Truth Magazine

By Johnie Edwards

Gospel meetings include keeping and feeding the visiting preacher. Where to keep the preacher and what to feed him often becomes a problem with lots of churches. Preachers are easier to keep and feed than most guests you will have in your home. Often the preacher stays with whoever happens to volunteer to keep him. One place I remember going to stands out in my mind. When I arrived the lady of the house said, as I knocked on the door, “Come on in, you are going to stay here. Since we have air conditioning, we got stuck with you.” I knew I was in for a delightful week!

There are usually two extremes in keeping and feeding the preacher. Some go to too much trouble and then there are those who make little or no preparation for a decent place for the preacher to stay.

Where Should We Keep The Preacher?

Shall we keep the preacher in a motel or in a private home? I assure you up front, that with most preachers, they fit right into whatever the local church decides. I have stayed in motels and I have stayed with some of the finest people on earth.

1. Don’ t put the preacher in a place where gossip might start. Often a family will offer to keep the preacher where the man of the house goes off to work early in the morning and the preacher is left alone with the man’s wife during the day. This is not a good arrangement. Some are just looking for something to gossip about and here is a good place to get something started. We must “give none occasion to the adversary to speak reproachfully” (1 Tim. 5:14).

2. Let the preacher know where he will be staying. Sometimes the preacher has no idea where he will be staying until he gets to the place of the meeting. Knowing the place to stay may help the preacher in determining what to bring with him. Some churches wait until the last minute to make preparation for keeping the preacher and the place of stay is not ready for him!

3. Keep the preacher where he can have privacy. Everyone needs privacy whether at home or away. I have stayed in homes where you had to go through someone’s bedroom to get to the bathroom! This is not good. I recall staying in a home where a little boy kept coming into my mom and trying on my ties. If I decided to rest or take a nap, this same little boy would always come into my room and ask, “Mr. Edwards, are you asleep?” I would politely say, “Well not now!”

4. Keep the preacher where the family is comfortable with guests. Some people are nervous when guests are in the house, especially the preacher. I recall being in a home, that, when we sat at the table to eat, the lady of the house made sure that I sat in a certain chair facing a certain wall! Later her husband told me, “You know why my wife made you sit where she did? She made me paint that one wall before you came, so it would look clean?” I was more interested in looking at and eating the food, than the wall. Don’t be up-tight when you keep the preacher. He is only human as you are. Often the children keep the parents upset, afraid they will act-up or say things to embarrass the parents. A little girl set the table, one time, as the preacher was dining with the family and the little girl did not give the preacher any utensils. When the mother asked, “Why no utensils for the preacher?” The little girl replied, “Mother, I heard you say the preacher ate like a pig!” Thank God for honest children. Learn to treat the preacher nice you want to be treated. Jesus said, “Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets” (Matt. 7:12).

A Family Who Kept The Preacher

The Bible tells us of a family who kept the preacher in the Old Testament. Please take the time to read these verses: “And it fell on a day, that Elisha passed to Shunem, where was a great woman; and she constrained him to eat bread. And so it was, that as oft as he passed by, he turned in thither to eat bread. And she said unto her husband. Behold now, I perceive that this is an holy man of God, which passeth by us continually. Let us make a little chamber, I pray thee, on the wall; and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a stool, and a candlestick: and it shall be, when he cometh to us, that he shall turn in thither. And it fell on a day, that he came thither, and he turned into the chamber, and lay them. And he said to Gehazi his servant, call this Shunammite. And when he had called her, she stood before him. And he said unto him, Say now unto her, Behold, thou hast been careful for us with this care; what is to be done for thee? Wouldest thou be spoken for to the king, or to the captain of the host? And she answered, I dwell among mine own people” (2 Kings 4:8-13). A great deal can be learned from this Old Testament story:

1. The Shunammite woman was full of hospitality. Preachers enjoy staying where the people “use hospitality one to another without grudging” (1 Pet. 4:9). This family in 2 Kings understood hospitality.

