First I would like to express my great gratitude to God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ for the privilege of preaching His Word. For me this is a huge endeavor and without God’s grace I cannot do it.
I am not writing a book. These are a compilation of my sermons so I don’t have to have bibliography. Have you ever heard a preacher that preaches his sermon and quotes a specific author or publisher to show where he got his information? It would be time consuming and it disrupts the train of thought. It is up to my readers or listeners to search (e.g.) books of history and science, the Almanac, encyclopedias or even Webster’s dictionary. In this day and age, you don’t need to go to the library to do any research, because through the Internet you can Google a subject or specific names I mentioned in my sermons. But most importantly you have to search the Bible to find out if what I have said or written is true or not.
Preaching God’s Word is not a popularity contest. A lot of preachers that you see on television have a Ph.D. or Master’s degree in theology. Yet they are preaching different or contaminated gospels just to make money. (Not all because there are few who are honest). But most of them become very rich by doping Christians who do not care to read their Bible thoroughly. People had been sucked into their doctrines.
It is ironic but I would like to thank these preachers for being a direct inspiration to me to preach God’s pure Word.
Just recently a magazine featured a well-known preacher who has the largest congregation here in America and the title of the article in the cover of the magazine is, “THE PREACHER THAT MAKES PEOPLE FEEL GOOD”. It is true that God’s Word will inspire and encourage a soul. But that is only a very small percentage of the whole community of people who will listen to what you will preach. When you preach the truth, expect persecution. I tell you, people will not like you because the truth hurts. Preaching the truth will not make you popular. Preaching the truth will not make you rich. Not only will the unbelievers persecute me, but even self-deceived Christians will violently disagree with my conclusions in regards to the topics that I will bring out. Persecution is inevitable. The Lord Jesus was warning us and said in Matthew 5:12, “People persecuted the prophets who were before you.” Again He said in John 15:20, “If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you.”
Paul wrote to Timothy and said, “Preach the Word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort….Time will come when they will not listen to sound doctrine; they just want to have their ears tickled. They will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their desires.” (2ndTimothy 4:1 – 4) Preaching the Word of God is not to make people comfortable. To rebuke and to reprove is not to make them feel good.
The Lord Jesus said, “I will build my church and the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it.” In preaching His Word we are not only in a defensive position but also in an offensive manner. Preaching the Word is to advance. The gates of Hell cannot prevail or cannot overpower it. Yes we have to pray hard because this is a spiritual warfare. But if you just pray and will not preach to charge, then you are a coward! Preaching the truth is to attack. If that is your method in preaching, you will not be famous. You will not have a lot of members. You will not make money. In fact you will be hated for your guts. Even church people will misunderstand you.
My sole purpose in preaching the Word is to tell the truth and to educate Christians. It may hurt people’s feelings but that is what preaching is supposed to be. Paul said to the Galatians, that he was not trying to please men but to please God.
Persecution in my life is welcome. The Lord Jesus Christ said, “Blessed are you when men will cast insults at you, and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely, on account of me.” (Matthew 5:11)
If someone will ask about my credential, this is the only written evidence of my qualification:
(1stCorinthians 1:26 – 31) “For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and despised, God has chosen, the things that are not, that He might nullify the things that are, that no man should boast before God. But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, that, just as it is written, “LET HIM WHO BOASTS, BOASTS IN THE LORD.
Bobby Cabonce
