The Knowledge to be Truthful. A preacher can never stop being a student of God’s word. He should enter the pulpit with trepidation. Speaking for God must not be taken lightly (James 3:1). A preacher does not want to be guilty of “not speaking of God what is right” (Job 42:8). He needs to be a man of the Book.
The Patience to be Kind. Paul instructed Timothy to not only “preach the truth,” but to preach it with all longsuffering (2 Timothy 4:2). Just because you preach it, does not mean a person will respond immediately. Patience will allow him to refrain from attributing a delayed response with a rebellious attitude. Sometimes, people may delay their response to the truth due to the need for further study or clarification.
The Courage to be Bold. A preacher needs to have the courage to speak the truth even when listeners don’t want to hear it and will take offense at it (2 Timothy 4:2). He should never water down or shy away from preaching certain truths in order to keep a job. Instead, he should be motivated by his fear and respect for God, not men (Matthew 10:28).
The Wisdom to be Balanced. A preacher needs the wisdom to be balanced in his presentation of truth and to understand the importance that timing plays in the reception of truth. There is a time and place for everything (Ecclesiastes 3:1-8). A preacher needs to give care not to allow the presentation of one truth to overshadow and crowd out other truths.
The Humility to be Simple. The goal of a preacher should be to accurately communicate God’s word and not to impress people with his intelligence. Humility allows a preacher to speak on a level that everyone can understand (1 Corinthians 14:19). A preacher’s greatest compliment will not be when he has been asked to speak to a gathering of fellow-preachers at a lectureship, but when a child tells him that he understood what he said.
I believe that following this advice will result in a well-rounded and effective gospel preacher.
by Steve Higginbotham