The Primary Task of the Church: Preaching the Word of God

…the work of preaching is the highest and the greatest and the most glorious calling to which anyone can ever be called. If you want something in addition to that I would say without any hesitation that the most urgent need in the Christian Church today is true preaching; and as it is the greatest and the most urgent need in the Church, it is obviously the greatest need of the world also.
…they [who suggest that the Church may be a hindrance to the propagation of the Gospel] argue, if you really want to influence people in the Christian direction you must not only talk politics and deal with social conditions in speech, you must take an active part in them… Not preaching, not the old method, but getting among the people, showing an interest, showing your sympathy, being one of them, sitting down among them, and discussing their affairs and problems… what is our answer to all this? I am going to suggest… that all this at best is secondary, very often not even secondary, often not worthy of a place at all, but at best, secondary, and that the primary task of the Church and of the Christian minister is the preaching of the Word of God.
- D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Preaching and Preachers, 9, 19.

Tags: Christianity, D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Evangelicalism, Evangelism, Local Church, Ministry, Missions, Preaching