Y G F PM

M A: 1 1 1 9 2 2
.

BV 3790 D4 3
Dav i s , Ozora St e arn s , 1866
19 3 1
E v an g e l i s t i c p r e ac h i ng
 W ith S erm o n O u tl in es an d Tal ks
to C h il d ren an d Y o u n g P e o pl e

By

O ' O RA S . D AV I S
r esiden t Ck zcag o Tlzeolog ical Sem in ary
’

P
’

NE W Y O RK C HI C A G O

F le m i n g H . R e v e l' C o m pa n y
L O ND O N A ND E D I N B U R G ll -
 Op rl 1 6 1 .
y g 9 y

F L E M I N G H RE V E L L C O M P ANY
.

New Y ork : 5 8 F ifth Avenue

Chicago : I 7 North Wab ash Ave .

Lon don 2 1 P t
a ern oster Square
Edinb urgh : 75 P rin ces Street
 P re fa ce
‘H E Ch r i s tian Chu r ch in the mod ern

I w or ld i s s till cha rged as it al w ay s ha s

,

b ee n w ith o n e s up r em e ta s k publi shing a

, ,

m ess ag e w hich i s conc er n e d with noth ing l ess than

a n ew li f e f or th e individual and s ociety Th ere .

are man y w ay s by w hich thi s message may b e mad e

k n ow n ; but f r om th e beginning it ha s b ee n chiefly

th ro ugh th e o r al delive ry o f th e evang e l that it
ha s been p r oclaimed Ch r i s tian p r eaching i s s till
.

th e c ompelling engag e m e nt o f th e Chu r ch Th e .

p r eache r i s s till th e m ess eng er o f li fe to hi s g en er a

ti on P re aching i s diffi cult highl y technical and
.
,

gl o r i ou s bu s in ess Th ere see m s to be n ee d o f a

.

b r i e f manual which w ill d efi ne again th e unchang e d

ta s k o f th e p re ach er in th e light o f ou r e x acting
and b ew ilde r ed w or ld b r ing out th e e nc ou r ag e
m e nt s in th e p re ach er s ta s k and o ffe r p r actical
,

s ugg es ti on s f o r th e p rose cuti on o f that di s tinct

kind o f p r eaching c omm only know n a s evangel
istic . Thi s b ook i s off e re d a s a w o r d o f en cou r
agem en t and s p e ci fi c c o un se l to all th o se w h o a r e

t oiling to publi sh th e go od n ews o f th e Kingd om o f

G od and th e n ew li f e in Ch r i s t .

O S D . . .

Chicago Theological S emin ary .

 C o n te n ts

P A RT I
T H E TH E O RY O F E V A N G E L I ST I C
P RE A C H I N G

THE G OO D N EWS A ND I TS P UB LI CAT I ON

P RE ACH IN G A ND T H E P REACHER
TH E IM P RE SS I ON AN D E XP RESS I ON O F TH E
G OO D N EWS
E V E RY P REACHE R A N E V ANG E LI ST
TH E E V ANG E L IS T I C S ER MON
E V AN G E L ISM As TH E O R G ANI ' ING P RIN
CI P L E I N P RE ACH I NG

P A RT I I
A P RO G RA M O F E V A N G E L I S TI C P RE A C H
I NG , WIT H S E RM O N O UT L INE S

P A RT III
TA L KS To C H I L D RE N A ND Y O UNG
P EOP L E

P A RT IV
S P E CIA L G A T H E RI NG S
 P A RT I

T heo ry f E va n gelistic
o

P rea c hi n g
 TH E G OO D N E W S A N D I TS
P U B L I CA TI O N

O
NG E up on a time the r e b r ok e up on the
yea r ning ea r o f humanity a me s sag e that
wa s so tim e ly so a ss u r i n g so co mf o r ting
, ,

”
that it w a s well named the goo d ne ws It w a s .

n ot goo d n ews in g e ne r al ; it wa s s p e cifi cally and

f o r ev er unique ; it wa s the goo d ne ws F o r ev er y .

man f or all mankind du r ing all the y e a rs d ow n

, ,

to the end o f time w hateve r that may be and n u

, ,

de r all human ci r cum s tance s h o weve r the se may ,

chang e it r emain s the s am e e xhau s tl ess and w on

,

derf u l me ss age .

Th e men w h o firs t h e a r d it and put it into w o r d s

s p oke G r eek and th e y gave a name to the message ,

whi c h passed int o L atin l e tt e rs and then came to

”
u s in the English w o r d evangel F r om thi s We
.

de r ived the kind r ed w o r d s e vangeli s tic and

.

evangeli z e . Th e n f ro m anoth er s o u r ce ou r ,

”
ow n A ngl o Sa xon
-
came th e w o r d
, go spel ,

sh o r t er and m o re vital meaning the s ame thing

, ,

”
go o d ne ws .

H ow s wi ftly an d s u r ely w o r d s l o se thei r p r i s tin e

and picto r ial m e aning ' L ik e co in s ab r ad e d by
9
10 EVA NG E L I STI C P RE A CH I NG

c onst ant h a ndling ou r great w or ds hav e th e im

,

age s rubbed o ff and the sharp l i nes i n which they

we r e o r igin a lly minted sm o othed d o w n So we .

h ave l o st to a g re at exte n t the p r e c i ous a nd vivid

”
content o f the w o r d go spel We mu s t use ou r.

imagi na ti on and p ictur e once m ore the clear scene

that i s inv olved i n s om e o f the great te rms o f ou r
language He r e is the s ituati on out o f which th e
.

w o rd gospel was bo rn A battle i s being f ought

.

by the defende r s O f a city on a fi eld fa r f r om the

w alls whe r e the pe ople w ho c anno t tak e thei r pa r t
in th e confli c t w a it and l ong f o r new s Th e old .

men are the r e and the w omen and the little chil
d r en They a r e s t r ai n ing thei r eyes a s th e y w atch
.

the r oad ; they ar e liste n ing with eve r y s ense attent .

N ow ou t o f the dust fa r o ff appea rs the fi gu r e o f

, ,

a runne r He is be n ding ev ery ne rve to r each the

.

city gate s f o r he i s the mes s enge r o f good news

,
.

The battl e ha s been w on and the city i s s aved To .

make that fact kn own is wo rth the utm o st e ff o rt

that he can put f or th H e knows what it will.

m e an to th e waiting peopl e ; so h e s pa r e s n o e n er gy
to tell them the good n ews .

The w o rd evangeli s t r ep r e sent s thi s me s

senge r A n d th e n ews that he b r ings i s th e eva n
.

”
gel or th e good news Th e Ch r i s tian p re ache r
,
.

i s the evangeli s t o r the bea rer o f good n ew s to all

the yea r ning and beleague r ed s oul s o f men The .

m ess age th a t he brings them is his gos pel o r evan

el I t t e ll s h ow the l ov e o f G od has enli s ted on
g .
 TH E G O OD NE WS 11

man s s ide in the s t r uggle f or t r uth and r ight e ou s

’

n ess It ha s the accent o f c ertainty ab out it Thi s

. .

1 8 n ot a gue ss ; it i s an a ffir mati on that g r ound s it

s e l f in th e d e epe s t a ss u r anc e It ha s th e r ing o f

.

j y
o ab o ut it . Th e m ess age i s s u r e t o s et th e b e ll s
r inging I f the m es seng er i s so e nthu s ia stic a bo u t
.

it that he p ou rs all hi s s o ul int o the announc ement

o f hi s me ss age i f s om e time s he b re ak s ov er th e
,

c o nv e nti onal f o rm s in hi s p roclamati on we a re ,

n ot s u r p r i se d We would b e su rp r i se d i f h e did
.

n ot do s o m e thing o f thi s s o r t Who c ould pos

.

sibl y tell men s uch t r uth W ith o ut e m oti o n ? Th e

me ss age i s so wond er ful so impo r tant so pack e d
, ,

w ith j oy '
Thi s i s the e a r li es t and th e m os t vital c ont e nt
o f th e w o r d But th e yea rs go by The m es sag e
. .

i s r ep e at e d again and again until th e v er y w o r d s

,

a r e w o rn thin M en begin to change th e m e ssage

.

f r om a glad announc e ment to a fi xed d ogma They .

qua rre l ab out it Th ey e ven kill each oth er b e cau se

th ey cann ot ag re e on th e m e aning o f the w o r d s o r
th e w o r d s th e m se lv es Th e f o rm in w hich the
.

ann ounc e m e nt o f th e good n ews i s to b e given i s

s t ere otyp e d int o what i s called a s e r m on A
s ci e nce o f serm on s t ructu r e and deliv er y g r ows
up ; it b e a rs the di smal nam e h omiletic s Th e .

serm on is s ubj e ct e d to the c r itical t r eatm e nt o f

lit era ry c omp o s iti on and o r al addr ess and i s f o r c e d
,

to c onf o r m to th e can on s o f th e s cienc e w ith thi s

ha r d nam e H ow can we k ee p th e kindling beaut y
.
12 EVA NG EL ISTIC P RE A C H I N G

an d the ra di an t j oy o f the pr is t i n e good news ,

br ought by the messe nge r o n the ru n u n der such ,

c onditi on s ? Y ou c a nnot c onve n ti ona l i z e and

s ta n dardiz e a thi ng o f be a uty an d j oy a n d s p on
tan eou s exp r essi o n like this a n d kee p it i n its ge n

u in e an d pri m itive f o r m The pre a cher w ho is

.
,

si mp ly the m ess en ger o r the ev angelist m us t fight ,

a ll the t im e to prese rve the n ative me an i ng o f his

w o rds a s he uses them He must c on st a ntly u se
.

his i m aginati o n an d his r eason in o r der to vit a lize

t he ter m s tha t he u s es his th ought o f his o w n t a sk
,

an d the truth th a t he gives to his comr a des i n t he

ac t o f p re achi n g We h ave a l m os t fo rgot t en wh at
.

” ”
these great w o r ds go spel ev angelize an d
, ,

p re ach do actually mea n It is n ot merely the.

p e ople Who h ave l o st this clea r c o nc e p ti on ; but the

very preachers the m selves have su ff e r ed the great
w o rds to bec ome hazy a n d i ne r t i n their thi nki ng .

This w o rd go spel is a no ble living w o rd ,

.

There are m an y stateme nt s o f the G ospel Some .

a re b r ief and s ome are l o n g Some a re si m ple an d

.

s ome a re techni ca l N o on e i s quite c om plete

. .

Even when they are u n ited i n o n e g r eat c omp r e ,

h en siv e de fin iti on there a r e f a ct o r s that ar e left

,

ou t . The good n ews is so wide in it s r e a ch and so

dee p in its intenti on it is so full o f vast and varied
,

me an i ng it i s so r i ch and fe r tile in it s d ar ing affi r

,

m a ti on that we c annot pack it all int o a p r opo si

ti o n O n e o f the m o st satisf a ct o ry o f the ea r ly
.

st ate m ent s becau se it w a s mad e by a man wh ose

,
14 E VA NG EL ISTIC P RE A CH I N G

him to s eek to vitali z e the idea in his daily work .

I f he will do so he will fi nd th a t the old tasks a r e

l ighted up with new beauty and hi s wh ole w ork is
dig n ified and ennobled .

The w o r d reconcili a ti on is a noble on e It .

means to b r ing t ogether to h ar m oni z e to ove r

, ,

come est r ange m e n t .A s we l o ok eithe r int o ou r

ow n he ar t s o r a b r oad int o the w o r ld in which we

must live so l ong as G od h a s w o rk f or us to do ,

we know th a t the r e ar e di s co r ds an d est r a ngeme n ts

whi ch ou ght to be set r ight Divisi o n and anguish
.

lie a ll ar ou n d us We c ann ot be pe rm an e n tly

.

happy o r do good w o rk u n der su ch c on diti ons .

The w o r ld i s n ot right The s oul d emands th a t it

.

sh a ll be made r ight The n obler the hu man s p irit

.
,

the m o r e urgent a nd i ns iste n t is its de ma nd f o r

unity Thi s demand i s n ot manuf a ctured fr om
.

with out ; it a r ises f rom within the hu m an spirit at

its best We do n ot need to be educ ated in o rde r
.

to reas on thi s m a tte r ou t We cry ou t insti nc tively

.

f o r a unive r se that i s ha rm on ized a nd hap p y i n

l ove a nd goo d will The m o st stu p e nd ou s and
.

gl o ri ous ente rp r ise that eve r h a s c o m m anded the

mind and the active p ower s o f man is the prog ram
o f the Kingd om o f G od which is the subst anc e o f
,

the G o spel o f Ch r i s t A ll d r e a m s o f U t opia a ll

. ,

p rog rams f o r s o cial bette rment a re less th an the ,

mes sa ge o f a r econciled w o rld i n Jesu s Christ .

The r ec oncili a ti on i s n ot a ch an ge w rought in

th e natu re o f G o d That change le ss l ov e did n ot
.
 TH E G O O D NE WS 15

call f o r any new yea r ning Th e old fath er in th e

.

pa r abl e o f the l o st bo y did n ot re qui re a chang e

o f h e a r t w hile hi s e age r ey e s w e re p e e r ing d o wn

th e r o ad h o ping to s ee the l ov e d fi gu re o f th e re
tu r ning p r o digal But the boy n e ed e d to b e
.

changed ; and l ov e was the o nly p ower that ev er

c ould do that The g oo d new s c omes with s uch
.

mi ghty app e al that it d o es actually chang e ou r

h ea rt s.

But the r ec onciliati on that the goo d ne ws pro

claim s is n ot s imply betwe e n man and G od ; it i s
al s o and m o st gl o r i ously bet we en man and man .

O u t o f ne w and r ight r elati on s w ith G o d fl ow in

ev itabl y a w h o le w o r ld o f ne w r elati o ns bet w e e n
man and man Indeed it begins with natu r e it
.
,

se l f We s eld om think that the G o spel ha s any

.

bea r ing up on the r elati on which man bea rs to th e

phy s ical w o r ld ; but unde r the sw ay o f the G o s pel
all natu re c ome s int o cl o s e r r elati on s w ith man
and man w ith natu r e A Ch r i s tian i s kinde r to
.

hi s animal s ; he w o rk s ha r d er and so g e t s a la r g er
re tu r n f r om hi s fa rm ; goo d will i s s om e thing that
e v e n th e fi eld s and fl ock s und ers tand Then a ne w
.

se t o f s ocial p r inciple s un f old s f r om th e publi sh

ing and acc e pting o f the go od new s Set th e G o s
.

p e l at w o r k in th e w ors t m o r al c onditi on s o f a
g re at cit y and it w ill t r an s f o r m vilene ss int o b e auty .

M en und er th e sw ay o f the G o s pel b e gin to adju s t

th e m se lve s to on e an oth er in a n ew s pi r it o f s ac r i
fi ce and servic e It i s an actual re c oncilia
.
16 EVA NG E L I STI O P RE A CH I N G

t i on w r ought o u t in c on c r e t e f o r m s o f mutual
a id .

The publi c a t i on o f a mess age so se a r ch ing an d

c om prehe n sive ca lls f o r a ll the r es our c es o f the
her a ld tr ain ed i n the highest p o ssible degree It
,
.

m u s t be s u n g an d wr itt en an d p r i nted an d p re a ched .

E very p o ss i ble a ge nc y o f p ublic a ti on m us t be u til

iz ed to m a ke so gl o ri o us a me s s a ge k n own No .

f o rm o f an n ounc eme nt m a y be overl ooked ; n ew

f o rm s m ust be se a rched ou t an d ut i li z ed So the.

m ess a ge must be p ut int o w o r d a n d a cti on int o ,

s p iri t an d p r ogram O n e frie n d m ust tell anothe r

.

a b ou t i t as they did i n t he begi nn i n g with exu b er

,

a nt and c onvincing j oy This is the si mp lest w a y

.

i n whi ch to give p ublicity to the good n ew s But .

this m eth od is too Sl o w The G o spel mu s t b e

.

br ought to many m e n an d w omen a t a ti m e ; a n d

t he o n ly way i n whi ch this can be d one is by pr int
i ng an d preachi n g The press i s a g r e a t pulpit
.

wh o se service to the p u blicati o n o f the G o spel i s

im m e a su r able B o oks an d p e r i odic a ls S pr e a d the
.

m ess a ge fa r a n d wide Eve r y langu age used by

.

m e n must be e mp l oyed in o rde r th a t the rac es m ay

”
he ar the m ess a ge e a ch i n his ow n t on gue .And
the n the a ssembly m u st be utilized wi t h the living
,

s p e aker prese n t to use the g r e a test o f all agencie s

,

ever e mp l oyed to m ake t r u th k n ow n n amely a liv

,

i n g man s p e aki ng h om e to the he a rt o f livi n g m en .

This is p re achi ng It is the o n e m e th od th a t ha s

.

been u s ed m os t e ff e ctively fr om the beginning to

 TH E G OOD NE WS 17

m ake the goo d ne w s kn o wn to m e n It i s n ot an.

is o lated ac t It is c arried on as a pa rt o f an o r de r
.

o r s e r vice o f public w o rship The preache r i s al s o

.

the ma n w ho leads pe ople in s o cial w o rship nea r to

G o d an d to on e a n other It i s inevitable that as
.

the centu r ie s have pa ss ed and m e n o f many r aces

and c ivili z a ti ons have s tated the g oo d new s ove r
an d o ve r p r eaching has g r own s om e w hat c omplex
,

an d f o r mal . But it neve r ha s fallen int o a pe r i o d

o f f o rmality and li felessne ss with o ut th e fi nal ap

p ea r a n ce o f p r o phetic m en w h o have r escued it and

br ought it back to its place o f p r imacy and p o we r .

A n d thu s the meth o d o f p r eaching ha s vindicated

it s r ight and auth o r ity as the chi e f mean s o f pub
lish in g the goo d news . A s a matte r o f fact when
eve r the r e has been st r ong preaching the G o s pel
i s f o und to be exe rting its s tr ongest influence in the
li fe o f th e age With the decline o f p r eaching
.

the r e ha s inevit a bly r e s ulted the falling o ff o f the

ene r gy o f the G o s pel in it s c ommand ove r the peo
ple A n d the r est o r ati on o f the go o d news to its
.

sup r emacy has been invariably w r ought by the

p o we r o f p re aching Th e Ch r isti an pe ople ha v e
.

t rust ed this meth o d as the on e m o st ce rtain to make

the goo d news k n ow n There h ave bee n times o f
.

c r iti c ism and dispa ra gem ent ; but the fi nal verdict
always ha s been in fav o u r o f p r ea ching .

The p r esent i s s uch a time P r eaching i s asked

.

to fur n ish it s c r edenti a ls L et u s meet the ch a l

.

l e nge We a re s ometime s told that we mu s t re tu rn

.
18 E VA NG E L I STI O P RE A CH ING

to th e s imple a p ost oli c meth od o f p e r s on a l and in

dividual c ont a ct by which the kn owledge o f the
,

G o spel w as s p re a d fr o m pers o n to pe r s on by the

c ont a gi on o f f r iendship a n d thr ough the medium o f
c onve r sati on O n e di s ciple o f Christ will bri ng
.

anothe r to the c omm o n M as te r a n d so the goo d

new s w ill be p a ss ed al ong u n til fina lly the wh ole
w o r ld w ill he ar the message The pe r suasive
.

p ow e r o f individual appe a l fr om f r iend to f r i e nd

is ce r tainly a m ighty i n flue n ce i n exte n di ng any
cau s e A ll this the a dv o cate o f the mediu m o f
.

p r eaching a s the a ge n cy f o r pu blishi ng the goo d

new s r ec ogni z e s and defend s P ers ona l t estim on y
.

is n ow h owever as it was whe n J es u s li v ed a m ong

, ,

Hi s ea r thly f r iends the gre ate s t si ngle a ge n cy f or

,

extending the knowledge o f the go od n ews The .

p r eache r s ta n di ng in his p ulpit an d publish ing the

G o spel to a c ong r egati on is on ly a witness in fl u en c
i ng many c omrades at o n ce i n stead o f on e at a
time P r e aching i s s imply the extensi on o f pe r
.

so nal testim ony by adding to the nu m be r o f he ar

e r s A ls o the la r ge r c o nta c t o f the individu al
.

p r eacher with the gr oup o f he ar e rs d oe s n ot ex

cl u de the i n dividual in c o nt a ct with the individual .

O n the c o nt r a r y the m o s t su cc essful p r ea che rs o f

,

the G ospel to la rge audien c es h av e al s o be e n th e

str onge st adv ocate s o f individu a l w ork f o r in
'

”
dividu als knowing that the tw o meth od s are th e
,

necessa r y c omplement s to each othe r .

We a r e s ometim es u rged to lay l ess s t ress up on

 TH E G O OD N EWS 19

p re aching in th e int er e s t s o f publicit y f or the G os

p e l th r o ugh pict o r ial illu s t r ati on p r inting and th e
,

di s t r ibuti on o f lite r atu re . P r inting ha s be e n

b r ought to s uch a high deg r e e O f e ffi ciency a s th e
me a n s o f all kind s o f publicity e s pecially i f pi et o
,

r ial illu s trati on b e included with it that it can b e ,

u s ed m o re than eve r be f o r e to mak e any se t o f fact s

or t r uth s w idely kn o wn . A n d it i s being empl oyed
in eve ry s o r t o f p r opaganda But at best utte r anc e
.

th r ough the p r ess lack s that which i s m o s t p o we r

ful in p r eaching the pe rs on him s el f s peaking and
, ,

that r iche s t o f all inst r ument s ev er d e vi s ed f o r th e

ex p r e ss i on o f t r uth and its imp r e ss i on up on oth ers ,

the human v o ice Wid e ly a s the p r e ss i s u s ed the

.
,

p r om ote rs o f all m ovement s unite in th e i r t es ti

m ony to the s upe r i o r p ow e r o f th e pe rs onal adv o
cat e o r pleader and a r e c on s tantly thu s re p r e s ent
ing thei r cause s in public me e ting s In the se rm on .

the p r eache r adds h im s el f to hi s mes s age ; he th er e

f o r e ha s the f o rce o f the sp oken se ntence s plus hi s
ow n e ne r gy a n d influence . A n d the pa r am ount fac
to r in the publicati o n o f the G o s pel i s the c o n vinced
and c onvincing p r eache r him s el f So pr eaching .

still maintain s it s s up r emacy as th e mean s o f pub

lish in g th e G o s pel . It u s e s the p r ess in eve r y pos
s ibl e way ; but it s till t r u s t s the kindling w or d o f
the p r each er s up r emely .

A n oth er claim me r it s c on s id er ati on a t thi s p oint .

M any e a r ne s t and since re c r itic s o f p r ea c hing d e

mand that th e G o s pel shall b e publi s h e d and com
20 EVA NG E L I STI O P R EA C H I N G

me n ded wh olly by t he deed s that i t i n s p ires Th e y .

p o i n t o u t the convin cin g p ower o f c o n du c t and say

t r uly th a t the good news is a ppr oved by the f a ct
th a t it m akes good m e n They a re i mpat ie n t with
.

so much the o r y a nd deb a te ; they l o n g f o r the

pract i ca l p r o o f o f the G o spel The pr otest i s

.

he a l t hy an d desir a ble The p o we r o f Christian

.

c o n du ct an d t he tes t i m ony o f Christi an life a n d

ch a racte r i n bri n gi ng kn owledge o f t he goo d news
to the w o r ld an d leading m en to acc e p t it a re un
b ounded We must be o n gu ard a ga inst trusti n g
.
,

th e mere w o r ds o f the G o s p el apa rt f r om their

,

c o nfi r ma ti o n i n li fe to av a il in exte n di ng the
,

knowledge o f the go o d n ews to t he e n d o f its re

demptiv e m issi o n . The se a rchi n g q uesti on o f
Je sus in L uke 6 : 4 6 must be b o rne c onstan tly in
mind
Why c all ye me L o r d L o r d and do n ot the
, , ,

things which I s a y ?

Thus the testim ony o f c onduct i s c onvinci n g

and it must be c o n st antly b r ought i n t o a cti on ; b u t
it is immedi a tely ap p ar ent th a t the Chris t i an cha r
acter is the r esul t an d the c on fir ma ti on o f he a ring
the Chris t i a n G o s p el P ubli ca ti on o f the tru th
.

must pre c ede b oth the k n owledge o f the t ruth a n d

acti on ac c or di n g to it P re achi ng the r ef o re i s
.
, ,

the n ecess a ry p relimin ar y to the p ro o f o f the G o s

pel th a t is fur n ished by li fe an d ch a r ac ter .

The r e f o re we c oncl u de th a t the e ff e c tive p u bli

cati on o f the go o d n ews depend s up o n c ontinu ou s
 P REA CHI NG A ND TH E P REA CH E R

S p r eachi ng h a s gone o n f rom century to

centu ry it has inevit a bly bec ome c omp lex .

It has devel oped a te ch n ique a nd ce r tain

sta n da r ds h ave gradually been e s tabli sh e d But.

t he ou tstandi n g f a ct o r i n it all is a s it a lways ha s

,

bee n the p e r s on a lity o f the pr e ache r That i s

, .

what m ake s the se rm o n so radi c ally di ffe rent f r om

the e ss a y o r the s cienti fic lectu r e The w r ite r s p e r
.
’

son ality is n ot a p pa re n t in the essay o r p o em In

.

t he le ctu r e the s ubj ect d ominate s eve rythi n g But.

in the s e rmon the man s peaking is so centr a l and

p otent that in a ce rtain s e n se the s erm on is the
m an . The s e rm on is truth p as sing thr ough the
pr e a che r s pe r s onal expe r ie n ce i nte rpreted by it
’
,

a n d enfo rc ed by it He imputes himself i n all his

.

st a tement s This is w hy the b earer so o fte n can

.

n ot tell at the end so m u c h i n det a il what he has

hea r d ; even the text m ay be l o st s oon fr om his

mem or y ; but he is sure th a t on a ce rtain oc casi on
he s aw a man w ho w as so sure O f a truth which he
w a s a rdent to impa rt th a t he s pent hi s very self in
making it cle ar and fo r ce fu l This p o int may ap
.

pea r m o r e cle ar ly i f w e an a lyz e b r i e fly th e e l e

m e nt s that ent er int o p re aching .

zz
 P R EA CH I N G A N D TH E P RE A CH E R 23

Th e e a r li es t Ch r istian p r eaching w a s s impl e ,

”
p os itiv e t es tim ony Tu rn to th e ser m on o f
.

P ete r re p o r ted in A ct s 2 : 1 4 3 6 In th e s t r ict

-
.

sen se o f the w o r d a s it ha s d evel op e d it s full mean

,

ing in the cou rse o f time th ls I s n ot a ser m on It

, .

i s p r ima r ily th e giving o f te s tim ony P e t er and .

hi s c om r ade s had s een and known s om e thing ; they

t old othe rs ab out it Th ere w a s n o w ave r ing in
.

th e i r minds They w ent int o the w itne ss box and

.
-

gav e th e i r e vid e nce clea r ly and with c o mpl e te a s

s u r ance They w e re n ot p r ima r ily inte res t e d in
.

a r gum e nt They w anted to tell what they kn e w

. .

Thei r te s tim ony w as so d efi nit e so cl e ar so con , ,

v in cin g that hund r eds and th ou s and s b e li e v e d th e

messag e on the g r ound o f th ei r w itn ess M en .

c ould n ot help believing th e w itn ess o f ex pe r i e nc e

then ; the y cann ot fail to accept it n ow St r aight .
'

f or wa r d affir mati on on the g r ound o f som ethin

,
'

that i s p os itiv e ly s u r e in the e xp er i e nc e o f s ome 0 1

e l s e al w ay s ca rr i es c onvicti on .

Thi s i s a pe rmanent fact o r in p r eaching The .

m ode r n p re a che r w ill n ot o ften ca s t hi s evidenc e

int o s entence s wh o se s ubj e ct i s th e fi r s t pe rs onal
p r ono un That d oe s n ot me a n that hi s ser m on will
.

n ot be ba s ed on t es tim o ny Hi s c on s ci ousness o f
.

th e fact that h e i s a w i tn ess w ill f o r m the b a ck

g ro und o f all hi s th ought It will cha r ge the prep
.

a r ati on o f hi s s e r m on w ith the tempe r and accent

o f a ffirmati on He ma y n ot s ay th e w o r d s al oud
.

a s h e w o r k s ; but hi s mind w ill all the tim e be d e

24 EVA NG E L ISTIC P RE A OH I NG

clarin g stoutly This is tru e ; I kn ow it; I hav e

,

p rov ed i t
. We o fte n a sk why so m an y serm o n s
seem to be weak i n t heir app e a l an d why a mi ni s t er
is s ometi m e s l anguid in h i s w o rk It is p r ima r i ly
.

be cau se the sermo n d o es n ot ri ng wi t h the acc e n t

o f c on fi de n ce a n d the mi n ister h a s n o t c o n fir m ed
h is mess a ge in his o w n e xperien c e bef o re he an
n oun ced it in the pulpit The good n ew s i s still
.

good new s When the p r ea cher is m o re sure o f

.

this than he is o f any other f a ct he will fill his

serm on with h ap py a n d wh ole he a rted testi m on y
-

to the truth whi c h h a s f ou n d hi m a n d by whi c h he

is himsel f livi n g V i ct o r i ously .

Te s tim o ny h oweve r s oon p a ssed i nt o an other

, ,

s tage o f devel opme n t i n e a rly pr e a chi ng A s m e n .

were c onvin c ed o f the truth i n the good news o f

r ec onciliati on in Christ they discovered th a t they
had ente r ed int o a li fe an d experie n ce o f s u ch
range an d rich n ess that they needed to spend a ll
their lives in lea rn ing wh a t was inv olv e d in the goo d
n ews Thus a r o se the ministry o f teaching Whe n
. .

a ny on e e n tered i nt o the li fe o f pe rs ona l l oyalty to

Ch r ist he u n de r stoo d why the ea r liest f oll o we r s o f
”
the M aster we r e ca lled di s cipl es o r le a r n ers He .

discove r ed that when h e acc epted the ruli ng m o

tiv es o f Je s u s and m a de them his the wh o le w o rld
r equi r ed re valu a ti o n The m a tte r c ould n ot be
-
.

unde r st ood i n a day H e must a sk th o se w ho

.

kne w m o re than he to tell him what they h a d

lea rned and know n He must t ry to s tate the g r eat
.
 P R E A CH I N G A ND TH E P RE A CH E R 25

t r uth to hi s ow n mind and to th e intelligence o f

oth ers . That i s the w h ol e t r uth a s f ound in Ch r i s t
,

must be deeply studied ; a ne w kind o f e xpe r ienc e ,

b r iefly de s c r ibed a s the expe r ience o f G od in Ch r i s t ,

mu s t be inte r p r eted and given s ome kind o f an

o r derly s tat e ment so that o the rs c o uld unde r stand

and app rop r iat e it Thi s inv o lv e d t e aching in it s

.

amplest f o r m and it s de e pe s t impo r t .

Teachi n g i s s till an integral pa r t o f the p r each er s’

w or k Thi s d oe s n ot m e an that th e ser m o n i s a

.

l e ctu r e It is s ome thing d i s tinct and decid e dly

.

m o r e Y et e v ery ser m on ha s in it to s ome e xtent

’

a teaching pu r p o se Th e goo d ne ws call s f or p r o c

.

lam ation ; but it al s o mu s t b e e x p r e ss ed in many

f o rm s and th ere fo re in s t r ucti on i s e ss ential to th e
full p r eaching o f the G os p e l .Ther e f o r e the
p r eache r him se l f must b e a cl e a r thinke r and a
ha r d w o rk er in the fi eld o f Ch r i s tian the o l ogy It .

is quite c omm on f or mini s te rs to fall in with the

cu rr ent dispa r age m e nt O f the o l o gy But what his
.

app rop r iate s cience i s to the bo tanist the a s t ron ,

ome r o r the s ocial w o r k er that the o l o gy i s to the

,

p r each er It i s th e s y s t e matic s tatement o f the

.

c omp r eh en s iv e t r uth in th e goo d new s Thi s mu s t

.

b e n ot only an obj ec t o f r e s p e ct but a su bj ect O f

s tudy on th e pa r t o f th e p r eache r It is no s ign
.

o f s upe r i o r it y o r clev er ne ss to affi rm that o n e i s

inn ocent o f th e g r eat s cience wh ich has claim e d

th e l ov e and loyalty o f many of the g re at es t mind s
o f th e w o r ld . Th e p re ach er mu s t know how to
 6 E VA NG E L I STI C P RE A CH I NG

tea ch as w ell a s to exh o rt H e still mu s t be apt

.

”
to te ach . We shall di s cuss thi s m or e fully in
Ch ap ter V .

There i s s till a nother facto r in th e p r oc ess o f

p r e achi n g f o r whi ch it i s di ffi cult to fi nd a nam e .

P erh ap s the be s t w o r d to u s e is passion P r each .

i ng i s a fl am e an i n sight a f orth telli n g It lay s

, ,
-
.

h o ld o f the dee p s withi n us and it spe ak s to the

deep s in othe r s It i s a s om ethi ng that su ffers a n d
.

yearns a n d t r embles Thi s i s the element in

.

pre a chi n g that lea s t admit s o f f o rmal t r eatment o r

st able cl a ssi fi cati on It i s re ckles s in a c er t a i n
.

sense It bre ak s out int o new f o r ms It defie s

. .

the l aw s that we l a y d own It o c c a si onally uses

.

the unu s ual f o r m o f the s erm on with su ch p owe r

that it seem s a s i f the w ay h a d been f ou n d a t last
to pr o clai m the G o s pel w ith utte r s u cce ss ; and the n
s o m e on e e lse t r ie s to do the same thing and f a il s
mi s e r ably Thu s the re is s omething elusiv e in the
.

g r eat m ood which we ca nnot classify o r c onfine .

U n de r the spell o f the p r ophetic m ood th e pr e a cher

d oes n ot thi n k o r feel so much as he sees He .

fi nds th a t his mi n d is r ushing under the th r ust or

driv e o f a p ow er that h e dimly unde r stands but in
respo nse to which h e feel s g r eat j oy a nd p ow e r .

He ha s attained the o pen vi s i on and a rr ived a t the

dire c t g r a s p o f t r uth The vagueness o f thi s de
.

scr ipti on grows ou t o f the elusiveness o f th e sub

j cet ; but eve r y pre ache r kno ws the re a lity a nd
p ower O f th i s e levati on o f s pi r it a nd r elease o f in
 P R E A CH I N G A ND TH E P R E A CH ER 27

tellectu al and e m oti onal e n ergy unde r the in flu

e nc e o f th e impa ss i on e d gl ow o f insight ,
.

W e kn ow that thi s ex pe r i e nce came to th e

p r ophet s It i s wr itt e n la r ge in th e p re ci ou s re
.

mains o f th e i r w or d s and w o r k It i s e a s y to di s
.

c er n it in th e pe rs onalit y o f I s aiah When it .

c ome s to ou rs elv es and ou r m od er n w o r ld we a re

le ss r ead y to beli e v e that we in ou r plain pulpit
, ,

am ong the pe ople w ho know u s so we ll may know ,

the li ft and gl o r y o f th e pr0 ph etic in s ight and

p ow e r to p r o claim what we have see n W e need .

n ot d oubt it , h ow ev er W e canno t r ing up thi s

.

r oyal servant and hav e him w ait on u s at com

mand The re a re n o kn ow n meth o d s by w hich to
.

f o r ce the adv e nt o f l o fty vi s i on and flaming s p ee ch

—
.

Thi s i s an ang e l vi s it or Th ere a re ce r tain w ay s

.
,

h ow eve r in which we may so p re pa re f or hi s

,

r oyal c oming that h e may n ot b e delay ed th rough

any fault o f ou rs Jes u s Sh owe d w hat th es e a re in
.

Hi s w onde r ful p r omi se Ble ss ed a re the pu r e in

,

”
h e a r t : f or they s hall see G od We cannot pe r
.

f or m m e chanical exercrses that w ill in s u r e the com

i n g o f th e h oly pa ss i on But we can keep o u r
.

hea r t s g e ntl e and ou r s oul s k e y e d to good will .

Th e n at lea s t th e flam e w ill n ot b e bl ow n ou t Thi s .

i s th e p r ophetic gl ow and leap which make s p r each

ing und er its sw a y th e nobl es t happi es t engag e
, , ,

m e nt which can c ommand the s pi r it o f man .

Thu s it w ill b e s e e n that the task o f p re aching is

n ot th e s impl e w o r k that it might app e a r at firs t
 8 E VA NG E L I STI C P REA CH I NG

s ight to be It is necessa ry n o t only to have a ll the

.

f ac tors th a t e n ter i n t o the c omplex acti on present ,

but al s o to h ave the m prese rved in th e i r right bal

a n ce A s e rm on m ust n ot be too d ogm at ic too
.
,

d i d a ctic too e m oti ona l It must be like a sym

, .

ph ony bal an ced an d c ont r olled in full and cha s

,

tened h a rm ony .

The chief fact o r h oweve r i s the pe rs onality o f

, ,

the p re a che r The truth must be tr an s mitted

.

throu g h pers o na lity We h av e r epe ated thi s so

.

o f t en be c ause the truth i s so o f t en f o rg otte n Th e .

c o nvict i o n an d experience o f the pre acher a r e b oth

abs o lutely ne c ess a ry to the t r ue se rm o n and to

e ffective p re achi n g The r ef o r e a t this p oi nt ar ise s

.

the great questi on H ow deeply h a s the preache r

,

hi m self experie n ced the tr an sf o r m ing p owe r o f the

G o s p el ? A n d on the b a sis o f this ex p erience how
valid a nd ten a ci ous i s hi s faith in the p ower o f th e
G o spel to do f o r othe r s and f o r the wh ole w orld
wh a t it h as d one f or him ? It is im m edi a tely ap
p ar ent that thi s inv olve s somethi n g m o re than an
intellectual a s s e nt to a s et o f p r opo siti ons The .

kind o f co nfide n ce whi ch w e a r e n ow dis c us s ing

a r ises f rom the c on sent o f a m a n s wh ole bei ng to ’

s omething whi ch he h a s t r ied and f ound true in hi s

d a ily li fe The multi p licati on table n eve r s t oo d by
.

hi m with help whe n h e w as in d an ge r o f being

caught by evil ; it neve r c omfo rted him when h e
w a s s o rely st r i cke n with grief But the G o sp e l h as
.

d one all thi s and m ore f or any man w ho p re ach es

 O E V A NG EL I STIC P RE A CH I NG

given w ith p ow e r The mes s age i s beauti ful So

. .

is the li f e that it inspi r es Too o ften the p r eache r

.

bec om es so e ng ro ss ed with the det a il s o f his w o rk

t h a t he fail s to lay his spirit open to the l oveli n es s
o f the unive rs e The preache r s li fe is a quest f o r
’ ’

be a uty A ll ugly things m ust be left ou t so fa r a s

.

they a r e n ot ne c essary to the se rvi c e that he mu s t

r e n d e r to hi s c ommu n ity a n d gen erati on To give .

s p ace to mean and petty ide as and purp o ses i n li fe

is to make ou rse lves du s ty a ttics where spiders spi n
i n stead o f th e s un ny r oom s whe r e all be a uty is
p r e s ent w ith l ov e and j oy We must n ot fail to
.

l ove l oveline ss i f w e a r e to p r each a gospel that is

c onc erned with the be auty o f h oline ss .

O n th e public and s ocial side O f the p r eache r s

’

li fe mu s t be cultiv a ted the w idest range o f sym

p a thy and d e epe s t r elati on with all aspect s o f ou r
bew ilde r i ng m ode r n li fe The good new s i s a so
.

cial me s sag e . It c ome s into intimate r elati ons

with e v er y pha se o f human e n deav ou r The .

p r e a cher cannot give hi s me ss age w ith su c ces s u n

les s deeply and h onestly he l ove s f olk s and is '

gl a d to ent er int o thei r l ove s and s o rrows with t rue

”
a pp reciati on The te rm goo d mixe r has been
.

ove r w o r n ; but it s till re p r e s ents on e o f the m o st

-

imp o rtant cha r acte r i s tics o f th e p rea che r He c an .

n ot s tand in hi s high chu r ch steeple to th r o w d own

the t ruth on e day in s even The me a su r e o f hi s

.

happy and help ful mingling w ith men i s the deg r e e

o f hi s e ff e ctiv e n es s a s an amba ss ad or o f Ch r i s t .
 P RE A CH I NG A N D T H E P RE A CH E R 31

The r e f o r eth e cultu re o f the s ocial s ympathie s and

g race s o f manne r i s impe r ative .

All th es e a r e le ss h o w e v er than th e on e d omi

, ,

nant fact o r in the p r epa r ati o n o f th e p re ache r ,

w hich i s th e r eal p re pa r ati on O f th e ser m on. We

re tu r n to it s di s cu ss i on P re aching i s a pe rs onal
.

me ss ag e N o s p r ing w ill r i se highe r than it s

.

s ou r c e Th e m ess age mu s t hav e b ehind it th e

.

p r each er s ab s olut e ly ge nuin e and m oving p ers onal

’

expe r ience o f the r ealit y and p o we r o f th e G o s p e l .

Th e G o s p e l ha s s omething to do in th e li f e and f or
the cha r acte r o f the p re ache r him s el f b e f o re h e is
pr epa r ed to do hi s be s t w o r k in th e publicati on o f
th e good ne ws a s th e m ess eng er o f hi s M a s t er .

The obj ecti on i s o ften m e t at thi s p o int : H ow

can on e w ho ha s g r ow n up in a Ch r i s tian h om e
and ha s n eve r pa ss ed th r ough the r adical chang e o f
”
an ex p er ience o f c onv ers i on a s it i s g ene r all y
,

d es c r ibed in the language o f the mi ss i o n h a ll hav e

,

thi s keen se n se o f th e m ess ag e and th e u rg e ncy o f

the G os p e l It canno t b e manu factu re d
. .

Th e only re ply to thi s i s s omething a s foll ows

Th e ex te rnal c onditi on s o f th e e x pe r ience o f con
v ers i on a re mani f old Th er e a r e the d ee p and
.

rev oluti ona r y change s : th ere a re th e equally deep

but ev oluti ona ry changes It i s p o ss ib le to tu r n
.

a round b y sw inging th rough so w ide a ci r cle so

g r adually that on e i s unc on s ci ou s o f the s l ow
chang e o f di r ecti on It i s al s o p oss ibl e to tu r n
.

a r ound at s uch an acute angle that e v er ything is

32 E VA NG E L I STI C P REA CH I N G

upset I f a ny on e w ho has c ome int o th e Ch r i sti an

.

li fe by the grad u a l pr o c esse s o f Ch r ist ia n nu r tur e

w ill c ar efully r evive his mem o r i es and m ake an in
v en tory o f his experie n ce s he will find th a t he

c o me s ou t just whe r e the s ubj ect o f the m o re s ud

den and dramatic change a rr ive s B oth a r e con .

s ci ou s o f a pers on al l oy a lty and a gl owing l ov e f or

Ch r ist the Savi ou r and L or d So the r e is n o ex
, .

ception to the s tat e ment that p r ea che rs o f b oth

types o f expe r ience have the basis laid f o r their

p re a chi ng in the f act that the r e h as been s omethi n g
d one f o r them o f sup r em e value by the G ospel .

The r e f ore eve r y Ch r istian p r eache r mu s t re

p ea te d ly s ea r ch hi s o w n s o ul and cultivate his o w n

i nn e r li fe w ith Ch r i s t in G od I f that fails all

.

”
'
meth o d s w ill be utte r ly futil e N othi n g can .

be lea rn ed out o f a b ook o r in a c onfe r e n ce that

will t ake th e pl a ce o f this pe rs on al expe r ie nc e an d
c onvi c ti on The t r ue s erm on d oes n ot c ome i n t o
.

bei ng unde r the s tudy l amp al one It derives it s .

li fe a nd p owe r f r om the deep well s o f the pre a ch

er s p r o f ound kno wledge o f the r e a lity o f the
’

G o s p el a s he unites hi s li f e w ith Ch r i s t in l oving

sur r ende r an d h a ppy s e rvice .

L et us l ook at the m a tt er o nce m o r e He r e i s

.

the w o rld in bond a ge to sin a nd held u n der c ap

tiv ity to inju s tice hate and lust
, . I s there any thi n g
th a t ca n em an c ip ate this w o rld from the h o rrible
sit u at i on in whi ch it is i nv olved ? The G ospel o f
Christ claim s to be able to do just this and to do it
 P R E A CH I NG A ND TH E P RE ACH E R 33

s ucce s sfully whenev er it i s t r ied Th e p re ach er i s

.

supp o sed to believe thi s— to believ e it to th e tip s o f

hi s t o e s w ith s uch utt er faith th a
,
t h e i s w illing to
pledge his wh ole lif e to the t r uth o f the p r op o s itio n
,
.

D o we b e lieve it ? Th e d o ct o r t r u s t s hi s re m e dy .

