I just heard the Dean give a ripper of a sermon on Colossians 4. You might think its hard to preach a sermon from a list of greetings, but he did a great job.

We went from Tychicus “faithful and beloved” to the God who revealed Himself to Moses as “faithful” and “loving”. From Mark we learnt a little about Christian reconciliation. From Demas we learnt about the danger of falling away. And so on.

Listening to the sermon, it struck me that our preachers are sometimes a little timid and unimaginative when preaching on a text. The desire to be “exegetically sound”, and the fear of anything resembling allegory, may straight-jacket the preaching sometimes.

It may be we end up with a sermon that “exegetes” but doesn’t “exposit”. But this is a great problem. If you are not setting hearts on fire, you are not really preaching.

I would encourage the many preachers who read these threads to get hold of the Deans sermons and learn from his example.

Re: Colossians 4

( Greetings all - or hello to my Christian cyber-friends. After a year long journey, peering over your shoulders as a ‘guest’ I am now on-line with you - I’ll introduce myself on the newbie thread soon. )

Craig, when you say “If you are not setting hearts on fire, you are not really preaching”, this strikes a chord with me. Just minutes before I read this post, I was in the middle of composing a letter about what I feel ministry is all about - and my mind recalled a number of sermons that I still remember from CMS Summer School many, many years ago. And it wasn’t just the words that I was recalling in my mind - it was the passion that went straight to the heart - indeed ‘sermons’ or everyday conversations can have this effect. Words have meaning - and words have power.

I’ll recall just one brief incident that lit a spark. One of the speakers one year was a young blond-headed theological lecturer, who had just given a 50 minute ‘sermon’ to about 2,000 folk gathered at CMS Katoomba - he had spoken at length all about the servanthood of Jesus - and how we should follow his example. At the end of the sesssion, he was outside the large hall, and a dear old lady ( one of those dear ‘oldies’ who are always to be seen at church activities ‘behind-the-scenes’ in the background doing all the necessary mundane things that need to be done that others don’t even think about - you know them, they’re called God’s army supply officers - God bless evry one of them ). Anyway, having been busy doing things, she hadn’t been able to sit in on the morning’s talk with the multitude and didn’t recognise the young ( surfie looking ) young man who had just told 2,000 people of God ( from Bishops right down to ‘day-old’ new Christians ) what the Biblical principles of the servanthood of Christ was really all about !

“Sonny”, she called out to him, “ Can you please go and put these in the toilets down there. They’ve run out of loo paper again. Thanks”, she said - placing a whole large pack of rolls in his hand and sending him on his ‘servant’ way to the toilet block.

When he later told us this tale in college lectures, I marvelled at how God teaches us. How, when even we are at the ‘highest’ level and teaching others from a great height - still He comes along and takes us back to the ABC’s of our faith. Teaching us all that even he who is greatest among us, should act as if he/she is one of the least. This, to me, is what true servanthood is all about - and where humbleness before the Lord comes in.

To this day, wherever I am, I invariably check to see if the loo paper needs replacing - and at home, well I buy it by the dozen - so we never run out. And what of that young surfie minister-come-theological lecturer - well he kept learning about servanthood - and is now the principal of one of the leading theological colleges in Britain.

There’s more to preaching than just words - we’re all called to be living letters that others can read.

Welcome Kevin!

Hi Kevin!

Welcome to the forum.

Anything else you think about preaching?  good to hear from new people.