Intersected

Another helpful post from Mike Gilbert-Smith

We are having a useful ongoing conversation with our elders on the last of those: how to fence the table at communion. There was an earlier discussion on this blog with useful comments.

One resource I’ve found helpful in recommending to our elders to read came out of a Sovereign Grace church plant and is very useful.

It, in turn, provides the following further reading list

• Dennis Gunderson, Your Child’s Profession of Faith. Amityville, N.Y., Calvary Press, 1994.
• “Childhood Conversion” by Jim Elliff
• Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology. Leicester, England, InterVarsity Press, 1994. On baptism and the Lord’s Supper.
• “Why Can’t I Have a Snack Like Everyone Else?” by David Michael
• Donald Whitney, How Can I Be Sure I’m a Christian? Colorado Springs, NavPress, 1994.
• John T. McNeill, Institutes of the Christian Religion, Book 4, Chapters 14, 15 & 17. Philadelphia, The Westminster Press, 1960

As presented by D. A. Carson via Colin Adams via Andy Naselli

Introduction

I have visited many parts of the world in which the challenges to the 21st-century pulpit look rather different. So part of the purpose of the rest of this essay is modest: to stimulate thinking that will help others flesh out this list and modify it for different cultural locations.

Six challenges that DAC fleshes out

1. Multiculturalism
2. Rising Biblical Illiteracy
3. Shifting Epistemology
4. Integration
5. Pace of Change
6. Modeling and Mentoring

Concluding Reflections

Preachers cannot responsibly ignore these things, for they stand between the speaking God and the listening people—people who are not empty ciphers but culturally located men and women who must be addressed where they are, even if our hope and prayer is that they will not remain where they are, but begin by God’s grace the march down the King’s highway, the narrow road that leads to life.

Our motivation to understand and address people in the 21st century is not to domesticate the gospel by constant appeal to cultural analysis, but to prove effective ambassadors of the Sovereign whose Word we announce. For one day the kingdom of this world will become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He will reign for ever and ever (Rev. 11:15). It is precisely because we are anchored in eternity that we are so utterly resolved, like Paul, to address lost men and women who must one day meet their God.

Informative series at the 9Marks blog where the different contributors are sharing about how and why they do sermon introductions.

Kicked off by Deepak Raju

Mike Gilbart-Smith’s response

I have only one real desire for an introduction: that it will impress upon the congregation why we desperately need to hear the message of the particular passage of Scripture we are looking at together.

Of course, we ought to believe that just because it is in the bible. So, I’ll assume the more mature believer will listen anyway. So, I’ll particularly think about one central question that the passage addresses that will be of interest to the immature Christian and the Non Christian. I’ll then think about how to impress upon people the necessity of answering that question, perhaps raise up front the answers that other worldviews will give to that question and then launch into the text and its answer.

I aim to make it engaging, contemporary, transparently relevant, an opportunity to show that I understand that some people disagree with the bible’s answer, and trans-cultural(embracing high culture / low culture / multiple ethnicities). Above all, the question I raise must be answered by the text and be close to the central point of the text.

Mike McKinley’s response

Mike, I think you definitely have the “textbook” answer.  And I’m sure that you’re right. But I’ll admit that I am a bit ambivalent about introductions.  Maybe that’s just because I’m not very good at them.

I write an introduction to my sermon every week.  But 50% of the time I cut it out and just start by reading the text and giving a few words by way of context.  I want an introduction that is meaningful and is high impact.

I feel a little nervous about scrapping the intro altogether. 1) It presumes an interest in the bible that I don’t want to assume the visitor will have. 2) It has the danger of communicating to the Non-Christian that what is coming up is only of interest or relevance to the person who trusts the bible.

I have a default way of doing an intro when I can’t think of anything better to do. I guess I use it about one sermon in four.

I just look at a couple of quotations from different people giving different answers to the main issue we are looking at. So, I haven’t got any great ideas for an introduction for Jephthah for this week. (Judges 10-12).

So I’ll probably find a couple of quotes about ambition, before asking people to examine what they are ambitious for. How much would they sacrifice to see those ambitions come to fruition?

It’s not rocket science. I don’t think it’s insulting. It gets people asking questions about their lives.

It may not be high impact, but isn’t that better than no impact?

