“The preacher’s life must be a life of large accumulation . . . He must not be always seeking to make sermons, but always seeking truth, and out of the truth which he has won the sermons will make themselves . . . Here is the need for broad and generous culture. Learn to study …
Conviction is Not Delivered Shrink-wrapped
“Our task as preachers, then, is neither to avoid all areas of controversy, nor to supply slick answers to complex questions in order to save people the bother of thinking” (Stott, Between Two Worlds, p. 173).
Silent Pulpits Not Really Silent
“What is certain is that the pulpit has political influence, even if nothing remotely connected with politics is ever uttered from it . . . The neutrality of the pulpit is impossible” (Stott, Between Two Worlds, p. 168).
As a Political Prisoner
“As for our Lord Jesus Christ, his message had more far-reaching political implications than is commonly recognized. His contemporaries certainly thought so, for they had him arrested, tried and condemned on a charge of sedition” (Stott, Between Two Worlds, p. 164).
Universal Sexual Application
“Moreover, since marriage is an ordinance of creation rather than of redemption, these divine standards apply to the whole human community, and not merely to a diminishing religious remnant . . . [speaking of sexual ethics, the ‘dispensibility’ of marriage, divorce and remarriage, and homosexual partnerships] Christians should enter vigorously into these debates, and fearlessly …
David the Giant Killer
INTRODUCTION:Although the sin of our first parents had placed us under bondage to the serpent, God very quickly gave us a promise that we would be avenged upon that serpent. He thus established the antithesis and promised a Messiah in the same place. This running battle is seen throughout Scripture, and the obligation to pursue …
Application is Not Legalism
“There are many pastors today who, for fear of being branded ‘legalists’, give their congregation no ethical teaching. How far we have strayed from the apostles! ‘Legalism’ is the misguided attempt to earn our salvation by obedience to the law. ‘Pharisaism’ is a preoccupation with the externals and minutiae of religious duty. To teach the …
The Necessity of Application
“When we proclaim the gospel, we must go on to unfold its ethical implications, and when we teach Christian behaviour we must lay its gospel foundations” (Stott, Between Two Worlds, p. 157).
The Word Earthed
“This earthing of the Word in the world is not something optional; it is an indispensable characteristic of true Christian preaching” (Stott, Between Two Worlds, p. 145).
A Father and Brother
INTRODUCTION:In this great passage, we are introduced to David right after we are told that the Spirit had come upon him. We see the work of the Spirit first, and then we learn David’s name. THE TEXT:“And the LORD said unto Samuel, How long wilt thou mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from …