“If you want to attain simplicity in preaching, take care that you have a clear view of the subject upon which you are going to preach . . . If you yourself begin in a fog, you may depend upon it you will leave your people in darkness . . . Never choose a text …
Useful Simplicity
“I ask all my readers to remember that to attain simplicity in preaching is of the utmost importance to every minister who wishes to be useful to souls” (J.C. Ryle, Simplicity in Preaching, p. 4).
Wisdom and the Wise: Themes in Proverbs 1
Introduction: As we begin a short series of messages on “themes in Proverbs,” we begin with the topic of wisdom—wisdom and the wise. This book is part of what is called the Wisdom Literature of Scripture, and so in one sense everything the book teaches falls under the heading of wisdom. But I want to …
The Solution is Seen for What It Is
“He who knows, with a vivid and vital self-consciousness, what guilt means, knows what atonement means as soon as presented” (Shedd, Homiletic and Pastoral Theology, p. 275).
Including Holiness, Guilt, and Blood
“For this doctrine of expiation in the Christian system, is like a ganglion in the human frame; it is a knot of nerves; it is the oscillating centre where several primal and vital truths meet in unity” (Shedd, Homiletics and Pastoral Theology, p. 272).
Aeneas, Anarchy, and America #3
Introduction: As we read Scripture carefully, we should note that there are many differences between the status of the Jews in Isaiah’s day, for example, and our condition. At the same time, we have to realize that God gave the Scriptures to us for an example, so that we would be able to learn from …
Both Ends Necessary
“Eloquence, in its highest forms and effects, is a joint product of two factors; of an eloquent speaker, and an eloquent hearer” (Shedd, Homiletics and Pastoral Theology, p. 259).
Which Is Why Some Don’t Like It
“The gospel of the Son of God is the only system that is not subject to fashions and changes” (Shedd, Homiletics and Pastoral Theology, p. 257).
Aeneas, Anarchy, and America #2
Introduction: In a world gone mad, sanity is always thought to be some form of extremism. When people are wound tight in their scruples, the preaching of free grace is thought to be antinomian license (Rom. 6:1ff). When the early Christians refused to acknowledge the pantheon of gods, they were not accused of monotheism, but …
Marbled With Mammon
I have written before on the spectacle of Christians suing Christians, but the phenomenon is common enough that we really need to continue to discuss it in an ongoing way. To recap, the apostle doesn’t prohibit Christians adjudicating disputes in civil court, but rather prohibits it before unbelieving civil courts. The issue is testimony before …