“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16: 11) The Basket Case Chronicles #180 “Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished. If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.” (1 Corinthians 15:18–19). If the dead are not raised, then …
Yeah, Imagine That
“Imagine being asked to stand before a grand gathering of the good and the wise and being asked to make a speech about goodness, beauty, the meaning of life, the point of history, the nature of Almighty God, or some such high subject and having no material at your disposal but an account of a …
Veiled Pulpit Arrogance
“False humility in preaching is a kind of veiled arrogance that proudly asserts its own vaunted humanity and refuses to bend one’s life in service to the Word” (Willimon, Proclamation and Theology, p. 61).
The Difference Between Salad and Garbage is Timing
“Ministers must use great wisdom and discretion in managing their public discourses . . . They must preach necessary and seasonable truths” (Foxcroft, The Gospel Ministry, p. 27).
Surveying the Text: Ecclesiastes
Introduction: Most cheerfulness in the world is superficial and shallow. Much deep thinking is melancholy. This great Hebrew philosopher calls us to joy—but joy which thinks deeply. Our word profound comes from the Latin profundus, which means deep, and so we are invited to profound joy, not joy that skims along the surface of things. …
You Have to Think About This One for a Minute
“Any preacher who does not fail, and fail dramatically and often, to communicate the good news is not communicating the good news that is Jesus Christ” (Willimon, Proclamation and Theology, p. 53).
Working in a Thick Medium
“To be a biblical preacher is to relish the delight of working so thick, demanding, and resourceful a medium as Holy Scripture” (Willimon, Proclamation and Theology, p. 49).
Despite the Threats
“As ministers then would deliver their own souls, and at last appear before the judgment seat of Christ pure from the blood of all men, they must warn every man, and teach every man without fear of undue censures or threatening dangers” (Foxcroft, The Gospel Ministry, p. 20).
Logic and Liberation
“Yea, and we are found false witnesses of God; because we have testified of God that he raised up Christ: whom he raised not up, if so be that the dead rise not. For if the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised: And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye …
Which Causes Trouble More Often Than You Might Think
“The biblical preacher attempts to talk like the Bible, in order that the congregation might inculcate a scriptural way of construing the world” (Willimon, Proclamation and Theology, p. 47).