The s u rge on believ es in his o p er ati on A n adv o .

cate has c onfi dence in the j u s tice o f hi s cau se I s .

the p r eache r de a d s ure o f hi s me ss age ? It i s

cha r ged that the m ode rn pulpit i s re m ote f rom li f e
and that much p r eaching i s p er functo r y I f th i s .

i s so what i s the r ea s on ? L ack o f bla z ing con

,

v iction on the part o f the p re ach er fir st O f all ,

As .

th e p r eache r l ooks int o hi s ow n hea r t into th e ,

needy live s o f th e p e ople in th e pa r i s h int o th e ,

nati on and ab ro ad int o th e va s t w o r ld he mu s t b e ,

s u re b e yond any he s itati o n o r d oubt ab s olutely

, ,

s u re that he has the message and the p o we r that

,

w ill b r ing man and G od and man a nd man pe r

,

f ectly t ogethe r . This G o s pel the m o de rn p r each er

,

mu s t k now a s clea r ly a s P aul knew it i s the ve r y ,

”
'
p ower o f G od Whe n h e r eache s that p o i n t
.

he i s th e ma ste r o f his pulpit at lea s t so f a r as th e

,

initial ene r gy f or h is w o r k is c o nce r ned He mu s t .

do m o r e than me r ely to be s u r e o f thi s He mu s t .

y e a r n and p r ay and t o il te rr ibly But he cann ot

.
,

h e simply ca nn ot fail i n the end because he i s

,

w o rking w ith th e unvanqui shed and unc o nque r abl e

pu r p o se s o f G od .

E v ery p re ache r knows what it i s to have hi s li f e

g r o w s tal e and to see the vi s i o n s fade Th e.n it is
34 EVA NG E L I STI C P RE A CH I NG

ti me to c ome b ac k an d to r e n ew co nvicti on s and

ce r taintie s in a fre sh expe r ie nc e o f the G ospel .

Think it th rough ; res p ond to it with the gl ow o f a

deep a ffecti on ; do s o m ething w ith it by mean s o f
a p ra ctical prog ra m P r ea che r s must let the G o s p el
.

do m o r e f o r them in o r der that they may do m o r e

f o r the G o spel . When th e t r uth has wr ought in
”
u s we shall be abl e to e ne rgiz e we ll in th e
community f or the t r uth O pen you r li f e m ore
.

fully to the influ e nce o f Ch r i s t by putting all evil

a n d sel fi sh th ought s out O f it The m o r e w e think
.

ab out Him s tudy Hi s t e aching imagi n e Him a s H e

, ,

actu a lly liv e d w ith m e n and chiefly as w e yield

, , ,

ou r selve s to Hi s s ervice the m o re we shall b e

,

br ought int o an e xpe r ienc e of Ch r ist s r eality and

’

p ower that w ill fo r ti fy u s in ou r m oment s o f

we akne ss and give u s a me ssa ge and a c onvicti o n
against which n o attack o f denial o r s c o rn w ill b e
abl e to p revail.
TH E I M P RE SSI O N A N D EXP RE SSI O N OF
TH E G OO D N E W S

O UR pha ses o f the p r oc ess o f p re aching w e

s hall s tudy b r iefly in this chapt er They .

mu s t b e unde rs t oo d in thei r r ight re lati on s

by any on e w ho is to p r each th e good n ews s ucc ess
fully in the m ode r n age .

The firs t i s the imp r e ss i o n o f the good n ews u p on

the p r each er Thi s has b ee n c on s ide r ed at s uch
.

length in th e p re vi ou s chapte r that w e only rev er t

to it again h ere The G o s pel mu s t hav e made a
.

de e p imp ress i on up on th e wh ole li f e o f th e p r eache r

be f o re he can e ffectiv e ly imp ress it up on othe rs .

It mu s t b e the g r eate s t t r uth he know s the n o ble s t

,

engagement to w hich h e can p o s s ibly dedicate him

sel f Thu s the G os p e l mu s t hav e be e n imp ress ed
.

up o n hi s ve r y s pi r it It mu s t hav e laid h old on the

.

deepe s t s p r ing s o f hi s acti on ; it mu s t be t r an s lated

int o m otive s ; it mu s t shape the maj o r p r og r am
o f the p r each er s li f e N O man w ho g oes int o the
’
.

pulpit m ere ly b e cau s e he i s inte res ted in w hat h e i s

go ing to do or s ay the r e o r because he e nj oy s th e
,

mu s ic or b e cau se he likes th e s tat e l y or d e r o f a

,

35
36 E VA N G E L I STI C P RE A CH I NG

se rvic e w ill be a p r e a che r But s omething mu s t

, .

h ave been imp r essed up on him so dee p ly th a t he is

under the spell o f it s mighty u rgen c y an d feel s th a t
he a bs olutely must do s o m ethi ng a bout it There .

lies the s ource o f his p o we r It i s the d r ive and

.

the c ompul s i on de r ived f rom a c om man ding truth .

It is n o gr ound f o r b o a sting o r c laim to gl o ry when

a man up on wh om the goo d news h a s bee n so
d ee ply and vitally imp r es s ed seeks to p r e ach it o r ,

to expre s s it Indeed he c ould n ot do a ny thi n g

.
,

e l s e and be t rue to the deepest th at i s in him P aul .

states thi s f ac t in on e o f th o se lit t le revel a ti ons o f

him s el f th a t he gives o cc a si o na lly in hi s let t e r s
F o r i f I p r each the go spel I have n othing to ,

gl o r y o f f or nece ss ity i s l a id up on me ; f or w o e is
unto m e i f I p re ach not the gospel
, ( 1 C o r .

9 :

The r ef o r e w e pa ss to the exp r e s si on Of the goo d

ne ws by the pre a che r H e mus t d o it There i s
. .

n o opti on ab out it o n his p ar t When he i s o nc e

.

su r e that he r e is s om e thing th at ha s the p owe r in

it to s ave the w o r ld he ca nnot be eithe r quiet o r
c a lm abo ut it But note the s ou r ce o f the urgency
. .

It i s n ot in r esp onse to a c omm an d l a id up on him

f rom with out by a Sove r eign th a t the pre a che r
p ublishes the good new s His c on str a i n t is fr om
.

within It spr ings fr om his c o nv icti ons a nd hi s

.

l ov e A s P ete r a nd J ohn p ut it at the ve ry begin

.

n in g o f the d a ys o f Ch r isti a n te s tim ony Whethe r ,

it i s r ight in the sight o f G od to hea rk e n u nto you

38 E V A NG E L I STI C P REA CH I NG

to thi s ve r y m oment w ho h av e proved the r eality

,

an d p o wer o f this c oncep t i on o f the pre ache r s li fe ’

and w o rk .

But let u s n ot shut up th e exp ress i on of the good

news to th e serm on a l one Th at w ould b e to de n y
.

the v a lue o f s om e o f the chie f age n cies f o r publi sh

i n g the goo d ne ws The wh ole o rder o f w or ship i s
.

the affirm a ti on o f th e G os pel There is n ot a s in

.

gle item o f the s e rvice that fail s in s ome way to set

f o rth o r e mpha s ize s ome f a ct in th e mess age .

Sc r iptu r e hymn s p r aye rs off er ing s all unit e to

, , , ,

exp r ess the good news to th e p e ople An d yet .

when a ll this i s admitted it re main s clea r th a t th e

,

s e rm on itsel f i s th e chie f form o f exp ress i on into

whi ch the pr eache r cast s hi s me s s a ge .

Y et there i s a dete rmi n ing b a ckg r ound that w e

m ust n ot fail to app r eciate It is the wh ole spi r it
.

o f the p rea c he r Th er e i s s om ething magnetic as

.
,

it were a b out o n e wh o i s giving ora l exp r e s si on to

,

a t ruth A n d i f he b e lieve s it i f he is wh olly s ur e

.
,

o f it the r e w ill be a s o r t O f c on fi r mat o r y be a ring

,

a b out him whi ch the pe ople w ill disce r n a n d which

will help hi s message in w ays th a t he never will
kno w F or s omeh ow the t r uth s th a t we do believe
.

th r ough and th r ough get a s or t o f audi e nce even

when we exp r ess them p o o r ly A n d when they a r e
.

s et f o rth i n clea r a n d c ogent fashi on the convicti o n

with which w e h old th e t r uth w e decla r e tak es on
added s t re ngth .

The r e fo r e th e m od er n p re ach er w ill work w ith

 I M P RE SS I ON A ND E XP RE SSI O N 39

e v er y p o ss ible medium in o r de r that h e may ex p r e ss

th e me ss ag e clea r ly H e will s tud y the p r op os iti on
.

o f hi s ser m o n until it i s cl e a r as daylight to hi s

mind It i s s aid that the s ec re t o f L inc oln s p ower

.
’

w ith a ju r y l a y in th e clea r n ess w ith w hich h e ad

d ress ed hi s plea to th e m In prepa r ing f or thi s it
.

w a s hi s cust om to re duc e hi s ca se to a ser i es o f

p r op o s iti on s E v ery on e o f the s e h e we nt ov er
.

again and again until th ere w a s n ot an unn e c ess a r y

o f m e aningle ss w or d in a se nt e nc e . H e imagin e d
him s el f in the plac e o f th e j u ry and co nvinced him
s el f firs t o f all H e a rr anged hi s p rop os iti on s until
.

they w e r e so o r d ere d that they l e d f r om on e to an

o th er and re ached a c onvincing clima x . Thi sp er
s ua s ive outlin e w a s fi ll e d out a s th e o cca s i on s
d e manded ; but it w a s back th ere a s th e s up
p or ting s k e l e t on O f hi s pl e a and h e n ev er re
ga r d e d a s l o s t th e tim e and dilige nt s tudy put
up on it .

The p r eache r w ill wo r k ha r d on hi s lit er a r y ex

p r e ss i on o f the goo d ne ws Th e r ight and b e auti
.

ful w o r d i s nece ss a r y to cl othe th e clea r th ought .

W e a r e s ometime s t old that the p re ach er may t r u s t

th e L or d to fi ll hi s mouth i f onl y h e w ill op e n it .

But on th e wh ole it is th e man who ha s s tudi e d

ha r d es t and w o r k e d m o s t dilig e ntly wh om th e L o r d
can u s e be s t a s Hi s m ess enger Th e E ngli s h lan
.

guag e i s too n obl e and r ich to be t r eated w ith th e

di s h on ou r to w hich s om e p r eache rs s ubj e ct it It
.

is the in s t rum ent f or th e o r al e x p ress i on o f the

40 EVA NG EL ISTI C P R E A C H I NG

good new s and it ought to be handled with m or e

ca r e than th e a st ronom er b es tow s up on hi s tel e
s cope .

A n d in the same w ay the pr e ache r will be ca r eful

a nd earnest in the u s e he make s o f eve ry ite m o f
the s e rvice Even the little details o f hi s ow n
.

d r e ss and ma nn er are imp or tant in o r de r that the re

m a y be n othi ng but c ommend a ti on f o r hi s mes sage
deriving f r om the wh ole e ffor t to deliv e r it .

H ymn s that ha rm oni z e with the se rvice a r e de

m an ded n ot me r ely f or the artistic fi n ish o f it but
, ,

because thr ough them s o m e pha s e o f th e good news

w ill be exp r essed .

We c ome n ext to the imp r es s i on o f the mess a ge

up on the g roup o r the c on gregati on Thi s ope ns
.

u p a wh ole new fi eld o f s tudy which s ometime will

be ca rr ied out to a s till g r eater deg r ee o f th or ough

nes s w e have only made a beginning in ou r s tudy
o f the pysch o logical fact o r s inv o lved in pre achi n g .

A s we c ome to kn ow m o r e o f th e w a y i n which the

minds o f m a ny individual s r eact or r esp ond to an
appe a l to a g roup ra ther th an to an individual w e ,

sh a ll lea r n bette r how to p r each the G ospel in su ch

a way that it w ill be fo r c e fully imp r e ss ed up on the
pe opl e .

The re a re c er tain p r incipl es h owev er whi ch are

, ,

cl e a r and which the me ss enge r o f the good new s

can u se w ith skill to in cr ea s e the imp r e ss iv e p ow e r
o f hi s go s p el A m ong th o se p r inciple s a re the
.

f oll ow ing :
 I M P RE SSI O N A ND E XP RE SSI O N 41

Th e me ss ag e must be o f s uch a cha r acte r and it

mu s t be given in such a way th a t it will mak e con
n ection s w ith th a t which th e hea r ers alre a dy kn o w

and fi t in w ith that which they a r e al r e a dy d o i n g .

O the r wi s e it will be so re m ote fr o m them th a t they

w ill s ee n o meaning in it all o r el s e will r ega r d it
,

o nly a s inte r e s ting the o r y but will n ot adj u s t it to

thei r habitual activitie s Thi s i s what w e call

.

eith er v ital r elation o r remo ten ess A n d th e G os

.

pel s e r m on mu s t n ot b e r em ote f r om li fe ; it mu s t
make vital c onn e cti on w ith th e r eal w o r ld w he re
the pe ople think and w or k P r eaching ha s be e n
.

too much c once r n e d w ith man s i on s in th e s ki es and

n ot e n ough w ith c ottag es on e a r th A ll thi s mu s t
.

b e changed .

Th e n th e G os p e l as a m ess ag e o f n ew li f e mu s t
b e p rese nt e d in s uch a w ay that it w ill n ot b e u n
r ea s onabl e I t mu s t b e clea r and appealing and
.

have a s t r ong fact o r o f c omm on s en s e in it .

Hea rers a re o ft e n ca rr ied quit e a w a y by high

flight s o f o r at o r y It i s an int er e s ting spectacle to
.

watch a fe r vid s peake r tak e a captive audience int o

camp A n d it i s painfully inte r e s ting to w atch th e
.

s lipping a w a y o f that enthusia s m and applause .

M en o ften clap thei r hands at a big n oi se ; th e y

ge n er ally s it s ilently unde r th e influenc e o f g re at
th ought s The re i s n o u s e sh outing eith er in th e
.
,

”
pulpit or all ov er G o d s heaven w ith th e id e a
’
,

that it i s going to make a deep imp r e ss i on on m e n .

In th e e nd it i s th e clea r se n s ibl e and s t rong m es

,
42 EVA NG EL I STIC P RE A CH I NG

s a ge that ca rr ie s w eight and d r ives h ome to th e

he a rts o f the pe ople .

Then the presen t v alu e o f the me s sage c ounts

mightily i n i m p r essing the c ongreg a ti o n It is n ot.

e a sy to frigh t en or w oo men an d w om en to d a y by -

telli ng the m o f the pain s o f hell or the blis s o f

he a ve n St r ong pe opl e ar e n either sca r ed n or
.

c o a xed int o the Chu r ch or th e Kingd o m o f G od

no waday s But men and w omen wa nt s omethi ng
.

th a t will give them c omfo r t a n d peace and j oy

while they a r e w o rki n g hard a n d tryi n g to fin d
s o m e r e a s ona ble ex p l ana ti on o f the w o rld which
the vast m a j o rity a r e fin ding n ow j ust a little too
big and h ar d f or them to m an age with out s ome
help f r om out s ide O u r Chri s tian G o s p el p rom
.

ises that help . When the mess age is put in

that way the pe ople like to hea r it an d they a re re
spect f u l to the messenge r . L et us a lway s remem
ber that the mi s si o n o f J es u s w as to the wh ole li fe
o f man he r e an d he r eafte r He seeks to s ave men
.

fr o m the s i n that i s de s t roying them i n time as well

a s f r om the inevit a ble i ss ue o f th o se si n s in ete r
n ity. This a c cent o f p r e s e n t helpful n es s a n d
strength h as been too much l o st ou t o f the p re a ch
i n g o f the Ch r istian p ulpit We must bri n g it back
.

an d set it be f o r e the c ong r egati ons o f the p resent

day in all its cha r m and p owe r The G ospel i s a
.

mess a ge o f new li fe to the w o rld n ow .

Then the re i s anothe r fact o r in pr e a ching which

w e mu s t always re ga r d . The m ess age which has
 IM P RE SSI O N A ND E XP RE SSI ON 43

been imp ress ed up o n the p r eache r a nd exp r e ss ed by

him in a s e r m on that imp r e s se s the hea r e rs i s in
tu r n to b e e xp r e ss ed by them in ne w f o rm s o f indi
vidual and s o cial acti on W e reck o n too seld om
.

with thi s fact that th e re al end o f the s e r m on i s

,

achieved in th e w o r king ou t o f it s t r uth in the

p r actical a ctivit i e s o f living men a nd w o men Th e .

s erm on which e xp r e ss e s the G os pel intend s to get

s omething d on e in th e li f e o f th e individual and th e
c ommunit y .

It i s all e xp resse d in that pa ss ag e w h ere th e

c omma s do s uch a lot o f damag e in E phe s ian s
4 : 12 . P aul s a ys that Ch r i s t gave di f f ere nt gi ft s
to the membe rs o f Hi s b o dy th e Chu r ch and mad e
, ,

s ome to b e ap os tl es p r oph e t s evangeli s t s p r oph e t s

, , ,

a n d teach ers f o r th e pe r f e cting o f th e s aint s

,
'
,

unt o the w o r k o f mini st er ing unt o th e building up

,

”
o f the b o dy o f Ch r i s t A n d when we r ead th o se
.

th r ee ph r a s e s w e a re accu s t om e d to r ega r d them a s

the th ree coOrdin ate a s pect s o f th e dutie s o f chu r ch
lead ers Th e y a re to pe r fect th e s aint s and to do
.

the ministe r ing w o r k o f the c ong r egati on and to

build up the bo dy o f Ch r ist But the s e a re n ot co
.

o rdi n ate s . Thi s i s an a s cending s cale o f activitie s .

—
Chu r ch leade rs and j u s t n ow w e a re thinking o f
—
the p r eache r preé m in en tly ar e to w o rk to mak e
the memb ers able to do th e service o f th e com m u
n ity in o r de r that th e r eby th e g r eat fell o w s hip o f

Ch r ist on e a r th may b e built u p The r e f o r e th e .

ser m on i s de s ign e d to be Som e thing m o r e tha n a

44 EVA N G E L ISTI C P RE A CH I NG

p a rt o f the preache r s wo rk ; it i s the defi niti on o f

’

the c on gregati o n s c o m mu n ity t a sk

’
.

Thus we h ave a n ew test o f the v a lu e o f the se r

m on .Th a t is n ot a r eal s erm on which h a s m erely
prese nted a ph a se o f th e G o spel so cl e arl y that it
h as been made pl a in to the minds o f th e c ong r ega
ti on Nor is that a r eal s e rm on which h as m oved
.

th e pe ople to a t e mp o rar y elev a ti o n o f feeli n g .

B u t the t r u e s e r m on c onvinces the mind m oves the ,

em oti ons a nd al s o gai n s s uch a deci s i on o f the

,

h eare r that th e t r uth i n the s erm on bec ome s a ne w

p r ogram f or the daily li fe o f the individual a nd
f o r the c ommunity . The goo d new s th a t has bee n
impre ss ed o r d r iven h ome mu s t b e exp r e s sed o r
drive n ou t int o acti on in all th e pha s e s o f th e com
munity li fe .

There has been much discu s si on o f the individual

a n d the s ocial G os pel a s i f the r e wer e s ome p er
,

man e n t c ontradicti on between them There i s n o .

m o re c o n t ra dicti on here tha n the r e i s between th e

”
o pp o site sides o f a ni ckel or the c oncave and
'

c o nvex sides o f a c r e s cent m oon Ea ch i s n eces

.

s a ry to th e other It w ould be imp ossible to have

.

the co in i f the r e were n ot tw o sides to it They .

c om p lete on e an othe r The c r e s cent m oon must b e

.

c o nvex an d it must be c onc ave We may a dmi r e

.

on e side m o r e th a n th e o the r ; but w e kn ow that

b oth sides a re inv olved in th e c omplete obj ect .

8 0 the ex p ressi on o f the t ru th i n the s e rm on

must b e w r ought o ut by th e individual Th e good .
46 E VA NG E L I STI C P RE A CH I N G

c a u ght the spi r it o f Jes u s a nd a r e r eady to give

the m selves to the re a liz a ti on o f H is p rogram a s
a v i t a l p a rt o f the p r oces s o f savi n g thei r ow n s ouls
a re the driving f o r c e behi n d a ll the pra ctic a l e ffo r ts
t h a t will succeed i n the r edempti on o f the com
munity .

The e mphasis u p o n t he s oci a l G o spel w a s timely

an d it ought n ever to be l o st The r e is n o gr e ate r
.

f olly th an to ac c o m plish the c on versi on o f a n

i n dividu a l an d the n ask him with a ll the s t ruggle
,

a head o f him a s he seek s to re a l i ze his new res olu

ti on to go back int o s ur rou n di n gs whe r e a ll the
,

f o rces o f the c ommunity will be a t w o rk a g a inst

him rathe r than f o r hi m I n f ac t the i n dividual
.
,

saves s ociety a nd s ociety s av es the i n di v idual all th e

time when each is e n gr o ssed in the pr ocess o f
,

w o rking ou t the p rog ram o f salv at i o n which is

br ough t to the w o r ld in the goo d new s which the
prea cher publishes .

A w on derful sen s e o f freed om i s b o rn i n the

p r e acher s mind a nd he a rt whe n he ca t ches this
’

h a rm o n y between these tw o phase s o f his m ess a ge

and kn ows that he is to s p e a k to the i n divid u a l an d
to th e c ommunity bri n ging to b oth a m ess a ge o f
,

s uch mighty m oulding p ower that it will sh ap e to

bett er c onditi on s a ll the li fe o f the ge n er a ti on .

The r e i s n o othe r p e r s on in the c omm u n i t y

w ho has s uch a mess a ge ; the r e i s n o othe r
bu s iness in the c ommunity c om par a ble with
thi s Th e p r eache r may hav e a s mall s ala ry
.
 IM P RE SSI O N A ND E X P RE SSI O N 47

and the re may b e many w ho disp a r a ge hi s

'

w o r k But when the f or ce s o f the c ommunity ar e

.

summed up acc o rding to th e i r valu e in m a king f o r

the highe s t li f e o f all th e Ch r i s tia n p r eacher vit a l
, ,

iz ed by th e c on s ci ou s n e s s o f hi s w o n de r ful and h o ly
ta s k i s the chie f s ingle age n t in the w h ole b o dy
,

acting c on s ist e ntly to b r ing f or th all the highest

an d b es t qualitie s in th e individual and s o ci e ty and

shaping it all acc o r ding to the mighty ideal o f the

Kingd om o f G od That man end owed w ith that
.
,

p ower and cha r ge d w ith that h oly task i s th e m o s t

,

imp or tant and c ommanding fi gu r e in the wh ole

c omplex s yst e m o f c ommunity li fe He ought to
.

p r each with the c o nvicti on and p ow e r o f a p r ophet

f o r he is d o ing busine ss w ith e t er nal thing s . He
I s the evangeli s t o f G od .
 IV

E V E RY P REA CH E R A N EVANG EL I ST
ROM gli m pses w e gain o f the e ar ly
th e
Christia n Ch u r ch it seem s th at t he r e a re
s ever a l cl a sses O f recogn ized le a ders a m ong
,

W h o m a re ev an gel i s t s an d p a s t o rs an d
”
teachers . A l s o w e kn o w th a t th e dis t i n c t i on b e
twee n th e tr avelli n g missi onary a n d the e s tab
lish ed pa s t o r h a s bee n r e c o gni z ed an d r eali z ed
wi th va rying e mpha s i s th r ough th e hi s tory o f th e
Chur ch .

The di s tincti on be t w e e n the ev angelis t and th e

p re a ch er pa s t
-
o r is cle a r a n d p e rm an ent
. Th e
ev an gelis t h a s speci a lized in the p ublic a ti on o f th e
mess a ge o f the G o s p el H e m a y n ot have a la rg e
.

nu m ber o f se rm ons i n r e a di n ess ; bu t th ose he ha s

h av e bee n p repa red f o r t he p u r p ose o f d r iving
h om e the c o n te n t o f the G o s p el a s a mess a ge o f
n ew li fe to th e s o uls o f men . The n t he eva n gelist
is th e student an d th e use r o f a t e ch n i q ue o f man
a gi n g meeting s ca rrying on pr opa g a nd a w o rk a n d
,

in ma ny w ay s t ouching the c o mm u n ity with the

ch a lle nge O f n ov elty that d o es n ot c ome so na tu
rally i nt o t he w o rk o f th e r eside n t p reach e r a nd
past o r The evan gelist is the pr o m oter and th e
.

48
 E VE R Y P R EA CH E R A N E VA NG E LI ST 49

p r ea cher p a st o r is the c o nse rve r B oth t as k s a re

-

n e c essary a nd the r ef o r e h ono u r abl e But men o f .

di ff e r ent gi ft s c a n di s ch a rge them w ith va rying

e ff ectiv e n ess E ach play s an imp o rtant pa rt in the
.

publicati on o f the G o spel .

But while w e p r e serv e thi s hi s t or ic di s tincti o n

a n d rec ogni z e th e validity o f th e diffe r ence in th e
present functi on s o f the tw o g r oups th e p r op o s i ,

ti on s till s tand s that e v ery preache r pa s t or i s an -

ev an geli s t H e p r each es s t e adily in on e place to

.
, ,

a st a ble c ong r egati on th e m ess age o f the ne w li f e

,

in Ch r i s t This i s hi s g r eat and pe rp e tual busi

.

nes s He mu s t n ot be dive rte d f r om thi s b y any

.

o the r ta s k He mu s t n ot let th e s ucce ss ful p r ose

.

cu tion o f thi s task be inte r f er ed w ith by a ma ss o f

”
pa r i s h ch o r e s
'
H e mu s t keep it in th e f o re
.

fr ont o f all hi s thinking c once r ning hi s w o rk Th e .

presence o f the eva n geli stic purp o s e i s what in s u r e s

the health and s t re ngth o f th e pa s t o r s c onc e pti o n ’

o f hi s mini s t r y .

Eve ry p r each er pa s t o r ought to hav e a p r og r am

-

of evangelistic w o r k fully planned flexible , , ,

stead fa s tly adhe re d to and kn ow n a n d ad opted at,

lea s t by hi s offi ci a l bo a r d s O n e o f th e s ou r c es o f .

we akn ess and failu re in th e m ode rn Chu r ch i s that

th e re i s n o de finite p r og r am o r obj ective A im .

ing at n othing a chu r ch will hit it with ma gni fi cent

,

succ ess The r ep ort s o f r egiste r ed g a in s in mem

.

he rship in th e P r ote s tant churches in A m er ica du r

ing th e pa s t f e w yea rs giv es u s g r ound f o r di s may .
50 E V A NG E L I STI C P RE A CH I NG

The r e are a ctually th ou s a nds o f chu r ches that hav e

m a de n o g a i n i n m e m bership while m a ny have l os t
i n nu m bers The sig n o f life is g r ow th a n d the
.

l a ck o f gr owth is the s ig n o f dec a y i f n ot o f de ath

.

Se a rching f o r the c a use o f thi s m o s t disc o ur a ging

s ituati on we fi n d it to lie chiefly i n the f act th a t so
m a ny prea chers and churche s have n o defi n ite pro
gra m f o r ev an gelistic w o rk They do n ot s eek to
.

pre s ent the G o spel to w o rk defi n itely to influence

-

pers ons to ac ce p t th e G o s p el to m ake the G o spel

,

the p o we r o f G od in the m ode rn c omm u n ity as it

cert a inly w a s in th e ea r ly d ay s The chief si n gl e
.

c u re f o r th e desperate c onditi on i s an evang elistic

pr og r am f or every chu r ch .

The w o r d pr ogr am a s we a r e u s ing it here

i s s uffi ciently clea r to r equi r e n o el ab or ate d isc us
si on It m ean s th at the i n dividu al chu r ch ou ght to
.
'

h ave an obj ective and a meth o d by which to re ach

it a n d that the d omin an t fa c t o r in this sh ould be
,

t he e ff o r t to publish the Chri stian G o s p el an d

thr ough it to le a d men to Ch r i s t and b r ing Christ to
t he c om munity as the Savi ou r a n d the Cre at o r o f
the n ew li f e In o r de r to do this there m u st be an
.

o rde r o f activitie s Th o se which di rectly p r om ot e

.

t his g r eat end de s e rve the firs t pl a ce a nd mu st b e

ca r ried o ut with out fail Th ose th a t me r ely con
.

tribute accident ally to this s up r eme obj e c tive may

be d one o r n ot a s the e n e r gy o f the w orki n g chu rch
w a rr an ts Their omissi on is n ot dest ructive ; thei r
.

dis ch arge is n ot i m pe ra tive Th u s the rec ogniti on

.
 EV ERY P RE A CH E R A N E VA NG E L I ST 51

of the e vangeli s tic pu r p ose o f a chu r ch and its in

c o rp or ati on int o a p r actical p r og r am o f a cti on
give s u s a n ew s cale o f valu es and en a bl es a mini s
te r a nd c on g r egati on to adj ust thei r w o r k acc or d
ing to the imp o r tanc e o f the thing s which re ally
o ught to b e d on e .

In thu s de fi ning th e p r og r am o f th e chu r ch

and making it gath er a r ound the p r inciple o f ev a n
g e list ic s e r vic e to the c o mmunit y th e mini
, s te r him
s el f i s the m os t imp o r tant s ingl e fact o r to b e r eck
ou ed w ith . The re a re ca ses in which a chu r ch w ill
ri s e to th e re c ogniti on o f it s s up r eme bu s in ess in
such a w ay that the mini s te r w ill catch the visi o n
fr o m the pe ople and s hape hi s w o r k acc o r dingly .

H o weve r in the maj o r ity o f case s it i s th e mini s te r

,

w ho s et s the pace f or th e pa r i s h H e mu s t do thi s

.

by vi r tue o f th e place that h e h old s in th e th ought

o f the p e o pl e . They l ook to him f or th e f o r mati o n
o f th e plan s that a re to be ca rr ied int o e ff ect by

thei r united acti on The r e f o r e thi s i s an imp o r tant

.

questi on : What d o e s th e mini s te r the p r e a cher ,

p a st o r him s el f think ab out the p r i o r ity o f e va n gel

,

ism in the w o r k o f pulpit and pari sh ? The an s we r

to that que s ti o n w ill in the maj o r ity o f ca ses de
, ,

te r min e th e chu r ch p r og r am .

A t thi s p oint w e a r e inevitably d r iv e n back to

anothe r qu es ti on namely Wh a t pl a ce is given to
, ,

evangeli s m in th e sch oo ls where mi n iste rs a r e bei n g

t r ained ? The matte r i s vital We mu s t r ecog
.

n iz e that th e p re vaili n e m h as i s in an y s ch ool p re

g p
52 EV A NG EL I STI C P RE A CH ING

pa r ing candidate s f or th e Ch r i s tian mini s t ry mu st

be a cademic Sch ola rship i s vital to th e wh ol e
.

educati onal p roce ss The evangeli s tic valu e o f a

.

cur r iculum cannot b e d e t ermined by the c ou rs e s

that a r e given on thi s particula r s ubj ect o r the
n u mbe r o f h ou r s that the s tude n ts spend in h oldi ng
m eetings o f an evangelistic char a cte r It i s ra the r
.

a m a tte r o f th e wh ole spi r it o r emph as is o f the cu r

ricu l um . In c ollege the studies th a t a s tude n t pu r
sue s a r e to a la rge degree f or the pur p o ses o f gen
eral cultu re In the the ol ogi ca l sch ools o f a
.

g r aduate g r ad e the s tudie s a r e v ocati on a l The .

v o cati on o f the Christi a n mini s ter i s to ex p res s a n d

to ext end the m e ss a ge o f the ne w li fe in Christ as
he le a d s the chu rc h c o mmitted to his car e to m ani
fe s t the Ch r i stian religi on in a ll the life o f the com
munity Now it is p o ssible to be a te chni ca l stu
.

dent o f the Semiti c o r G r eek l a ngu ages a r e s e arch

,

sch ol ar in Ch r i s ti a n hi s t or y a th or ough sch ol ar in

,

the ol ogy and have th e evangeli s ti c pu rp o se uppe r

,

m o st in on e s mind and m ood all the time The

’
.

pu rp o se f or wh ich the s tudy i s c ar ried on i s to

make the student a bette r p r eache r o f the me ss age .

The highe s t typ e o f the ol ogical student is a man o f

thi s tempe r An d the be s t the ol ogi c al sch ool is th e
.

o n e in w hich thi s p oint o f vie w Obtains c on s tantly .

This i s n ot a mere the o ry It ha s been r e a lized

.

w ith e s pecial e x celle n ce in the the ol ogical s ch ools

o f Sc otland It i s th e ideal t owa r d which all s uch
.

in stituti on s ought c ons tantly to aim .

54 E V A NG EL I STI C P RE A CHI NG

which devel opment sh a ll t ake plac e at lea s t w ithin ,

the limit s o f human f r e e d om .

The wa r r a nt s f or a chur ch p r ogram h ave been

put so well by R ev Charles L G oodell that hi s
. .

stateme n t i s q u oted here a s f oll ows

Fa su cc e ssf u l campai gn in th e field e v ery
or ,

g e n er al ma k e s a ca ref u l pl an an d e v ery a r my w h e e l s

to vict o ry o r defe at a r o u n d th e dr ill serge ant Th e -

captain s o f indu st ry a re m en w ho tak e an ext en ded

p u r vi e w o f th e i r wo rk an d adopt an accu rat e an d
f ar re achin g m e th od an d plan
-

Th e Ch u r ch m u st b e a s w i se in it s gre at er ta sk
'

f o r th e e t er niti e s a s a re m e n in th e chall e n ge th ey
f ac e f o r b u sin ess o r b attl e M achinery w ith ou t .

p ower i s u seles s b u t p ower w ith ou t p rop er machin

,

ery is wa s t ed I t c l a r i fie s a m an s vi si on an d fires
.
’

h is f aith to p l an m e an s f o r a de si red e n d M e th ods .

f o re stall w a s t e m e th o d e c on omi ze s tim e an d m en

, ,

an d makes s u rer an d qu icker d ivi den ds o f servic e .

Th e o rgani z ati on w hich o u ght to hav e m o s t o f

int el li ge nt int en siv e an d ext en siv e m e th o d i s th e
,

Ch u r ch o f G od Th e man w h o ou ght to hav e a com

.

p reh en siv e p repa red plan is th e pa st o r to w h om

,

h u n dreds a re l ooking to fi n d a w ay in w hich th ey

may b es t exp ress th em selves f o r th e serv ice o f G o d .

H e m u st kn o w how to u tili ze an d hu sb an d e v e ry
fra gm e nt o f tim e and en ergy o f hi s pe opl e that n o th
in g b e l o st H is fl o ck w ill hav e u n b ou n ded re sp e ct
.

f o r a pa st o r w h o ta ke s tim e by th e f o re l o ck an d lays
ou t h is w o rk b ef o r e th e r u sh o f th e se a so n is u p o n

him an d driv es him from on e ta sk to an other w ith n o

re al p l an th rou gh th e m onth s an d yea rs ”
.

Turni n g a t thi s p oint to a p ra c tic a l p r og ram f or

an individual chu rch o r u n der m o st fav ou ra ble
, ,

c onditi on s f or a g r oup o f chu r che s we fi nd that

, ,
 EVE RY P R E A CH E R A N E VA NG EL I ST 55

man y s uch hav e b ee n se t up and w o rked ou t so that

it i s n ot n e ce ss a ry to do m o r e than to r efe r to a
typic a l example o f s uch c onst r uctive w o r k A .
'

P R O G R A M O F P A R I S H EV A N G E L I SM i s published
by the Congregation al Commissio n on E v an g elism ,

2 8 7 F o u r th A v e nu e N ew Y o r k and may be s e , ,

cu r ed by w r iting to the offi c e o f th e C ommi ss i on .

The outlin e i s the res ult o f a ca r e ful s tudy o f th e

w o r k o f s ucce ss ful pa s t o rs and the r e i s n o it e m in
it that ha s n ot b ee n t es t e d ou t s ucce ss fully It i s .

n ot adapted m ere ly to th e la r ge city chu r ch but ,

may be put int o e ff e ct in th e o r di n a r y pa r i s h .

While r e fe r ence s to ce r tain C ommu n i o n s e r vice s

r ev e al the fact that the p r og r am h a s g r o wn ou t O f
the w o rk o f a ce r tain den ominati on th e structure ,

o f the plan is easily m o di fie d to the w o r k o f a ny

P r ote s tant chu rc h in the c o unt r y Th e plan in it s .

m o s t gene r al outlin e is as f oll ow s

A Y E A R S P R O G RAM
’

S ep t em b er—D e cem b er
1 . A M e e ti n g o f th e Ch u r ch E v an g e li sti c Co m m itt ee
To f ac e th e w h o l e y ear s w o rk o f t h e ch u rch an d t o
’

m ap
’
out a y e ar s p ro g ram .

2 . hu ch R alli s : T o b i g th e ch u ch a d its w o k
C r e r n r n r
t o th a tt ti e f all th p
en on pl e o e eo .

3 P a i h V i it ati o : T
. r s l o cat a d e li t p o ssi b l e
s n o e n n s
att da t s a d adh e
en n t o f th ch u ch a d it o g a
n ren s e r n s r n
Iz at s lo n .

4 F al l R ecep ti o
.
of m e m b e s at th e N ov e m b e r
n r
Co m m u i o n n .

Jan u ar —
y E ast er
1 Th e P
. a hi g o f f re d am e t als
c n un n .

2 A. I v it ati n C o m m it t
n : T o st dy th e b e t
on ee u s
m e th o d o f w i i g d i i
s f o C h i t a d to w o k
nn n e c s on s r r s n r
uo u sl y w i th th e
co t n in
p ast o to se cu e n ew m em b e s r r r .
56 E V A NG E L I STI C P R E A CH I NG

3 . Th e P T rain in g C ass : T o n st ru c c h dren

ast o r s
’
l i t il
lv
tw e e y e ars o f a g e an d o ld e r in t h e u n d am e n t a s o f f l
i t f t
C h r s ian ai h an d th e m e an n g o f c h u rch m e m b e r sh ip i .

4 T h e L en t e n P ray e r C ale n d ar : E x t e n d ed u se o f
.

Th e F e llo w sh p o f P ray e r i
in p r a t e d ev o o n s, at iv ti
the f i t
a m ly al ar, in p ray e r c rc e s an d in t h e w o rk o f i l
t h e C h u rc h .

5 H o ly W e ek Ser ce s
. vi .

6 T h e E a st e r I n g a h e r n g : T h e recep o n o f n ew
. t i ti
m e m b ers a t th e C o m m u n o n Se r ic e on o r n ear E as e r i v t .

A ft er E as t er C o n serv a ion t
1 . Con ti n u at io n P la
T o c o n n u e e an g e s c e n
ns: ti v li ti
d eav o u r s in sp e c ial g ro u p s t o C h ld r en s Su n day , M o h e r s
’
i t ’

S u n d ay o r P e n t eco s t Su n d ay , an d t o e n s n ew m e m b ers li t
it
in d e fi n e t ask s o f C h r s t an se rv ice i i .

2 t
A b se n e e C am p a ig n : T h e lo c a n g an d re cla m in g
. ti i
t
o f ab se n e e m e m b e r s w h o ar e n g in t h e c o m m u n ty livi i
o f t h e C h u rc h t h o u g h h o d n g m e m b e rsh l i
p in ch u rch e s i
l
e sew h e r e .

In this discussi on w e a r e c on c e r ned h ow eve r , ,

only with the f ac t o r o f the pre achi n g that i s to

m ake up a p a rt a nd that the principal pa rt w e , ,

believe in the pr ogram a s it i s c on c eived by the

,

mi n ister a n d s a n c ti on ed by the chur ch in their j o i n t

e ff o rt to bri n g th e G ospel to th e wh ole li f e o f th e
c ommu n ity .

This prop os iti on w e need to c on s ide r a little

m o r e in det a il I s the p r eaching such an imp o r t a nt
.

p a rt o f the chur ch p rogram O f ev an gelism ? Is

the r e n ot gr ave d an ge r th a t we shall em ph as i z e too
he avily the giving o f the mess a ge by o r a l a ddress
an d n ot all ow e nough w eigh t to a ll the teaching an d
‘

pers ona l inte rvi ews th a t mu s t m ark the program

i f it is to succeed ?
A ll meth ods o f Ch r istian se rvice depend f o r
th e i r s ucce ss up on th e ha rmoni ou s u se o f di ff ere nt
 E VE R Y P RE A CH E R A N EVA NG E L I ST 57

fo r c es and meth o ds A ll must be held wisely in

.

di s c r iminating bala n ce So in any evangeli s tic

.

p rog r am the best r esult s w ill accrue fr om such a

,

u s e o f di ffe r ent li n es o f influ e nce a s w ill s e cu r e the

m o s t f o r ce ful and att r activ e publicati on o f the
G o spel p o s s ible unde r th e c onditi on s p r evailing in
the community The r e f o r e when we exalt th e
.

p owe r o f p r eaching w e do n ot minimi z e th e f o r ce

o f all the othe r m e th o d s that a re availabl e to ca rr y

ou t the p r og r am . Ce r tainly th e s t o ute s t d e f e nde r

o f the place and p o we r o f p r eaching w o uld neve r

cla i m f o r it the entire c re dit in the ca s e o f s ucc ess .

With o ut the u s e o f othe r meth o d s o f exp r e ss ing

th e G o s pel the s e rm o n w o uld unde r o r dina ry con
,

dition s neve r acc ompli sh the wh ole pu rp o se o f the

,

e ff o r t put f o r th by the Church th ro ugh it s evan

g e li st ic p r o g r am to b r ing the G o spel t o th e c om
munity P r eaching must be re inf o r ced by all the
.

o th er line s o f pers o nal influence that a re ess ential

to make th e G o spel plain and to enabl e it to a ec om

p li sh it s mi s si o n i n the c o mmunit y .

G r anting all this h ow ev er the v er d ict o f experi

, ,

e n ce a s se en in hist o ry i s clea r to th e e ff ect that the

mes s age i s made know n th r o ugh preaching It .

m a y s eem to the w o r ldly wi se a s the ve ry vanity o f

e ffo r t ; but s ucces s e s a r e fi nally achieved and the ,

p r eache r i s wa rr anted in ex pecting that h e will re

ceiv e the ve r di ct o f hi s c o mmunity in fav o u r o f h is

cau s e wh e n h e p r each es w ith c onvicti on and cl e a r

n es s.
58 EVA NG EL I STI C P R E A CH I N G

The r ef o re we u rge o nc e m o r e th a t the Ch r i s ti an

p re achers o f A m er ica re v i v e the i r res olu t e f a ith i n
t hei r task an d t heir m ess a ge an d th a t t hey d a re to
belie v e a ll the p r omi ses o f fi na l su cc ess c r o w n in g
t heir f a i th f u l w o rk whe n they pre ach the G o s p el o f
Chr i s t Results w i ll c o m e i n t im e an d n o w o rk i s
.

to o h a rd an d n o c o n fide n ce is to o great to pu t i nt o
the gl o ri ou s w o rk o f p r e a chi ng t he G os p el to a
c o m mu n ity ei t her i n the m o s t f av o ured se c ti on o f
A meri ca o r i n the heart o f d a rkest he athe n d o m .

I n affir m i n g as str o n gly a s we h ave d o n e th a t

every pre a cher is esse n ti a lly an e van gelist we do ,

n o t disp a rage o r dis p ute the r i gh t to re c og n iti o n

a n d h on our a t the h an ds o f the Ch u rch by th a t

g roup o f her a lds o f the G o s p el w ho a re te ch n i ca lly
known as ev angelis t s Wh a tever ch anges ma y
.

have c ome to p a ss i n t i m e c ert a i n ly at the very b e

,

gi nning o f the w o rk o f o rgan ized Chr i s t i an ity there

were pre a chers w ho b o re the name ev an gelist The .

r ec or d o f the w o rk o f these m e n an d their su c

cesso rs is to o deeply c ut i n t o the h isto ry o f t he de
‘

v elopin g Chur c h to war ran t an y repud ia t i on o f

their n ame an d m issi on .

Th a t there h a s bee n a gr owi ng tendency to dis

p a r a ge the p l ac e o f the e vangelist i n man y q u a rters
a dmits o f n o d oubt There ar e man y reas on s f o r
.

this In s ome c a ses the e van gelists a re themsel v es

.

to blame f o r the c on di t i o n in c o nsider a ble m e a sure .

It is wh olly p os sible f o r a good man to become ln

toxicated by big m ee ting s and c onspicu ou s succ ess .
 E VE RY P R E A CH E R A N E VA NG EL I ST 59

It i s easy to indulge in caustic c r itici s m s Th e .

deadness o f the church in many in s tance s l end s it

s elf to atta c k .

The n it mu s t be a dmitt e d that th e e vangeli s ti c

c ampaig n h as lent it s el f to the u se o f all kind s
o f m eth o ds designed to mak e th e f re e will O f
-

f erin g f o r the ev an geli s t anything but f re e Criti

.

cism o f the finan ci a l pr o g r am o f many evangeli s t s

i s wa rr a n ted by i n timat e kn o wl e dge o f the f a ct s .

G ran ted th a t ev an gelist s w o r k unde r heavy p r e s

s ure and that their tale n t s w ould c ommand la rge
s al a ries in other v o cati o n s it i s still t r u e that j u s t
,

e n ough war r a n t f o r the j udgment exi s t s to mak e

the c laim o f profi teerin g on e that plagu es th e
cause The r e a r e many un se l fis h evangeli s t s to
.

w h o s e cha r ge n o least meth od o f e xpl oitati on can

be laid ; the maj o r ity o f the s e men bel ong we b e ,

lieve i n thi s g r oup But n othing i s gain e d f or th e

, .

cause o f Ch r ist by masking the fact that the wh ol e

”
matte r o f pr o fessi onal evangelism has been se
riou sly inj ured in the mind s o f dev o ted Ch ri s tian

m en a nd w o men by th e meth o d s th a t h a ve been

u s ed to inc r ease the o ff e r ing s f o r the eva n gelist at
the cl o s e o f c a mpaign s M ini s te rs have k n own o f
.

the s e meth o d s and have been estr a nged fr om the

p r og r am o f evangelism becau s e o f them L aymen.

in the bu s in ess w o rld h ave been o ut r aged by the

f o rm s o f p r e ss u r e to which they have been sub
j e ct ed .

