it speaks about judgment, do not hide judgment. If it speaks about grace, forgiveness, mercy, and salvation, proclaim those truths clearly too.
Your job is not to decide which parts of God’s Word people will like.
Your job is to faithfully teach what God has said.
At the same time, do not confuse bold preaching with harsh preaching. Paul told Timothy to preach “with great patience and instruction.” You are not standing in the pulpit to beat people down. You are there to teach them, warn them, encourage them, correct them, and point them to Christ.
Study before you preach. Do not grab a verse on Saturday night and build a sermon around whatever first comes to mind. Read the passage. Read what comes before it and after it. Find out who is speaking, who is being addressed, and what the passage actually means. Then explain it in words ordinary people can understand.
Second Timothy 2:15 says, “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a worker who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.”
Those words should make every preacher stop and think. We are handling the Word of God. We do not have the right to twist it to fit our opinion, our denomination, our favorite doctrine, or what we think the congregation wants to hear.
And never be ashamed to say, “I don’t know.”
You will be asked questions you cannot answer. You will encounter passages you do not completely understand. Do not pretend. Go back to Scripture. Study. Pray. Ask for help when you need it. A preacher who admits he does not know something is far more trustworthy than one who makes up an answer because he is afraid to look uninformed.
Watch your life as carefully as you watch your sermons.
Paul told Timothy in 1 Timothy 4:16, “Pay close attention to yourself and to the teaching; persevere in these things, for as you do this you will save both yourself and those who hear you.”
Notice that Paul mentioned both Timothy’s life and his teaching. A man can preach a sound sermon and still destroy his ministry by the way he lives. Your character outside the pulpit matters. How you treat your wife matters. How you handle money matters. What you watch when nobody is around matters. How you speak to people who disagree with you matters.
Never begin believing that standing behind a pulpit makes you more important than the people sitting in the pews. You are still a sinner saved by grace. You still need correction. You still need repentance. You still need God’s mercy every day.
James 3:1 gives a warning that every preacher should remember: “Do not become teachers in large numbers, my brothers, since you know that we who are teachers will incur a stricter judgment.”
That should put some seriousness into a man before he steps behind a pulpit.
Young preacher, you may never pastor a large church. You may never have thousands listening to you. You may never write a book or become known outside your own community. None of that determines whether your ministry has been successful.
Be faithful.
Preach Christ. Teach Scripture. Love the people God gives you. Tell them the truth even when the truth is uncomfortable. Admit when you are wrong. Keep studying. Keep praying. Keep your own heart close to God.
And when you step behind that pulpit, remember why you are there.
Feed the flock.