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Add “powerful arguments” to Your Exegesis: What I’m learning from reading Jonathan Edwards’s Earliest Sermons

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The Part We Play in Persuading our Listeners to Worship Each Sunday

Some of you may recall that my first observation about Edwards’s preaching was that his sermons lacked the kind of exegesis I was used to. I was trained and practice exegesis that is heavy on word studies. To my surprise, Edwards’s early sermons so far show little lexical work.

The second recorded sermon in Kimnach’s book is, The Value of Salvation, based on Matthew 16:26 “For what is a man profited, if he gain the whole world, and lose his own soul, or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?”

When Edwards arrived at his Exhortation, he states an obvious implication/application: “Let us take utmost care that we don’t lose our souls” (p. 329). He then restates Matthew 16:26 and writes,

“We have now heard the most powerful arguments in the world to persuade us [to] take care of our souls [emphasis added]” (p. 329).

Edwards was right: everyone in the house had heard the most powerful arguments in the world to persuade them to take care of their souls. How did he do it?

Glancing back into the sermon I picked up on two things.

  • Edwards had a comprehensive knowledge of Scripture so he could pull together key texts that spoke to his subject matter. In this case, Edwards relied on verses that spoke of the end of all earthly things.
  • Edwards was a careful observer of life with all its realities. For instance, Edwards reminded his audience that “Worldly good things are very uncertain” (p. 314). Speaking of our best earthly loves, “How uncertain are friends and relatives; their being dear to us won’t keep them from being take from us” (p. 316). So true. The same with, “And what rich man has there ever been whom riches have made happy?” (p. 318).

Page after page exhibits this foray into the minds of his listeners. And all for the purpose of getting them to this place:

“…let us take no thought for this present any otherwise than as the means of the good of our souls…” (p. 330).

There’s still a place in sermons for dictionary definitions of key terms. But I am learning from Edwards that lots of sermon space is needed for logical, theological, philosophical arguments that urge our listeners to their proper worship response to God’s revelation. It’s almost as if Edwards were saying, “Only a fool would not value the salvation of their soul!”

May we also be so forthright with our faith-families so God receives glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21),

Randal

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Our Salvation Is That Good! What I’m Learning From Reading Jonathan Edwards’s Earliest Sermons

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Edwards makes our salvation look so good!

The second recorded sermon recorded in Kimnach’s volume 10 of The Works of Jonathan Edwards is, The Value of Salvation. It’s based on Matthew 16:26 “…what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?”

Of course, you’d make sure your listeners answered, “Nothing!”

And Edwards makes sure they see the “inestimable worth” of salvation (p. 322). He does this by focusing our attention on what it means to be delivered from all evil.

He writes, “There shall be nothing to interrupt the happiness of believers: there shall be no evil approach the gates of heaven” (p. 322). Edwards is teaching me that that’s not specific enough as he continues with…

“They shall be perfectly delivered from sin and temptation. The saved soul leaves all its sin with the body; when it puts off the body of the man, it puts off the body of sin with it. When the body is buried, all sin is buried forever, and though the soul shall be joined to the body again, yet sin shall never return…” (p. 323).

That is going to be a great day for anyone who is plagued by temptation in this life. The more godly your listeners, the more their ungodliness bothers them. Any of your sermons/lessons aimed at defeating temptation in this life are enhanced by thoughts of how happy the next life will be when evil is erased.

For instance, “there shall [be] no more assaults of lusts to be resisted….They shall no more be tempted by the shining vanities” (p. 323).

What a day that will be!

Edwards was a master at showing all the reasons why the salvation of the soul is of inestimable worth. And he was a master at using the rewards of the gospel to motivate his listeners to godliness.

May our Lord receive glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21) as we follow his example.

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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Faith-Driven Courage: Preaching Through Numbers

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Let’s Be Sure We’re Sure the Book of Numbers Is Relevant.

I’m not quite there yet, but getting closer to Numbers 14:8 which contained my selected general theme for my study: “He will bring us into this land.” The parallels between their journey and ours are one way Numbers is extremely relevant to faith-families.

