Charles Spurgeon is in my opinion one of the most influential expository
preachers that I have read about. He is known as the "Prince of Preachers", and I
believe this is because of the influence and wisdom that he had. "Spurgeon
looked on expository preaching as the great need of the day, its best protection
against rising errors, and its surest means of spiritual edification.” [1] Spurgeon
was a preacher who wanted God's true words to be heard by the people he was
preaching to. "He was able to connect the particular text with the entire canon
and synthesize doctrinal truths within the span of his text."[2] When I read this I
immediately think that this relates to skill 4 of McDills model. Skill 4 is naming
the text idea which is, "to discover the writer's central idea in the text and
designating it with precise terminology".[3]I think Spurgeon does this from what I
have read. f "But to talk about those ideas, he must identify them as accurately
and precisely as possible. His job is to discover from the text writer's words what
he was talking about and designate it with the best word for communicating the
idea to his audience."[4]
Rodney Smith who was also known as the forgotten evangelist preached with one
goal in mind and that was that the gospel was heard. "Smith devoted himself to
one central theological theme in his preaching: the gospel of Jesus Christ. He
stated, “The Gospel is not entertainment, an essay, a lecture, something to tickle
the ears and stimulate the brain. It is the good news of salvation.”[5] Reading this
made me think of skill 2 "noting the text details" from McDills skills. "A critical
area of observation is to identify significant words you see in the passage. By
significant, we mean those words that carry the weight of meaning in the text."[6]
Smith was one to make sure that the words of the gospel were heard and they
understood what it meant.
Charles Finney was an extemporaneous preacher. "He began with a reading from
a short biblical passage and would immediately identify a concept (e.g., faith)
related to the text that would serve as the main subject of his sermon. He would
then proceed to the main body of the sermon where he explored the various
facets of that concept."[7] This is skill 5 "Bridging the Text to Sermon", which is,
"constructing an interpretive bridge for bringing the truth of the text to its
expression in the sermon."[8] He wanted the truth of scripture to be heard by his
listeners.
John Jasper was known for his story telling in his preaching. "Jasper selected
biblical stories to dramatize the plight of his congregation. He possessed a
powerful and colorful imagination that lifted his audience. Using this skill, he
vividly painted in concrete and precise details the events of the preaching text."[9]
This is a perfect explanation of skill 5 Bridging from Text to Sermon from McDills
model.
[1] Benjamin K Forrest et al., A Legacy of Preaching, vol. 2 (Grand Rapids, MI:
Zondervan, 2018), 112.
[2] Ibid, 115.
[3] Wayne McDill, 12 Essential Skills for Great Preaching (Nashville, TN: B & H
Academic, 2018), 74.
[4] Ibid, 72.
[5] Benjamin K Forrest et al., A Legacy of Preaching, vol. 2 (Grand Rapids, MI:
Zondervan, 2018), 133.
[6] Wayne McDill, 12 Essential Skills for Great Preaching (Nashville, TN: B & H
Academic, 2018), 45.
[7] Benjamin K Forrest et al., A Legacy of Preaching, vol. 2 (Grand Rapids, MI:
Zondervan, 2018), 170.
[8] Wayne McDill, 12 Essential Skills for Great Preaching (Nashville, TN: B & H
Academic, 2018), 86.
[9] Benjamin K Forrest et al., A Legacy of Preaching, vol. 2 (Grand Rapids, MI:
Zondervan, 2018), 190.
