Quote of the Week

“To reach people no one else is reaching, we must do things no one else is doing.”

--Craig Groeschel

Session 11 - James MacDonald

Notes from this session (expositional sermon on Acts 12):

God is in control

1. Even when I suffer (Acts 12:1-5)
- Sincerity is not an exemption from suffering
- Service to God does not mean exemption from suffering
- 16 soldiers guarding 1 guy
- Stature is not an exemption from suffering
- God allows it - He will use it - He is in control

2. Even when it's midnight (v. 6-11)
- At midnight means I can't think of a way this can get fixed
- After this it will be totally in your hands
- Peter is sleeping - not stressed - Peter knew that God was in control and he trusted Him
- Just because it's down to the wire and past the point of no return, doesn't mean that God is not going to act
- We try to put God on our program, and what we need to do is get on His program

3. Even when my faith is weak (v. 12-19)
- They thought it was his angel (i.e. that he was dead) - they were praying but really were thinking that it was over. Their faith was very weak - yet God answered.
- Faith is important, but sovereignty supersedes faith. God is bigger.

4. Even when the wicked seem to prosper (v. 20-25)
- The crowd could have shouted "this just isn't right - do something God! Why don't you act?"
- Don't think that God's silence about something means that He doesn't see or care or know.
- That's what I think about that!
- He struck him down because he did not give God the glory - God will not share His glory with another
- God is in control when the wicked "seem" to prosper

But the Word of God continued to increase and spread.

Session 10 - Robert Smith - "Hybrid Homiletics"

Robert Smith is the professor of preaching at Beeson Divinity School in Birmingham, Alabama.

Notes from this session:

- We live in a time of inspired intellectualism (from the neck up - big headed) and empty emotionalism (neck down - beheaded). This is an either / or thing that produces incomplete congregations and incomplete preachers.

- The Spirit never operates without or is separated from the Word and vice versa.

- The Spirit repeats, reaffirms, and reemphasizes what Jesus said.

- Both head and heart are absolutely necessary.

- We need to be like honeybees who gather from different flowers to produce their own honey - assimilation, not imitation or parroting

- We all stand on someone's shoulders - we take the best and mix it up in our own beehives.

- The preacher who brings the same form of sermon every time is like one who dusts plastic flowers instead of cultivating a garden - no surprises, no suspense

- Both John the Baptizer's message to Antipas and Nathan's message to David are appropriate and authentic - one is deductive and one is inductive - use both

- Fred Craddock "our preaching is not wrong, just too small - it doesn't cover enough ground. Head and heart need to be converted together."

- We want truth thought to be married to truth felt and then expressed in truth done.

- Our approach to preaching needs to be versatile and needs to vacillate.

- Didache is content oriented - designed for information; kerygma is intent oriented - designed for transformation

- Brooks "Find the place where truth touches down on life. Not just "what" but "so what" and "now what"

- What difference does this word mean on Monday?

- Exegetical escort - takes what is in the text out, and ushers people into God's promises - I cannot change them - only God can - like the Law - not intended to change us - couldn't - we needed a Messiah - the Law just showed us our mess

- We are exegetical escorts by the Spirit, and dancing is the metaphor

- Doxological dancer - my presentation is like John the Baptizer - I am just the voice, pointing to the one - as I lead them, I dance, I point in a way empowered by the Spirit

- E. K. Bailey - "exegetical preaching is a message taken from a portion of Scripture in order to render the precise meaning of a text through the power of the Holy Spirit."

