Observations upon Hearing Some Good Sermons and Some Almost Good Ones

If you are going to tell me that we don't need to dwelling upon Abram, but rather upon Abram's God, spend more than 2% of the next two hours of teaching showing me Abram's God and less than 98% showing me Abram.

Illustrations separate the almost good from the truly excellent. There is a world of difference between great stories and word pictures that enable me to understand clearly the most challenging truths of great texts.

If you have arrived at a contestable conclusion that the text itself doesn't clearly state, don't build a significant portion of your sermon upon it. Don't go on to make a habit of this.

If you are going to scold people for obeying Scripture in a particular way, take them to that Scripture, and explain how it is actually asking to be obeyed. If you can't do that clearly, don't scold in the first place.

Ac 13:6-10 - What a Spirit-filled Response to Charismatic Distraction Sounds Like

Paul and Barnabas were plainly speaking the words of God (cf. 2Cor 4:1-2). But one of these over-dramatic types with a moment of sensational revelation was distracting from it. What does a Spirit-filled response sound like in such a situation?

It sounds like, "O full of all deceit and all fraud, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease perverting the straight ways of the Lord?"

Sounds a bit harsh to our culturally enfeebled ears, but it's Scriptural!