One of the most interesting concepts concerning preaching can be seen in the work of the Swiss theologian Karl Barth. As both a Calvinist minister and a distinguished theologian, Barth attached great importance to preaching as the transmission of the Word of God. In his voluminous output as a theologian and in his own sermons, Barth attempted to do justice to the dual aspect of preaching. This dual aspect was embedded in the contradiction between the "perfect" Word of God delivered through "imperfect" human speech.
In preaching to a congregation, a minister must both ascend to God and descend towards his auditors. That is to say that a minister and must ensure that the Word of God speaks through him, but in a language that is readily understandable by himself and his congregation.
Through the act of preaching, the minister utters the divine Word (as he has understands it) from his extensive reading of Scripture. As a man of God, he has a duty to proclaim the Word. Given that he—like everyone else—is a sinner, however, his proclamation of the Word will necessarily be partial and imperfect. Therefore, in the act of preaching, the man of God has a difficult task to perform; he must try to articulate the perfect Word of God using imperfect human language.
That being the case, the sermon should serve as a call to action, a means of encouraging the faithful to go out into the world and proclaim the Word themselves. It is not enough that they hear and understand the Word of God—for, as we have seen, it can only be transmitted through imperfect human language via an imperfect human preacher. They must emulate the example of their preacher: take the Word of God and proclaim it to the world.
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