Gospel-centered preaching is preaching that shines with the Gospel.

Is The Princess Bride a classic? Considering the number of memorable lines, it is definitely one! One of the most famous belongs to the beloved character Inigo Montoya, who doesn't understand Vizzini's constant exclamation: "Unthinkable!" Finally, Montoya replies: "You keep using that word. I don't think it means what you mean.".

When I hear sermons often called «gospel-centric,» I think of Inigo Montoya. We use that word all the time, but I’m not sure it means what we mean. So let’s think about it together.

Objections to gospel-centered preaching

To better outline the limits of our understanding, here are a few objections:

• Don’t assume that a sermon is gospel-centered just because it is based on the Bible. There is a way of preaching the Bible—even verse by verse, even about the parts that relate to Jesus—that can be harmful. The Pharisees and scribes were experts in the Scriptures, but Jesus rebuked them for not seeing the Christ-centered witness in them (John 5:39-40).
• A sermon should not be considered gospel-centered just because it comforted people with grace. The grace of the gospel not only comforts, but also motivates. It justifies and sanctifies. It establishes us in truths (indicatives) and grows through commandments (imperatives): «You are forgiven; now go and sin no more.».
• A sermon should not be considered gospel-centered just because it mentions the death and resurrection of Jesus for sinners. Certainly, the death and resurrection of Jesus are at the heart of the gospel (1 Cor. 15:1-4). But simply stating this message formally, as a checklist item or a mandatory footnote, is certainly not what we mean by gospel-centered preaching.

The image of gospel-centeredness

One of the reasons for the confusion is the very word «centeredness.» What does it mean to be «centered» in the context of preaching the good news of Jesus? Let me offer an image.

The gospel should be central to our preaching just as the sun is central to our solar system.

In the solar system, everything revolves around the sun and is illuminated and warmed by it. The sun's gigantic mass creates a gravitational pull that holds the entire system together. Its light and heat reach every object in orbit.

It should be the same with the Gospel in our sermons. Christ the Savior is the sun, and the Bible is the solar system. Every passage, every doctrine, every topic—everything revolves around the saving work of Jesus Christ. The life, death, and resurrection of Jesus illuminate and warm the whole of God's revelation, as well as the people in the audience and the preacher himself. To the extent that a sermon reflects these realities, it is gospel-centered.

In gospel-centered preaching, the Gospel is like the sun, drawing every aspect of the preaching event into its orbit, radiating light and warmth upon all. Gospel-centered preaching is preaching that shines with the Gospel.

Diagnostic questions

Comparing a sermon to our solar system, with the sun at the center, helps imaginatively, but we need to approach this question more practically. Is there a way to evaluate how well we have centered our sermon on the Gospel?

Below are three diagnostic questions that can help us evaluate our sermons. These questions are essentially statements that are countered by previous objections.

1. Did the Gospel shine like the sun on the sermon text?

The main idea of the text was proclaimed in light of the Gospel. Regardless of the topic—creation, gender, covenant, temple, sacrifice, holiness, judgment, blessing, cursing, purity, prayer, marriage, loneliness, unity, justice, mission, the Father, the Spirit—the main idea of the text was preached with a clear understanding of how the death and resurrection of Jesus fulfills, reinterprets, enables, or strengthens it.

In short, the main idea of the text was clearly related to the saving work of Jesus Christ. No truly gospel-centered sermon would have been welcomed in a synagogue or mosque.

2. Did the Gospel shine like the sun on the life of the listener?

The gospel illuminated not only the main idea of the text, but also the lives of the listeners. Gospel-centricity was reflected in both interpretation and application. People were called to live in response to the gospel.

• In the light of God's grace in Christ, unbelievers were encouraged to repentance, faith, and salvation.
• In light of God's grace in Christ, believers were encouraged to put off the old man, be renewed in the mind, and put on the new man.

The transforming light of grace truly shines in gospel-centered preaching. The imperatives that emerge from the Gospel are built on the basis of indicatives, and neither should be neglected.

3. Did the Gospel shine like the sun on the preacher's heart?

A respectful mention of the Gospel is, of course, better than its complete absence. However, in a truly gospel-centered sermon, the preacher himself has experienced the Gospel’s meaningful depths of the text. He himself sees the light and feels the warmth of the sun, so he stands before the church feeling less like Pluto and more like Mercury. He rejoices in Christ.

As a result, the preacher sincerely desires that the church join in his joy. He proclaims the Gospel not as a secondary detail that can be lost, but as the main news.

Incredible!

This is gospel-centered preaching at its best: preaching in which the Gospel shines like the sun from the text, illuminating the listeners and the heart of the preacher.

The only thing that is unimaginable is that gospel-centricity will be defined in smaller terms.

So, ponder the objections. Diagnose. And learn to preach the Gospel like the rising sun:

«From one end of the earth to the other, no one and nothing can escape its heat» (Ps. 19:7).

A gospel-centered sermon is a sermon that shines with the Gospel.