August 5-8 - Preaching Continues with Dr. Ellsworth Kalas
August 7 was a great lecture by Dr. Kalas on the importance of the conclusion in a sermon. He also spoke on how pastors should be the stewards of the language an make strategic use of poetry in sermons. A good sermon is like a good poem, it goes right to the heart. What follows is an edited version of my notes from that day:
The Conclusion
As for the conclusion of the sermon: the goal is to help people make a decision, but not manipulate them. Our orienting question should be: what is the bottom line?
Every sermon should have some kind of conversion. There are so many ways that people need to be converted! The failure of evangelical preaching today is that it only sees one conversion. In Wesleyan tradition we don’t have that: ongoing conversion, daily.
We need to be converted at different points in our lives – or experiences form us and we need to keep growing in Christ. Dr. Kalas was saved when he was 10 years old. But when Dr. Kalas first began preaching this idea he was 51. Therefore, in his view, there was more territory in his life that was more unsaved than saved. People may have been saved, but bear little fruit now … they haven’t been converted in the interim.
People need a better self image: but they despise themselves. We have people who profess to follow Christ, but live under the burden of uncertainty of their salvation. We need to help them with their assurance in our preaching. Also we have to preach about the use of money: the growing gap between the poor in America is tremendous. Those of us who have some money need to find out from God what we should do with it. The major reason that people are uncomfortable is that they keep extending their desires beyond what they need. We want people to go out different than they came in.
The classic Greek form of public address: logos, ethos, and pathos. Those may be considered the three styles of conclusion. The logos: the logical conclusion (this, this and this … now do this). A lot of the best revival preaching has this style to it. This is a logical conversion. The style of the conclusion is straightforward, logical, a vehicle where they can connect.
Then there is the pathos, the emotional appeal. It is associated with a lot of evangelism. It is associated with tears, or at least emotions. The emotion itself is not a bad thing. The Hebrew idea of "understanding" is emotional as well as intellectual. The only difficult issue is manipulating and abusing people’s emotion. There is a place for emotion, yet not manipulation.
Dr. Kalas hesitated to speak too much about the boundaries around emotion. He didn’t want to make you us so nervous about it that we don’t use it at all. He didn't believe that anyone in this class would over use emotion.
Dr. Kalas has found that an intellectual audience is ready for emotion if it is handled well. Example: men are very emotional. Look at when NFL players get in Football Hall of Fame and the acceptance speeches that the former players make. You do need to know your audience, however. What is corny to one audience is just right in another. One audience would be unmoved, another would be in awe.
People are aware of many things intellectually. It’s also more than emotion. There’s a third "thing" that touches people: God. If you touch them where God is meeting them, then emotion will come on its own. This is why it is bizarre to be falsely emotional or put on an act. However, when God does touch people, we should give people a chance or a place to respond to the message. It is just as bizarre to bring people to a special place and then just stop as some preachers often do. The goal is response.
The best conclusions are in your own ethos, your ethical person, who you are. To come to the end of sermon about the power of Christ in the world, a personal witness is almost necessary. “This is what I know to be true in Jesus Christ.”
The Preacher as Poet
Eugene Peterson was asked what was happening to the use of language in the pulpit: “I feel that we should have our preachers reading more poetry, because the ‘poets are the keepers of language’ (Bill Moyers).” If we waste too many words we devalue the currency. Preachers are the keepers of the oral language.
Hebrew is a very graphic language. Sometimes the Hebrew scriptures are translated "God was very angry", but the Hebrew actually says, "God’s nostrils flared." It is a very graphic language. Therefore, use graphic language.
On that note: watch when you use Greek in the sermon. Martin Luther and Paul both said use the language of the home. That doesn’t mean that you don’t use an uncommon word. Just follow the uncommon words with a synonym. Johnny Cash talked about using common language when he said:
Johnny Cash knew what to talk about. That’s what people are living about. Try preach a sermon series about each of them during the course of a year. That will meet people where they are!
Find in poetry the simple way of saying the marvelous thing. Ronald Knox, the English catholic wrote a commentary on the Apostle’s Creed for Girl’s School where he was Chaplin. In there he said this: "The mircle of Easter is that they could keep him in the grave from Friday to Sunday morning." Poetry helps us find simple ways of saying grand and marvelous things.
Amen.
