Jeff Ling

Adventures in cell phones: This morning, during my message on Amos, I reached a dramatic moment talking about the “famine of the Word” and declaring rather strongly that “God went silent!” There was a hush in the room. Suddenly a cell phone alarm went off. “Quack, quack, quack, quack, quack..” I almost didn’t recover from laughing. The one minute audio clip is below.

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” I think it is absolutely crucial that we clarify what the essence of love for God is. Let me grasp for the kinds of words that I think will help us know if we love God. Loving God is desiring God himself beyond his gifts. Loving God is treasuring God himself beyond his gifts. Love for God is delighting in God himself beyond his gifts. Love for God is being satisfied in God himself beyond his gifts. Love for God is cherishing God himself beyond his gifts. Love for God is savoring God himself beyond his gifts. Love for God is valuing God and prizing God and revering God and admiring God beyond his gifts. All these words are grasping for that essential response of the heart to the revelation of the glory of God, especially in Christ through the gospel. It is a glad reflex of the heart to all that God is for us in Christ.” – From “All Things for Good”

This is the message I shared at Messenger Fellowship’s One Voice conference on April 13th.

Messenger 2011 – Defend and Confirm the Gospel

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The year was 1768. A twenty-eight year old preacher by the name of Augustus Toplady, who wrote many of our best hymns, including “Rock of Ages”, spent the afternoon in London with Mr. Brewer–an older, veteran Gospel preacher, whom he greatly admired and from whom he learned much. This is what Mr. Brewer said to the young Toplady, as Toplady later recorded in his diary:

I cannot conclude without reminding you, my young brother, of some things that may be of use to you in the course of your ministry:

1. Preach Christ crucified, and dwell chiefly on the blessings resulting from His righteousness, atonement, and intercession.

2. Avoid all needless controversies in the pulpit; except it be when your subject necessarily requires it; or when the truths of God are likely to suffer by your silence.

3. When you ascend the pulpit, leave your learning behind you. Endeavor to preach more to the hearts of your people–than to their heads.

4. Do not affect too much oratory. Seek rather to profit your hearers–than to be admired by them.
N.B. Christian ministers would do well to print out these four simple principles, tuck them in their Bibles, are refer to them every time they preach!

 
Grateful to Grace Gems for bringing this to my attention.

Spurgeon in the Piulpit

Why Expositional Preaching Is Particularly Glorifying to God