Power of the Spirit in the Teaching of the Word

843 acres post:  Religion for Atheists

Religion: Atheist Alain de Botton argues that it is "too easy" to dismiss faith as a triviality: "There is something to learn from the example of religion even if you don't believe any of it." He says that educational institutions, for example, rightly replaced religion (e.g., the letters of Paul) with culture (e.g., the plays of Shakespeare), but they should not have thrown out the tradition of the sermon. "What is the difference between a sermon and our modern, secular mode of delivery, the lecture?" he asks. "A sermon wants you to change your life and a lecture wants to give you a bit of information. I think we need to get back to that tradition of the sermon because we are in need of morality, guidance, and consolation." [1]

Confidence: What de Botton fails to grasp, however, is that something happens in the sermon--that is, in the preaching and teaching of God's Word--that is far more than morality, guidance, and consolation. The writer of Hebrews talks about what happens when the body of Christ gets together: "Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water." [2]

Spirit: The Spirit, not the sermon, changes our lives. Yes, we are in need of morality, guidance, and consolation, but these things are by-products of a greater reality--a restored relationship with God. In other words, the basis of our communion as believers is not our mutually held beliefs, but the blood of Christ. Thus, when we take the cup and eat the bread and here the words, "Do this in remembrance of me," something cosmic happens. We celebrate that we are people united by his blood.


Prayer: Lord, We give you thanks that, as a result of your common grace, even people who do not believe in your existence see the good things that emanate from religion. We even confess, Lord, that we often stop where they stop; we forget the power of the Spirit in the teaching of your Word. Increase our faith and bring us into your presence. Amen.