The Best Sermon Ever

I have heard many good sermons. I have heard many bad sermons. And I have probably preached a few good ones, but I know I have preached a few duds as well. But the question is how do we determine what makes a good sermon? Is it how full of Scripture it is? Does it matter how well it can be understood? Should it make us feel good, feel bad, or feel challenged? Does the person preaching make a difference? Does the appearance of the one preaching make a difference? Etc. Etc. Etc. The reality is that some of these items may be important, but different people have different requirements for what they think – many of which do not really matter because what truly matters is what God thinks about the sermon.

So, how might we narrow down the greatest sermon ever? Well, one way to begin is to make sure it is without any error. The idea is to communicate God’s message so it should be done faithfully. Certainly no preacher is perfect in understanding or presenting the text, but I believe it is possible that each Sunday (or whatever day) some preachers likely come very close on this aspect and certainly their heart intends to honor the Lord by delivering an error-free message. So, communicating God’s truth must be considered important.

Clearly communicating the message is important as well. If the message is not understood, then it is not good. Some people communicate better than others, and all communicators have an off-day, but the best sermon ever should meet this qualification without any hint of failure. Clear communication does not equate to perfect understanding by the recipients, but without it being clear, any chance for understanding is lost.

The ability to remember the sermon should have some importance. If the sermon is preached and forgotten by everybody by the time they reach their homes, the sermon was not effective. But some sermons resonate deep in our bones and challenge us time and time again. Sometimes, we even remember specific words which can be an encouragement to us when life is difficult or challenge us when life is a little to easy.

I realize a few more items might be added to this list, but I will add just one more. While I believe a good, and even a great sermon, could be preached by anyone, this post is considering the best ever. Thus, the person involved does matter – not because of training or skills, but because of the person. That person is Jesus. Who better to clearly communicate the truths of God without error in a memorable way than God in the flesh?

So, which of Jesus’ sermons is the best? The Bible records a few extended teachings of Jesus, and His teaching the disciples on the night before He died (John 14-16) must be considered high on the list. But that was with the disciples and those who joined with them in the upper room. As far as a message presented to the masses, the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) is likely the greatest. Ultimately this teaching was profound touching on levels that are hard to fathom. However, it has several principles which are clearly understood, if hard to observe. (Of course, certain verses are misunderstood and/or misapplied as well (e.g. Matt. 7.1), but this is not the fault of Jesus.) The passage is also memorable. Most Christians can probably say the next few words of several sentences which are a part of this great sermon which was given some 2000 years ago.

• Blessed are the...
• You are the salt...
• You are the light...
• Our Father in heaven... (many non-Christians have these five verses memorized!)
• Do not lay up for yourselves...
• Seek first the kingdom...
• Ask, and it will be...
• Whatever you wish others would do to you...

In our day, phrases like “best ever” or “greatest of all time” are usually said in the moment without considering all the possibilities, but the fact is that this sermon, for the reasons given above, is very likely the greatest of all time. It was truthful, clearly communicated, and memorable. But most importantly, it was preached by Jesus. Thus, it is a sermon that is still impacting people today. I am looking forward to preaching a series of sermons on this great sermon. I realize the bar is high, but if what I have said about the sermon is true, the best thing I can do is let Jesus do the preaching while I simply add a little explanation for our modern ears.

I hope you will take time to read this great sermon (Matthew 5-7) before next week. As we go through it, I hope we each gain more insights from it (my sermon notes will be included on the church blog each week – ffxbc.blogspot.com, and my personal reflections will be posted here). More importantly, my true hope is that we are challenged to raise our level of living to another level – to live “on earth as it is in heaven.”