Chapter 13 also provides critical information for our journey. God will certainly bring us home, but it will require faith-driven courage.

Here’s the path I took our folks through:

  1. God has promised to give us LifePlus (vv. 1-16)
  2. But it isn’t all roses (vv. 17-29)
  3. So, will it be faith or fear? (vv. 30-33)

The narrative begins with God’s command to send the spies into the Promised Land. Their distribution shows that everyone of God’s children has this gift from the Lord.

Our listeners need to see from the second paragraph that this journey will not be easy. In v. 22, for instance, we read, “the descendants of Anak, were there.” Yikes! No wonder Moses said a bit earlier, “Be of good courage…” (v. 20). I worded it, “it isn’t all roses,” but that section does contain some: “That place was called the Valley of Eschol, because of the cluster…” (v. 24). You can see both the encouraging and frightening news in vv. 27-28: “It flows with milk and honey….However, the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large.” Bummer.

So, Caleb attempts to lead them up to occupy the land reasoning, “for we are well able to overcome it” (v. 30). Every man that went up with him said the opposite, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are” (v. 31).

Every day our folks make a decision on which report to believe, Caleb’s good one, or the “bad report” (v. 32).

If you’d like to experience a Christo-centric reading of Numbers 13, one option is in v. 16 and the special attention drawn to Joshua (our Jesus). And because He was overcome on the cross, we are overcomers through Him on our journey. Caleb’s right because of the promises of God-in-Christ.

This kind of relevance is one of the reasons why our Lord receives glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21) when Numbers is preached.

Randal

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The Consummate Persuader: What I’m Learning From Reading Jonathan Edwards’s Earliest Sermons

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Three things you can do to an idea: explain it, prove it, or apply it.
John 8:34 needs a strong dose of the second one.

In Edwards’s sermon, Wicked Men’s Slavery To Sin, his title comes directly from his text, John 8:34 “…Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.” Pretty straightforward.

And his first statement of doctrine is also straightforward: Wicked men are servants and slaves to sin (p. 340, Kimnach).

In my previous post I pointed out how Edwards anticipates push-back from his listeners. He instinctively knows that some will not agree with this portrayal of reality. So, Edwards goes to work convincing his audience that God’s statement is true.

What I find fascinating about Edwards’s preaching–and I feel the same when I listen to Tim Keller–is that he knows the ways of the wicked so well. For instance, he writes,

“Wicked men generally think that the way of holiness and religion is much the hardest, and theirs to be much the easiest” (p. 341).

And the wickedness inside all of us thinks the same way. Is it because of our default setting? Or because our appetite for sin is stronger than our appetite for God? Or is it because of deception? Or all of the above? It’s the kind of theological thinking Edwards is very fond of.

Edwards goes on to show that serving God is far easier than serving sin. He quotes from the NT and Jesus’s yoke being easy, for instance. Then he shows the opposite by quoting from OT wisdom literature that lists “The leech” and “Three things [that] are never satisfied” (Proverbs 30:15-16). Obviously, whatever you have is never enough (think of lust and covetousness).

The second thing Edwards says is that “Wicked men are very obedient servants to sin” (p. 342). Whatever sin requires them to do, they do it, even if it means their destruction.

This kind of argument leads to genuine pity and compassion for those that are enslaved to sin. It also leads to the desire to serve God, not sin.

I hope that as you preach and teach you will follow Edwards’s example of reasoning with your listeners so that God receives glory in the church and in Christ Jesus as they believe God’s reality to be true (Ephesians 3:21).

Randal

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Anticipating, “I doubt that”: What I’m Learning From Reading Jonathan Edwards’s Earliest Sermons

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The, Convince-me-this-is-true, look!

It didn’t take long reading Jonathan Edwards’s earliest sermons to learn that he learned early in his preaching ministry to anticipate push-back from his listeners as he taught biblical doctrine.

