“A congregation learns the seriousness of the gospel by the seriousness with which the pastors expound it” (Stott, Between Two Worlds, pp. 278-279)
Don’t Settle
“Our preaching must not be articulate snoring” (Spurgeon, as quoted by Stott, Between Two Worlds, p. 275).
Pathos in the Pulpit
“Earnestness goes one step beyond sincerity. To be sincere is to mean what we say and to do what we say; to be earnest is, in addition, to feel what we say” (Stott, Between Two Worlds, p. 273).
Credentials That Bleed
“One of the chief evidences of authenticity is a willingness to suffer for what we believe. Paul spoke of his afflictions as his credentials” (Stott, Between Two Worlds, p. 271).
Sincerity in Two Places
“The sincerity of a preacher has two aspects: he means what he says when in the pulpit, and he practices what he preaches when out of it” (Stott, Between Two Worlds, p. 262).
Or Lets Fly, As the Case May Be
“First, I reads myself full, next I thinks myself clear, next I prays myself hot, and then I lets go” (as quoted by Stott, Between Two Worlds, p. 258).
Which Not All Preachers Want to Do
“Writing is a most salutary discipline. First, it obliges us to think straight” (Stott, Between Two Worlds, p. 255).
As a Pink Comet
“There seems to be a consensus that we should avoid the two extremes of complete improvisation on the one hand and slavery to a script on the other. Good extempore preaching is very rare” (Stott, Between Two Worlds, p. 254).
The Intersection of Application
“The precise application of our sermon depends, however, on two variables, namely the character of our text and the composition of our congregation” (Stott, Between Two Worlds, p. 251).
A Lazy Afternoon Full of Influence
[The wise preacher] “refuses to be like the angler who, responding to an enquiry, confessed that he had not caught any fish, though he thought he had ‘influenced’ a good many” (Stott, Between Two Worlds, p. 249)