Proclaimer Blog
Prophetic preaching and why it is NEVER boring
Our short strapline ("When God's word is faithfully preached, God's voice is clearly heard") causes some to stumble. We know that. And it's always going to be the case that such short statements raise more questions than they answer. In various ways (not least in Christopher's excellent The Priority of Preaching) we try to answer those questions.
However, here's another way to think more broadly about what preaching is and why it is so important. Carl Trueman's hour long lecture at the recent Clarus conference is excellent. It's certainly challenging – not least the explanation about why preaching is NEVER boring (not real preaching anyhow). There's some good stuff here, including why preaching is not just "explaining the Bible" (though I'd want to say it's not less than that).
Two thirds of the way through Carl quotes from the Westminster Larger Catechism:
Question 155: How is the Word made effectual to salvation?
Answer: The Spirit of God makes the reading, but especially the preaching of the Word, an effectual means of enlightening, convincing, and humbling sinners; of driving them out of themselves, and drawing them unto Christ; of conforming them to his image, and subduing them to his will; of strengthening them against temptations and corruptions; of building them up in grace, and establishing their hearts in holiness and comfort through faith unto salvation.
Trueman says:
The Reformers understood that preaching was the principal means by which God makes himself savingly present in the church.
The mp3 is worth the time. Carl is speaking at our Autumn Minister's Conference (7-10 November 2011) for which booking opens in July.
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