A Sobering Thought

As I have been thinking and preparing for my sermon, I've been hit with a very sobering thought.  I take preaching very seriously, because the more I read the Bible the more I see the gravity of preaching and the great responsibility that I have in that moment a minister of the Word.

I was reading in Acts 12 about the death of King Herod, and was completely bowled over by how it is described: "On an appointed day Herod put on his royal robes, took his seat upon the throne, and delivered an oration to them.  And the people were shouting, "The voice of a god, and not of a man!"  Immediately an angel of the Lord struck him down, because he did not give God the glory, and was eaten by worms and breathed his last."

God killed Herod because Herod did not give God the glory for his words.  That is a really scary thought.  God is that zealous for His glory.  And I know that in my heart, no matter how much I pray to the contrary and ask the Holy Spirit to do His work in me, that when I stand there on Sunday morning, part of me is going to be hoping they are impressed by what I have to say.  The only reason I don't end up like Herod is that Jesus was struck down in my place.  That's my only hope, and so I've got to go to the pulpit with the cross front and center in my heart.

My sermon is about big, weighty things-- the glory of God, the definition of faith.  Jesus said in John 7:18, "The one who speaks on his own authority seeks his own glory."  Well, I've learned from Herod that seeking my own glory is a really, really bad idea.  So I must be tethered tightly to the Word and derive all my authority from its eternal truth.  If I veer away from what the Word of God says into the murky territory of my opinion and suggestion and authority, I seek my own glory.  Lord, protect me from pride!