Mike Gilbart-Smith again

However, in most of those churches there isn’t a 40 minute sermon, and there isn’t an appetite for it. I do feel that it is kind to help people to see the relevance of what they are going to hear ahead of time, rather than wading into 5-10 minutes of exegesis before they begin to see the relevance of it for their lives.

4 ways in which an introduction can help people all people, however interested they are to listen:

1. An introduction gets people thinking about a topic that will be addressed in the sermon.
2. It helps people to think application from the very beginning.
3. In that way it helps to give shape to a sermon.
4. It disarms the sermon-biber who loves to hear sermons without putting it into practice. I know even from my own quiet times that I must force myself before reading the text to think ‘relevance’ rather than merely ‘comprehension’ before I start to read. An intro is a kind way to help the whole congregation to think that way.

My sermon on Sunday had a brief (3-4 minute) intro. It certainly wasn’t clever. But I think the sermon would have been poorer without it, as it was designed to get people thinking about how they set the whole direction of their life, and therefore people would come to the text with that question.

Thabiti Anyabwile’s weighs in

Now you guys have me thinking about introductions more than I normally do, which probably explains why I’m not that good at them.  Often my introductions are questions that point to the application or the main theme.  So, a couple Sundays ago, we were in Proverbs 5 and I asked questions related to the trajectory of marriage in the Cayman Islands.  The questions traded on the recent passage of a constitutional referendum defining marriage as between one man and one woman.  It was a victory, but the real work of marriage has to do with us heterosexual Christians really loving and serving our spouses as though revealing Christ and the gospel might somehow be connected to marriage.  For those with an hour, the sermon is here.

About the only time I’ve scrapped an introduction has been in response to something happening in the service… say the Lord using a song before the sermon in a particularly poignant or powerful way.  Then I might try to extemporaneously bridge what just took place in the singing with the beginning of the sermon.  Tried that here.  When that happens, it’s usually a gospel appeal of some sort.

But all this talk of introductions reminds me of two reasons for introductions that I don’t think anyone has said yet.  First, I, the preacher, need the introduction.  It helps me settle down into what I’m doing.  It brings me from the participation I’ve just been experiencing with the prayer or the singing to the participation I’m about the share with the word.  Not everyone would need that “lead time,” I’m sure.  But it focuses me in helpful ways.  Second, usually the introduction helps me to remember that I’m speaking to a people and that the sermon (though not a dialogue) has an audience I need to communicate with.  The sermon introduction reminds me of that.

So, I like them.  I don’t think I’m particularly good at them.  Could use even more help with conclusions, labeling the main points in short pithy statements, and illustrating.  Pretty much the whole shooting match.  But these exchanges have been helpful on the front end.  Fa’ rizzle.

Greg Gilbert continues the discussion

I think a good intro acts like the cast of a spear:  It directs the congregation’s mind in the direction you want it to go and sets the agenda for the sermon.  In other words, it puts the congregation’s minds on the ideas you want their minds on.  If you do it well, you can actually get your congregation thinking about, for example, whether a commitment to truth necessarily undercuts love, rather than whatever it was they were thinking about before they started listening to you.

I don’t think it’s useful, though, to use an introduction just to grab attention.  People try that all the time by telling a joke or something that has little or nothing to do with what they are about to preach.  Yes, that grabs attention, but only for as long as the joke is going on.  After the laugh, when you say, alright, let’s talk about love and truth, you lose them again immediately.

Ideally, I’d say, an intro will get your congregation thinking about a certain set of questions, and promise a thoughtful answer to those questions coming up in the rest of the sermon.

From Jared Kennedy at SojournKids.com

At Sojourn, our dedication service is a time we set aside to celebrate the children that God has given us.  Member families from our church community come to go public with their desire to bring up new children by God’s grace and according to his instructions.

Our service is simply called a Dedication. Some churches think about it as a baby dedication, but it is better called a Parent Dedication. This is not a water baptism, but it is a heavy thing–serious business for the parents involved. The dedication is a covenant–a holy commitment made between the parents, God, and our church community. It is serious business for our church as well. We don’t believe that God made children the responsibility of the nuclear family in isolation. Church and home are co-champions of God’s ways for our kids. Every member of Sojourn is responsible for these kids. We need each other. These parents need our encouragement, accountability, and our prayers. These kids need our love, nurture, and our gospel examples.

