One thing about which Wendell Winkler was adamant as he taught his students to preach is that they must never “palaver in the pulpit.” As a freshman Bible major, this writer had never heard the word palaver, but after listening to brother Winkler, I knew it must be bad! I eventually got around to looking up the definition of the word which means “to talk profusely or idly.”

Brother Winkler had a solution for palaver in the pulpit. His solution was “content.” Every outline turned in or sermon presented in class received a grade for its “content.” He observed, “Some preachers have something to say and some preachers just say something.” It was his firm conviction that if a preacher was going to stand in the pulpit to preach, he must have something to say.

The preaching on Pentecost was filled with content. Over the past several weeks we have observed how Peter’s sermon was filled with Old Testament Scripture, centered on Christ, instructed people in how to be saved and the necessity of living a transformed life. The sermon unlocked the door of Christ’s kingdom and illuminated a clear path to heaven.

How does one get content for his preaching? Brother Winkler said it was simple. “You have to study!” He often said, “Preachers shouldn’t have offices, they should have ‘study’s.’” Though the apostles were moved by the Holy Spirit to say and write the things God wanted to communicate, we have no such promise. What we do have is a record of these things in written form over which we may spend hours and hours mining the treasures we have been given. To put content in our sermons, we must put time in our preparation.

Preacher friend, when your sermon is concluded will your hearers leave with their buckets filled with the riches of God’s Word or will it be empty? Will they leave knowing what God requires of them or knowing a good joke? On the day of Pentecost, three thousand gladly received the word Peter spoke to them. When Peter finished his sermon, people knew not only that something was to be believed, but what to believe. They knew something was to be done, and they knew what it was they were to do. And what’s more, they were able to follow through on what they had been taught. This only happens when a sermon has “content.”