Content and Form of the Message

In this part of the sermon: Martin begins by reviewing the three presuppositions for effective preaching: conviction of call, primacy of preaching, and necessity of godliness. He also recaps five lines of…

An analogy from old homiletics books suggesting a relationship between physical health (flat stomach) and mental clarity (clear head) for the preacher, though Martin limits his focus to heart and mind.

And I think they were wiser than we may admit they were in seeing the relationship between a flat stomach and a clear head. And there may be some distinct relationship between a bulging tummy and a foggy mind. But we limited it to those prerequisites in the heart and in the mind of the preacher himself. And then under that I suggested five lines of thought.

1:30 - 1:56 Read in full sermon

The point: Do not feel pressured to make authoritative pronouncements on every department of science and philosophy from the pulpit; focus on biblical and evangelical truth.

A lengthy quote from Shedd arguing that preachers should confine themselves to evangelical doctrine, as life is short and powerful minds specialize, illustrating the assumption of biblical and evangelical content.

If he is to err in regard to the range of subjects, let him err upon the safe side. It is undesirable and unwise for the pulpit to comprehend anything more in its instructions than the range of inspired truth which has for its object the salvation of the human soul. It is true that Christianity has a connection with all truth, but so has astronomy. But it no more follows that the Christian minister should go beyond the fundamental principles of the gospel and discuss all of their relations to science, art, and government in his Sabbath discourses, than that the astronomer should leave his appr...

5:46 - 6:49 Read in full sermon

The point: Do not feel pressured to make authoritative pronouncements on every department of science and philosophy from the pulpit; focus on biblical and evangelical truth.

The preaching of Baxter and Howe is cited as an example of unearthly, rigorously confined preaching to guilt and redemption, which nevertheless indirectly caused progress in England and America, supporting the focus on evangelical truth.

So rigorously confined to human guilt and human redemption, that preaching, which upon the face of it, does not seem even to recognize that man has any relations to this little ball of earth, that preaching which takes him off the planet entirely and contemplates him simply as a sinner in the presence of God, that preaching so destitute of all literary, scientific, economical, and political elements and illusions was nevertheless, by indirection, one of the most fertile causes of the progress of England and America. Subtracted as one of the forces of English history and the career of the Anglo...

7:34 - 8:35 Read in full sermon

The point: If you confess plenary verbal inspiration, treat the Scriptures consistently with that confession through painstaking exegesis.

The inherent order and beauty of God's truth is compared to the universe with its galaxies and solar systems, each part beautiful individually but greater in harmonious relationship, illustrating theological symmetry.

The man who holds to the inconsistent position of mere thought inspiration, or to the nebulous Neo-Earth Orthodox view of the inscripturated revelation, they can afford to be careless with the meanings of words. They can afford to just draw near enough, They can afford to just draw near enough, up to the text of scripture to feel an impress of a general idea. You and I can't afford that luxury when we have confessed that God has spoken in words which the Holy Ghost teaches. And so I'm assuming that we are convinced of and committed to the principle that the content of our message will be pains...

9:48 - 11:10 Read in full sermon

The point: Aim at cultivating clear, uncluttered structure in your sermons, constructing a 'house of truth' rather than just dumping 'bricks of truth'.

The analogy of bricks of truth versus a constructed house of truth is used to emphasize the need for clear structure in a sermon, rather than just dumping raw material on the congregation.

gives no legitimate ground for the antinomian to find fuel from our preaching. I'm assuming that when we are expounding a passage which deals with the necessity of perseverance in obedience, that we will be able to expound the truth of that passage in such a way that we shall not give unnecessarily the impression that this matter of our persevering is rooted in anything other than in God's presence. load in our people's laps, hoping that somehow they'll go home and learn how to build a house out of it. It is our task, taking the bricks of truth to construct the house of that which the Spirit o...

32:23 - 33:36 Read in full sermon

The point: Take responsibility for completing the list of specific applications in your own context, with careful reference to the needs of your hearers.

A quote about Philip Henry's preaching style, stating he aimed the 'arrow of the word into their hearts by close and lively application,' illustrating effective, pointed application.

pointed, specific application. It is said of Philip Henry, he did not shoot the arrow of the word over the heads of his audience in flourishes of affected rhetoric. Nor did he shoot the word under their feet by homely expressions. But he aimed the word into their hearts by close and lively application.

