Our Scripture verse on preaching is 1 Corinthians 2:1-2 which reads: "And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified."
Our quote on preaching today is from C.S. Lewis. He said, "A man who first tried to guess 'what the public wants,' and then preached that as Christianity because the public wants it, would be a pretty mixture of fool and knave."
In this podcast, we are using as our texts, the following three books: "Lectures to My Students" by Charles H. Spurgeon; "The Preacher and his Preaching" by Alfred P. Gibbs; and "Biblical Preaching" by Haddon W. Robinson.
Our first topic is titled "The Minister's Self-Watch, Part 6" from "Lectures to My Students" by Charles H. Spurgeon. He writes:
In many instances of young men put to a trade which they cannot endure, they have run away to sea sooner than follow an irksome business; but where shall that man flee who is apprenticed for life to this holy calling, and yet is a total stranger to the power of godliness? How can he daily bid men come to Christ, while he himself is a stranger to his dying love? O sirs, surely this must be perpetual slavery. Such a man must hate the sight of a pulpit as much as a galley-slave hates the oar.
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Our second topic is titled "The Qualifications of the Preacher, Part 6" from "The Preacher and his Preaching" by Alfred P. Gibbs.
This section is titled: THE PREACHER MUST LOVE SOULS (PART 2)
2. Consider Christ's passion for souls. The earthly life of our Lord Jesus Christ, as "Jehovah's Servant," is again the preacher's example of what it means to love souls. His gracious, solicitous, tender, and loving compassion is everywhere evident in the four Gospels, which contain the brief record of His ministry. It is instructive to mark the many times when it is stated that, "He had compassion." His heart went out in love to the lost and guilty sinners He had come to "seek and to save."
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Our third topic is titled "The Definition of Expository Preaching, Part 4" from "Biblical Preaching" by Haddon W. Robinson. He writes:
The Concept Comes from the Text
This emphasis on ideas as the substance of expository preaching does not in any way deny the importance of vocabulary or grammar. The definition goes on to explain that in the expository sermon the idea is derived from and transmitted through a historical, grammatical, and literary study of a passage in its context. This deals first with how expositors come to their message and, second, with how they communicate it. Both involve the examination of grammar, history, and literary forms. In their study expositors search for the objective meaning of a passage through their understanding of the language, backgrounds, and setting of the text. Then in the pulpit they present enough of their study to the congregation so that their listeners may check the interpretation for themselves.
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