2. She recognized the Holy Man of God. Preachers need to learn to behave properly when they are guests in the homes of others. Pick up and put up. Make-up the bed and leave the bathroom clean when finished with. Be kind and courteous to the host. Display the spirit of Christ always; practice what we preach is essential on the part of the preacher. Set a good example that the hosts realizes a “holy man of God” is a guest in their home!

3. The preacher felt welcome. Evidently he did, for he kept “turning in thither to eat bread, as he passed by.” When feeding the preacher, let him eat as he deems best. Don’t try to overfeed him or stuff him. Most preachers like to eat and an enjoyable part of a gospel meeting is visiting and eating with the brethren, but don’t overdo it. Eating two meals and perhaps “cake and coffee” after services keeps the preacher so full, that he can hardly breathe, due to being overstuffed! Help the gospel preacher live longer by not insisting that he over-eat!

4. Knowing the needs of a preacher. Preachers need some basic things in the place where they stay. I have stayed in places with no closets, no lights, no chair or table, only a bed! This lady of Shunem recognized the needs of a preacher. She made ready for him, a bed, a table, a stool and a light. Wasn’t she thoughtful? A preacher needs to study everyday (2 Tim. 2:15); so, a table and a chair sure do come in handy, along with good lighting.

5. She showed care and concern. The preacher said, “Behold, thou hast been careful for us with all this care” (2 Kings 4:13). Folks who keep the preacher need to show care and concern. Most of the places I have stayed over the years have done just that. Those who do not know how to show care and concern ought not to be keeping the preacher in the first place.

6. The family expected nothing in return. When Elisha asked, “What is to be done for thee?” The woman said, “I dwell among mine own people.” She was saying, “You don’t owe me a thing; I expect nothing in return for what we have done.” Isn’t that a great attitude? The family who keeps the preacher usually gets far more out of the gospel meeting than anyone else. What better person do you know of being in your home than a dedicated holy man of God? The gospel preacher ought to be a man of knowledge concerning the Word of God. It is a good time to discuss some Bible subjects and ask questions that you have always wanted to ask.

Learn to treat the gospel meeting preacher as you do home folks. He doesn’t expect to be entertained. Just use the regular bed sheets and bath towels. He will sleep better and dry-off easier, than if you buy all new linens.

Preachers need to show appreciation for those who go out of their way to keep them and make them feel comfort-able while away from home.

Guardian of Truth XXXVII: 16, p. 9-10
August 19, 1993

By Donnie V. Rader

Gospel meetings are about preaching the gospel. There-fore, preachers are a vital part of the meeting. The wrong preacher can destroy a meeting while the right one can help make the meeting instructive and edifying.

It is not only important that his sermons be true to the book, but his conduct must be appropriate. His behavior while in the church’s midst can determine how effective his preaching is.

Selecting A Preacher

1. Qualifications. In a broad sense them are only two qualifications for a gospel preacher (2 Tim. 2:2). He must be (a) faithful, that is faithful in his personal life and faithful in his teaching. He must also have (b) the ability to teach. While there are many qualities and characteristics that come under one of these two major qualifications, there two summarize what he must be. If a man meets these two criteria, he is worthy to be used in spreading the gospel, including gospel meetings.

2. Know the man being invited for the meeting. Just as it is important for a local church to know something about the one it is going to accept into fellowship (Acts 9:26), it is important to know something about the man it invites to hold a meeting. Some brethren are so careless about how they determine who to schedule for meetings. Some brother hears a preacher one time or hears some word of commendation about him and he is ready to put him on the schedule. To say the least there would seem to be a lack of wisdom in that.

In this day of a lot of “uncertain sounds” we must be careful in selecting a preacher. There are enough sound men whose lives and teaching are solid that churches do not have to use men whose teaching is questionable. Before inviting a man for gospel meeting, know where he stands and the kind of teaching that he does.

3. Select a man who can best deal with the topics that need to be preached. There are some areas of Bible study that any preacher can cover as well as any other. However, there may be some subjects like evolution that may require finding a man who has done more research than others have done. A study of the home may be better (though not always true) if presented by a man who has many years experience as a husband and father.

