One Preaching Lesson I Learned Part II

Part II

This the 2nd part of a three part blog about the single preaching lesson that I know that I have learned.  Preaching is more an art than a science. This week, I want to give advice to pastors who want to become more of a preaching "artist."  To be completely honest,I am not naturally artistic nor creative. This list of ideas have been helpful to me over the years to develop my creative side.

Not to be laborous, but,I fully intended to have a two week blog on this topic, but this week's ran long.. so MORE NEXT WEEK

The next point has had much impact on me.

4- Read Fiction

Pastors have to read. We read books, blogs, newsletters, social media posts, commentaries and of course the Bible. Obviously, Biblical knowledge is paramount for a pastor, but most preachers become an expert in  Christian 'trade journals." almost as much as the Scriptures. We read more than almost any profession, but our base of knoweldge tends to be too small.  We read literature about some interesting church topics:

How to Improve the Church in 100 Days or Less

Why Your Church isn't Reaching Hipster, Postmodern, Urban, Relevant Millenials.

The One Secret to Planting a Perfect Church

What (   ) really want!! (fill in the blank)

To be sure, the above titles are clothed in hyperbole, but they are pointers to a stream of writing that evangelical pastors swim in. We love leadership books, "how to" church manuals, and research work that offers us a future look into the demographic make up of America in 50 years. These can be quite helpful but if that's all we take in, it leaves the pastor a little empty of thought about the real work of minstry which is speaking the Gospel into the human condition.

Great literature is as great as it's observations are. Literature's observations offers a creative bridge from the world you are into someone else's. Too often, pastors see fiction as unnecessary because it isn't the "real world", but good fiction and it's masterfully told stories help pastors experience circumstances they never would any other way.

Consider, in our research into demographics we may want to learn how to reach the poor with the Gospel. We find out where they live, how much money they have, how old they are- all helpful. Equally helpful, would be to have read Charles Dicken's Bleak House or Great Expectations, or Upton Sinclair's, The Jungle which opens the door for us to seethe heart of poverty therefore hopefully gaining some sympathy for the poor, the orphan and the destitute. 

Churches have rightly rekindled the discussion on racism and how the Gospel informs us on the topic. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee helps the reader experience a little about the evils of prejudice. To be clear, reading fictional stories does not make us an expert on a topic but it does enlighten us on certain realities.

FIction  also broadens our imagination (Lord of the Rings?), our vocabulary (Shakespeare?) and gives us interesting illustrations in our preaching  that will be far more timeless than newspaper headlines. Good fiction makes us think more broadly, more deeply and overall just makes us think more.

Pastors have to see situations from many points of view. Everything from the programming of a church to a counseling session involves making decisions while taking multiple points of view into consideration. Thoughtfullness and empathy are mandatory co-laborers with a pastor. Ultimately, only the Holy Spirit through God's Word can bring something as beautiful as empathy, however, well told stories with captivating characters and quality writing pricks our heart to see things a little differently.

Truth that is found in the pages of the Bible and taught in the pulpit is our primary source for life and ministry, but in our reading it can be helpful to broaden our horizons and dip into some classic stories to teach us about timeless truths that we will minister into everyday. 

Here is a list you may find helpful:

Top six (plus one) fiction works that have helped me pastor:

1- Elmer Gantry- written by Sinclair Lewis- A novel about a circuit preacher that achieves success for the wrong reasons. He grows prideful and brings others down with him. More known for being a movie, the novel stings . Lewis can be harsh and overly satirical at times, but a pastor can see the impact a hypocritical life can have.

2-Scarlet Letter- Nathaniel Hawthorne. a novel about the dangers of hypocricy and legalism among a community. Set in Puritan Boston, Hester Prynne's situaton is too familiar for most non Christians. You will get angry and as a pastor it reminds you the importance of grace.

3-The Power and the Glory- Graham Greene-Set in Mexico in the early 1900's, a fallen priest minsters to people at a time when churches were illegal. A powerful story of grace, redemption and justice.

4- Animal Farm- George Orwell. One of my favorites. Easily the shortest book on the list. Orwell is making an anti-communism political statement (among other things), but the reminder that humans need spiritual redemption hangs over the pages- all told by talking animals.

5- "A Good Man is Hard to Find"- Flannery O Conner. A Southern "gothic" short story that is frightening. Probably not suitable for kids. it's not profane but intense. The story of how true religious faith tends to get exposed in dire circumstances. Considered by some to be one of the greatest southern short stories ever written

6-"Wash" and "Dry September"- William Faulkner- Two chilling short stories from the Mississppi legend. Both are intense but nothing profane. I put them together for convenience. "Wash" is the story of complex family relationships in post Civil War Mississippi. Faulkner can be time consuming to read, but the theme of redemption and the dangers of arrogance are worth the time. "Dry September" is a gut wrenching story of racism and injustice. I've never been so angry reading a story. Eye Opening!

Thank you for reading.  Part II next week.

