When Petersen and I sat down to record his thoughts on fostering a preaching renewal in the pulpits of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod, it immediately became clear that this was a project that was going to be done by real pastors in their studies, pastors who are committed to perhaps the most central task of the pastor. That is to say, no matter how many overtures are sent to St. Louis, no matter how many resolutions are passed by the Synod in convention, no matter how many times the leaders in the church implore pastors to focus on making sermons great again, it was going to go nowhere unless the man on the ground, in the pulpit, and in the study actually take it to heart and devote the time and attention to making it happen. The task of a preaching renewal was by its very nature going to be a grassroots movement. And so the podcast discussion focused on this reality.

But after the recording, I raised the question to Petersen, what role, if any, the congregation had in fostering this renewal. 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 preaching.

What follows is Petersen’s response:

The listeners can help the preacher by being attentive listeners and then voicing their appreciation. Negative criticisms probably won't be much help. So also, you might find that if you listen closer that the sermons improve–because it could be that part of the problem is in the pew. So look for positive things you can say that encourage good preaching, that is, for doctrinal teaching, insightful exegesis, and compassionate application. There is nothing so encouraging to a preacher as people wanting to talk about the ideas and doctrines brought up in the sermon. Comments like "That was a wonderfully comforting sermon" or even "I needed that" are great, but better would be "I have always wondered what Jesus was really asking for in the Garden of Gethsemane and now I have even more to think about, thank you." The other thing lay people can do is uphold the value of the sermon as a Divine institution to the rest of the congregation. The pastor needs time to do his work. Congregational leadership can help keep the pastor focused on this by not overloading him with other duties and telling him directly that his job is to study. Finally, they might ask him what resources he desires. Maybe the pastor would like a mini-sabbatical, a single week or even just 3 or 4 days, to go away and do nothing but sermon planning and prayer for the year. The Ft. Wayne seminary has cheap, austere housing and a wonderful library that works for this and I expec the St. Louis seminary does as well. Maybe he wants to go to a conference or needs a subscription to Gottesdienst.

I would only add this for the sake of pastors: Pay attention to the questions that people ask in Bible Class and in passing, and encourage the members of your congregation to ask questions. That is, be completely open to and willing to be diverted from your planned discussion to delve into the questions that people have about the things of God, the Bible, our doctrine, etc. So pay attention to these questions. Write them down so that you will remember them. For these questions will provide an endless supply of fodder for sermon preparation.