The decisive factor in the effectiveness of preaching is the sovereign action of the Holy Spirit. Although God uses men as instruments to proclaim his word, they lack the ability to directly transform the hearts of the listeners. On the other hand, the Spirit exercises active and direct control over the minds of all men, causing thoughts, beliefs, attitudes, and motives in them according to his own will. The Bible is the usual instrument – the intellectual content that he works with as he controls men's hearts – that he uses to convert and to sanctify, but also to harden, the hearts of men. And men are the usual instruments by which he propagates the contents of the Bible.

Paul realized that men were "only servants, through whom you came to believe" (1 Corinthians 3:5). Paul planted, Apollos watered – they could not do more than that – but "God made it grow" (v. 6). This knowledge was a controlling factor in Paul's preaching ministry. It caused him to depend on the Spirit for effectiveness, and he rejoiced when the Spirit came in power as he preached: "For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you, because our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction" (1 Thessalonians 1:4-5).

In a way, all that I have said so far is to lead to this point, which is often acknowledged on paper but far too often neglected in practice. That is, the mature minister or believer is marked by his ability to handle the Bible with wisdom and skill, but this must include a genuine dependence on the Holy Spirit to work with the Scripture to render it effective. He knows his role. He knows what he must do, but he also realizes that there are some things he must not even try to do – instead, he must count on God's Spirit to make them happen.

A non-Christian businessman once met with a preacher in a hotel lobby. The meeting was arranged by a mutual friend, which was probably the only reason he agreed to it. Even then, he gave the preacher only several minutes, perhaps fewer than ten. Throughout their short conversation, the preacher repeatedly said to him, "The way of transgressors is hard." This is half of a verse from Proverbs (13:15, KJV). As he got up to leave, the preacher said it again.

Some time after that, he ran into this preacher again at a conference of some sort. And he told the preacher, "After we spoke, I could not remember anything else that you said except, 'The way of transgressors is hard.' And it kept on coming back to me. I was tossing and turning on my bed that night. That statement was repeating itself over and over again in my mind. I woke up the next morning, and it was as if those words were standing at the end of my bed, looking straight at me and saying, 'The way of transgressors is hard.' I went to work, and it was as if that statement was speaking to me from everywhere I looked: 'The way of transgressors is hard.' I was about to do something that I knew was wrong, and that verse came to my mind: 'The way of transgressors is hard.' That verse haunted me. It almost drove me insane. And then finally I realized…finally it hit me – the way of transgressors is hard! I knelt by my bed in the hotel room, repented of my sins, and received salvation through Jesus Christ."

The preacher replied, "Let me tell you my end of the story. I was disappointed that you did not give me an opportunity to say all that I wanted to say. But after you left, I prayed, 'Lord, I did not have time to say all that I wanted to this man, but still, I have preached your word to him, and you said that your word will not return to you void. Now I pray that you will use what I said to him and pursue him with it. Lord, work on his heart, even haunt him day and night, and let your will be done in him.' Evidently, God was faithful to honor his word and perform exactly what I asked of him."

Spurgeon said, "I have noticed, that if ever we have a conversion at any time, in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred, the conversion is rather traceable to the text, or to some Scripture quoted in the sermon, than to any trite or original saying by the preacher" (sermon no. 172). In our example, of course the preacher told the businessman about the way of salvation through Jesus Christ, but the key that turned everything around was nothing more than half a verse from Proverbs. It was delivered to the man by a man, but it was driven into his heart by the Holy Spirit.

Elsewhere Spurgeon mentioned a man who was converted by an Old Testament genealogy in which the biblical passage repeated the words, "and he died…and he died…and he died." The man suddenly realized his mortality, that one day he would die like the rest, and after that he would either be caught up to heaven or thrown into hell. Right away he was converted and received salvation through faith in Jesus Christ.

(to be continued)

Posted in Ministry | Permanent Link