Grace and peace,
Trav Wilson
The Conclusion
As for the conclusion of the sermon: the goal is to help people make a decision, but not manipulate them. Our orienting question should be: what is the bottom line?
Every sermon should have some kind of conversion. There are so many ways that people need to be converted! The failure of evangelical preaching today is that it only sees one conversion. In Wesleyan tradition we don’t have that: ongoing conversion, daily.
We need to be converted at different points in our lives – or experiences form us and we need to keep growing in Christ. Dr. Kalas was saved when he was 10 years old. But when Dr. Kalas first began preaching this idea he was 51. Therefore, in his view, there was more territory in his life that was more unsaved than saved. People may have been saved, but bear little fruit now … they haven’t been converted in the interim.
People need a better self image: but they despise themselves. We have people who profess to follow Christ, but live under the burden of uncertainty of their salvation. We need to help them with their assurance in our preaching. Also we have to preach about the use of money: the growing gap between the poor in America is tremendous. Those of us who have some money need to find out from God what we should do with it. The major reason that people are uncomfortable is that they keep extending their desires beyond what they need. We want people to go out different than they came in.
The classic Greek form of public address: logos, ethos, and pathos. Those may be considered the three styles of conclusion. The logos: the logical conclusion (this, this and this … now do this). A lot of the best revival preaching has this style to it. This is a logical conversion. The style of the conclusion is straightforward, logical, a vehicle where they can connect.
Then there is the pathos, the emotional appeal. It is associated with a lot of evangelism. It is associated with tears, or at least emotions. The emotion itself is not a bad thing. The Hebrew idea of "understanding" is emotional as well as intellectual. The only difficult issue is manipulating and abusing people’s emotion. There is a place for emotion, yet not manipulation.
Dr. Kalas hesitated to speak too much about the boundaries around emotion. He didn’t want to make you us so nervous about it that we don’t use it at all. He didn't believe that anyone in this class would over use emotion.
Dr. Kalas has found that an intellectual audience is ready for emotion if it is handled well. Example: men are very emotional. Look at when NFL players get in Football Hall of Fame and the acceptance speeches that the former players make. You do need to know your audience, however. What is corny to one audience is just right in another. One audience would be unmoved, another would be in awe.
People are aware of many things intellectually. It’s also more than emotion. There’s a third "thing" that touches people: God. If you touch them where God is meeting them, then emotion will come on its own. This is why it is bizarre to be falsely emotional or put on an act. However, when God does touch people, we should give people a chance or a place to respond to the message. It is just as bizarre to bring people to a special place and then just stop as some preachers often do. The goal is response.
The best conclusions are in your own ethos, your ethical person, who you are. To come to the end of sermon about the power of Christ in the world, a personal witness is almost necessary. “This is what I know to be true in Jesus Christ.”
The Preacher as Poet
Eugene Peterson was asked what was happening to the use of language in the pulpit: “I feel that we should have our preachers reading more poetry, because the ‘poets are the keepers of language’ (Bill Moyers).” If we waste too many words we devalue the currency. Preachers are the keepers of the oral language.
Hebrew is a very graphic language. Sometimes the Hebrew scriptures are translated "God was very angry", but the Hebrew actually says, "God’s nostrils flared." It is a very graphic language. Therefore, use graphic language.
On that note: watch when you use Greek in the sermon. Martin Luther and Paul both said use the language of the home. That doesn’t mean that you don’t use an uncommon word. Just follow the uncommon words with a synonym. Johnny Cash talked about using common language when he said:
"I love songs about horses, railroads, land, judgement day, family, hard
times, whiskey, courtship, marriage, adultery, separation, murder, war, prison,
rambling, damnation, home, salvation, death, pride, humor, piety, rebellion,
patriotism, larceny, determination, tragedy, rowdiness, heartbreak, and love.
And Mother. And God."
Johnny Cash knew what to talk about. That’s what people are living about. Try preach a sermon series about each of them during the course of a year. That will meet people where they are!
Find in poetry the simple way of saying the marvelous thing. Ronald Knox, the English catholic wrote a commentary on the Apostle’s Creed for Girl’s School where he was Chaplin. In there he said this: "The mircle of Easter is that they could keep him in the grave from Friday to Sunday morning." Poetry helps us find simple ways of saying grand and marvelous things.
Amen.
Grace and peace,
Trav Wilson
posted by Trav Wilson at 11:15 AM
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