Category Archives: Preaching

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A Stretching Kind of Preaching

Stretching Preaching

Lord willing, this Saturday at IDC we conclude our summer sermon series on the book of Genesis. We put our sprinting shoes on for this one, knocking out all fifty chapters in fourteen weeks. As it so often happens, now that we are functionally done with the book I finally feel prepared to preach it.

Preaching Your Darlings

William Faulkner coined a now famous line for writers, “Kill your darlings.” Stephen King, in his On Writing, went even further by saying, “Kill your darlings, kill your darlings, even when it breaks your egocentric little scribbler’s heart, kill your darlings.” I’ve often wondered how such advice might apply to preaching. For it seems to me that every preacher has his own homiletical darlings. Maybe it’s a darling genre, a darling length of text, a darling tone, or a darling sermonic scheme (that’s probably my own)—whatever it is, the preacher likely has at least one.

Brothers, where it’s appropriate we need to kill our darlings lest they impede growth in faithful heralding.

It’s Stretching Time

When we planted IDC in 2013 I had yet to serve in a ministerial context where preaching week in and week out was my responsibility. During my associate pastor days the peak of preaching regularity was once a month. Thus, one of my first homiletical darlings to die was a preferred method of sermon prep. No longer could I sit and meditate on a sermon for over a month. What as just over a month was now just over a week. It took me many months to get used to a new way of preparation. I was stretched.

About six months in I started squeezing on another darling: genre. Every preacher, because of personality, interest, or expertise, is uniquely given to preach a particular genre. Some are storytellers and so they preach narrative. Some are rapture crazy and so prophetic books are their favorite meal. Some are systematic logicians and so feel drawn towards epistles. Count me in that later category. Put me in a section a New Testament epistle and I feel I’ve just sat down in a sermonic La-Z-Boy. We started IDC by preaching through 1 Timothy. I still think it was the right book to do at our church’s outset, but I wonder how much of my Pauline preference played a part in its selection. Desiring to give our young church the whole counsel of God, we jumped into Ruth right after 1 Timothy. I had, after all, told our core group one of the preaching convictions I had was, “Balance between the testaments and the genres.”

So, here I was outside my comfort zone in a narrative, and compounding my anxiety was that I was preaching through the book in four weeks. “Oh man,” I thought way back then, “one whole chapter each week?!?!” The homiletical stretching continued. After Ruth we went to Haggai and that little prophet made the stretching start to hurt. Since Haggai we’ve covered Mark, Job, 1 John, and two different topical series. Each one as stretched my homiletical muscles in regularly uncomfortable ways.

Uncomfortable because I’ve had to throw other darlings overboard along the way.

Seeing and Experiencing the Sermonic World

Now here I am concluding our Genesis series in two days time by walking through the story of Joseph—in one sitting. Yep, all fourteen chapters in about 45 minutes. Who is sufficient for such things? Maybe it’s wise, maybe it’s not. But one thing is certain: this sermon is stretching me. The whole series has been a stretching exercise. The rapid journey through Genesis is teaching me things I wouldn’t learn otherwise. Because of Ruth and Job I now feel comfortable with preaching one chapter, and thanks to Genesis one chapter feels quite luxurious. I trust this series is training me for future series that take in large chunks of narrative in every study.

What I’m coming to see is that we preachers need to see and experience the sermonic world of God’s word. If we never get out of a preferred genre we functionally spend our lives in one sermonic home. If we get out to other genres yet still only preach a few verses at a time we see the sermonic world with one-color lenses. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not advocating for only rapid tours through the vast landscapes of Holy Writ. To this day one of my favorite sermons I’ve ever preached at IDC was on one verse, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!” Sometimes the best thing we can do for our preaching is learn how to preach a full sermon on just a few words from God. Every morsel of God is a means to endless meditation. Preaching large texts teaches us “essentiality”—what is the dominant idea uniting all these verses? Preaching small texts teaches us “unsearchability”—there are unsearchable riches contained everywhere, if we would but prayerfully meditate long enough to see them.

