Tired, Inspired & Finally Wired

Its been a tiring and inspiring visit to the new OM ship, Logos Hope, which is being fitted out in Kiel, Germany. Finally - after several days without internet access - I’ve found a connection to civilisation. My exploding blog-reader yields some of the following treasures:

Ray Ortlund is taking Monday off to the glory of God.

Ron Gleason counsels the young pastor

Peter Mead explains why true education is important in preacher development and wrestles with the issue of last minute sermon prep

Arturo G Artuzia III is interviewed (this guy has an excellent book on preaching)

Alistair reminds us of the source and substance of ministry

Off to Germany

Unashamed Workman is likely to be quiet this week. I’m embarking on a three day trip to Kiel in Germany, to spend sometime at the new O.M ship there. Find out more about the soon to launch “Logos Hope” here.

(Photo of Kiel, courtesy of Klaas Ole Kürtz, Creative Commons License 2.5)

Video - Steve Lawson on Calvin

Check it out here.

“….As he came to his preaching, its not simply that he gave the explanation in a sterile way; he was a man who wanted to unveil the glory of God. He saw himself as a guardian of the glory of God. And he saw himself as an exaltational expositor. I would want preachers today to know this about John Calvin, and for this to be the pulse and the heartbeat of their own preaching.”

Surviving (and Thriving) In Sermon Writing

Preachers can distinguish in the sermon writing process three distinct phases: organising, drafting and editing.

I. Organising (pre-writing)

a) You need to gather together all relevant notes that you have accumulated before touching a computer key

b) You could refresh your memory on your notes before writing

c) You need to think about the format/size of your manuscript (A4? A5?)

d) You need uninterrupted and ideally, quiet time

e) You need to pray for specific help: amongst other things, for stamina, accuracy, and words.

II. Drafting

a) Write a whole draft in one go (usually takes me about three to four hours)

b) Don’t rush the first draft but don’t agonise over it.

c) Try to write as you speak

d) Be warned: the first draft is liable to be long and clunky!

III. Editing

As you revisit the manuscript, ask questions like:
a) Is my writing clear?

b) Is my writing concise?

c) Is my writing compelling?

d) Is my sermon proportional?

e) Are my transitions smooth/ logical?

Begg On Preaching

Some good stuff from Alistair Begg on biblical preaching and the lack thereof:

Alistair Begg Video on Preaching (part one)
Alistair Begg on Preaching (part two)

What is the Fallen Condition Focus?

Matt asked this….

Bryan Chapell’s answer:

[The] FCF is a human problem or burden addressed by specific aspects of a scriptural text, informed preaching strives to unveil this purpose in order to explain each passage properly. Obviously, there may be more than one way of stating the purpose for a text since the biblical writer had various mechanisms for stating or implying his purpose. There may also be a variety of purposes within a specific text. Still, a sermon’s unity requires a preacher to be selective and ordinarily to concentrate on a Scripture passage’s main purpose. The FCF determines the real subject of a message because it is the real purpose behind the Holy Spirit’s inspiration of a passage. Ultimately, a sermon is about how a text says we are to respond biblically to the FCF as it is experienced in our lives — identifying the gracious means that God provides for us to deal with the human brokenness that deprives us of the full experience and expression of his glory.

So the issue raised in the introduction could be anything from ‘human loneliness’ to ‘how to evangelise a hostile audience’ to the problem of our ‘guilt’ before God. Anything that results from our fallenness. This includes our sin, obviously, but can also include other negative effects of the fall (ie. loneliness results from the fall but is not necessarily a sin; it is a consequence of our alienation). The remainder of the sermon seeks to then address the issue raised, and in this way ‘front loads’ the application.

Key Concluding Qualities

The other evening John Brand passed on a clear and concise quote about the qualities of good conclusions. This comes from the pen of Ramesh Richard.

“The conclusion is the final movement of the sermon, so it crescendos to a climax. The preacher repeats or restates the central proposition (the main theme) to refocus the thoughts of the audience on what God expects of them. The conclusion will evidence two features, cohesion and resolution. Cohesion: The audience now hears in concise statements all the important points of the sermon. Resolution: The audience now has the feeling that the destination set out in the purpose during the introduction has been reached.”

Criteria For A Good Introduction….

