Any honest and faithful theology of preaching must acknowledge that charges of foolishness are not incidental to the homiletical task. They are central, and every Christian preacher should be prepared for them. Most of the world will be frustrated with what we preach, for the cross abolishes human self-sufficiency and worldly wisdom. Christian preachers will always labor under the temptation to preach a message that will be acclaimed by the world as learned, wise, and erudite. To aim for that kind of worldly applause, however, is to empty the cross of its power (see 1 Corinthians 1:17).