In the service itself, we call for the following committments from our parents and our church membership:

The Parent’s Commitment

Parents, do you profess your faith in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior and affirm the promises of God made to you and your children in his Word.  If so say  “We do.”

Will you promise to God and this church community to live gospel-changed lives before your children?  Will you promise to discipline them and show them grace?  Will you instruct them by word and example in the truth of God’s Word and in the way of salvation through Jesus Christ?  Will you promise to pray for them and teach them to pray?  Will you promise to nurture them within the body of believers to the end that they become citizens in Christ’s kingdom?  If so, say, “We will with God’s help.”

The Church’s Commitment:

Sojourn, will you promise in the presence of God and one another to live gospel-changed lives before these children and to pray that they will in turn be changed by the gospel?  Will you love and pray for these children—encouraging them and helping to nurture them in the faith?  Will you assist these parents in fulfilling their biblical responsibilities, hold them accountable by confronting sin, pray for them, and spur them on toward love and good deeds?  If so, please read the following:

With joy and thanksgiving,
As Christ’s church,
With God’s help,
We promise to love, encourage, and support you
As you follow Christ and parent your children.

We have parents write up a paragraph about their child for the ceremony, which we publish in a keepsake booklet. You can check out the complete dedication booklet for our April 2009 service here.

This coming Fall, we hope to offer a two-week “foundations” class on Wednesday nights that introduces our parents to the covenant commitment they are making at the baby dedication, introduces our philosophy of student and family ministry, and teaches some basic parenting principles for  parents of newborns.  This class will be an experiement for us.  We got the idea from Kingsland Baptist Church’s (Katy, TX) “legacy milestones” philosophy, and we will be adapting some material from Bethlehem Baptist Church’s (Minneapolis, MN) “foundation builders” classes.  Maybe I’ll report back later with regard to how it goes.

Amazingly thorough collection maintained by Andy Naselli, Carson’s full-time research assistant.

