Monthly Archives: August 2014

The Gospel is preached in the ears of all—it only comes with power to some. The power that is in the Gospel does not lie in the eloquence of the preacher, otherwise men would be the converters of souls. Nor does it lie in the preacher’s learning, otherwise it would consist in the wisdom of man. . . .

We might preach till our tongues rotted, till we should exhaust our lungs and die, but never a soul would be converted unless there were the mysterious power of the Holy Spirit going with it, changing the will of man! O Sirs! We might as well preach to stone walls as preach to humanity unless the Holy Spirit is with the Word to give it power to convert the soul! – Spurgeon

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Book to Look For: On John Owen’s Piety

Foundation_front__74064.1396468482.1280.1280Reformation Heritage Books has quietly amassed a goldmine for piety in its “Profiles in Reformed Spirituality Series.”

The “series is designed to introduce the spirituality and piety of the Reformed tradition by presenting descriptions of the lives of influential Christians with select passages from their works. This combination of biographical sketches and primary sources gives a taste of each subject’s contribution to the Reformed tradition’s spiritual heritage and direction as to how the reader can find further edification through their works.”

The next installment, due in just over a month, is entitled “The Foundation of Communion with God: The Trinitarian Piety of John Owen.” Ryan McGraw, who did his PhD on Owen’s liturgical theology, offers up a digestible feast from the Prince of the Puritans. Which is no small accomplishment!

AN ACCESSIBLE OWEN

Owen is notoriously difficult do read, and so RHB and McGraw ought to be commended for their hard work in making Owen accessible to the average church member.

The book’s forty-one chapters are broken down into the following four sections:

  1. Knowing God as Triune
  2. Public Worship and Scripture
  3. Heavenly Mindedness and Apostasy
  4. Covenant and Church

I have read quite a few of the other volumes in this series and each one has been fantastic. They are great for discipling and are also suited nicely for morning devotions. Make sure to grab this one when it comes out and then consider which installment you might read next.

Tolle lege!

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BT & ST in Preaching

0e733507_helm2ndaryIt ought to be no surprise that the recent resurgence in gospel-centrality has coincided with a renewed concentration on biblical theology. The latter gives weight and meaning to the former.

David Helm, pastor of Holy Trinity Church in Chicago, is no stranger to biblical theology. Through his work with the Simeon Trust he’s trained hundreds of pastors in expositional preaching that’s rooted in biblical theology. He’s also published a perennial best-seller, The Big Picture Story Bible, which eloqently explains the basics of biblical theology for parents and children.

On top of all this, Helm recently published Expositional Preaching in 9Mark’s “Building Healthy Churches Series” in which he says, “The discipline of biblical theology offers preachers a certain benefit. It prevents intellectual or moralistic preaching. To put that positively, it brings you – legitimately – to the heart of the Christian gospel from particular texts in the Bible. It keep the main things the main thing.”

BT & ST IN PREACHING

So what is it about the resurgence of biblical theology – a very resurgence he’s helped promote – that concerns good Mr. Helm? That’s what Mark Dever asked in a recent 9Marks interview. Furthermore, does systematic theology have any place in preaching? Helm says, “Yes!” and his answer is oh so good.

Listen in to this four and a half minute clip as Helm provides sound counsel on how to faithfully integrate biblical theology and systematic theology in your preaching.

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Recent Reads

I love to read. By God’s grace I am a pretty fast reader; I usually read a couple books each week. I find it helpful to summarize my thoughts on each book and I offer those thoughts in the hope that you will be encouraged to either read or pass over the given title.

0851511813mAn All-Round Ministry by Charles Spurgeon. In 1865 Spurgeon began an annual conference for the students and alumni of his Pastor’s College; twelve of the best presidential addresses he gave at these conferences were eventually published as An All-Round Ministry. This book functions as something like a sequel to Lectures to My Students. Any pastor will profit from The Prince’s ruminations on pastoral ministry; his characteristic wit, wisdom, and biblical passion fall under the spotlight here. The eleventh chapter, “The Preacher’s Power, and the Conditions of Obtaining It”, is worth the book’s weight in gold.

BYGBehold Your God by Donald Macleod. At some level, every theological fallacy is rooted in a false understanding of God. It’s quite wise then for pastors to consistently study the character and ways of God. One way I put this into practice is regularly reading or rereading books on the doctrine of God. Macleod’s Behold Your God is just the latest in my theology proper parade. I felt like I was invited into Macleod’s home for dinner and got to here him riff on the attributes of God and historical discussions about God. Fun stuff! I didn’t agree with everything he said – his quick disavowal of the historically defined impassibility being one example – but the chapters are helpfully short and clear.

9781845505868mThe Hidden Life of Prayer: The Life-Blood of the Christian by David McIntyre. I am always helped by books on prayer. Even if the given book isn’t very good at least it gets me thinking about prayer. And whenever I think about prayer I normally soon find myself in the prayer closet. So I try to always be reading something on prayer. David McIntyre’s The Hidden Life of Prayer is one I return to every couple of years. It’s short, full of lively anecdotes, and packed with biblical and historical insights on a life of private prayer. The first two chapters – “The Life of Prayer” and “The Equipment” – are always challenging. Case in point: in the latter chapter McIntyre says, “The equipment for the inner life of prayer is simple, if not always easily secured. It consists particularly of a quiet place, a quiet hour and a quiet heart.” That kind of sound simplicity awaits anyone who would feast upon this gem.