37:09 - 37:36 Read in full sermon

The point: Take responsibility for completing the list of specific applications in your own context, with careful reference to the needs of your hearers.

The metaphor of truth as the nail and application as the hammer, wielded by the Holy Spirit as the arm, is used to explain how application 'nails the hearer to the pew' with conviction.

May I say it in the bluntest kind of way I know how? Application is what nails the hearer to the, we call it the bench, we call it the pew. You see, the truth is the nail. Application is the hammer.

37:38 - 37:51 Read in full sermon

Driving home: Application is what nails the hearer to the, we call it the bench, we call it the pew. You see, the truth is the nail. Application is the hammer. The Holy Spirit is the arm.

A hypothetical scenario contrasting a vague sermon to Herod with John the Baptist's direct confrontation ('It is not lawful for thee to have her'), highlighting the power of specific application.

He wasn't talking about some people somewhere in some place about some things. They perceived that he spoke of them. I often think of John the Baptist. What would have happened if he went up to Herod and said, now Herod, has anyone ever informed you that somewhere within the pages of the Old Testament Revelation, Jehovah God had something to say with relationship to proper conjugal relationships. At your leisure, I would ask you to examine what some of those directives might be. Herod would have looked at him and said, huh?

39:02 - 39:35 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: The second directive is to labor to suffuse the sermon with pointed, specific, and discriminating application. Martin emphasizes that application is the 'highway from the head to…

A reference to Joseph Alleine's 'Alarm to the Unconverted' where he moves from generalities to specific application, using Nathan as an example.

No question. As Eilean says in his masterful work in his Alarm to the Unconverted, when he's been what I would think searchingly specific, he says, now we must move from generalities.

39:51 - 40:04 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: The second directive is to labor to suffuse the sermon with pointed, specific, and discriminating application. Martin emphasizes that application is the 'highway from the head to…

The story of Nathan confronting David is used to show that parabolic insinuations are not enough; direct, 'hand to hand combat' application is needed to pierce with conviction.

And then he uses Nathan as an example. He says, as long as Nathan is dealing in parabolic insinuations, David doesn't see his sin. But it's when he comes to hand to hand combat and says, power to man, that he's pierced with conviction. That's the principle.

40:06 - 40:24 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: The second directive is to labor to suffuse the sermon with pointed, specific, and discriminating application. Martin emphasizes that application is the 'highway from the head to…

George Whitefield's sermon 'The Method of Grace' is cited as an example of searching, pointed, discriminating application, with a lengthy quote demonstrating his direct questions to the hearers.

It's this kind of preaching that God has owned with power in the post-apostolic period as well. Let me commend to you a careful reading of those sermons of men like Whitefield. And we know that these were probably poorly reported, and yet this element of searching, pointed, discriminating application is fused throughout his preaching. Let me give just one example in his sermon, The Method of Grace.

40:26 - 40:55 Read in full sermon

The point: Avoid the 'abominable we' in application; use 'you' to make the message personal and direct.

A personal anecdote about a friend who initially preached an 'amorphous clob of truth' (a load of bricks) but learned to apply it specifically, illustrating the transformation from general to pointed application.

I remember a dear friend of mine who has in past years developed into a woman so powerful preacher. I'd walk 25 miles to hear him preach now. Three years ago, I'd be glad if he showed up in the meeting, but I wouldn't have walked a mile to hear him. He had this great amorphous clob of truth. He dumped a load of bricks, and every brick was pure gold of divine truth, but it was still a load of bricks. But he's worked at this thing. He's worked at it. He's labored at it, and others have worked with him. And in this very area, a friend, a mutual friend of ours, one day came to him and said, I want...

42:10 - 42:55 Read in full sermon

The point: Avoid the 'abominable we' in application; use 'you' to make the message personal and direct.

The friend's use of the collective 'we' in application ('We do not pray,' 'We commit adultery') is criticized as an 'abominable we,' leading to a confrontation about his personal godliness, emphasizing the need for 'you' in application.

I remember a dear friend of mine who has in past years developed into a woman so powerful preacher. I'd walk 25 miles to hear him preach now. Three years ago, I'd be glad if he showed up in the meeting, but I wouldn't have walked a mile to hear him. He had this great amorphous clob of truth. He dumped a load of bricks, and every brick was pure gold of divine truth, but it was still a load of bricks. But he's worked at this thing. He's worked at it. He's labored at it, and others have worked with him. And in this very area, a friend, a mutual friend of ours, one day came to him and said, I want...

