The supremacy of God in preaching is one of the many books by John Piper and just like all of his other books; the central focus of the book is about the glory of God. It advocates the common saying that Piper, who has served as a pastor at Bethlehem Baptist church for thirty-three years makes in all his preaching and writing that God is most glorified when people are most satisfied in him. Throughout the book, Piper makes the clarion call that preachers should make the glory of God the central pillar in their preaching rather than focusing on themselves and self exaltation.
John Piper’s book the supremacy of God in preaching provides an excellent insight into the whole aspect of preaching by defining the entire purpose of preaching. His passion for the glory of God is evident throughout the book and serves right in driving home the point that the glory of God should be the ultimate purpose not only for preachers but every Christian. The book, though initially written in 1990 is very relevant in today’s culture in which the belief of pursuing luxuries and self-glorification seems to be the order of the day. Many of the preachers today only focus on glorying themselves and rarely do they speak of the glory of God or reflect his ultimate glory in their daily lives. John Piper begins his book by addressing the question of why God should be supreme in preaching by giving the foundation of his argument that the glory of God should be the passion and the only motivation for every preacher. He argues that since the understanding of the character of God is the most important task in any church or missionary organization, preachers should always strive to maintain the vision of the greatness of God. Preachers should be careful not to make people focus on material and worldly things such as houses, cars, and family among others at the expense of God. If all these physical things are glorified, the glory of God will diminish and if the situation is not immediately addressed the people may ultimately lose the actual picture of God which is the central focus in the entire bible. The danger in such a church will be the existence of a physical church which appears to be vibrant but which is physically dead since it cannot influence the dying world. Piper argues that throughout the bible, all the way from creation, God seem to be working towards making his glory known and on the ultimate restoration of the lost glory during the fall of man. When the original man Adam disobeyed God, sin entered the world and consequently there was a separation between God and man and as a result, God has been working towards the restoration all through. The book is thus relevant in addressing the fallen nature of human beings since all people at one point or another struggle with sin and thus the message on the glory of God will provide the much needed hope.
Piper points out that people are always starved with the glory of God, and he shows that the only remedy to the starvation is through preaching in a manner that makes God glorified through making people have a clear understanding of God. He stresses his argument through giving examples of some of the most influential men in pulpit such as Jonathan Edwards and Charles Spurgeon. He points out how the teachings and preaching of these men made God the central pillar and argues that, those were the same reason behind their great success in the pulpit. He argues that for example, the only reason Jonathan Edwards stands out as a great father of revival in the church history is because he strived to make the glory of God supreme in all his preaching. If modern preachers can succeed in making the greatness and glory of God their focus, then God in His grace can cause a revival in the church and consequently in the general community. John Piper also illustrates four aspects behind making God supreme which are the goal of preaching, the ground, the aspect of gift and the gravity or the weight and gladness in preaching. As earlier stated, he makes it clear since a preacher is only a messenger, he should make sure that he passes the right message about his sender to the recipients.
Preachers should be motivated by the central purpose of making God known among the people through not only their preaching in the pulpit, but by the way they conduct themselves in the day to day activities. They should strive to be holy just the same way God is holy by living a life that is line with the word of God which provides a clear reflection of the true nature of God. Otherwise, they will fail in their role of providing guidance on godliness, since instead of being good examples, they will bring shame to the very message they are supposed to be faithfully proclaiming.
Concerning the aspect of the gift, Piper points out that it is the Holy Spirit who empowers preachers to speak truthfully of God, the father and as a result, ministers should ensure they are filled with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit according to him will keep them in check and when they deviate, they will be reminded of their mandate and thus will help them in keeping with the right message all through. Preachers should maintain the bible as the only source of guidance and should be very careful concerning revelations that are not supported by the Bible. On the other hand, the ground of preaching that is focused on the supremacy of God should be on the unchanging cross of Christ. He argues that every preacher should maintain his focus on the accomplished work of Christ all through. He lastly argues that evangelists should portray the seriousness that the gospel demands since the message itself and the accompanying supremacy of God are weighty affairs. He therefore succeeds in challenging preachers to make the supremacy of Christ their vision in preaching, a message which is very relevant in today’s society where there has been a lot of confusion.
Any person who picks the book which is not only precise and direct to the point but also written in a simple language combined with simple illustrations will definitely not remain the same. The reader will definitely be challenged to examine his lifestyle and if he is a preacher to examine also his preaching and check whether he has prioritized the glory of God. For the preacher it will also play a significant role in making the preacher examine his motivation in preaching and the basis of the preaching therein. Furthermore, he will be challenged to accord his preaching the weight it deserves by not only by the preaching itself but by his lifestyle. As a result, the book has a great potential of completely transforming the manner in which the gospel is preached and in which Christianity is viewed by majority of the people. Every congregation should strive to buy the book for the pastors in their churches as a way of showing their concern and desire to have sound teaching that is grounded on the word of God.
The good combination of the examples of Jonathan Edwards and his lifestyle provides a good example upon which modern preachers can examine themselves and especially regarding their preaching and manner of life. The fruit of his life and especially how God used him to cause a revival during his time also serves to provide motivation to preachers in that if they make the glory of God their central pillar God will definitely exalt them. The book thus addresses the question of the position of God and the preacher and encourages preachers to be humble so as to be used by God. It is therefore a timely antidote to the materialistic tendency witnessed among many preachers today and an excellent resource on restoring sobriety in the preaching of the gospel that has been marred by a lot of gimmicks in the pulpit in the name of miracles.
Many reviewers who have reviewed the book have recommended the book as a must read for not only pastors but every person with a desire of preaching the gospel. Some of the preachers have gone forth and recommended the ministers of the gospel to read the book at least once a year so to ensure they are on the right track. It is also worth noting that Piper has made it clear that preachers should rely purely on God, and they should thus not try to copy the preachers of the past blindly. They should seek to have their encounter since the same way God has created every person being unique he has different and unique purposes he wants to accomplish in their lives. As a result, if they just follow others, though they may enjoy some success, they will still miss experiencing the full potential of their lives, and they will only be living the life of another person. He therefore gives the warning that every minister of the gospel should always strive to have an authentic relationship with God so as be healthy in terms of the spiritual food he delivers to his congregation. It is only through reading of such books as Supremacy of God that there can be a revival in the church and especially concerning the ministration of the gospel which forms a significant part in the Christian life.
The supremacy of God in preaching by John Piper is unarguably a very resourceful book for all the ministers of the gospel and for all Christians with a passion for influencing others to Christ through their careers and lifestyles. Its clarion call for preachers to return to the biblical standards is very clear throughout the book and its central message on the ultimate glory of God in every kind of preaching. The book has also made clear that nobody or any institution or program should take the place of God and as thus preachers should occasionally examine themselves to ensure they are on the right track.
Bibliography
Piper, John. The supremacy of God in preaching. Grand rapids, mich: baker book house, 1990.
