Category Archives: preacher

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Ask a Lot of Great Questions: What I’m learning from reading Jonathan Edwards’s earliest sermons

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If you want to keep your worshipers engaged during the sermon, then…

I can’t remember the source and it’s been years. But someone rated the best sermons and discovered that one thing that they shared in common was a noticeably greater number of questions than lesser rated sermons.

Jonathan Edwards’s sermon, Value of Salvation, could qualify for an effective sermon that effectively uses questions to keep listeners engaged.

In the Doctrine section, Edwards’s second particular is: “The whole world shall have an end with respect to every particular person at death…all worldly pleasure…come[s] to an end.” (p. 313 in Kimnach’s volume 10 of The Works of Jonathan Edwards)

After stating that particular doctrine, Edward bombards his listeners with seven straight questions. He leads off with, “To what advantage, then, will be bags of gold and silver?” (p. 313). Then, six more questions follow, often a variation of, “What good will it do him then that…?” (p. 314). The seventh and final question ends the second particular doctrine and comes directly from Luke’s parable in chapter 16 about the rich man who built more barns to store all his goods: “…then whose shall those things be…?”

Each question drives home the point of doctrine. And if you and I ask the right questions at the right time, we are forcing our worshipers to engage.

There’s a reason why the best sermons contain the most questions. Engaging preachers and teachers engage their listens with great questions.

Lord willing, tomorrow many of us will begin preparing for the fourth Advent Sunday of this year. As you write your orascript, think about the kinds of questions you can ask your listeners to force them to think along with you about the greatest gift of our Lord Jesus Christ.

And may our God receive glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21) by our attempts to bring our listeners into heartfelt worship.

Randal

P.S. And one more thing, when you ask questions during the sermon, ask them in a way that lets them know you really expect an answer. I actually expect them to answer, but whether you do or not, it’s critical to ask the question so they know you want them to think with you.

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Thinking With Jonathan Edwards: What I’m Learning From Reading Edwards’s Earliest Sermons

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Jonathan Edwards certainly could have been called, The Thinker!

Quite often as I’m reading Jonathan Edwards’s sermons I come across the magnificent fruits of his capacity to think. Like this…

“…though they ben’t safe from those things that are in themselves evil, yet they are safe from the evil of those things” (Kimnach, vol. 10, p. 453, note 1).

The quote is from the sermon, Christian Safety, an exposition on Proverbs 29:25 “But whoso putteth trust in the Lord shall be safe.”

Our faith-family has heard this quote a few times in the past few years. I will probably mention it again tomorrow morning, Lord willing, because Psalm 48 highlights the protective power of God with all its imagery of citadels, fortresses, towers, and ramparts.

What I love about the quote is how succinctly and precisely Edwards stated what has been difficult for me to articulate. During COVID-19 times, think about how powerful this logic is. Though God’s children are not safe from the virus that is in itself evil, yet they are safe from the evil of that thing.

Last Sunday I tried my best in the pre-sermon–which, by the way, doesn’t technically count against my sermon time!–to ask the faith-family what they think about God being stronger than the virus. As expected, they got it. They said things like: God is strong enough to keep me from getting it, strong enough to get me through it, strong enough to take me home because of it. And if He chooses that route, He receives me unto Himself where we worship and await the new heavens and new earth.

“…though they ben’t safe from those things that are in themselves evil, yet they are safe from the evil of those things

In that sermon on Proverbs 29:25 Edwards said to his hearers:

“how happy it is to be so safe. Who would not get into that tower that will defend us from every evil thing?” (p. 462).

May God help us to think hard like Edwards did so He receives glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21).

Randal

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What We Preach No Matter the Preaching Portion/Pericope

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Abe’s new book is very helpful, especially in the discussion about theology and application.

I decided to select Abe’s new book, A Manual for Preaching: The Journey from Text to Sermon, as one of the required textbooks for my upcoming sections of PAS 513 Advanced Homiletics (Lancaster and D.C. locations of Lancaster Bible College|Capital Seminary & Graduate School).

Abe does an excellent job summarizing the preaching task with respect to what happens each Sunday in church. Think about your preaching portion from this morning or the one you will be preaching on this coming Sunday. Can you see your preaching fitting into the following description?