In his sermon, Wicked Men’s Slavery To Sin, based on John 8:34 (“Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin”), Edwards begins his “Doctrine” section with this statement:

“Wicked men are servants and slaves to sin.” (p. 340 in Kimnach)

After the heading he wrote, “We shall explain and clear up this doctrine by answering these two queries… [emphasis added]”

What Edwards wants to “clear up” in the early goings of the message is the fact that many of his listeners don’t agree with that statement. He writes, “Perhaps you may think with yourself, ‘I don’t see but that wicked men are happy, and live as free as the best men in the world.'”

Edwards anticipates a reaction from his listeners. He knows some doubt the doctrine and he immediately goes to work addressing their thoughts. He also directly addresses those listeners who “object” to the idea that they are wicked and believe themselves to be free.

The slide below shows some of the rhetorical strategies preachers use to create message minutes. If you listen to a preacher or teacher you will hear them doing these things. Notice the contrapuntal circle. It’s a word I encountered years ago from Buttrick’s, Homiletic. A contrapuntal occurs when a listener doesn’t agree with what you’ve said; they have a different opinion about the matter. Edwards knew how important it was to anticipate push-back.

So, one of the ways Edwards crafts this sermon is by proving that the doctrine is indeed true, that wicked men are slaves to sin. It takes careful thinking, plus the ability to correlate the doctrine with other key Scripture.

In the next post I will show you some of the keys to Edwards’s approach.

As you work on your next sermon/lesson, consider the doubtability of your doctrine, address it, and God will receive glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21).

Randal

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Helping Your Hearers Be Truly Happy: What I’m Learning From Reading Jonathan Edwards’s Earliest Sermons

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One goal of preaching is to create the ultimate happiness.

I confess that I did not expect happiness to be an emphasis in Edwards’s Puritanical preaching. I was wrong.

You might recall that Kimnach’s first recorded sermon of Edwards is, Christian Happiness. His second one is, The Value Of Salvation, based on Matthew 16:26 (“For what is a man profited, if he gain the whole world, and lose his own soul…?”).

In the opening doctrinal section, Edwards teaches that “all worldly good things shall have an end” and describes all who treasure those things “as to make them their happiness [emphasis added]” (p. 313, Kimnach). Edwards mentions how a person “hugs them never so close” (p. 313, and “to hug and make a god of” on p. 320).

The following pages show Edwards piling on all the reasons why it makes no sense to hold the things of the world too tightly. But what caught my eye was when Edwards says,

“it is the goodness of God that he has not appointed these things for our portion [for all eternity]” (p. 318).

Then, in keeping with his text, Edwards states that salvation includes the deliverance from great misery, “because so great happiness is to be enjoyed in the salvation of the soul [emphasis added]” (p. 320). Did you catch the contrast?

Delivered from great misery to experience great happiness.

And this becomes Edwards’s emphasis. Nearing the end of the sermon he writes, “The salvation of the soul is of inestimable worth…because the happiness that will be enjoyed by every saved soul will be inestimable [emphasis added]” (p. 322).

Edwards has made me evaluate my preaching, especially my portrayal of the benefits of salvation. I probably emphasize deliverance from great misery over experiencing great happiness. But what would you expect from a small “f” fundamentalist? (*smile*)

May our Lord receive glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21) as we proclaim all the happinesses associated with walking with Him each day.

Randal

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COVID-19 Preaching: What I’m Learning

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My Title Slide for the Past Few Weeks (built from an ABC image and
using a quote from the Psalms)

A few weeks ago I asked how the virus and lockdown were affecting your preaching and teaching. This week I wanted to take a moment and reflect on what the whole scenario is teaching me about preaching and pastoral ministry.

First, in case I had forgotten, preaching functions under the umbrella of soul-watching (cf. Hebrews 13:17). That means preaching is all about shepherding and caring for the souls entrusted to our care. No wonder it’s been so weird preaching to an empty house–no live souls!

Second, this has reaffirmed for me that I love people more than preaching. I really miss seeing the faith-family in person. The technology has been extremely helpful, but Zoom isn’t quite the same as hugs and holy kisses on Sunday.