42:10 - 42:55 Read in full sermon

The point: Cultivate the ability to suffuse the sermon with application throughout, rather than tacking it on or putting it in the same place every time, to avoid conditioning hearers to tune out.

Pavlov's dogs are used as an analogy to explain how congregations can become conditioned to predictable application sections, leading them to 'tune out' if there's no variation.

Third suggestion. Seek to cultivate that ability to suffuse the sermon with application rather than tacking it on or putting it in at the same place every time. You remember Pavlov's dogs. Pavlov who discovered the principle of conditioned response and every time he rang the bell and gave them a piece of food, after a while he rang the bell and they salivated even though there was no food. You see, our people can be conditioned if they sit under our ministries and there's no variation as to the place of application. And so they'll know, alright, he's gonna, alright for the first 25 minutes, bu...

45:26 - 46:17 Read in full sermon

The point: Pray for grace to carry your congregation into the study and never let them leave you while you're preparing, keeping them in your heart.

An analogy for sermon preparation: Bible in front, tools about, living God above, and congregation within the preacher, bringing together elements of dependence, labor, and love.

Fourth suggestion. I don't know how else to say it but this. Pray for grace to carry your congregation into the study and never let them leave you while you're preparing. With all due respects to the walking concept, laid before us this morning, I dare not do it in my area. I'd be mugged and robbed if I tried. I would suggest that the proper posture and elements of essential preaching as to preparation when working on form and content are these. Your Bible in front of you. Your tools about you. Tools of painstaking

46:17 - 47:03 Read in full sermon

Driving home: It has been said that he is the most powerful speaker who can turn men's eyes, turn men's ears into eyes, turn men's ears into eyes, who can convert words into pictures, who can take verbs and nouns and make of them pain…

The analogy of parsley on potatoes is used to describe how illustrations 'grease' and make a solid sermon more desirable, adding grace and loveliness to substantial truth.

helpful presence of illustration, parable, analogy, metaphor, and simile. Seek to grace the sermon. Now you see if the sermon is solid, substantial, well-ordered, it's got all the ingredients, it needs something to grease it. To make it lovely. It may be substantial like a good solid meal of meat, potatoes, and vegetables but a little parsley sprinkled on the potatoes and a little bit of another condiment, it makes it more desirable. So seek to grace the sermon with the helpful presence of illustration, of parable, of analogy, of metaphor, and of simile. One of the most basic principles of lea...

48:34 - 49:43 Read in full sermon

Driving home: It has been said that he is the most powerful speaker who can turn men's eyes, turn men's ears into eyes, turn men's ears into eyes, who can convert words into pictures, who can take verbs and nouns and make of them pain…

The metaphor of turning 'men's ears into eyes' is used to describe the power of illustration to convert words into pictures, making abstract truth visible.

that same spirit has conveyed truth to us in a volume of writings which fairly bristles with illustration, parable, metaphor, simile, and analogy. It has been said that he is the most powerful speaker who can turn men's eyes, turn men's ears into eyes, turn men's ears into eyes, who can convert words into pictures, who can take verbs and nouns and make of them paint and paintbrushers and paint before people until they see. Granted, seeing with these eyes is not enough. The Holy Spirit must open the eyes of the soul. Granted, but is it not strange that there is such a close interplay between th...

49:43 - 51:08 Read in full sermon

Driving home: It has been said that he is the most powerful speaker who can turn men's eyes, turn men's ears into eyes, turn men's ears into eyes, who can convert words into pictures, who can take verbs and nouns and make of them pain…

Examples from Jeremiah (marred girdle, figs, potter's vessel), Hosea (unfaithful wife), and Isaiah (poetic imagery) are used to show how prophets employed vivid illustrations.

that same spirit has conveyed truth to us in a volume of writings which fairly bristles with illustration, parable, metaphor, simile, and analogy. It has been said that he is the most powerful speaker who can turn men's eyes, turn men's ears into eyes, turn men's ears into eyes, who can convert words into pictures, who can take verbs and nouns and make of them paint and paintbrushers and paint before people until they see. Granted, seeing with these eyes is not enough. The Holy Spirit must open the eyes of the soul. Granted, but is it not strange that there is such a close interplay between th...