O ut o f thi s ha s g r o w n a humiliating s ituati on .

60 E VA NG E L I STI C P RE A CH I NG

M i nis te rs h ave s ometimes be e n attacked ; occa s i on

ally they h ave b e en the offe n de rs The s am e i s
.

t r ue in re fe r e n ce to th e evangel i st s But b oth

.

types a re necess ary to the devel oping chu r ch I f .

the prea cher p ast o r w o uld only bec ome m o r e o f an

-

evangelist and i f the evangeli s t w ould o cc a si onall y

t r y ou t the ex pe r ience o f having a parish to ca r e
f or r athe r than to c ome in on the tide o f a cam
p ga i n and fl o w o n to an o the
, r it w o uld be bette r on

both s id es But the r e ought to be a w a r m er s ym

.

pathy between the tw o f o r m s o f p r eaching E ach.

i s neces s a ry to the othe r and both a re vital to th e

c omplete p r oclamation o f th e G os p e l o f th e n ew
li f e in Ch r i s t.
62 E VA N G EL I STI C P RE A CH I NG

the mes sage ev e n i f it i s co nce r ned o n ly w ith an

,

essenti a l detail O f it i s c l os est to the best an d

,

n oblest f o rm o f a Ch r istian di s cou rse O c ca s i on .

a lly on e he ar s the ev a ngelistic serm on dis para ged

a s i f it were i n s ome w ay an inferi o r type o f Chris
ti an p r e a chi n g This is n ot the c a se an d it is a
.

mistake to u n de rv a lue the ser m on th a t p ubl i shes

th e G o s p el by p re fe r r in g a ny other f o r m o f p u l p it
a ddress P re achi ng ought to be ke p t c l o se to es
.

sen tial f o r m ; a nd the m o st th o r o ughly Christi a n

s ermon is the on e th a t admits o f cl a ssi fi cati on a s

e va n gelisti c .

We l ook n ow briefly a t the o utst an ding m arks o f

the ev angelisti c ser m on The fir st ch a r acter is tic
.

th a t appe a rs is the burden o f the m essage i n the

serm o n There is a v a s t di ff ere nc e between a
.

p rop o siti on in m a them ati c s a n a f fi r mati on sup

,

p o r ted by a rgu m e nt inl ogi c an d a mess age dire c t

,

to p e r s ona lity on the pa rt o f a livi n g s p e aker The .

f ac t th a t tw o a n d tw o e qu a ls f o u r o r that Colu m bu s
,

dis c ove r ed A meri ca in 1 4 9 2 d o e s n ot make an y

ch an ge in the c ondu c t an d cha r a cte r o f on e w h o
he a rs o r le arns these u n dis p uted f ac ts They le ave
.

t he c on d u ct o f li v i n g p ers ons u nm o dified an d bri ng

n o re a l n e w s th a t i s eith er g oo d o r b a d But i f I
.

am far a way f r o m h ome an d s ome on e i s c oming

fr om the old t own with a mess a ge f r om my m othe r ,

th a t i s q u ite a n other ma tter The w o r ds t ake on

.

new me aning They a re l a de n wi t h a beauti ful

.

c ont ent and they are aw aited w ith a w i s tfulne ss of

'
 TH E E V A N G EL I STI C SE RM O N 3

which we n eve r w er e c on s ci ou s as w e studied ou r

g e omet r y L ove a n d me m o r y and p r eci o u s th ought
.

a r e a ll wr ought int o w hat i s s aid The re is a mes .

sage in it It i s n ot a p r opo s iti on ; it i s ne ws f r o m

.

h om e .

N ow put all thi s int o the se r m o n that b r ing s to

.

men the message f r om G o d a nd th e i m plicati o ns

are plain The p r e a che r has s omethi n g to s ay that
.

is so tende r and urgent so packed w ith yea r ning

,

l ove a n d g r aci ou s invitati o n that hi s disc o u rs e, ,

b oth a s lite r ary f o r m and s p oken addr e ss is di f ,

f eren t f r om a nything els e w ith which it might be

classified i f this fact o f the me s sage in it we r e di s
r eg a rded Thi s s erm o n i s s p oken h ome to the
.

heart o f the he ar er s It ha s within it the p o we r to

.

make a di ff e r ence w ith huma n liv es It tells u s .

news Something that we o ught to kn ow is b e ing

.

t o ld to us There i s wa r ning and c omf o rt the r e i s ,

h elp and h ope in it .

Thi s fact ought to make a re al di ffe r ence to the

p r each er as he w o r k s in p r e par ing hi s ser m o n a n d
deliv ers it to th e pe ople To deb a te a questi on o r
.

to deliver a f o r mal lectu r e is o n e matte r ; to bri n g

a mess a ge o f li fe to th e s oul o f o n e s c o m rade i s ’

quite a di ff e r e n t thing Wh a t a privilege a nd j oy

.

it i s to be ar a g r eat hea r tening message o f r edemp

,

ti on and n ew li fe to the ye a rni n g s pi r it o f a g e ne r a

ti o n ' It i s s imply the bigge s t bu s ine ss that any
living man can do in his time .

Be ca use it i s a mes s age the evangeli s tic s e r m on

,
64 E VA NG E L I STI C P R EA CH I N G

mu s t be s imple pl ai n an d dire c t These a r e the

, .

qu a lities th a t we ass oc i ate na tur a lly with the ex

pre ss i on o f n ews Cer ta i n ly i f o n e is to c onv e y a
.

message th a t is imp or tant he will see to it first o f

all that it is clea r an d e a sy to be under s t o od Ther e
.

mu s t be n o d ou bt reg a rdi ng what the mes s enge r

mean s I f he h a s to t a ke ti m e to expl a i n o r to di s
.

cus s or to defe n d his message we feel that he i s n ot

a ve r y goo d m esse n ger We w a nt to k n o w imme
.

d iately wh a t he h as on his mind to tell u s Th e

.

best c om plime n t that c a n be p a id to a se rm on is n ot

to sa y th a t it wa s el o quent o r gra n d but to say h on
estly that it w a s cle ar an d e a sily underst o o d We .

w ant to kn ow what the p r e acher is dri vin g a t an d

w e want him to d r iv e at it str on gly an d swi ftly an d
accur ately A lectur e may be in an elab o r ate an d
.

highly fin i shed s tyle We expect this f o rm o f lit

.

erary t r eatment a l s o in the e s s a y B u t a n ev a ngel

.

istic se rm o n i s the bu rn ing w o r d o f a man w h o is

s u r e o f s omething and feels th a t he is se n t s t raigh t
to men w ho want to kno w wh a t he i s su re o f .

Since it is a m e ss age the ev an gelisti c se r m o n i s

,

di r ected accu rately at the b earer an d a t li fe as it is

bei n g lived n ow There is n othing o f t h a t re
.

m o ten ess f r om li fe which w e have n oted as a

,

characte r istic o f m o dern p re achi n g The mes

se n ge r did n ot sh out ou t his m ess a ge to any on e
w h o h ap pened to be within the ran ge o f hi s v o ice ;
he ca rr ied it m os t patie ntly an d th ough t fully to the
on e to w h om it w a s s ent No w it i s q uite p o ss ibl e
.
 TH E EVA N G E L ISTI C SE R M ON 65

f or a preache r to bec om e a bs o r bed in s ome b ook

th a t g a i n s his a tte n ti o n o r to be wrapped up in
s o m e p a rticula r li n e o f study th a t i s p r oving profi t
able to hi m He is i n d a nger o f being so su r e that
.

this pa r ti c ula r b ook o r set o f ide a s i s als o inte r e s t

i n g an d pr o fitable to the c o n g r egati o n that he will
give them his b ook o r hi s c ogitati ons instead o f his
mess a ge The way to a v o id thi s da n ge r is to get
.

the c o ns c i ousnes s o f a g r eat mes s age so inw r ought

int o the substance o f p r eaching that it w ill n ot
all o w itsel f to b e ove r l ooked The G o spel i s aimed
.

s t r aight at li fe It ha s s omething to do with all th e

.

o ng o ings o f the m o st c omm o nplace day o f the

humblest man So the e vangelistic serm on hits the

.
fi

ma r k N ot that a ny p r eache r will ever delibe r ately

.

si n gle ou t any pe rs o n or g r oup with the int e nti o n

”
of hitti n g them in a c o wa r dly way from th e
sa fety o f the pulpit But the message in the e van
.

g e list ic serm o n i s di r ected t o w ard the actual li fe

o f the pe o ple and it i s expected to fi nd its m ark ,

W i th o ut any de s i r e to do inj u s tice to the pers on a l

characte r O f any on e .

The evang e listic s e r m on must be di r ected to the

wh ole hea r e r that is it must seek to c onvince hi s
, ,

mind to m ove his feeling s and to per s uade hi s

,

will to the p oint whe r e it r egiste r s a new deci s i o n

c o ncerning the d ominant m o tive s o f hi s li fe It i s .

a seri o us mistak e to think th a t an ev a ngelistic s e r

m on d o es n o t need to be gr ou n ded in the s o u n d es t
l ogi c and to b e o f such a cha r act er that it w ill be ar
66 E VA NG E L I STI C P R E A CH I N G

s ear ching debate It is a cu rr ent n oti on that an

.

”
ev angeli s tic se rm on m u st be em oti o na l p r i ma
rily a nd so make it s great a ppe a l to th e feeli n gs .

We are incli n ed to thi nk th at the preacher mus t put

the m os t th or ough intelle c tu a l prepar a ti on up on hi s
m o rn ing o r edi fyi ng sermo n but his ev a ngel,
”
i s tic appe a l must be di r ected es pe c ially to the
em oti ons This is a dis a str ous blu n de r in j udg
.

ment N o pe rmanent Ch r isti an deci s i on w ill be

.

r egiste r ed by a ny on e wh o s e mi n d has n ot been

th or oughly pe r suaded o f the r e a s ona blen ess o f
Ch r ist s claim up on him Th o r ough r a ti on al con
’
.

s iderati on o f the G o spel i s fu n d am e n t a l i n o r de r to

it s acceptanc e w ith any h ope o f c on sta n cy i n the
d e ci s i on .

The evangeli stic s e rm on d o es n ot st o p with the

r ati onal presentati on o f the mess age While b ack .

o f the s e r m on mu s t lie the dee p est a n d si n c erest

thi nking that the p r eache r can give to his great

p r ocl a mati on it must a ll be w arm ed an d b a thed in
,

the passi o n w ith which he believes an d p rese n ts it .

The int e llectu a l c ontent o f the se rm o n will n ot li e

appa r ent on the s u r face ; i f it d o es we sh a ll get
n othing m o r e than a lecture i n divi n i t y ou t o f it .

But it will be the r e ; it will n ot dis ap pe a r wh olly ; it

will give w arrant to the wh ole a ppe a l So the .

em oti on a l fact o r ste p s st ro n gly f o rw ar d in the

evangeli stic serm on The pr e a cher w a nt s to make
.

his hea r e rs feel the m ess age ; the n he must feel it

him se l f N othing will kindle e m oti o n but emo
.
 TH E EVA NG EL I STI C SE RM O N 67

ti on . Th e p r eache r w h ose v oic e n ev er b re ak s

n e v er w ill s e e any ha r d h e a r t s b ro k e n by his m es

s ag e But de e p f ee ling cannot be summ oned into

.

acti on at th e w or d o f c ommand In fact th e .

,

p r eache r w ho i s n ot habitually ea rn es t and moved

in re spect to hi s me ss ag e w ill ev oke only s light and
o cca s i o nal r e s p o n se . So what the p r each er f e el s
pe r manently c once r ning hi s me ss age will d e t er min e
the em oti onal c ontent o f th e individual ser m on .

Thu s the be s t em oti onal p re pa r ati o n f or an evan

g e lis tic ser m o n w ill be mad e a s th e p re ache r t e

view s hi s ow n indebtedne ss to Ch r i s t and w a r m s ,

hi s h e a r t once m ore a s h e r e flect s up on the l ov e and

l oyalty that he ow e s to hi s M a s t er in c on s equence .

I f we app r ai s e r ep e atedl y the g r ound s o f ou r l ov e

and gratitud e to Ch r i s t we shall fi nd ou rse lve s
tuned to the r ight em oti onal m ood and s hall b e abl e
to kindle o the rs to a s i mila r gl o w and flam e o f
a ff e cti on .

The m o s t imp or tant fact o r h ow ev er in th e

, ,

evangeli s tic ser m on i s the di r ect d r ive f o r a deci

s i o n in fav ou r o f the me ss age on the pa r t o f th e
h e a r e rs The e vangelistic p r eache r i s a ple a der an
.
,

adv o cat e a champi o n

, . H e attack s fea r le s sly p os i
,

tiv ely and by th e p ers ua s iv e p ow er o f l ove the w ill s

o f hi s c ong r egati o n an d he a s k s f o r thei r v er dict .

He ex pect s thi s Thi s n ote o f c o nfi denc e and ex

.

p e c t at io n w ill c o l o u r hi s w h o le acti o n . H e w ill n o t

be timid o r h es itant ; he will have what ha s been so
aptly called h oly b oldne ss . Thi s i s th e t e mp e r
68 E VA NG E L I STI C P RE A CH I NG

in which P e te r and P a ul p r e a ched the G o spel at the

begin n i n g It i s a ppr opr iat e to the be a r e r o f the
.

mess a ge n ow The direct appe a l may t a ke the

.

f o rm o f a c a ll to r egi s ter the deci s i on in s ome s p e

cifi c a c t the sign i n g o f a c ar d th e
, r ai s ing o f the,

h a nd c omi n g to the f r ont a ttending a n after meet

, ,
-

ing o r s om e o t he r f o r m o f ex p ressi on This must

, .

be settled a cco r ding to the pre ache r s ow n judg ’

ment a n d taste To s ome prea cher s it is diffi c u lt

.

to c a ll f o r an y r egiste r o f decis i o n ; o the r s do it

easily and ha p pily It i s n ot i mp erative in eve ry
.

s e rm o n : it m a y be o m itted alt oge ther Yet su ch is .

the u rgency i n this k i nd O f a ser m o n th a t p r ob ably

s o m e ki n d o f an ap p e a l f o r a defi n ite and r egistered
de c isi on is desirable .

M o r e i m p o r tant than any si n gle act o f d e cisi on ,

h owever is the persu a sive ch a racter o f the ser m on

,

as a wh ole The ev angelistic sermo n must be

.

s imp ly keyed to the n ote o f invit a ti o n an d per

su a si on H er e is where many a p r e a cher m ake s a
.

mist ake He feels that it is his duty to r ebuke to

.
,

s c old to cha s tise ra ther th a n to pe r su a de a n d to

, ,

invite a nd to w oo He i s m o r e like J ohn the Bap

.

tist an d le ss like J esus Hi s ta s k i s to pe rs uade

.

and invite A n y prea che r c a n p rovide f o r th i s a s

.

he p r epa r e s and pre aches hi s s e rm on It all t e .

s olves itsel f int o the si m ple h abit O f putting the

element o f app e a l and i nvit a ti on int o the se rm on ,

deliberately and c onst a ntly be ca u s e it bel ongs ,

th ere It i s so much b e tte r to see m en c om e to

.
70 EVA NG E L I STI C P RE A CH IN G

inciden t w ill o ften drive a t r uth h om e an d fix it

there quickly and pe rmanently I n selec t i n g a nd
.

prepari n g the illu s t ra ti on s keep them cl ose to li fe .

Jesus is the g r eat example o f th e e ffective illu st r a

ti on o f the good new s I f H e u s ed a figu r e it w as
.

t a ken f r om the dail yli fe o f th e people so that it wa s

plain and vivid I f H e t old a s to ry it was d r awn
.

f rom th e c omm on ex pe r ience o f men so that th e y

s a w the a n al ogy and f e lt it s f or ce J e s u s t ook
.

si m pl e thing s and made them the vehicle o f m o r al

an d spi r itual t r uth A nothe r principle to b e ob
.

se rve d in ch oos ing and w o rking ou t th e illu st r a

ti on s i s accu racy Th ou sh a lt n ot bea r f a l s e w it
.

ne ss i s an anci e nt c ommandment that is s till v a lid

even in the making o f a se r mon The r e a r e many .

illust r ati on s that have been u s ed o ften and a re quit e

c u r rent am ong minister s ; n ew e xamp le s and an ec
d ote s w ill be met as on e re ad s a n d obse rve s ; a n d
eve r y on e ought to be subj ected to the te s t o f t r uth
f u l n ess A fal s e o r overdrawn illustr a ti on h ow
.
,

eve r vivid it may a ppea r a t the m ome n t and how

eve r f o r ceful it might be a t the ti m e o f use will in ,

the e n d de fe a t its own obj ect R ej ect the illust r a

, .
-v

ti on that bears the s uspici on o f ex agge rati on or

unt r uth fulne ss . P r obably the tende n cy to u se
”
'
de a th b e d illust r ati on s or s t o rie s o f a t ragic
cha ra cte r in or de r to ap p e a l s t rongly to th e emo
ti on s and th ere by pr oduce qui ck decisi on s ha s
nearly pa ss ed a w ay I f it still persist s in a
.

p re ache r s habit it ought to be held r e s olutely in

’
 TH E EV A NG E L I STI C SE RM ON

check We do n ot seek to mak e men believ e th e

.

good n ews by f r ight e ning them We a r e b e tt er .

student s o f p sych o l ogy than that The app e al that .

wins th e will s c on s ent i s ca s t int o th e t er m s o f in

’

v itation and o f l o ve A l s o a p r each er w ill act u n

.

de r the p r inciple o f reserv e and r ep ress i on a s he

u se s pe rs onal illu s t r ati on s Te s tim ony may b e
.

giv e n in the ser m on The fir st pe rs onal p r on oun

.

bel ong s the re occasi onally But nev er s u ff er th e

.

lugging in o f i rr elevant p ers onal detail s and th e

d r agging ou t O f p ers onal exp er ience s
. The .

preache r ha s th e r ight to say I in his s e r m on ;

but alway s m odestly and w ith bec o ming r e serv e .

Since it i s a me ss age th e e vangeli s tic s e r m on

,

w ill be d e live r ed with a gl ow ing c on fi denc e The .

m e th od o f delive r y o ught to be ca r e full y w o rk e d

o ut. G r ote s que pe r f o r ma n c es in the pulpit o r on
th e plat fo r m ext ra vagant ge s tu re s and p o s tu res a r e
,

a hind r ance in the end to the delive r y o f the me s

s age That i s n ot th e way in which s en s ible men
.
,

dead in ea r ne s t ab out anything act in oth er pla c e s

,
.

The r e a re always ce r tain p ers on s in a ci r cu s w ho

s peciali z e in antics ; but th e Ch r istian p r eache r i s n ot
a cl own and the evangeli s tic meeting i s n ot a ci r cus .

O n the othe r hand th e G o s pel i s s om e thing to f ee l

,

e
x cit e d ab out I f it i s th e g r eate s t me ss age that
.

—
e ve r has been given to the w o r ld and it i s then —
th e man w h o kno ws that m ess age fully cann ot tell
his c om r ad es ab out it w ith an unimpa ss i oned mind
and manner Th e p re ache r s impl y mu s t th r ow
.
72 EV A NG EL ISTI C P R E A CH I N G

hi m self in t o his serm on with his h e a r t afl am e H e .

m ust give hi m self la v ishly i n t he ut t er anc e o f t hi s

tru th H e will h o ld h im self w it hi n the fir m le a sh
.

o f g oo d ta s te a nd c o n sis t e n t m ann ers ; bu t a ls o he

”
will let go wi t h out ap ol ogy H e c a nn ot do
'
.

o the r wise He is t elli n g his fell ow m en the m o st

.

wonderful s t ory that huma n li p s can f rame int o

w o rds .

O f a ll the s e r m on s that a prea cher delive r s the

evangelisti c is the on e th a t he c om mits to the future
with the gre a test c onfide nc e i n t he fi na l achieve
m e n t o f it s p urp ose The e vangelis t i c serm on is
.

the ob j ect o f ou r faith It is like the f a r m er sow

.

ing his s eed H e pre par es the gr ou n d an d p uts the

.

seed i n t o it a c c o rdi n g to his best j udgme n t The n .

he t rusts the p atie n t an d be n ev ole n t pr ocesses o f

n a ture to bri n g t he fr u i t He d o es n ot try to hurry
.

it He believes a n d w a its The illustr a ti o n l i ke

. .
,

a ll others is n ot quite suited to the truth f o r the

, ,

p r e a cher s pers on al i n flue nc e av a ils m o re with t he

’

t r uth i n h is se rm on than the f armer s skill d o es ’

with the s ow n seed B ut it illustrates the t ruth

.

that the ev angelis t i c p r e a cher i mp li c itly trusts t he

quickening p ower o f the Sp i rit Whe n he h a s .

d on e his bes t he m u st w a it an d pr a y an d ex p e c t t e
su lts in G o d s o w n time an d w a y We ar e respon
’
.

sible f o r the c ont ac t betwee n t he tr u th an d the

s ou ls o f men ; w e ar e n ot ulti ma tely res p on sible f or
the c onver si on o f the s ouls o f men to th a t truth .

The r e i s a highe r p owe r th an our s at w o rk in the

 TH E E VA N G EL I STI C S ERM O N 73

p r oc ess It i s the H oly Spi r it W e re ly up on

. .

that I f w e we r e o bliged to bea r the wh ole respon

.

sib ility o f quickening ou r c o mmu n ity th r o ugh the

p o we r o f the G o spel it w ould crush u s We do .

n ot. We a r e a gent s and v o ice s and me ss engers ;

but r esult s r e s t w ith G od J esu s made that fa c t
.

c lea r to His di s ciple s F o r o u r peac e and p ow e r

.

as p r eache rs we need to lea r n the le ss on With .

c onvincing po w e r w o r king in mani f o ld w ay s th e

, ,

H oly Spi r it tak es th e t r uth even p oo r ly e x p r e s sed

,

in ou r se rm on a n d b r ing s it h ome w ith divine

,

p owe r to the s ouls o f men Thi s i s the s ou r ce o f

.

ou r j oy and c o n fi denc e a s p r eache rs o f th e ev erlast

ing G o s p e l .

What i s th e r elati on o f th e Ch r i s tian m essage to

the Chri s tian theology ? We a r e o ften inclined to
think that the r e i s s uch a di ff e r ence b e tween them
that e i the r th e on e o r the othe r is to be maintained
o r di sr ega r ded E very pre a che r w ho set s ou t to
.

r eali z e the s up r eme purp o s e o f hi s w o rk that is , ,

to give the G o s pel to the c ommunity in eve r y po s

s ible w ay becau s e it is the ve ry message o f li fe a n d
p ow e r ought to be clea r in his ow n mind c once rn
,

i n g th e rel a ti o n between the mes s age and the the

o l ogy o f th e Ch r i s tian r eligi o n Ce r tain facts a r e
.

appa r ent .

Th e m ess ag e w a s firs t in o r d er o f tim e ; th e th e

o l ogy f o ll ow ed a s a matte r o f nece ss ity The di s
.

ciples and firs t f o ll o we rs o f J e s u s did n ot c once r n

th em se lv es w ith any l ogical e ff o r t to reduc e the

74 E VA N G EL I STI C P R E A CH I N G

t r uth that H e had taught them to sy s tematic f orm .

Thei r pur p o se w a s n ot i nterpret ati o n o r explan a

ti on ; it w a s p r o c l a mati o n an d de c l a r a t i on They
.

h a d lea rned s om ething th a t seemed to them so im

m en sely i mp o r tan t that they immediately g ave
themselve s u p to the ta s k o f letti ng thei r new
f ou n d t ruth be k n o w n as widely a s p os sible and in
every way at thei r c ommand That w as their on e
.

immedi a te urgent a n d al m os t des p e r ate business

, .

The w o rld w a s i n deadly dange r ; they k n ew how

to save it ; they were willing to go thr o ugh fi r e and

w a te r to tell m e n th a t there was a way ou t o f peril .

A s we re a d this st o ry we a re sensitive to the he r o

ism and the p ower o f it These m e n we r e so splen
.

did ln their de v oti o n ' They sh a me us with ou r

ea sy go ing c om f o r ts They met d anger a nd de a th
-

w ith su p erb c our a ge We gro wl because the ch a i r

.

is n ot c ushi oned a n d the r o om is n ot w a rm There .

is n o d o ubt th at the passi on a n d the her o ism o f the

e ar ly ye a rs o f the Christi a n ente r p r ise a r e a lt o
gethe r too l a cking i n ou r m ode rn Ch r i s tian li fe .

The days o f the m ess ag e w e re th e day s o f he ro i s m

and a dvance .

The w o rk o f the the ol ogi ans began ea r ly It .

was i m pe r ative and vit al The mi n d must e n gage

.

with the f a ct s o f li fe and seek to r educe them to

o r de r . G o d mad e u s w ith e a ge r mi n ds as well a s
l oving hea rt s The y oung faith wa s a tt acked by
.

enemie s f r om outside ; it was th r e ate n ed by divi

s i on s f r om within U n de r th e st r ain o f this s itua
.
 TH E E V A N G EL I STI C SE RM O N 75

ti on th e de fende rs o f the faith w o rked ou t th e firs t

ap o l ogie s f o r it ; th e ch a mpi ons o f on e a s p e ct o f it
in c ont r a s t w ith anothe r s et f or th th e d e tail s o f the
m ess age w ith l ogical c ompletene ss Ev ery activ e .

mind in evitabl y se t to w o r k to re duc e th e m ess ag e

to a l ogical unity ; th e re a s o n mu s t demand thi s o f
ev er ything that a s k s th e c on se nt o f ou r w ill s So .

cam e the day s o f th e th e ol ogian s A n d inevitabl y

.

w ith them th ere cam e al s o a l ow e r ing o f th e deg ree

o f pa ss i on and a dimini s hing o f th e ap o s t o lic a ss u r

anc e Not that th ey were l os t F ar f r om it N ot

. . .

that the losseS w ere m ore than th e gain s That

'

w a s n ot t r u e at all In th e e nd th e gain s m ore than

.

c ompen s ated f or th e appa re nt l o sses But it i s im .

p os sible to re duce the w o r k o f the m esse ng er to the

pr op o s iti on s o f th e l ogician w ith out th e l oss o f th e
he r ald s first a r do u r It i s lik e a y oung lov er w ho
’
.

expe r i e nce s the firs t cha s t e ning o f hi s l ogic a s h e

t r i es to think ou t th e re a s on s f or his s udd e n d ev o
ti on In th e e nd h e w ill b e a b e tt er l ov er i f h e s it s
.

d ow n with him se l f in th e s o l e mn wres tling d e

man ded by hi s l ogic and h i s e c on omic se n s e H e .

may s quand er a little le ss m oney o n r o se s and en s

tertain m en ts but h e giv es p r omi se o f bem g an alt o

'

g e th er bett er hu sband b e cau se h e can giv e a littl e

s t r ong er re a s on f or the l ov e that i s in him .

Th e qu es ti on i s o ft e n a s k e d Why n ot re tu rn to
,

th e s implicity o f the e ar ly t es tim o ny ? That w as

th e meth o d at the begin n ing Why n ot n o
. w ? Th e
fi rs t an s we r i s B e cau se the c o nditi o n s hav e
,
76 E VA N G EL I STI C P RE A CH I N G

ch ange d The re i s n ow a g r eat body o f Chri stian

.

t r uth in ou r p oss es s i on the r i ch re s ult o f the expe

,

rien ce o f th e past a nd the th ought that has been

put u p on it This ha s imme n sely enriched the con

.

tent o f the G o spel It h as n ot ch an ged its esse n ti a l

.

fact o rs which a re wh a t they w e r e i n the beginni ng ;

,

but it ha s e n la rged them until they a re m ore a m ple

and a p peali n g It is easie r n ow to m ake the appe a l
.

f o r Ch r ist bec a use we h ave the testim o n y o f alm o st

tw o th o usand ye ars f r o m w hich to dr a w f o r con
fi rm ation .

A nd al s o the a ge is immensely m o r e c omplex in

its inte re st s and demands M en hav e the right to .

ask f o r s omething m o re th an simply the te s ti m ony

o f the di sciple or the a r de n t w o rds o f the r ecent

Co nve r t P e rs u as i on i s a va r ied a r t and make s

.

man y d e m a nd s up on us It call s f o r the a ccur a te

.

an d r ea s oned s t a tement a s w ell as f or the fe rvid

testimony Th e Ch r i stian ple a de r a nd a dv oc ate
.

ca n not aff ord to s p a re the f o rm a l an d syste m ati c

statement o f the G o spel in the f o rm o f the ol ogy .

It i s the vital c omplement to th e testimony o f th e

Christian witnes s .

The r e f o r e the ev an gelist sh ould b e a theol ogian

as the t r ue the ol ogi a n o ught al s o to be the evan
g e list
. E ach task is neces sar y to the o the r It i s.

a g re at l os s to the eva n gelist i f he dispa r age s th e

ol o gy. O ccasi onally on e he ar s an evangelistic
p r e ache r say that he i s n o the ol ogian I f thi s i s a
.

c onf es si on o f humility it may be per mi t ted ; but if

EV ANG E L I SM ASTH E O RG A NI ' I NG
P RI N CI P L E I N P REA C H I N G

NE of th e g r eate s t dangers in the work o f

p r e a ching is the tenden cy to w ork fr om
hand to m outh in p r ep a ring t he weekly
s e rm on instead o f havi ng a pl an w o rked ou t in
advanc e by which on e great line o f th ought is
ca rr ied th rough the chu r ch ye ar f r om autu mn to
s p r ing inclusive It neve r ought to be n ecessary
,
.

to ask Wh a t shall I p r each ab o ut next Su n d a y ? a s

,

the n ew we ek begins The s e rm on s o f the ye ar

.

sh ould be so w ell de fi ned th a t the p re acher w i ll

be su r e what he i s to do even th r ee m onth s in
advance .

This o rga niz a ti on o f the y ear s p r e achi n g a r ound

’

s ome g r e a t subj ect o r ax i s o f vital i nterest we ca ll

Organ iz ed P reaching . It i s the w ay ou t o f u m
c ert a i n ty and the pa t h to p ow e r f o r every p re a che r
w ho will w o r k acc o r ding to s ome meth od o f this
gen er a l kind .

The r e a re many p r inci p al s ubj ect s o r cente r s o f

interest a r ound which the pr e a ching o f the ye ar
ma y be o rganiz ed The li fe a nd message o f J e s us
.
,

the p roo f s o f th e Ch r isti a n r eligi on Christ s idea

,
’

78
 TH E O R G A N I' I N G P R I NC I P L E 79

of the Kingd o m o f G od es s ential Ch r istian t r uth s

, ,

e xp o s it o ry t re atment o f imp o r tant B ibl e pa ss age s ,

and th e s ocial applicati o n o f Ch r i s tian p r inciple s

a re all vital and full o f int eres t Th er e i s n o o the r
.

s ingle s ubj ect h ow ev er that a ff o r d s so much in

, ,

th e way o f s ubj ect matt er and va r i e ty as the p re

s cu tati on in it s fulln ess o f the G o s p e l a s a messag e
w ith the pu r p o s e o f s ecu r ing acceptance o f it by a
s u rre nde r o f li f e to th e claim s o f Ch r i s t O u r .

p r oblem i s n ot to fi nd mate r ial but r athe r to se l e ct

wi s ely f r om the va s t am ount o f mate r ial s uch s ub
j e cts, a r gum e nt s illu
, s t r ati o n s and appeal s a s s hall
p res ent the g r eat es t of all m ess ag es to th e w or ld
in adequat e fa shi on .

Y ielding all the Sundays w hich mu s t b e giv e n

up to the chu r ch occa s i on s and to th o se int eres t s
in the c ommunity w hich demand r ec ogniti on f r om
the pulpit the r e r emain ab out thi r ty tw o Sundays
,
-

du r ing th e yea r w hen the p r eache r may s peak on

the s ubj e ct s that h e ch oo ses N O bette r p ro g r am
.

can be devi s ed than to p r e se nt the appeal o f th e

G o spel c on s ecutively and w ith g r o wing emphasi s
du r ing the s e Sundays Thi s w ould n o t o f c ou rse
.
, ,

be d on e eve r y y e a r ; but w ith the v ar iati on s that

a re p oss i ble it i s f e a s ible to go ove r th e g round at
lea s t e v er y f ou r o r fiv e y e a rs The time to mak e
.

the p r og r am i s lat e in the s umme r nea r the cl ose

‘

o f the vacati on .It sh ould be shaped with th e ex

p e rien ce o f th e pa s t y e a r o r yea rs clea r l y in mind ,

s u rv e y e d at s uch a di s tanc e that pe rs p e ctive i s pos

80 E VA NG E L I STI C P RE A CHI NG

s ible L et the matter gr ow quietly in you r calm

.

r eflecti on c on c er n i n g the w o rk a n d p roblem s in the

fi eld until A ugus t o r e a rly Septembe r Then tak e .

time e n ough f o r m o re p ositive and c on s e cutive

think i n g This is o n e o f th e m o st imp ort a nt ac
.

ti on s o f the wh o le yea r D o n ot b r i ng to it eithe r

.

a fatigu ed o r di s tr a cted mind Be sure that you .

are a t y ou r best when you take up the p r ea ching

p rog ra m f or the yea r Keep the wh ole p roblem.

i n m ind so fa r a s th a t i s p o ssible while you think

a n d m ake n ote s D o n ot w o rk on the matte r too
.

l on g ; but w o rk w ith c oncentr a ti on while you a r e

e n ga ged with it N ow im a gine the c om m u n ity ;
.

r e n ew in y ou r c on sc i ousnes s th e meani n g and

urgency o f the G o spel ; then dete rmin e what g r eat
aspects o f the mes sa ge you w ill p r es e nt during
thirty tw o Sund a ys m o r e o r les s an d br oken a s
-

, ,

they m ust be by the claim s o f the o c ca s i on s th at

ca ll f o r p ul p it r ec ogniti o n It i s b e st to w o rk with
.

sm a ll ca rds o r sli p s o f p ape r n oting subj e cts text s , ,

o r key th ought s whi ch will exp r e s s the m ess a ge to

the c o m mu n ity I f the s e are j otted d own on ca rds
.

t hey can be a r ranged at w ill F i na lly a t least the

'

.
,

maj o r pa r t o f the ye ar s s e rmons ought to be in ’

h an d well arra nged with m a ny n otes a lre a dy in

, ,

sh ap e f o r the fulle r study A pre ache r can go .

b ac k to his autumn task w ith a ha pp y sense o f

c er ta i nty a nd freed om i f he h a s this little p a ck a ge
o f ma teri a l with him He will n ot be feeli n g ou t
.

a fter s u bj ects during the yea r He kn ows whe re .

 TH E O RG A N I 'I NG P RI NCIP L E 81

he i s going and h e is s u re that so fa r a s he h as

,

been able to shape his p rog r am th e p re aching will

,

be uni fi ed du r ing the yea r and w ill t e nd s t eadily

t ow a r d on e s up r eme o bj ectiv e I t is lik e a blu e
.

p r int to the e nginee r and c ont r act o r It s h ow s .

w hat i s to be d on e ; it keep s th e r elati o nship s clea r ;

it i s the s tanda r d to w hich th e w or k c onf o r m s f r om
day to day .

Thi s o r gani z ati on o f th e ye a r s pre aching

’

a r ound the p r e s entati on o f the G o spel a s a m es sag e

i s ba s ed on th e idea that th e p r eache r pa s t o r i s an
-

evangelist and that h e can do thi s w o r k while he

ca rr ies on hi s r egula r dutie s a s th e o r gani z er and
admini s t r at o r o f pa r i s h activiti es and th e pa s t o r o f
the c on gr egati on a s w e ll But it may be that th e
.

needs o f the c ommunity cann ot be m e t w ith out the

ca rr ying on o f a ser ie s o f evangeli s tic s e rvic es ,

apart f r om th e regula r app o intment s f or public

w o rship and p r eaching Th er e a r e many name s
.

f o r thi s s e r ie s o f m ee ting s : e vangeli s tic service s ,

revival meeting s s p e cial s e rv ice s f o r th e r eligi ou s

,

li fe O n the wh ole the te r m mi ss i on i s g r o w

.

ing in fav ou r It s tand s f o r the pu r p o s e o f the

.

meetings Th e y may b e o r ganiz ed and car r ied ou t

.

by a chu r ch w ith its ow n p r eache r and lay w o rk

e rs The r e is help eno ugh to be had i f the plan s
.

a r e well made and th e pe ople will w o rk It is bet .

te r in many ca s e s to have s u ch a chu rc h missi on

w ith the pe ople themselves ca rr ying th e r esp on s i
b ility than it i s to b r ing in an evangeli s t and s ta ff ,
82 E VA NG E L I STI C P REA CH IN G

f orthe p eople a r e inclined to shi ft thei r bu r den o f

resp on s ibility unde r the se c on diti ons an d put it
wh olly o n th e e vangeli s t and hi s o rgani z ed cam
ai
p g n .

We n ow take up an outli n e o f thi r ty tw o s e rm on

-

s ubj ects which a r e o rga n ized arou n d the ev angel

istic m ess a ge The s e a re s i mply text s title s a n d
.
, ,

”
ce rtain s u ggestive s eed th oughts which a r e de
,

signed to sti m ulate the preacher in hi s thinking .

They a r e n ot se rm on outlines which are to b e

f oll o wed i n the devel opment o f the s ubj ect They .

a r e intended f o r three p o ssible u s es :

1 . These suggesti ons sh ow how a p r eache r
may o rga n i z e his yea r s pulpit w o rk a round t he
’

evangeli s tic s ubj ect and preach steadily on th e

g r eat me ss age L et it be clearly underst ood that
.

we do n ot adv o cate the u s e o f any o f these sub

j ec ts a nd texts ju s t a s they a re given A n d it
.

w ould p ro bably be quite I m p o ssible f o r a pr e a che r

to f o ll o w the o rde r a s it i s given The pu rp o se
.

o f the c our s e i s n ot to p r esent a plan to be f o ll owed ,

but r a ther to sh ow how it i s p o s s ible to dr a w u p

su ch a plan and ca rr y it ou t du r ing the chu r ch ye a r .

We c ann ot s t r es s too s t rongly the p o int that the

m a te r ial that f oll ow s is si m ply i n the way o f sug
gesti on to p rov oke thi nki ng r a ther th an to fette r
,

i t an d that so fa r a s it may be used by a p r e a che r

,

it m ust b e w o rked ove r and ada pted to hi s ow n

meth ods and to the needs o f the c ommunity .

2 . It i s h oped that the s uggesti on s that f ollow

 TH E O RG A N I ' I NG P RI N CIP L E 83

w ill be o f u s e in th e c onduct o f a chu r ch mi ss i on .

We have in mind a ser i es o f me e tings beginning

on Sunday and la s ting fi fteen day s ex cluding,

evening s e rvice s on the tw o Satu r d a y s O u t o f .

t he thi r ty tw o s ubj ect s given s ixt e en a r e to be s e

-

lected f o r the s e meetings namely tw o f o r each o f

, ,

the th re e Sundays and o n e f o r e a ch o f th e five

,

w eek day s du r ing the f o r tnight o f meeting s These .

s ubj ect s may be dev e l oped acc o r ding to th e cha r

acte r o f the s e rvices ; but the suggesti on s w ill be
u se ful it i s to b e h oped w hat e v er kind o f servic e
, ,

i s u s ed in the meeti n g .

3. In making the s e s ugge s ti on s it i s al so ou r

pu r p o s e to p r op o s e an o r de r o f s e r m on s that w ould
be fi tt e d to u s e in a r egul ar evangelistic camp aign .

Eve r y evangelist ha s w o r ked ou t his p r og r am with

s uch ca re that little is n ee ded by him in the w ay o f
s ugge s ti on a s to th e unity and the p r og r es s o f hi s
m ess age s f r om day to day Y et e ve r y f r esh a r
.

r angem e nt ha s in it s om e value and the r e f o re we

,

hO pe that thi s plan o f s e r m on s may have s om e

thing O f w o rth in it b e cau s e it p r es e nt s ano the r
a rr ange ment o f the s ubj e ct s int o which the g r eat
me ss ag e may fall The p r eaching task o f an evan
.

g eli st i s n o t an ea s y o n e The. r e i s the dange r o n

the on e hand that h i s mes s age s w ill bec ome ste r e o

typed ; on the othe r that th e y w ill lack c ohesi on
,

and will n ot r each any re al climax P o s sibly the .

plan outlined in the f oll owing pages w ill be o f

serv i ce in es caping e ithe r o r b oth o f th ese dang er s .
 A P RO G RA M O F E V A NG E L I STI C
P REA CH I N G

N th e ba s i s o f w hat ha s b e en s aid in th e
p re c e ding chapt ers we n ow unde r tak e to
se t f or th thi r ty tw o text s and s ubj ect s
-

w hich p rese nt th e G o s p e l a s a m ess ag e to the com

munity They res t on a ce r tain de fi nit e the ol og
.

ical ba s is which s eem s to u s the s imple evangelical

f o undati on o f the N ew Testament inte r p r eted and
,

illu s t r ated by th e b es t res ult s o f m o de r n thinking .

Thi s the ol ogy i s n ot that o f any pa r ticula r s ch ool

o r nam e . It i s th e m os t c onsist e nt s tatement that
we can mak e o f th e s imple s t Ch r i s tian m ess ag e .

It gath ers ab out th e fact o f th e living Ch r ist and

th e po ss ibility o f th e s oul fi nding it s c omplet e r eali
z ation in all e gianc e to Ch r i s t It inv olve s th e
.

teaching o f Jes u s c once r ning th e Kingd om o f G od

which w a s pe r f e ctly e xe mpli fie d in Hi s ow n li f e o f
l ov e and s e rvic e am ong men .

This i s a message E v er y p r each er w ill o r gani z e

.

hi s ow n s ubj e ct s and mate r ial acc o r ding to hi s ow n

ideas ta s t e and s en s e o f adaptati o n to his com
,

munity But hi s me ss age he must giv e The com

. .

munity need s and th e Church dem a nd s evangeli s ti c

p r eaching .

That thi s i s th e s up r eme bu s ine ss o f the Ch r i s

87
88 E VA NG EL I STI C P RE A CH I NG

tian pulpit r equi r e s n o detailed discussi on o r de

f en se . It h a s bee n thu s f r om the very beginn ing
o f Ch r isti a n ac tivity The d i s c iples r a llied their
.

f a ith i n their livi n g M a ste r and then went ou t to

tel la ll t he w o rld th a t they knew Hi m a s the Sav i ou r
a nd L o rd This testim ony w as si mp le di r e ct an d
.
, ,

p o sitive a t the beginni n g a n d i n spite o f the w a y

, ,

i n which the c ontent o f the mess age h a s e n l arged

as time h a s gone on it still re ma i n s the great a n d
,

perm an ent busines s o f the pre a che r The in c reased

.

mea n ing o f the message a n d its a p p lic a ti on to the

wh ole li fe o f m anki n d has m a de the w ork o f
preaching th e G o spel m o re c omp lex an d ex ac ti n g ;
but it never ha s ch anged its w a r r ants o r rele a sed
the p r ea che r f rom his obligati on to be a her a ld a nd
a witness o f the mess a ge o f good n ews that Jesus
b rought to th e w o r ld and f o r which He lived and
died .

The r e ar e ce r tain fundamental c o nvicti ons th a t

are impe rative be fo r e a p r e a che r will u n dertake
this pr og r am He must r e n ew his a rdent c onvi e
.

ti on o f the truth o f his mess a ge a n d the w o rth Of

his t a sk as its her a ld Christi an preache r s need to
.

s tudy thei r charte r o ften in o r de r that they may

n o t l o se th ei r acc u r ate s ense o f the w o rk th a t it is

their fi rst duty to c a rr y on i n the c ommunity .

The tendency o f par ish w o r k is to c rowd to the

w all the pr imacy o f p re a chi n g a nd especi a lly the
s u pr emacy O f that kind o f pr e achi ng whi ch is con
ce rn ed w ith the giving o f th e m ess age to the com
 S ER M O N O UTL I NE S 89

munity The r e are so many e rr ands to be r un ; so

.

many ent r ie s to be made on c ar d s ; so many inte r

est s to be s e rved ' But the r e is o nly on e d ominant
'

pu r p o se i n the ministe r s pulpit w o r k ; it i s to give

’

in eve r y p o ssible phase and accent the old me ss age

that J e s u s fi r st ann ounced in P ale s tine and which
th e a p o s t olic s ucces s i on o f Ch r i s tian p re ache rs has
pe rpetuated eve r since In the mid s t o f the b e
.

w ilde r i n g demands o f the m o de r n pa r i s h the

p r each er need s to r eaffir m thi s p r inciple daily a s
he p r epa res f o r hi s p re aching .

