Jeff Ling

This is the final post on J.C. Ryle’s Simplicity in Preaching. It’s could be the most important because Ryle comes on so strong at the end about essentials that if not enacted render all he has said beside the point!  So, a quick review:

Four prefatory remarks the book opens with:

• “To attain simplicity in preaching is of the utmost importance to every minister who wishes to be useful to souls.”
• “To attain simplicity in preaching is by no means an easy matter.”
• “When I talk of simplicity in preaching, I would not have my readers suppose I mean childish preaching.”
• “Finally let me observe, that it is not coarse or vulgar preaching that is needed.”

5 Hints for Simplicity in Preaching

• “If you want to attain simplicity inpreaching, you must have a clear knowledge of what you are going to preach.”
• “If you would attain simplicity in preaching, you must use simple words.”
• “If you would attain simplicity in preaching, you must seek to acquire a simple style of composition, with short sentences and as few colons and semicolons as possible.”
• “If you would attain simplicity in preaching, aim at directness.”
• “If you would attain simplicity in preaching, make abundant use of illustration and anecdote.”

Now, let’s look at how he concludes. First, he states flatly that this is not going to be easy. It will really take work.

“Let me add to all this one plain word of application. You will never attain simplicity inpreaching without plenty of trouble. Pains and trouble, I say emphatically, pains and trouble….  I entreat my younger brethren to remember this. I beg them to make time for their composition of sermons, to take trouble and to exercise their brains by reading. Only mind that you read what is useful.”

Ryle lays a heavy emphasis on reading in a way that is productive. He urges us to read “good models” and “good specimens of simplicity in preaching.” For those in his day he directs them to use the English Bible because of the language used. (What would be recommended today? NLT? Message?) He goes on to stress reading the Puritans, especially “… John Bunyan’s immortal work, the Pilgrim’s Progress. Read it again and again, if you wish to attain  simplicity  in preaching.

” Do not be above reading the Puritans. Read such books as Baxter, and Watson, and Traill, and Flavel, and Charnock, and Hall, and Henry. They are, to my mind, models of the best simple English spoken in old times. Remember, however, that language alters with years. They spoke English, and so do we, but their style was different from ours.”

Bishop Ryle was all about relevancy in language while being uncompromising in truth!

Ryle expands his reading to include the “best models of modern English that you can get at.” He recommends such notables as William Cobbett, (a political radical) John Bright, Patrick Henry and Shakespeare.

But Ryle returns from the literary heights to remind preachers of those things most important. Five in particular:

1) Talk to your flock.

“On the other hand, do not be above talking to the poor, and visiting your people from house to house…  We must talk to our people when we are out of church, if we would understand how to preach to them in the church.”

2) Aim to change hearts.

“Let us beware of fireworks in our preaching. “Beautiful” sermons, “brilliant” sermons, “clever” sermons, “popular” sermons, are often sermons which have no effect on the congregation, and do not draw men to Jesus Christ. Let us aim so to preach, that what we say may really come home to men’s minds and consciences and hearts, and make them think and consider.”

3) Preach the Gospel!

“All the simplicity in the world can do no good, unless you preach the simple gospel of Jesus Christ so fully and clearly that everybody can understand it. If Christ crucified has not His rightful place in your sermons, and sin is not exposed as it should be, and your people are not plainly told what they ought to believe, and be, and do, YOUR PREACHING IS OF NO USE.” (His emphasis!)

4) Preach with Passion

“All the simplicity in the world, again, is useless without a good lively delivery. If you bury your head in your bosom, and mumble over your manuscript in a dull, monotonous, droning way, like a bee in a bottle, so that people cannot understand what you are speaking about, your preaching will be in vain.”

5) Pray!

“Above all, let us never forget that all the simplicity in the world is useless without prayer for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, and the grant of God’s blessing, and a life corresponding in some measure to what we preach. Be it ours to have an earnest desire for the souls of men, while we seek for simplicity in preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ, and let us never forget to accompany our sermons by holy living and fervent prayer.”

Here is the last of the five hints that Ryle offers to preachers in his little booklet, Simplicity in Preaching:

“The fifth and last hint I wish to give you is this: If you would attain simplicity in preaching, you must use plenty of anecdotes and illustrations.”

Ryle wants those who preach to understand the value of  illustrations and anecdotes as windows that throw light on the message being delivered. He points to the Lord Jesus as the primary example of this kind of preaching.  Jesus was spoke with unmatched authority and yet remained connected to his hearers not only by that authority but by his using everyday illustrations drawn from the common life of  those he spoke to.