4. The preacher doesn’t have to be young, old or even well-known. There are many young men, whose schedules for meetings are far from full, who would do an excellent job in a meeting. They may bring some youth and excitement to the local church. On the other hand, there are many older men who are not used as much as they once were who would present some quality lessons and add some wisdom and maturity at the same time. There are many relatively unknown men who would do an excellent job. The people of the community and some of the Christians wouldn’t know the “well-known” men anyway. This is not to cast off on the well-known with a lot of ability. The reason they are well-known mostly likely is because they are good preachers. The point is that there are others who could also do a good job.

5. A church could use their own preacher in a meeting. One of the advantages of a meeting is that the local church has an opportunity to hear a different preacher with a different style and a different approach. He may be able to accomplish some good that the local man has been unable to do.

However, there may be times (when trying to reach some in the community) that using the local preacher would be helpful. When the members bring a visitor he has an opportunity to hear the preacher he would regularly hear if he came on Sunday. Furthermore, the man he hears would be the one who would probably visit him after the meeting. He is the one he will see in the community, hear on the radio and read after in the local paper or bulletin.

The Preacher’s Conduct

The preacher’s conduct in the meeting can help or hinder the effect of his preaching.

1. In the pulpit. The servant of God must preach the word in season and out (2 Tim. 4:1-4). Yet, he must be gentle (2 Tim. 2:23), kind (Eph. 4:32), treat others the way he would like to be treated (Matt. 7:12) and be considerate of the feelings of others (Phil. 2:4). He can do all of this and still call sin, denominations and false teachers by name.

Yet, his charge to preach doesn’t not give him a license to be rude, offensive and embarrass others. His comments in addition to his preaching can render his sermon ineffective. There will be times that noise makers and those who distract will need to be called down. Mothers who don’t know when to take their babies out may need some advice. (Seldom does that advice coming from the preacher in the pulpit help him or her!) In these cases the preacher needs to ask himself whether his comments or actions in the pulpit will help or destroy the effectiveness of his teaching.

Preachers need to be reminded that they have mounted the pulpit to preach God’s word (2 Tim. 4:2). They are not there to entertain or be cute. He is not there to inform the brethren what his judgment is on all matters. He is a messenger of the word.

2. Where he stays. During the meeting the preacher may stay in a motel. Quite frequently, he will stay with the local preacher or one of the members. While there he must remember that he is a guest. He can make himself at home and still be a courteous guest. It takes very little effort to be neat and orderly. He can make it easy for his hosts to keep him. Even though brethren sometimes treat the visiting preaching like a king he must not act like he is one. To demand the treatment of royalty, like he deserves it, is to become a pain to those who keep him.

Sometimes a preacher can do and say things that make others uncomfortable. He doesn’t have to be the center of attention. He doesn’t have to give his advice on all that he sees. He doesn’t have to correct every mistake he sees in his hosts. As I have traveled in meetings, I have heard brethren tell of preachers they have kept who were rude, inconsiderate and just plain ingrates. A man who is trying to show others the way of God can do better than that.

3. In the homes where he visits and eats. It is customary for some of the members to have the visiting preacher into their home for a meal during the meeting. If the preacher holds many meetings, he will find himself sitting down to more tables that his body needs. It is easy to take this aspect of the brethren’s generosity for granted. He must remember that those who have invited him have put a lot of time and expense into the meal they have prepared for him. With that in mind he certainly can be polite and kind and use common courtesies like “please” and “thank you.” He need not act like it is a path to accept their invitation.

Here, just as in the home where he stays, he must be careful of his comments. His comments, though well-intended, may offend and may be taken as a sign of ingratitude.

The Preacher’s Time

The preacher must be a good steward of his time. How he spends his time during the meeting depends a lot on the plans of the local church and the family he stays with.

1. Use his time for the most good in the kingdom. The visiting preacher has come to help people with the gospel. It would be helpful if the local church would consider how they could use the preacher for the most good during the meeting.

