Preaching is one of the highest callings; it is also one of the most challenging to perfect. With these foundational courses on preaching, J. Kent Edwards walks you through the mechanics of preaching. In Invitation to Biblical Preaching I: Theological, Historical, and Pragmatic Reasons for Preaching (CM102), he lays the foundation for preaching by answering the question “Why preach?” He discusses what a biblical sermon looks like and why preaching can be difficult work.
“For special revelation, I think it’s information that God makes available about Himself to specific people, or special people, in special places and special times. In other words, special revelation is information that God has made available about Himself that not everyone has had access to.” (source)
“We’re dealing in an age of widespread biblical ignorance. I” (source)
“B. B. Warfield, famous theologian, said it well: ‘The purpose of special revelation is not to correct, much less set aside general revelation. General revelation needs no correction—God has not revealed himself falsely or misleadingly in it.… The occasion of special revelation is …’—and I apologize for the complicated wording here, but this is a theologian, not a preacher: ‘The occasion of special revelation is extraneous to the organism of revelation itself, and lies in the necessity of meeting altered circumstances.’ What is he saying there? What are the altered circumstances? The altered circumstances is sin.” (source)
“If you try to ignore God, if you try to make it through this life out compensating for, adjusting for, realizing the importance of God, you’re not going to succeed. You cannot succeed in life—you cannot and your listeners cannot. They cannot succeed in life without a proper understanding of God, and all who try will fail.” (source)
“If you’re going to be a success in anything, it takes effort—10,000 hours to become an expert.” (source)