“There was nothing under His eyes apparently from which He did not draw lessons. The birds of the air, and the fish in the sea, the sheep, the goats, the. cornfield, the vineyard, the ploughman, the sower, the reaper, the fisherman, the shepherd, the vine dresser, the woman kneading meal, the flowers, the grass, the bank, the wedding feast, the sepulcher, all were made vehicles for conveying thoughts to the minds of hearers.What are such parables as the prodigal son, the good Samaritan, the ten virgins, the king who made a marriage for his son, the rich man and Lazarus, the laborers of the vineyard, and others,–what are all these but stirring stories that our Lord tells in order to convey some great truth to the souls of His hearers? Try to walk in His footsteps and follow His example.”

Ryle reminds us that people enjoy stories and illustrations. Even those who might be nodding off during your discourse will revive when a story is told. He points us to several good examples of this type of preacher including D.L. Moody. He offers that one reason for Moody’s great popularity had to do with his expertise at weaving illustration into hs messages. Ryle gives us example of his own illustrations – using a watch to talk about a creator or a set of keys to illustrate the deceitfulness of men’s hearts.

Many a preacher of sound doctrine may look down on illustrations, similes and metaphors as being unnecessary “fluff” in a message but Ryle insists that this is fundamental to effective communication. He urges preachers:

“Illustration, I confidently assert, is one of the best receipts for making a sermon simple, clear, perspicuous, and easily understood. Lay yourselves out for it. Pick up illustrations wherever you can. Keep your eyes open, and use them well. Happy is that preacher who has an eye for similitude, and a memory stored with well-chosen stories and illustrations. If he is a real man of God, and knows how to deliver a sermon, he will never preach to bare walls and empty benches.”

He does offer the caution that those who don’t do well at telling stories probably shouldn’t! In one of the more entertaining passages in the book he mentions a couple of preachers by name who go overboard in their use of  illustrations. However, that caution aside he again strongly urges the use of them.

“Put plenty of colour and picture into your sermon by all means. Draw sweetness and light from all sources and from all creatures, from the heavens and the earth, from history, from science. But after all there is a limit. You must be careful how you use color, lest you do as much harm as good. Do not put on colour by spoonfuls, but with a brush. This caution remembered, you will find colour an immense aid in the attainment of simplicity and perspicuousness in preaching.”

So preachers, let’s dust off those illustration books and start storing up gems to fill our messages with.

The fourth hint Ryle offers in his booklet Simplicity in Preaching is this:

“If you wish to preach simply, use a direct style.”

This might seem trivial to some but Ryle urges us to refrain from relying on the common use of “we” instead of “I.” For instance:

• “Today we want to look at Galatians.” vs. “Today I want to bring a message from Galatians.”
• “We now consider some of what Jesus said…” vs. “Today, I want to explain to you what Jesus said about…”
• “If you have not put faith in Christ, we urge you…” vs. “I urge you today…”

Silly? No. Ryle’s point is that we simply have no right to speak for anyone other than ourselves.  When we use the term “we” it can be vague or even misleading. Who is the “we” you’re speaking for? You and your family? You and the leadership? You and your denomination? Or is it you and the people listening? In any event, who do you have the authority to speak for?

“When a man takes up this style of preaching, he is often told he is conceited and egotistical. The result is that many preachers are never direct and always think it humble and modest and becoming to say ‘we’…. When He visits the sick, or teaches his school, or orders bread at the baker… he does not say ‘we’ but ‘I’. Why, then, I should like to know, can he not say ‘I’ in the pulpit? What right has he, as a modest man, to speak for anyone but himself?”

Now this is as issue that we in the post-modern west don’t deal with as much. We are fairly direct people. Many preachers would well to have a little less “I” in their messages! But there is a valuable reminder to be drawn here from Ryle. The particular issue he is addressing was one more peculiar to his time but the broader principle which certainly applies today can be found in the following sentence:

“In this particular do not imitate Chalmers, or Melville, or certain other living pulpit celebrities.”

Just as in Ryle’s day, we have our own group of pulpit celebrities! (Love that term.) Via books, podcasts, webcasts. mp3s, conferences, You Tube and a host of other mediums, our celebrities are available to us. Whether it’s John Piper, Mark Driscoll, Alistair Begg, Thabiti Anyabwile, or any of the many celebs of our day, we always run the risk of becoming imitators of men rather than authentic messengers working out of our own skin. God has given you a unique voice. Of course you should pray, study and work on improving your delivery. But let it be your delivery. Avoid copying the mannerisms, vocal inflections, or catch phrases of others. Be direct and be yourself.