49:43 - 51:08 Read in full sermon

Driving home: Reasons are the pillars of the fabric of a sermon, but similitudes are the windows which give the best light.

A list of Jesus' parables and similes (lost sheep, wayward sons, birds, millstones, vine, sower) is given to demonstrate his prolific use of illustrations in teaching.

And what would Isaiah's utterances be if denuded of their vivid poetic imagery? Can you imagine our Lord's sermons and teaching without lost sheep, wayward sons, importunate widows, carefree birds, motes and beams in the eyes, millstones around the neck, vine and branches, bride and bridegroom, wine and wineskins, seed and sower? Can you imagine what his preaching would be like if stripped of that? Thomas Fuller said, Reasons are the pillars of the fabric of a sermon, but similitudes are the windows which give the best light.

51:08 - 51:51 Read in full sermon

Driving home: Reasons are the pillars of the fabric of a sermon, but similitudes are the windows which give the best light.

Thomas Fuller's quote, 'Reasons are the pillars of the fabric of a sermon, but similitudes are the windows which give the best light,' illustrates the structural role of illustrations.

And what would Isaiah's utterances be if denuded of their vivid poetic imagery? Can you imagine our Lord's sermons and teaching without lost sheep, wayward sons, importunate widows, carefree birds, motes and beams in the eyes, millstones around the neck, vine and branches, bride and bridegroom, wine and wineskins, seed and sower? Can you imagine what his preaching would be like if stripped of that? Thomas Fuller said, Reasons are the pillars of the fabric of a sermon, but similitudes are the windows which give the best light.

51:08 - 51:51 Read in full sermon

Driving home: Reasons are the pillars of the fabric of a sermon, but similitudes are the windows which give the best light.

An analogy of a house made only of windows versus a house with steel beams and concrete (solid truth) but also windows (illustrations) to let in light, emphasizing balance.

Now a man be a fool to make a house out of windows. I'm not advocating anecdotal preaching. A man's an equal fool who makes a house without windows if he has no electricity. What do we want the main structure of the sermon to be? Well, I'm glad and I've been looking at it because I did construction work summers going through college. His reinforced concrete, underneath all those concrete structures are steel beams, poured concrete. I'm so glad that the main structure is made of that substantial stuff, but I'm also glad there's some windows. Now that is our sermon.

51:51 - 52:37 Read in full sermon

Driving home: Reasons are the pillars of the fabric of a sermon, but similitudes are the windows which give the best light.

A quote from Stuart emphasizing that abstract truth must be translated into concrete terms through illustration to impinge upon the average mind.

Made of the steel beams and concrete stuff of solid truth, we've punched in some windows to let the light in to that which we would give to men in God's name. Stuart again speaks very perceptively to this point and says, We may not possess one-tenth of George Whitfield's dramatic imagination. Nevertheless, the art of illustration is a thing no preacher can afford to neglect. Abstract truth has to be translated into concrete terms if it is to impinge upon the average mind.

52:37 - 53:16 Read in full sermon

Driving home: Reasons are the pillars of the fabric of a sermon, but similitudes are the windows which give the best light.

Jesus' teaching on importunate prayer is cited, not as an abstract statement, but as the story of a man 'shamelessly hammering on his neighbor's door at midnight,' illustrating concrete teaching.

The preacher who will not condescend thus to translate his meaning, who disdains the use of illustration considering it undignified and puerile, is being very foolish. Surely our Lord's example is decisive here. He didn't speak of the efficacy of importunate prayer. He showed us a man shamelessly hammering on his neighbor's door at midnight.

53:16 - 53:43 Read in full sermon

Driving home: Reasons are the pillars of the fabric of a sermon, but similitudes are the windows which give the best light.

Jesus' teaching on wrong personal relationships is cited, not as an abstract principle, but as the concrete command to 'leave your gift before the altar' and reconcile with a brother, illustrating enfleshed truth.

That's what he did. He didn't just say you ought to be unimportant. He said a certain man came to him at midnight, pounded on his door, received a rebuff, pounded and pounded with shameless insistence is the force of the original. He did not say that wrong personal relationships were inimical to religious reality.

53:43 - 54:05 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: The third exhortation is to grace the sermon with helpful illustrations, parables, analogies, metaphors, and similes. Martin argues that these elements make truth accessible…

An anecdote about a dignified Bishop of Liverpool rattling his keys in the pulpit to illustrate the doctrine of depravity, showing an earthy and simple way to convey profound truth.