Tony Reinke’s 15 Tools for Exegetical Research

1. Commentaries. What commentaries are available on my passage? I’ll begin with the most obvious. If you are a pastor you should have several biblical commentaries at hand. Technical exegetical commentaries are a great resource to better understand the original languages. Expositional and devotional commentaries will also help out. For example, on the epistle to the Ephesians I would consult Peter O’Brien (exegetical), Martyn Lloyd-Jones (expositional), and John Stott (devotional). BestCommentaries is an excellent website to find the best commentaries.
2. Grammar and syntax. What grammatical and syntactical particularities exist in my passage? I have just enough Greek to find my way around the more technical NT commentaries. But I have also discovered that Greek textbooks can provide a lot of help when studying a particular passage. Daniel Wallace’s Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics references thousands of NT passages, pointing to a host of grammatical anomalies that I might otherwise overlook.
3. Biblical theology. Where along the continuum of God’s unfolding plan of redemption does my passage sit? Very often in exegetical preparation I consult the scriptural indexes to the works of Geerhardus Vos, and especially his classic work Biblical Theology. Vos will help you see the development of Scripture. It’s rarely possible to understand a text of scripture without first understanding where it fits in the biblical storyline. This is the work of biblical theology.
4. Systematic theology. Does this passage play an important role in defining a particular doctrine? Consult the scriptural index in Calvin’s Institutes, Wayne Grudem, John Murray,Herman Bavinck, Concise Reformed Dogmatics, John Frame’s The Doctrine of God and The Doctrine of the Knowledge of God. Every couple of months or so I watch this video by Dr Derek Thomas to be reminded that when systematic theology is done well, you can preach it. Keep one eye on systematic theology as you study scripture verse by verse, and you may be surprised at how much doctrinal ground you can cover from the pulpit.
5. Creeds. Does my passage supply the biblical support for a particular doctrine defined and defended in the classic reformed confessions? Here I will consult the scriptural index of Reformed Confessions Harmonized by Beeke and Ferguson. I am surprised at the tonnage of biblical references underpinning the reformed confessions. Identify how your text has been used in church history. This discovery may shed light on the historical importance of your text, or open up new topical avenues for further study.
6. Apologetics. Does my passage help defend the Christian faith or the Church’s engagement of a fallen world? In seeking to engage non-Christian thought with scripture, it is useful to know which passages are most helpful in the dialogues and discussions. When studying a passage take a look at the scriptural index in books by guys like Cornelius Van Til, Greg Bahnsen, and Scott Oliphint and check if your text has been used and how.
7. Biblical counseling. Does this passage play an important role in any of my biblical counseling resources? Consult the scriptural index in CCEF books along with an electronic search of the CD-Rom version of The Journal of Biblical Counseling 1977-2005. In my research I heavily weigh any references to my text in solid biblical counseling resources. Guys like Powlison, Paul and Tedd Tripp, and Jay Adams will hold your hand and help you understand certain texts in light of marriage, parenting, specific sin struggles, and idols of the heart.
8. Ethics. Does this passage play a role in the study of biblical ethics? Consult the index in Joachim Douma, John Frame’s Doctrine of the Christian Life, and John Murray’s Principles of Conduct. What contemporary ethical issues does this passage address? Euthanasia, abortion, stem cell research, divorce, capitol punishment, pornography, corporate greed, etc.
9. Spurgeon. What did Spurgeon say about this text? While Spurgeon is no model of careful exegesis, he is wise, applicable, cross-centered, and quotable. You can find a list of his sermons arranged by biblical text here. And you can buy the complete works of Spurgeon on CD-Rom for about $20. Apart from flowers for your wife, there is no better reason to slap down an Andrew Jackson.
10. The Puritans. Have any of the primary Puritan authors preached on this passage? Consult Robert P. Martin’s A Guide to the Puritans and the PCA website of Puritan resources. Because of their trusted exegetical integrity, and because their complete works include a detailed scriptural index, I will individually consult the Works of John Owen, Thomas Goodwin, and Thomas Manton. I consult about a dozen Puritans, a list of which can be found in my Puritan Study series I developed a while back.
11. Jonathan Edwards. Where has Edwards developed my text in his theology, books, and sermons? The new Works of Edwards Online website produced by Yale make a search of scriptural references a breeze (note the “Scripture Lookup” feature). And the resource is completely free. Try it for yourself.
12. Single-topic books. Is my text referenced in a topical book or monograph in my library? Here is where flipping through the scriptural index in any number of topical books will come in handy. Flip through the index in books by J.I. Packer, R.C. Sproul, D.A. Carson, John Piper, John MacArthur, Jerry Bridges, John Stott, etc. I think Knowing God by J.I. Packer could be quoted in half of all the sermons you could preach. Collect 10-30 topical books you really appreciate and use them in researching a particular text.
13. Audio messages. Are audio messages available from respected preachers on my text? A wonderful, but often-untapped resource for exegetical research, are the thousands of free MP3 audio files available online. The Gospel Coalition has a wonderful collection of sermons all organized by scripture reference. As you are likely aware men like John MacArthur and John Piper have produced a wealth of sermons that are easy to locate. Occasionally you will find some gems at SermonAudio or Monergism.
14. Christian classics. What did Augustine or Chrysostom say about my text? Check out the Christian Classics Ethereal Library website. You can run a nifty little scriptural passage search of all their resources here. Always worth a look.
15. Google. For fun, throw a “hail Mary” and run a search string on your particular passage. You will not always find exegetical gems—but sometimes you will. Google search your text, say, “John 1:1-18” and see what you find. Also try the same search string in Google Books. It’s impossible to know what you will find—or if what you find will be worthy of your time to read—but it’s worth a shot.

Andy Naselli posted about the master Scripture index that he created for the New Studies in Biblical Theology series edited by D. A. Carson. It’s an amazing resource. Wow.

Wise words from Michael McKinley, who replanted Guilford Baptist Church in Sterling, VA, via the 9Marks Blog. As I also am not Spurgeon, and am seeking to plant a church, this advice is of great value.