In Christ,

Richard

One Preaching Lesson I have Learned-Part I

Glad to be blogging again. I have decided to do a two part blog on “One preaching lesson I have learned”. I’ve been blessed to have many great men teach me about the pastoral ministry, whether it be in seminary or in the local church. I have been taught many things, but only have learned a few.

I have been teaching the Bible for a few years. I’m not sure how “good” I am at it, but I think I have gotten better over the years, and in the last decade and a half I’ve had the opportunity to preach in many different situations. In that time, I’ve strived to improve, to think more clearly, to speak more accurately, to prepare more completely, but as any pastor knows, you never “arrive” as a preacher. One simple truth I have learned over the years is Preaching is an art more than a science.

Some pastors will heartily agree with the above statement, but others, probably younger Reformed and evangelicals (my tribe) will disagree. Exposition for most us is machine like. “Plug n Play” is the appropriate term. Read the text, give a point, give an application and repeat. While this approach is efficient in jamming as much text and truth as possible in a 45 minute sermon and it will get you a 4.0 in Preaching seminars, if used thoughtlessly this style will fail to connect with a congregation. Admittedly, in this blog I offer no new methodology or even approach but some general principles that I have found helpful over the last several years in connecting as an artist and not as a machine.

I will give six principles over 2 weeks, but let’s be clear from the beginning. The most important part of preaching is and always will be the content of the sermon. Pastors are teachers. In fact, teaching is our first obligation, so the doctrines and Gospel that is being taught is paramount. That being said, the way we teach our people matters.  These blogs won’t be lengthy, but I hope hits the spot with someone.

  Preaching is More Art than Science  (6 principles (part 1))

1) Pull more than push- The congregation wants to follow along with you, or they wouldn’t be there. Too many pastors attempt to use force of will, personality or voice to “drive” congregants to obey, give, help, repent etc. This may lead to some rote obedience, but it rarely tells the people “WHY?” they should adhere to the sermon. Practically, this means, as you walk through a text explain your thought process, where a point came from and struggles you have seen or experienced. Sometimes interaction helps. Rhetorical questions, asking for simple responses or “ show of hands” is a way of keeping the audience engaged not just with the sermon, but with the preacher. The goal is to take them on a journey in the text, the history of the text, the context, through the characters in the scripture but to always land squarely on the Gospel. All Christian preaching must point to Christ and his finished work.

2) Preaching is storytelling at its highest form- Preachers are storytellers- (cringe, I feel it from some). As mentioned above, that does not mean that we are supposed to be telling cute, contrived illustrations about everyday life to make the Bible “interesting.” The Bible is the story of God redeeming his people through the blood of his Son- that is far more interesting than anything that Hulu Plus can put online. A storyteller always weaves his tale with a beginning, a climax and an end. Playwrights often had it organized as ACT I, ACT II and ACT III. The storyteller has a point, and crafts everything to get that point in a way to keep the audience entertained (to laugh, shriek, or cheer). The pastor uses the selected text, analogous texts, illustrations and applications all while making a “Beeline to the Cross” as Charles Spurgeon phrased to not just engage and entertain the audience but to lead them to an understanding of God’s call of repentance that leads to literal action. In other words, the pastor’s storytelling is to be used for transformation not just information- regardless of how vital the information may be. Preaching is a one-of a kind storytelling that has a higher purpose. The purpose of preaching is to affect the HEART. The heart is the totality of a person. The pastor’s preaching should be pinpointed as a light through the emotions, will and intellect of a person and it should shine on the cross of Christ. A disjointed outline with “Preacherisms” often struggles to coherently convey a message to the entire heart of a person.

3) Sermons should be crafted to be heard first,and written second. Some of the best preachers in the world have manuscripted (written word for word) their sermons. This includes men like Jonathan Edwards and many Puritans. I am eternally grateful for that practice, because without the manuscripts of some of these men and the outlines of Spurgeon and John Macarthur, I never would have learned to be a bible teacher or an expositor. Please remember, Pastors that our main way of communicating with our people is not through written sermons, but through the spoken word, proclaimed at a particular time and place. This means, your oration, your voice afflection , your tone of voice, your mannerisms ALL MATTER. Preachers can have a wonderfully written manuscript but if that sermon is delivered with boredom, anger or sarcasm, that sermon loses its impact as the PREACHED WORD—Praise God, the Holy Spirit works through our sinfulness! That does not mean that you fake exuberance or use “King James English”. It means that you are aware of your responsibility as a messenger of God at the moment you proclaim the message of the Gospel.

One of the practices that have helped me is to watch and listen to professional storytellers. Garrison Keillor for example, and to pay attention to the way they use voice, timing, and rhythm. This purpose isn’t to copy the storytellers but to add more storytelling qualities to our preaching. 

That’s the first three, three more next week. Thanks for reading. If you have any comments or questions, please inbox me on Facebook. My prayer is that this helps pastors and congregations.

In Christ,

Richard Crowson

Pastor/Planter Redemption Hill Church, Sioux City IA