Was Jesus a Preacher?

  This evening a question was asked of me and it went something like this:  “Was Jesus a preacher?”

  Jesus took on many roles while He walked among us in the flesh some 2000 years ago.  At times, He carried the role of a prophet, in the sense that He spoke the very words of God, but also in the sense that He spoke of the future on occasion.  He was referred to as rabbi, teacher and master.

  I say those things rather hesitantly, because there is a human tendency to reduce a person to the roles that they fill.  People might call and think of me as a mechanic, but without sounding arrogant, I am so much more.  With Christ, there is also the inclination for some to look on Him as if He was a great teacher, but little else.  People of other faiths sometimes refer to Him as a great prophet, but deny His person as the only begotten Son of God. 

  Here is the way I understand preaching and teaching.

Preach – To speak into the life of a person or a group of people, with the intention of affecting change among and within them.

Teach – To impart knowledge to another by lessons; to guide by precept or example.

  Jesus was often called a teacher, but the word preacher was not to the best of my knowledge.  It can be difficult to tell the difference between teaching and preaching.  I personally believe that great teaching often affects change, and great preaching tends to impart knowledge hoping that it will move others in some way. 

   In the way that I understand preaching, I believe that Jesus was perhaps the greatest preacher of all.  His teachings weren’t given merely for the purpose of transferring information, but for preparing the hearts of His hearers for the kind of change made by The Holy Spirit, where one passes from death, to true life in His Kingdom.

  Good preaching moves others from doubt to trust, from rebellion to repentance and from fear to faith in Christ our Lord; the person, object and author of our faith.  I say He did that better than any other.