It’s not a good conversation when one party does all the talking. And, it’s not a good church service when the interaction is only one direction. Let me express that in a different way. What God says to His people in a service is important, but so is what the people say to God.
The Lord can speak in numerous ways. For example, the Holy Spirit can communicate through a testimony, a solo, a drama, a Scripture reading, a missions report, a poem, whatever. It’s most common, however, that in a church service God speaks through preaching that’s centered on His written Word. I have often emphasized the importance of making that message effective, relevant, clear and applicable.
What might the people want to say to God in a church service? That’s easy. They might want to praise Him, or confess their sins to Him. There’s no question but that there will be those in attendance who have burdens they want to request divine help with. In some churches the people like to recite to God their “I believes.” There are also congregations that are good at expressing their personal and corporate thanks to the Lord, and so on.
We laugh when we see a comedy routine where two people talk, but neither is paying attention to the words of the other party. That’s because good conversations have a focus. There are connections between the comments that follow one another.
In good church services, the people participating can follow the ways the various parts fit together. They understand how what God says to the people relates to what the people say to God. And, if the connections are not obvious, people lose interest or even ridicule what transpired.
This is important. Good services begin with the planners involved all having a clear understanding of what God will be saying to the people through the preaching. Everything else feeds off of that.
———————————————
Whether you need to create a Topical Sermon, an Advent Sermon, a Christmas Sermon, an Easter Sermon, a Sermon Series, or any other Sunday Sermon, David Mains and Mainstay Ministries can help. For more information on how to create better Bible Sermons and how to turn Sermon Ideas into Sermon Outlines, and then into effective, meaningful Sunday Sermons, please click here to visit David Mains’ website.
