Preach Simple Truths; Be Clear and Understandable

Jesus didn’t cloud his messages with technical or theological jargon. He spoke in simple terms that normal people could understand. We need to remember that Jesus did not use the classical Greek language of the scholar. He spoke in Aramaic. He used the street language of that day and talked of birds, flowers, lost coins, and other everyday objects that anyone could relate to.

Jesus taught profound truths in simple ways. Today, we do the opposite. We teach simple truths in profound ways.

Sometimes when pastors think they are being “deep,” they are really just being “muddy. They like to show off their knowledge by using Greek words and academic terms. No one cares as much about the Greek as pastors do. Chuck Swindoll once told me that he believes an overuse of word studies in preaching discourages confidence in the English text. I agree.

It is easy to complicate the gospel, and of course, Satan would love for us to do just that. The apostle Paul worried that “your minds would be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ” (2 Cor. 11:3 NASB).

And remember, simple doesn’t mean shallow. Simple doesn’t mean simplistic. Simple means being clear and understandable.

For instance, “This is the day the Lord has made” is simple while, “Have a nice day!” is simplistic.

Most people today communicate with a vocabulary of less than 2,000 words and rely on only about 900 words in daily use. If you want to communicate with most people, you need to keep it simple.

I consider being called a simple preacher a compliment. I’m interested in seeing lives changed, not in impressing people with my “erudition.” I’d rather be clear than complex.

Jesus is our model. When we preach like he did, we’ll see the results he did.

Pastor Rick often says “you never win your enemies to Christ, only your friends.” And he’s gone past the limits some believers are willing to broach in order to form friendships and love a world in need of Jesus. Because this part of Pastor Rick’s ministry is sometimes misunderstood, we offer this interview where he clearly explains his beliefs and the biblical foundation for reaching out to those who do not believe in Christ, even if it means going places where the Gospel is never preached.