THE KING’ S BUSINESS
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Personal Preaching “Although there are some people who like to hear ministers talk about sin in general and vigorously resent it when he speaks about the sin that they themselves are guilty of, yet I believe the majority of the people like to hear the truth; even if it does hurt. The people who think that clergymen ought not to be personal in their religious addresses but ought to deal with subjects in the abstract, must be'consistent. A hunter does not hunt deer in the abstract. He takes sure aim and fires. A physician does not treat disease in the abstract. He feels the pulse, makes the diagnosis, and then writes the prescription. I f we want to be hunters for the Lord,, we must take sure aim and fire. W e do not want to heal souls for this world and the world to come in the abstract. Neither do we want to treat things in religious discussion, in the abstract .”-—Michigan Christian Advocate. Great Preachers What is the secret o f the greatness of great preachers like Spurgeon, 'Moody, Whitefield, and Wesley?. Did the secret lie in the matter of the sermon, in the man ner o f delivery, or in the man himself? Bishop Simpson, in speaking to the stu dents at Yale, said: “I felt that I must at the peril of my soul, persuade men to come to. Christ. I must labor to the utmost of my ability, to get sinners converted and believers advanced in holiness. For this I thought and studied and wept and fasted and prayed. My selections o f words; my plans o f discourse were only and always to persuade men to be reconciled to God. I never spoke without the deepest feeling, and unless I saw a strong influence on the congregation I felt sad, and sought retire ment to humble myself befote God in prayer. My ministry has been one of .exhor tation rather than sermonizing, and I looked for immediate results under every effort, or to me it was a failure.” Preach ing done in such a spirit cart never be a failure. This was undoubtedly the main element in the success o f these great men o f God. It is this passion for spiritual
results, and the preparation o f the sermon with that in mind, that is needed today. Trained Preachers Needed “Lay hands suddenly on no man;” “ Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into temptation o f the devil”—thèse are the words o f warning from the lips o f the Apostle Paul. There is great danger today o f rushing men into thè ministry who have had no training whatever for so greatvand so honorous a work. Gregory Nazianzen, sensitive, sensible, diffident, brilliant, a leader o f the church in his day, a champion o f orthodoxy, a scholar, and a saint, saw in the church in his day an evil which we today have not outgrown. In fine sarcasm, born o f his sorrow o f soul, Gregory says : “ Only he can be a physi cian who has examined into the nature of diseases; be a painter, who has much exper ience in mixing colors and drawing forms; but a clergyman may readily be found, not laboriously wrought, but brand-new, sown and. full-blown in a moment, as the legend says o f the giants.” How many preachers there are today who, “ sown and full-blown in a moment,” havè gone to seed before they are forty. Squashes grow fast/ sequoias more slowly. The apostles studied theology for three years, with its greatest o f all Teachers. Paul took three yeîtrs for study and meditation in Arabia. Only preachers who are conspicuously superior to these will rush into the ministry with less time givén to thorough prepara tion for their work. Bible institutes and theological seminaries afford young men,, who feel called to Christian service, ample opportunity to prepare themselves for so great a work. Originality Four things are necessary ta originality —if such a thing is possible nowadays, for some one has well said, “ The ancients have stolen all our original thoughts.” We can be more'original than we now are, if we paitently observe nature, practice “consecu tive thinking, cherish the companionship o f great thoughts, and dare to be ourselves.
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