“The current tendency is to secularize the ministry, both its message and its office, as if the work of the minister were just the same as that of a teacher, a physician, a scientist, or an artist, only with a slightly different accent. This has done the church no good” (Macartney, Preaching Without Notes, p. …
Pentecostal Authority
INTRODUCTION: The Jewish festival of Pentecost is now famously connected to the sign gifts that were poured out on this day—gifts of tongues, and prophecy, and the like. We get the denominational name of Pentecostal from this day, and so one of the things we should learn as we mark this day is how that …
And Without Holding Anything in Reserve
“A preacher may have little or much personality, but certainly, when he gets into the pulpit he needs to use all that he has” (Macartney, Preaching Without Notes, p. 149).
Preaching Face to Face
“One great advantage of preaching without notes is the power of a direct appeal . . .Preaching without notes gives an earnestness to the preacher which is hardly possible otherwise, and it is earnestness that counts. That is the true eloquence” (Macartney, Preaching Without Notes, pp. 147-148).
Make It Concrete
“The great doctrines of the Bible and of the gospel ought to be taught and proclaimed from the pulpit. One of the most acceptable and effective ways in which this can be done is through doctrinal preaching that is also biographical. For example, take ‘Repentance.’ Instead of speaking of repentance in the abstract, preach on …
Samuel and Saul
INTRODUCTION:We are now introduced to the first king over all Israel, a man who began well and ended poorly. There are signs of trouble from the very beginning, but there is also grace from God that is clearly present. The fact that we know there will be a fall does not prevent the goodness bestowed …
Preach Biography
“God is the great, original, and continual biographical preacher . . . God did not reveal himself in abstract truth, but in a life — in the life of his son Jesus Christ” (Macartney, Preaching Without Notes, p. 121).
Ow
“One of the men of the French court once said to a famous court preacher, ‘Sire, your sermons terrify me, but your life reassures me'” (Macartney, Preaching Without Notes, p. 113).
Audio Reading of Post
10 Things an Effective Minister Must Remember
1. You are a minister of Christ, for the people. You are not a minister of the people, for Christ. Always preach Jesus. 2. Acknowledge your sins to God, and do what He says to do about them. 3. Your principal credentials for ministry are maintained, or not, within your marriage and family. 4. Your …
Like All the Nations
INTRODUCTION:The Lord provided a great deliverance at the second battle of Ebenezer, and Israel was greatly blessed by it. But blessings are like manna—they must be replenished daily. They go bad over time; they don’t keep well. Yesterday’s grace stinks by the time today’s troubles set in. Grace must be replenished constantly. Now Samuel was …