An Unexpected Spiritual Consequence

All this talk of stretching our preaching is little more than an exercise of semper reformanda. Our homiletical ability must always be reforming, growing, and deepening. I’ve found the sermonic stretching does something for the soul as well, it fuels dependence. It may be just me, but whenever I preach in my comfort zone(s) I’m tempted toward self-sufficiency. “You got this,” whispers the Worm. And it’s terrifying to me how prone I can be to agree with his lie. But when unhelpful homiletical darlings are thrown out the window I sense my soul usually growing in dependence. As I said above, the question often is, “Who is sufficient for such things?” He who is strengthened by the grace of Christ Jesus (2 Tim. 2:2). That’s a truth I must never forget and stretching my preaching helps me remember it.

How are you stretching your preaching?

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The Woes of Gospel Ministry

Woeful Ministry

In 1 Corinthians 9 Paul tells the church at Corinth it is quite right to pay ministers of the gospel. Gospel heralds are oxen that ought not be muzzled. But, so that the churches would not be burdened and that he would have his reward, Paul preaches the gospel free of charge. Such selflessness offers no ground for boasting for God’s will compels him to preach. He declares, “Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!”

I’ve thought often about that word, “woe.” It carries the sense of eschatological judgment. Perhaps James gives us the best brief exposition when he ways, “Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.” If the Great Apostle does not preach the gospel he believes he will be fiercely judged.

A Woeful Service

In older times pastors spoke of gospel ministry as an “awful ministry.” The ministry is full of eternal weight and so one must enter into it full of awe. In what surely is the best book ever written on pastoral ministry Charles Bridges puts his finger on this very point as he considers the proper view of Christian ministry. He writes,

“[Is it any wonder] to see ‘the chiefest of apostles’ unable to express his overwhelming sense of his responsibility — ‘Who is sufficient for such things (2 Cor 2:6)?’ Who, whether man or angel, ‘is sufficient’ to open ‘the wisdom of God in a mystery’ — to speak what in its full extent is ‘unspeakable’ — to make known that which ‘passeth knowledge’ — to bear the fearful weight of the care of souls?  Who hath skill and strength proportionate?  Who has a mind and temper to direct and sustain so vast a work?  If our Great Master and not himself answered the appalling questions by his promise — ‘My grace is sufficient for thee (2 Cor. 12:9);’ and if the experience of faith did not demonstrably prove, that ‘our sufficiency is of God (2 Cor 3:5);’ who, with an enlightened apprehension, could enter upon such an awful service; or, if entered, continue in it?”

Channeling Paul, Bridges calls gospel ministry a “fearful weight” and “an awful service.” Now, that’s a view of the ministry worth attention in our day. Does anyone talk like this today? We need more people talking about how fearful ministry is, not simply how fun it is. For the purposes of this post I’d like to channel Paul in another direction—by thinking of gospel ministry “a woeful service.” Paul gives all ministers one woe in 1 Corinthians 9:15, but are there others we can pull out from Scripture? It seems to me that by clear reasoning or good and necessary consequence there are at least six woes in gospel ministry.

6 Woes in Gospel Ministry

Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel! The gospel ministry is precisely that: a ministry dedicated to declaring the gospel. God commissions pastors as heralds and woe be upon us if we do not earnestly and persistently proclaim, “Hear ye! Hear ye! Thus saith the Lord . . .” Paul doesn’t say, “Woe to me if I don’t preach.” He says he must preach the gospel. If the announcement that Christ died for sin, was buried and then raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures doesn’t permeate our ministry we are in desperate trouble. The command is clear enough, “Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching” (2 Tim. 4:2).

Woe to me if I do not pray! Every Christian is to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thess. 5:17), yet there ought to be peculiarly strong callouses on the knees of faithful pastors. With sweat and tears we must wrestle with God to bless our congregation and our ministry. James says we are men just like Elijah and look what he was able to do in prayer—hold up rain in Israel for three and a half years! Without prayer we have no reason to expect God will move in power through our churches. The Prince says it best, “Of course the preacher is above all others distinguished as a man of prayer. He prays as an ordinary Christian, else he were a hypocrite. He prays more than ordinary Christians, else he were disqualified for the office which he has undertaken.”

Woe to me if I do not shepherd the sheep! The Fiery Apostle’s word to elders is keen on this point as he writes, “Shepherd the flock of God that is among you” (1 Pet. 5:2). Here we must be careful to have a complete view of shepherding. True shepherds know, feed, lead, and protect the sheep. Every pastor will uniquely gravitate toward a few particulars of the four-fold work of shepherding. He must thus labor diligently in those areas where he is naturally weak lest he sow and reap judgment on our sheep.