The idea p r evail s w id e ly that th e w o r k o f th e

r e s ident mini s te r in hi s pulpit i s to lay e mpha s i s
on the t e aching a s pect o f p re aching and d e legat e

the m o re pu r ely evangeli s tic task to m e n w ho sp e

cializ e in thi s f o rm o f the ser m o n and w ho t r av e l

among the chu r che s h o lding evangeli s tic m e eting s

o r c onducting campaign s . The r e i s a pe r manent
place f o r the t e chnical e vang e list ; the r e a re time s
and c ommunitie s that demand the o rgani z ed m ove
ment ca rr ied on by the evangeli s t and hi s s ta ff o f
w o rk e r s But the r e i s a fa r la r ge r plac e f o r di s
.

tin ctly evangelistic p re aching and acti o n in th e

p r og r am o f ev er y c ong re gati on It i s what i s
.

s ometime s called Ev angelism Chu rch w ide and A ll

-

the Y ear Throu gh . It m e an s that th e p r each ing i s

o r ganiz e d a r ound th e pu r p o s e to p r e se nt the G o sp e l

to the c o mmunity a s a m ess ag e o f li fe ; that the

p e ople a re unit e d and di r ect e d in the s upp or t o f

th e p rog r am so that th ey w ill m ak e pe rsonal an d
90 EVA NG EL ISTIC P R EA CH I NG

pe rs i stent e ffo rt s to int r oduce men and w om en to

Chri s t It inv olves a m oveme n t o f the wh ole
.

Chu r ch steadily an d ste a dfas t ly t owa r d the impres

si on o f the G o s p el up on the t otal life o f the com
munity It defin es the chief busi n ess o f the Chu r ch
.

in thi s endeav our an d c a lls f o r a ll the p os s ible re

s ou r ce s O f the pe op le drive s u s to new con secra
,

ti on and p ra ye r and fu s es the ene rgie s o f the

,

faith ful f r i e nds o f Ch r i s t int o on e sup r eme l oyalty

and servic e The o rganizati on o f the chu r ch f or
.

thi s pu rp os e i s the highe s t privilege o f the pasto r .

A s a pa r t o f this pr ogram the pre a ching o f the

yea r w ill be plan n ed to p r ese n t the G ospel with
n ew f or ce and c o nvicti o n Theref o r e it i s meces
.

s a ry to de fine agai n in one s mi n d and r est ore in

’

one s expe r ience the p r istine mea n i n g o f the mes

’

s a ge which J esu s br ought to the w or ld a n d which

was expe r ienced by His ea r liest f oll owe rs A re .

reading o f the N ew Testame nt wi th this pur p o se

i n mind will be the best Single way in which to
gathe r the mate r i a l f o r the se rmon s and to dete r
mine what s ubj ects sh ould be prea ched up on .

W at is e G p
h th o s el? The w o r d h a s been u s ed so
l on g that it s firs t clea r cut meaning h a s bee n w o rn
-

away like the face o f a c o in that ha s s u ff e r ed h a rd

u s age We mu s t r eview a nd r enew ou r c ons c i ous
.

ness o f this n oble w or d It was good new s i n the

.

fi rst centu ry ; it i s s till good news whe r e men st r ive

with the unde rlying s in s o f the s p irit ; ou r w o rk
i s to mak e it good news to ou rs elve s and to oth ers
 SE R M O N OUTL I NE S 91

in s pit e o f th e c omm onplac e cha r act er that ti me an d

cust o m hav e given to it .

Then havi n g s elect e d the r equi s it e thi r ty tw o

,
-

s ubj ect s whi ch s eem to be c once rned w ith the pub

lication o f a re al m ess age to the m o de r n comm u
n ity a me ss ag e w hich ha s f ound you and in
'

which you b e li ev e w ith all you r p ow e rs th e w o r k ,

o f ser m on p r epa r ati o n w ill begin O f all th e

.

p r eaching to which th e mini s te r ha s dev o t e d him

se lf h e w ill fi nd that thi s i s th e m os t s timulating ,

d e light ful and rew a r ding Th e happi es t bu s in ess

, .

in li f e i s to se t f o rth w ith all th e p ow e rs at on e s ’

c ommand th e G os pel o f th e re c onciliati on in Ch r i s t .

In att e mpting to give the m ess ag e w hich we cal l

the G os p e l with what s hall we begin ? P erhap s th e
,

m o s t familia r p o int o f depa r tu r e i s th e d oct r in e o f

G od . C er tainl y thi s i s the unde r lying t r uth that
w a rr ant s th e m ess ag e and it mu s t n e ve r b e all ow ed
to b e c om e ob s cu re d O cca s i onally a p re ach er
.

s ta rt s w ith th e natu re o f man hi s y e a r ning f o r,

G od hi s ess ential r eligi ou s cha r act er Thi s i s vital

, . .

We mu s t b e s u re that r eligi o n i s an integ r al pa r t

o f man s n or mal li f e I f it is s omething a rti fi cial
’
.

or accidental th e n th ere i s n o r ea s on to exp e ct that

,

th ere will b e a p er man e nt res p on s e to th e m e s s ag e .

P re ach ers s om e tim es b e gin w ith th e fact o f Ch r i s t .

He w a s th e M esse ng er ; in c er tain res p e ct s it is

t r u e that He is th e M ess ag e I f we gain at th e out
.

se t a clea r idea o f Jes u s i f we a re w a rm e d by the

,

app e al th at c om es f r om H is r adiant P e rson w e ,

92 E VA NG EL ISTI C P RE A CH I NG

sh a ll be disp o sed to a ccept the G o spel an d to t ru s t

i n it as the w ay int o a n ew li fe f o r ou rs elve s and
f o r th e w o rld .

The pl a ce that Jes u s has o ccupied i n the Chris

tia n expe r ience o f the w o r ld m a kes it seem re a s on
a ble to begin with a b r ief s etting f o rth o f Christ
as the o b j ect o f faith an d l ove with the expecta
,

ti on that th rough Him we s hall com e to kno w G od ,

to understa n d the meaning o f sin and repe n ta n ce ,

sh a ll a pp r eciate the n ew life that begi n s when we

u nite our s elve s in o bedienc e to Christ a n d shall
,

bri n g ou t the pr actical r esult s in c o n duct th a t ar e

the issue o f thi s allegi ance to Christ a s M a ste r
and Savi ou r The r ef o r e w e begin thi s s e r ies o f
.

s e rm ons which i s to p r e s ent the G o spel to the com

munity as a claim up on thei r su rr e n de r ed wills w ith
a p rese ntati on o f Ch r i s t as the obj ect o f l ov e and
trust .

I n p r epa r ing these s e rm ons th e N ew Te stament

is th e p ri mary s ource o f m a te r ial To r ead a n d re
.

r ead its reco rds o f the li fe and m es sage o f Je s u s

is the first p rivilege o f the p r eacher In additi on .

tw o b o o ks will be f o und o f g r eat value The fi rs t

.

is Ou tlin es of the L if e of Chris t by William San

,

day ( 2 d ed N ew Y o rk : Sc r ibne r s
’
.
,

A m on g the numer ous b ook s o n th e li f e o f Chri s t

t his is on the wh ole the m o st s atis fact o ry a s a
w o rki ng ma nual f o r the preache r The s ec ond i s
.

The F act of Chris t by P , .Ca rnegie Simp son

( R ev e,ll abo ut Thi s i s a s t u d y o f th e ch ar
94 EVA NG E L I STI C P RE A CH I NG

to get the call o f Ch r i s t clea r ly bef or e the pe ople .

It i s n e ce ss a r y to sh o w the w a y in which that clai m

may be r ecogni z ed and r esp onded to E specially .

must w e sh ow th a t the Ch r i s t wh om we l ove and

s e rve i s n ot a de a d Example but a li v i n g L o rd .

We begin with t he hu ma n li fe o f Jesus In this .

fir s t serm on the p r eache r will do his best to set

f o rth the c on summate beauty o f the G r eat L i fe .

R ead and thi n k a nd even w o n de r an d a d o r e in the

p r esen c e o f the figu r e o f Jesus o f N a za r eth U se .

the im a ginati on until H is p e r s ona lity i s vivid .

P o nde r on H is w o r d s u n til their se a r ching a nd

pai n ful beauty s inks into you r s ou l D O n ot p reach
.

thi s s e rm on until you a r e actu ally gl owi n g with

you r r ene w ed app r eciati on o f Jesus L et you r .

em oti on s pl a y ar ound the scenes fr om His li fe u n til

th o se qu a litie s which you hav e s ele c ted to p resent
in the s e rm on a r e ra diant a n d vivid D o n ot be
.

a fraid that the re will be any l oss to the divine

Ch r i s t a s a r e sult o f the inte n sity with whi ch the
fi gu r e O f the hi s t or ic J e s us i s p r e s e n ted R emem
.

be r how P hillip s Br ook s b rought ou t the figure o f

Christ by s t re ssi n g the hum a n pe r fe c ti on o f J esu s .

In p r ep ar ing this s e r m on it may hel p u s to

r ead a g a in the p o em by Sidn ey L anie r entitled
”
'
The Cry s tal f ound in hi s P oems a t p age 2 9
,
.

He r eviews th e n ame s and ch ara cte r s o f the

gre a t S p irit s O f the age s in ea ch o f which s ome
,
.

thi n g i mp e r fect i s found Th e n he c om e s to

.

Ch r i s t
 SE RM ON O UTL INE S 95

B u t Thee , bu t Thee O s overeign Se er o f t ime

, ,

B u t Thee O p o e t s P oe t W i sd om s Ton gue

’ ’

, , ,

B u t Thee O man s bes t M an O l ove s bes t L ov e

’ ’
, , ,

0 p erfe ct l i fe in p erfe ct l a b ou r wr it ,

0 a ll m e n s Com rade Servant King o r P ri es t

’
, , , ,

Wh at if or yet wh at m ole wh at fla w what l ap se

, , , ,
‘

Wh at le a s t defec t o r sh a dow Of defec t ,

Wh at rumour tatt led by an e n e my

, ,

O f in fere nc e l oo se wh at l ac k o f gr ac e
,

E v e n i n t o r t ure s gr a s p o r slee p s o r de ath s

’ ’ ’
, , ,

O h wh at ami ss ma y I f o rgive in T hee

, ,

Jesus good P a r agon thou C ry s ta l Ch r i s t

, , .

Thi s i s the w ay that J e s u s imp r e ss e sth e d e v out

and h one s t s tudent o f Hi s matchl es s li fe Having .

gain e d thi s imp r e ss i on it i s the p r eache r s glad p r iv ’

ilege to s eek to imp ress it up o n othe rs Thi s we .

und er take in the firs t in s tance by mean s o f a ser

m on on The M an o f N aza r eth W e w ant to c r eat e .

a p r e s umpti o n in fav ou r o f J e s u s that will mak e

the fav ou r abl e res p on se to His divine claim s natu
r al and imp er ative .

Th e M an o f Naz aret h
B ehold, the m an ' ( J oh n 1 9:
A n ex c l am ati on o f c ont e mpt be c om es t he h i ghes t
t ri bu t e th at c ould be gi v e n to a h u man be ing Jesus .

is the on e sup re m e M an T he w a y to kn ow Chris t

.

is to know G od H is life an d exp erie nc e furni sh t h e

.

b a se lin e f r om whi ch w e run ou r survey o f lif e an d

chart th e m or a l an d s pi ri t u a l un i v erse .

H is complete an d glorious hu man ity c omman ds

96 E V A NG EL I STI C P RE A CH I NG

ou r a dmi rati on and d i scipl e ship We a re su re wh en .

we a re in H is p re senc e th at we a re in c o ntact w ith

e v erything that is n ob l e st an d b e st in ou r h u manity .

What we w ou ld like to b e c om e in ou r high es t mo

m e nt s Jesus wa s c on stantly .

H is cou rage c omman ds ou r t rus t an d c on fidenc e .

Cou rage i s a d mi r ab l e in a l l m e n u n der al l ci r c u m

s tanc es The b rave m an i s th e defender o f t ru th th e
.
,

champi on o f j u s tic e th e gua rd i an o f th e we ak Jes u s

, .

n e v er s h owed th e whit e fe ath er .

H is loyalty c omman ds ou r a lle gianc e I t c rown ed .

H is c ou rage H e n e v er onc e f ai led H is G od H is

.
,

c om ra des o r H is Cau se It co s t H im l ab ou r an d
, .

w atching pai n an d death H e kept f aith w ith H is

, .

i de al s ; H e s t ood s t e a dfa s t w ith th e u np op u la r t ru th .

H is u n selfishn ess c omman ds ou r ser vic e Jes u s .

wa s e n dowed w ith wonderfu l p ers onal gi f t s M en .

an d wom en l oved to b e in H is company be cau se H e

w a s so fr i en d l y an d so kin d H e wa s u tt erly u n.

se l fis h H e n e v er pu t H is ow n int eres t s firs t

. .

H is j oy k in dles ou r ye a r nings an d invit es ou r de

cision in H is f av ou r Jesu s wa s a happ y man The
.
.

so ca ll ed
-
B e atit u des a re th e a ss u rances o f happi
n e ss ; an d Jesus re a l i zed a ll o f th e m in H is o w n l i fe

from d ay to d ay M en n e ver wou l d hav e in ferred

.

fr om th e l i fe o f Jes u s that th e wo rld wa s a gl oomy

”
p l ac e or thi s li fe a vale o f t ea rs '
M en a sked .

Je su s to b e th eir gues t be cause th ey li ked to h ave H im

a roun d .

O n e ach o f these c ou nt s the li fe o f Jes u s comm en d s

H is m ess a ge to us Wh at H e w as c re at es a presup
.

p os iti on th at wh at H e s ai d i s t rue an d th at i t i s de
98 EV A NG E L I STI C P R EA CH IN G

than f o r c onsecutive re a di ng wi th every pag e

,

b r istli ng w ith questi ons th a t p rov oke th ou ght and

s tudy make s the v olume especi a lly valu able f or the
pre acher w ho must w o rk dilige ntly and f or a l ong
tim e on thi s s e r m o n c once rn i ng Jesu s the Teacher .

I f it is i mp o ss i ble to give suffi cie n t tim e to the

s tudy to car r y it th rough to the end at lea st the ,

c ontent s o f Ch apter XXV on Hi s ' u a litie s as a

”
Teache r ought to be wo rked th r ough carefully .

P r o f H o r n e indicates the f o ll o wi ng a s the essen

.

tial qu a lifi ca ti ons o f a W o rld Te a che r :

-

A visi on that e n c o mpa sses the w o r ld .

Knowledge o f the hea r t o f man .

M a s t e r y o f the subj ect taught .

A pt n ess in teachi n g .

A li fe that e m b o dies the teaching .

In selecting the p o ints to be p r ese nt e d in th e

s erm on w e mu s t use ou r ow n be s t judgment a n d
tre at the items th a t app e ar to u s m o st vital H ow .

do these s trike you ? A re they arr anged in the

right o r de r f or the climax o f the s erm on ? Wh a t
pr a ctic a l illust r ati on s o f them o ccu r to you a s you
r e fl ect u p on them ?
This will be on e o f the serm on s that will g row
with br oo di n g u p on the subj e c t a nd it will be a
great p leasure to pe r fe c t it gr a dually th rough re
fl ection and f ormal pre p ar a ti on .

Th e G reat T e ach er
A nd ev ery day he w as teachin g in the temple .
 SE RM ON O UTL I NE S 99

And all the p p

eole cam e e arl
y in the m orning to him
in the temple, to hear him ( L uke 2 1 : 3 7,
We a ll m us t le a rn to l iv e Som ewhere there m ust .

be f ou n d a t e acher w ho c a n give us th e tru th Jesus .

can m ee t this n eed .

The Te ch ra e — Jesus w a s a Si mp l e n atur a l sym , ,

pathe tic T e acher The s c r i bes were du ll t e ch nical

.
, ,

ou t o f t ou ch w it h l i fe They a rgu ed at we ary le ngt h

.

a bou t l a ws c ere m oni es an d a bs t ruse s p e cul ati on s

, , .

Jesus un ders t ood m e n se t f o r th the t ruth v ividly

, ,

t ran sfu sed it w ith w a rm h u man a ff e ct i on .

The tru th — A s Jes u s ta u gh t i t t ru th b o re d i re ct ly

up on life The Serm on on the M o un t is n ot a f o rma l
.

dis c ourse on a rel i gi ous s u b j e ct ; it is a w o rkable

p r ogr am f o r in d ivi du a l an d s o cia l l i vi ng E ve ry .

p ri ncip le th at Jesus ta u gh t c onn e ct s dire ct ly with the

c omm on w o rk o f the a ver a ge man .

Th m e hod
e t — Jes u s u sed h om ely fi gures an d Si mp le
s to r i es to exp ress t ru th H e d i d n ot giv e de tai led
.

defi niti o n s o r ca rry on el a bo rat e dis c u ssi on s F o r .

examp le the s t o ries o f the P r o d iga l Son an d t he

,

G oo d Sama r it an ma ke the t ru t h p l a i n vivi d an d , ,

c omman d ing They are des c r ipti on s r ather th an

.

defi niti on s or deb at es .

The learn ers — T h e y we re o f a ll k in ds L i tt le .

ch i ldren he a rd H im gl a dly ; old m e n l i s t e n ed e agerly .

T i red t o i lers s t opp ed to ta ke i n H is w o rds ; ri ch m en

a sked H im to di nn er H e h a d a mess age f or e ve ry
.

on e .

The resu lts — Th o s e w ho

be cam e Chris t s dis c i p l es ’

foun d th at their li v es were ch an ged T he truth .

began at on ce to do s om e thi ng w ith the m They did .

1 00 E VA NG EL I STI C P RE A CH I NG

no t r e ce i ve m erely a n ew se t o f i dea s from Je su s ;

th ey foun d a n ew w ay o f li fe in l i s t ening to H is
wo rds The wh ol e c onte nt o f th e i r rel ati on to G od
.

an d to on e another wa s changed by what th ey le a rn ed

from Jesus The old s c en es an d d u ti es remain ed ; b u t
.

the di s cipl e s o f Je su s be cam e n e w act o rs in th e mi d st

o f o ld e n ga ge m e nt s The res u lt o f le a rning in th e
.

s chool o f Ch ris t w as a new p ractical l i fe .

S E RM O N TH R E E

In p re aching the thi r d se rm on i n thi s se r ie s we

p rop o s e to p re sent the cl a im o f Christ a s th e m or al
M a s te r . H e dema n d s a t ra nsfo rm ed m o r a l sta n d
a r d ; He insi s ts up o n acti on on n ew an d highe r
ethical level s This is the peculia r ch a racteristic
.

o f th e t r u th that He taught : it demands that w e do

s omething w ith it ; it changes ou r live s ; it work s

m o r al t r ansf o rmati on s .

We think fir st o f all o f th e w ay in which the

message o f Jesu s di ff e r ed f rom that o f the r eligio u s
le a de rs o f H is d a y They w e r e c o n stantly in s i s t
.

ing u p on s ome r e finement o f the c e r em onie s o r th e

detailed legal c onf o rmities which were s upp o s ed
to d e te rmin e the r eligi ou s ch ar acte r o f a man .

An d J e s us went in s tantly fa r be n eath all thi s and

disc ove r ed the unde rlyi n g m otive s o f li f e H e .

w asted n o time in f r uitles s dis cussi on o f th e exte r

n als o f li fe He w anted men to act f rom th e right
.

motive s that produc e th e t r u e li f e .

1 02 EVA NG E L I STI C P REA CH I NG

Jesu s th e M o ral Radical

F or from w i thin , ou t of the heart f men

o , ev il

thou gh ts pr ocee d ( M a rk 7 :
Jesus went to th e root o f th e mo ral an d Spi r it u a l
l i fe in H is t eaching H is claim wa s a sser t ed u p on
.

th e r u ling m otives which act u at e u s in daily l i fe .

J esu s affirm ed th e p rim ary impor tan ce o f p poseur .

—
The old law dealt w ith acti on s ; Jes u s w ith th e ,

i de a s an d p u rpo ses that in spi re th e m Jes u s de alt .

w ith ca u ses ; th e law w ith e ff e ct s

, Jes u s dem an ded a.

tr an sf o rm ed li fe ; th e P ha r i sees a c on f o rm ed li fe
, .

T he c on du ct an d cha r act er dem an ded by th e la w were

m e chanica l an d s up erfi cia l ; Jes u s called f or r a dical
changes o f p u rp o se an d a vital re ligi on .

Jesu s proposed a suprem e s tan dard — M en were to

be goo d a s G o d i s good an d b e ca u se G o d i s good ;
l ov ing a s G o d l ov es T he s tan da rds o f th e O ld
.

T es tam e nt see m ed hi gh an d d i ffi c u l t to re ach ; th e

s tan da rd p r op osed by Jes u s wa s high er an d mo re
di ffi c u lt. T hi s makes it chall en gin g an d att ractiv e ;
we a re w on by th e f act o f it s d i ffi cu l ty to att empt to
re ach it N o o th er p r ogr am o f l iving c ompa res w ith
.

th at which Jes u s se t s be fore H is d i s cip les .

Jesu s prov ides res ou rces to help us attain H is

stan dard — T hi s
makes Jesus an d H is m ess age d i f
f eren t fr om any o th er t e ach er o r t r u th O ther .

e thical an d re li gi ou s ma st ers and sys t e m s p r op ose

i de al s an d s tanda rds ; b u t th ey leav e th e i r d i s ciples
w ith ou t h el p in attaining th em T he Ch ris t i an G osp el
.

b r in gs w ith i t a n ew re si de nt e n ergy which re in

,

f o r c es ou r hi gh es t h uman p owers in ou r s t ru ggle to

re ach th e standa rd se t by Jesus G od takes a pa rt i n .

the probl em H elp comes to us f rom the un seen

. .
 SE RM O N O UTL I NE S 1 03

G odb reaks thr ough We a re f u r ni shed wi th fresh

.

t roop s We may n ot be a ble to exp l ain it ; bu t we

.

can feel an d kn ow it I t is a f act in ou r c on sci ous

.

n ess T h ere are mi ll i on s o f w itn esses to it G od

. .

d oes n ot m o c k u s wi th the defi niti on of a p urp o se

th at we may n e v er attain With H is hel p we are .

bou n d to w in ou r b att le .

S E RM O N F O U R
The pu r p o s e o f the f o u r th se r m on i s to p rese nt
th e claim o f J e s us the M an Teache r and M or al ,

M a s te r up o n u s
. It i s taken f o r g r ant e d that we
canno t c om e int o the p r e se nce o f s uch a cha r acte r
w ith out fe e ling the demand that it make s up on u s
and d e si r ing to resp o nd to the upwa r d pull o f it .

The g r eat p r incipl e that lies in the backg round

o f the s e r m o n is that ev er y f r iend and ev er y s itua

ti on exert s up o n u s a de fi nite influenc e eith er f or

the l owe r o r the highe r The r e a r e s om e f r iends
.

and s ome s ituati ons that dep r es s a nd deg r ade u s ;

w e may n ot be keenly c on s ci ous o f the fact but ,

the influence s a r e s ilently and ce a sele s sly at w o r k .

O n the o the r h a nd the re a re c o m r ad es a nd ci r cum

s tance s which elevat e u s Th e y lay a s ilent claim
.

up o n all that i s be s t in u s and call it int o acti on .

We cann ot r emain th e s am e in th e p r e s enc e o f

the se invigo r ating f o r c es .

The g r eate s t single e n ergy that can p oss ibly act

up on ou r m o r al a nd s pi r itual res ou r c e s ev oking
th e i r r e s p on se to all that i s go o d and n obl e i s th e
P ers onality o f Jes u s . In th e prese n ce o f Hi s im
1 04 E VA NG EL I STI C P RE A CH I NG

pe r ial claim it i s imp oss ible to r emain neut ra l or to

all ow ourselve s to be p a ssive i f w e ar e consci ous
a nd alert to the m e ani ng o f His li fe and mess age .

Jesus l ays H is st r o ng h an d up o n us an d claims us

f o r a higher lif e th a n the on e we ar e livi ng n ow .

The best w ay in which to p r epare f or this s erm on

is f or the p r e ache r himself to feel this dem a nd an d
to yield him s el f to it in a new dedicati o n o f spirit .

The ser mo n that has p ower on this sub j ect will

gr ow out o f a p r e ache r s enriched expe r ienc e o f
’

the t r uth W e d o n ot n e ed to make a n inve nt o ry

.

o f ou r lite r a r y r e s ou r ce s but rather to inc r ea se ou r

,

ow n s pi r itual r es ou r ce s .

A n int e rp r et er o f the cha r acte r o f P et er h a s

wr itten
Beyond high aim s and bu r ning enthusia sm it
i s n ot ea s y to s ay preci s ely what P ete r sa w in
Ch r i s t But we a r e su r e to l ove the h ighe s t when
.

we see it a nd it i s a c omm on expe r ie n ce th at we

,

yield to the magnetism o f a p e r s onality when ex

p l anati on s a r e alt ogether bey ond us It is n ot so .

mu ch the d o ct r i n e o f Ch r ist th at maste r s us as it

is the st o ry o f Hi s li fe ; and while w e a r e baffled
by Hi s n atu r e a nd mu s t c ontinue to be w e a re
”
conqu er ed by His l ove .

Christ Claim s U s f o r th e H igh est L i fe

Thou S im on the son of John : thou shalt be
art

cal led Cephas ( w hich is by in terpretation P eter' ,

( J oh n
Al bert S
‘
J ou
. thou se,
The M akin g f
o Simon P eter, p H
. .
1 06 EVA NG E L I STI O P RE A CH I NG

S E RM O N F I V E
We must n ow sh ow in wh a t w ay s it i s p oss ible to
e stablish vital r el a ti ons with Ch r ist wh o m we ,

thi n k o f as living alth ough invisible and within

s p iritu a l re ach o f every on e w ho will re sp ond to
His cl a im up on th e m f o r the highest We must .

sh o w th a t there a r e w ay s o f a pp r oach and ac ts to

be perf ormed or we s hall leave the wh ole m a tte r
in the r eal m o f th e my s tical and un r eal This re .

l ati on with Ch r ist i s a s actual an expe r ienc e a s is

the beati n g o f ou r hea rt s .

The a pp ro ach to thi s s ubj e ct i s th rough psy

ch ology whi c h i s a l on g a nd technical w o r d to
,

des cr ibe what we know o f th e w ay in which the

n on b o dily part o f us w o rk s
-
We do kn ow how a
.

great friendship i s establi shed a nd m a i ntai n ed ; w e

unde rs tand how a child be c o m es a me m be r o f the
family g roup n ot me r ely by his phy s ical prese n ce
,

in it but by the w ay in which he blend s his ow n

,

purp o se with that o f the family as a wh ole an d ,

thus be c ome s the p ossess o r o f hi s t r u e r ight s a nd

privileges as a child .

N ow it is c lear that the m o s t imp o r t a nt fact

ab out a n y hum an being is n ot the physic a l c ondi
ti ons in which he lives hi s pe r s on a l a p p e ara nce o r
,

s ocial p r estige The sup r eme matte r i s th e m o

.

tiv es w hi ch steadily a ctu a te him in his d a ily con

duct ; it is his d omin an t desi r es and hi s r uling pu r
p o s es The s e r eally c ount in determining the
.

w or th o f a p ers on to him s elf hi s family s o ci e ty

, , ,
 SERM O N O UTL I NE S 107

an d G Thi s gro up o f m o ti v e s f ro m which a

od .

pe rs on act s habitually i s called by William J am es

the habi tu al cen ter of his person al en ergy It i s .
,

ess e ntially hi s r eligi on which Ca r lyle s aid w a s th e

, ,

p r incipal fact ab out any man N ow wh e n th e

.

g roup o f idea s f r o m which on e acts habitually

cente r in l oyalty to G od and Ch r i s t we a r e Ch r i s
tian When that s et o f ideas e s cape s to the r egi on
.

o f the dim and un r eal in s tead o f remaining w a r m

and vivid at the cent er o f ou r habitual acti on w e ,

hav e su ff e r ed a c omm e n s u r ate l oss in ou r Ch r i s tian

li fe When n o s uch se t o f m otive s ha s sw ayed us
.

habitually w e a re n ot Ch r isti an When we tak e.

the r uling m otive s o f J esu s and delib er ately plac e

them at the cent er o f ou r habitual acti o n and h o ld
them the r e we a r e Ch r i s tian The r i s e and fall o f
.

ou r Ch r i s tian ex pe r ience i s dete r mined by th e

l oyalty and co n s ci ous delibe r ati o n w ith which w e
put the m otive s that r uled th e li fe o f J e s us at the
”
c ente r o f ou r habitual center o f pe r s onal ene r gy .

Thi s inv olv es it will b e r eadily seen a m o r al

, ,

and s pi r itua l uni o n w ith Chri s t When we a re .

m otivating ou r acti on s habitually by His r uling

m otiv es we a re on e w ith Him in th e s pi r itual pu r
p o ses that sw ayed Him in daily li f e In thi s way .

He is in u s a s He p r o mised that He w ould b e .

An d w e a re i n Him as bec o mes ou r p r ivilege w hen

,

w e yield o u r selve s to Him in s uch a pe rs onal uni on

o f pu r p o se a s w e have de s c r ibed .

Thi s i s a g e n er al d es c r ipti on o f w hat happens

1 08 EVA NG EL I STI C P RE A CH I N G

in the beginn i ng a nd devel opmen t o f the Ch r isti an

l i fe ; but i t is n ot an d canno t be a full a ccou n t o f the
f o r c e s a t w o rk in the acc o m plish m e n t o f th e mighty
c h ange i n pu rp o s e a n d ch a r a cter which makes up
the wh ole pr o c ess o f c onversi o n to Christ a nd
gr o wth int o the likene ss to His c haracte r an d spi r it
whi ch is the goal o f the Ch r istian ex perience .

We k n ow th a t there a r e deeper e n ergies at w o rk ;

we cann ot a n alyze the m o r cla ss i fy them fully .

But f o r pr a cti c al purp oses this su rr en de r to the

maste ry o f the m otives o f Ch r i s t is the step th a t
ope n s the w ay f o r the f oll o wi n g experie n c e s in

w hi ch th e r el a ti onship o f l oy a lty to Him i s com

p let e d . It s h o ws us wh a t we m ay d o on o u r s id e
to avail ou rse lve s o f th e n ew li fe i n Chri s t .

The M t
as e r s
’
M ti
o ve O ur M t
as e r M o ti ve

H av e this m in d in you w hich w as , also in Christ

J esu s ( P hi l . 2 :

H ow s hal l we res pon d to th e c l aim that Jesus the

M an th e T e ach er an d the M o ra l M a s t er makes u p on
, ,

us ? B y actin g c on s tant ly from th e m otiv es which

cont rol l ed H im hab it ually .

The im portan ce of m o tiv es — Wi ll iam J am es s ai d

that th e grou p o f i de a s to which a man de vot es him
self an d from which h e wo rk s hab itu al l y n ot spa s ,

m odically i s the m o s t impo r tant f act ab ou t him

,
It .

i s th e hab it u al c ent er of hi s p ers ona l en ergy G eorge .

B ern a rd Sha w s ai d that what a man be l i eves m ay

b e a s c ertain ed n ot from hi s c reed b u t from the
, ,

a ssumpti on s on whi ch he hab itually a cts There fore .

1 10 EVA NG EL ISTI C P RE A CH I NG

Ch rist . This is the gre at ch oic e by which we be come

Ch r i s ti an s .

S E RM O N S I X
We n ow r each the p o i n t a t which w e must b r ing
o u t the distin c tive item o f faith th a t rests u p on

Christ a s i ts obj ect It is cle ar th at when H e wa s

.

living with H is friends i n the i nti m ate c ont a c t s o f

daily dutie s H e made the rel a ti on th a t they b o r e
to Hi m self the d o m inant fact i n the r el a ti o ns o f
disciple and Teache r H e did n ot a sk m en to ac
.

cept truths ab out Him o r even p r in c iples th a t He

taught ; H e a sked the m to be c ome l oy a l pe r s onal
f r iends to Himself H e tested men by the ch ara cte r
.

o f their allegi a nce to H im N ow the s a me c on di

.

ti ons obtai n We ca nnot see Chris t ; but we can

.

k n o w the full value o f H is friendship as we

identi fy ou r selve s w ith Him by a d opti n g as o u r
ow n the pe r s onal m otiv es acc o r ding to w hich H e

acted h a bitu a lly .

R emi n d y ou rs el f again how t r ue it is that th e

s weet an d blessed friendship s o f li fe do n ot in
sisten tly demand p hysi ca l c ont a cts ; s o me o f the

h oliest c omr a deship s th a t eve r have been kn own

have been a l m o s t enti r ely i n the r e a lm o f the in
visible A n d it is p re c isely a s reas onable to cherish
.

a f r iendship with the Christ wh o m we m ay l ove n u

s een a s with a f r ie n d to wh om we m a y b e l oyal in
spi t e o f sepa rati o n .

We think n ow o f a l ove and dev oti on that has

 SERM O N O U TL I N ES 111

e xi sted s inc e gi r lh oo d bet w e e n tw o w omen They .

have n ot s een each o the r f o r hal f a centu r y It i s .

a lt ogethe r likely that they might pa s s each oth e r on

the s t r eet and neith er r ec og n i z e the f r iend o f the
l ong ago But the beauti ful l oyalty h a s g r o wn
.

r athe r than diminished as th e years h ave r un

s w i ftly by They have n ot w r itten many letters ;
.

they have s eld om exchanged greetings th r ough

mutual f r iend s A ll thi s has n o t b e en nece s sary ;
.

they l oved each othe r ; yea r s ago they p r omi s ed that

they would f o r ev er be t r ue to each othe r whateve r
li fe might have in s t ore f o r them A n d they have .

kept the faith .

Thi s i s a p oor pa r able o f th e w ay in w hich Ch r i s t

may bec ome th e o bj ect o f a p ers onal dev oti on that
n othing eve r can extingui s h The w rite r o f th e .

text which we a r e to un f old wa s s u r e ab out thi s

expe r ience He admitted at the outset that it was
.

l o y a lty to an invi s ible F riend ; but h e insisted that

the allegiance w as n on e the les s r eal a n d p r ofi table .

H e got deep sati s facti on ou t o f it It b r ought him .

n othing le ss than the s alvati on o f hi s s oul .

C h rist th e O b j ec t of L o v e an d F th
ai

Jesu s Christ: w hom n ot hav in g seen y e lov e ; on

w h om, thou gh n ow y e se e believin g ye

him n o t, y t
e ,

rej oice w ith j oy u n s eakable an d fu ll o l

p f g y : re
o r

ceiv in g the e n d o
f y ou r f ai th ev en the s alv
, at ion of
y ou r s ou l
s ( 1 P et I 8 .
,

Th e u n see n bu t l i v ing Chris t , wh om t he dis cip les

112 E VA N G EL I STI C P REA CH I NG

kn e w an d t ru s t ed i s s til l th e obj e ct
,
of love and faith
an d th e s ou r c e o f ou r sa lvati on .

The u n s een Chris t is the j

ob ect o f lov e — E very on e

w ho res ponds to th e app eal o f nob len ess and b ea u ty

o f soul l o v es Je su s o f N a z a re th H e w a s all that i s .

a dmi rable i n H is rel ati on s w ith oth ers What H e w as .

wh en H e wa s l iving on e a r th H e mu s t b e s til l in H is
e t erna l li fe T h erefore H e i s s till th e hi gh es t obj e ct
.

o f ou r a ff e cti on eve n i f we do n o t see H im o r t alk

,

w ith H im .

The u n seen Christ is the obj ect of faith — M en gav e

th e i r u tmo s t l oya l ty to Jes u s o f N a z a re th ; th ey left
”
all to f o ll ow H im T h ey d i d n ot de f end a th e o ry
.

ab ou t H im ; th ey y i elded th e i r l iv es to H im The u n .

seen l iving Ch r i s t i s wo r thy o f a s imi l a r surren der o f

,

li fe to H im We acc ept what H e t ells us to b e t ru e

.

an d we giv e ou rsel v es u p to loyal alle gianc e to H im ,

.

The u n seen Chris t is the s ou rce of j oy T he d i s .

-

ciples o f Jes u s o f N a z a re th were happ y O th ers s aw .

thi s an d were att ract ed to th e m by thi s fact H u .

manity ye a rn s f o r h appin ess It i s e ager f or j oy . .

The u n seen l iving Ch r i s t s til l ha s p ower to c om e

,

int o ou r h e a r t s hom es an d all ou r s o ci al rel ati on s

, ,

an d giv e u s th e deepe s t j oy an d s ati sfacti on The .

c on s ci ou sn ess that we a re unit ed w ith Ch r i s t in the

s u p rem e m otiv es o f l i fe gi v es u s a k in d o f h appin ess
that n o o th er s ou r c e can p oss i b l y p rovi de .

The u n se en Christ is the grou n d of salv ation .

Wh en Je su s o f Na z a re th l iv ed i n P ales tin e H e brought

a n ew vi si on an d s tan da rd o f con du ct to those w ho
l ov ed an d t ru s t ed H im I t w a s a n ew life a s i f H e
.
,

ha d c re at ed them aga i n H e hel pe d m en rea l i ze

.
114 EVA NG E L I STI C P RE A CH I NG

He did s om ething u n s p e ak a bly imp o r tant f or u s

by H is pe r fect li fe an d s a crifi c i a l death on e a rth
in p hysi ca l rel ati o n s w i th living men a n d w om en
in t he p a st ; but H e i s d o i ng s omething unspeak
ably i m p o r ta n t w i th u s and in us by His invisible

p r esenc e an d p o we r i n spiritual a n d ac tu a l rela

ti on s a t this very m ome nt i f we will j o i n ou r wills
with H is to let H im a cc omplish His pu rp o se f o r
us This is the fa c t o f the L ivi ng Christ which
.

ought to b e the m o st w o n de r ful an d c o m m an ding

truth that the Ch r i s ti an mi n ister pre a ches .

I n t o this se rm on we m u st p ut a ll the i n sigh t a nd

passi on a t ou r c om m a n d A ll the p r ecedi ng se r
.

m on s h ave led up to it It mu s t n ot be si m ply a

.

mystical t r eatme nt o f the subj e c t B a ck it up by

.

evidenc e M ake it c on c r ete Sta rt with the text

. . .

Th e man w ho s a id th a t the very center o f his li fe

wa s Christ w a s a live to his finger tips H e did on e .

o f the m o st virile and c on stru ct ive pieces o f w o rk

th a t an y m an ever a c c o mp lished He h a d the m i n d

.

an d the p r a cti ca l ge n ius o f a m oder n c ap ta i n o f

i ndustry H e w a s a st a tes m an a nd builde r
. .

The n draw on all t he re s ource s o f Christi a n

bi ogr aphy U se L ivi n gst one and M ary Slesso r
. .

C a ll i n t o the witness b ox teache r s like M a rk H op

ki n s ; busi n ess men like Sa muel B Cape n ; the .

w on derfu l typ e o f y oung Chri s ti a n students like

H u gh M cA Be aver ; t he m en and w ome n res c ued
.

i nt o a n ew li fe like t he ch a r a cters i n H ar old Beg

,

bie s Twice B orn M en O ther Sheep and 5 0 q in

’

, ,
 SE RM O N O UTL I NE S 1 15

A ction Th e t estim oni es must be b r i e f and di r e c t

.
,

f o r th e time is s h o r t But the r e ar e milli on s w ho

.

w ill c onfi r m the stateme n t th a t Christ ha s be c o m e

f o r them n ot a d o ct r ine but a F r iend n ot a the o ry
, ,

but a Savi ou r .

T h e L iv in g C h rist O u r C on stan t Co m rade

I t is no lon ger I that liv e, bu t Chris t liv e th in me

( G al 2 :
.

The Chr i s tian l i fe is a c e a seless frie n dsh ip an ,

act ua l c om r a desh ip be t wee n the s oul an d the un see n

, ,

p ers ona l Chris t .

P hysical presen ce is n ot ess en tial to the highe s t

frien dship — I t is hi ghly desirabl e I t is the c on di .

t i on of the v a st maj or it y o f o u r h u man frie n dsh ip s .

B u t it is n ot abs olu t ely esse nt i a l The h i ghes t rel a

.

ti on s o f life are m ainta i n ed on the p l an e o f s pi r it u a l

sympathy u n i on i n n oble p ur p o se an d th e fus i on o f
, ,

ide a ls i n the sup re m e q ues t o f l i fe .

J esu s promised con tin u ed com radeshi p w ith H is

i
disc ples — H is de ath se pa r at ed H im from H is
.

fr i e n ds ; bu t H e p re pa red the m f o r th i s se pa r ati on

by the defi n i t e prom ise to be wi th the m i n s p ir it u a l
u n i on .A n d 10 I a m wi th you a lw ays eve n u nt o
'
, ,

”
the en d o f the wo rld I i n the m an d thou i n m e
.
, ,

”
th at they ma y be p erfe ct ed i nt o on e This w a s more .

th an va gue spiri t u al i nfl ue nc e ; i t w a s su ch a pe rs ona l

c om ra deshi p th a t tho s e w ho e xp erie nc ed i t could be
sure o f it .

M illions of m en have attes ted the experience .

The re c o rds o f t he r ac e sho w th a t Jesus p r omi se

’

has been re ali z ed in millions of c a ses I t is j ust an d .

116 E VA NG EL I STI C P RE A CH ING

l ogica l that we s h ou l d bel i e v e th at th e groun d o f thi s

exp er i enc e i s what th e Ch r i s tian s hav e s ai d it w a s ,

th e p os itiv e u ni on o f th e p ersona l Ch r i s t w ith them

sel v es a s l iving b e ings T h ey hav e n ot been able to
.

exp l ain it ; b u t th ey hav e affirm ed it an d hav e con

firm ed th e i r t es tim ony by the i r l i fe and o f t en by
, ,

th e i r de ath .

This fact satisfies ou r d eepes t y earn in gs — We

kn ow that we h unger an d thi rs t f o r th e s ati sf acti on
o f s pi r it u al des i res
. We cann ot l iv e by b re a d a l on e .

A n d Ch r i s t c om es int o th e e ager h e a r t w ith a p e ac e

an d j oy that cann ot b e des c r i b ed o r defin ed H e .

m ee t s the deep es t des i res o f th e s pi r it f o r cer tainty

an d p ow er We kn ow what h elp s om e tim es com e s
.

to us fr om th e gre at in spi r ati on o f a h u man fr i e n d .

A ll thi s der iv es fr om Ch r i s t whe n w e m ee t H im in

the int imat e uni on o f th e spi r it .

S E RM O N E I G HT
We have p roceeded thus fa r to p re sent Ch r i s t a s
the o n e living L o r d a nd M a s te r since He i s the
,

r evelati o n and the r e a lity o f ou r Ch r i s tian f a ith

a nd p ra cti c e We n ow go on to lay th e ba s i s f or
.

the full r eali z ati on o f this r eligi on .

The r e m a y be pre a che rs w ho p r e fe r to begin

with th e m ore gene ra l f a ct o f r eligi o n and to bring
the subj ect o f Ch r i st in a fte r the di s a s ter o f sin an d
th e meaning o f sa lv a tio n have been discu s sed In .

this case serm on s on e to seven c ould be u se d l ogic

,

ally after se rm on eleven and th e s e rmon W e a re

,

n ow d es c r ibing c o uld be u se d as numb er on e .

118 EVA NG EL I STI C P RE A CHI NG

E very h u man h ear t is human ,

T hat in e v e n s ava ge b osom s

T h ere a re l on gin gs ye a rnings s t rivi ngs
, ,

F o r th e go od th ey c omp re h e n d n ot ,

T hat th e feeb l e han ds an d h e lpl ess ,

G ropin g b lin dly in th e d a rkn es s ,

T ou ch G od s r i ght han d in that d a rkn ess

’

A n d a re li f t ed u p an d s t re n gth e n ed
L i s t e n to thi s s impl e s t o ry ,

”
T o th i s Son g o f H ia watha '

R elig ion I n ev it ab le
-

When thou saids t, S eeh y e m y face ; my heart said

u n to the e, Thy face ,

L ord w ill I s e ek ( P s
, .

Rel i gi on i s th e s oul s in s tinctiv e an d in e vitab l e re

’

s p ou se to G o d I t i s a pa r t o f e v ery n orma l l i fe It
. .

ex i s t s wh en e v er G od i s ma de a c on s ci ou s f acto r in
o n e s e nv i r onm e nt It is a c ommu n i on w ith the
’
.

D ivin e .

H ow has G od spoken ?— I n nat u re in wh ich H e ,

cl oth es H im self w ith a l iving ga rm ent an d th r ough

which shin es H is be a u ty an d p ower In h u man ex .

pe rien ce as it i s rep o r t ed an d re c o rded in hi s t o ry an d

,

lit er at u re The pa s t i s n ot th e re co rd o f chanc e

.

e v e nt s bu t th e regi s t er o f G od s p u rp o se f or ou r ’

hi gh e st good In ou r inmo s t s ouls wh ere i n ou r

.
,

hi gh es t an d bes t m om ent s we a re c on s ci ous o f th e

re ality an d m ov em ent o f s ome thing hi gher th an ou r
se lv es F inally G od ha s sp oken to u s i n Ch r i s t th e
.
, ,

Wo rd o f th e F ath er In that p erfe ct l i fe an d m atch

.

l e ss cha ract er we h e a r m ost clea r l y G od s v oic e ’

sp e a k in
g to ou r ye a rn i ng an d an swer in g s pi ri t s .
 S E RM O N O U TL I NE S 119

H ow shall w e an sw er G od s v oice ?
’
—F
i rs t by seek
,

in g in every p o ss i ble w a y to h e a r it m o re c le a rly .

We mus t keep in t ou ch an d t u n e w ith th e h ol i e st an d

n ob les t f act s an d f o r c es in the u n iv erse an d op e n ou r
h e a r t s to th e gre at av e n u es o f re v el ati on n ot ed ab o v e .

