Christians of the Greek Orthodox tradition have a wonderful saying about church architecture, which says, “A beautiful church is a sermon in stone.” In other words, the architecture of the church itself says something – the cruciform shape of the sanctuary, the vaulted ceilings and large columns that force your eyes upward to heaven and remind you of how small you are, the symbols of different aspects of the Christian faith used throughout. The artistry of the building is a sermon all by itself, a sermon in stone, as the Greek Orthodox say.
Well, when we as a church decided several months ago to renovate our sanctuary, I knew there wasn’t much need for me to weigh in on the decorative decisions because we had a great committee who was very capable of making those decisions. And haven’t they done a wonderful job! But I did want to have input on one thing. I wanted to have input on the new pulpit. And not for the reason you may think. It wasn’t just because I would be the one preaching from it. In fact, I hope our new pulpit is here long after I’m gone, so that’s not the main reason I wanted to have input on it. I wanted to have input on it because I wanted the pulpit itself to be symbolic of what we believe and value as a church. I wanted it to communicate something all by itself. I wanted our pulpit to be more than just a piece of furniture; I wanted it to be a sermon in wood. I wanted it to be a symbolic sermon all by itself.
So in a day and age in which many churches are moving away from even having pulpits, I wanted someone who walked into our sanctuary (even if it was empty and even if they knew nothing about us) to see our new pulpit and say to themselves, “This looks like a church that values the Word.” In a day and age in which pulpits seem to be getting smaller and smaller, I wanted us to have a pulpit that no one could miss…and I think we’ve succeeded! So if you’re wondering why our new pulpit is so large, the reason is because I wanted it to serve as a symbolic reminder to me and to anyone else who preaches in it of the weight and gravity and significance of the task of preaching. Puny pulpits too easily lend themselves to puny preaching. Lightweight pulpits are too susceptible to lightweight preaching that’s shallow and superficial. And we don’t want puny, lightweight, superficial preaching at First Baptist Church!
In a day and age in which biblical, expository preaching is lacking, I wanted us to have a pulpit that serves as an ever-present reminder that the regular, consistent preaching that should happen in our church is the preaching of the Word of God. That’s why “Preach the Word” is inscribed on the front of the new pulpit. And in a day and age in which the gospel is being distorted and even denied, I wanted us to have a pulpit placed right in the center of our sanctuary with a cross right on the middle of it, so that we remember that what is central here at First Baptist Church is the Word of God and what is central to the Word of God is Jesus Christ and him crucified and risen from the dead. So, that’s why there’s a cross right in the middle of our new pulpit.
Therefore, our new pulpit is more than just a piece of furniture. Our beautiful, new pulpit is a sermon in wood. But here’s the challenge that lies before us – will the sermons that flow from that pulpit match the sermon that is that pulpit? Will what comes out of it match what is on it? Will the actual sermons match the symbolic sermon? Because I’ve seen, and I’m sure you’ve seen, many a beautiful church building whose architecture preaches a wonderful symbolic sermon, but the actual sermons in those churches seem to speak of another God entirely. I’ve seen many a large, beautiful pulpit and yet what flows from those pulpits is a far cry from the Word of God.
So yes, the symbolism of our new pulpit is significant, and it matters. It says something, and it says something really important. But it’s not enough. Our new pulpit must be more than just a symbol. We need the actual sermons that flow from that pulpit to match the symbolic sermon that is that pulpit. We need sermons that recognize the weight and gravity and magnitude of being a messenger of the very words of God. We need sermons that point us to the cross of Calvary, that are centered on the gospel of Jesus Christ. And we need sermons that exposit the truth of Scripture, that preach the Word of God, that recognize that "man does not live by bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of God," that recognize that "faith comes by hearing and hearing through the word of Christ," and that recognize that "the grass withers and the flowers fall but the word of our God will stand forever."
