What is the difference between preaching and teaching?

As to the difference between preaching and teaching (v. 4), in point of fact, all preaching is teaching now. At first they went and announced the fact - " Jesus is risen from the dead." I have not to do that so much now; I have rather to describe the efficacy of the effect; though I believe the more these things are set out as facts the better, although they are now all admitted. The more we make our preaching the history of a fact, the more powerful it will be. You do bring facts before people if you say, This was God's Son, and so on; otherwise it is teaching, except so far as we press the facts.

Moreover, the important distinction between preaching the gospel to the unconverted and teaching the Lord's people — so little understood or acted upon even now — began to be forcibly illustrated, and with the most blessed results. The evangelist and the teacher waited, each upon his own proper work — souls were converted, and believers were built up on their most holy faith. Worship, too, and "the communion of saints", began to be understood. The Lord's people met, on the first Day of the week, to break bread, and found the presence of Jesus to be a divine reality in their midst. Of course, none were admitted to the table save such as were believed to be true Christians, sound in faith, and godly in walk.

It is one thing to carry the Gospel as a herald to sinful men, and quite another to set it forth in detail for the establishment of saints. The former is the work of the evangelist, the latter that of the teacher. If we wish to hear Paul preaching the Gospel, whether to Jews or to the heathen, we turn to the Acts. If we wish him to instruct us in its fulness and glorious power, we read the Epistle to the Romans.

The different gifts of ministry, and the distinct lines of ministry, are marked in the Word. There was preaching and teaching, as there were evangelists, pastors, and teachers. At Jerusalem they ceased not to teach and to preach that Jesus was the Christ. (Acts 5:42.) At Antioch Paul and Barnabas continued teaching and preaching the word of the Lord. (Acts 15:35.) At Ephesus (Acts 20), at Corinth (Acts 18:11; 1 Cor. 1.), at Rome (Acts 28:31), and elsewhere (Col. 1:23-28), Paul continued to do both; for whilst by evangelizing the assembly is increased, there are things which form the subject of teaching, and not of preaching. Hence, if the work of God is to progress healthily, both teaching and preaching are requisite. Where simple evangelizing is all that is sought after, the saints will not be fully instructed in the truth; where that is depreciated or neglected, interest in the spread of God's work is in danger of flagging.

I have, in some of the earlier letters of this series, dwelt upon the unspeakable importance of keeping up with zeal and constancy, a faithful preaching of the gospel — a distinct work of evangelization, carried on in the energy of love to precious souls, and with direct reference to the glory of Christ — a work bearing entirely upon the unconverted, and therefore quite distinct from the work of teaching, lecturing, or exhorting, in the bosom of the assembly; which latter is, I need not say, of equal importance in the mind of our Lord Christ.

Preaching, however, is announcing. The word for preacher, kerux, simply means "herald." But there is another word used, euangelizomai, and this means "to bear good news." The preacher of the Gospel is a herald, and he heralds glad tidings.

In short, it strikes me we want awakening preachers. I fully admit that there is such a thing as teaching the gospel, as well as preaching it. For example, I find teaching the gospel in Rom. 1 — 8, just as I find him preaching the gospel in Acts 13 or Acts 17. This is of the very last importance at all times, inasmuch as there are almost sure to be a number of what we call "exercised souls" at our public preachings, and these need an emancipating gospel — the full, clear, elevated, resurrection gospel.

Had we continued reading in 2 Timothy 1:10 we would have found that the gospel is now preached on the basis of the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, and the apostle Paul was the herald, the apostle, and the teacher of this truth. As the herald he was the one who cried out this message, as an apostle he had authority to bring this message, and as a teacher he explained it in all it's details.

The evangelist preaches the good news of God; he proclaims the gift of life eternal and remission of sins to all such as believe in Jesus. The pastor and teacher, publicly and privately, tells the whole counsel of God to the faithful; that they may be built up in the truth and filled with the knowledge of His will, so as to walk worthily of the Lord and to please Him in all respects.

Among teachers are greater differences than among pastors or evangelists. The whole word of God in its varied depths is their storehouse. Each according to his measure able to unfold and apply the word to the need of the assembly, building up in faith, confirming hope, and raising the moral and spiritual tone of the meeting. They who are thus used of God are truly His "gifts," and the proof is that saints are edified and instructed; the church is consolidated by their ministry. Some are able to give the prophetic word its due place in the minds and hearts of the children of God. But we must remember that the Epistles are designated "prophetic writings" (Rom. 16:26). In a subordinate sense these might be called prophets, not as foretelling, nor as being "foundations," but as helping believers to understand the drift and scope of the prophets, of the Old Testament as of the New. And the evidence of the Spirit's teaching in them will be that Christ is seen as the Object of all prophecy, His glory and exaltation the grand theme from first to last. Others teach in doctrine whether of the church and its calling and special hope, or of the first principles of our salvation. These last may be called teachers of the gospel; they are not necessarily evangelists. Nor is every talker in the meeting a teacher; the "gift" is known by the blessing which follows. So while there are some able to instruct in the higher truths (so to say) of revelation, there are others whose sphere is the unfolding of the simple gospel for the establishing of young converts, yea, sometimes also of old believers; and these are surely of not less, perhaps of more general, importance for assemblies — looking at their present condition — than those who soar higher in the region of revealed truth. But God suits His gifts according to the need of saints. He has one end in view, "Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ."

Now the teacher of the gospel differs from the evangelist whose special field of labour is in the world among the unsaved. He is a fisher of men; the teacher of the gospel is for the feeding of the babes in God's household; and these, though closely allied, are distinct gifts, having different spheres. It not infrequently happens that the gospel teacher mourns on account of the absence of conversions when he addresses sinners, and similarly the pure evangelist has not his usual freedom when his hearers are for the most part believers. But each "gift" is for a special work, to which he is appointed. Let then the teacher wait on his teaching (see Rom. 12:4-8), and the evangelist on his preaching. Rarely do we see both functions in the same servant. Paul was a "gift" in whom all these offices and qualities were combined; he was at once apostle, prophet, teacher, pastor, and evangelist, and most prominent and zealous in each.