- The message is taken from Scripture, not my presuppositions or self-interests - let the text say what it says - don't misuse or sanitize the text

- Allow the Holy Spirit to first apply the text to your life and then to those who listen to you

- The Old and New Testaments are a seamless robe - they speak with one voice

- "If I'm going to bleed Mon-Sat, the folks will not be spared on Sunday morning"

- Our job is to help people see what they cannot see in Scripture - we must open the text with such faithfulness to the text and such sensitivity to the people

- You cannot be prophetic without being pastoral

- Greidanus' 10 steps from text to sermon:
1. Take and give a text based on congregational spiritual needs (not felt needs)
2. Read and reread the text in its literary setting - read it 50 times - all five senses are clothed with the text (John 18:18 and 21:9 - charcoal fire - Peter was under conviction before Jesus asked him a question) - then you will see things you did not see before
3. Outline the structure of the text
4. Interpret the text in its literary context
5. Formulate the text's theme and goal - what does it want to accomplish? (Could be proclamation to initiate people into the faith - salvation, instruction of others about the faith - discipleship, etc) Theme - what is it all about?
6. Understand the text in its canonical and redemptive history - how does this look in light of the whole Bible?
7. Formulate the theme and goal of the sermon
8. Outline the structure of the sermon
9. Select a suitable form for the sermon
10. Write the sermon in oral style

- Prepare your sermon deductively - preach it inductively

- Don't have a Mercedes Benz title for a VW sermon

I'm exhausted

I can't remember when my energy reserves felt this low. I'd sure appreciate your prayers. The last six weeks have been very full, and I'm really feeling it today. Please pray for restful sleep and energy, not just for me but for Charlotte too. She's as tired or more than I am. Thanks y'all.

Session 9 - James MacDonald

James MacDonald is the founding and Senior Pastor of Harvest Bible Chapel in Wheaton, IL, and is the Radio Bible Teacher on the program Walk in the Word.

Notes from this session:

4 Pillars of my ministry:

1) Preaching God's Word without apology
2) Lifting high the name of Christ in worship
3) A firm belief in the power of prayer
4) A commitment to sharing the gospel with boldness

25 things I didn't learn about pastoring in seminary:

1) Preaching has to flow out of your relationship with the Lord - NOTHING will substitute for that in preaching (James 4:8)

2) Your preaching reflects who you are - authenticity (2 Cor. 4:2) - preaching is truth coming through your personality - we must be authentic to ourselves - be who God made us

3) You must be in God's Word everyday for yourself (not preparing for a message)

4) Don't preach if you're not right with others

5) Read broadly - secular biographies, interesting subjects

6) Preach the authority of the Word of God without apology - bedrock confidence behind what we say is God's Word - thus says the Lord - people want to have heard from God - we must say the things God has said - just tell me God's heart on the matter - Speak for God

7) Truth by definition is intolerant - it will come across that way. People don't come to church to hear what you're thinking about - they come to hear from God.

8) Just do your job, man. - 2 Tim 4:2 - preach the Word - not a suggestion - a command

9) What you preach determines who comes to your church, not how many people - you can reach thousands - many want to hear the Word of God - many do not. If people hear from God, something will happen and they will bring others to hear.

10) The power of preaching is in the balance of grace and truth (John 1:14)

11) Sermon preparation happens in stages. James plans a preaching calendar a year out - topics and passages - then a month out, he breaks it down - maps the series. Week of - Tues, read the passage and outline; Wed - continue the same; Thurs - outline or die day (for the bulletin); Fri - get it finished. John MacArthur - "The key to a great sermon? Keep your butt in the chair until the work is done."

12) Preparation is hard work.

13) If you get stuck, move on (it must get resolved!)

14) Craft your message notes (cardstock half page double sided)

15) Finish what you start - prepare and preach what you prepare

16) Develop the discipline of observing life. If you listen closely, illustrations will come up and shake your hand. Canned illustrations are not compelling. Write stuff down.

17) Learn to see the humor in things.

18) Personal illustrations are good. Illustrations that make you look good are bad. Make yourself look human and real, because you are.

19) Develop the ability to read people. Learn to keep people's attention - read them while you preach.

20) Insert commercials in your preaching. James preaches for 50-55 minutes, with 8-10 "commercials" per message. Commercials can be points of humor, charts, maps, skits, pictures, something in the bulletin, etc. Remember - no stories will substitute for the message capturing you. Audience interaction, role plays, verbal directions...

21) Get the big idea from the passage. Try to stick to 1 paragraph.

