The Onus of Preaching and Hearing
“People don’t have to be taught how to listen to the sermon. Preachers have to be taught how to preach sermons that people want to listen to. The onus is on the Shepherd, not the sheep.”
In terms of the sermon, the author of the above quote places the “onus,” that is, the burden, on the preacher of the Word, and on not the hearer.
He posits that the sermon should be one “that people want to listen to.” He paints a picture of the hearer of the Word as a passive vessel waiting to be wowed. This assessment is a helpful and accurate snapshot of our culture, in which the consumer of entertainment waits for the performer to do or say something worth the listener’s time and attention. And in our cultural milieu, the very worst thing a preacher can be is “boring.”
Pastors must compete with 24-hour high-octane entertainment on demand, in which his hearers are accustomed to thumbing the remote and looking for better options if the current channel is not stimulating enough. Our culture is awash with special effects, naked girls, car crashes, rock music, and hi-def visual and audio. By contrast, preaching is a rather lackluster affair in the eyes of the world: just a guy talking.
This is why many pastors and congregations have gone to great lengths to make the sermon, and the entire service, something “that people want to listen to.” They ditch the liturgy for drum kits and guitars. The sermon incorporates video clips of Hollywood movies, the pastor makes emotional faces and uses his voice for effect, with dynamic and dramatic gestures, perhaps ambulating around or speaking casually along the lines of a TED talk. Dancing girls and skits are also sometimes used to hold people’s jaded attention.
Certainly, there is an onus on the preacher: not necessarily to preach sermons that “people want to listen to,” but rather to faithfully preach the Word of God, in season and out of season, both Law and Gospel, delivering from the Good Shepherd that Word with which the sheep need to be fed, and to do so with fidelity to Biblical doctrine and the order of salvation. And yes, pastors are to be “able to teach.” They are to know their theology. They are to be able to proclaim the Word of God with alacrity and precision. They are to understand the texts upon which they preach. They are also to know their hearers, knowing what is going on in their lives as well as in the community and the culture at large.
This is indeed a great onus upon the pastor, which is why the Holy Spirit has called your pastor to serve you. The typical LCMS pastor has been rigorously trained and has been certified for service. And every man has his own strengths and weaknesses. One person’s favorite preacher may not be someone else’s cup of tea. Some people may have very short attention spans and/or know very little about the Scriptures. Such people might need more milk and catechesis. Others may wish the sermons were longer, more theological, and meatier, as such people are themselves apt theologians. The onus is on the preacher to navigate this diversity among his hearers and to find a way to preach to all - with the Spirit’s guidance - in a way as to deliver the Word effectively. This is no mean task, and the pastor is himself a human being, subject to unseen stresses, illnesses, burdens, mental lapses, physical pain, etc., and so he may be better one Sunday than another.
But the commenter above was responding to a pastor who was himself responding to the specific question of how to be a better hearer of the Word, specifically, “What could the people in the pew, the hearers, do help the pastor in the pulpit and study get some traction on how to become a better preacher?” And in that sense, there is also an onus on the hearer, just as there is an onus on the preacher. And even as our table of duties does not place the onus entirely on one party or the other, but all people: parents and children, employers and employees, preachers and hearers, holders of each and every vocation, have their own corresponding onuses.
The pastor projects the Word using his own mind and voice, delivering the explication of the Word of God (the Word is itself supernatural and beyond his control). Once it leaves his mouth, he can no longer control it. The reception of the Word is indeed the onus not of the shepherd, but of the sheep. The hearer of the Word is to, well, hear the Word. It enters his ear and mind and penetrates to the heart and soul. It is up to the hearer to receive it, to welcome it, not to push it to the margins in favor of a daydream or something more interesting going on in the church or outside the window.
Indeed, we followers of Jesus are “disciples.” It means that we are “students.” And the vocation of student is difficult. I have been a teacher now for 17 years. I always tell my students that their job is harder than mine. I know, because I have been a student much longer than I have been a teacher. Being a student is not like being a vacuum cleaner bag that passively waits to be filled by a mechanical suction action from the outside. Being a student is hard work: mentally and even physically. Learning is an active endeavor.
If you are a student, you have the onus to listen and learn from those who teach. It may involve taking notes. It may involve asking questions of the professor in the hallway or during office hours. It may involve going to the library or doing online research. It certainly means showing up at lectures and paying attention. And every prof is different. Some are funny and have a schtick. Some are dry and monotone. Some have speech impediments or accents. Some may have a tough time translating the ideas into layman’s terms. But it is still the student’s job, his onus, to figure out a way to learn the material. It is not his job to sit passively and wait to be spoon fed or entertained.
And it goes without saying that students, like teachers, have bad days and good days. They may be under stress, in pain, lacking sleep, tending to their children, or just not mentally there that day. They may have difficulty hearing or concentrating. That too is the onus of the person struggling to be a better hearer of the Word, just as the preachers deal with the real world invading the Holy Nave.
Finally, though there is an onus, an obligation, placed on both preachers and hearers, maybe a better way to frame the situation is to speak of the privilege and the blessing that both have. Preachers have the greatest job in the world: to be Christ’s instruments to deliver forgiveness, life, and salvation to people who need Good News. We get to lead worship and deliver the Gospel to people as part of our day-to-day work. We get to study the Scriptures and pray as part of our vocation. There is nothing that could be a greater joy - though indeed, the work has its unpleasant and even brutal aspects to it as well. But let us focus on the joy of the calling we have been given.
And the same goes for hearers of the Word as well. What a privilege and a blessing to gather around altar, font, and pulpit, where the Lord comes to you supernaturally, out of love, to deliver to you forgiveness, life, and salvation. What a joy to sit and hear the Word of God proclaimed from the pulpit and taught in the classroom. And what a blessing it is that the Holy Spirit sent you a preacher and a teacher! No, he is not perfect. He may have mannerisms that you don’t like. Maybe his voice is raspy or could be louder. But what a privilege that the Lord has sent him to your parish to deliver eternal life to you!
Perhaps this is one meaning of what our Lord said: “Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden (onus) is light.”
At any rate, that is a better frame of mind to hear God’s Word than crossing one’s arms, sitting passively, and hearing - instead of the Word of God - rather the voice of Kurt Cobain singing, “Here we are now. Entertain us.”