Having morning services takes advantage of his time. He will be there waiting to preach that night. If just ten or twenty people could come it will be time well spent. Having a full-week meeting is another way to use his time. I have held meetings that were Sunday through Wednesday or Friday through Sunday. Those were good meetings. However, it is not any more problem to be gone from the local work two or three more days. I heard of one preacher who closed a meeting on Wednesday and sat in a motel on Thursday and Friday nights waiting to start another meeting Sunday. Those two nights could have been used to spread the gospel.

The preacher may be able teach in some personal studies.

2. Give the preacher time to study. The preacher doesn’t have to be entertained the whole time he is among the brethren. Don’t forget that he needs to study (at least he should) for his sermon each night. Even though he may preach sermons he uses in other meetings, he must have time to refresh his memory. Then, he has sermons and a class to prepare for his work back home. On top of that he may want to spend some time working on special studies or writing articles or books. Many preachers have to work on the road to get all their work done. In fact, this article is being written while I am in a meeting.

3. Give the preacher time to rest. Meetings are tiring for all who are a part. I have been told that if a public speaker speaks enthusiastically for thirty minutes he has exerted the energy of an eight hour work day. Thus, a preacher may need to rest before he speaks. He may need a good night’s rest to feel like preaching the next day. His voice may need a rest.

The preacher and the local church am important to the meeting. Each one should be considerate of the other.

Guardian of Truth XXXVII: 16, p. 5-6
August 19, 1993

By Raymond Harris

Preparation of the Local Church

There is an old saying, “Anything done well, must be prepared for.” That is certainly true of something as important as a series of meetings where the gospel of Christ is to be preached. Anything that involves the eternal souls of men and women should never be taken lightly. Considerable forethought and preparation should precede all the endeavors of the church.

Local Preacher and Teachers

The classroom teachers at all levels should begin to talk up the meeting at least a month before it starts. In the classes for the younger children special posters, banners and projects can excite the interest of the students. Teachers thus can help to spur interest in the meeting throughout all family members.

Likewise the local preacher should “preach up” the meeting a Sunday or two before it is to start. His interest and enthusiasm can have a great deal to do with the mental attitude of the whole church. Announcements, sermons and classes can “set the stage” for the first day of the meeting.

Special Prayers

For several weeks before the meeting, those leading the public prayers should invoke God’s blessings upon the meeting preacher, his family and his work. They should pray that nothing would hinder his involvement in the special effort to preach the gospel.

All members of the local church should be encouraged to remember the meeting preacher in their private prayers. Public and private prayers should be made in behalf of his health, his family and his safe travel.

Song Leaders

Song leaders should be selected and assigned for every service. These assignments should be made far enough before the meeting to allow the leaders to select their songs and prepare themselves thoroughly. The singing is most important. It can make or break the meeting. It can excite both the audience and the preacher; or, it can drag them down and all but kill the whole affair. Song leaders have a great responsibility in a gospel meeting.

Other Special Assignments

Every member should be urged to meet and greet all those attending the meeting. Some churches find it beneficial to assign specific couples to station themselves at each entry door. There they have the special responsibility to meet and get the names and addresses of all visitors. This information can be invaluable for meeting follow up. Also, it often helps in the growth and development of the couples involved.

All Members

Of course every member should be informed the first of each year about the dates of all meetings and special events of the church. B y doing this, a member will have no excuse for scheduling vacations and other personal activities that will conflict with church activities.

Every member should be urged to make a personal effort to invite or bring someone to the meeting. Neighbors, relatives, co-workers, former classmates and friends should receive special attention. In recent polls, the number one mason given for visiting a church was “someone invited me.”

“Anything that involves the eternal souls of men and women should never be taken lightly.

Considerable forethought and preparation should precede all the endeavors of the church.”

The Building

Most of us do a little extra house cleaning when we invite visitors into our homes. The same should be true of the church building at meeting time. Needed repairs should be made and the general appearance of the building should be neat and clean. Often a strong first impression is formed by the appearance of the church building. Whether that is right or wrong, it matters little when we are trying to reach people to save their souls. A little extra work on the building at meeting time can pay big dividends.

Also, special attention should be given to the temperatures in the auditorium. In our meeting preparation we should be sure that furnaces and air conditioners are in good working order. If visitors suffer through extremes of hot or cold, the sermon may have little effect on them.

