Ministers should cultivate “a mixed air of simplicity and majesty, decent neatness and elegance, without flaunting pomp and gaiety” (Foxcroft, The Gospel Ministry, p. 34).
Persuasion to What?
My adaptation of Weaver is: Rhetoric is persuasive communication in the service of Truth that creates an informed appetite for the Good” (Overstreet, Persuasive Preaching, p. 27)
Two Adams
“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16: 11) The Basket Case Chronicles #181 “But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept. For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even …
The Rosetta Stone of Sermons
“We ought to preach in such a way that, if Jesus has not been raised from the dead, then our sermons are utterly incomprehensible” (Willimon, Proclamation and Theology, p. 83).
Mission, Vocation, and Body Life
Introduction: As you have heard here before, mission is not something the church does on the side. Mission is at the heart of what the church is. And so, outreach, mission, evangelism, church planting all amount to the same thing. In this fallen world, the church should be about two things—birth and growth, and mission …
So Not Just an Indoor Job With No Heavy Lifting
“Preaching is hard work, requiring the cultivation of a host of skills that are difficult to develop” (Willimon, Proclamation and Theology, p. 72).
A Pitiable Lot
“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).