The First Piece of the Great Commission: Go and Preach
Mike’s Note: This is the first in a series of posts detailing the PDBTW acronym of the Great Commission.
“Give me 100 preachers who fear nothing but sin and desire nothing but God; such alone will shake the gates of hell”
-John Wesley
I love good preaching. I could sit and listen to really good preaching for a long time. And you know it’s really good preaching when you lose track of time and/or you feel like God is speaking directly to you. I’ve had that happen a numbers times, but one time stands out. I was trying to make the decision about starting the China Resource Center. I had all the facts about the need for our projects in China, I had my wife’s support and she felt like God was leading and all that was left was to ‘pull the trigger.’ Going to church that Sunday, God spoke as clearly to me through a sermon as He ever had.
The pastor was preaching through Isaiah 40 and was talking about those who hope in the Lord will soar on wings like Eagles. In talking about Eagles, he mentioned how when a baby eaglet is about ready to fly, the momma bird literally pushes the baby out of the nest, thereby forcing the baby to fly. I had been working with another organization, but wasn’t happy and had these projects to serve the Growth of the Church in China on my heart. It was like God literally was pushing me out of the nest to start this new organization. The next morning the China Resource Center was born.
Of course, good preaching is not only beneficial for followers of Jesus; it’s also a critical tool in evangelism. In fact, in my Awfully Awful Acronym for the Great Commission, I believe that Preaching is first for a reason. You can’t begin making disciples, baptizing and teaching until you have new converts. And so, God gives some of his people Spiritual Gifts that are used best for preaching. People with the Spiritual gifts of evangelism, pastor/shepherd and teaching tend to be able to do well preaching.
So how do know if God may want you to start a preaching ministry as your involvement in the Great Commission? Here’s a few quick thoughts:
1. If you see people without Christ, and have a ‘burning’ desire to have them come to know Jesus, you may have a calling on your life for preaching.
2. Try some simple messages with friends and/or church members. If you get a good initial response to your attempts to preach, that is a good sign.
3. In addition to #2, talk with the staff at your church and/or other spiritually mature people you know. Many times, God will use these types of people to help you discern if God is leading you.
We must have good preaching before we can make disciples. May I encourage you to prayerfully consider preaching as your first step of involvement in Great Commission work!