And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes. Matthew 7:28–29 (RSV)
The sermon lasted forty-five minutes when the preacher began the conclusion. I was disappointed that it was ending. I wanted the preacher to go on, hungering for more of the grace and mercy flowing from his words. He was a good preacher, not due to his ability to craft words and phrases that tickled the listeners' emotions.
He was a good preacher because of the authority of God the Father in his sermon. When the preacher is the conduit by which the Father's life-giving Word is heard, such a servant can rightly be called a good preacher.
We who are entrusted with the ministry of Word and Sacrament can only do so by the authority given to us to speak the Father's will and purpose. The Holy Spirit touched our tongues with the fire of God's Word, compelling us to proclaim.
We preach with the authority of God when we realize that we are not speaking our witness. Behind our witness stand, faithful pastors who led by the Spirit spoke God's Word. Behind those faithful pastors stands Luther, whom the Spirit granted the wisdom to see the Gospel.
Before Luther were St. Augustine, St. Athanasius, St. John Chrysostom, and countless unknown saints whose faithfulness to the Word was poured out upon them. They stood on the shoulders of St. Peter, St. Paul, and the Holy Apostles. They, in their turn, were taught and commissioned by the Lord Himself.
All authority in heaven and earth is given to the Risen Jesus, who commands his disciples down through the ages to speak the Father's Word, resting on His authority alone.