“So each pericope [the section you’ve selected to preach on] is God’s gracious invitation to humankind to live in his ideal world by abiding by the thrust/force of that pericope–that is, the requirement of God’s ideal world as called for in that pericopal world segment (e.g., listening to/obeying only God’s voice, from 1 Sam. 15 [where King Saul failed miserably!]. And as humankind accepts that divine invitation and applies the thrust/force of the pericope, week by week and pericope by pericope God’s people are progressively and increasingly inhabiting this ideal world and adopting its values” (p. 29).

If we’ve selected them properly, our preaching portions contain “God’s gracious invitation” to our listeners to inhabit “his ideal world.”

That happens when we urge them to be or do what the pericope is requiring (what Abe calls its “thrust/force”).

Sunday after Sunday the cumulative affect is growing more and more into the likeness of Christ (“inhabiting this ideal world and adopting its values”).

Can you see why it’s impossible for congregations composed of some with “ears to hear” not to grow into a mature Body?

I can’t think of anything more fulfilling than being the mouthpiece for God’s invitation to live in his ideal world. And as we do that each weekend, may He receive glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21).

Randal

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How Reading the Wall Street Journal Can Help Your Preaching. Honest.

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The Opinion section seems fair and the writing is superb.
Photo by Allie on Unsplash

Several months ago I decided to go back to getting a newspaper again. I was close to getting a subscription to digital curated news, such as Apple News, but the reviews were not great. I chose the Wall Street Journal thanks to a generous discount for educators. Or, was it students? That’s not important right now.

What is important is how the quality of WSJ’s writers is helping me be a better communicator of God’s Word.

Here are some lines from this weekend’s WSJ from one of my favorite writers, Peggy Noonan’s, Declarations: The GOP Tries to Make Its Case…

“If you weren’t moved by [Jon Ponder’s speech] you don’t do moved.”

Or, the reporting of Sen. Tim Scott’s speech which included the phrase,

“Because of the evolution of the Southern heart.” (explaining how “a black man who started with nothing [ended up in “Congress in an overwhelmingly white district in Charleston and beat the field, including the son of former-Sen. Strom Thurmond.”].

Or…

“[Republicans] hit on the one fear shared equally now by the rich, the poor and the middle: that when you call 911 you’ll go to voicemail.”

Or, my new favorite word I read several days ago: humblebrag.

So, in Psalm 18:23 David commits humblebrag when he claims: “I was blameless before him, and I kept myself from my guilt.” Much different than David’s confession in Psalm 38:18 “I confess my iniquity; I am sorry for my sin.”

There are several times in the earlier Psalms when David voices humblebrag. It’s a great word to describe how David can crow even though there were many times he had to eat crow.

I just wished I had remembered to say it in the sermon. Oh well.

May our Lord receive glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21) because of our attempts to become better wordsmiths.

Randal

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One of the Best “Go and do otherwise” Examples: Preaching Through Numbers

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A good example of setting a bad example!

When you arrive at Numbers 14 God rewards you with some really good, bad examples.

Let’s begin with a bad example of worldly grief versus godly grief. Verses 39-40 describe the reaction of God’s people upon hearing the news of judgment: “the people mourned greatly.” They are ready to follow the Lord’s earlier instruction (“We will go up to the place that the Lord has promised…”). They even confessed, “for we have sinned.” What could be more genuine than that, right?

The second major move or thought-block in this sermon could be in vv. 42-45. This contains the significant theological statements: “the Lord is not among you” (v. 42) and “the Lord will not be with you” (v. 43) and “neither the ark of the covenant of the Lord nor Moses departed out of the camp” (v. 44).

You might think that confession is enough–they confessed their sin. But it wasn’t enough to renew their relationship with their God. He’s not there.

Verse 41 explains the problem and I decided to keep this until the final move in the sermon. It’s the reason for labeling their grief, worldly, instead of godly.

“But Moses said, ‘Why now are you transgressing the command of the Lord, when that will not succeed?”

What an important question to ask any spiritual protégé/disciplee.

Israel and your flocks too are only defeated in spiritual battles when they fight without the Lord’s powerful presence. And He only withholds His powerful presence when we are not willing to give up our rebellious ways.

In Israel’s case, they confessed their sin of not going up to Canaan. However, after hearing the judgment, they are determined to go up even though they were told not to. The result was complete defeat.

Thank our Lord we have an opportunity every Sunday to express our loyalty to Him. God help us and those we teach to stay focused on faith-driven obedience and fight hard against any stubborn spiritual streaks so we don’t follow their bad example.

And may He receive glory in the church and in Christ Jesus through your efforts (Ephesians 3:21).

