When the apostle said that Scripture was profitable for "doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness," he implied that there should be diversified preaching in the churches. Some sermons should be doctrinal, others instructional, others exhortative, and there should be some of still other varieties.
How may a preacher achieve diversity in his preaching? There is only one answer : By checking over his sermons with the view to discovering variety. Sermons may vary in different respects. They may be short, long, poetic, ponderous, or of other classification. The particular kind of difference implied by the apostle pertains to the effect of the sermon upon the heart. The content of the sermons is to be diversified. The preacher is not always to be admonishing or instructing or hammering away at doctrines. His sermons are to appeal to the congregation differently from time to time according to the various results he wishes to obtain. As a master builder he will want to build up the minds and characters of his hearers so that his sermons will present beauty, balance, and strength.
Here is a simple test which each preacher may apply to his stock of sermons. Suppose you have 150 or 200 sermons aside from your lecture notes which you use in your public lecture series. Take your regular stock of sermons (possibly including certain sermons which you give in connection with a public evangelistic effort), and divide them into groups according to various headings. Check the number of sermons you have under each particular heading. This will give you an idea of the kinds of sermons you preach. You will discover your shortage of sermons of certain types, and perhaps an excessive supply of other kinds of sermons. This will help you to ascertain which kind of sermons you preach most, and may explain the cause of certain whispering campaigns that float through your congregation from time to time.
The following classifications were recently discovered in a minister's collection of 206 sermons : Devotional, 3o; doctrinal, 3o; exhortative, 30; evangelistic, 2o; juvenile, 16; expository, 12 ; instructional, 12; ministerial, II; prophetic, Jo; historical, 8; religiopolitical, 8; biographical, 7 ; inspirational, 6; consecrational, 6; missionary, 5; ceremonial (baptism, Lord's supper, marriage, etc.), 5. The fact that this particular minister is an executive may account for his shortage of ceremonial and biographical sermons. His shortage in purely inspirational sermons may be offset by the fact that he has the ability of making all his preaching inspirational. Some of these differences are difficult to ascertain by the mere sermon content. The purpose of compiling a list of this kind is primarily to serve as a basis for an individual checkup on the point of diversified preaching.
No amount of gestures or stories can change the type of sermon. Every sermon is influenced by the thought uppermost in the preacher's mind when he is preparing the sermon. If he is bent on doctrine, his sermon will be doctrinal ; if he is bent on exhortation, his sermon will be exhortative. There are other kinds of sermons not given in this particular list. Perhaps if a complete list were compiled someday, and sent out to all preachers to check against, we might find better-fed sheep and lambs in our churches as the result.
Another matter on which a minister of the gospel must closely check is the danger of repeating a sermon when preaching to the same congregation. In order to avoid such unfortunate repetition, it becomes necessary to make notes on the subject presented. These notes need not necessarily be used when preaching, provided the preacher has the subject fully in mind. They serve a good purpose, however, as a record of the day's sermon, if the place and date of delivery are carefully recorded thereon. Sermon notes should be kept on regular notebook paper that lends itself to convenient filing and reference.
Potatoes are good food, but eating nothing but potatoes three times a day soon becomes tiresome, especially when many other kinds of food are available. Our congregations should be treated at least as well as we treat our stomachs. A little extra effort in applying these simple suggestions will bring greater joy and spiritual strength to the churches whose members are undernourished, and perhaps tired of a pastor who feeds them the same kind of food week after week, or of a minister who travels from church to church, and never bothers to look up what sermon he preached in each church the last time. Why not check over our sermons now, and discover for ourselves why our congregations do or do not care for our preaching?