T he hi gh es t an swer to G o d s v o ic e is the happ y an d

’

con s tant ob ed i e nc e th at we re nd er to e v ery t r u th we

know or d i s c over Whe n we ma ke the re v el ati on o f
.

the F ather s will the s u p re m e law o f ou r d ai ly l i fe

’

we d i s c o v er s t ill m o re f u lly the m e an i ng o f H is pu r

p ose Th u s an ob ed i e nt l i fe be c om es an o rgan o f
.

”
kn owledge . I t is l i ke a m us ician le a r ning to ma s t er
h i s i n s t r u m e nt ; on ly a s he p r actic es c on s tant ly an d
g ives h im self u p to t he a r t t h at he i s seek in g to

a c qu i re w i ll he be c om e the sk i lled mus ician The .

w ay to s eek G o d s f ac e i s to y i eld ou r l iv es to th e
’

d oing o f H is w i ll w ith f u ll de v oti on Rel i gi on i s.

le a rn ed by d oi ng a s a r e a ll o ther gre at en de a vours o f

,

life.

S E RM O N NI N E
It i s appa re nt that n o r eligi on can be s ati s fact o r y
o r endu r ing that d o es n ot r e s t up o n a clea r idea o f

G o d This d o e s n ot d e mand a defi n iti o n o f G o d ;

.

but it call s f o r s om e kind o f a de s c r ipti on o f His

cha r acte r that w ill fu r nish th e b a sis o f ou r h ope
and c onfi dence in the r elati o n ships which c o mp o s e
the expe r ienc e o f re ligi on Th e Ch r istian G o spel
.

fi nd s th e adequate desc r ipti on o f G od in Ch r i s t .

Thi s r ep r e s ent s a n e w app r eciati on o f th e revela

ti on o f Ch r i s t Th e Ch r i s tian Chu r ch ha s b ee n
.
12 0 EVA NG E L I STI C P RE A CH I N G

e a ger to p ublish the f ac t o f the G odlike Christ .

I t must a ls o p ro cl a i m the Ch r istlike G od It h a s .

been put i n the f oll owi n g w o r ds :

H ow H e 'Jesus ' str ove to p r e s ent the visi on
o f the heave n ly F a the r i n te r ms o f m o ral c ha r

ac te r and hu man experie n ce n ot abs olute philoso ,

phy and met ap hysi c al defi n iti on I f you want to .

kn o w what G o d is like l ook a t me 'He s aid : He ,

th a t hath see n m e h a th seen the F a the r Wh a t .

’

did He mea n by that ? N ot that He Jes u s wa s , ,

like G od but th a t G od w as like Him

, .

Jesus said : Read me int o G o d So fa r a s man .

c a n kn ow a nd u n derst and H im what I am He i s ,

like In sh o rt it w a s i n the terms o f human ex

.
,

p e r ien ce m o r
, al a nd spiritu a l ex p e r ience n o t o f , ,

a priori re as o n ing that H e declared men c o uld best

,

app roach Him H ow m ode rn and i n telligible that

.

s ound s The ch ara cte r isti c s o f Jesus ar e n ot im

.

pe r ial p ower a bs olute u n de r st andi ng f o r all His

, ,

intellectu a l subtlety a nd c ou ra ge ou s and a c ute

dialecti c He i s g r eat es t in H is m oral sple n d ou r
.
,

His ethi ca l sublimity and i f we spe ak o f Him and , ,

o f His G od a nd F a the r in the s e te rm s we a re on , ,

” 1
c omprehensible gr ounds .

This statement h oweve r that G od is like J esu s

, , ,

o r th a t the G o s p el is c o ncer n ed with a Chri st like

G o d must n ot be st r e ss ed to s uch an extent that

,

w e l o s e als o the ide a o f the A lmighty F ath er .

1
A lbert P F i tch Can the Chu rch Su viv e in the Changing
.
,
r

Order ? 192 0 , p 66
. .
12 2 E VA N G EL I STI C P RE A CH I N G

ou r cl oses t in sp e cti on P erfe ct servic e to th e n eeds

.

o f th e w o rld in w hich H e l iv ed T h ere i s n ot a si n gl e

.

f ail u re to gi ve H is be st to e v ery h u man n eed as H e

p er c e iv ed it P erfe ct l ov e f or al l H is fe ll ow s m arked
.

H is h u man l i fe H e re a l i zed c ompl e t e l y all th e m ost

.

exacting re qu i re me nt s o f t h e Se rm on on th e M ount
an d th e G olde n Ru l e .

G od is like w hat w e discov er in J esu s .

—G od is
goo d . m ora l int egr ity i s th e w a rrant f o r al l hu
H is
m an goo dn ess G od des i res th e hi gh es t we l fa re o f
.

a ll H is chi ldren H e gi ves u s n othing le ss than H im

.

self in o rder th at thi s may be re ali zed ; H e takes a

pa r t i n ou r de v el opm ent into th e cha r act er that H e
des i res f or us G od i s l ove H e l oves u s in spit e o f
. .

o u r s in s ; H e l o v es u s o u t o f ou r s in s ; H e l o v es u s

int o a n ew li fe that m u s t fi nall y c onqu er al l s in an d

we akn ess G od i s n e a rer to u s than th e v ery b e ating
.

o f ou r h e a r t s G od i s th e chi ef f act or in ou r su r
.

rou nd ings an d th e s u p rem e it em in ou r c on s ci ou s

n ess G od wa s a ll thi s to Jes u s ; H e can an d w ill be
.

a l l th i s to us O u r hi gh es t nam e f o r G od i s the
.
'

”
G o d an d F ath er o f ou r L o rd Jesus Chr i s t .

S E R M O N TE N

We n ow r un straight int o a u n ive r s a l hum a n

exp erie nc e whi ch ca lls f o r ou r utm o st i n sigh t a nd
skill i n underst an di n g Why d o es n ot the F ather.

G o d o f Jesus w in a n i m medi a te an d u n qu a lified

resp n s e f r om the ye a r n i n g s oul Why d o es n ot
o ?

religi o n be c ome at o n ce the d om i nan t an d blessed

experie n ce o f eve ry human bei ng ? It is due to th e
 S ERM O N O UTL I NES 12 3

fact o f sin w hich in s om e f o rm h old s us all in

,

b ondage an d whi c h must be f o rgiven and e radi

cated i f w e a r e to e nt er int o abundant li f e w ith

G od .

P r eachi n g on sin has al w ay s b e en on e o f th e di f

fi cu lt tasks o f the pulpit n ot because th e fact i s
,

n o t appa r e n t but b ec ause it is di ffi cult to set it ou t

,

in such terms as will b r ing c onvicti o n and peni

tence to men We s ugge s t the f oll o wing app r o ach
.

to th e s ubj ect The te rr ible characte r o f s in i s

.

due to the w o rth and beauty o f that which it d es

t r o y s F or ex ampl e i f on e w er e to s pill ink ove r
.
,

an old m op cl oth it w ould n ot b e a s e r i ou s matt er

-
.

But i f on e w e r e to p ou r the s ame am ount o f ink

d ow n the length o f an exqui s it e lace d r es s the d e
s t r ucti on w ould be i rr epa ra ble It wa s the s am e
.

ink in b oth ca s e s ; the di f fe re nc e in the hav oc

wr ought w a s cau s ed by th e w or th o f th e fab r ic
inv olved .

I f tw o b e a s t s in the j ungle fly at e ach o th er s ’

th r o at s and on e o f them die s it i s n ot a te rr ible

l os s to th e highe s t li fe o f the human r ace ; but when
B ooth sh oots L inc oln the disaste r i s beyon d esti
mate The di ff e r en c e in the quality o f the li fe in
.

v olved make s the di ff e r ence in the cha r acte r o f th e

act .

N ow thi s i s th e way in which to get a t r ue con

ception o f the meaning o f s i n It i s becau s e the
.

s oul o f man i s so p r eci o u s and it s p res e r vati on in

allthe we alth o f it so imp er ativ e that th e thing that
12 4 EVA NG E L I STI C P RE A CHI NG

dest roy s i t must be f ought an d exterminated It .

is c l a i m ed th a t we h av e l o st the o ld inte n sity o f at

t ac k u p on si n t hat the p eril s o f hell a r e n o m or e
,

dwelt up on in the p ul p it th a t w e a re so u rge n t in

,

ou r s tatement o f t he l ove o f G o d that w e h ave

made Him an i n dulge n t grandm othe r .I f thi s

i s so the w a y to a recovery o f the old emphasis i s
,

th ro ugh a f r e sh appra i sal o f the w o rth o f man and

the divine value o f hum a n li fe B y as much a s w e
.

exalt the w o r th o f the s oul do w e inte n si fy th e

peril o f that which dest r oys it So a true s e n se o f
.

sin mu s t c ome fr om a fresh e m phasis up on the

p r iceless and ete rn al w o rth o f th at which it de s
t roy s C once r ning the hav o c that sin brings
.

about in the individual a n d in s o c iety the r e i s n o

d oubt The r ef o re s in i s the aw ful a n d ultimate
.

enemy o f man kind .

The deadly dam age that s in d o e s in the s oul i s

well illu s t ra ted by the f oll owi n g parag raph f rom
M en in War by A nd r e a s L atzk o
I r emembe r a t r ip I t ook bef o r e the wa r f r om
M unich to V ienn a o n the O r iental E xp r e ss .I
l ooked ou t up on the a utum n al mell owness o f the
c ou nt ry ar ound the B avari an lake s and the g olden
gl o w o f the Wiene r W a ld But acr o ss a ll thi s
.

gl o ry that I d rank i n leani n g back on the c omf or t

a ble seat in luxuri ous c o nte ntment the r e ste a dily
,

r a n a n u gly black s p ot— a flaw i n the wind ow

f
’
pan e

That i s the w ay in which s in d ee p and d e adly

, ,
126 EVA NG EL ISTI C P RE A CH IN G

to th ose that a re hi gh er e ith er th e w i ll o f G o d o r th e

,

we l f a re o f ou r com ra de s It re f u se s to acc ept s o ci al

.

ob li gati on. It act s e ith er f rom p u re se l fi shne ss o r

th e h erd in stinct rath er than f r om th e m otiv e o f
u n se l fi sh l o v e w hich Je su s ma de th e s u p re m e law o f

th e Kin gdom o f G od So it makes u s col d an d vain

. .

I t na rrows th e r ange o f li fe an d kill s al l alt ru i sm .

S in is d s ru c n
e t tio — Su ch a se l fis h an d d i s ob ed i e nt
m otiv e de st roys al l th e fi n er re sp on ses an d p ower s o f
th e h uman spi r it I t c r ipp le s ou r o w n l oyalty to th e
.

m otiv e of sac r i fi c e w hich ha s de v e lo p ed all th e

,

noble st t rait s o f h u manity It inj u re s o th ers wh ose

.
,

well —be ing i s in ou r k eeping and wh ose welf a re we

ou ght c on s tant ly to seek It s u n ders u s fr om G od
.
,

w h o se m o ra l deman d cann ot be s ati sfied by a s in fu l

li fe If th e d i s a s t er goes on u nch e cked l i fe sw ings
.

i n t o grow ing ch aos an d r u in I s th ere any way o f

.

es cap e ?

S E RM O N E L E V E N
No w we a r e r e a dy f o r the full public a ti on o f the
good news th a t th ere is a w a y i n whi ch ma n wh o se ,

si n h a s su n de r ed hi m fr om G od ma y be br ought ,

back to right r elati on s with the F a ther In pre .

par ing f o r this se rm o n the p r e acher m a y s a tur at e

his mi n d with the P a r able o f the P r odig a l Son a s ,

it is r ep o rted i n L uke 1 5 : 1 1 3 2 We ha v e a lre a dy

-

noted this i n Ch ap te r I I t is so f am ili a r th at it

.

see m s a lm o st u nn e c ess a ry to c ite it a g a i n a s the

gre a t ex p ressi o n o f t he G o s p el i n st o ry f o r m B ut .

the v e ry fact that it i s so familia r mak es it all the

 SE RM O N O UTL I NE S 127

m o r e necessa r y f o r the p r eache r to r evi e w it and to

dwell up o n it so r eve r ently that he will s ense again
it s w onderful me an ing It w a s on e o f th e f o cal
.

p o i n ts in the p r eachi n g o f P hillips B r ook s w h o

,

used it r epeatedly a n d w ho f o und in i t the m o s t

illuminating e xp r e s si on o f the mes s age and the
mi s si o n o f J e s u s It will rev e al new meaning s con
.

stan tly a s we r eflect up on it It i s on e o f the m ost

.

ex quisite a n d f o r ce ful s t o r ie s in all li te r atu r e.

A n d th e gr ea te s t t r uth th a t e ve r h as b ee n given to
humanity is pe r f e ctly en s h r in e d in it .

The p o int to be kept clea r ly in mind i s that n oth

ing wa s nece ss a r y to be d one to the fathe r to
change his attitude t o wa r d the boy w ho had gone
o ff int o the fa r c o unt r y .A n y o bj e cti o n to the
w o r d r ec onciliati on i s p er fectly met by th e con
dition s s et f o r th in the pa ra ble We have h e a r d
.

the idea o f r ec onciliati on c r iticized seve r ely o n th e

g r ound that it inv olved a m u tu al change o f di s p o si
ti on and relati onship But n o fair c onside ra ti on
.

o f the go sp el o f r ec onciliati o n a s it is p r esented in

the N ew Te s tament can p o s s ibly w ar rant this criti

cism . It is n ot the fathe r ga z ing eage r ly d own the
,

r o ad day a fte r day with his ti r ed eyes l onging f o r

the sight o f his r eturning boy w ho need s to have
,

his hea r t ch a nged ; it i s the bo y at his mi s e r able

busines s in th e fa r c ount r y w ho must have a ne w
he a rt A n d wh en that c ame h e s et ou t f or h ome ;
.

the rec o nc ili a ti on w a s br ought ab out in th e a r m s o f

his f o rgiving father .
12 8 E V A NG E L I S TI C P R E A CH I NG

G o od N ew s

G od w as in Christ recon cilin g the w orld u n to him

sel f ( 2 Co r 5 : .

Th i s is
many int erp re tati on s o f th e G os
on e o f
”
p el . Th e m e aning o f thi s w ord ha s be c om e so
f rayed an d wo r n that its e a r l y m e an ing i s a l m o st
gon e To it s e a rly u ser s it w a s a k in d ling an d h ol y
.

word What d oes it m ean ?

.

G od an d man ,
su n d er ed throu gh sin, may be recon
ciled — G . d s l ov e i s s t rong e n ou gh to fi n d a way to
o
’

th e cita de l o f man s w i ll an d chan ge it s sup rem e de

’

cision s Selfi shn e ss can b e ov er c om e lawless n ess

.
,

c an be c onquered an d the c ou rse o f l i fe wh ich h a s

, ,

b ee n mi ss ing th e ma rk can be so changed that it s ,

t rue ob j e ctiv e w i l l be re ached T h u s man may be .

brough t b ack to G od T hi s i s good n ews . .

This re con ciliation is wr ou ght throu gh Christ .

G od want ed to p rove H is l ov e f o r man an d H is p ur

p ose to s av e him from s in So G od t ook on o r .
,

c l oth ed H im se l f in h uman fo rm in o rder that H is

c omp ell ing l o v e an d s aving p urp ose mi ght be cle a r
beyon d doub t Chr i s t i s the w o r l d s Savi ou r In
.
’
.

H im a l on e i s th e w ay to a n ew li fe That way i s .

ea sy to fi nd Thi s i s good n ews

. .

B y tru st an d obedien ce we r eceiv e the recon cilia

tion — Ou pa rt we mus t t ru s t th e good n ews so
ou r

fu l l y that we yi eld o urs el v es to it We m u s t b e .

li e v e to th e ext en t o f p ersonal l oya l ty O bedi enc e .

t o th e good n ews m e an s that we ma ke it a w a y o f

li fe The G os p el c om es w ith a c omm an d I t calls

. .

f o r ch an ges in c ondu ct T h u s th e ru in o f si n is re
.

pai re d This i s goo d n ews

. .
1 30 EVA NG E L I STI O P R E A OH I N G

illustr a ti on o f H is gre at p ri nc i p le w a s q u ite p ower

,

less to ch ange it s ch a r act er th e h u man m i n d can be

,

c h anged by the acti o n o f the p ers o n h i msel f The .

hard an d shall ow an d pre o cc u p ied s o il was n o m o re

r e sp onsible f o r its c o n diti o n th an w a s t he fertile
gr o u n d B u t men an d w ome n can ch ange the
.

cha ract er o f their resp onse to the c l a i m o f the

truth This m ust be b or n e in m i n d a s we p rep ar e
.

the se rm on Eve ry p a r a ble bre aks d ow n s ome

.

where an d a ll ana l ogies wh ich a tte mp t to des cr ibe

,

hu ma n li fe a cc o rdi n g to t h a t o f the l owe r ki ngd om s

in na tu r e f a il a t the p o i n t o f v oliti on .

Theref o r e thi s serm on m ust l a y gre a t em ph a sis

up o n the p owe r o f the i n dividu a l to c o ntr o l the i n
fl u en ce o f the t ruth up on hi m There is a cow
.

ardl y tenden c y i n a ll m en t o shi ft the weight of

pe r s onal r esp on sibility up on either he r edity o r su r

r ou n dings I t i s und ou btedly a f act th a t ou r r e
.

spon se to truth i s c onditi oned up o n o u r inherit a n c e

a n d ou r c ir c umstances ; bu t o n the wh ole we ar e

equipped to be a r the r esp onsibility o f m aki n g de c i
si ons and we c a n ch oo se the l oy a lties whi ch will
master ou r lives We a re a ble to de c ide f o r Christ
. .

M ake this Opti on c le a r i n the serm o n a nd pr ess f o r

the deci s i on o f the sup r e m e q uesti on which every
individual is able to m ake f o r himsel f .

P arab le o f th e S o ils

Who hath ears to hear let him hear ( M a rk

,

What k in d o f a resp on se w i ll th e good n e w s re

 SE RM O N O UTL IN E S 1 31

ceive ? Th i sde p e n d s o n th e k in d o f min d w it h

whi c h we att e n d to it Je su s se t f o r th thi s t ru th in
.

the s to ry o f the four k in d s o f so i l int o wh ich the

g oo d seed o f t he G osp el fell .

The hard n ed m e in d — L i ke the path w a y be at e n ,

d own by d ai ly w o rk an d th e p ressure o f h e avy b u r

de n s N 0 res p on se to dee p app e a l s o r h i gh en thu si
.

asm s b e ca u se the min d h a s bee n re n dered in er t

through c e a sele ss p re ssu re by the b e ati n g o f rou tin e

l a bou r We mu st bre a k u p the h a rde n ed a re a s o f life
.

by c ul t iv at i n g ima ginati on an d vi si on .

The shallow m in d — L i ke the ro c ky so i l w ith thin

e a r th over th e ledge re sp on ds qu ic kly to any stim u
,

lu s. E a si ly m o v ed b y an e m o ti ona l app ea l C ann o t

.

ca rry ou t its de ci si on s in sustain ed acti on N o re .

lian ce to be p lac ed u p on i t f o r p er man e nc e o r en

duranc e D e c e iv e s th r ough its l ac k o f p o wer to
.

ca r ry o n .We m u st tr ain th e w i ll so that it w i ll

make perm an en t de ci si on s .St ren gth e n o u r re solu
t i on an d p er si st e nc e by h old ing on s t ubb o rn ly w h e n
we mi ght eas il y let go .

The pr o ccu p d m in d
e i e — L ike the so i l f u ll o f th e
,

o ld r oo t s A s soon a s nat u r a l c on d iti o n s ca u se t he

.

se ed to s p rou t the old br am ble s app ear an d th e you ng

p lant s h av e n o ch anc e We a re c on ge st ed w ith in
.

te re st s an d act i vit ies i n t he se b u sy d ay s We all o w

.

so man y to ta ke u p o u r tim e an d st r en t h t h at the

g
su p r em e matt er s a re c r owded o u t .We m us t dis
c r imi n at e m o re ca ref ully an d pu t fir st thi ngs fir st .

The f er tile m in d — T he la rger pa r t o f the field is

g oo d s o i l .I t re sp o n d s to t he se ed w it h th e re so ur c e s

whi ch ca u se it to s p r in g i nt o l i fe T he G o s p el t en ds
.

to fi n d r oot ; to gr o w s t e a d i ly ; to y i eld f r uit We .

132 E VA NG E L I STI C P RE A CH I NG

m u st inc rea se th e fertil e a re a s We m u st coop erat e

.

w ith G od to mak e ou r li fe r ich in Ch r i sti an fru it age .

S E R M O N T HI RT E E N
The r ight res p on se o f the m i n d to whi ch the
G o spel i s a ddressed is t he ac t wh ich we c o mm on ly
g iv e the nam e repe ntanc e A t th i s p o in t in the
.

p u bli ca ti o n o f the good n ews i n t he c o mm u ni ty ,

theref o re w e o ught to c o n sider wh a t this acti o n is

,

an d h o w r a di ca lly it i nv o lves a ll the p owers o f the

pers ona lity .

It is m o st acc ur ately described i n the w o rds a

n ew mi n d .B u t we m u st defi n e ca ref u lly wh a t
”
w e mean by m i nd .It is a w o rd o f v ita l sign ifi
c an c e i n the v o cabul a ry o f t he Christ ian religi on .

We h ave dis c u ssed it in ser m on five There we .

s a w th a t it d oes n ot m e an m erely the set o f ide a s

with wh ich ou r m i n ds a re f u r n ished bu t r a ther t he
,

set o f m otives acc o rdi n g to whi ch we act h a bitu

a lly The r u l in g p ur p o ses o f d ai ly li vi ng a re the
.

re a l c ont e n t o f the mi n d as w e use it he r e in

referen c e to repe n t an c e .

I n p re pa ri n g t his serm on we m ust stress the

p l ac e th a t the w i ll o ccu p ies i n the p r o c ess o f re
p en tan ce
. It is a c le a r c o nv i ct i o n
,
b ac ked by a pro

f ou n d feeli n g an d a ll ca st i n t o a res olute de c isi on

,

th a t issu es i n a c om p lete ch an ge in th e m oti v es

whi ch o rdi na rily gover n o u r c o n d u c t This make s
.

r epentan c e an act o f s uch th o ro ughgo i n g i n tenti on

1 34 EVA NG EL I STI C P RE A CH I NG

We must th i nk di ff erently a b ou t s in We must .

n ot o n l yh a te i t bu t we m u s t a ls o with the dee p est

r es oluti on tur n a way fr o m it This i nc l u des a ls o .

a ch ange o f mi n d t o w a rd the Savi our fr om sin It .

me an s th a t we are r e a dy to let Christ do s ome thing

f o r us Thi s i nv olves a fund amental decisi on
. .

We shi ft the wh ole b a l an ce o f ou r li fe to the side

o f a n ew set o f ideas which g over n us h a bit u a lly in

o u r c onduct To w ar d this decisi on the s e rm on

.

sh ould p oint the c ongregati on .

A N ew M in d

The goodn ess o f G od leade th thee to p

re en tan ce .

( R om .

Sin sepa rat e s m en f r om G od The F ath er s mi ghty

.
’

lov e reve a led in Ch r i s t br ings him b ack

, ,
T hi s in .

v ol v es a deep inwa rd change repen tan ce What

, , .

is it ?

N egativ ely — I t is n ot si mp ly s orr ow f o r the fact

that we a re ca u gh t i n th e m es h o f ou r sin an d d i s ,

g r ac ed R e p
. e ntanc e s o m e tim es go es n o dee p er t h an
thi s No l a s ting change re su l t s I t i s c owa rdly
. . .

I t i s n ot s imply s o rrow f o r th e wron g act or m o

tive that led to th e act T hi s i s dee p er than s o rrow
.

f o r c o n se quenc es It t en ds to h old us from com

.

mittin g the s ame wr ong a c t again N ot ra d ica l .

e n ough .

I t i s n ot simp ly a res olut i on n ot to cherish th e evil

m otiv e o r do the wron g act aga in T hi s is a n eces .

s a ry pa r t o f re p entanc e ; b u t it is n ot th e r oot of i t .

P ositiv ely — R e p e ntanc e invol v e s a fcomplete

ch ange o f min d o r r u l ing p u rp ose o f action I t t e .
 S ER M O N O UTL I NE S 1 35

ver ses the s ca le o f va lues acc o rd ing to wh ich we

have act ed in th e pa s t I t i s the res ol u t e de ci s i on
.

to re gul at e ou r c on d u ct by a n ew se t o f p r incip les .

Re p e ntanc e se t s n ew ob j e ct s bef o r e u s an d e nth r on es

a n ew ser i es o f p o s iti ve p urpo s e s a t the c e nt er o f ou r
hab it u a l activit y Th e w ord f or rep entanc e m e an s
.

a n ew m in d th at is a c omp le t e c h an ge i n t he fund a
,

m enta l c onvicti on s w ith wh ich we do r egul a r busi

n ess in the c ont r ol o f d ai ly l i fe .

G d s g d ss
o
’
o o n e le d
a s us to re
p en tan ce — We a r e
n ot fr i gh t e n ed o r f o r c ed i nt o this n ew w a y o f livi n g .

We a re w on to it by th e c omp ell ing p ower o f the l ov e

o f th e F ather G od s goodness i s the on e fi nal f o rce
’
.

th at makes us good .

S E R M O N F O U RT E E N
We f oll o w up in ser m on f ou r teen th e cent r al
idea in the di s cu s si o n o f r epentance namely that , ,

it is an act o f such p r o f ound and inclu s ive meaning

that it inv olve s a p r actical dedicati on o f li fe to a
n e w se t o f ideal s and p r inciple s Thi s call s f or .

s u rre nde r or obedienc e .

Th e firs t imp r e ss i o n mad e u p on u s by th e id e a

o f s u rre nde r i s n ot a happy on e It s tand s f o r th e
.

yielding o f ou r libe r tie s ; and thi s i s s om e thing tha t

d o e s n ot fi nd r eady c on s ent The r e f o re the p r in
.

ciple to be cl e a r ed up in ou r thinking is that the

path to the la r g es t f r eed om i s th r ough th e acc e pt

ance o f obligati on It i s s ummed up in the famil
.

ia r w or d s de s c r ibing the Ch r istian li f e o f l oyalt y

136 EVA NG EL I STI C P RE A CH I NG

to Ch r ist ,
wh os e s e rvi c e i s p er fect f r eed om .

H ow c an s e rvi c e w hich must c o n si s t in yieldi ng to

,

o blig a ti o n and dev oti on to pr a cti c al e f fo rt s o f m i n

istry be c o n sist e nt w ith f r eed o m a nd a c tu a lly re

,

sult i n the highe s t f r eed om ? This i s on e o f the

pa rad oxe s o f li fe ; but the re i s n o t r uth that fi nds
m o re c on st a nt c on fi rmati on in ou r daily li fe th an
this We see it illustr a ted in ou r h o m e s every d ay
. .

The member o f the family w h o a ccept s the com

m o n purp o se o f the g r oup a nd makes it m o s t fully
his i s the on e wh o se li fe in the h om e is the frees t
an d h a p p ie s t T a ke so appa re n tly trivi a l a matter
.

a s getti ng ou t o f bed pr omptly sh a ri n g the fell ow

,

ship o f the family cheerfully a t bre akf a st an d go ,

i n g ab out the d a y s duties in the r ight s p i rit This

’
.

seems to be the path o f s u rr ende r ; it i s actually the

only p a th to freed om .

It is like the p l an et s in the s ola r system Their .

be a uty a nd p e rm a nence ar e the r esult o f the yield

ing o f e ach to the o rdering pull o f g rav it a ti on .

E ach d oes n ot go it s ow n w ay ; but a ll go the w a ys

th a t t oge the r mak e up th e syst e m o f the pl a n
etary unive r se .

The ty ra nt N e r o t r ied to deg ra de s ome o f the

g r e a t Rom a n nobles to a s low a level a s his ow n by ,

m aki n g them app e a r a s ac t o r s in the a re na on the

st a ge To dis obey w as de ath F l o rus w a s bidde n
. .

thus to a p p e ar and d oubti ng whethe r to obey con

, , ,

su lted the vi r tu ou s an d re s olute A grippin u s G o .

,

” ”
by a ll means a n swered A grippin u s
,
Well but
.
, ,
138 EVA NG EL ISTI C P RE A CH I N G

i s a l so L ord an d M a st er Ch r i st b r ings n ew laws to

.

g o v er n th e d ail y li f e o f men . T h e se p r incipl e s ma ke

a p ractic al dem an d up on u s an d e ff e ct a di ff erenc e in

o u r b e havi ou r. It i s ser i ou s b u sine ss to f ol low Ch r i st
b e ca u se we m u st y i e l d ou rse lv es so c ompl e t ely to the
p r incip les which H e p rop oses We m u st giv e ou r
.

se lv e s u p to H im in th e j oy an d de v o ti on o f a p er

sona l su rre n der .

O b edien ce is th e suprem e item in f

our con ession

i
of Chr s t — Wo rd s a re e a s i ly sp oken I t is n ot d i f
.

fi cu lt to u nit e w ith o th ers it an in s tit u ti on o r to

.

ca rry ou t a p rogra m o f rel i gi ou s activiti es The t es t .

o f all o u r th e o r i es an d c reed s is th e k in d o f l i fe that

i ss u es f rom th em T h ey a re th e in spi r ing s ou r ce s o f

.

acti on ; b u t th e acti on it se l f is th e p roo f o f th e qu a l ity

an d p ow er o f th e p r incipl e T he c ommu nity r i ght
.

f u lly de man ds that we shal l n o t onl y re fl e ct b ut re

p eat th e spi r it an d th e c on du ct o f Je su s We cannot.

do thi s u nl ess we y i e l d ou r sel v es c ompl e t ely to H im .

What d i d H e s ay ab ou t th e cultivati on o f ou r p er
s ona l cha ract er ; ou r d aily de alings w ith m en ou r '

p ractic e o f j u s tic e ; o u r w illingness to foll ow H i m to

th e limit ? A re we ob ey ing ou r M a s t er s commands ’

in th ese an d o th er resp e ct s ?

S E R M O N F I F TE E N
F ewr eligi ous ide a s are m o r e c on stantly misused
th an the c onc e p ti o n o f f a ith It is c omm on ly
.

m a de to c o nn ote the a cceptanc e o f s om ethi ng th a t

is u n re a s on able an d eve n a bsurd It is set ove r
.

again s t r eas on a n d on e i s a sked to ch oos e whethe r

 SE RM ON O UTL INE S 1 39

he w ill b e gov er n e d b y his r ati onal facultie s o r hi s

credulity .

But as a matt er o f fact faith i s tru st i n an obj ect

which i s w o r th y o f c on fi d e nc e alth ough it may n ot
be cap able o f p r oo f o r d e m on s t r ati on F aith i s .

e ss entially an act o f the wh ol e pe rs onality in which

w e c ommit ou rs elve s to the obj e ct d efine d by th e
faith It i s what H o r ac e Bu s hnell called th e
.

”
faith o f a transacti o n This g re at p r eache r set
.

the matt er f o r th so clea r ly that we qu ote f r om hi s

s e r m on s .

The Ch r i s tian fact s a r e s t o re d in hi s t ory and ,

a re s ca r cely m o re s igni fi cant to u s than i f th e y

w e r e s t o r ed in th e m oon What i s w ant e d j u s t
.

he r e in the ca se o f Ch r i s t and what al s o i s j u s ti fi ed

,

a nd ev e n re qui re d by the fact s o f Hi s li f e i s a ,

faith that goe s bey ond th e me re evidence o f p r op o

sition s o r p r op o s iti onal ve r iti es ab o ut Ch r i s t — th e ,

faith o f a transaction ; and thi s faith i s Ch r istian

faith I t is the act of trus t by w hich on e bein g a
.
,

sin n er, commi ts himself to an o ther bein g

,
a Sa
v iau r . It i s n ot mind dealing w ith n oti ons o r na
tio n alt r uth s It i s what cann ot be a p r o p o s iti on at
.

all But it i s b e ing t r u s ting itsel f to being and so

.
,

bec oming oth er and di ffere nt by a re lati o n w h olly

t r an sa cti onal .

I f a man c om e s to a banke r w ith a lett er o f

c r edit f r om s om e othe r banke r that lette r may b e
,

r ead and seen to b e a r eal lett er The signatu re als o

.

may b e app r oved and th e c r edit s o f th e d r a w ing

,
1 40 EVA NG EL ISTI C P RE A CH I NG

party h onou r ed by the o the r as being wh oll y r eli

a ble So fa r wh a t i s d on e i s me r ely opi n i onative
.

o r n oti o n a l and the r e is n o tr an s a cti ona l faith

, .

A n d yet the r e is a g o od p re para ti on f o r this ; j ust

th a t i s d one which m akes it i nt ell i gen t Whe n the .

receiving party theref or e acc ep t s the lette r and in

trusts hi m self actually to the dr a wi ng p a rty i n so
m u ch m on ey there is the re a l a ct o f f a i th a n act
, ,

which an swers to the O p e r ativ e o r tran s acti on a l

f a ith o f a dis c i p le .

A n o t her a n d pe rhaps bett er illu s t r ati o n may be

'

'

t a ken fr om th e patien t o r si c k pers o n as r el a ted to

his physi c ian H e sends f o r a physici an j ust be
.

ca use he h a s bee n led to h ave a cert a i n f av ou rable

o pini o n o f his faith f u lness an d ca p ac ity But the .

su ffering hi m to feel his p ulse investigate his ,

sy m pt oms an d m ake the di a gn o sis o f his disease ,

i m p orts n othi n g It is o n ly the c om m itti n g o f hi s

.

bei n g an d li fe to this o ther bei n g co n senti n g to re ,

ce iv e an d t a ke his m edi c i n e th a t impo rt s a r eal

,

”
f a i th the fai t h o f a t r a ns ac ti on
,
.

This is the a spect o f Christian faith that we s eek

to p resent so c le a rly th at it will n o l onge r appea r a s

si m ply the a ssent to s omethi ng u n dem onstrated by

t he m i n d but an ac t in whi ch the wh ole being i s
,

c ommitted to a n ew rel a ti on ship with Ch r i s t .

F th
ai T ha t Sav e s
B y grace hav e ye b een sav ed throu gh faith ( E ph .

‘
S erm ons f or the N ew L if e p 94
’

. .
,
1 42 E VA NG E L I STI C P RE A CH I NG

S E RM O N SI XTE E N
In th e s ixteenth s e rm on we c om e to the matte r
o f an open c onfe s si on o f allegi a nce o r l o y a lty to

Christ In prep ar i ng the serm on we will thi nk

.

t hr ough the f a ct th a t J e s u s h a s a cl a i m up on u s
whi ch w e simply cannot ignor e o r de c l i ne to con
sider It h a s been put in the f oll owi n g w a y by
.

P Ca rnegie Simps on in The F act of Chris t :

.

'
The m o r e we c andidly keep ou r heart s a nd
minds and c on s ci en ce s O p en to the im p ressi on th a t
even an hist o r ic a l a ppreci a ti on o f the f a ct o f Chr i st
make s up on them the m o r e d oes that i mp ressi on
,

tur n to m o r al i ss ues within u s We h a d th ought .

intellectually to e x a mine Him ; w e find H e is sp ir

itu ally examini n g u s . We study A r is
totle a nd a re intellectually edifi ed thereby ; we st u dy
Jes u s and a r e in the p r o f oundest w ay spiritu a lly
, ,

distu rbed —
The que s ti on appa r ently so i n no
.

cen tly hist o r ical a nd m ora lly n on c ommittal— O f -

Wh a t thi n k ye O f Ch r ist ? p a sse s i n t o the m ost

’

m o r a lly p r actic a l a nd pers on a l o f questi on s : Wh a t

sh a ll I t hen do w ith H im ? A n d this presses f o r
’

a n an sw er . A man may study Jesu s with

i nt elle c tual impa r tiality ; he c a nn ot do it with m o ral
n e u tr a lity I f the w o rds the ch arac te r the pe r s on
.
, ,

o f Jesus at all aw a ken within u s su ch issues as

these w e c ann ot go on n or c a n w e eve n le ave O ff

, , ,

a s i f they neve r h a d been ra ised Su ch q uesti ons .

,

o n ce ra ised do have thei r an sw e r ; to t r y to i gnore

,
 SE RM O N O UTL I NE S 1 43

them i s an an sw e r as r eal as a ny o the r A n d thu s .

it i s that a s I s ay we are c o m pelled to take up

, ,
”
s om e attitude t ow a r d thi s fact O f Ch r is t .

The r e f o r e the pu rp o se o f this s e r m on i s to mak e

clea r th e inevitabl e deci s i on which mu s t b e r eached
by any on e w ho face s the m o r al and spi r itual claim s
o f Jes u s . It mu s t appea r that to p o s tp on e a deci
s i on or to igno re a deci s i on i s r eally to mak e on e ,

s ince neut r ality i s imp o ss ible and the wh ol e i ss ue i s

too g re at and u r g e nt to b e all o wed to go by d e fault .

The re a re som e truths that a r e so impe r ativ e that

they mu s t be met and acti o n in r e f er enc e to them
s ettl e d ; thi s fact o f Ch r i s t and Hi s mighty claim
up on ou r l ov e and s e rvice i s s uch a t r uth Th e .

s e r mon on C onf ess i on o f Ch r i s t mu s t b e fi ll e d w ith

this u r gency and key e d to th e n ot e o f c on fi d ent ex
p e ctat io n that when m e n actually fac e th e claim o f
Ch r i s t th ey w ill y ield to it .

T ru e t o th e C o lo u rs

E v ery on e theref or e w h o f
shall con ess m e before
m en him w ill I
,
also con ess f bef ore my F ather w ho
is in heav en ( M att 1 0 :
.

O p e n l oy a l t y is a p r act i ca l t es t o f l o v e O u r con
.

f ession o f f a i th i s the a ffirmati on o f ou r l oya l ty to

Chr i s t an d H is Kingd om . H e a sked H is d i s cip les
to be t rue to t heir s tan d a rds .

Why shou ld w e con fess Christ?— I n o rder to de

fi n e ou r p o si ti on befo re ou r com r a des The world .

h a s the ri gh t to kn ow where w e s tan d in re fere nc e to

”
the sup re m e p r oblem s A tri mm er ne ve r is re
.
'
1 44 EV ANG E L I STIC P RE A CH I NG

specte d We m u st p r ov e o u r l oyal ty to Ch r i st by
.

exp re ss ing ou r all egi anc e to H im an d re co rd ing ou r

selv e s a s champi on s o f H is Cau se O u r c on fes si on
.

se t s a s tan d a rd t owa rd which we s t r iv e an d th ere

fo re giv e s u s p re ci se aim s an d po s itiv e p u rp o ses .

H ow shall w e con fess Christf — B y o u r l oya l

words M en es timat e ou r l oyal ti es firs t by w hat we
.

say T h erefo re it i s th e r ight thing to sp e ak ou t

.

b old l y ou r inm os t l oy a l t y to Ch r i s t .We p rov e th e

re ality o f ou r word s by ou r c ondu ct Therefo re ou r
.

acti on s a re c on fess i on s o f f aith Wh e n we do what

.

Je su s c omman ds ou t o f l oyal ty to H im we a re t ru e
to th e c ol o u rs T h e n we c on fir m ou r l oya l ty by th e
.

p ers onal an d s p e ci fi c ser vic e that we ren der to Ch r i s t ,

e sp e cially in int rodu cing oth ers to H im a s M a s t er .

Th e firs t d i s cip les were ma de in thi s w ay . We c ou l d

n ot t ry to br in g oth ers int o an al le gianc e in wh ich

we ou r se lv es ha d n o c on fidenc e The gre at es t n eed

.

o f th e ch u r ch es n ow i s a m ore c on stant a n d l oya l

t e stim ony to Ch r i s t on th e pa r t o f H is d i scipl es .

What are the resu lts of con fessin g Chris t? I t de -

fi ne s an d s t rengt hen s ou r ow n faith an d p r actic e .

Wh en we op e nly take a s tan d f or any t ru th we a re

cla r i fied in ou r thinkin g an d s u stain ed in ou r prac
tical du ti es The bes t w ay to app re ciat e any i de a i s
.

to mak e s om e p os itiv e s tat e m e nt an d pe rf o r m s om e

ser vic e in it s b e half O p en c on fess i on i s th e su re st

.

p roo f o f th e cl aim s o f Ch r i st u p on oth ers an d th e

gre at e st h u man i nfl u e nc e to le a d th e m to H im .

O th e r di scipl es a re alway s ma de a s a re su l t o f b rav e

an d l o vi n g t e stim on y . O p e n c on f e ssi on giv e s the
hi gh e st h on ou r to Ch r i st a s Savi ou r an d L o rd Wh e n
.
146 EVA NG EL I STI C P RE A CH I NG

L i fe t owa r d a clea r pu rp ose d goal M atthew

-

A r n o ld called it Su c h a defi n iti o n o f the d omi

.

n an t pu rp ose o f li fe is i m perative i f w e are to suc

ceed in making o u r w o rk i n the w o r ld c ount .

Th e be s t w a y i n which to make thi s Chri sti an

ide a l vivid and c om ma n ding is to sh ow h ow it h as
ac tually been the obj ectiv e and the passi on o f Ch r is
t ian m en a nd w om e n eve r s inc e the time when P aul
defined it f o r th e firs t tim e A c on s picu ou s ex .

am ple o f this is A rthu r F r am e J acks on w ho died ,

i n Chin a in 1 9 1 1 w he n he w a s on ly twe n ty si x -

yea r s old giving hi s li f e f or the pe ople du r i n g a

,

t errible a tta c k o f pl a gu e Th e V ice r oy a f ollow er

.
,

o f C onfuciu s s aid c onc er ni n g J acks on :

,

'
We have sh own ou rs elve s unw or th y o f th e
g r eat t r u s t laid up on us b y ou r E mpe r or We .

have all owed a di r e p e s tilence to ove rru n the s ac r ed

cap ital Hi s M a j esty the King o f G r eat B r itain
.

sh ows sympathy with eve r y c ount r y when calamity

overt a kes it ; hi s s ubj ect D r J a cks on m oved by
, .
,

his Sovereign s spirit an d with the heart o f the

’

Savi ou r w ho g a ve H is li fe to delive r the w o rld

, ,

re sp on ded n obly when we asked hi m to help ou r

”
c ou n try i n its n eed .

To this w o n de r ful t r ibute fr om the O ffi cial D r ,

.

J a cks on s bi ographe r adds :

’

To me the r ema rkable f a ct ab out thes e t r ibute s

—
is thi s that they all get behi n d his s a c r ificial a ct to
the cent ral f a ct o f the Christi an religi on The .

eye s o f the s e men we r e opened and they s aw an ,

 SE RM O N O UTL I NE S 147

o th er M an and H e w a s on a C r oss Thu s in a day

,
.

Ch r i s t Cru cifi ed w a s p r each e d to milli on s f o r th e ,

eyes o f China w e re up on M oukd e n at that h ou r ”

.

Th ere a re s c o res o f s imila r illust r ati on s to b e

f ound The esse ntial Ch r i s tian ideal i s being re al
.

iz ed n ow a s it has be e n s teadily f r om the beginning .

We a re too s l ow to b r ing the evidence f o r wa r d in

it s convincing p o w e r .

T h e Ch r i st ian I d eal of L if e
A n d this I pray that you r lov e m ay abou nd ye t
,

m ore an d m ore in kn ow ledge an d all discern m en t;

s o tha t y e m ay appr ov e the thin gs that are ex cellen t ;

sin cere an d v oid o f fi en se u n to the

’
that y e m ay be o

day fo C hris t ; be in g fille d w ith the f r u i ts o f righ t

eou sn ess, w hich are throu gh Jesu s Christ, u n to the

lory an d praise of G od ( P h i l
g .

T his w a s P a ul s ide a l f o r his frie n ds in P hili pp i

’

bu t i t is still a n ade qu ate ide a l f or th e frie n ds o f

Chr i s t .

A bou n din g lov e — This is th e fi r st e sse n ti a l f or the

Ch r i s t i an life as i t h a s bee n fr om th e be gi nning
,
.

Ch ris t w a s the re sis t l e ss an d u n d i s c our a ged L over

o f m en H is dis c i p les m us t f oll ow H im in th is re
.

s p e ct We m us t l ov e a bun d ant ly ; l ove a ll k in ds o f

.

p ers on s ; l ov e at th e c o s t o f se rv ic e an d s ac rifi c e .

Th i s is the spi r it and h a bit o f the f oll owers o f

Ch ris t .

Kn ow ledge and discern m en t — Ch risti an l ov e is n ot

i gn o ran t o r reckl ess I t calls f o r k nowle dge and
.

A lf re d J Costai n The L if e of D r A rthu r Jackson of

‘
.
, .

M an chu ria .
1 48 E VA NG E L I STI C P RE A CH I NG

d i s c e rnm ent o r in si ght E a ch i s n e c e ssary to th e

.

o th er. T h e s u res t w ay to kn o w i s to l ov e ; th e be st
w ay to l o v e i s to u se in si ght an d w i sdom L ov e is .

s av ed f r om sentimentality by w i sdom ; w i sdom is

s av ed fr om c ol dn e ss by l ov e Wisdom i s th e sub
.

stanc e o f ou r acq u i red k n owled ge ; d i sc ernm e nt i s

th e acc u r at e vi s i o n i n t o th e t r u e cha ract er o f l i fe

that i s giv en u s by l ove .