The Preacher’s Preparation

A gospel preacher who is invited to do the speaking at a special series of services should feel a great weight of responsibility. Regardless of how experienced the preacher may be or the size of the church involved, every such invitation accepted should be looked upon as a great challenge.

1. The preacher should do all within his power to arrive for the meeting in good health. A sick preacher will likely preach a sick meeting.

2. The preacher should do all within his power to arrive for the meeting as rested as possible. Long hours of travel and multiple meetings may make this difficult. The exhausted, bone weary preacher will have a hard time generating powerful, soul-stirring sermons.

3. The preacher should limit his outside interests. I have seen meetings that never got off the ground because the preacher had his mind on everything but the book. A preacher caught up in business interests, sports, an up-coming debate or domestic problems will give precious little of himself to the work at hand.

4. The preacher should be prepared spiritually. He must give the same sincere effort whether the church numbers 30 or 300. Also, he must graciously accept the food and accommodations provided for him during his stay.

5. Sermon selection and preparation is of paramount importance. This may be the most vital part of the preacher’s preparation. If he can figure it out, the preacher needs to preach, what is needed, where it’s needed, when it’s needed. The preacher should pray about this matter. He should not try to preach the same eight sermons every-where he goes. He should not preach certain sermons just because those are the ones he likes. Every meeting should be special! In his preparation, the preacher should try to determine the needs of the local church and do his best to meet them.

The public proclamation of God’s word is an awesome responsibility. Local churches and meeting preachers alike should prepare, as if all depended upon them; and pray, as if all depended upon the Lord.

Guardian of Truth XXXVII: 16, p. 11-12
August 19, 1993

By Paul J. Casebolt

“Priority 1. Quality of being prior. 2. Superiority in rank, position, or privilege. 3.Order of preference based on urgency, importance, or merit” (Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary).

Others have addressed different aspects of a gospel meeting such as the purpose, the preaching, the preparation, and the advertising. But if we cannot understand or make the application of our priorities, all else will be in vain, or at least, compromised. Look at the definition of our term again, and think about it as we make a few observations.

As I write these lines, I am about ready to embark upon my third preaching trip to the Philippines. There will be several meetings conducted at sundry locations on different islands. People will arrive at the meetings by bus, by taxi, by boat, or on foot. Most will walk.

Some of the venerable vehicles will be delayed by lack of fuel, flat tires, or mechanical problems. All will be crowded beyond belief and beyond capacity. No one knows for sure just what the capacity of such vehicles is.

But all who come to the meetings will come with one common commoditypriority. That priority will manifest itself in the hearts, the speech, and the faces of those who attend; in the rapt attention displayed during two or three consecutive sermons; in the questions asked after the sermons; and in the glad reception of the Lord’s invitation to obey and follow him.

Such living definitions of priority can be duplicated in India, Africa, Italy, and now in Romania and other European countries. Long before our English definitions of priority were printed, the principle of the term blanketed Jerusalem, Judaea, Samaria, and “the utter-most part of the earth” (Acts 1:8). The early disciples “went everywhere preaching the wont” (Acts 8:4). The gospel “was preached to every creature which is under heaven” (Col. 1:23).

No, all of this wasn’t accomplished by what we have come to call “gospel meetings,” but the definition of priority remains unchanged with the centuries. In some of the earliest teaching of our Lord, disciples were exhorted, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness” (Matt. 6:33). Without priority in the lives of those who hear, the seed of the kingdom, the gospel, falls by the wayside.

But some church members are saying, “Things are different in contemporary America. We have television, vacations, camping trailers and boats, a plethora of sporting events, extra-curricular school activities, and many other things which compete for our priorities during a gospel meeting.”

Are we to understand then, that such things as recreation, entertainment, and other “cares of this life” (Luke 8:14), should take priority over “things concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ” (Acts 8:12)? Are we saying that folks of other times and places had no “affairs of this life” (2 Tim. 2:4) to put in proper perspective? That it was easy for them to brave the elements, dangers and rigors of the trail, wild beasts and robbers, the threat of persecution, and death itself? If we are attempting to say that it was easier for those mentioned to establish their priorities, then shame on us.

