The Importance of Effective Preaching
Reflections on Augustine, John Chrysostom and Gregory of Nazianzus view of the Word
In many Reformed circles, there's a subtle suspicion of powerful preaching. The focus is largely on the sacramental power of the scriptures, regardless of how it is preached. We prize sound doctrine (as we should), and we often recoil from emotionalism or theatrics that feel manipulative. And rightly so—truth must not be eclipsed by spectacle. But in our zeal to protect the truth, we sometimes forget that truth is meant to be communicated—and communication requires skill, sensitivity, and even soul.
I was surprised when reading the church fathers, how much emphasisis they put on good preaching. Not as a performance, but as the heralding of the Word of God. And if we believe that the Word is living and active, we ought to care deeply about how it is proclaimed.
The Soul Needs More Than a Lecture
Augustine, in On Christian Doctrine, warns preachers to prioritize clarity and doctrine. While he does elevate pure doctrine to the highest regard, this does not discount the role of clarity and eloquence.
“The man who cannot speak both eloquently and wisely should speak wisely without eloquence, rather than eloquently without wisdom.”
It’s easy to think that such a great theologian like Augustine would encourage preaching rich theological complexity, but he actually says the opposite. He says that theology belongs in small groups but not in the pulpit for the average hearer.
"What advantage is there in purity of speech which does not lead to understanding in the hearer?… He who teaches will avoid all words that do not teach…The best mode [of teaching] is that which secures that he who hears shall hear the truth, and that what he hears he shall understand."
Not Every Soul Needs Philosophy
Gregory of Nazianzus, an intellectual giant of the early church, even advises that not every believer must have a breadth of philosophical knowledge.
“Not to every one, my friends, does it belong to philosophize about God…not before every audience, nor at all times, nor on all points; but on certain occasions, and before certain persons and within certain limits.” – Theological Orations
He worried that convoluted preaching could overwhelm believers and actually turn them away from the gospel. He writes:
Why should a man who is a hostile listener to such words be allowed to hear about the Generation of God…Why do we make our accusers judges? Why do we put swords into the hands of our enemies?…will the arguments about such subjects be received by one who approves of adulteries, and corruption of children, and who worships the passions and cannot conceive of anything higher than the body”
The point is not to dumb down theology but to recognize that not everyone is ready for every doctrine in the same way. Effective preaching discerns the season, the hearer, and the heart.
Importance of Pastoral Sensitivity
Gregory the Great, in His Book on Pastoral Rule, offers perhaps the most profound insight: different people need different kinds of preaching. The proud and the timid don’t need the same word. The rich and the poor don’t need the same tone. The same truth must be preached, yes—but not always in the same way. The pastor must be like a physician, diagnosing the soul and applying the Word accordingly.
The Danger of Turning Preaching Into a Spectacle
Despite the importance of eloquence, Saint John Chrysostom, in his work On the Priesthood, warns of three great dangers, First he warns against hearers who treat sermons like entertainment.
“For to begin with, the majority of those who are under the preachers' charge are not minded to behave towards them as towards teachers, but disdaining the part of learners, they assume instead the attitude of those who sit and look on at the public games;
Second Chysostom warns against dividing the church into factions based on the teacher, instead we should unite under the Word.
“and just as the multitude there is separated into parties, and some attach themselves to one, and some to another, so here also men are divided, and become the partisans now of this teacher, now of that”
This mirrors Paul’s warning in 1 Corinthians 3:4: “For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not mere human beings?”
Lastly, he warns against pastors who thrive off applause.
“if on the other hand he is successful as a preacher, and is overcome by the thought of applause, harm is equally done in turn, both to himself and the multitude, because in his desire for praise he is careful to speak rather with a view to please than to profit”
This is a warning we need today. The goal of preaching is not applause. It’s not entertainment. It’s not even persuasion. It’s faithfulness. It’s to care for the congregant and their needs.
Jesus and Paul Preached Differently to Different People
Even Jesus didn’t walk around reciting systematic theology. He spoke in parables. He adapted His language to His hearers.
Paul does the same: “To the Jews I became as a Jew… to those under the law, I became as one under the law… I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some” (1 Cor. 9:20–22).
Paul even goes so far in 1 Corinthians 14 to say, “I would rather speak five words with my mind in order to instruct others than ten thousand words in a tongue.” to show that clarity is of the upmost importance.
In 1 Corinthians 3:1–2, Paul also remarks that the deepest truth (spiritual food) is not always the best way to initiate the conversation. Sometimes you must start with spiritual milk.
"But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready."
Preaching Is a Means, Not the End
So let’s say it clearly: preaching is essential. But it is not everything.
Faith comes through hearing the pure Word of Christ. This word should not be diluted or changed, but the most effective sermons are ones that can teach purely and clearly.
Let us train preachers well. And let us always remember: the goal is not the preacher. The goal is the Word understood.