Preaching That Honors God

Have you ever read Bunyan, Owen, Whitefield, or Spurgeon? When you read their sermons and about the anointing with which they preached, it makes much of what passes for evangelistic sermons today seem very weak indeed. The half-hearted efforts of most modern expositors are anemic in comparison.

The quality of sermon literature produced by these men and others of the Reformed tradition stands out in power as Christ is preached to call sinners to repentance. It is generally and unfortunately unmatched in today’s churches. They preached a message of free grace with overwhelming power that broke the hardhearted sitting in their pews and continues to break down the defenses of modern skeptics through their pulpit literature.

I believe it was their profound understanding of the nature of grace which made these men so effective. They understood that God does not have to choose to save anyone. He did not have to give His Son to die on a cross. He does not have to invite sinners to repentance. Yet, even though all of His dealings with man are according to God’s free purpose and design, He has chosen to be gracious to us – a rebellious and ungrateful people.

Bunyan, Owen, Whitefield, Edwards, and Spurgeon (and others) knew the importance of preaching grace and the emphasis they laid upon the gospel preaching of God’s long-suffering patience and kindness towards us. They stressed this. They avoided the man-centeredness of the modern Armenian message. Their messages were God-centered and honored the One from whom mercy flows. Much of modern preaching cheapens grace and the Gospel message by denying the sovereignty of God in salvation. Such preaching makes God’s call nothing but pathetic pleading and His omnipotence into powerless desire.

All would do well to study the great Reformed preachers mentioned above. They honored God and the Gospel.