Given the other things which have been written about gospel meetings, I’m taking it for granted that when a congregation plans such an effort, that meeting is considered to be importantimportant to the congregation, the preacher, and to all who are invited to attend. Or am I wrong to assume this? Do I take too much for granted? I’m persuaded that the priority we manifest during a gospel meeting is the same priority that we manifest in other areas of our lives.

The process of scheduling a gospel meeting will vary from one geographical area to another. Congregations try to schedule around other meetings, the weather, shift work, school activities (from the first week of school to graduation exercises), summer ball and band camps, vacations, and sundry fairs and festivals. It is a small wonder that every congregation within a 50-mile radius wants to conduct a meeting during the same week in the spring and the same week in the fall. But even when every possible factor is taken into consideration, some members still can’t get their priorities in order.

I have given congregations the exact date which they thought would be best for their particular circumstances, but several members still couldn’t get the meeting on their private schedules. Some expect members from other congregations to fill the pews left empty by the local membership.

In my lifetime, we have shortened meetings from weeks to two weeks, to one week, to Sunday through Friday (to skip embarrassing Saturday), to mini-meetings of three days or lessand some members still can’t find time to attend. Or they attend one night and think they have done the Lord and the church a favor. No one is trying to establish a set time, length, or number for gospel meetings. I may be infringing on some other writer’s subject, but if a lack of teaching has played havoc with our priorities, then I’m persuaded that we need more and longer gospel meetings, not fewer and shorter.

We wonder why children don’t obey the gospel or manifest an interest in spiritual things, when their parents don’t have their own priorities in order. We wonder why friends and neighbors “just won’t attend gospel meetings anymore,” when the church members who invite them (or fail to invite them) don’t attend their own meetings. We wonder “why we don’t baptize folks like we used to,” when the ones who have been baptized are either unfaithful or still don’t give spiritual things priority over temporal things.

The weather can be perfect for a given geographical area, but some people still can’t seem to get to the church building. Yet, members from other congregations will drive several miles to attend a meeting, while local members won’t walk or drive around the block to support their own meeting. And some of the best meetings I have ever conducted in northern climates were held in the dead of winter. Some folks can get their priorities straightened out in spite of the weather. But it all depends on whether they want to drive over bad roads to a gospel meeting  or to a ball game.

The problem isn’t illness or caring for the sick. Some crippled folks come to the meeting while healthy ones stay away. Some use their health as an excuse for not attending church assemblies, but they find the strength to attend sporting events, go to the mall, go to fairs and festivals, or go on vacation.

Working to support our families is a worthy cause. But while work keeps some from attending a meeting, it doesn’t keep them from going where they want to go and doing what they want to do, even if they have to take off from work to do it. Jesus said, “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Matt. 6:21). As the heart follows our treasure, so will our body follow the heart. They generally end up at the same place.

Some preachers have flatly rejected the idea that the church has a mission, a work, an organization, or public assemblies. Others have minimized the importance of public assemblies, while encouraging satellite “group” meetings diluted with parties, fishing trips, and “retreats.” And a little Bible is thrown in for respectability. We cannot expect such doctrines and practices to enhance the attendance at assemblies of the church, including gospel meetingsmeetings where the gospel is preached.

We try to arrange our schedules so that we can perform our spiritual duties at a convenient time. Brethren, if we want to avoid hell and gain heaven, we will need to make some sacrifices, and give the Lord some of our valuable energy, time, talents, and material resources. “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me” (Matt. 16:24).

It is possible for us to sin by doing that which violates our consciencethat which we believe to be wrong (Rom. 14:23). Conversely, we can sin by failing to do that which we acknowledge to be a good work: “Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin” (Jas. 4:17).

If we acknowledge that gospel meetings are a good way to preach the gospel and edify the church; that we are justified in taking the time and money necessary to conduct such an effort; then we need to get our lives, our hearts, our speech, our bodies and our priorities all together.

Guardian of Truth XXXVII: 16, p. 13
August 19, 1993