Jesus and Paul both said that people follow the example of their leaders. This means that the preaching pastor has to establish a culture of humility, honesty, authenticity, and repentance. The following five practices are ones that I have found to be practically helpful for that to occur.

First, the pastor needs to integrate sermon preparation and personal Bible study. In the past, it has been argued by some that a pastor should bifurcate personal Bible study from sermon preparation. I wholeheartedly disagree with this counsel because a preacher needs to preach from a life in Scripture. Therefore, a pastor should not be studying the Bible to prepare a sermon as much as studying to be a faithful Christian who will preach a sermon out of the experience of living according to what God the Holy Spirit imparts through his Word.

Second, the pastor needs to regularly practice humble repentance of sin as an act of faith in the finished work of Jesus on the cross to grant them forgiveness of sin and new life. This repentance should be the natural outflow of proper Bible study. Simply, any faithful reading of Scripture will result in a deeper love for Jesus and deeper awareness of one's personal sin.

Third, the pastor needs to live in community in such a way that what he is learning from the Bible is practically integrated into his natural relationships. What this means is that as a pastor is meditating on Scripture, praying through Scripture, and studying Scripture throughout the week, he must also be engaged in conversations about what God is showing him with friends, family, coworkers, neighbors, and others. Further insights into the Scriptures will come through these natural opportunities that God gives—through the comments of others, the discussions that ensue, and the practical application of what is being learned. These daily moments are a gift that God in his providential kindness gives the preacher to live a life integrated with his Word. Practically, this means that a preacher is constantly discussing what he is learning with his spouse and children as a first priority, so that he is serving his family before the church family.

Fourth, the preaching that naturally flows out of this lifestyle will include a lot of personal information from the preacher. Rather than only telling stories of victories, the pastor must reveal snapshots of the week where God convicted them of sin, discussions they had with their spouse and children, how God gave them opportunities to practice what he was teaching them, and how God's Word proved truthful and helpful throughout the week. Practically, this means that occasionally, and as appropriate, the preacher will even speak about a fight they had with their spouse and how the Scriptures were applied to deal with their conflict and sin. In saying this, I am not in any way seeking to excuse sin that would make a preacher not "above reproach," but rather stating that even the preacher is a sinner and unless preachers practice honest confession of their sin, their people cannot learn to do the same.

Fifth, in the end, Jesus must be the hero of every sermon. As a preacher, I have often been told that a pastor should not speak of their struggles or sins because they are to set a good example for their people. However, I can think of no better example to set for my people than the example of ongoing humble repentance of my sin to Jesus under the authority of Scripture and in the community of my church and family.

In closing, I am convinced that if these five practices are habitually practiced by the preacher from the pulpit, then a culture in which the Scriptures are true, Jesus is the hero, and faithful Christianity means ongoing humble repentance in community will naturally ensue. The question is whether or not the preacher has the courage to not only preach the gospel of grace, but also to live it publicly as an example. To be sure, religious people are prone to despise such preaching and use it as an occasion to criticize their preacher, but the humble, lost, and discouraged will be drawn to the simplicity of a repentant person with their Bible open, pointing to Jesus as their hero, hope, savior, and joy.

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