9781567691184mThe Prayer of the Lord by RC Sproul. For years I’ve meant to get around to Sproul’s exposition on the Lord’s Prayer, but it took the prospect of preaching on Matthew 6 to get me to finally open up this little gem. The Prayer of Our Lord is a model of biblical and systematic theology; all packed into 105 pages. Everything you’d expect from Sproul is here: etymological attention, philosophical rumination, theological explanation, and heart searching application.  I could see this book being uniquely helpful in morning devotions and in discipling relationships.

TTTPTeach them to Pray: Cultivating God-Dependency in Your Church by Paul Tauges. Day One’s Ministering the Master’s Way series is full of simple and short resources to provoke pastors. Paul Tautges’ little volume on prayer is an arrow worthy of every pastor’s book quiver. The book has three main sections: “Prayer – An Expression of God-Dependency” (Part 1), “Brief Sermons for Prayer Meetings” (Part 2), and “Practical Helps for Cultivating God-Dependency” (Appendices). There is nothing revolutionary nor original in Teach Them to Pray; the best sections are quotes from other pastors or theologians. Yet it will most definitely cause you to evaluate the place of prayer in your local. That reason alone is sufficient for me to commend the book to every pastor.

THThe Heist by Daniel Silva. Silva’s beloved Israeli spy and art restorer Gabriel Allon returns in The Heist, a novel quintessentially Silva-esque. As I’ve said before, Silva’s mastery is seen in how the Allon books are virtually free from the scandalous or promiscuous, and yet they still thrive. The Heist finds Allon pursuing Caravaggio’s masterpiece The Nativity, investigating the murder of a former British intelligence agent, and endeavoring to bring down the ruling family of Syria. The Heist is another solid work for Silva and is perfect reading on late summer nights.

TBThe Bat by Jo Nesbø. Norwegian mystery writer Jo Nesbø’s Harry Hole (pronounced “HO-leh) series currently stands at ten volumes and is something of a phenomenon in international publishing. For years I’ve had people, who know my propensity to read detective thrillers, tell me, “You must read Nesbø!” So I finally picked up The Bat, “The electrifying first appearance of . . . Harry Hole.” Well, electrified is not a word I would use to define my first experience of Mr. Hole. The narrative moves nicely when it concentrates on the investigation and pursuit of a mysterious Australian (yep, the Norwegian detective is sent down under in this one) serial killer. Yet, those intriguing thrills are too often derailed by Nesbø’s fixation on humanizing Hole by recounting the Norwegian’s dark vices. It may take another few years for me to move on to Harry Hole #2.

Click here to find other entries in the Recent Reads series.

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Out of the Pulpit

Out of the Pulpit

From the very beginning of our church plant I endeavored to preach no more than 40 times a year, and so I rounded out 2013 having occupied our pulpit 39 times. From my perspective, it was one of the healthiest things we did all year.

I’ve been around many pastors over the last decade who seemed to protect their pulpit with an iron hand. One mentor of mine said he’d never preach less than 48 times a year. I’ve also heard many a church member say something like, “He has to preach every week. That’s what we pay him for!”

Such sentiment, if left unchecked, will set your church on a trajectory of implosion. Let’s begin to chip away a that ticking time-bomb by considering four benefits of having other men occupy the pulpit.

4 BENEFITS OF HAVING OTHERS PREACH

Protects against senior pastor dependency.Regularly having other men preach creates a culture of shared leadership through shared proclamation. No longer is the senior pastor seen as the only resident Bible teacher. The theological acumen of other men bleeds through as they preach and the congregation will recognize their ability. For example, last year one of our members wanted to better understand the finer points of eschatology. He sought out a man – who was an elder candidate at the time – who had preached several times over the year and revealed himself to be theologically trustworthy and able. I love seeing and hearing such things happen!

If a pastor rarely steps out of the pulpit he loses an opportunity to delegate authority. Nothing builds godly authority in a local church like the faithful heralding of God’s word. Have your elders speak from behind the pulpit with some consistency, then sit back and watch the congregation’s joy in submission increase exponentially.

Provides regular weeks of rest.A pastor needs to have weeks when he is still in the trenches of ministry, but the glorious burden of sermon preparation is borne by another. On average, I spend one week every month out of the pulpit. When used rightly, those weeks are like jet-fuel for joy and longevity in ministry. The soul lightens on weeks like these and enables you to return to the pulpit with Spirit-wrought vigor.

Tests and trains future pastors. You will undoubtedly have men in your church that express a calling for pastoral ministry. Having them fill the pulpit does two things. First, it tests the reality of their ability to teach. Pastors must be able to teach (1 Tim. 3:2) and letting them ascend to the sacred desk functions like an “Exam on Your Calling as a Pastor.” Even if the sermon is a dud, a man truly called to pastor will offer many glimpse of hope during the “dudness.” Second, opening the pulpit trains men for faithful ministry. We want to send out men who are relatively seasoned in pulpit ministry. Your church’s pulpit is the saltiest place for that to happen.

Models expositional listening. This is a point of benefit I cannot overstate: your church will be immensely helped by watching you hear a sermon. Do you want your congregation to have expectancy in hearing God’s word? Do you want them to prepare diligently to hear it preached? Do you want your people to come with hearts ready to respond to God’s word? Having regular weeks out of the pulpit while still being in the congregation enables you to model all those things.

The fall is right around the corner and it’s quite likely you are planning to start a new sermon series. So plan to be out of the pulpit a few times and watch the church your church benefit spiritually.