The Preacher Must Be A Serious Man...

From D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones’ Preaching & Preachers, pp. 85-86:

The preacher must be a serious man; he must never give the impression that preaching is something light or superficial or trivial….What is happing [in the act of preaching] is that he is speaking to them from God, he is speaking to them about God, he is speaking about their condition, the state of their souls. He is telling them that they are, by nature, under the wrath of God–”the children of wrath even as others”–that the character of the life they’re living is offensive to God and under the judgment of God, and warning them of the dread eternal possibility that lies ahead of them. In any case the preacher, of all men, should realize the fleeting nature of life in this world. The men of the world are so immersed in its business and affairs, its pleasures and all is vain show, that the one thing they never stop to consider is the fleeting nature of life. All this means that the preacher should create and convey the impression of the seriousness of what is happening the moment he even appears in the pulpit. You remember the famous lines of Richard Baxter: “I preached as never sure to preach again, and as a dying man to dying men.”…You remember what was said of the saintly Robert Murray McCheyne of Scotland in the last century. It is said that when he appeared in the pulpit, even before he had uttered a single word, people would begin to weep silently. Why? Because of this very element of seriousness. The very sight of the man gave the impression that he had come from the presence of God and that he was to deliver a message from God to them. That is what had such an effect upon the people even before he had opened his mouth. We forget this at our peril, and at great cost to our listeners.

[HT: The Gospel Coalition Blog]

Six Worthy Pastoral Goals...

This seems like a pretty full picture of what pastoring ought to be all about. This list of six pastoral goals comes from a book by Derek Prime and Alistair Begg entitled, "Being a Pastor" [HT: Biblical Preaching].

1. Feed the flock - John 21:15-17

2. Proclaim the whole will of God - Acts 20:27

3. Present everyone perfect in Christ - Colossians 1:28-29

4. Prepare God’s people for works of service - Ephesians 4:12

5. Equip God’s people to be fisher’s of men - 2 Timothy 4:5

6. Keep watch over oneself until the task is complete - 1 Timothy 4:16

Why I Don't Do Altar Calls

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones answers quite effectively (courtesy of Banner of Truth):

Early in the 1970s Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones was the speaker at a ministers' conference in the USA and at a question session was asked the following question:

Q: During recent years, especially in England, among evangelicals of the Reformed faith, there has been a rising criticism of the invitation system as used by Billy Graham and others. Does Scripture justify the use of such public invitations or not?

A: Well, it is difficult to answer this in a brief compass without being misunderstood. Let me answer it like this: The history of this invitation system is one with which you people ought to be more familiar than anyone else, because it began in America. It began in the 1820s; the real originator of it was Charles G. Finney. It led to a great controversy. Asahel Nettleton, a great Calvinist and successful evangelist, never issued an "altar call" nor asked people to come to the "anxious seat." These new methods in the 182Os and were condemned for many reasons by all who took the Reformed position.

One reason is that there is no evidence that this was done in New Testament times, because then they trusted to the power of the Spirit. Peter preaching on the Day of Pentecost under the power of the Spirit, for instance, had no need to call people forward in decision because, as you remember, the people were so moved and affected by the power of the Word and Spirit that they actually interrupted the preacher, crying out, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?" That has been the traditional Reformed attitude towards this particular matter. The moment you begin to introduce this other element, you are bringing a psychological element. The invitation should be in the message. We believe the Spirit applies the message, so we trust in the power of the Spirit. I personally agree with what has been said in the question. I have never called people forward at the end for this reason; there is a grave danger of people coming forward before they are ready to come forward. We do believe in the work of the Spirit, that He convicts and converts, and He will do His work. There is a danger in bringing people to a "birth," as it were, before they are ready for it.

The Puritans in particular were afraid of what they would call "a temporary faith" or "a false profession." There was a great Puritan, Thomas Shepard, who published a famous series of sermons on The Ten Virgins. The great point of that book was to deal with this problem of a false profession. The foolish virgins thought they were all right. This is a very great danger.

I can sum it up by putting it like this: I feel that this pressure which is put upon people to come forward in decision ultimately is due to a lack of faith in the work and operation of the Holy Spirit. We are to preach the Word, and if we do it properly, there will be a call to a decision that comes in the message, and then we leave it to the Spirit to act upon people. And of course He does. Some may come immediately at the close of the service to see the minister. I think there should always be an indication that the minister will be glad to see anybody who wants to put questions to him or wants further help. But that is a very different thing from putting pressure upon people to come forward. I feel it is wrong to put pressure directly on the will. The order in Scripture seems to be this - the truth is presented to the mind, which moves the heart, and that in turn moves the will.

I am ashamed of every sermon I preach.

Richard Baxter:

For myself, as I am ashamed of my dull and careless heart, and of my slow and unprofitable course of life, so, the Lord knows, I am ashamed of every sermon I preach; when I think what I have been speaking of, and who sent me, and that men’s salvation or damnation is so much concerned in it, I am ready to tremble lest God should judge me as a slighter of His truths and the souls of men, and lest in the best sermon I should be guilty of their blood.

Me thinks we should not speak a word to men in matters of such consequence without tears, or the greatest earnestness that possibly we can; were not we too much guilty of the sin which we reprove, it would be so.

HT: Pulpit Magazine

How To Prove You Don't Have Brains

This Spurgeon quote courtesy of Justin Buzzard:

"The man who never reads will never be read; he who never quotes will never be quoted. He who will not use the thoughts of other men's brains, proves that he has no brains of his own."

-Charles Spurgeon, Sermon: Paul, His Cloak And His Books

These words affirm my frequent quotations of men like John Piper, Jonathan Edwards, Spurgeon, R.C. Sproul, and the like. But can a preacher quote others too much? Hmmm...

The Expository Genius of John Calvin

Steve Lawson discusses his book on John Calvin, and shares insights into Calvin's preaching:

The Gift of Self-Forgetfulness

Just in case you're wondering, I'm aware that I reference and post about John Piper quite a bit. I'm aware of this. You must know that he has been quite significantly used of God in my life over the past few years, and has awakened me to a number of biblical concepts I had not previously seen - or at least, had not yet figured out or "owned". I can't tell you how significant for me has been this phrase: "God is most glorified in me when I am most satisfied in Him." This concept blows me away. And it's true. It's wonderfully true.

That concept, along with many others, have affected my personal walk with Jesus, but also how I view ministry and preaching. In a very real way, my personal walk and my calling to and life in ministry cannot and should not be separated. In the following video, John Piper answers questions about passion in preaching - particularly the passion that is so evident in his own preaching. I am challenged and comforted by his words here...You ought to give it a listen... [Thanks to Adrian Warnock for the interview, and for his excellent blog!]...