Don’t Lose Sight of Christ

I came across an article by Sinclair B. Ferguson entitled A Preacher's Decalogue in the Gospel Coalition's latest issue of Themelios. Overall it is a really good article and one that I am going to need to reread many times. One of the points that really struck me was number 3: "Don't Lose Sight of Christ." It sounds so obvious but I know that I have had the tendency to fall into the trap that Dr. Ferguson is warning about.

"Paradoxically not even the systematic preaching through one of the Gospels guarantees Christ-crucified centered preaching. Too often preaching on the Gospels takes what I whimsically think of as the “Find Waldo Approach.” The underlying question in the sermon is “Where are you to be found in this story?” (are you Martha or Mary, James and John, Peter, the grateful leper . . . ?). The question “Where, who and what is Jesus in this story?” tends to be marginalized."

I find it easy for me to relate to the characters in the Scriptures and therefore preach in the "Find Waldo Approach." I realize that it is not always the case-or the intention-but I never considered how self-centered this approach can be.

It seems to me that when we "find" Jesus in a passage that we will then be able to see where we are in relationship to him because Christ did not come to be crucified for his own sake but rather for our sake.