22) Do your homework, but don't preach your homework. Don't be a Bible fathead. Don't preach interpretation and theological choices.

23) Bring application. Apply the text - "we must believe, we must do, we must choose" - text "it says", illustration "it looks like", application "it goes like" - cycle over and over - don't make them wait till the end.

24) Preaching has different voices and confronts different kinds of needs:

Teachers - appeal to the mind - attacks ignorance
Shepherds - appeal to the emotions - attacks discouragement
Prophets - think you already know the truth - appeals to the will - attacks rebellion

You must do all three to be a powerful communicator. Train yourself to do what you don't do naturally. The progression of persuasion is always mind, emotions, will.

25) Do not bore people with the Bible - that's the greatest sin in ministry.

My takeaways (still processing...)

1) #24 is really convicting. I think I operate clearly in the teaching mode - I've got to work on the other two.

2) #1-3 are so important. I need to post them on the back of my eyelids.

3) #6-7 are significant to me - I needed to hear this and I need to apply it every week in what I do and how I do it.

Session 8 - Robert Smith

Dr. Robert Smith is the professor of preaching at Beeson Divinity School in Birmingham, Alabama (my hometown). He is without a doubt the most outstanding preacher of God's Word that I have ever heard. May his tribe increase. He preached out of Isaiah 37:14-20, 36-38 - "The God Who Reads."

Notes from this session:

- We must not perpetuate a proclamation of isolation and compromise. We must need go through Samaria.

- We must perpetuate a proclamation of prophetic transformation.

- It's possible to get a good lesson from a bad example

- "He is God all by Himself and He don't need nobody else!"

- We are not bargainers - we are ambassadors - it is His way or no way - He is the only way and we don't back down from that at all

- We are not after cash and crowns - how big the church, the building, or the budget - the question is - Is Christ Lord? Or is it just a Sunday club?

- Joshua and the captain of the host - he asked him "are you with us or against us?" The captain replied "Neither - I'm here to take over"

- God reigns - malek - He succeeds Himself because there is no one to succeed Him

- Hezekiah went to the prophet - "is there any word from the Lord?"

- Our ultimate allegiance is not to Capitol Hill, but to a hill far away - not to a flag, but to the cross

- I am the I am - a noun with no adjectives or modifiers - a good noun needs no adjectives

- God never reacts to anything - He proacts to everything - He is never in panic mode - He knows the benediction before the invocation

- 37:14 - He brings it to the temple for God to read it

I'm still processing a lot from this one - the takeaways will come, but later.

More to follow...

Session 7 - Rick Warren

Notes from this session:

- Rick spoke from Exodus 3 - God asks Moses "what is in your hand?"

- Staff - something that was dead comes alive

- God never does miracles to show off - every miracle is a parable of God's truth

- God never asks a question that He doesn't already know the answer to - it's not for His benefit

- The staff represented Moses' identity (he was a shepherd), his income (represented his wealth), and his influence (the staff was a tool to lead and move sheep)

- "If you will lay these three things down for me, I will make them come alive - I will do things you never thought possible, if you will just lay it down. But every time you pick it back up, it will die and become a lifeless piece of wood again."

- Never again in Scripture is it referred to as Moses' staff - it is always called the rod of God

- There was nothing magical about it - but it became God's

- What happens when you say yes to God? What is in your hand?

- Every time I give, it breaks the grip of materialism in my life

- The purpose of influence is to speak up for those who have none

- There are 149 million orphans in the world

- This year, 210,000 people will die in California; 2.4 million will die in America; and 73 million will die in the world - most of them will spend eternity separated from Christ in hell.

My takeaways from this session (still processing...)

1. What is God calling me to do for Him today? What is in my hand? What has He given me to use for Him?

2. Will I be content to pay it safe and stay a shepherd in the wilderness, or will I be willing to follow where God leads, into difficult days, incredible challenges, but an amazing life? Yes, yes, yes - I want to follow - I want to go - and I want Southview to go and follow God where He leads. Let's quit playing it safe and go for broke - what is in our hand? What is God saying? LET'S DO THAT!!