“When was the last time that the authorities were afraid of your sermons?” (Edwards, Deep Preaching, p. 104).
Growling Over a Text
“The basic meaning of the Hebrew words translated into English as meditation is ‘a low sound, characteristic of the moaning of a dove (Is. 38:14; 59:11) or the growling of a lion over its prey (Is. 31:4).’ To meditate is to ‘growl’ over a text as a lion would over the carcass of its prey” …
No Blank Screens
“A text cannot mean what it never meant” (Haddon Robinson, as quoted in Murray, Deep Preaching, p. 80).
Keeping to the Point
“Preach sermons that are focused upon a central idea. Shave off any and all extraneous data. Keep the main idea the main point of your sermon” (Edwards, Deep Preaching, p. 61).
And Not All of Them Wonder That Much
“Too many preachers treat sermons as lectures or term papers. Too many preachers view God as a subject to be understood, analyzed, and discussed. They cut God open on an autopsy table and wonder why their sermons are dead” (Edwards, Deep Preaching, p. 53).
But Shallow Ones Can Be
“Deep sermons cannot be preached by shallow people” (Edwards, Deep Preaching, p. 43).
Invaluable Presence
“The apostle Paul was convinced that preaching had a unique ability to accomplish spiritually what no other form of communication could do. That is why he wrote to the church of Rome, ‘I am eager to preach the good news to you also who are in Rome.’ Don’t miss the obvious here. Paul wrote this …
Spark Plugs
“Preaching is to the ministry of the church what spark plugs are to a car engine. Spark plugs are not the whole engine — and preaching is not all there is to ministry — but without the spark plugs the car will not work” (Edwards, Deep Preaching, pp. 21-22)
The Touchstone
“When my preaching is true to the biblical text it is automatically true to life” (Edwards, Deep Preaching, p. 18).
Which Has Both Pros and Cons . . .
“Your parishioners listen to other preachers on the radio, watch them on TV and on the Web, and download pdcasts to their iPods. Like it or not, you are not the best preacher that your people have listened to this week. Your congregation has compared and contrasted you with the best-known preachers of the day …