Woe to me if I do not evangelize! Timothy, and all pastors ever since, are commanded to “do the work of an evangelist” (2 Tim. 4:5). If a pastor is preaching the gospel with faithfulness he undoubtedly evangelizes in every sermon. But is the pulpit the only place where evangelism should happen? Clearly not. The great evangelists of old held huge rallies where plenty of lost people would come. Their revivals were there evangelism. Furthermore, in many centuries it was the lawful duty of all town citizens to gather for worship on the Lord’s Day. Thus many Puritan preachers, for example, had scads of nominally religious attenders in every service to evangelize. Yet, in our day of shifting cultural sand many preachers cannot expect to automatically have large swaths of lost people in gathered worship. We must thus hit the streets, restaurants, and communal gathering places to reach those apart from Christ.

Woe to me if I do not disciple! Christ’s marching orders tell all believers to make disciples, yet there is a unique discipling work Paul gives to pastors. He writes, “What you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also” (2 Tim. 2:2). A major thread in the tapestry of gospel ministry is the training of future leaders. This might come through regular discipling relationships or in church officer training. Let every local church labor for the Spirit’s help in becoming a godly leadership factory. May we all have a company of pastors birthed from our ministry.

Woe to me if do not pursue holiness! Oh, how we must exercise the soul. The Great Apostle famously writes, “Train yourself for godliness” (1 Tim. 4:7). Proper pastors watch their life and their doctrine closely. What our people do indeed need more than anything else is our personal holiness. We need gifts and graces. May there be a renewed understanding in our time that holiness weaponizes—in a wondrous way—gospel ministry. M’Cheyne, that holy man of old, said, “A holy minister is an awful weapon in the hand of God.”

Who is Sufficient?

Are there more woes in gospel ministry? Undoubtedly. I’m sure I’ve neglected something. But you might be like me and think, “Those six are sufficient to provide fear and awe in the Lord’s service.” We probably see them and cry with Paul, “Who is sufficient for such things?” The answer is oh so sweet, “Those who have tasted and seen God’s grace.” Just before he commands his young protege to train leaders Paul gives the secret to success in gospel ministry, “Be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus.” There are unsearchable riches of grace found in Christ. May we sense them anew as we labor under an awful, woe-filled ministry.

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Thoughts on Stott’s “Between Two Worlds”

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I’ve said before that Between Two Worlds: The Challenges of Preaching Today by John Stott is one of the few masterpieces of homiletical instruction. If you haven’t ready it you really should stop reading what I’m about to say and buy a copy. But, should you tarry longer here, I hope you get a glimpse of why you the book is so valuable.

Where It All Begins

John Stott’s Between Two Worlds is borne out of the conviction preaching is “an indispensable necessity” for the church’s evangelism and growth (9). He understands the market for publications on the topic of preaching is saturated, but his aim is to fill a void any student of preaching can acknowledge to exist. Namely, his aim it “to bring together several complementary aspects of the topic, which have often been taken apart” (9). Thus, he weaves together historical, theological, and practical perspectives on preaching.

0802806279mHis section on the history of preaching spans the centuries from Jesus to the twentieth century. Attention is then turned toward contemporary objections to preaching which include everything from the “anti-authority mood” to the influence of television. In part three Stott unfolds five foundations necessary for preaching the Word. The rest of the book, nearly two hundred pages worth, is occupied with practical considerations for preachers and their preaching. Stott spends an entire chapter encouraging pastors to diligent study of the word before he offers a method for preparing sermons. The final two chapters seek an appropriate balance in applying “sincerity and earnestness,” as well as “courage and humility” in delivery.

That Between Two Worlds is still read thirty years after it’s initial publication is a testament to it’s enduring legacy. A noticeable strength of the book is the breadth of material that Stott manages to address in a relatively small number of pages. He succeeds in his desire to bring together several complementary aspects of preaching that normally have been kept apart (9). He boldly states in chapter one, “Preaching is indispensable to Christianity. Without preaching a necessary part of it’s authenticity has been lost. For Christianity is, in its very essence, a religion of the Word of God” (15). And what did all God’s preachers say? “Preach!”