A pprov in g the ex cellen t — O rd ina r i ly we w a s t e a

va s t am ou nt o f tim e an d e nergy on things that a re
n o t w o r th w hi le an d le t m o re imp o r tant aim s go by

defa u l t Th e Ch r i s tian i de al app rov es th o se pu r

.

p o ses w hich a re ex c e l lent an d so makes ou r l ab our

re w a rd ing The w ay in which to de ci de what i s
.

wor th whi le i s to see how Jes u s l i ved Th at wh ich .

H e s ought i s wo r th o u r seek ing .

R ighte ou s — Th ree a s p e ct s o f Chris tian ri ght e ous

n ess a re defi n ed : N e gativ ely it con s i s t s in b e ing
,

voi d o f an y val i d ch a rge o f e vi l T hi s i s good so .

f a r a s it goes ; b ut it is m erely n egativ e Therefo re .

,

we seek th e p os itiv e l i fe wh ich i s fu ll o f th e fru it s

,

o f r i ght l ivin g . F ina lly thi s r i ght e ou s n ess i s n ot

,

som e thin g that we ga i n by s t ruggle ; it i ssues from

o u r a lle gianc e to Chr i s t .

r i i
B n g n g glory an d praise to G d o — The Ch r i s t i an
l i fe does n o t seek it s ow n honou r an d p ra ise al one ; i t
see k s to y i e ld h on ou r to G o d I f th i s i s ach i e ved our
.

r ewa rd i s suffi c ient .

SE R M O N E IG
H TE E N
Chri stian s a lvati on h as been regar ded a s th e
putting o f a w a rrant int o on e s hand s by which h e ’
15 0 EVA NG EL ISTI C P RE A CH I NG

t u re i n r eligi o n and le a r n ing a b out religi o n ; s econd ,

o f ge t ti n g relig i o n a s a c onsci ous pers o na l p o sse s

s i on ; t hird o f u s in g a nd unde r st andi n g r eligi on i n

,

m a turi ng Chris tian service and experie nc e Char .

acte riz in g e ac h by a si ngle phr a se we m a y s p e a k o f ,

the st ages O f Chris t ian n u rt u re Chris t i an de c isi on ,

o r c onve r si o n an d Chri s tia n experien c e

, The first .

s t a ge c o r r es p on d s in gene r al to childh ood ; the sec

”
o n d to ad o lescence ; the thi r d to mature li fe
, ,
.

In these s e rm on s w e h av e n ot dwelt up on th e
matt er o f Ch r istian nu rtu r e in childh ood h aving i n ,

mind the s ec on d ite m c onve r si on and espe c ially

, ,

th o se w ho h ave pa ssed the a d o lesce n t ti m e to ,

wh om w e have been se eki n g to bring the G o s p el as

a mess a ge o f ne w li fe We are n ow seeking to .

defin e the s t a nd a rds an d dis c uss the a s p ects o f th a t

Christi an ex p erie nc e whi ch f o ll ows the sur r end er
o f the w ill to the claim o f Ch r ist as Savi o u r and

L or d .

G row in g a S o ul

B u t grow in grace an d kn ow ledge f

o ou r L ord an d

S av iou r J esu s Christ ( 2 P et.

3 :

Th e Ch r i s tian li fe l i ke a l l li fe i s s ub j e ct to th e
, ,

law o f grow th We are Ch r i s tian s ; bu t al s o we a re

.

b ecom in g Ch r i s tian s T hi s t ex t shows u s n ot only

.

th e en d b u t th e sphere o f Chr i s tian de v elopm ent th e ,

g r ac e an d th e kn owl edge o f Ch r i s t .

G r o i
w n o a d p r kn ow ledge of Chr s t
t e e e i — Read ,

s tudy an d think ab ou t H im Imagin e Je su s as H e .

Talks to Su n day School Teachers

-

,
19 2 0, p 93
. .
 SE RM ON OU TL IN ES 151

lived wi th H is frie n ds i n G al i lee R e fl e ct on H is ac .

t i on s P on der H is t e ach ings M a k e these re a l an d

. .

conc rete Compa re them w i th th e w ords an d deeds

.

o f Chr i s tian s n ow .

Try to make you rs the kn ow ledge that J esu s pos

sessed —H e kn e w m o re fully th an an y
. th er man o

w ho ever h a s lived th e t r u th a b ou t G o d ab ou t man , ,

an d a b ou t their r i ght an d n o rma l rel ati on s hip s to

on e an other We can ma s t er thi s n e c ess a ry knowl
.

edge on ly a s we obey th e p r inci ples c ontain ed in it .

G row in to the M aster s graciou s l f e i — Jesus w a s

’

the m o s t u n selfis h l ov ing an d gr aci ou s Com r a de w ho

, ,

ever l i ved M ann ers make m e n

.
' ”
We m u s t b e .

h a ve as H e d i d in ou r c ontact s w ith ou r fell ow s I f .

the w orld could r i se to the le v el o f the chiv a lr ous

l i fe o f Jesus the d ay o f the Kin gd om o f G od w ould
bre a k .

in to the grace of Chris t s person al sacri

’
G row
— The r ac e o f Chr i s t d o es n o t app e a r a l on e i n
fice g
H is c ou rt e ous l i fe ; i t i s the v ery sub s tanc e o f H is
s pi ri t a nd m oti ve Ch r i s t gav e H im self w ith ou t
.

reserv at i on to a ll mankin d H e sh owed un meri t ed .

f avour to a ll mank in d Th i s in volved s ac rifi c e The

. .

gr ac e o f Ch ris t app e a rs i n the c r oss Unt il w e rise .

to the heigh t o f p ers onal s ac rifi c e f o r the M a ste r w e

h a ve n ot a t ta i n ed the gr ac e o f the M a ste r .

S E R M O N NI NE TE E N
The r e ha s been endle ss discus s i o n e s peciall y
w ithin th e pa s t gene r ati o n c once rning the individ
ual and s ocial a s pects o f the G o s pel O n the on e .

hand hav e b ee n th e de fend ers o f th e p r op os iti on

15 2 EVA NG E L I STI C P RE A CH I NG

th a t the s a lvati on O f the i n di v id u a l s oul w as the

go a l O f Christi an p r e a chi ng an d o f the w o rk o f the
Ch r istian Chur c h ; on the o t her h an d li n e u p the
ch a mpi ons o f the claim th a t the w o rld is the sub
j cet o f r ede m p t i on and a ll pre achi n g and chur ch
w o rk a re desig n ed f o r the s a l va ti on o f s o c iety .

Tw o b ooks o f c o m p a r a tively r ecent d a te r ep r ese n t

th ese tw o acc ents o r p rog ra ms :
The Social G ospel an d the N ew E ra by J oh n ,

M a r shall B a rker The I n div idu alis tic G ospel an d

.

O ther E ssays by A ndrew G illies

, . B oth b o oks
were p ublished in 1 9 1 9 ; both a r e by well k n own -

membe rs o f the M eth odist Ep is c opa l Church .

E ach i s c lear i n the n ote th a t it s ou n ds P r o f . .

Ba rker affi rm s th a t the superl a tive duty o f the

'

Chu r ch is to te ach a c o r re c t n oti on o f the Ki n gd o m

and keep it alive in the hearts o f men The con .

ception s h ould never f a ll bel o w the s o c i a l vis i o n Of

Ch ri s t The Chu rch is to hel p sh ap e the m i n d o f

.

”
the w orld ab out the Ki n gd om ideal . D r G illie s.

cites the w o rk o f Wesley with a ppr oval sh o wing ,

c le a rly th a t a g r eat de a l that is m a de p rim ary to

d a y was made se co nd ar y by hi m bec a use he was
c onvinced th a t the only way to bri n g these ref o rm s
to p a ss w a s to get i n divid u a l men s oundly con
verted and that the only w ay to get h a rde n ed s in
,

ners and smug hy p ocrite s c onve rted was n ot by an

alt rui s tic ap peal but by a s olemn summ ons to get
,

”
r ight with G od .

Now what might seem to be a sharp di ffe re n ce

1 54 E VA NG E L I STI C P REA CH IN G

s ac red ob l i gati on is to make H im self c ompl e t e in

e v ery p os si b l e way I n on e sen se o f th e w o rd thi s
.

i s a do ct r in e o f u n rel i ev ed selfis hn ess or o f the se l f

h ood It c ont e mplat es on e s self a s wor th e very
.
’

p o s si ble e ff o r t in th e way o f se l f cu ltur e o r develop

-

m ent I t in s i s t s u p on th e s up rem e w or th o f th e
.

wh ole p ers onalit y body min d an d spi r it Th ese

, , , .

a re to re c e i ve c on s t ant att enti on an d c ul ture in or

der that th e in d ivi d u a l may b e c om e p erfe ct or com
plete . The m o s t p owerful in s t r u m ent th at G o d can
u se to ma ke th e w o rld w hat H e de si gn s it to be i s

p erfe cted an d con se c rat ed hu man p er sonality Su ch .

de v el opment o f c ompl e t en ess o f p ers onal ity i s im

p o ss ible h owever w ithou t the d i sc ip l in e an d c ul t ure
, ,

o f serv ic e to o th e rs .

The du ty of service to others —A p erfe ct ed p er .

son ality th at i s n ot e mp l oyed f or a n u n selfis h pu r

p ose may be a c ur se in s t e a d o f a b less ing So .

J esus p erfe ct ed H is own l i fe in o rder that H e mi ght

g iv e it l avi shly f o r the g o o d o f o thers A ll gain s in
.

in d iv i dual cha r act er a re f or th e p u rp ose o f u s ing

th em in a w i der mini s t ry to oth ers I t i s th e in ten .

ti on o f th e gi f t that w a rrant s th e s t ru ggl e to p osses s

it So we do n ot a sk m erely wh at a gain in Ch ris
.

tian cha ract e r is; w e ask w hat i t i s f or I f it is f or .

th e welfa re o f ou r c om ra des an d f or the h i gh es t good

o f the c omm u n i t y w e a re war ranted in seeki ng i t

w ith a ll ou r stre ngth Thi s con s tant an d b en efi cen t

.

re acti on goes on all th e tim e in th e bu i lding o f Ch ri s

tian c a ract er : o w e w ant to ser v e ou r age T h en
h D ?

we m u st p erfe ct ourselves D o we want to pe rfect

.

our sel v e s ? T h e n we m us t serv e ou r age f or w e can

reac h p erfecti on in n o oth er w a
y .
 SERM O N O UTL I NE S 15 5

S E RM O N TW E NTY
Th e id e a w hich we a re to b r ing out in ser mon
t w enty i s that th e Ch r i s tian li f e i s a beauti ful ha r
m ony o f s inging vi r tue s a ch o r u s o f qualiti es
,

w hich i s p re pa r ed and t r ain e d and r ende rs the v ery

mu s ic o f G od in an e a r thly li f e Th e firs t s tep in
.

th e p r epa r ati on o f the ser m on i s to g r a s p th e full

meaning o f th e fi gu re u se d in th e tex t It c ome s .

fr om a pe ople w ho l oved mu s ic and w ho kne w

w hat w a s inv olv e d in se lecting th e s inge rs f o r a
ch o ru s in t r aining th e m and then und er the direc
, , ,

ti on o f the leade r in rende r ing a g r eat c omp o s iti on

,
.

Stud y ca r e full y th e m e aning o f thi s int eres ting

and illuminating anal ogy a s it i s see n in the w o r k
o f a m o de r n o r che s t ra or ch o r u s In th e firs t plac e
.

th e Ch r i s tian cha r act er i s m ore b e auti ful and s ati s

f yin g than any oth er fact o r ex p er ien ce in li f e .

N o o r at o r i o or s ymph ony i s so r ich in all l ov e lin ess ,

so elevating in it s influenc e so s t r o ng in it s upli ft

,

a s a t ru e Ch r i s tian cha r act er The Ch r i s tian li f e

.

ha s s om e time s b ee n re ga r d e d a s a s t er n and u n
l ovely expe r ienc e ; but it i s th e c ont r a r y Th e .

cha r acte r of Jes u s i s th e p r oo f that the n or m a l

Ch r i s tian w ay o f living i s full o f s t r ength and
beaut y .

N ow s tudy th e a ss embling o f th e Ch r i s ti an v ir
tue s. Thi s is o n e o f the highe s t p r ivil e ges that can
c ome to u s We a r e giv e n the duty o f calling int o
.

be i n g and ex p ress i on th e fi n es t n obl es t qualiti e s o f

,
15 6 E VA NG E L I STI C P R EA CH I NG

t he h u man spirit N o ch or us le a der eve r w as p er

.

m itted to asse m ble s u ch s elect a nd be a uti ful a gent s

f o r the expressi on o f a great mu s i ca l theme Th en .

n ote the w ay i n which the v a ri ous qualitie s are

u n ified and b a l a nced J ust a s a gre a t ch o rus m u st
.

h ave e n ough but n ot m o re th an en ough si ngers f or

t he di fferent p ar ts so the Christi an ch a r acte r con
,

sists i n a b al an ce o f qu a lities whi c h in su r e s ha r

m o n y in the r ende r i n g o f the music .

The n r eview the m a tter o f the di s ciplin e or th e

traini n g o f th e a s s e m bled pa r t s to the ch o rus .

H ow much mu s t be d on e to m odul a te the l oudne ss

o f s om e an d to incre a se the st r ength o f a tt a ck a n d

t one on the pa r t o f othe rs Time and ag a in the .

s c o r e must be rehearsed a n d ev ery time the t ra i n ed

e a r o f the le a de r will di s c ov er s ome p oint at which
m o re p r ac ti c e is ne c ess a ry .

B u t the m o st i m p o rt a nt item in the fi gu re is th e

musi c th a t is to be rende r ed by the ha r m oni ou s li fe .

The gre a t p rivilege O f re p e a ti n g the maj estic music

o f t he ch a r a cte r o f J e s u s is give n to us The r e i s .

n o o the r v o c a ti o n o r p o ssibility th a t can c omp a re

with this It is the supreme p rivilege o f existe nc e

.
.

This f a ct ough t to i n s p i r e us w ith the dete rmina

ti on to live well as n eve r bef ore .

T h e Ch oru s of t
Ch ris ian C h arac t er
Y an d this cau se addin g art all
ea, f or on y ou r p
dilige n ce, in y ou r faith su pply virtu e ; an d in y ou r v ir
tu e know ledge ; an d in your kn ow ledge self con trol; -
15 8 E VA NG E L I STI C P RE A CH I NG

nobles t ide a l to o ursel v es wh en we seek to become

l i ke G o d Th i s i s th e hi gh e st re v erenc e
. .

B r o t l
her y ki n dn es
.s — E v ery on e i s fi gh tin g a ha rd
b attle The s ou l s o f men n eed kin dness T ru e
. .

b r o th er h o od defi n es th e s or t o f k in dn ess that we a re

to sh ow to o th ers . T hi s i s su es fr om ou r kn ow l edge
an d exp er i en c e o f G od s F ath er h ood
’
.

L ov e — T hi s i s the inc lus i ve an d c r own in g vi r t u e

o f th e Chr i s tian l i fe an d ch a r act er G o d i s l ov e ;
.

thi s i s the re a s on why w e a re to l ove oth ers N o .

o th er p oint o f v i ew w i ll reve al o u r du t ies to o th er s

a s l ov e w i ll s h ow the m .

These e i ght q u aliti es o f Chris t i an ch aract er we

mu s t a ssemb le an d t r ain an d use i n c omp le t e ha r
mony Th ey w i ll ren der G od s musi c
.
’
.

S E RM O N TWE NTY O NE -

In thi s s e rm on we a r e to take up the message o f

Ch r ist to the p hysic a l li fe The G o s p el has s ome
.

thi n g to s ay to the physic a l m a n It d o es n ot con

.

te m plate saving the s oul a n d letti ng the b ody go .

It mean s the s alvati on o f the physi ca l man .

B y thi s w e do n ot mean to c l a i m th a t the Chri s

ti an expe r ience insu r es the he a ling o f all w ound s
o r the a s s u r anc e o f f r eed om f r o m dise a se We .

me a n th a t the Christi an i s a be t ter i ns ur an ce r isk

a n d th a t on the wh ole he a lth c om es with the deep
en in g o f the Christi an li fe The gi f t s o f Christ
are pe ac e and j oy ; the s e a re d i re c tly c onc e rne d
w ith the wh ole m a tte r o f phy s ical well being -
.
 SE RM O N O U TL I NES 15 9

Back o f this s e r m on m ust lie a clea r idea o f th e

Ch r i s tian view o f the phy s ical b o dy It i s n ot an
.

e n emy o f th e s pi r it to b e c r u shed ; it i s th e help er o f

th e spi r it when it i s r ightly r ega r ded W e do n ot
.

think that the b o dy i s to be sc o u r ged ; we think that

it i s to be devel op e d and disciplined until it s hall b e
the inst r ument and templ e o f the imm o r tal s pi r it .

A s J o s iah St r ong o nce said

The r e cannot be a high intell e ctual and s pi r
itu al g r ow th w ith out an ad e quate ph ys ical ba s i s .

M an i s the m o st perfect animal in the w o r ld It .

w as the highest phy s ical o r gani s m whi c h re ceived

th e d ouble c r o wn O f intellectual a n d s pi r itual li fe .

In human expe r ience the highe r i s c onditi oned by

,

the l ow e r as the supe rs t r uctu r e is limited by the

,

f oundati on But it i s quite p o s sible to devel op th e

.

l ow e r li fe at the ex pen s e O f the highe r The spl e n

.

did physique O f the p r i z e fi ghter d o e s n ot imply a

-

c o rr esp onding i n tellectual and s pi r itual devel op

ment but quit e the c ont r a r y A s an animal he i s
, .
,

”
admi r able ; as a man he i s m on s t ro u s
, .

Th ere fo r e ou r empha s i s i s to be on th e value o f

the phy s ical a s the ba s i s O f the Spi r itual Th e .

b o dy i s to b e cultivat e d and h on ou r ed r athe r than

neglect e d o r de s pi s ed becau s e it i s th e w a rr ant f or
all advanc e in th e m e ntal and spi r itu a l achievem e nt s
o f man . The re a r e s om e c on s picu ou s e xample s o f
supe r b attainm e nt s in s pit e o f phy s ical limitati on s ;

but in gene r al it i s the pe rs on w ho has a cl e an an d

‘
Th e Tw en tieth Cen tury City, p 1 3
. .
1 60 EV A NG E L I STI C P RE A C H I N G

s t r on g body w h o can do t he best w o rk f or Chr i s t

i n the Kingd o m O f G o d .

The H ou se of M an s
’
S o ul

O r kn ow ye n ot that y ou r body is a temple of the

H oly S piri t w hich is in y ou w hich y e hav e fr om ,

G od ? an d y e are n ot y ou r ow n ; f or ye w ere b ou gh t
w i th r i ce : lorify G od th eref or e in y ou r body
a p g
( C1o r 6
. : 1 9 ,
2 0 al so
; se e

Th e G o sp e l i s good n ews to th e whole o f li fe an d

th eref o re it ha s a m e ssage to th e b ody It does n ot .

d es pi se th e ph y sica l ; it ex alt s it as th e o rgan o f

th e spi r it an d th e t emp le o f th e d ivin e H ow s hall .

we t re at ou r b od i es a s th e t empl e o f G od ?
Th e h o n ur w e p y
o a the t m ple
e — A s anct u a ry is
th e plac e w hich we h onou r b oth f o r it s ow n s ake an d
f o r that which re si des th ere T he b o dy i s th e Spi r it s
’
.

s anct u a ry E v ery o rgan an d fu ncti on is to be

.

hi ghly rega rded on thi s acc ou nt The hi gh es t re .

s p e ct that we can pay th e spi r it i s to p rovi de f or

it th e cl e an es t an d m o s t b e au ti fu l t emp le p oss i b l e .

The care w e take of the templ e — We m u s t giv e s

c e a seless ca re to th e b u il ding o f th e t emp le that it

m ay be s t ron g e n ou gh to ser v e th e n eed s o f a st r on g
an d de ath less spi r it T he s ou l i s h ere to do gre at
.

d eed s ; it m u s t hav e an in st ru m ent fi tt ed to thi s e n d .

We mu st take gre at ca re to keep th e t empl e cl e an .

N o thin g c o a rse o r v u l gar has th e r i ght to b e th ere .

N o f o u l th ou ght o r b a s e m o tiv e may b e al l owed to

tak e its p l ac e in thi s phy sical t e mp le It m u st be .

ma de b eau ti fu l w ith e v ery p ossi bl e ado rnment o f

lo v e lin es s
. T he s pi r it is exq u i sit ely be a u ti ful ; its
h ou se m u s t b e of the s am e k in d .
1 62 EVA NG EL I STI C P R E A CH I N G

v eIO pm en t a n d the p ower o f G od i n t he gr ow th o f

the spirit In o ther w o rds G o d d o es n ot m a ke u s
.
,

c om plete Chris t i an s a ll at o n ce by a n a ct o f miracle

o r m agi c H e t a kes t i m e
. The pr o c ess is the
.

s am e as th a t by whi ch we make ad vanc e s i n the

c ultiva t i o n o f ou r physi ca l or me n t a l p owers .

T a ke the f a milia r ex amp le o f the tr a i n i n g O f the

athlete It is n e c ess a ry f o r the c an didate f o r an
.

athletic t e am to s ub m it to all kinds o f tests a n d

t ra ini n g The r eadi n e s s with which on e is ready

.

to surrender his private i n terest o r his sel fi sh desire

is the first indicati on o f his fitness to be a can didate
f o r the te a m A n d his i n iti a l a c t o f surre n der to
.

the tr a ining an d de n i a l mu st be f o ll owed by a serie s

O f test s th at will l a st a ll the time he is in t he par
ticu lar gr ou p to wh o se s ucce ss he yields his i n di
vidu a l t a ste o r desi r e .

O r think o f the way in whi ch we acqui r e an edu

cat i on The test o r ex ami na ti on must be s u c c ess
.

f u lly met du r i n g the enti r e ti m e o f disci p li n e .

O r a l an d writte n ex am i na ti o n s are only the n eces

s a ry test by whi ch we determi n e ou r m aste ry o f the
tru th whi ch w e a re seeking to gr a s p They a re .

s ometi m es irrit a ti n g ; but they a re vitally n eces

s a ry at le a st in s ome f o rm
, .

This l a ys the f ou n d at i on f o r the r eas onable n ess

and the ki n d n ess th a t a r e b oth inv olved in tem pta
ti on It is G od s w a y o f testi ng us Theref o re a
.
’
.

temptati on I S i n a r e a l s e n se a pr ivilege It is n o
, , .

sin to be tempted ; the s in can be on ly in th e y ield

 SE RM O N O UTL I NE S 1 63

ing to th e temptati on Thi s we ne e d n ot do i f we

.

w ill give G o d th e plac e in th e s t r uggle that J e s u s

h as p r omi se d that H e w ill tak e It i s th e pu rp o se .

o f this ser m o n to s h ow w h a t that plac e i s and to

e nable u s to me e t ou r te s t s as J esu s m e t Hi s .

t
T em p at io n —And G od

There hath no temptation taken y ou bu t su ch as

m en can bear ; bu t G od is f aithfu l w h o w ill n o t ,

su ff er y ou to be tempted abov e that ye are able ; bu t

w ill w ith the temptation m ake also the w ay of es

cape ,
that ye may be able to en du re it ( 1 Co r .

The fu n ction of tests in the realiz ation of the

G l lif — T es t s a re imp er ati ve in b u i ldi ng an d
ospe e .

man uf act ure A ll mat er ia ls are p roved bef o re they

.

a re buil t i nt o en duri n g s t ru ct u res I n mathe mat i c s .

an d l ogic we deman d that p rop os iti on s sh a ll be sub

j e cte d to p r o o f I n t he devel
. o pm e nt o f life a c c o rd
i ng to the f o r m and l a ws o f the G os p el w e m ake the
s am e deman d T es t s ough t to be wel c om ed an d
.

the ir r esul t s used T e mptat i ons are t es t s ; they

.

p rov e the w or th an d dura bility o f th e mate ri a ls o f

Christi an ch a r ac t er .

The en du ran ce of tes ts — Tes ts inv olve s t rain and

su ff eri ng They c a ll f or th e u tm o s t r e s olu t i on
.
,

pat ie nc e a n d c our a ge They a re n ot welc om e a t

, .

the m oment H ow a re they to be m et ? Not by

.

seek in g to avoid the m N o p roble m is e ver s olved

.

by ru nn ing away from i t F ac e the t e mptat i on .

s qu a rely All d i ffi c u l t ies gen er a lly l ook l a rgest at

.

a dis t anc e as a hill appear s s t eepe st b e f ore we

,
1 64 EVA NG EL I STIC P RE A CH I NG

actually begin to climb it A de t ermin ed s tan d is

.

the on ly Ch r i s tian w ay i n wh ich to s u b mit to a t e st .

G od s p rt in
’
a ou r tes ts — A t th e m om e nt w h e n w e
seem n ea res t the p o in t o f bre aking G o d c om e s in
w ith h el p M illi on s o f w itn esses c onfirm thi s s tat e
.

m ent They hav e fou ght u nti l it seem ed as i f th ey

.

m u s t s u rre nder and th e n at th e m om ent whe n de

, ,

fe at see med in e vitab l e s om e thing ha s b roke n th e

,

p ower o f the t emptati on E n ergy from G od ha s

.

ru s h ed in re in fo r c ed the i r feeb le p owers giv en th e m

, ,

th e h el p th ey n eeded We can re ly up on G od H e
. .

w i ll n ot f ai l the s oul St rength w i ll c om e to match

.

th e tri al .

S E R M O N T W E NT Y T H R E E -

The G r eat War has given an a dded impetus to

discus s i on s on the subj ect o f praye r The wh ole .

q ue s ti on wa s th row n int o promine nc e by the prae

tical s ituati on in which milli on s o f p e op le we r e in
v olved ; they p r ayed against the c omi ng o f the w ar
a nd th e y p ra yed f or vict o ry ; they pr ayed f o r the
s a fety o f thei r f r iend s a nd o ften it seemed as i f
,

their p rayer s we r e idle m ocke r y What did it a ll .

m e an ? Wh a t w as the use o f p ra yer ?

O n the other h a nd the r e a p p e a rs a s n eve r bef o r e

the s ound n e ss o f the fun da m e ntal pri nc i p le th a t
p ray er i s o f th e ve r y natu r e o f r eligi on The .

s t a te m e n t o f William Ja me s at the c on clusi o n o f

his V arie ties of R eligious Experien ce i s m o re than
ev er ti mely and t r ue
16 6 EVA NG E L ISTI C P RE A CH I NG

will . a dds strength to us H e bre aks thr ough

He .

w i t h p owe r f o r ou r help It ta ke s gre at f a ith to .

be sure o f thi s ; but there a re unlimited pr oo fs o f

th e r eality o f the find in g o f P r o f J am es i n his .

great study Wh a t we n eed i n ou r present bewil

.

deri n g gene r ati on is to be su r e o f this f ac t an d a ct

u p on it with j oy P u t this c onfi de n ce behi n d the
.

p e ople in thi s se rm on .

P rev ailin g P ray er

The su pp n cation o f a righ te ou s m an av aile th mu ch

in its w orkin g ( J a s .

P rayer i s c omm u ni on be t wee n th e s ou l an d G od .

It ha s a s many f o rm s o f exp re ssi on as a h u man

fr i endshi p has Som e tim es it i s sil ent c on s i sting
.
,
”
e nti re ly in th e j oy o f t oge th ern ess Som e tim es
'
.

it i s a u d i b l e c on s i s ting o f p r ai se an d a do rati on an d
,

p e titi on It always i s a vital an d b e au ti fu l pa r t o f

.

”
th e Ch r i s tian li fe the vital bre ath an d nati ve
,
'

ai r o f Ch r i s tian exp er i e nc e .

The righteou s m an s prayer

’
Wh i le m e n p ray be .
-

ca u se th ey a re good th ey als o a re good be cause they

,

p ray The p romi se o f achi e v em e nt in th e li fe o f

.

p r ayer i s n ot in d i s c r iminat e an d u ncon d iti on ed It .

i s re al i zed fu lly by th o se wh ose l i fe m er it s th e b l e ss

i n gs that fl ow from c ommu ni on w ith th e F ath er .

J u st as a chi ld s fel l ow ship w ith hi s e a rthly pa rent s

’

is m ade p ro fi tab le in th e e n d b y th e cha ract er o f hi s

re lati on s w ith th em so th e l i fe o f p rayer dep end s
,

f o r its rewa rds an d s ati sfacti on s u p on th e r i ghtn e ss

o f o u r l i fe .

The grad u al resu lts —N ot e th e phra se . i n its ,

 SE RM O N O U TL I NE S 1 67

working . T he resul t s may be del ayed T hey may

.

n ot c om e a s swif t ly a s we c ould wish G o d ta kes

.

t im e to br ing ab ou t th e r e sul t s wh ich we des i re I t .

is n e c ess a ry to e nt er i nt o partn ers hip w ith H im an d

to sh a re t he l on g p r o c esses by wh ich H is gr e at e n ds

a re gain ed Th i s t es t s an d tr ain s ou r pati en ce an d

.

endur anc e I t is desir a bl e I f every th ing were ac

. .

c omp l i shed in a m ome nt w e w ould n ot r eceive the

d i s cip l in e th at is n e c ess a ry f or ou r h i ghes t welf a re .

P rayer an engi n e o
f a chiev em e n t — I t fi na
. lly
”
avai le th m u ch P r ayer d o es a c t u a lly get resul t s
. .

We may n ot be abl e to exp l a i n th i s ; bu t i n s om e w ay

thr ough c ommun i on wi th G od uni on is e ff ec t ed wi th
the h i gher p owers ou t s i de ourselves and ene rgy
com es in to gi ve th e res our c es w e n eed i n the en
deav ou r to le a d the Chr i s tian life I t is like the re
.

sul t th a t is derived from a ta lk wi th s ome on e

s t r on ger th an ourselves when hel p is a ctu a lly give n
to match ou r n eed We do n ot w a i t p erfe ct ly to u n
.

derstan d a ll the re a s on s th at w ar r ant the acti on We .

imp ly take the hel p th at is o ff ered an d th ank G od

ior it .

S E R M O N T W E NTY F O U R -

When the la wyer a s k e d J e s u s the t es t que s

ti on re p or t e d in L u k e 1 0 h e r ec e ived an answe r
f r om th e B ibl e and th e n a s t o ry f r om re al li f e .

Thi s is on e o f th e m os t w ond er ful o f all th e pa r

abl es th e tend er and se a r ching s t ory o f th e G oo d
,

Sama r itan Th e inm o s t meaning o f thi s we a re

.

to int erpre t in s e r m on t we nty f ou r -

It sh ows u s
.
1 68 EVA NG E L I STIC P RE A CH I NG

t he grou n ds o f t r ue br otherh oo d an d the me an ing

o f Christi a n service . It le a ds in the end to t he
c on ce p ti on o f human li fe wh ich i s s ummed up i n
”
th e n oble phr a se , The Bel oved C ommunity .

C on ce rn ing this a r ece n t b ook s a y s

'
Je sus s ou ght to le a d H is fo ll o we rs on to the
f ull statu r e o f the p erfect m a n an d w oman There .

f o re He s et bef o re them the ide a l o f the bel o v ed

c ommunity It i n cluded all w ho like the m selves
.
, ,

were intent u p on d oi n g the w i ll o f G od These .

J esus implied we r e n o t o nly H is but their b r o the r s

an d si s ters a nd m oth e r s This bel oved c ommu n ity
.

wa s the l arger f am ily c a pable through thei r united

,

e ffo rts o f unlimited exp an si on to which He di ,

rected thei r su p reme dev oti o n an d l o y a lty Jesus .

s ought to build up ab out ea ch individu a l a n e a ger ,

ki n dly fr a ternal gr oup ever gr owing u n til it ih

, ,

c luded all membe rs o f the l oc a l c ommunity In .

this e ach found n ot o n ly f r iendshi p sym pa thy an d , ,

hel p bu t ample Opp or tunity f o r s el f ex p ressi on an d

-

gro w t h th r ough se rvic e This w as the o nly ty p e

.

o f c hur ch th a t J esus ev er f ounded It was the .

f am ily ideal ex p anded until it included a ll member s

o f the l oc a l c ommunity w h o were r es p on sive to the

feelings o f b r otherh ood a nd then ex pan ded ag a i n

u ntil it bound t ogethe r thr ough c omm on l oyal t ies
, ,

a ll m en o f all r aces w ho acc e p ted Jesu s p r in c i p le s ’

of living L ik e a m o the r bi r d He l onged to

.
,

g ath er a ll o f the s c a tte r ed s ons o f A b rah am unde r

His enfo lding wi ng s The G o spel o f J ohn al so
.
1 70 EVA NG EL I STI C P RE A CH I N G

The priest — H is
. b u sin ess wa s th e rep re sentati on
an d a dmini st rati on o f re li gi on M er cy an d h elp f u l .

n e ss were hi s fu ncti on T he ca re o f b l eed i n g m en

.

sh o u ld hav e bee n th e v ery t e chni u e o f h is d ail y

q
li f e H e saw th e w ou nded man b u t appa rently d i d
.

n ot e v e n bre a k hi s w a lk H e pa ssed a l ong on th e

.

Opp o s it e s i de o f th e r oa d .

Th e L evite . H e a ls o w a s tra i n ed i n the exer ci se

-

o f rel i gi on. The c ere m oni es were th e ob j e ct o f h is

st u dy an d de v o ti on H e wou ld n ot hav e c ond u ct ed
.

on e inacc ur at ely ; a s tic kler f o r f o r m H e s aw the .

w oun ded man p l ainly B u t he d i d n ot s t op to h e lp

.

him .

Th e S am aritan —Re m e mber that Je w s an d Sa

.

m aritan s were b itt er e n e mi es T h e i r anc es t o rs ha d

.

qu a rreled ; that wa s e nou gh to kee p th e qu a rrel h ot

f o r c e nt uries .T hi s S ama r itan h a d e v ery r acial
p re j ud ic e again s t th e Jews H e mi ght hav e s ai d .
,

G o o d e n ou gh f o r him ' Th ere i s on e les s Jew

”
to ab u se m e an d my p e op le B u t thi s S ama r itan
.

wa s a t rue n e i ghb ou r H e d i d n ot inqu i re f o r nam e s

.

an d rel ati on ship s H e b roke hi s j ou rn ey ; got th e

.

wounded man on h is h orse ; t ook him to hi s ow n

r oom ; watch ed th e man p ers onally ; t ook th e re
sp on s i b i l it y o f p r o vi d ing him a r oom an d b oa rd He .

stan ds f o r th e t r u e n e i gh b ou r w h o w ill n e v er giv e u p

a p erman ent rel ati on ship o f l ov e an d service to an y

n eedy s oul anywhere at any tim e .

S E R M O N T W E NT Y F I V E -

Thi s s e rmon i s b as ed on the fundamental idea

that w e cannot complete ou r Ch r i s tian li fe apa rt
 SE RM ON OUTL I NE S 1 71

f r om the fell o w ship w ith othe r s which i s abs o lutely

nece ss a r y N o pe rs on c an b e a Ch r i s tian a l o n e ;
.

we r equi r e o n e a nothe r to pe r fect ou r li f e in uni on

w ith Chri s t on e a rth .

The g r eat rea lm o f this fell ow ship is the Chu r ch ,

which i s he r e r ep r e s ented a s an o rga n ism or co r

p o r atio n o f Ch r i s t Thi s i s.St P aul s de fi niti on o f .
’

the Chu r ch and n o m o re s ati s facto r y on e eve r ha s

been given C once r ning thi s c oncepti on o f the
.

Chu r ch Bi sh op Cha r le s H Brent s ay s .

The Church h a s a visible b ody ; it i s an o r gan

i s m rathe r than an o r gani z ati on ; the r e i s on e B ody
and on e Spirit It i s pe rhap s r a the r diffi cult to
.

make clea r th e di ff e r ence between an o r gani s m

and an o r gani z ati on but th er e i s a di ff e re nce which
,

is fundamental A n o r gani s m i s a u nita r y f o rm ;

.

li fe i s inhe r ent in it and ene rgi z e s and pe r meate s it

fully A n o r gani z ati on i s an as se mbling and co
.

o r di n ati o n o f c ongenial element s a c ommunicating ,

o f li fe a s th e li fe O r gani z at ion i s so to s peak

.
, ,

manu factu r ed The family th e nati on and the

.
, ,

Chu r ch a r e all or ganisms and e v ery v olunta r y a s ,

s o ciati on s uch a s the Ch r i s tian A ss o ciati on f o r in

, ,

stance i s an o r gani z ati on The Church i s the o nl y

, .

ete rnal s ociet y and all v olunta r y ass oci a ti on s i f

, ,

they ful fi ll thei r c ompl e te functi on s p ou r thei r li fe ,

i n t o th e Chu r ch fin ding their highest and fulle s t

,

realizati on in giving themselv es in all thei r com

p l e ten es s to the Chu r ch M a.n i s n o t b o d y
alone : bo dy w ith out s oul i s c or p se N eithe r i s he .
1 72 EVA NG E L I STI C P REA CH I NG

s o ul a l one : s o ul w i th out b ody i s gh ost M an i s ,

.

”
b ody a n d s oul .

N o w what the s oul i s to the b ody o f man that ,

the livi n g Christ i s to His b ody the Church n ow on

e a rth a nd f o r eve r in uni on wi t h Him i n the u n see n
w o rld Thi s figu r e is on e o f the m ost cl a rifying
.

symb ols which we c ould p os sibly u se to m ake c le ar

the ete rna l value and th e p r e s ent imp o rtance o f the
Christia n Chu r ch The r e is n o the o ry or d octrine
.

o f the Chu r ch that e ve r h as b e en fra m ed that let s

us i n t o its ve r y i n ne r meaning so su r ely an d com

p le t ely a s this The. m o re the pre ac her p o n ders it
the m or e he w ill see its c o n su mm ate a n d r evealing
beauty The s e r m on will gr o w swi ftly a r ound thi s
.

c e nt r al fi gu r e .

T h e L iv in g C hurch

The Chu rch w hich is his body E

( ph .

T hi s i s a des c r ipti on o f th e Ch u r ch accord ing to

an anal ogy which we all app re ciat e an d u n ders tand .

T he Ch u r ch is at t h i s m om e nt th e o rgani sm o r grou p ,

o f l ivin g p ers on s in w h o se d ai ly l i fe th e p u r po se o f
,

Jesu s works so r ad ically that it ge t s it s w i ll don e

throu gh th em We n ot e :
.

The u n ity of the Chu rch — Jus t as an y li v ing plant

o r animal i s a d iv ersi ty o f o rgan s u ni fied an d con

t rol led f o r a c omm on p urp o se so th e li ving Chur ch

,

i s c omp osed o f a great nu mber o f p ers on s an d pro

gram s u nit ed an d d i re ct ed by th e un see n Ch r i s t
, ,

res i dent w ithi n th em T he groun d o f u nit y in the

.

The I n spiration o f R espon sibility, 19 1 5, pp 9 8, 1 00

. .
1 74 EVA N G EL I STI C P R E A C H I NG

O nly c auti on i s n e c ess a ry In devel opi n g a

on e .

se rm on fr o m a n illu s t ra ti o n o r like n ess w e m u st

r e m e m be r th a t n o figu re ever c an be pressed i nt o
det a ils w ith out it s f a ili n g a t s ome p o int No .
'

exa m ple c a n go on a ll f ours So t he pre a cher

.

must sele c t th o se f ac t o rs in t he fi gure th a t ar e es

sen t ial a n d whi c h be ar up on t he s u bj ect to be inter

reted by the an a l ogy a nd h o ld ste a df a stly to them

p
in hi s t r e a tment o f the pr op o siti on Wh at ever w e .

say ab out the citi z en and the athlete must b e v a lid

in it s applicati on to the Chri s ti an li fe and experi
en c e N ot m a ny items are to be br ought f o rw a rd ;
.

th o s e whi ch a r e sele ct ed m ust be ca re fu lly h an dled ;

their bea r ing u p on the p rop o siti on must alw ays be
legitimate B eware the tem p t a ti on to r u sh i n t o
.

f an ci ful c omp ar is ons ; neve r let detail s cl u tte r up

the treatment o f the anal ogy We a r e t rying to .

m ake an u n f a mili a r truth p lain by the use o f on e

th a t is f a miliar C onfusi on c om es fr om too m any
.

”
p o ints.

Ci ti z en s an d A thl t e es o f th e G o sp el

O n ly let you r m an n er of lif e be w orthy of the

G ospel of Chris t; that w he ther I com e an d see you
,

or b e a bs en t 1 m ay hear of y ou r s tate that y e s tan d

, ,

fast in on e spirit w ith on e sou l s triv in g f or the

,

faith of the G ospel ( P hi l .

Th e m e anin g o f th e t ex t i s c l a r i fied by tw o fi g
ures : th e wo rd t ran sl at ed le t you r m ann er of life be
me an s l it er ally act as a citiz en ; the wo rd t ran sl at ed
 SE RM O N O U TL I N ES 1 75

s triv ing f m e
or an s l it er a lly b ein
g an a th le te T o be .

a Chr i s tian m e an s to b e a cit i zen an d an athle t e f o r

Chr i st .

ti
Ci z ns of the G o p
e s e l —Con sid e r th e rights or
.

i il es o f G o s p el citi ze n s hip M e m bersh ip in th e

p r v e g .

c omm onwe al th o f Chr i s t inv olves th e r i ght to kn ow

G od ; th e F at her i s d i s c o v ered an d app r op r iat ed
thr ough Chr i s t I t i nv olves the p r ivi le ge o f kno w
.

ing wh at r i ght is an d h ow to do it ; we der i ve ou r

m o r a l in s i ght an d e n ergy fr om Chr i s t I t invol v es .

the r igh t to i mm orta l l i fe ; the c omm onwe a l th o f

Chr i s t e m br ac es e a r t h an d he a ve n Con s i der the .

du ties o f G o s p el c i ti ze n sh ip T hese a re m o re im
.

p o r tant th an r i gh t s There is the du t y to p erfe ct

.

ou r p ers ona l it y ; to ser v e ou r e n er at i n in t he s pi r it

g o

o f Chr i s t ; to k n ow an d do G o d s w i ll Con s i der t he

’
.

m u t u a l l oya l t ies o f G o sp el citi ze n shi p No m an .

l iv es to h im sel f We m us t sympathize wi th e ach

.

other ; h el p e ach o ther ; s ac r i fi c e f o r e ac h o t her .

A thle tes of the G ospel— L oy a l t y to Ch r i s t is n ot

n egativ e o r p uny ; it is ma r tia l an d ath le t i c b u s i
n ess I t ca lls f o r red bl ood f or d a ri ng f o r t rain
.
, ,

in g f or res ol u ti on an d f o r p ersis t e nc e
, , Co n s i der .

th e athle t e s pu rpose : he m e ans to w in H e m e an s

’
.

to w in h on ou r a bly H e l o ses in fi n e s p ir it a s a go od
.

s p r t s man Con sider the athle t e s d i sc ip l in e N O

o .
’ ’
.

de nia l is too gre at to p u t h im i n fit c on d it i on H e .

p l ays the game wi th the t e am m ergi ng i n dividu al ,

des i re i n the vi ct o ry f or the gr ou p Con sider the .

’
athlete s de t er minat i on H e do es n ot giv e u p e v e n
.

when h e i s appar e nt ly be at e n These ch arac teris t ics .

a re ca lled f or by the G os p el .
1 76 EVA NG EL ISTI C P R E A CH I NG

S E R M O N T W E NT Y S E V E N -

We d ra w ne ar the c o n clusi o n o f this serie s o f

se rm ons i n whi c h we have attempted to s et f orth
the goo d n ew s o f the r ec onc ili a ti o n i n Ch r ist befo re
the c o m munity The mess a ge i s c oncluded with
.

the st a te m ent o f Chri s t s d oct r in e and pr og ra m o f

’

the K ingd o m o f He aven .

Tw o b ooks o f fai r ly r ec e nt date a re recom

mended : What is the Kingdom of H eav en ? by
A Clutt on Br o ck Scrib n e r s The Chris
’
. 192 0
. . .

tian A dv en ture by A He r bert G r a y

, . 192 0 As . .

s o c iati on P r e s s Ea ch o f these b ooks h an dle s the

.

gre a t sub j ect with a f r esh and suggestive style .

They will s timulat e a p r eache r s thi nking m ost ’

pr ofit a bly.

It mu s t be admitted that th e idea o f the King

dom o f G od h a s been sadly negle c ted in the teach
i n g o f the Chu r ch and the w or k o f pre aching The .

f oll o wing statement is m o s t im p o r tan t c omi n g ,

fr o m a n investig ati on o f the r eligi ou s ideas a n d li fe

o f the s oldiers in the G r eat W ar

Sh ould w e n ot in c lude educati o n in th e idea o f

the Ki n gd om o f G od ? I f ound when it ca m e to
this that I h a d to begin at the beginning a nd lead
men g ra du ally to the idea Not on e i n a hu n d r ed
.

h a d appa rently eve r he a rd o f it I me an among .

the churchgo e r s Religi on wa s to them a pers ona l

.

a n d indi v idu a l matte r O f c ourse the r e m u st be

.

the foundati on but it ought n ot to st op the r e a n d

, ,
1 78 E VA N G EL I STI C P RE A CH I NG

that H e used th at p hr a se a s a des cr ipti on o f wh a t

hu m an li fe bec o m es whe n it is l ived unde r the con
—
s tr a i n t o f tw o tru t hs the F atherh oo d o f G o d and ,

the B r otherh ood o f m an Th o s e w e r e the tw o

.

great tru t hs H e c am e to re veal b oth by li fe and by

death and when any man fully r eceive s them a n d
,

live s unde r thei r d omini on he ente r s the Ki ngd om .