Third, I am learning that there is something special about corporate worship. Something special happens when God’s people congregate to praise Him in song, Scripture, and sacraments. And, of course, important for us is the fact that something special happens when a soul-watcher speaks for God to them about them and their relationship with Him.

Finally–and I know you could add many more–I still have to be spiritually moved by the Scriptures before I try to move them with the Scriptures. In other words, preaching through technology has made me even more aware of my need for the Spirit’s transformation before I rely on Him to work on them. It’s been hard not to feel flat leading up to the recording sessions.

Yet, I am confident our Lord continues to receive glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21) through your efforts.

Randal

P.S. Does any of this ring true in your situation? I love to hear your thoughts on this too.

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Why Looking At Them Really Matters

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The kind of response we’re missing these days, right?!

I’m reading Carrell’s chapter, Delivering, Not Decorating, and it’s no surprise that eye contact during sermon delivery would be mentioned.

If you’re wondering why eye contact is critical for our preaching and teaching it’s because: “Sustained eye contact communicates relationship.” (p. 148)

If you’ve studied preaching or worshiped with me, you know how I feel about the effect that relationships have on communication and pastoral ministry. It’s impossible to overestimate its importance.

One of Carrell’s respondents wrote to her:

“Some weeks it’s just too much work to try to pay attention and connect when he doesn’t even make an attempt to look up to acknowledge we’re all out here [emphasis added]” (p. 148).

Yikes!

The pulpit or positioning of preachers and teachers usually already creates some distance. We can’t afford to add to it by poor eye contact.

It’s true that visuals such as slides can hurt if constructed and used poorly. However, here are two things to consider:

(1) Know your material so well that you rarely have to look at it, except for maybe a few quotes, stats, or references. I suggest you manuscript/orascript your sermons each week and read them over a few times to absorb the essential concepts, flow, and key words. When Sunday comes you won’t need many notes at all. Trust me on that one.

(2) Remind yourself that you will be talking to them about them throughout the sermon/lesson. Limit, if not eliminate, the number of minutes you talk to them about the Bible. You should not let them stray from you for long. That means you will continue to direct your communication “at” them. Not that you’re necessarily preaching at them–remember that your relationship with them is key. But you are always engaging them and looking at some of them in the process.

Let’s do the hard work of preparation in the power of God’s Spirit so they don’t have to work so hard to pay attention. And may our Lord receive glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21).

Randal

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Preaching Resurrection in the Face of Death

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Preaching Resurrection During COVID-19 Has Never Seemed So Relevant!

I know that if you’re preaching or teaching this Sunday you’re thinking through how the virus will factor into your sermon/lesson. I wanted to tell you my angle headed into the weekend in light of what I’m reading and hearing from faith-family members.

First, I will certainly be finding statistics on Good Friday about how many people have died world-wide, in the U.S., and in PA, my home state. The resurrection of Jesus Christ will be framed within the context of this deadly pandemic that today, for instance, has taken over 500 lives in NYC alone (to put it in perspective for me, my whole town, Weeks Mills, Maine, where I was born and raised has less than 500 people in it!).

Second, I am currently reading a short article on COVID-19’s other casualties. A friend of mine who works for a non-profit was telling me how much more difficult these times are for children in abusive situations because of isolation. That got me thinking of how many other deaths will occur as a result of the strain the virus is putting on societies and individuals (think suicides, for example).

Finally–and I know you know this–the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead has defeated the supernatural powers that are the driving force behind ungodly anxiety and fear. These two emotions keep cropping up like aggressive weeds in the garden of faith.

I want to make sure our folks realize that what they’re facing each day is a result of the battle that is still raging. My Psalm for Sunday, 110, records the words of Yahweh to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, “Rule in the midst of your enemies” (v. 2).

Our fight for faith is real and victory is possible because Christ our risen Lord is ruling in the midst of our enemies.

May our Lord receive glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21) as you announce the facts and implications of His resurrection from the dead.

Randal