Historical Precedent

To show preaching’s indispensability and uniqueness to the faith Stott first surveys the testimony of history and of Scripture. One might quibble about why the author deals with history before Scripture, but the quibbling really is for those who might be called “nitpickers.”  Stott adequately shows that every century in the church’s history believed preaching to be a central focus in the church’s witness. What’s impressive about Stott’s survey is that he doesn’t succumb to a common temptation to root preaching’s history in the Reformation. Surely, the Reformation represented a recovery of the Word’s sufficiency—and thus a recovery of preaching—but we must give credit where credit is due. Mighty preachers are found in many places before the Reformation. Stott recognizes this and gives due attention to the church fathers, friars, and 19th century giants such as Simeon and Alexander. However, Spurgeon is noticeably absent from Stott’s discussion on this period, an unfortunate oversight for sure. Maybe it’s my Baptist bias, but surely the “Prince of Preachers” deserves mention in any history of preaching—especially from a fellow Englishman!

A practical implication for preachers today is quite simple on this point: study church history. “Chronological snobbery” will stagnate one’s ministerial development, especially one’s homiletical development. Historical awareness protects the pastor from undue thoughts of novelty, while also providing encouraging example from the giants of old. Stott clearly knows his history and is better off for it.

“Dialogical Preaching,” Really?

The second chapter finds Stott dealing with contemporary objections to preaching and of particular help is his discussion on the “anti-authority mood” (51-64). Stott gives five points today’s preachers must remember as they respond to modernity’s and post-modernity’s distaste of authority. He calls preachers to remember: 1) the nature of human beings in Christian understanding, 2) the doctrine of revelation, 3) the locus of authority, 4) the relevance of the gospel, and 5) the dialogical character of preaching. On this fifth and final point, we need not fear that Stott reveals himself to be a precursor of the dialogical preaching advocated in recent years by members of the emerging church. Instead, Stott wants preaching to contain a “silent dialogue” between preachers and their hearers. The preacher should be aware of potential pitfalls in the audience’s interpretation of or objections to a given text. Preachers today would do well to remember this reality.

In chapter three Stott gets down biblical business. What does the Bible have to say about preaching? He writes, “True Christian preaching is extremely rare in today’s Church . . . The major reason must be a lack of conviction about its importance” (92). The biblical remedy for this malady is a mixture of five convictions: a conviction about, 1) God, 2) Scripture, 3) the church, 4) the pastorate, and 5) preaching. We preachers must be reminded that preaching is fundamentally a theological reality, and this chapter will do precisely that.

Yes, Pick Up the Book—And Other Books

Another chapter worth particular mention is chapter five and “The Call to Study.” Much of today’s evangelicalism is saturated with cries that the pastor learn leadership techniques ripped from the corporate sector. Leadership is indeed a fundamental part of the pastor’s work, but we must ask, “How does the pastor lead?” I would argue, “The pastor primarily leads through the preaching of God’s word.” Stott seems to agree, for he says, “Since the pastor is primarily called to the ministry of the Word, the study of Scripture is one of his foremost responsibilities” (181). Further, “The higher our view of the Bible, the more painstaking and conscientious our study of it should be” (182). To selectively know Scripture and study it with irregularity is to fall into the devil’s hands and cause the congregation to starve of faithful shepherding.

An implication here relates to the preacher’s elders and congregation. If the church’s elders and members don’t their pastor’s leadership is primarily rooted in the proclamation of God’s word, the pastor inevitably will find everything but preaching and study consuming his time. Could the decline of real evangelicalism in America be linked to a decline of the church’s perception of preaching? It sure seems so. Stott issues a clarion call to pastors and churches to not only recover the importance of preaching, but to recover the diligent study of God’s word as being the necessary and fertile ground in which faithful proclamation can grow.

Balance, Always Balance

Finally, something must be said of Stott’s worthy articulation of balance in the preacher’s life and ministry. Of peculiar import here is his call for the pastor to be sincere and earnest, courageous and humble. The reality of indwelling sin means every pastor will tilt to one side of the biblical ideal. For example, preachers today can have so much courage in delivery that their preaching has a swagger—which really is the stench of pride. Stott rightly calls God’s men to be tough and tender. For Stott, this balance can be seen in the pastor’s willingness to both disturb and comfort his congregation in preaching. In my circles at least, the element of disturbance is often emphasized at the expense of comfort. Stott rightly calls preachers to a “humble mind (being submissive to the written Word of God), a humble ambition (desiring an encounter to take place between Christ and his people), and a humble dependence (relying on the power of the Holy Spirit)” (335).