When any gr oup o f pe ople live in that way th e

Kingd o m appe ars as a s o c i a l fact i n this li fe .

A n other w a y in w hich J esus put the s a me t r uth

'

w a s to s a y th a t there are only tw o great c ommand

—
me nts t o l ove G od an d to l ove one s n eighb ou r ’
.

A n d whe n any m an begi n s to obe y th o se c om m and

m ents he ente r s the Ki n gd om The Ki ngd om
.

me an s hum a n li fe d omi na ted thr ough an d thr ough

by l ove To a ce r t a in exte n t the Ki ngd om c om e s
i nt o bei n g whe n even on e man achieves t his ki n d o f
li fe It beg a n to c ome whe n Jesus H imself cam e
.
,

an d i n dividu a l s can re a lize man y o f its blessi n gs in

their ow n lives even th ough they a re is ol ated indi
v idu als A n d yet the K in gd om cann o t f u lly c ome
.

f o r a ny individu a l until o ther s a ls o h ave entered it .

It m e an s a s oc iety o f a cert a in ki n d I n deed it .

,

cann ot fu lly c ome until all men have e n tered i t an d ,

li fe the wide w o r ld over i s li fe d omin ated by it s

”
p rin c iples .
1

It will be immedi a tely a ppa r ent th a t this idea o f

the Ki n gd om o f G o d is c onsistent with the m ess age
th at we h ave been givi n g in these ser m on s thu s fa r .

1
R elig ion A m on g A m erican M en , pp 2 1 , 2 2
. .
 SE RM O N O UTL I NE S 1 79

I t gathe rs ab out Christ ; it inv o lv es l oyalty Him ; to

it i s a matte r o f ch o i c e a n d de c isi on ; it i s a practical
endeav ou r f or the i n dividu a l a n d it includes th e
wh o le o f hi s li f e O n the basis o f these truths w e
.

p ro ceed to unf old the fi rst text o f the five dev oted
to thi s p r ima r y Ch r istian d o ct r ine .

Th e G o sp e l o f th e Ki n g d o m
An d Jesu s w en t a b ou t in all G alilee, teachin g in

their syn agogu es, an d prea chin g the G p

os el o f the

Kin gd om ( M att .

The m ess age o f Jesus w a s exp ress e d i n the

ana l ogy o f a k ingd om I t wa s the on ly ana l ogy th at
.

c ou ld h av e been u n ders t ood I t w a s a he ave nly o r

.

der o f e a r thly l i fe ; i t re p rese nted th e r eign o f G od

in the wh ole l i fe o f man .

The reality of the Kin gd om — This is m o r e th a n a

cle a r an d f o r c eful figure o f rhe t o ri c The King .

dom h a s re a li t y We cann ot see it s rega l he a d i t s

.
,

c ou r t it s pal ac es i ts s p le n dour ; bu t there a re act u a l

, ,

f act s in the spir it u a l Kingd om th at c o rres p on d to

these t emp o ra l th ings There i s va s t e n ergy i n the
.

K ingdom ; i t s l a ws are v a l i d ; i t s ri ght s an d du t ies

c l a i m ou r p ower an d l oyal t y a s m u ch a s th ose o f the
c i vi l s tat e Jesus es tabl i shed a re a l o rder o f l i fe
. .

O u r n eglect of the Kin gdom — St r an gely this ,

t ru th wa s c en tr a l i n all the t e ach in g an d act i on o f

Jesus ; but i t h a s bee n gi v e n s cant p l ac e i n the
though t an d life o f the Chris tian Ch ur ch O ther .

d o ct r in es an d du t ies h av e u s u rp ed it s p r ima ry p l ac e
an d c l aim Jesus exal t ed the re a l ity o f th e Ki n g
.

dom o f H eav e n as an o r der of l i fe m e ant f o r the

1 80 E VA NG E L I STI C P RE A CH I NG

world ; we h ave th ought o f it chi e fly a s de scrib ing

th e li fe a f t er death o r a f a r off con summati on o f
-

de v el opment .

i m i h K i d m — T hi s i s th e d ay
The re aff r n g f
o t e n g o

in which to affir m an d re ali ze th e do ct rine o f the

K in gd om o f G od The G re at War ha s re v e al ed
.

depth s o f sin an d hat e n e v er b ef ore exp re ssed by

m e n ; it ha s u nco v ered ye a rnings f o r u nity an d lov
in g ser vic e n ever defi n ed bef o re T he c onc e pti on
.

o f th e K in gd om o f H e av e n that Jes u s ma de plai n

in H is w o rd s an d l i fe s h ows u s th e o nly w o rkab le

p r ogram that can mee t th ese a spi rati on s o f th e hu
man s pi r it in th e m odern age Th erefo re th e p ulpit
.

mu s t p u bl i s h th e good n ews o f th e K ingdom an d it

mus t be ma de th e p rogram f or th e w o rld .

S E R M O N TW E NT Y E I G -
HT
We n ow p ass to a s tudy o f the c on diti ons on
which we may ente r the Kingd om o f G od It i s .

n ot difli cul t The te rm s a r e ea s y to unde rstand

.

and we can fulfill them i f w e will with out any

he avy exte r n a l c onditi on s being im p o sed up on u s .

We have given i n the sugge s ti on s c o n nected w ith

s e rmon twenty s eve n a statement by D r G r ay con
-
.

ce rning the way in which the c onditi on s o f en

t r anc e may be met .

I f the c onditi on o f ent r anc e int o the Kingd om is

sel f su rrende r or meekne ss o r humility w e mu s t
-

c onside r this fact in r efe r e n ce to a n othe r p romi se

o f Je s u s wh ere H e s aid
, I came th a t th e y may
,
1 82 E V A NG E L I STI C P REA CHI N G

f yin g and romantic thing life may be thr ough allits

”
c ourse .
1

So let us p r ese n t the truth in its wh ole me as u r e .

The s elf sacrifi ce is n eces s ary ; an d the s elf re a liz a

- -

ti on f oll ows The s elf m u st be m o r e fully re a lized

.

bef o re it ma y be s a crificed B oth truths ar e vital .

an d they supp o r t on e an other .

En t eri n g th e Kin gdom

N ot ev ery on e that saith u n to me ,
L ord, L ord ,

shall en ter in to the kin gd om o f heav en ; bu t he that

d oe th the w ill of my F ather w h o is in heav en .

E x cept y e tu rn , an d be com e as little children, ye

sh all in n o w ise en ter in to the kin gdom of heav en

( M att.

We c om e v o l u nta r il y int o th e Kin gdom o f H e av e n

r ath er than b e c omi n g it s m emb ers by th e acci dent o f
b i r th o r e nvi r onm e nt .

H u m ility an d tru s t — T h e se a re re p rese nt ed by th e

attitu de an d action o f th e chil d w ho cam e to Je su s ,

happil y an d confidentl y wh en h e w a s a sked to do so .

Je su s d oe s n ot make childishn ess th e c on d iti on o f

ent er ing th e Kingd om bu t th e chil dli k e spi r it o f
,

h u mility an d t r u s t fu ln ess The Kingdom i s th e .

real m o f service ; th erefo re h u mble h e a r t s al on e can

sha re it The Kingdom is th e re al m o f l oving
.

deeds ; th erefo re m u tu al c on fidenc e a l on e can m ee t

its ob li gati on s T he ch i ld d i d n ot st op to a rgu e o r
.

p rot e st wh e n Jesu s p l ac ed him am ong th e d i s cip les ;

h e pu t him se l f int o th e ca re o f Je su s imm ed iat ely
an d happi ly T h u s we e nt er th e Kingdom
. .

1
The Chris tian A dv en ture, p 32 . .
 SE RM O N O UTL I NE S 1 83

O bedien ce to G od s
’
w ill
.
-
l a ws o f the Kin g
T he
dom o f H ea ve n a re de t er m in ed by the w i ll o f G od ,

w hich is d ictat ed by p ers ona l l ov e When l ov e de

.

ci des the p r ogr a m o f l i fe it m us t be good T o y i e l d .

ou r l iv es to th e p r ogr am wh ich in fi nit e l o v e an d

w i sd om h av e de t ermin ed i s to be sure o f a ll the bes t

s ati sf acti on s wh ich can p oss i bly c om e to us O b ed i .

e nc e is an u nwel c om e p r op o s a l to a ll p rou d an d
self con sc i ous m e n They do n ot l i ke to s u b mit
-

their w i lls to a h i gher w i ll or to sub j e ct th e i r l iv es to

a p rogr am th at they d i d n ot sh ap e L i k e the l owly
.

ent r anc e to a l o f ty r oom ; h owe v er obed i enc e i s th e

,

w a y by wh ich we ent er u p o n th e Chr i s tian l i fe The .

act o f surre n der i s on e o f y i eld ing ; b u t the ga in 1 8

e t ernal i n it s rew a rds and s a t i sf a c t i ons .

S E R M O N TW E NTY NI N E -

Eve ry kingd om must be f o unded on e s tablish e d

law s and p r og r ams o f o r de r ly pr o cedu r e The .

Kingd om o f Heaven is n o exc epti o n to thi s J e s us .

laid the f oundati on o f the new o rde r o f li fe in

ce r tain p ro f ound p r inciple s Th r ee o f th es e we
.

a r e to t r eat in the serm on o f th e day .

The firs t p oint to b e b or ne in mind is the exce e d

ing s implicity o f the th r ee law s They a r e so w ell
.

kn o wn so plain so p r actical that w e do n ot r ega r d

, ,

th e m a s ser i ou s ly a s w e might i f they w e r e n ot a

pa rt o f the very fundam e ntal m o r ality and r elig
i ou s t r aining which i s i n ou r b es t h om es The s e .

th ree la ws a re much lik e an ax i om in m athematic s ;

1 84 E VA NG E L I STI C P RE A CH I N G

they do n ot a dmit o f dis c ussi on They a r e ac .

cepted wi t h out dissent . The re as on ap proves at

le a st the firs t tw o with n o deb a te .

N o w this m a ke s it a ll the m o r e di ffi cult to handle

these great laws O f c ou rs e the insti nc tive reply
.
,

is we believe i n the l a w o f l ove an d the G olden

,

R ule a nd the gre a t r ul es o f life c ontained in the

Ser m o n on the M ount . A n d it i s the task o f the
p re a che r i n this sermo n to m ake these old a nd ac
cepted l a ws gl o w with new me an i n g a nd d r ive

h ome to t he pr actic a l li fe o f the c ongregati on with

n ew p owe r . This serm on s eem s to be easy to
p r epare ; as a m a tte r o f fact it i s di fficult to inf o rm
,

these old and f a mili a r law s with new c ontent W e .

must gathe r illustr a ti ons and make applicati on that

w ill bring the l a ws ou t o f the a b s t ra ct and make
them live in the daily live s o f men .

So m e ye ar s ago Sa muel M J one s o f T oled o

.

gai n ed the n am e o f G olden Rule J ones because

o f the w a y in which he t r ied to r un his b u si n ess and

the a ff a irs o f the city o f which he w as M ayo r He .

w r ote a great many l e tte rs to all s o r ts o f pe op le

c onne c ted with his c orp o r ati on a nd m any o f these
,

are ga thered in a v olume r a r e n ow but w o rth man y

times the pri c e o f s ome o f the be s t s ellers H ere .

is on e o f his illust ra ti on s o f on e o f the l a ws o f the

ki ngd om
A r ecent in s tanc e o f h ero i s m in eve r y day li f e
'
-

i n di ca te s the g ro wing p ower o f the G o lden Rule .

A c ouple o f m onth s ago tw o neg r o es in I n dian apo

1 86 EVA NG EL ISTI C P R E A CH I N G

that we ren der ou r G o d H e mu st b e giv en an in

.

te lligen t l o v e
. We a re n ot to l ov e b li n dl y or w ith
b i go t ed t e nacity. Ch r i st w in s th e app r o v al o f o u r
mind s a s we l l as o f ou r h e a r t s O u r w ill s m u st go
.

int o it a s we ll a s ou r em oti on s ; th e wh ol e p er son ality

m u st an swer G od s claim T h en we m u st l ov e ou r
’
.

n e i ghb ou r a s we l ov e ou rsel ve s ; we m u st l ov e ou r
n e i ghb ou r in o rder to inc re a se o u r l o v e f o r ou r o w n
b es t se lv es ; we m u s t l o v e an d p er f e ct ou r b e st
se lv es in o rder to l ov e an d ser v e ou r n e i ghb ou r .

Th e G old n R u le
e — See M att 7 : 1 2 Su mm ed u p
. .

b r i e fly thi s m e an s that we m u st p er f o rm f or oth er s

a ll th o se act s w hich don e to u s by o th er s wou l d
, ,

p rom ot e ou r hi gh es t we l fa re We w a n t j u st t re at
.

m ent ; th en we mu s t t reat o th er s j u stl y We wan t .

to b e f o r giv e n ; th e n we m u st f o r giv e o th ers We .

want to b e de alt w ith pati ently ; the n we mu st deal

pati ent ly w ith oth ers Se tting th e s tan da rd by
.

wh ich o th ers a re to de t ermin e th e i r c on du ct t oward

u s we se t th e s tan d a rd by w hich o u r c on du ct to
,

wa rd oth ers i s to be de t ermined .

The S erm on on the M u n t

a — See M att 5 7 — . .

Su mm ed u p b r i e fl y thi s o ff ers a s impl e p r ogr am f o r

dai ly c on du ct which w ou ld i ss u e in su ch a j u st k ind ,

world as h u man ity n e v er ye t has known H ere th e .

g re a t m o tiv e s o f li fe th at le a d to n ob le acti on a r e

set f o r th simply . It b egin s w ith th e p r omi se o f

e a r th ly happin ess an d clo ses w ith th e p romi se o f
e t ernal sati sfacti on It i s th e gre at es t p rogram o f
.

h u man j oy an d we l l —b e ing that e v er has been o f

f ered to mank in d . Je su s p rov ed by H is ow n l i fe
th at i t s p ri ncip l e s could be su cc essfu l ly ca rr i ed out .
 SE RM O N O UTLI NE S 1 87

It i s w o r th ou r hi gh e st e n dea v ours to a ttain it ; i t is

G o d s w a y f o r u s to f oll o w
’
.

S E R M O N T H I RTY
We n ow c ome to s tudy the rewa r d s and p er ma
nent satis facti o n s o f the Ch r i s ti a n li fe a s they a re
r eali z ed in the r elati onship s o f the Kingd om o f
G od .To o little has b ee n said ab out the du r able
gi fts o f this r el a ti o nship as they a ppea r in daily
li fe Th r ee o f them a r e to b e c onsid er ed ; but thes e
.

a r e only examples o f the gi ft s which c ome to m e n

in the s e rvice o f Ch r ist .

The on e that we empha s i z e at th e c onclu s i on o f

the s erm on ought to be stressed m o r e o ften in ou r
p r eaching The w o r ld s o r ely n eed s the gi ft o f j oy
.

and men a r e seeking it in all kinds o f ways The re .

is only on e t r ue s ou r ce o f happines s It i s f ound

.

in the s e rvice o f Ch r i s t E very o the r g r o und o f

.

s ati s facti on fail s ; thi s neve r cea se s to be the fir m

f ou n dati on N o di s app o intment o r di s a s te r can
.

p o s s ibly ove r whelm u s when we a r e in pe rs onal

uni on with the living Ch r ist M en have p r oved
.

this with a ppa r ently every ob s tacle against them

and have s u n g thei r hymn o f vi c t o r y in the face o f
th o s e e x periences which h ave st r u c k othe rs dumb .

The g r eat exp r essi o n o f this t r uth i s in the li fe

o f J esus Himsel f . We h a ve r ep r esented Him so
l ong a s the M an o f So rr ows that we have mi sse d
the fact o f His p er fectly gl o r i ou s happine ss H e .

m e t th e ha r d es t ex pe r ienc es that can com e to a

1 88 EVA NG EL IS TI C P R E A CH I N G

hu man bei ng ; but i n the ve r y cri s is o f H is li fe He

talked ab ou t H is j oy .

N ot o n ly w a s H e h ap py H im s el f but He shared
the h app i n ess o f o t hers He understood the f or .

gotte n a s p e c t o f sy m p athy re j o ice wi t h t hem ,

”
t hat r ej o ice J esus e n tered int o the hap p i n ess o f
.

a weddi ng fea s t a n d H e sha r ed the j oy o f the ban

quet .

H is happine s s was g rounded in His c on s ci ou s

ne s s o f the Ki n gd om o f Heaven .

A s Chestert on h a s s a id w e c a nn ot in the end

'

re j o ice i n a nythi n g less than the wh ole scheme o f

thi ng s The pr o f ou n dest truths which the ol ogy
.

has eve r tried to handle a r e i nv ol v ed i n the is s ue as

to whethe r li fe c an be h a ppy I n the l a st res o r t it .

depend s up on G o d an d up o n the ki n d o f G od H e
,

is whethe r we ca n re j oi c e B u t Jesus w as quite

,
.

su r e o f G od — quite sure th a t the best we c an think

o r imagine ab out H im is n ot so g o od as the r e a lity .

H e exhau s ted Himself i n findi n g w o rds a nd simi

lies to suggest the gre a tn e ss a nd s p le n d our o f G od ,

and see m s to have felt that He h a d n eve r man aged

to c o nvey the t r uth O f c our s e He wa s a happy
.

m a n A n d He h olds the sup r eme secret f or all

.

w ho w ant to be happy .

Th e P rivi le g e s o f th e Kin gdo m

F the G Kin gdom
d i in g an d drin k
or f o s n o t e a t o

in g bu t righteou sn ess an d peace an d j oy in the H oly

,

S pirit ( Rom .

G The Christian A dven ture p

‘
ray, , . 18
.
190 EVA NG E L I STI O P RE A CH I NG

S E R M O N T HI RTY O NE -

N ow we cl o se the series o f se r mon s on the Ki ng

do m o f G o d a s expressi n g the mess a ge o f Jesus an d
su m mi n g u p the G ospel o f the r ec onciliati on o f
me n to G od th rough uni on with Christ .

What is the es s ential fact in the peace and per

m an en ce o f a kingd om ? It i s l oyalty With out
.

this the a dminist ra ti on o f the ki ngd om i s im po s

sible When l oyalty b r eak s d own th e kingd om
.

pe r i sh es .

Th e b ook which s et s thi s t r uth f or th in it s re

ligiou s bea r ing i s The P hilos ophy of L oyalty by
J o si ah Royce The essenti a l m e a ni ng o f this gre a t
.

hum an trait is interpreted by P r o f Royce a n d it is

.

c le a rly expl a ined that thi s truth app lied to the re

ligiou s li fe gives se r i ousness a n d e ffectivene ss to
the gre a t ex p erie n ce .

Whe n we pa ss i n t o the distinctly Chri s tia n li fe

w e r ec og n ize how v a lid this gre a t principle i s .

Ch r istia n ity c on sists esse n tially i n l oyalty to a P er

son . P erh a ps the r e i s n o bette r w ay in which to
p r epa r e f o r this s e rm on tha n to review the situa
ti on in which w e a ll live a nd see how c entr a l l oy a lty
is to the j oy an d pe rm a ne nc e o f the highest human
r el a ti onshi p s The wh ole busi n ess w o rld is
f ou n ded u p on it L o y a lty to o ne s w o rk a n d em
.
’

p l oyer is fu n d am ent a l to i n d u st ry a nd will be wh a t

eve r ch anges m ay c ome i nt o the r elati ons b e
t w een lab ou r and capital Ev ery f r i e nd ship is
.
 SERM O N O UTL I NE S 191

fo und e d in l oyalty Unles s we can r ely up o n on e

.

an othe r in all kind s o f w e athe r w e cann ot b e r eal

f r iend s Eve r y h ome is ba se d on s imply t r u s t
.

w or thine ss on th e part o f each m e mbe r o f the

g r oup Th e n e ighb ou r h oo d depend s f or it s we l
.

fa r e up on th e l oyalty to th e c omm o n int er e s ts o f

th e familie s that c omp o s e it That which w ill pro.

m ote th e c omm onwe alth lay s it s impe r ial claim

up on the int er e s t and th e l oyal d ev oti on o f th e
membe rs o f the c ommunity The Chu r ch i s al s o .

f ou n ded up on th e s ame p r inciple A llegianc e to .

c r eed s that a re to be de f ended mu s t b e c r owned by

pe r s onal l oyaltie s o f the fi ne s t type i f th e Chu r ch i s
really to bec om e th e c o r p or ati o n o f Ch r i s t The .

p olitical o r de r depend s up o n l oyalty E v ery civic .

instituti on call s f o r th e e x e r ci s e o f thi s high vi r tue .

The bet r ay a l o f public t r ust i s o nly a s ign o f th e

breakd ow n o f l oyalty A n d thus the backg r o und
.

is p r epa r ed f or the t r uth that the Ch r istian r eligi o n

c on s i s t s in l oyalty to a P e rs on A s we have mai n .

tain ed f r om the b e ginning it i s th r o ugh pe r s o n al

,

r elati on s w ith a divine and living Sa vi ou r that we

c omplete the Ch r istian e x p e rie n ce The sup re me .

test i s l oyalty to th e M a s te r Ch r i s t .

t
L o yal y to th e K in g

Y e call m e Teacher ,
an d L ord ; an d y e say w ell;
f or s o I( J o hn
am

Jes u s d i d n ot h es itat e to a ffirm H is pl ac e of su

p re m e a u th o r ity in th e Kingdom o f G od . He p l a ced

1 92 EVA NG E L I STI C P R E A CH I NG

H is ow n P ers on at th e c ent er a s th e obj e ct o f l oyalty

on th e pa r t o f a ll C h r i s tian s Th e t es t s t ill is that
.

o f l oya l t y to Ch r i s t .

L oyalty to the King s tru th — Jesus br ought the

’

t ruth by wh ich m e n may live we l l an d p resen t ed it

p l ainly so th at al l may un ders tan d it B ut u n der .

s tan d ing i s n ot enough We m u s t take th e t ru th

.

that Jesus taugh t an d exemp l i fied an d ma ke it into '

wo rkable p r incipl es to gu i de us in dail y l iving I t .

h a s a s ac red c l aim up on u s ; it i s n ot a m erely ab

s t ract t ruth T es t l i fe by wh at w e a re doing w ith
.

th e King s t ru th
’
.

L oyalty to the Kin g s spirit — M o re imp ortant an d

’
.

imp eria l th an a ll that Jesu s tau ght wa s th e spi rit in

which H e l ived an d ser v ed H is age T h ere i s p er .

f e et u ni o n be t wee n H is w o rds an d H is s pi r it ; b u t it
i s th e spi r it that i s sup rem e T hi s s pi r it a ls o c om es
.

to u s w ith a p ers ona l claim I t de man d s that we

.

s ha ll br ing o u r ow n l iv e s u n der th e sway o f th e

sam e hi gh m ood an d s ac r i fi cia l t e mp er Wh en we .

do thi s we a re s u re th at ou r l i fe w ill b e usefu l an d

happy We may mi ss th e attainment s that the w orld
.

calls fo r tunat e ; but we shal l hav e th e inn er p e ac e

an d j oy that th e w orld c ann ot giv e o r take a way .

T es t l i fe by Wh at w e ar e doing w ith the Kin g s

’

spi r it
.

L oyalty to the K ng s P r
i e
’
son — E ither Jesus w a s
th e r i gh t ful Comm ander o f m e n s l iv e s o r H e w a s
’

th e m ost a udac i ous o f p roud le a ders ; f or H e da red

to make l oyal t y to H is P ers on th e t es t o f l i fe in th e
Kingdom o f G od H e s ai d F o l l ow m e H e p u t
.
,
.

H im self at th e c ent er o f the l ove an d th e servi c e th at

194 E VA NG EL ISTI C P R E A CH I N G

Th e t r uth i s w e mu s t live and w e mu s t liv e

, ,

by s ome kind o f belief o r disbelief Now either .

th e s oul p ers i s t s a fter death o r it d oes n ot These .

a r e the alte r native s the re is n o other Y ou may

, .

igno r e the wh ole q uesti on an d even p ou r c o ntempt ,

on th o s e w h o expe n d th o ught up o n i t but you do ,

n o t the r eby get r id o f ei t her h o rn o f the dilemma ,

the g re at E ither O r on which hang inte r e s t s u m

-

speakably m ome n t ous Imm ort a lity is eithe r a fact

.

o r it i s a fal s eh o o d D o you sa y : G r anted but I

.
,

am i n no p o siti o n to p r ove it to be eithe r on e or

othe r the r ef o re I can make n o afli rm ation eithe r by
,

way o f belief o r di s belie f V e r y well but you are.

,

liv ing as if on e or the o ther w ere tru e L ogically .

y o u may be entitl e d to the name a gn o stic but in ,

’

actual p r actice you a r e a b eliev e r o r a di she

‘

li eve r.

Thi s i s the p oint that we a r e seeking to b r ing

ou t in thi s s e rm on . D r M cComb speak s o f ou r
.

”
a cti on a s the ethics o f a n etern a l being .

The o r dina r y standa r d s and the great li fe 0 b

j e ct iv es o f the Chri s ti a n must be th o se o f a n '

”
ete r n a l b e ing . We are n ot he r e a s c itizens o f
time o nly The w o rk that we do is n ot c a r ried on
.

as i f it we r e to cea s e o r to c ome to its full f r uiti on

within the sc ope o f a n ave r age hu ma n li fe The r e .

a r e fa r dee p e r v a lues in it We must n ot a c t ac .

c o r ding to m o rtal but rathe r acc o rding to im m o rtal

‘
The F L if e in the L ight
u tu re of M odern I n quiry, by
Samu el M ccomb, 1 9 2 0 , p 2 5 . .
 S E RM O N O UTL I NE S 195

standa r d s Thi s i s a t r uth that w e can apply in

.

the bu s i es t day and f r om w hich we can d er iv e in

spi r ati on and h op e in th e da r k es t h o u r .

So n s of t
th e R esurrec io n

S on s f
o G od, bein g f
son s o the resu rrection ( L uke
20 :

Chr i s tian s h ave bee n well c a lled th e Childre n o f

the Resurre cti on The Ch r i s tian l i fe is accur a tely
.

des c r i b ed a s the p r act i c e o f the l i f e e t erna l The .

p er i l att e n d in g ou r bel i ef i n i mm o r ta l it y i s th at it
w i ll be imm o r ta l in ou r the or i es b u t de a d in ou r
lives The ur gent obl i gati on up on a ll Ch r i s tians i s
.

to l i ve d a y by d a y a s i f e ach were a pa r t o f the

‘

e t erna l l i fe impa r ting i m m o r ta l m e aning to m o r ta l

,

life F our p r inc i p les a re va l i d

.

A l cts
l a h av e et ern al v alu e — No deed is s om e
thi ng s imp ly don e an d e n ded I t goes on f o rever .

in i t s i nfl uenc e I t mus t re ach it s c onc l u s i on s om e

.

t i m e an d be a r i t s in ev ita ble fru it We cann ot s ay .

g o o d bye -

to o u r deeds ; we sh all me e t the m a ga i n '

Th eref o re the f act o f i mm o rta l it y a dds t he gre at est
p oss i ble m e aning an d worth to a ll ou r deeds an d
du t ies .

A ll sou ls hav e etern al w or th — I f the s oul is en

dowed w i th imm o r ta l va lue how c an w e i nj ure i t
whe ther it be ou r ow n o r th at o f a c om ra de I t is .

m o re dur a ble an d p reci ous th an any th in g else w e

know T rue resp e ct f o r oursel v es an d f o r other s is
.

derived from th i s f ac t o f the de athless v alue o f th e

human sp iri t Kin dness an d s oci a l obli gati on fi n d
.

th e i r hi gh est wa rrant in thi s t ruth G od s image .

’
196 ‘

EVA NG EL I STI C P RE A CH I NG

in man an d th e f act o f immo r tality make our e a r th ly

l i fe s i gni fi cant and b eau ti fu l .

highes t pu rpos es f or m an s w elfare in v olv e

’
G od s
’

i
e t rn y
e t — We kn ow how sh or t th e span o f h u man
li fe on e a rth i s B u t th e res ou r c es o f e t ernity a re
.

in G od s han ds We may see only th e b roken a r c

’
.

h ere ; b u t th ere i s s til l p o ss ib le th e p erfe ct rou nd

in th e e t erna l world We might e a s i ly de spai r i f
.

th e s pan o f m o rtal l i fe an d th e small res ou r ces o f

e a r th were availab l e f or th e p erfe cti on o f G od s pu r
’

p oses B u t wh en we re ckon w ith e t ernity we take

.

coura ge an d j o in mo re e agerly in pa r tn ers hip w ith

G od to re a l i ze o u r s u p re m e good .

N ew pow er f or daily life issu es from this tru th .

The t re a sures o f h op e an d f res h res ol u ti on o p e n

from th i s t ruth Imm o rtal ity does n ot remain a
.

d oct r in e ab out which to sp e cul at e bu t a t ru th by

which to l iv e It br ings c onfidenc e an d j oy int o
.

e v e n th e ha rde st s itu ati on s f or h ea ven an d e arth

,

a re on e an d e t ernity w i ll see tim e s ta sk c omple t ed

’
.
 TA L K S TO CHI L D RE N A N D Y O U NG
P EO P L E

P A RT of th e w or k o f th e p re ach er o r
evangeli s t in a chu r ch mi ss i on o r campai gn
will be c onc er ned with the child re n and
y oung pe o ple to wh om he w ill s eek to b r ing th e
,

G o spel as a m ess age o f li fe s uited to th e i r n e eds

,

and de s igned to b r i n g them int o s uch a natu r al

a n d delibe r at e uni on with Ch r i s t a s w ill mak e th e m
happy and vict o ri ou s Ch r i s tian s .

It will b e nece ss a r y at the out se t to p resent th e

Ch r i s tian message to them in such w ay s a s w ill
s h o w th em that the Christian r eligi on ha s s ome
thing to do with thei r live s in h o me and s ch ool and
a s they begin thei r bu s ine ss ca r ee rs That th er e is
.

need o f this admits o f n o d oubt A fte r a talk to a

.

g r oup o f High Sch ool pupils an ea r ne s t gi r l s aid :

I neve r supp o s ed be f o r e that r eligi on had any
thing to do with my h o me o r s ch ool w o r k When
she wa s que s ti oned s he added that she had th ought
o f r eligi o n a s s omething that inv olved go ing to

chu r ch and s aying p r aye rs and n ot d oing ce rtain

thing s which the chu r ch p e ople w e r e s upp o se d to
o bj ect to. But sh e neve r had th ought that r eligi on
had any p owe r to dete rmin e th e quality o f th e
w or k o n e did at s ch ool th e kind o f a gam e on e
,

I 99
2 00 EV A NG E L I STI C P RE A CH I N G

pl a yed and the s o rt o f a f r iend on e pr oved to be

in the w eek d a y r el a ti on sh ip s o f an ofli ce Whe n
-
.

she saw th a t this w a s j us t the w o rld i n whi ch t he

f ac t o f he r l oy a lty to Christ w a s to be tested an d
pr oved she had a new c o n cepti on o f religi o n .

It is this old pr oblem o f rem ote n ess th at we have

to r e c k o n with
. The mess a ge o f Christ had bee n
co nnected up in her mind w ith c ert a in duties ca r
r ied ou t on Sund a ys with dist a nt rew a rds an d
,

puni shment s in a fa r a w a y he aven with certai n

-

denials and r est r aint s She n ever h a d seen th a t to

.

be a Ch r istian me a nt to gain p owe r to beco m e

wh a t she ought to be as a child o f G o d .

The r e f o re i f it is p o ssible in the chur ch m issi on

to gathe r the child r en and y oung pe ople f o r meet
ings by them s elves let the subj e c ts be su ch a s suit
,

thei r pa r ticul a r pr oblems a n d su r r oundi ngs The .

s ame me s sage that is b rought to the a dults may be

b rought to them but it must be in di ffe rent ter m s
and with a di ff e r ent a pp r o a ch .

The f oll o wing suggesti ons ar e the r ef or e o ffe r ed

f o r the meeti n gs o f the c hildren and y oung pe ople ,

in the hOpe that as in the c ase o f the serm on s they

, ,

may be freely a dapted to the o ccasi on s a n d fitted to

the tempe r and the p r oblem s o f childh ood a n d
y outh .

The ni n e talk s th a t f oll ow a r e g rouped a r ou n d

the idea o f L oyalty whi ch is on e th a t a ll children
,

a n d y oung p e op le u n de r st a nd th o r oughly I t is .

fund am e ntal to thei r acti o n It figu r es in thei r

.
2 02 E V A NG EL I ST I C P RE A CH I NG

thi r ty ye a r s old an d a lways H e i s h e lping o th er s

, ,

l iving in a b rav e an d happy way an d b e i n g th e k ind ,

o f a p ers on that we w o u l d li k e to b e It i s wor th .

whil e to be l oyal to s u ch a L e a der .

B ecau se o f the n oble ru les f or lif e that H e gav e .

T h ere i s n o oth er gre at t e ach er wh os e r u les f or l iv

in g a re so l o f ty an d so simpl e and so p o ss i ble to
ca rry ou t Take th e so call ed Sermon on th e M ount
.
-

in M atth ew 5 7 a s an ex ampl e I f we wou ld p ra e

— .

tic e th ese p r incip les s t e ad ily th e wh ole wo rl d wou ld

b e changed It wou l d p re v ent th e s in s an d th e w a rs
.

that make l i fe mi serable f o r mank in d I t wou ld .

take aw ay th e s t r i fe from ou r h omes the c onflict ,

from ou r l ab ou r w orld and giv e u s p e ac e an d good

,

w i ll e v erywh ere .

B ecau se o f th e character w hich H is frien dship

creates . No wou ld claim that the foll owers o f
on e

Ch r i s t hav e bee n p erfe ct m e n an d w om e n M an y .

h av e c om e int o th e ch u r ch c l aimin g to b e l oya l to

H im w ho hav e n o t bee n w or th y o f th e rel ati on s hip .

B u t on the wh ole dur ing a ll th e c ou rse o f Chr i s

,

tian hi s to ry th ere has bee n a typ e o f p e op le w ho

,

have been the l oyal f oll owers o f Chr i s t ; an d these

hav e b e en th e b es t th e br av es t an d the h appi es t peo
,

p le that th e world e v er ha s se en The le a ders in .

a ll th e m ov e m ent s f or th e up l i ft o f mank ind hav e

b ee n th e f ol l owers o f Jesus T he m e n an d wom en
.

w ho hav e ma d e th e gre at es t s ac r i fi c es f o r o th ers

h av e b ee n Ch r i s tian s T he fi n es t i de a l cha r act ers
.

hav e bee n c re at ed th rou gh loyalty to Ch r i s t .

T hi s i s the w a rrant f o r acc e ptin g Jesu s a s M a ste r

an d giv ing H im the firs t p l ac e in ou r live s .
 TAL KS TO YO UNG P E OP LE 2 03

T A L K Two

L OY AL To C H RI S T A T H OM E
A n d he w en t d ow n w ith them an d cam e to N az a
'
,

reth ; an d he w as su bj e ct u n to them : an d his m o ther

kept all these sayin gs in her heart ( L uk e 2 :

O ne of the p l ace s where we a re to sh ow ou r

l oyalty to Jesus i s in ou r h om e life E very gl imp se
.

th a t w e have of Jesus sh ows H im to h ave bee n true

to a ll t h e rel at i o n s o f H is h om e in N a z a re th A re .

w e a ls o h app y an d c om f o r ta ble to live wi th ? M ak e

th e f oll owing t ests
G ettin g the u n selfish fam ily spirit Jesus h a d
.

this : H e was sub j e ct unt o h i s f ather an d m o ther .

H e obeyed . H e fi t ted H is l i fe i nt o th e l i fe o f the

hom e . H e gave u p H is i n d i v i du a l r i gh t s an d p le a s
ures f or the higher du t ies an d p rivil e ge s o f the
h ome We canno t h av e o u r ow n w ay a ll the ti m e
.

i f we ar e to live w ith o thers The u n selfish s p iri t

.

o f Jesus is th e on ly on e t h at e v er will p r o du c e a

h appy h ome .

D oin g ou r part of the family w ork This tests

.

the unselfish S p iri t N o h om e can be h app y an d

.

p ros perous u nless t he l abour is d ivi ded an d e ach on e

acc o rd ing to h i s abili ty do es h i s f a i r sh a re The .

f am ily d oes n ot exis t s imp ly to ser v e i t s m e mbers ;

the m embe rs are to se rve on e another i n the f a m ily .

The s am e f a i thfu l n ess an d h app y t e mp e r th a t w e

p u t i nt o some gre at wo rk we m us t a ls o pu t int o the
li t tle du t ies th a t are ou r pa r t o f the h om e life .

B ein g patien t in hom e life We kn ow e ach Oth er

.

so w e ll in our h ome s that i t is di ffi cult to get al ong

2 04 EVA NG EL I ST I O P REA CH I N G

w ith on e another an d be sympath e tic an d pati ent .

It i s so m u ch e a s i er to b e p ol i te at a pa r ty o r wh en
o th ers a re l ook in g on th an it i s to kee p f r o m q u ic k

an swers an d p rov oking act s w ith ou r ow n b roth ers

and si s t ers B u t cou r t esy to ou r ow n h om e f olk i s
.

essential in be ing loya l to Ch r i s t H e w a s con sid .

cr at e o f H is m o th er an d a lw ays a ge nt le man eve n ,

w ith th ose w ho kn ew H im bes t .

B rin gi n g ou t the best in o thers So many tim es .

m emb ers o f the sam e f ami ly irr itat e an d n ag on e

anoth er ' So th ey b r ing ou t th e w o rs t in on e an
o th er in s t ea d o f t he bes t B u t p e opl e were al ways
.

a rou sed to be an d do the i r b es t wh en th ey were

w ith Jes u s We m u s t see th e bes t in e ach oth er
.

an d t ry to bri ng it ou t Th i s t es t s ou r l oyal ty to
.

Chris t .

TA L K T H RE E

L OY AL To CH RI S T I N SCH OOL L I F E
G iv e diligen ce to presen t thy self approv ed u n to

G od, a w orkm an that n e ed e th n ot to be asham ed,

han dlin g arigh t the w ord o f tru th ( 2 Tim . 2 :

The way in which w e p repa re ou r less on s m ee t ,

ou r fr i e n ds p r o v e ou r l oy a l t y to the hi gh es t i de al s
,

o f ou r s ch ool is a tru e t est o f our si nc er ity in f ol

,

low ing Chr i s t .

Christ an d ou r lessons H as our l oya l ty to Chris t

.

anyth ing to do w ith th e wa y i n wh i ch we p repa re

ou r s ch oo l w o rk ? Y es I f we are h ones t ly l oya l
.

to Chris t we sh all do ou r h a rdes t h om e w ork w ith

all o ur m i gh t and work a s f aithfully whe n w e are
,
2 06 EVA NG E L ISTI C P REA CH I NG

TA L K F O U R

L OYAL TO C H RI S T I N O UR F RIE N DSH I P S

”
I hav e called y ou ( J o hn
frien ds
T h ere i s a p l ac e f o r ou r rel i gi o n in th e w or kin g
ou t o f ou r fr i e n ds hip s T he h e lp that we giv e to
.

on e an oth er i s o f th e gre at es t imp o r tanc e in th e m ak

in g o f ou r cha r act er T o b e th e k in d o f a fr i e n d
.

that Jesu s w a s i s to m e a su re up to th e hi gh es t s tan d

a rds o f h e lp an d happin ess .

A ppreciatin g the b est in o thers We a re a lways .

h appy wh en ou r f r i en ds fi n d ou t th e b es t that i s in
us an d app re ciat e an d app ro v e it It e nc ou r ages u s .

to t ry to b e w hat th o se w ho l ove u s think we a re

a ble to b e com e I f we do to o th ers a s we wou l d
.

l i ke to hav e oth ers do to u s we w i ll als o fi n d and

app re ciate th e b es t that i s in ou r fr i en ds I f th ere .

a re fa u lt s in th e m we w il l give ou r fr i en ds th e ben e
fi t o f th e d ou b t .

B ein g kin d an d p atien t w i th ou r frien ds . H ow

pati ent Je su s w as w ith su ch d i s cipl e s as P e t er w ho ,

d i d n ot u nder stan d H im an d in th e ha rde st h ou r

, ,

o f H is l i fe de ni ed H im ' It l ook ed a s i f th ere were

,

n othin g l ef t o f P e t er b u t a mi ser ab le t r ait o r an d

f ail u re B u t Jes u s s t oo d by him an d in time h e b e

.

cam e o n e o f th e great ap o s tl es an d gav e hi s li fe at

la st f or th e M a st er wh om h e ha d deni ed I f we .

a re l oyal to Ch r i s t we a re re a dy to b e pati ent an d

k in d w ith o u r c om rades an d d ai ly w o rk an d s ch o ol .

T h ey make mi s takes ; b u t so do w e T h ey n eed an .

o th er chanc e ; so do w e T hey ge nerally will make

.

g oo d ; so sh a ll w e .
 TA L KS TO Y O U NG P EO P L E 2 07

Takin g a real p ar t in the person al pro ble ms of o u r

frien ds way
. Th e in w hich Jesu s a dded H is p er
s onal infl u enc e to the s t r u ggle o f H is fr i e n ds to at
tain th e i r i de a ls p o int s ou t th e w a y in wh ich we ma y
be o f the gre at es t hel p to o thers I t i s m o re im .

p or tant th at we sh ou ld giv e ou r fr i en ds the fo r c e

o f a r i gh t ex amp le the s t re n gth o f re a l e nc ou r age
,

m e nt th e lif t o f a h i gh ide a l th an th at we should

,

ta ke them to pa r ti es gi ve th em r i des in ou r a u t o
,

m ob i les o r do any other p le a s ant t hi ng th at w i ll

s imp ly ma ke th e m h app y an d c om for table .

TAL K F IV E
L O Y AL To C H RI S T IN P L AY
A n d if al m an con ten din the gam es, he is n ot
'
so a
”
cr ow n ed, ex ce pt he hav e con ten d ed law fu ll
y ( 2 T im .

2 :
”
Is sp o r t reli gi ous Is i t n ot w o rldly
'
? D oe s
b ein g loyal to Chr i s t h a ve any thi ng to do wi th th e
w ay we p l ay ?

Th e secre t o f tru e s p ort is th e gam e, n o t the victory.

S ta r t w ith t h i s f act I t i s n ot s u p re m ely imp o r tant

.

whe ther o r n ot we w in ; it i s a ll imp o r tant whe ther o r

n ot we p l a y f ai r A vi ct ory w on b y f ou l m e an s is a
.

re al defe a t M any a man ca rr i es a f oul c on s ci e nc e

.

be cause he kn ows th at he w on by an u n de t e ct ed t ri c k .

We cann ot be l oya l to Chris t an d use any d i sh onour

able m e th o d e v e n to gain a m o s t desir a bl e e n d .

Chr i s tian p l ayers h av e whi t e c on s ci e nc es an d clean

h an ds .

F air play is a Chris tian art I t sta rt s with sel f .

2 08 E VA N G EL ISTIC P R E A CH I N G

c ont ro l O n e m u st gai n ma s t ery o f him se l f b ef ore

.

h e can cont ro l a group p l ay Jes u s w a s a lways in .

c omman d o f H im self H e n ev er le t go in fi t s o f .

pa ss i on H e n e v er l e t H is vanity get th e u pp er han d

.

so th at H e p referred an in d ivi du a l p l ay to a t e am

play The s u cc ess o f th e wh ol e wa s pu t ah e a d o f

.

H is ow n rep u tati on o r a dv anta ge T h e n f ai r play .

goes on to a c le a r se n se o f c om r a des hip an d l oyalty

to th e gr ou p F ai r p l ay is al ways s o cia l
. I t br ings .

th e acti on an d the int eres t s o f oth ers int o c on s i dera

ti on Jes u s wa s a p erfe ct examp le o f thi s sen se H e
. .

th ought o f th e in t eres t s o f e v ery m e mb er o f H is grou p

o f fr i e n ds an d H e s ou ht firs t th e welf a re o f the
g
wh ole c omp any Th u s fai r play s ome times inv ol v es
.

th e s ac r i fi c e o f the in d ivi du al to th e s u cc ess o f the

gam e a s a wh ole I t i s what i s known a s th e pr in
.

”
ciple o f the s ac r i fi c e b it wh ere an in d ivi du al
'
,

p l ayer f or the s ake o f th e r u nn ers on b a ses p l ac e s

, ,

h is hit an d i s pu t ou t in o rder to giv e r u nnin g tim e

to hi s c om ra des The t e am i s al w ays m o re than th e
.

s ta r p l ayer Som e tim es the s ta r i s a n u i sanc e

.

to th e t e am T o b le n d o u r ow n in t eres t s w i th th o se
.

o f th e gr ou p an d th e n to y i eld th e m w i l lin gly to th e

s u cc e ss o f th e wh ole i s o n e o f the bes t t es t s we can

make o f ou r l oya l ty to Chr i s t .

TA L K SI X

L OY AL To C H RI S T IN D A I LY WO R K
Is n ot this the cara rk 6 :
p en ter ?
( M
Th e w ay in which we do o u r dai ly wo rk con

stan tly t es t s ou r l oyal ty to Chr i s t .