Randal

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Practicing What You Preach. Literally, I Mean.

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Practice Makes Perfect, Sorta.

In one of the main passages devoted to guiding pastoral ministry, Paul says to Timothy,

“Practice these things, immerse yourself in them, so that all may see your progress.” (1 Timothy 4:15)

I am currently two-thirds through writing a manuscript for my second full-length book tentatively titled, Preacher As Soul-Watcher. 1 Timothy 4:14-16 is the second of two passages that create a strong foundation for a theology of preaching in church.

The research and writing, along with teaching Advanced Homiletics for Lancaster Bible College|Capital Seminary & Graduate School, affords me opportunities to see new material such as Jared Alcántara’s book, The Practices of Christian Preaching: Essentials for Effective Proclamation (Baker Academic, 2019).

I had the privilege of meeting Jared when he was a student at Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary and attending the Evangelical Homiletics Society. I was thrilled to receive a copy of his book.

In describing famous saxophonist, Charlie Parker, Jared wrote that he “majored in zeal and minored in skill” (p. 2).

Probably that’s not what you and I want our congregants to say about us!

Jared’s research for the introduction led him to the phrase, “deliberate practice” (p. 5). If you’ve played a sport or instrument you know it’s possible to practice poorly. So, you know it’s possible to preach week after week–a few weeks ago I surpassed the 2,000 sermon mark–and not get any better.

Jared writes, “The central claim of this book is that preachers who cultivate life-giving preaching habits through deliberate practice will enhance their proficiency, grow in their commitment, and flourish in their homiletical ministry” (p. 5).

Okay, we could have some interesting discussions about this especially the last part which doesn’t take into account those preacher who enter dysfunctional churches, experience oppressive cultures, move on to their next assignment, preach the same way and flourish. But that’s not important right now.

What is is that it’s possible to preach and not practice the craft and all that’s wrapped up in the craft including the spiritual disciplines.

And Paul was the one who wrote for God, “Practice these things…” It’s very likely that His gift + your deliberate work + His blessing, including providing your congregants with ears to hear, can continue to give Him glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21),

Randal

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Edward’s Understanding Of Sin’s Power: What I’m learning from reading Jonathan Edwards’s earliest sermons

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Photo by Kiwihug on Unsplash
What Sin Does To God’s Creation!

In the third sermon of Edwards recorded by Kimnach (volume 10 in The Works of Jonathan Edwards: Sermons and Discourses 1720-1723), Wicked Men’s Slavery to Sin, Edwards excels in his analysis of the devastating affects of sin. One of the things that keeps me reading Edwards is his theological depth which never drifts away from his listener’s plight.

Edwards wrote: “Query II. In what respects is a wicked man servant to sin? First Ans. The wicked man serves sin with his soul” (p. 343).

I would have said, “with his body” and possibly, “with his mind.” Edwards eventually gets to the body in his second answer, but not until creating a solid foundation.

Edwards knew, just as you do, that the effects of sin go much deeper than your physical body. He stated that,

“sin enslaves the very soul, so that he believes, wills, loves, nor thinks nothing but what sin allows of and commands.” (p. 344).

Sin is in control of it all, even though a non-Christian listener might feel in control.

Sin controls what they believe.

Sin controls what they want to do.

Sin controls what they love.

Sin controls what they think.

Edwards laments: “The eye of his reason must be open only to those things that sin allows him to see; he must keep his eyes fast shut, only when sin gives him leave to open them.” (p. 343)

And imagine, Edwards says, that all this starts from the moment we are able to use our reasoning powers (“as soon as we can speak or go” p. 345). So different from the air that we breathe that believes the human being to be inherently good.

Edwards is now in a great position to say to his listeners:

“Come, be bold and courageous, and don’t be afraid to disobey sin; if you so do, you will not be hurt for it the devil can’t hurt you for rebelling against sin.” (p. 346)

It’s possible that this week your preaching portion or sermon will contain the concept of sin. If so, may our Lord receive glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21) as you follow Edwards’s example of clearly stating sin’s effects.

Randal

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How Much of Your Sermon Is Original?

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I believe that but also know of other preachers who have preached this text better!

In the middle of the week I began thinking about how much of my sermon-in-the-making is the result of my own thinking. I know about the debate surrounding whether or not anyone can ever have a truly original idea. And I’m not talking about plagiarizing either.

I guess I’m asking you to think about what parts of your sermon development and delivery are your work.

