Preaching the word

Discussion in 'Sacred Scripture' started by Ananias, Aug 17, 2021.

  1. Ananias

    Ananias Well-Known Member Anglican

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    In the book thread, I mentioned a book called Reformation Anglicanism. In it, I ran across this passage, and it made me sit back and think quite a bit. It's in the chapter of Sola Scriptura and is headed "Biblical Preaching".

    I agree with this. A liturgical service centered around the Lord's Supper need not give short shrift to the sermon. The problem is that priests seem to have adopted an eleventh commandment: thou shalt not hold a church service over an hour in length. I think they teach this in seminaries these days.

    My view is that a liturgical church service should give full attention to both the liturgy and to the sermon, and if that means that services go to 90 minutes or even two hours, so be it. I realize that modern people have trouble focusing their attention for more than an hour at a time, and that many preachers are windy bores, but no matter: give the sermon its full expression. Anglicans should make sure that priests and lay ministers are trained as well as they can be in expository preaching and rhetoric. A good sermon is like a good meal. It's food for the soul and the mind at the same time. It opens up Scripture to the congregation in ways the congregation may not be able to discern for themselves. At minimum, expository preaching through the Bible is a way for the pew-sitters to experience parts of the Bible they don't read very often, particularly the historical and wisdom books of the Old Testament. The Old Testament is often shamefully neglected in modern Christian churches, and a focus on expository preaching can remedy this.
     
  2. Othniel

    Othniel Active Member Typist

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    Amen.
     
  3. bwallac2335

    bwallac2335 Well-Known Member

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    I am not sure my priest has ever had a service in under an hour. He is a fantastic preacher in my opinion
     
  4. Othniel

    Othniel Active Member Typist

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    Honestly, for all the promotion of year-long expository sermons, I'd love to sit under a full year of sermons following the lectionary.