2 10 EVA NG E L I STI C P RE A CH I NG

goo d o f th e f amily o r a h a rd less on i n sch ool th e

, ,

p r incipl e holds in e ach ca se Th i s reward cannot be .

es timat ed in dolla rs an d c ent s I t i s the i nn er s ati s .

f acti on t hat c om es f r om kn ow ing th at ou r han d s

ha ve sha red in th e do ing o f s ome thing that makes it
e a s i er an d be tt er f or oth e rs to live Th i s is to b e .

l oya l to Ch ri s t .

TA L K S E V E N

L O YA L To C H RI S T I N O UR P ER SO N AL E XA M P LE
L etm an d espise thy you th ; bu t be thou
no an

ensample to them that believ e, in w ord, in mann er of

lif e, in lov e, in faith in pu rity
, ( 1 Tim 4
. :

T he p ower o f p ers ona l exampl e i s a l mos t b ound

less ; we begin ou r l i fe a s i mitat ors o f others an d w e
n ever cease to be s w ayed by p ers o nal ex amp le O ur .

hi ghes t duty i n se tting a n examp le to others is to

rep rese nt Chr i s t to th em F i ve a sp e ct s of p er sonal
.

examp le are in di cat ed in the t ext

I n ou r w ords N ot e th e p ower o f s p ee ch What
. .

w e s ay n ot on ly reve als th e q u ality o f ou r l i ves ; bu t

it exer t s deep an d s t rong infl u enc e u p on othe rs To .

s p e ak th e ri gh t w ord i n the r i gh t way at the ri ght

tim e i s a Chr i s t i an art We mus t gu a rd our words
.

ca refu lly .

B oys flyi ng k it es p ull in their whit e w inged bird s ;

”
Y ou can t do that whe n you are fl yi ng words
’
.

I n daily action . Wh at we
sp e aks l ouder than do
what w e s ay There is n o su ch th ing a s a t riv i al
.

deed I t may es cap e us w ith l ittle thought o f its

.
 TA L KS TO YOUNG P EO P L E 2 11

p owe r ; bu t it m ay exer t the de epe st influen ce upo n

another We know th a t s om e o f the gr e atest m en
.

h a ve h a d th e i r liv e s s waye d by the s ma llest act s of

o thers .

I n lov e We c annot all be f amous o r r ich ; but w e

.

can a ll l ove an d b e ki n d The s t ronges t fo r c es i n all

.

the w orld a re th o se th at s pring from a l ov i ng p ur

'

p o se L ove is n ot ea sy I t ta kes a ll the s t re ngth an d

. .

de ci si on of the s t rongest char act er to l ov e good

ca uses an d a ll on e s c om r a des t ru ly B u t it is the
’
.

on ly l i fe t h at i s w o rth wh i le I n t he en d o u r wo rth
.

an d infl u e nc e a re both m e a su r ed by ou r l ove .

I n faith The w a y we b e liev e i n G od i n goo dn e ss

.
,

and i n on e an other exer t s a m ighty i nfl ue nc e Some .

t imes the highest duty th a t c ome s to us in school or in

bus in ess is to s tan d true to a n oble an d u n selfish
p ri n c ip le h avi ng fai th i n it when others refus e to
,

bel i eve We m us t p rov e th a t w e believe i n goodn es s

.

an d tru t h an d will stan d by th e m whateve r th e c o st .

Such an ex amp l e counts .

I n pu rity This m e an s a c le a n he art fi r st o f all

.
,

on e that cherishes n o h a tr e ds an d h a rb ours n o c oa rs e

th oughts I t mea n s pu re t a lk an d c our t e ou s acti on

.

w ith ou r frie n ds It sc o rns sto r ies th at h ave an u n

.

cle an me an ing and sugges t i on s th at e a sily m a y be

tu rn ed i nto im p u re sugges t i on s It stands f o r th e .

n obl e st t re atme nt o f b oys an d irls by o an th er

g n e o .

TAL K E I G HT
L O YAL To C H RI ST I N P ER SO NA L H AB IT S
I do always the thin s that are
g pleasin g to him
(John 8:
2 12 E V A NG E L I STI C P RE A CH I NG

It i s sai d that we al l are b undl e s o f habit s That .

w hich we do regu la rly hab it u al ly w ith ou t think ing

, ,

ab ou t it i s th e re al in dex o f ou r cha ract er The

, .

fi n es t exampl e o f p ers onal hab it s i s Je sus We .

o u ght to w o r k ha rd to gr ow li k e H im in ou r hab itu a l

acti on Stu dy th ese f our hab it s

.

The habit of hard w ork In du s t ry an d d ili genc e

.

l ay th e f ou ndati on s o f su cc ess an d a re th e s i gn o f
o u r re li gi on O nl y a few m e n an d w om e n su cc ee d
.

by w hat seem s to b e gen i u s o r esp e cia l ta lent E v en .

geni u s i s nin e t e nth s ha rd wo rk L a z in e ss i s im

-

moral I t i s on e way to deny G o d wh e n we l oa f an d

.

shi rk . Ch r i s t w a s a w o rker We m u s t foll ow H im

. .

The habit of kin dn ess H a rd wo rk a lon e may

.

p r odu c e a h a rd cha ract er Kin dn ess is th e f or c e

.

that bi nds th e f ami ly grou p toge th er an d makes th e

w h ole hom e ch eerfu l I t c omes int o b us in es s l i fe
.

w ith the r ich e st bless in gs It seem s only a sl i ght

.

thing to be k in d ; b u t it i s on e o f th e n oble st o f
h ab it s I t m e an s that w e pu t ou rsel v es into th e
.

plac e o f anoth er an d t ry to u se gen erous j udgm ent s .

I t b r ings h el p an d c ou ra ge to oth ers qu i t e b eyon d

th e appa rent p ower o f the k in d act o r gen erou s word .

The habit of helpin g We all n eed help We

'

. .

a re n e ith er wise en ou gh n or s t rong e nough to l ive

wholly b y oursel v es So we mu st gain the hab it o f
.

l i f tin g loads f or others a s w e need hel p ourselves .

A d ivi ded ta sk br in gs gre at er j oy to b oth who sha re

th e b u rde n We all l i ke to be indep en de nt an d we
.

m u st n ot thrus t ou rsel v es u p on oth ers ; bu t we n eed

he lp an d we m u st le a r n to giv e h el p in the n at u ral
an d be aut iful w ay in which Jesus did No pe rson .
2 14 E VA NG EL I STI C P RE A C H IN G

comp le t e l i fe Thi s outlines

. ou r amb iti on f or th e
be st l i fe p oss ible .

The am bition to make the w orld be tter Jesus h a d .

thi s am b iti on H e w a s re a dy to h el p th e s ick an d

.

th e p oo r ; H e gav e e v ery k in d o f ai d to th o se w h o
'

were mi ss in g th e m e aning o f l i fe a s a re sul t o f th e i r

s in H e t r i ed to ma ke it a more j oyf ul an d s ati s
.

f actory exp er i e nc e to l i ve Wh e n H e ha d ended H is

.

life it c ould be t ruly sai d th at H e had ma de th i s

wo rld a be tt er p l a ce to l iv e in a s l ong as it sh ou ld
l a s t be cause H e ha d gi v e n H is b es t to i t Th ere i s .

a re al app rova l o f th i s k in d o f an amb iti on in all

hon es t h e a r t s ; the w ay in wh ich to re al i ze it i s to b e
l oyal to Ch r i s t in ou r d ai ly th ou ght an d acti on .

The am bition to please G od O u r amb iti on to u se

.

ou r l iv es f o r th e hi ghes t p u rp o se an d to h e lp o th ers

is su mm ed u p in o u r des i re to kn ow an d do G od s
’

w i ll in su ch a way that we may pl e a se H im I t i s .

l i ke a chi ld s rel ati on to his o w n h om e P a rent s

’
.

have hi gh i de als f o r th e i r chi ldre n Whe n tho se .

i de a ls a re taken up an d ca rr i ed ou t by th e i r ch i ldren ,

pa rent s are p le a sed That i s the p u r po se o f th e pa r

.
,

e nt s f or the i r ch i ldren be com es the hi ghest amb iti on

o f the chi ldre n the m sel v es T o f oll ow Ch ri s t in ou r
.

p ersona l amb iti on s therefore m e an s to do what H e

, ,

d i d : le a rn in e v ery p o ss i ble w ay th e w i ll o f G od an d
th en make it the law o f ou r l i ves We kn ow wh at .

G o d s w i ll f or u s is n am ely that we sh ould b e the

’
, ,

kin d o f a p ers on that Jesu s wa s true an d brav e an d ,

t ru st f ul mak ing the u tmo s t o f ou rsel v e s an d gi ving

,

ou r selves at ou r u tmo s t to th e wo rld in wh ich we liv e .

 P A RT I V

Spe c i a l G a the ri n gs
2 18 EVA NG E L I STI C P RE A CH I NG

been p rop os ed Th e t opics ar e p r op o s ed m ore a s

.

ex ample s o f what may be d one than as thi ngs to

be d one as th e y a r e s uggested But w ith the pro .

g ra m o f the meetings in mi n d a s we hav e p rop osed

it th es e and s imila r subj ect s seem to b e s uit ed to
u se .

A ddresses f or M ns
n gs
e
’
M eeti

In s electing the s ubj ects f or the a dd r e ss e s we

have kept in mind the p a r ticula r p roblems o f the
r eligi ou s li fe o f the men o f a c ommunity We .

h ave h a d clearly befo r e us the inf o rm a l ch ar acte r

o f the meeting and have aimed at the directnes s
,

o f s tyle and addre s s th a t a r e ch ar acte r i s tic o f the

vigo ro u s thi nki n g o f g roups o f men .

Th er e has bee n n o change in the mess age that

w e h av e been t rying to give ; the on ly m odi fi cati o n
has been in the cl o se a daptati on o f th e s ubj ects and
meth od o f t re atment to a pa r ticula r g roup .

M ake the applicati on s o f t ruth cl o s e ; s e e k con

c r ete and f o r ceful illu st r atio n s ; s peak w ith di re ct
ne ss and g r eat f r ankn ess The on e cha r act er i s ti c
.

o f e ffective add r e ss es to g roup s o f m e n s h ould be

compl e t e s inc er ity No a rti fi ce i s tol er abl e

. .

M E N S M E E T I NG I
’
,

B EING A A AN S JOB’
M AN 18 M
Watch y ,
e s tan d fast in the faith , qu it y ou like
”
m en be strong
, I Co r .

The gre ate st task e ver given to any man i s s imply

 SP E CI AL G A THE RI NG S 2 19

to live a manly l i f e to b e a comp le t e m an O u r

, .

sup rem e business is the devel op ment o f ou r ow n p er

s ona l ch a rac t e r so th at i t ma y p lea se G od an d s erve
ou r gene ra ti on i n the highes t p o ssibl e w a y .

We hav e to F ight f or M an ho od Ch a r a ct er is n ot
.

a gift ; it is a n a chieveme nt I t cos t s m o re to att a in

.

i t th an i t doe s to se cu r e any other goo d in life The .

wh ole w orld is marked by s tr uggle I t be gi n s wi th .

th e l owes t fo rms o f l i fe a nd e n ds wi t h t he en de av our

to atta i n a Chris t like ch a r act er T herefo re this i s
.

n ot an ex c e pti on in t he o rder o f life O u r ow n m o ‘

.

tiv es a r e we a k an d u n w o r t hy ; o u t w a rd cir c u m st anc es

dr ag us d own O bs tac les w ould f o rce u s to yield
.

th e fi ght ; ou r frie n ds s om eti m e s l o s e fai t h in us .

This i s the fi gh t bef o re us .

O u r D etermin ation to Win is H alf the B attle .

Th e tex t is a c ommand a ddressed to the will o f t h e

i n d iv idu a l I t r e cognizes the fact th at determinat i on
.

is a l a rge f a c to r i n the fi gh t Theref o re we a re t old

.

th at we mus t de t e rmi n e to wi n ou r b att le f o r Chr i s

tia n ch a r act er Th e de c isi o n to p ress the fi gh t to
.

the en d is th e grea t est Single assuranc e o f vict o ry .

Wi thou t i t th e figh t is l o s t at th e ou t se t O u r de .
s

cision m us t be p o si t i v e an d t e nac i ous We m us t h old .

to t he de c isi on to win by G o d s hel p i n s p i t e o f e ve ry

’

c ir cumst an c e an d f a ilu re th a t w ould divert o r dis

he a r t en u s .

M an ly A ction is a Warran t of Victory N ot only .

a r e we su mmoned to fi rm decisi on by the t e xt bu t w e ,

a re encouraged to defi n i t e and m an ly acti on to

achieve su cc ess .T he p r oble m mus t b e w o rked at
with sp e ci fi c an d c onstant acti on To will is n ot .
220 E VA NG E L I STI C P RE A CH I NG

enough ; we m u st ca rry ou t th e de ci s i on in a sp e ci fi c
p rogram o f ser vice D u ti es m u st b e a ssum ed and
.

re sp on si b iliti es acc ept ed H a rds hip s m u s t be me t

.
.

Surre n der o f that w hich we w ou l d li ke to e nj oy m u st

b e o f t e n ma de R i d ic u le m u s t som e tim es be experi
.

en ce d P ati e nc e i s al so n e c ess a ry
. I t i s a man s .
’

fi gh t an d a man s achi e v e m ent Th i s fact make s

’
.

th e cha llenge o f Ch r i s t all th e m ore att ractive We .

a re n ot o ff ered a p r im ro se path an d s om et hing f or

noth ing We a re summon ed to h a rd figh ting
. .

M E N S M E E TI N G II
’
,

C H RI S T TH E H E L P ER or M EN

F or v eril
y n o t to an g els d oth he giv e help bu t he ,

”
giv e th h elp t o th e se ed of A braham ( H eb 2 : .

No t e th e t e n dency to re m ov e Jesu s from ou r re al

hu man wo rld We th i nk o f Ch r i s t in som e f a r off
.
-

h e av e n B ut Ch r i s t is n ot remo t e from l i fe H e is
. .

in the m i ds t o f ou r dai ly common li fe St udy the ,

.

a re a s o f our d ai ly n eeds Wh ere Chr i s t i s p resent to

h el p us .

I n ou r M oral S tru ggle We re call th e f act th at

.

there i s an ine vitable an d fier c e s t ruggle on f or cha r

act er We c ann ot w in thi s fi gh t a l on e I t i s the
. .

t es tim ony o f mi lli on s o f m en an d w om en s inc e th e

b e ginnin gs o f Ch r i stian hi st o ry that Chr i s t d oe s
actually br i n g fre sh res our c es to th e s oul in it s
s t ruggl e an d t u rn s th e ti de o f b attle in fav our o f
goodn ess an d t ru th in the c onflict w ith sin Through .

t rus t an d pr ay er the ene rgy ar rives ; o ur s pent s oul s

'
2 22 E VA NG E L I STI O P RE A CH I NG

e squ e It m e an s to fan an d to kindl e into flam e l iv

.

in g e mbers So th e t ex t re all y re a ds : K ind l e into

.

fl am e th e s moulder ing l i fe of the s oul .

The F lam e o f ou r L if e o f ten B u rns ou t . Our

e a rly e nth u s ia s m s we a r a w ay an d le av e us ; the
fres hn ess o f ou r dre am s o f t e n f a des Th e abra s i on .

o f d ai ly w o r k i s ha rd on th e fi n er t ex t ure o f the

s pi ri t Selfish amb iti on s i nv a de ou r p urp o ses an d

.

th e n ob l er v i s i on s o f f orm er days wan e Unless we .

a re con s tantl y on th e w atch we see th e flam e dw indle

an d fi nal ly e v e n th e gl ow c e a se in the e mbers We .

m u s t s ti r an d f an the c oals an d k indle th e s pa rk to

fl am e .

The Spark of L if e is s till there I n sp i t e o f all

.

th e l o ss o f ou r hi gh er i deals th ere s til l remain th e

,

g l ow i n g c oa ls o f a s pi r at i o n an d ye a rnin g in o u r

s ou ls I n o u r deep es t an d s inc eres t mom ent s w e

.

know that we a re th e ch i ldren o f the E t ernal We .

a re s u re that we a re bu i l t too l a rge f or e a rth We .

cannot be wh olly s ati sfied e ith er w ith ou r hi gh est

h uman attainm e nt or the bes t of ou r e a r thly suc
c e sses We w ant som e thing m ore We yea rn f or
. .

h i gh er levels o f life an d ou r spi r it goes out in a

qu e st f or G od All th es e a re in dicati on s o f the
.

sm oulder ing spa rks o f the ne w life We must kindl e .

th em .

The L iv e Coals m u st be F in to F lame H ow

an n ed .

can thi s be don e ? We mus t get int o t ou ch wi th n ew

t ru th s that h ave p ower to in spi re an d s t re ngt he n the
s oul We c an fi n d these i n Ch ris t We mus t see
. .

th e wo rld i n fi n er an d h oli er a sp e ct s Th i s w e can .

do when w e l ook at it through the eye s o f Ch ris t .

 SP E CIA L G A TH E R I NG S 223

We mus t d i s cover n ew d u ti es an d get int o t ou ch

w i th n ew c om r a des T hese a re fu rni shed to u s
.

when w e c om e int o vi ta l re lati on s w ith Ch ri s t .

N ot h ing ca u ses ou r l i fe to b re a k int o flam e m o re

qu ickly than to con front i t w ith gre at o pp o r t un iti es
f o r ser v i c e Whe n w e s en se a b ig ta sk f or Chris t
.

w e feel th at t here i s s o meth in g in us res p on d in g to

it Jus t th i s ta sk Chr i s t p resent s to us n ow I t is
. .

n o thi n g less th a n the rede mpt i o n o f the wh o le w o rld ,

i n clud ing ourselves from s in int o a n ew l i fe o f l ove

,

an d j oy an d p e ac e Th at i s the b i gges t p r ogr am

.

th at ever w as set b e fo re A meric an m en We m ust .

m e e t it .

M E N S M E E T I NG IV
’
,

WI ND F OR SEED : W H IRLW I N D S F OR HARVE ST

F they sow the w in d, an d they shall reap the
'
or
”
w hirlw in d ( H o s 8 :
.

p r incip le Wh at s oe ver a man s owe th that

N o t e th e ,

sh a ll he a lso re ap The seed s own i n the field an d

.

the h a rves t re ap ed from i t a re i de nt i ca l in k in d .

This is univers a l law Study s om e o f i t s app l ica

.

ti ons
E vil S eed In this i nc lude s om e of the si n ful p ur
.

p o ses an d a c ti on s th at a r e ch a r act eris ti c o f A m er

i c an men to day -
.

V iolen t P assion Surr ender o f Ou r sel f c on trol

.
-

an d yieldi ng to ou t bre aks o f tem pe r l ead a t la st to

f u ry an d vi ole nc e wi th r a sh an d pro f an e s p e e ch
, .

We mus t lear n to c ont r ol ou rselves .

Coarse an d Un clean I deas , L anguage, S tories .

V ul gar j es t s s t o ries w ith d oubl e me ani ng dwelling

, ,
2 24 EVA NG E L I STI C P RE A CH I NG

on ncle an su b j e ct s final l y an d O f t en q u ickly b r i n g

u

th e hab it o f vici ou s th ou ght an d acti on I n th e end .

whi r l w in ds o f sen su al em oti on sweep over an d o v er

wh e lm u s .

S m all D ish on es ties T he t e mptati on to in d ulge

.

in small d i sh on es ti es th e res u lt o f which w ill ac

,

c r u e to ou r immed iat e a dvanta ge c rowd u p on u s , .

We a re c er tai n in ou r minds that we n e v er s ha ll be ,

ca u ght B u t on e de c epti on deman ds anoth er an d

.

still gre at er f r a u d ; so b ef o re we k n o w it we a re

h op e l e ssl y inv olv ed in ru in .

D ou b t o f G od s L ov e an d G oodn ess
’
We begin .

s ome times by y i e l d ing to th e dou b t s that a r i se wh en

we s t u dy m odern s ci e nc e o r att empt to exp l ain a ll
th e exp er i ences o f re li gi on Sl ow ly we giv e u p th e
.

faith o f a s imp le chil dli k e h e a r t ; p rayer an d ch u r ch

,

re lati on s hip s a re s l ow ly aban don ed F inal ly we do .

n ot ma k e Ch r i st th e chi ef f act o r in o u r e nvi r on m e nt .

T he w hi rlw in ds o f d ou b t an d den ial swee p o v er us .

G o od S e ed . The s u b j e ct m u st n o t be left in thi s

n e gativ e c on d iti on It i s equ ally t ru e that wh oe v er
‘

s ow s the good seed o f self cont rol p ur ity h onour -

, , ,

re verenc e faith l ov e w i ll re ap an ab un d ant h a rves t

, , ,

al so o f th e s am e k in d The t ext i s on e o f en cou r

.

agem en t a s we ll a s o f w a rning T he w ay to be .

happy an d p rosp er ou s i s to change the ki n d o f seed

we a re s ow ing .

W o m en s M eet in gs
F or
’

D u r ing the co u rs e o f the M issi on the r e w ill b e

s eve r al o c casi on s o n which addres se s must b e
given to m e eting s f or w omen I n ch oosin g th e .
226 E VA N G E L I STI C P RE A CH I N G

e ach referenc e an d s ugge sti on in th e t re a s u ry o f

h er he a r t .

The S ayin gs T h ey in d icat ed w on derf u l things i n

.

s t o re f or th e chi ld H e wa s a help less b aby ; but

.

th ere were su ch gre at p romi ses an d p r oph e ci es

wr app ed up in H im that on e ha rd l y d a red to dre am
o f wh at w ou l d u n f o l d in tim e E v ery l ittl e l i fe .

i s a p roph e cy o f gre at a chi evem ent s We m ust .

d a re to bel i e v e great things f or ou r chil dre n Wh en .

we exp e ct mu ch fr om th e m they t en d to r i se to the

le v e l o f ou r i de a ls an d des i res .

The M em ory Selfi shn ess s oon fo rge t s ; b u t l ove

.

alw ays rem emb ers The tab l e t s o f m em ory are

.

m a de sen s itiv e an d th e images imp ressed up on th em

a re fixed by a ff e cti on So l ov e is t enaci ou s We . .

mus t remember th e goo d and t ry to f o rge t th e b ad .

I n th e e n d it i s th e kin d an d th e r i ght that remain s

in ou r min ds T ry to giv e l oving m emo r i es to
.

o th ers to kee p Of y ou T ry to fi n d th e go od an d th e
.

l oving to keep in you r mem or i es o f oth ers .

The P on derin g M a ry we nt o v er th e de tai ls

.

a gai n an d again E ach tim e som e n ew b ea u ty and

.

s u gges ti on fla s h ed for th T hat i s th e re sul t o f . .

br ood ing on be au ti fu l things Wh en li fe wa s fu ll .

o f ha rd w o rk M a ry we nt b ack in h er m e m o ry an d
,

l iv ed over th e blessed exp er i e nc es o f th o se w on der

f u l d ays . She h e a rd th e m u s ic ab ou t which th e
sh eph erds ha d t ol d her ab ov e all th e m onot ony o f
h er dai ly t oi l I t is a blessed thing to h av e a gl or i
.

ou s m e m o ry an d a gre at i de a l to s tan d b y u s wh i le

we w o rk I t li f t s u s ab ove the monotony and the

.

comp l aint Of dre a ry d ays .

 SP EC I A L C A TH E RING S 227

The R esu lt I t w as t wo fold It gave M a ry a

. .

new v i ew o f li fe an d filled dull d ays wi th be a u t y .

I t se t a s on g going in her s ou l A n d i t c a st a gl ory

.

a roun d Jesus th at ma de H is life m o r e won derfu l

in her eyes I t ma de her exp e ct m o re o f H im ; an d
.

H e i n evi ta bly r o se to m ee t th e exp ec tati on We a re .

l i f t ed by the h op es an d amb it i on s th at o th ers cher i sh

f o r us. E v e n if H e n ever defi n ed th e matt er to
H im self Jesus kn ew th at H e w a s dest in ed to a
,

g re a t c h a r a cte r by H is m o t her s ideals H e

’
c ould .

n ot f a il her . H e did n ot

WO M E N S M E E T I NG
’
, II
O U R U T MO ST
She hath d on e w hat ark
she cou ld ( M
In t he h ouse o f Simo n o f B e th any a woman
an oi nt ed Jesus at the c o s t Of her chief tr e a su re .

She d i d wh at she c ould f o r Chr i s t H a v e w e d one.

a s mu ch ?
With ou r M on ey an d M aterial The p re c i ous .

n a rd w a s ex p e n s iv e ; the w oman h a d s a ved i t f o r

a lon g t i m e B u t she n ever hes itat ed ; she gave i t

.

a ll to Chr i s t A re we re a dy to s ac r i fi c e o u r p o sse s
.

si n s
o f o r K
the ingdom A re we h on es t an d ac
?

c ur at e s t ew ards O f G o d s gi f t s ? ’

With ou r Tim e T i m e is m on ey
. E ve ry m in .

u t e is val uable in ou r crowded days Som e ar e .

s p end thrif t s o f thei r t i me ; oth ers miser s We mus t , .

gi ve t i m e eve ry d a y to Christ H ow much d i d w e

.

s p e n d yes t erd a y f or H im ?
With ou r Thoughts The wo rld needs cle a r an d
.

hon e st thi n kin g Ch r isti ans m u s t be l ea ders in

.
22 8 EVA NG E L I STI C P R E A CH I NG

thin king out th e p roblem s o f th e day We mu st .

al so think ab ou t Ch r i s t an d th e m eaning Of H is
m ess age f or th e wh ole o f l i fe What m e ntal con .

trib u tion a re we ma k ing to th e K ingdom o f G od ?

With ou r L ov e The world i s h u ngr i er f or l ov e

.

than it i s f o r bre a d We cann ot c omm an d o th ers

.

to c om e to Ch r i s t The K in gd om o f G o d cann ot b e
.

b r ou ght int o b e i n g by v i ole nc e We m u s t l ov e m en

.

t o Ch r i s t G oo d w il l al on e w i ll mak e a n ew w or l d
. .

T h e M a s t er ha s firs t claim on ou r loyalty an d l ov e .

A re we giving th ese to H im ?
With ou r P erson al I nflu en ce E very on e po s .

sesses a c er tain p owe r over hi s c om ra des which is

”
s om e times ca l l ed p ers onal magn e ti sm It i s th e
'
.

ab i l ity to sw a y th e liv es o f oth ers to hi h er o r l ow er

g
l e v els We c e a seless ly an d f or th e mo st pa r t con
.

stan tly infl u e nc e e ach o th er A re we devoting thi s

.

w onderfu l p ower fu ll y to Chr i s t ?

With ou r P rayer A spiration an d Spiritual ,

E n ergy We a re e ndowed w ith al l th ese gi ft s by

.

G od . Th e w o rld n eeds th e u p l i f tin g p ower o f these

energi es O u r c om r a des m us t h ave Ou r p rayer
. .

We mus t a spi re to hi gh er le v els ou rselves an d h el p

o th ers attain th e m O u r su p rem e gi f t to ou r gen
.

c r ati on i s ou rse lv es Su ch a gi f t h on ours Ch r i st

. .

A re w e devoting th ese h i gh es t p owers to H im ?

WO M E N S M E E T I NG
’
, III
L E A K I NG CI S TER NS
F or my people hav e comm itted tw o evils : they
hav e forsaken me the fou n tain of living waters, and
,
2 30 EVA NG E L I STI C P REA CHI NG

k ee ping up of l i fe
is n e c es sary The sp irit
. G od .

f ail s wi thou t H im We are t rying to kee p up li fe

.

on all kin ds o f f ood an d exer ci se ; t ry Ch r i s t an d

th e ser vic e o f th e Kingdom o f G od I t w il l n ot .

f ail Thi s l i fe i s p ure an d be a u ti fu l l ike th e ru n

.
,

ning sp r ing Sta gnant w at ers grow p u t r i d ; ru nning

.

s t ream s a re fres h an d f ai r They b l ess all th e lan d

.

th rough w hich th ey fl ow Th i s a lso i s a symb ol o f.

Ch r i s t an d the ser vic e an d cha ract er which H e c re

at es D ig n o l onger on a le aking ci s t ern ; dr ink o f
.

the water o f lif e .

WO M E N S M E E TI NG IV ’
,

T H E WA TER JA R B Y TH E WE LL CU RB
S o the w om an lef t her w aterpo t , an d w en t aw ay
”
in to the city ( J o hn
A woma n c am e from the vill age to J ac ob s well to ’

fill h er he avy j a r w ith wat er an d carry it h om e f or

h er h ouse w ork ; b u t wh en she m e t Jes u s sh e gain ed ,

su ch a visi on o f t ruth that she l ef t h er wat erp ot

an d ran to the vi ll age to sh a re th e good n ew s w ith
h er p e ople ; she p rob ably cam e b ack l at er and t ook
u p th e o ld bu r den ; bu t she ca rried her l oa d in a

n ew s pi r it .

The Waterpot an old B u rden ,

Woman s w ork .
’

is n e v er don e T h ere is n o e n d to h ou sekee pin g

. .

D ay a f t er d ay the woman ca rr i ed th e h e avy j ar .

The s on g d i ed fr om her l ip s an d the c ol ou r f a ded

from h er ch eeks She fel t n o h i gh j oy to hel p h er
.

s u s tain th e p ressure o f the l oa d She c ould n ot .

sing B les sed be drudge ry ; f or there w as n o up

,
 SP E CI AL G A TH E RI NG S 2 31

lifting s p ir it i n her he a rt H a rd an d unch anging .

work kills in tim e i f there is n o rel i ef .

Th e G ood N ew s A t t he well this w oman f ou n d

.

Chris t H e w a s ki n d an d fir m an d a ssur ing H e

. .

m et a ll the se cre t ye a rn i ngs o f her s oul H e w a s .

j ust the k in d o f a M a s t e r th at her s pi ri t h a d crav ed

t hrou gh a ll the dre a ry ye a rs H e h a d t old her t he .

t ru th H e h a d been w i ll ing to be her F r i e n d She

. .

c ou ld do n oth ing less th an hur ry u p to the t ow n an d

t ell every on e th at she h a d f oun d the Chris t I t .

w a s su ch a w on derful d i s c overy ' N ow there w a s

s om e thi ng to wo rk f or Now th er e w a s a n e w life
.

p ossible .

The O ld Waterpot an d the N ew S ong A fter a .

li tt le ti m e she took up her h ousekeeping a s usu a l .

D ai ly She we nt to th e well an d l i f t ed the he a v y

bu cke t ; d ai ly she filled he r j a r and c a rr i ed i t u p to
h e r h ouse B u t i t w a s n ot so he a vy an y m o re
. She .

h a d f oun d Someone w ho s ai d th at H is burden w a s

ligh t A n d so i t p rov ed T o be a Ch r i s tian d oes
.

i
.
'

n ot m e an to be rele a sed fr om l a b o ur I t d oes n ot .

m e an n e c ess a rily to h av e e v en an e a sier o r a d i f

, ,

f e ren t j ob B u t i t m e an s to h ave a n ew f a i t h an d
.

c ourage wi t h whi ch to do the old w ork Ch ris t .

h on ours us m os t wh e n H e s e t s us to doi ng th e
fami l ia r w ork i n H is s p iri t an d j oy Jus t a s a .

young m other c an do w ork th at Sh e n ever dre amed

po ss i ble wh e n i t is f or her ch i ld ; so we can take up
servi c es th at seem ed i mpo ssible wh en we do i t f or
Ch ris t w ho h a s d on e so mu ch f o r us
, Chris t i an s .

Si ng while they w o rk U n derne ath them is the sus

.

t a ini ng st r e ngth o f Chris t s mighty l ove and p ower

’
.
2 32 EVA NG E L I STI C P RE A CH I N G

B i b l e T alk s

The re i s und oubtedly a bette r name f or that

whi ch we h ave i n mi n d M r M oody used to c all
. .

them Bible R eading s

'
Th a t m ay be a bette r
.

te rm What w e have in mind is n ot p r ecisely E x

.

p os ito ry S e r m o ns f o r a,
s erm o n is m o re f o r mal
a nd i s given ge n e rally a s a part o f a n o rder o f
w o r ship whi ch a dds to it a cert a i n st a teli n ess
,
.

The a dd r ess which we a r e describi ng is less f o rmal .

It may Often be i n te rru p ted by questi o n and ah

swe r It i s adapted to the s imple a s s e mblie s that
.

gathe r in an ev angelistic M i ss i on .

The great v a lue i n these a dd r esse s lies in the fact

that they help bri n g the Bible b a ck to the lives o f
the people The B i ble is ou r m o s t p raised a nd m o st
.

neglected b ook Christi an s a re c o n sta ntly t old th a t

.

they sh ould r ead an d study it ; but i n spite o f a ll ,

the e ff o rt th a t is p ut i nt o the Su n d a y Sch ools the ,

r e a l study O f the B ible i s n eglected in a shameful

degree a mong Ch r i sti a n pe o ple .

The Bible is the m ost intere s ting b ook in the

w o rld I f it i s re a d and studied h one s tly it yield s
.

such r esults in li fe and cha rac te r a s c ome f rom n o

othe r s ou r ce P e ople l ove to he ar it i n te rp r eted
. .

When they a r e guided i n the r ight way they will

give tim e to it and w ill enr ich thei r expe r i en ce f r om
it.

O n e f r uit ful meth od in ev angelistic p re aching i s

to re a d a n d c omment u p o n the Bible in public meet
ing s in s uch a way that th e Bibl e w ill appea r in it s
2 34 EV A NG EL I STI C P RE A CH I NG

to doj us tl y an d to l ov e k indn ess an d to wa lk

, ,
”
h umbly w ith thy G od ?

H u x l ey s ai d c onc erning th e i de al o f re li gi on con

tain ed in thi s chapt er : A p erfe ct i de a l o f re li gi on '
'

A c onc e pti on o f re li gi on which app e a rs to m e a s

wonderfu l an in spi rati on o f geni u s a s th e a r t o f
P hi d ia s o r th e s ci e nc e o f A r i s tot l e
”
.

The Cerem on ial Con ception f

o R eligion an d its
F ailu re . T hi s
do es n ot m ean that th ere i s n o p l ac e
in re li gi on f o r th e c erem ony an d th e sac rament .

There i s a gre at an d esse ntial pa r t f o r th em to p er

f o rm in th e exp ress i on o f re li gi on B u t th ey a re .

no t a b le a l on e to giv e u tt er anc e to th e deep es t im

p u lses O f rel i gi on T hey can do th e i r pa r t ; b ut n ot

.

all The d anger i s that th e c eremoni e s w i ll b e com e

.

s imp ly an e n d in th em sel v es an d th erefore b ec om e

a mena ce to rel i gi on in st e a d o f a h e lp T o s ay .
'

”
o u r p r a yers i s n ot to p r ay T he f o rm m u st b e
.

c on s tantly vital i zed by th e spi r it or i t i s w o rs e than

u se l ess .

The V ital Con ception f

o R eligion an d its S atisf ac
tion . Rel i gi on
m u s t com e into p ractical an d s o cial
exp ress i on It m u s t a dd s o cial acti on to c erem onia l
.

exp ress i on It m u s t take th e be au ti fu l f orm and

.

fi l l it w ith ben efi cen t ser vic e .

Ch r i stianity c on s i st s in d o ing j u stic e N oth i n g .

can take th e p l ac e o f r i ght e ou s living The p er .

f o rm an ce o f c ere m on i e s i s n o t a sub stit u t e f o r the

m ost r i gid j us tic e The r it u al i s j u sti fied by th e
.

k in d o f li fe it p ro du c e s It i s fol ly to rep eat a c reed

.

in p u bl ic w orship de cl a r ing that we be li e v e in G od

th e F athe r A lmighty if we go out an d t re at our
 SP E CI A L G A TH E R ING S 235

fellow m en a s if there we re n o G od A t th at m o .

me nt we h av e be c om e p ra c t ic a l athe i s t s .

Chr i s t i an i t y c on sists i n a l ovi n g l i fe T o l ove .

k in dness me an s to take h old pra c t i ca lly an d do s om e

th ing to se t the h at reds an d the su ff erings o f the
World r i gh t M isery is so abun d ant th at a ll the
.

en ergi es o f the Chr i s tian p e op le a re ca lled f or to se t

th e m ri gh t E sp e cia lly is this tru e a s w e se t a bou t
.

to re pai r the d ama ge o f w a r .

Chris t i an i ty c on sis t s in a r ev er e nt re lati on o f

l oya l ty to G od To w a lk hu mbly do es n ot m e an to
.

cringe an d fe a r ; i t m e an s to be a r ourselves n obly

an d to sh a re the very nat ure an d j oy Of G od It .

is the life o f fell owsh ip an d p ower .

B I B L E TA L K , II
A SONG OOD CO U RAGE
OF G
This is a s t udy o f P s a l m s 4 2 an d 4 3 f o r th e p a r
ticu lar p ur p o se o f see in g the w a y in wh ich the dis
cou raged s oul w in s i t s v i ct o ry o v er des pai r t hr ou gh

it s f aith in G od We firs t s t u dy the s t ru ct ure o f

.

the p oe m; I t c on sists o f three s tan z a s e ach f ol

l owed by a ch o rus E ach s tanz a is a m onol ogu e
. .

The l ow e r o r d i she a r t ened s oul s p e a ks in th e m on o

l ogu e T he h i gher o r e nc our agi ng s oul t ries to
.

br ing help and h ope to the dishea r t en ed in the

ch o rus The r e is a most i ntere s t ing pa r a llel in
.

T e nnys on s Th e Tw o V oices
’
.

S tan z a I .This sh ows th e s oul i n the ve ry de p ths

o f de p ressi on T e a rs a re i t s f oo d
. T he ta u nt s o f
.

i t s en e mi es ri n g i n th e gl oomy s pi ri t s e a rs E ven ’
.

the m e m o ry o f h app i e r d a ys and f o rm e r bles se d ex

2 36 E VA NG E L I STI C P R E A CH I NG

perien ces be com es an in s t ru m ent o f t ort ure Ye t it .

i s a f aint s u gges ti on o f c om f or t an d p e ace d imly ,

h e a rd among the d i s h e a r t e ning v oic es .

Ch oru s I Th e n ob ler s ou l c omman ds th e de

.

p ressed s oul to h op e in G od affirming that it s u rely ,

w il l fi na l l y t r i u mph th rou gh it s res ol u t e faith T hi s .

is a p o s itiv e gl a d an d m o s t c o n fide nt n ot e o f ch eer

, .

S tan z a 2 . I n thi s s tanz a the tw o m oods o f h op e

an d fe a r a re n e a rly balanc ed D espai r ha s h eld th e .

field a l mos t wh ol l y in s tan z a I N ow th e b al anc e .

i s gr a du a l l y s hi f tin g Ne ither qu it e w in s ov er the

.

o th er ; b u t h op e h a s gain ed so m u ch t h at it begin s to

b e s u re th at it will wi n i n the e n d There i s n o

.

e ff or t to de ny the de spai r ; it i s l ike the wat erfalls

an d th e engulfin g b i ll ows Ye t the l ov e o f G od i s
.

g re at er t h an a ll th ese G o d i s
. t he r o c k o n wh ic h th e
s ou l res t s e v en if i t seem s f or the m ome nt a s i f he
,

ha d f ai led .

Choru s 2 O nce mo re the b raver s oul a ffi rm s th e

.

w i sdom an d l ove of G od an d app e a ls f or the do

mini on o f c our age .

S tan z a 3 . We n ow h ea r th e s ong o f good cour

age fu lly s u ng H op e ha s c onqu ered fe a r I t
. .

r ings l ike a gre at bell p ro cl aiming th e vict ory G od

,
.

is the gi v er o f s t re n gth Th e c on fide nt s ou l w i ll

.

g o s in i
g gn b ac k to t he o ld ex p er i e nc e that w a s onc e

so b e au ti fu l H op e h as in s i s t ed u p on the re a l ity
.

o f th e d ivin e l ov e an d w i sd om an d so h a s con

qu ered T h ere w i ll be n o m ore des p ai r G od i s in

. .

H is he av e n an d the w o r l d cann o t b e l o s t in gl oo m .

Ch orus 3 F inall y G od i s accl aim ed a ga i n as on e

.

who w i ll s a ve th o se w ho kee p f a i th in H im ,
2 38 E VA NG E L I STI C P RE A CH I NG

cann ot do G od s w ill w h en we are c r ippl ed by sin

’
.

O nl y t he p u re in h e a rt see G o d .

B The Call
. I t i s p ers onal
. wh om I , ,
”
us It is u rgent It i s specifi c
. .
go T h ere .

i s n o gu esswork a b out e ither th e n eed or th e work .

T h ey a re on e v ery s i de .

C The A n sw er I t w a s i mm ed iat e N o tim e

. .

w a s sp e nt in debat e I t wa s defin it e and p o s itiv e

. .

It wa s chee rful ; th er e w a s n o rebe l l i on or com

plaint .

3 .A M an s R e
p o rt
’
of his L if e Wo r k Th e a p .

pa rent p roble m in th e pa ss age i s exp l ain ed by un

de rstan din g that h ere th e mat u re I s aiah wr it es th e
resu lt o f hi s l at er exp er i enc e a s i f it were a sp e ci fi c
it e m in hi s call .

A Tru th m akes S low H eadw ay

. E v ery ch am .

pi on an d defen der Of t ru th fi n ds thi s ou t We can .

n o t ha s t e n th e c oming o f th e K ingd om o f G o d b y

ras h m ean s or by v i ole nc e .

B . G od s
’
F in al Ju dgmen ts are I n exorable
T h ere i s n o es cap e from th e d ivin e p rogram I t .

can be hin dere d n ot s talled ,

.

C The H ope in the R emnan t

. G e n er a lly it is .

a mino rity that sees th e d ivin e vi s i on and st and s

t r u e B ut on e w it h G od i s a maj o rity
. .

B I B L E TA L K, I V

OLLO W I NG TH E IDEAL
F
St udy P hi' ian s 3 Th i s i s a t e n derly pe rs onal
’

chapt er f r om the h e a rt o f St P aul I t i s th e re . .

p o rt o f his exp er i enc e a s a Chris tian giv en l a rgely ,

 SP E CIA L G A TH E RI N G S 2 39

in th e terms o f exp l anati on We may a gre e or d i s

.

a gree w ith h i s int erp re tati on ; b u t we m u s t feel the

g e n u in e n ess o f hi s re p o r t o f hi s ex p er i e nc e .

The P as t ( vs 1 . T he in v itati o n to h appin ess

i s an int rodu cti on to w hat h e m e an s to s ay in th e
ch apt er The w a rn i ng to a vo i d e n e mi es le a ds him
.

to rev i ew h i s ow n l i f e . T here were ab u n d ant

g r o u n ds f o r h i s b o a s tin g : h i s H ebrew l in e a ge ; a
P h a ri see ; ze a l ous to the p oint o f p erse cu ting th o se
w h o d i ff ered fr om h im ; so f a r a s m o r a l int e gr it y
w a s c onc er n ed bl am eless before the l a w Th at
,
.

w a s a re c ord o f w hich on e mi gh t j us t ly be p r oud .

T eh P r e s en t ( vs 7 I I '—
. . A wh olly n ew ide a of
l i fe ha s be c om e h i s I n s t e a d o f t rus t i ng to the law
.

an d obed i enc e to i t i n order to ach i eve ri gh t e ous

n ess h e n ow t r u s t s Chris t A n ew s tan d ing is
,
,
.

g iv e n t o hi m bef o re G o d. H e be c o m es r i g ht e o us ,

n o t be ca u se he h a s ach i eved a c h a r act er b o bed i

y
e nc e to law bu t be cau se h e h a s bee n gr ant ed a n ew
,

rel ati on sh ip to G od thr ough h i s f aith in Ch r i s t I t .

is a ll so d i ff ere nt th at i t cann ot be des c r i b ed in an y

o ther w a y th an a n ew l i fe o r a n e w c re ati on Chr i s t
'

h a s l a id h old on h im an d he h a s l ai d h old on Chr i s t .

I n th at m u t u a l gr a s p h is s oul w in s a n ew l i fe .

The F u tu re ( v s 1 2 . I t i s l i ke a f oot rac e -

in th e gre at s ta d i u m ; there i s a goal ahea d t ow a rd ,

wh ich the runn er p resses wi th e v ery n er v e t e n se .

H e le t s n oth in g d iv e rt him fr om th at on e Ob j e cti ve ,

on wh ich he h a s fixed hi s a ze H i citi z n s hi p is

g s. e

n ot m erely on e a r th ; it is a ls o in he a ve n . H e is
l i vi ng in tw o w o rlds at a t i m e i n o n e o f which he,

kee p s u p h i s strenuous pa c e and i n the othe r of

2 40 E V A N G E L I STI C P R EA CH I NG

w hich dwe ll his h op e s an d from which h e l ooks f or

th e fi nal f u l fi lme n t o f his great de si res H e da re s
.

to ma k e thi s attit u de o f su ch m o m e nt that h e can

c omm en d it to oth er s as on e to f oll ow T o him th e
.

fi nal achi e v e m ent i s s a f e an d s u re b e ca u se h e h as

committ e d him se l f to Ch r i st in su ch a compl e t e
ab an d onm e nt o f de v o ti on that h e t r u s t s H im f u lly

to b r ing th e des i re o f h i s h e a r t to pa ss .

P rinted in the Uni ted States of A merica