Why You Should Read It

Preaching indeed is “indispensible to Christianity.” John Stott’s Between Two Worlds represents a veritable gold mine of instruction and application for preachers who desire to devote themselves to the ministry of God’s word. The book is useful not only to those just starting out in the ministry, but can serve as a welcome reminder to men who have a couple decades under there ministerial belt. Is it an overstatement to call this book “required reading?” Maybe. But I still think we should say it. Overstatement is good every once in a while.

Even though Stott’s roots were in the Anglican tree, here is a theology and practice of preaching that transcends denominational lines and convictions. Perhaps this is because preaching itself transcends denominational lines and convictions. For all these reasons and more, Between Two Worlds is a timely and timeless work.

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Got 15 Minutes to Spare?

At the inaugural Together for the Gospel in 2006 John Piper preached on “Why Expositional Preaching is Particularly Glorifying to God.”

You may not have time to listen or watch the whole thing, but you should at least check out the first fifteen minutes. I do believe you will be helped. There Piper elaborates on his longing to see God raise up preachers “mighty in the Scriptures, aglow with the great truths of the doctrines of grace, dead to self, willing to labor and suffer, indifferent to the accolades of man, broken for sin, and dominated by a sense of the greatness, the majesty, and holiness of God.” Let us all long and pray for the same thing.

Click here if you want to read the manuscript.

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Suiting Up the Soul

Prepare The Way_std_t_nv

Professional athletes are often infamous for their pregame routines. Take my own athletic love, The Beautiful Game. Christiano Ronaldo won’t play unless he’s gotten a fresh haircut beforehand. Laurent Blanc would kiss the bald head of Barthez before each French match. Toure, the Ivory Coast legend, demanded to be the last player from his team to walk onto the playing field. Toure’s obsession with this pregame ritual runs so deep that he once missed the start of the second half of a Champions League game while waiting for a teammate to precede him.

If you jump from athletes to army men you’d find the same kind of thing happening with soldiers before the march. For some it’s simple superstition, while for others it’s the comforting assurance of normality. Whatever the motivation is, the point is quite clear: the man must fit himself for battle.

So it is with those of us who preach God’s word each week. The question isn’t, “Will we do it?” but, “How will we do it?”

Enlarge the Heart

Robert Murray M’Cheyne has loomed prominent in my life these past few weeks as I’ve started to scratch the surface on what I hope will become my PhD dissertation at The Institution. His prayerful piety is well known to many. But I’m discovering that few know about how intentional he was to fill his soul in order that he might truly preach each Lord’s Day. For example, take a look at this diary entry from February, 21 1836:

Preached twice in Larbert, on the righteousness of God, Rom. 1:16. In the morning was more engaged in preparing the head than the heart. This has frequently been my error, and I have always felt the evil of it, especially in prayer. Reform it, then, O Lord.

Fast forward to February 27, 1836:

Preached in Dunipace with more heart than ever I remember to have done, on Rom. 5:10, owing to the gospel nature of the subject and prayerful preparation.

We thus see M’Cheyne was keenly interested in “preparing” his heart so that he might preach God’s word. The February 27th entry shows us his heart was set aflame by the gospel and—particularly—by prayer.

Then, the very next week he wrote:

March 5th – Preached in Larbert with very much comfort, owing chiefly to my remedying the error of 21st Feb. Therefore the heart adn the mouth were full. ‘Enlarge my heart, and I shall run,”said David. ‘Enlarge my heart, and I shall preach.’ (emphasis added)

Reading through his diary and letters reveals a regular passion into this battle for enlarging the heart each week. Few know that he preferred to visit the dying on Saturdays so that his soul my be fit with solemnity for Sunday. He hoped it would allow him to preach as a dying man to dying men.

Brother of the pulpit, what do you do to prepare for heralding God’s word?