Let’s begin with some thoughts about using someone else’s material:

On one side of the spectrum, think about those times when you rely on an English dictionary, thesaurus, or original language lexicons and theological dictionaries. Now go all the way to the other side of the line and think about borrowing someone else’s sermon title and structure.

In the middle I put quotes or paraphrases from our favorite authors, like Jonathan Edwards, Augustine, or William Goldman (author and screenplay writer of The Princess Bride).

So, what do I bring to the equation? Every week by the grace of God I…

  • trace the argument of my preaching portion and discover how meaning is made before I know what that meaning is.
  • determine how this text intends to elicit worship (I complete the sentence: “We worship the Lord this morning by…”).
  • know enough about my congregants to know this text is relevant.
  • create a structure that leads to the theological meaning of the text.
  • talk to my listeners about their Christian experience from the text while I write out my sermon manuscript.
  • make critical word-choices that affect how the sermon sounds (an ora-script within the manuscript).
  • smile at them to let them know I love them.
  • show them how the Christ-event makes this text come true for those who believe.

What did I miss?

May our Sunday “originals” continue to give God glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21),

Randal

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Becoming a Deep Theologian for Your Faith-Family

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Your Stack of Good Pastor-Theologians

Over the past several weeks these posts have been switching back and forth between help on preaching through Numbers (Ouch!), what I’m learning from Jonathan Edwards’s early sermons (Yes!), and what I’m learning from, Preaching That Matters (Interesting!). This week I’m combining the second and third categories. Here’s why…

Carrell writes,

“If your sermon communication content is going to be deeper, you are going to have to be deeper. Depth isn’t something you can borrow from a source you find on a website. As a spiritual leader, you must go as far below the surface as possible.” (p. 113).

I’m all in when it comes to having to become spiritual, intellectually, exegetically, and theologically deeper. It’s the middle sentence that arrested me, so let me nuance it a bit.

It’s true: you can’t borrow depth that doesn’t belong to you. Carrell states, “Speakers who live and breathe their subject matter are deeper” (p. 113). But you can gain depth through reading someone like Jonathan Edwards.

Certainly. Pick another pastor-theologian if you like or at least settle for a theologian. But have your favorites and read your favorites so that you learn to think like they think about the Scriptures and their listeners. You can’t borrow depth, but you can burrow deep into the depths of someone like Edwards on a regular basis.

“Why did he say that? What caused him to think like that?” That’s what I ask while I read him. And, over time, I begin to find myself going deeper.

I know I’ve said this before, but you realize that most pastors are reading more church growth and leadership material than they are reading deep theologians. Our deep preaching comes from deep thinking, which, for me, comes in a large part to deep reading.

And may our Lord receive glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21) as a result of our Spirit-driven efforts.

Randal

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Pressures Pastors Feel and Why Preaching Through OT Books Can Help

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One of the reasons why I’m enjoying/profiting from Carrell’s book, Preaching That Matters, is because of the massive amount of research and case studies she used as the basis for her book.

For instance, believe it or not, the top concern of preaching pastors relates to their content; delivery was second. She writes,

“In The Great American Sermon Survey when clergy were asked to describe their greatest preaching challenge, the most frequently identified struggles were content related…” (p. 106).

Two areas surfaced: (1) “the need for ‘fresh ideas for familiar content,'” and (2) “‘relevancy, when it is not apparent in the text'” (p. 106).

My experience preaching through several books of the Old Testament has helped me in both those areas.

First, preaching through OT books like Numbers–my current series–virtually guarantees that you will have fresh ideas for familiar content. The OT writers have a way of presenting well-known theology in ways that are often unfamiliar, or not-as-familiar-as-the-NT. I especially appreciate the way in which theology is conveyed through OT narratives.

Second, preaching through OT books forces you to become more skillful at the science and art of applying life to the Bible. My ability to interpret–including apply–Scripture has increased due to being forced week after week to deal with difficult Texts.

I realize you may not agree with this, but in my experience preaching through Numbers or First and Second Chronicles is far more difficult than preaching through Romans. Each series had its challenges, but the OT series win the prize.

So, the only way I know how to overcome the struggle of identifying not-easily-identified relevancy is to practice it every week in the crucible of the Monday to Saturday world of the pastorate.

I’ve found that the OT contains many “fresh ideas” and that careful study reveals its profound relevancy…

Which ends up with God receiving glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21),

Randal