I was given a book for my birthday called "Heralds of God," by James S Stewart. One or both of the pictures above is the author. He lived from 1896 until 1990, so you can see why both methods of portrait might have been popular in his day!
The book is blowing me away, inspiring me anew. It was written in 1946, but shows that in a sense, nothing has changed in the area of preaching. The controversies are the same. The temptations and pressures are the same.
As a pastor in this age, trust me on this, there is a great deal of pressure to "be" a certain way, and to "preach" a certain way, and to manage your church a certain way. There is the purpose-driven church model, the willow-creek model, the emergent model, the traditional model, the desires of the people, etc, etc, ad nauseum. And all these pressures try to push into the sermon. The sermon must be short, says one. The sermon must meet felt needs said another. The sermon must be topical and relevant to the issues of the day. The sermon should be all stories. The sermon must not alienate. The sermon must be positive. The sermon must coordinate with a drama or the rest of the Sunday service in order to have an impact on the modern mind. The sermon must be delivered in a suit. The sermon should be delivered casually. The sermon must cast and recast the vision statement, mission statement, direction of the church. And on, and on, and on.
It is easy to forget exactly why we preach at all. And then enters this book by Stewart. Ah. It is like cool rain on a sweltering July day.
Allow me to give an excerpt. I INVITE YOUR COMMENTS.
"Do not listen to the foolish talk which suggests that, for the twentieth century, the preaching of the Word is an anachronism, and that the pulpit, having served its purpose, must now be displaced by press or radio, discussion group or Brains Trust, and finally vanish from the scene. As long as God sets His image on the soul, and men are restless till they rest in Him, so long will the preacher's task persist, and his voice be heard through all the clamour of the world."