More Than Just a Few Hours Are Needed

I’ve found myself freshly challenged to answer that question in my own life. What am I intentionally doing each week to prepare my soul for the spiritual battle that is The Sacred Desk? Perhaps it’s my immaturity—or maybe it’s an appropriation of personal pregame rituals in my old glory years of futbol—but I’ve come to realize how routinized I’ve made the whole thing. Now, don’t get me wrong, I will sing the blessed Hymn of Routine until the Lord takes me home. No faithful ministry can happen without shaking hands with the friend named Routine.

However, I’m thinking here of my own particular routine on the day of preaching. After a week of studying, writing, and editing the sermon, Lord willing, is ready to go. Because IDC meets on Saturdays I have the stuffy joy of waiting a l l  d a y to deliver the sermon. This brings many extra hours for temptation unto sin, despair, or doubt before preaching. To help wage the good war I’ve taken to always leaving the house about 11:30am, which gives me about four hours to read through the sermon and earnestly pray for the night’s work. Sounds quite right, doesn’t it? Yet, in light of my M’Cheyne reading I came to realize that I was using these four hours as something like a “Pump You Up to Preach” soundtrack. Playing that same song each week, I had implicitly concluded, would cause my heart beat with bursting passion as I stand behind the pulpit.

Yet, I’m realizing the whole endeavor is a wee bit misguided. Why?

Enter M’Cheyne again.

In his private notes on “Personal Reformation,” the blessed man said, “I am persuaded I shall do most for God’s glory and the good of man . . . by being filled with the Holy Spirit at all times, and by attaining the most entire likeness to Christ in mind, will, and heart, that is possible for a redeemed sinner to attain to in this world.”

What I’ve been trying to acquire in the few hours before ascending to The Desk is actually something that can only be done by living each moment coram deo. Yes, we pray for the Spirit’s unction and filling to fall on the moment of preaching. But we dare not expect He will come down if the rest of the week isn’t consumed with the glorious tidings of Christ. This is why many a wise old man has said it takes a lifetime to prepare each sermon.

It’s one of those many truths I’ve known, but for the first time I feel I really know.

Continual Feasting

This then, I’m convinced, is what we must be after: wholehearted, second-by-second, devotion to Christ. Let another Scottish divine, William Blaikie, slam shut the case:

Ought not preachers themselves to live on the great fundamental truths of the gospel? Ought not our souls to be continually fed from them, and our hearts continually thrilling with them? Ought not a fresh glow to come over our hearts every day as we think of Him who loved us, and washed us from sin in His blood, and made us kings and priests unto God and to the Father? Give us the plainest preacher that ever was; let him preach nothing that a whole congregation do not know; but let him preach with a thrilling heart; let him preach like one amazed at the glory of the message; let him preach in the tone of wonder and gratitude in which it becomes sinners to realize the great work of redemption,—not only will the congregation listen with interest: they will listen with profound impression.

Delight your soul the thrills of Christ every day and then go preach with a thrilling heart.

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What Spurgeon Can Teach Us Today

Back in 2012 RTS-Orlando established the Nicole Institute for Baptist Studies in honor of Roger Nicole (1915-2010). Nicole, a founding editorial board member of Christianity Today, was a distinguished visiting faculty member at RTS from 1989 to 2000. The NIBS typically hosts an annual Spurgeon Lecture in April. The Spurgeon Lecture, named after the great Reformed Baptist preacher Charles H. Spurgeon, is designed to equip and inform the audience on a broad range of theological, historical and cultural issues.

In 2013 John Piper delivered the Spurgeon Lection with a message titled, “The Life and Ministry of Charles Spurgeon.” I think the Prince would have been pleased. Watch the lecture below, be amazed, and be encouraged.

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Where God’s Presence is Felt

2012AA47896Earlier this week I read Iain Murray’s A Scottish Christian Heritage and found it full of stirring stories for the soul. Perhaps no chapter was as good for me as the one on Thomas Chalmers.

One quote in particular struck me with the force of a spiritual Hulk. Brothers of the pulpit, read this one  s l o w l y:

How little must the presence of God be felt in that place, where the high functions of the pulpit are degraded into a stipulated exchange of entertainment, on the one side, and of admiration on the other! and surely it were a sight to make angels weep when a weak and vapouring mortal, surrounded by his fellow sinners, and hastening to the grave and the judgment along with them, finds it a dearer object to his bosom to regale his hearers by the exhibition of himself, than to do, in plain earnest, the work of his Master.

