How To Listen To A Sermon
Have you ever had this happen to you? It’s 11:20 A.M. on a Sunday morning, and you’re listening to a sermon in church. Suddenly, your pastor says, “You know what I mean?” and you realize that you have no idea what he’s talking about, and that you’ve been thinking about college basketball for the last fifteen minutes, and that drool is leaking from the corner of your mouth. In fact, you have absolutely no idea what the sermon is about. Your pastor could be talking about the political and theological ramifications of the television show “Lassie” for all you know. I confess, I’ve had this happen to me.
Scripture places a high emphasis on preaching. In 2 Timothy 2:1-2 Paul commanded Timothy:
I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching.
Through the preaching of God’s word we hear God speak to us in a unique way that is different from when we read the Bible in private. Because of this it’s crucial that we hear the word of God preached and apply it to our lives. So how do we get the most out of a sermon? Here are four practical suggestions:
Remember Who Is Speaking
A pastor is someone who has been appointed by God to preach God’s word to God’s people. 1 Corinthians 12:28 says, “And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, administrating, and various kinds of tongues.” When we hear our pastor preach God’s word, we’re not just listening to a nicely dressed man giving an Amway prep talk. We’re listening to one that has been appointed by God to proclaim the message of God. I don’t want to mess around with words from God. I want to pay close attention.
Listen Intently
Don’t let your pastor spoon feed you. Listen intently to what he is saying, and measure his words against the words of scripture. Be like the Bereans, who, along with having a sweet name, are described in Acts 17:11 as follows: “Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.” Notice the attitude of the Bereans. They were eager to receive the word of God. They desperately wanted to hear God’s word preached to them. But they also examined the scriptures daily to ensure that what they were hearing was really from the Bible. Let’s be like the Bereans.
Listen With Humility
It’s true, we must test the preached word. But it’s just as crucial that we listen to sermons with a spirit of humility. God himself has assigned my pastor (who also happens to be my dad) the job of instructing me in God’s word. It’s my job to listen to and learn from my pastor. This truth should instill a spirit of humility into me. I don’t want to approach listening to a sermon like a spiritual boxing match, ready for a theological fight. I want to listen with humility.
Apply The Word
Throughout the course of a sermon, we should be constantly asking the question, “How does this apply to me?” God intends us not just to hear sermons, but to be transformed by sermons. For this to happen, we must diligently seek to apply the truths we hear. During the sermon, ask yourself, How does this truth apply to:
- My job
- My marriage
- My parenting
- My Bible reading
- My hobbies
- My friendships, etc
A final word. Always pray before you listen to a sermon. Apart from the power of God, all our sermon-listening will be pointless. But the good news is, God is eager to meet us on Sunday mornings.
Now is when you, the alert and sagacious (a word meaning “full of life-changing wit, wisdom, and insight”) reader add your comments. What helps you get the most out of sermons? If you’ve never commented before, today is the day!
Posted in Preparing For Sunday
March 18th, 2008 at 8:07 am
I find it important to take notes. Even if I never look at the notes again, I remember the sermon far better if I have made the effort to write down what was important. I also remember it longer, which helps in application.
March 18th, 2008 at 8:22 am
I like to prepare to listen to sermons. I wake up early on Sunday and spend time in prayer and in the Word and ask God to prepare my family’s hearts for the time of corporate worship and preaching of the Word.
March 18th, 2008 at 9:11 am
Brando,
Right on with the notes. I know some people find it hard to take notes, but if I don’t take notes I’ll be distracted in a matter of minutes.
Jason,
Excellent. I too find it helpful to wake up early and get my heart in a ready state to hear God’s word. Do you have anything specific that you do that helps you?
March 18th, 2008 at 10:08 am
I find that most of the time the lesson given that day usually applies to some recent event in my life. I than thank God (sometimes) for revealing the sin in my life and offering me forgivness. It seems to help me to not repeat bad behavior and helps me to grow towards the man God wants me to be.