So that it spoke with relevance to the hearers. May I say by way of aside illustration and parable will not only illuminate but they will also serve to relax the mind for the next segment of hard thought which the sermon will and should demand. If you're sensitive to people and you feel that as you've been getting this concept across closely reasoned argument and you sense the beginning to get heavy with it, alright, relax the mind with an illustration. Can you imagine a dignified bishop of Liverpool saying, and he says in that article on simplicity of preaching, that when he's in certain plac...

54:40 - 55:52 Read in full sermon

The point: Don't let dust collect on Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress, as it is a gold mine of illustrative material.

Bunyan's 'Pilgrim's Progress' is presented as a 'gold mine of illustration,' noting how children can visualize characters like Doubting Tasks and Christian's struggles, making truth accessible.

Working through an hour of something from church history Christian biography so that you're constantly getting a backlog of information that in the actual context of sermon preparation can come to light and above all don't let any dust collect on Bunyan's pilgrim. There is a gold mine of illustration and I find the more I study Bunyan the more I find him just coming out in sermon after sermon. Because even the children when you say as we see in pilgrim's progress and boom their eyes are open and they're all ears because they can see him. They can see him in doubting tasks. They can see him in ...

59:03 - 59:56 Read in full sermon

The point: Work at cultivating earthiness, simplicity, and plainness of speech, relating your message to the real world of your hearers.

Jesus' upbringing in Nazareth, a town known for 'no goods' and peasant parentage, is presented as God's plan to discipline him in earthiness and simplicity, enabling him to capture the ears of common people.

it is into that situation that our message must come relating itself to that world and all the people who watch it. I'm convinced there's no mere accident of necessity that our Lord as it were had to be born somewhere so Nazareth was as good as anywhere. It was the Father's plan that he should come out of Nazareth because it was in that town raised of peasant parentage. That town notorious for its production of no goods that our Lord was disciplined in this matter of earthiness and simplicity.

61:13 - 61:57 Read in full sermon

The point: Work at cultivating earthiness, simplicity, and plainness of speech, relating your message to the real world of your hearers.

Examples of Jesus using earthy illustrations like a woman in travail, natural bodily processes, whitewashed sepulchres, and dirty dishes are given to demonstrate his plainness of speech.

He spoke to a world in which mothers knew what it was like to travail in pain and so he uses that and he doesn't think it indelicate. Talk about a woman in travail hats when the child is born she is. It didn't bother him to talk about the natural processes of the body when illustrating truth. As you eat your meat goes into the tummy and goes out by the process of elimination.

62:33 - 63:01 Read in full sermon

Driving home: The clerical mind which is sworn only to the traditional and speaks only in the cold language of tradition is mortally sick. It is a pleasure to break down the lath and plaster of old externals and formalities to make ro…

A quote from Helmut Tillich's introduction to 'Encounter with Spurgeon,' stating that a 'clerical mind which is sworn only to the traditional and speaks only in the cold language of tradition is mortally sick,' advocating for breaking down formalities for reality.

Helmut Tillich, the great German preacher, has written an introduction to an edited selection of Spurgeon called Encounter with Spurgeon. In that fifty page introduction he has an analysis of what it was, humanly speaking, that caused Spurgeon to be able to hold the congregations he did for so long a time. He mentions this principle of earthiness. That's where I got the word from his analysis. He makes this statement.

64:13 - 64:39 Read in full sermon

The point: Be prepared for the cultivation of earthiness and simplicity to cost much mental labor and discipline to avoid profaning holy things or becoming simplistic.

A quote stating that 'vanity will make a man speak and write learnedly but piety alone can prevail upon a good scholar to simplify his speech for the sake of the vulgar,' highlighting the cost of pride.

One author has said vanity will make a man speak and write learnedly but piety alone can prevail upon a good scholar to simplify his speech for the sake of the vulgar. Such a preacher though his worth may be overlooked by the undiscerning now will one day have a name above every name whether it be philosopher, poet, orator or whatever else is most revered among mankind. Brethren some of you have a pride in your pretended elegance that will have to go to a place called Calvary and be nailed to the cross. Secondly it will cost much mental labor and discipline to cultivate an earthiness that does...

66:40 - 67:45 Read in full sermon

The point: Be prepared for the cultivation of earthiness and simplicity to cost much mental labor and discipline to avoid profaning holy things or becoming simplistic.