According to Bryan Chapell, a good introduction:

1. Arouses Interest
2. Introduces Subject through an identifiable Fallen Condition Focus.
3. Prepares for the proposition in concept and terminology.
4. The opening sentence will stand alone.
5. Becomes Personal (indicates the reason the message is vital for the listener).
6. Bonds to Scripture

Last night, I thought our Senior Pastor did a great job with his intro. It fulfilled all the above criteria and was pretty much a model example. See if you agree. The intro begins at 1:40.

I’ve Started…So I’ll Finish

On Thursday night we had a thoroughly enjoyable evening listening to lectures by Peter Grainger (introductions) and John Brand (conclusions). Though my audio still isn’t up and running, I hope to share a little of what they covered in the next week or so.

(John Brand, Vice Principal, Faith Mission Edinburgh)

On the subject of introductions, though, there is good audio online from Dr Bryan Chapell on one and the same subject. He has also given a lecture on conclusions. Find them here.

In addition, I enjoyed an article recently by Carl Habig called Sixteen things Paul Did Right in His Sermon Intro On Mars Hill. He begins:

1. While the first sentence begins with the pronoun “I” the intro is really focused on “you” (the hearers)
2. It is not (at least in the introduction) an accusatory “you”
3. He showed a familiar with their customs, with their city, with their faith.
4. He began with their “unknown god” and declared to them his own well known god.
5. He did not begin with flattery
6. He does not begin with an apology about bothering to address them at all

Read the remaining 10 reasons here.

General or Specific Application?

I can relate to what John Koessler, professor of biblical studies at Moody Bible Institute, writes about applying the sermon:

“With sermon application I struggle between two extremes. When my applications are too general, listeners affirm the truth of what I say without seeing that they need to act on it. As long as Nathan preached to David in parables, David could affirm the heinousness of the sin the prophet had described without referring to himself. It was only when the prophet moved to application and declared, “You are the man,” that David said, “I have sinned against the LORD.”

On the other hand, when my applications are too specific, it is easy for listeners to disqualify themselves by noting that they do not fit the specific conditions described in my examples. This kind of case study approach was often employed by the religious leaders of Jesus’ day, allowing the Pharisees and Scribes to exempt themselves. One of Jesus’ purposes in the Sermon on the Mount was to help his listeners see the general principles behind familiar truths that had been particularized away. On the other hand, an overly specific approach to application can lead to legalism, a focus on the letter of the law without regard to its spirit. Effective application must be both general and specific.”

John Ogilvie - Preaching With Passion

“We in New College [Edinburgh Scotland] have a particular link with Capitol Hill, in that one of our alumni, Dr Lloyd John Ogilvie, was for many years Chaplain to the US Senate. Since he retired from the Chaplaincy, Dr Ogilvie has founded the Institute of Preaching at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California. Some years ago, a worldwide survey by Baylor University recognised him as one of the 12 most effective preachers in the English-speaking world. We are glad to announce that from the evening of Saturday 26 July until noon on Monday 28 July in the Martin Hall he will lead a conference on ‘Preaching with Passion’.”

<

Generic conference info can be found here. Info specific to Edinburgh here. If you don’t know much about John Ogilvie, this Preaching Today interview fills you in, along with how he goes about preparing his sermons over a three year period!

Mark Dever’s Structured Meditation

When attending the Capitol Hill Weekender several months ago, I had the great privilege of joining Mark Dever for two hours as he carried out a “structured meditation.” Every week Dever grabs time with an alert, theologically informed chap in his congregation to think through how the sermon text applies to various groups within his diverse church.

(Photo courtesy of James.Thompson; Creative Commons License Attribution 2.0 Generic)

Sitting in on this exercise was extremely insightful. First, it exemplified how to better use “the application grid”, something which I have used numerous times in the past. Furthermore, it evidenced the patient care that should be taken in this stage of the process: this truly was unrushed and thoughtful consideration of how the passage intersects with the congregation. Finally, I came away more fully convinced that this stage of sermon preparation is possible (and even productive) to do in collaboration with others.

Since returning from the States I have started my own practice of meeting someone for lunch and going through my own adapted version of the application grid. It has already made a real difference. Time and again I am struck by the lines of application that I hadn’t even thought of from my narrow, individual perspective.

An example application grid can be found here. A blank application grid here.