Now, off to your prayer closet to pray for humility, plainness, and earnestness as you preach this weekend. For God loves to reveal Himself through such preaching.

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Hear Ye, Hear Ye

“By far the most effective ingredient of good preaching is the personal piety of the preacher himself.” – Thomas Chalmers

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The Preacher’s Experience(s)

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There is a simple prayer I usually utter a few hours after preaching: “Lord, thank you for the privilege of preaching this day and help me to do better next week.” On an ideal week there is gladness of heart in the praise and the petition.

Last Saturday was one of those occasions where I left gathered worship with an unusually heavy soul. The accent on my weekly petition was something like, “Lord, I thought I’d be a better preacher at thirty-one years of age. But there’s still so much to learn—help me grow.” To say I felt like a failure would be to don the crown of drama, but to say I was dispirited would be more to the point. The discouragement was not because the sermon swung and missed; there was useful stuff throughout and many have told me how God used it to their benefit.

There was just so much more the sermon could have been, and probably should have been.

The Cry of the Young

It’s amazing to me how God meets us in our weakness. Sometimes His kindness amidst our troubles reveals itself over time; this is surely meant to teach us patience and trust. Other times He opens our minds to truth with astonishing speed. Last week was one of those latter occasions. I had barely made it out of the parking lot before something immediately hit my mind: I’m only thirty-one years old. A Spurgeon I am not, he who preached over six hundred (!) times by the age of twenty. A more encouraging model for me is John Piper who didn’t start preaching full time until he was thirty-four.

As hard as it is in an age that trumpets the power of youth and ignores the crown of the old (gray hair), I have to continually remind myself I’m still in the season of ministry marked “Sowing.” This is the time to get experience and gain from experience.

As I’ve meditated on this topic the last few days I’ve come to see afresh three experiential perspectives vital to those of us continuing to prepare for that ministerial season called “Reaping.”

The Experience of History

By this I mean experiencing the protective, informing power of history. Not only does such an experience often provide unique power for sanctification (consider the often-formative influence of biography), it equips a pastor to better understand his times. If there is nothing new under the sun, then rich experiences of history prepare a preacher to not be surprised. He is more able to point out anomalies and prevent his people from cultural panic.

Experiences of history come through the obvious avenues of books and documentaries. Yet, we live in an age where iTunesU and podcasting (for example, try BackStory Radio) provide numerous opportunities for pastors to have an experience with history that prevents them from falling into the abyss of the present.

Speaking of that abyss, let Piper say it as only he can . . .

Oh how fortunate we are, brothers of the pulpit, that we are not the first to face these things. We are so fortunate. I thank God for the healing of history. Do you read history? Are you slipping into the abyss of the present? It is an abyss brothers! You cannot know yourself, or your times, or your God if you only know the present. I bless God for history and books.

The Experience of Time

Like meat needs time to cure, preachers need the experience of time to grow. The trials and triumphs of life mold preachers into useful vessels. With God’s help the experience of time brings wisdom and maturity. Think not of preparation seasons as wilderness epochs in ministry, rather these are times when young men get to drink in at an oasis of God’s mercy.

The Experience of Christ

And, of course, no experience is greater than a vital, experiential relationship with Christ.

I’ve lately been working through several different biographies of Robert Murray M’Cheyne. One common thread woven through each work is how much the young Scotsman—and his school of friends—pursued a vibrant experience of Christ. Through devotion to God’s word and prayer Christ became sweetly powerful. M’Cheyne was convinced likeness to Christ is the essential ingredient to fruitful ministry. He said,

In great measure, according to the purity and perfection’s of the instrument, will be success. It is not great talents God blesses so much as great likeness to Jesus. A holy minister is an awful weapon in the hand of God.

In another place he wrote,

Take heed to thyself. Your own soul is your first and greatest care. You know a sound body alone can work with power; much more a healthy soul. Keep a clear conscience through the blood of the Lamb. Keep up close communion with God. Study likeness to Him in all things.

Back to the Beginning

We preachers have a promise from God meant to encourage us in the sowing season: “And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up” (Gal. 6:9). Let us not give up on doing good in ministry, learning from experience, and growing in an experience of Christ. We will reap.