I’m sharing a summary of  J.C. Ryle’s  book, Simplicity in Preaching and this post focuses on his second hint for obtaining simplicity, “Try to use in all your sermons, as far as you can, simple words.”

By simple words Ryle isn’t suggesting a “See Jane run” kind of preaching. Rather, his emphasis here is that we use language that is common in everyday use. Remember, your goal is to be understood and useful to your congregation, not to impress them and wring compliments from them. Ryle urges preachers to avoid what “the poor shrewdly call ‘dictionary’ words.’” In Ryle’s day the rates of illiteracy were much higher than our own and being able to communicate with those whose language skills were limited was a real challenge. So Ryle suggests staying away from words that are:

• Abstract
• Scientific
• Pedantic
• Complicated
• Indefinite
• Very long

He states:

“They (the words above) may seem very fine, and sound very grand, but they are rarely of any use. The most powerful and forcible words, as a rule, are very short.”

It is interesting to read Ryle go on at length a bit about the superiority of strong pure Saxon words over French and Latin. The writing certainly reflects the day he lived in! He quotes a Dr. Gee from his work entitled “Our Sermons” in which the author speaks to this issue of complicated words:

“Talk of happiness rather than felicity, talk of almighty rather than omnipotent, lessen rather than diminish, forbidden rather than proscribed, hateful rather than noxious… call out and draw forth rathe than evoke and educe, dude instead of homo sapiens…”

Okay, I made that last one up.

Come to think of it, our problem with a lot of our post-modern, conversational preaching may not be that we use words that are to complicated. Still, for those of us who want to demonstrate the breadth of our vocabulary, the pulpit is not the place to do it.

Much has been said about crude language in the pulpit, quite a bit of which has surfaced in the recent wave of messages on sexuality. In 2009, Mark Driscoll of Mars Hill Church in Seattle was drawing heavy fire from folks like John MacArthur over his use of profanity. The N.Y. Times reported: “he has the coolest style and foulest mouth of any preacher you’ve ever seen” and that his “Mars Hill Church is the furthest thing from a Puritan meetinghouse.”

Of course, being that there are hundreds of young pastors influenced by Driscoll, you can bet there has been a lot of this kind of thing. Now I like Driscoll. I like his passion for truth. He writes well and I’ve listened to a number of his messages which I have found compelling. So I’m not ragging on Mark. Unfortunately, he’s just the poster boy on this issue for many in the church. Now, I’ll be honest, while I have never cussed in the pulpit, I still do on occasion in private conversation. Usually it’s in a counselling appointment with a brother who’s avoiding some issue and I’ll tell him that what he just said is a big pile of bulls**t. Frankly it’s purely for shock value. Shakes them up when the pastor does that! But the truth is, it’s not necessary and the idea that somehow I need to do that to relate to the culture around me is actually a good idea (relevant speech) pushed to far. There really is to be something different about the speech of the believer. We know the scriptures:
Ephesians 5:4 Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.

Ephesians 4:29 Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.

Colossians 3:8 But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth.

Think about it. Paul obviously wrote this knowing that his readers would would be familiar with what the contrasts of speech involved – what was filthy and foolish and what was thankful and grace-giving. So there is a cultural tide, when it comes to speaking, that needs to be resisted.

Now, all that being said, that is not what Ryle is talking about here.  In Ryle’s day many of the churches were filled with men and women who were uneducated and illiterate. Consequently their speech was not refined or “courteous.”  Ryle’s contention was that one could be simple while still being a “gentleman” and maintaining a high standard of dignified speech. He argues:

“It is an utter mistake to imagine that uneducated and illiterate men and women prefer to be spoken to in an illiterate way, and by an uneducated person.”

Ryle comes off sounding a bit snobbish here by declaring that if you have a choice between a lay reader or evangelist who only knows how to read and someone like an “Oxford man” who knows his Greek and Latin, then you should go with the more refined and educated gentleman. Now this is a fairly cultural thing to Ryle and his time but there is a point here that is important. When Ryle speaks of coarsness and vulgarity he is not talking about foul language (that was never even a consideration!) but rather speaking in ways more common to the uneducated. Our words should inspire, not just instruct. They should be worthy of the subject and invite people to think great thoughts. There should be prose and poetry, imagination and music in the words we use. The soul hungers for it. To quote Ryle:

“People only tolerate vulgarity and coarseness, as a rule, when they can get nothing else.”

Do we want our preaching to be something people have to settle for when in fact we could stimulate their minds and imaginations and not just their feelings and passions?

“ My heart overflows with a pleasing theme; I address my verses to the king; my tongue is like the pen of a ready scribe.” – Psalm 47:1

Next, we’ll look at the first of Ryle’s 5 hints for better preaching.