For a preacher to be effective, Holy Spirit power is essential. We simply have to have it. Power is a must if lives are to change, people to be saved, and Christians sanctified – and only God can supply this power. Talent, training, giftedness and thorough preparation are not enough. The preacher needs to be controlled from within by the mighty Holy Spirit. The prophet Micah said,

“..truly I am full of power by the Spirit of the LORD, And of justice and might, To declare to Jacob his transgression and to Israel his sin.” Micah 3:8 (NKJV)

The modern day preacher, too, needs power from the Spirit. Charles Spurgeon said to preachers,

“It would be far better to speak six words by the Spirit than to speak six thousand without him. A sermon is not to be judged according to its words, a certain inner force is its soul and life.” (1)

He also said,

“Let the preacher always confess before he preaches that he relies upon the Holy Spirit. Let him burn his manuscript and depend upon the Holy Spirit. If the Spirit does not come to help him, let him be still and let the people go home and pray that the Spirit will help him next Sunday.” (2)

Peter reminded believers that when the gospel reached them, people preached the gospel to them “by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven.”
1 Peter 1:12 (NIV)

The preacher needs this power in order to be dynamic and challenging and for his message to have maximum impact. Listen to some other voices from church history..

D.L. Moody: “Unless [the Holy Spirit] attend the word in power, vain will be the attempt in preaching it. Human eloquence or persuasiveness of speech are the mere trappings of the dead. If the living Spirit be absent, the prophet may preach to the bones in the valley, but it must be the breath from heaven that will cause the slain to live” (3)

Samuel Chadwick: “The work of God is not by might of men or by the power of men but by His Spirit. It is by him the truth convicts and converts, sanctifies and saves. The philosophies of men fail, but the Word of God in the demonstration of the Spirit prevails.” (4)

Martin Lloyd-Jones said, “If there is no power it is not preaching. True preaching, after all, is God acting. It is not just man uttering words; it is God using him… He is under the influence of the Holy Spirit” (5)

He said to preachers, “You can have knowledge, and you can be meticulous in your preparation; but without the unction of the Holy Spirit you will have no power, and your preaching will not be effective.” (6)

And from more recent times, Jim Cymabala (from his excellent book, Fresh Power) said,

“Let every pastor take note: Our attempt at ministry will be an absolute exercise in futility if we are not expecting and experiencing divine help through the power of the Holy Spirit.” (7)

May each of us preachers make a resolution to bathe every sermon in prayer, seeking Holy Spirit power, without which we cannot be successful.
David Hunt

Quotes
(1) Spurgeon, C. An All-Round Ministry, (Banner of Truth Trust, Carlisle, Pennsylvania, 1900) p86
(2) Spurgeon, C. Twelve Sermons on the Holy Spirit, p51
(3) Quoted in: Cymbala, J. Fresh Power, (Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 2001) p8
(4) Quoted in: Cymbala, J. Fresh Power, (Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 2001) p18
(5) Jones, M.L. Preaching and Preachers, (Hodder & Stoughton, London, 1971) p95
(6) ibid p319
(7) Cymbala, J. Fresh Power, (Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 2001) p48

“For the kingdom of God is not in word but in power.”
1 Corinthians 4:20

What a powerful statement this is. God’s kingdom is not about words alone, but is an exhibition of power.

There are words aplenty in this world. Some people make their living from words – authors, journalists, teachers, lecturers, news readers, talk-show hosts, and so on. Thousands upon thousands of words are spoken and written. Some of these words are impressive. Some are empty. Many have no power because God is not in them. He is not inspiring the words.

As Christians, to see people won for Christ we need more than words. To see people drawn into God’s kingdom, we need a manifestation of power.

“the kingdom of God is not in word but in power.”

Paul, Silas and Timothy preached to the Thessalonians. Paul later wrote, “our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Spirit” (1 Thess. 1:5) Words weren’t enough. There had to be power and a moving of the Holy Spirit for a breakthrough. Conversions occurred because the Holy Spirit spoke through men.

Paul wrote to the Corinthians, “my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power” (1 Cor. 2:4). Again, words were not enough, but Holy Spirit empowerment gave impact to the words.

It is vital that we have power when we proclaim the gospel. It is the only way to be effective in preaching and personal witnessing. How do we acquire this power? Through prayer!

Prayer-bathed preaching is the most powerful of all. It makes a noticeable difference to preaching when we spend time in prayer beforehand, asking for Holy Spirit power. This applies to preaching, Sunday School teaching, Scripture lessons, and all other public proclamations of the Word. The Holy Spirit speaks powerfully through us when we precede our presentations with requests for divine enablement. Then we can expect impact!

David Hunt