1. Preach God’s word — It really is as powerful and effective as it says it is.  I knew this intellectually and theologically, but now I know it experientially.  As a church planter there are temptations to  spend your time doing all other kinds of things (publicity, planning, etc), but your #1 priority is preaching the word.  As a sending church, you can set this expectation up front with your church planter.  Don’t put pressure on him (and help him not to pressure himself!) to do other things.
2. Mission — The point of planting a church is the extension of the gospel in the world (and with it, God’s glory).  We don’t need more institutional churches, America is littered with them.  What we need more gospel witnesses.  And so the goal of church planting is mission, not programs.  Tim Chester put words to my experience in this talk.  God is the great missions director.  So we didn’t have a particular strategy for mission in Loudoun County; we’ve simply prayed and began to do a few things and then walked through the doors that God has opened for us.  And he has been faithful.
3. Take Care of Your Family — Everyone will love you for killing yourself for them.  No one will applaud you for taking care of your wife.  Beware your heart.  A sending church can help with accountability and connection so that the planter isn’t out there alone.
4. Develop Leaders — With all of the outreach and assimilation work to be done, it can be easy to forget to take time to develop leaders.  But if the church grows, you’ll need them.  A sending church can make this process easier by sending leaders with the planter.
5. Stay Patient and Realistic — Too many guys beat themselves up over the fact that growth seems to happen slowly.  Be realistic!  You’re not Spurgeon, and that’s OK.  The best case scenario for 99% of us is that we are faithful to the gospel, God in his kindness lets us see some real and enduring fruit from our labors, and we don’t do anything that disgraces the gospel.  That’s a win.

From Jared Kennedy at SojournKids.com

Here are some bullets from Steve Wright of InQuest Ministries and Providence Baptist Church in Raleigh, NC.  What do you think?

• Ministry that seeks to make Christ above all else beautiful and that declares an uncompromising Gospel to those who do not know Christ (Galatians 1:6-9).
• Ministry that is measured by lasting disciples rather than attendance campaigns and focuses on the glory of our matchless Savior (John 15:1-15).
• Ministry that truly partners with parents and seeks as a priority the task of resourcing, training, and involving parents as the primary disciplers of their children (Deuteronomy 6:4-9).
• Ministry that prioritizes and champions equally the two institutions that are God-given: the Family and the Church (Acts 2:42-47).
• Ministry that seeks men who are biblically qualified pastors rather than charming activity directors (1 Timothy 3:1-7).
• A ministry environment that is healthy for a student pastor and his family; an environment where pastors will desire to stay long past today’s destructive low tenures (Matthew 10:10).
• Ministry that seeks to mentor students for adulthood, marriage, and family rather than seeking to develop lifelong youth group attendees (1 Corinthians 13:11).
• Ministry that invites, expects and teaches the biblical responsibility of older generations to invest in those younger in the faith (2 Timothy 2:2).

All I can say is Amen.

A pastor in Oklahoma wrote to me this week to ask why I typically ask people in my congregation (or elsewhere) to stand for the reading of the Scripture, and whether I encourage others to do so as well.

I don’t encourage others to do so, and never have. I don’t think it is an essential aspect of biblical preaching or of Christian worship. But I have found it helpful to me in my ministry and here’s why.

There is a biblical foundation for it. Nehemiah tells us the people of God all stood as Ezra opened the Word of God to them (Neh. 8:5). Likewise, our Lord Jesus stood when he read the Word in the synagogue in Nazareth, sitting down afterword to preach (Luke 4:16).

Russell Moore gives us insight into a practice that he doesn’t encourages, but that is beneficial for him.

I learned, however, of ancient practices of reading the Scriptures while standing only after I started doing it. Truth is, there is no soul-rattling theological rationale for my practice here. It is, in many ways, a habit formed early in my ministry.

I was taught to preach in large part by a man named Argile Smith, who had served as interim pastor of my home congregation and as my preaching professor at New Orleans Seminary. Brother Argile (or “Dr. Smith,” depending on where I was when I said it) always had the congregation stand when he read the text, and I did likewise.

That said, the Lord has used the habit for good in my own sanctification. I don’t have the congregation stand for their benefit, at least not directly, as much as for mine. I’ve found that having the congregation stand with me, in reverence for the Word, is a visible, tangible reminder to me that it is not I who am there to instruct these people. I am instead part of the congregation being addressed by the Holy Spirit speaking through the Scriptures.

Standing alongside the people as we read the text is a cue to me of both the gravity of the moment and the fact that I am not only speaking but being spoken to by the Word of Christ.

There are many (probably most) preachers who can preach without this kind of persistent reminder, and that’s why I don’t think there’s anything “holy” or even necessarilly advisable about the practice. But I’m a weaker brother who needs the weekly pattern of a picture of sermonic submission and solidarity.