A quote asserting that 'it is not difficult to make easy things appear hard but to render hard things easy is the hardest part of a good orator and preacher,' emphasizing the mental labor required for simplicity.

Again I quote, it is not difficult to make easy things appear hard but to render hard things easy is the hardest part of a good orator and preacher. Someone so dignified a theologian is shed said concerning this very thing, the preacher who would be affected must employ rhetoric which resembles jail's treatment of Cicero. That is put the nail of truth to the head of the hearer and drive it clear through to his brain. Well it sticks in more than one way.

67:45 - 68:23 Read in full sermon

The point: Be prepared for the cultivation of earthiness and simplicity to cost much mental labor and discipline to avoid profaning holy things or becoming simplistic.

Shedd's quote comparing effective rhetoric to 'Jail's treatment of Cicero' (driving the nail of truth through the hearer's brain) is used to illustrate the penetrating power of plain speech.

Again I quote, it is not difficult to make easy things appear hard but to render hard things easy is the hardest part of a good orator and preacher. Someone so dignified a theologian is shed said concerning this very thing, the preacher who would be affected must employ rhetoric which resembles jail's treatment of Cicero. That is put the nail of truth to the head of the hearer and drive it clear through to his brain. Well it sticks in more than one way.

67:45 - 68:23 Read in full sermon

The point: Be prepared for the cultivation of earthiness and simplicity to potentially cost you the frown of organized orthodox religion.

The historical experience of Bunyan, Whitfield, and Spurgeon is cited, noting that their popular style of preaching often drew the 'wrath of organized religion' due to its radical departure from tradition and clerical jealousy.

Are we prepared for that mental labor and discipline? Thirdly, and this perhaps is one of the most sensitive areas. It may cost us the frown of organized orthodox religion even reformed religion. If I read rightly the biographies and something of the history surrounding Bunyan, Whitfield and Spurgeon whose heirs we claim to be then I have discovered that one of the things that brought down the wrath of organized religion was that they captured the minds of the popular classes of masses of people.

68:26 - 69:06 Read in full sermon

The point: Be prepared for the cultivation of earthiness and simplicity to potentially cost you the frown of organized orthodox religion.

A lengthy quote from Spurgeon's 'All-Round Ministry' emphasizing that love for souls makes preachers plain in speech, rejecting hard words for the sake of the 'poor woman in the aisle' and avoiding recondite difficulties.

Love for souls will operate in many ways upon our ministries among other things it will make us very plain in our speech. We shall say to ourselves, no I must not use that hard word for that poor woman in the aisle will not understand me. See what he's saying? He saw that woman what he had she needed and as a word came to his mind in the context of preaching he said, no I reject that word. She won't get it.

70:15 - 70:42 Read in full sermon

The point: Be prepared for the cultivation of earthiness and simplicity to potentially cost you the frown of organized orthodox religion.

Spurgeon's anecdote about an 'admirable divine' saying 'when duty is embodied in a concrete personality it is eminently simplified' is used to critique overly academic language, noting it simply means 'example is better than precept'.

I must not point out that recondite difficulty for yonder trembling soul may be staggered by it and might not be relieved by my explanation. I heard a sentence the other day which struck to me because of its finery rather than its weight of meaning. An admirable divine remarked, quote, when duty is embodied in a concrete personality it is eminently simplified. You all understand the expression but I do not think that congregation to which it was addressed had more than a hazy idea of what it meant. It's our old friend.

70:42 - 71:14 Read in full sermon

The point: Study Ryle's essay and Bridges' chapter on simplicity in preaching, absorb the mood of scripture, and read sermons of men who held the masses.

Spurgeon's analogy of a mother talking to her child in 'childish and earlier still babyish' language because she loves them, illustrates how love for souls should drive a preacher to simple, plain speech.

It ministers nothing to our great end. Some would impress us by their big words and their depth of thought when it's merely a love of big words. To hide plain things in dark sentences is for it rather than service for God. If you love men better you will love phrases less. How used your mother to talk to you when you were a child there? Don't tell me. Don't even print it. It would never do for the public ear. The things she used to say to you were childish and earlier still babyish. Why did she speak thus? For she was a very sensible woman because she loved you. There is a sort of tutelage as ...

71:26 - 72:16 Read in full sermon