March 18th, 2008 at 10:24 am
Randy,
Excellent. It’s so good to be seeking to apply God’s word to the actual things that are going on in our lives. If we’re not doing that, why bother listening?
March 18th, 2008 at 10:39 am
I start by praying the God speak powerfully to every heart in attendance through the speaker and that His words disturb me in my complacency and the His heart be pressed against my heart to rekindle His fire in my Spirit.
I not only take notes but spend most of the sermon looking at the cross and locking in to the FACT that these are His words, spoken by His servant, into my heart so that I may surrender my will to His in the week to come.
March 18th, 2008 at 11:49 am
Note-taking definitely helps me focus and get more from the sermon or Sunday School lesson. Also, a few times I have tried to synthesize some of the points from a sermon or Sunday School lesson, adding my own thoughts and at least one time extra Scriptures, along with the ideas and exact or near-exact wording from my notes. I hope to do this more often. It takes time, but I feel it’s time meaningfully spent.
March 18th, 2008 at 2:29 pm
FreedbyJC,
I appreciate that you take time to pray that God would affect you AND others by the sermon. I often pray the same thing, and it often causes me to become more locked in to what is being said.
Rachael,
When you add your own thoughts, are you asking yourself questions from the message? Or are you adding on to what the pastor said? I think it’s a good idea to try and interact with the sermon, as you’re describing.
March 18th, 2008 at 5:46 pm
Again, I take notes. Not only do I do it to remember, but I also do it to pay attention. They say that if you write something down and listen to it you remember it better. Plus, if we are having a discussion at home about the sermon, and we forget something, you can always look back on your notes.
March 18th, 2008 at 7:53 pm
Nice post, Stephen. Here is an oldie to further stimulate thinking on this topic:
“A Remedy for Wandering Thoughts in Worship” by Richard Steele.
March 18th, 2008 at 7:58 pm
Stephen, I haven’t done this a ton (though I want to do it more), and I’m not good at it, but it’s my way of reflecting about the teaching and hoping someone might benefit from it. It’s kind-of a way to rewrite my notes, though I use a lot of the same words and ideas that went into my notes. When I take notes on the sermon or Sunday School message, I don’t have the time to think much for myself or write many or any of my own thoughts, so if I synthesize, I add in some of my thoughts and at least one time I added in other verses. But even without doing that, just taking the notes alone really helps me focus. Other things churches could do might be to have gatherings where people talk about the sermon (maybe during lunch, informally or formally) or during the week at small groups. I heard of a church where they study the same part of Scripture that is being discussed in the sermons. That would probably cement the concepts deeper into people’s hearts as well as allow for interaction and further learning. Sorry this became long. Thank you for the good question in this blogpost.
March 18th, 2008 at 10:01 pm
Raye - Great point about having the notes to look back on. I take notes to pay attention but I rarely look back on them. Maybe that’s something I need to consider.
Tim - Thanks for the encouragement. Was there supposed to be a link for me to follow?
Rachael - Thanks for the follow up…
March 19th, 2008 at 11:06 am
Stephen - Sorry, no link. My reference is to a book, one to stick on the back burner (not literally, of course).
The Puritans, at least the ones that I’ve read, seemed to have a higher view of preaching than we do today. Seems like they probably preached much longer, too.
March 20th, 2008 at 12:28 am
I know it might sound like I am a little insane, but I sometimes like to argue with myself when I hear the sermons..
By this I mean I like to be honest with myself and really take note to my attitude and thoughts when I first hear confrontational things being said when I hear a sermon..
“Yea, right, your not that arrogant and prideful…”
“Did you just hear what you said…’Your not that arrogant and prideful’-get real! , this sermon is for you BUDDY!”
I find this just helps me search my deceitful heart
March 20th, 2008 at 7:52 am
Jonathan,
I like that idea a lot, and it gave me a good laugh too…
April 10th, 2008 at 2:57 pm
Hi Stephen, thank you for this. I thought that you might like to correct the Scripture reference for 2 Timothy - it’s chapter 4 I believe, and not 2:1-2.
Thanks again!