Illustration: Service

In his sermon "Blowing Your Horn," Richard Love shares this: "Sir Michael Costa, the celebrated conductor, was holding a rehearsal. As the mighty chorus rang out, accompanied by scores of instruments, the piccolo player -- a little pint-sized flute -- thinking perhaps that his contribution would not be missed amid so much music, stopped playing.

Preaching Prophets

In a recent article for Leadership Journal, John Ortberg reminds us why it is so important to preach on the prophetic books of the Old Testament: "The prophets have been given the crushing burden of looking at our world and seeing what God sees: rich people trying to get richer and looking the other way while poor people die. And thinking God is really pretty pleased with their lives. And that the world is going pretty well."

90 Percent of All Lepers

Good lepers are those who are healed and never forget the disease they once had. They remember how good clean feels. Bad lepers, on the other hand, are those who are healed and go on acting as if they never had the disease. This Thanksgiving sermon encourages us to model our lives after the leper.

What Makes a Preacher ‘Good’?

You probably have noticed that preachers come in all shapes and sizes. There are big, gregarious, sweaty-foreheaded preachers. There are short, slim, soft-spoken preachers. There are creative preachers who always have a slick gadget or a clever object of illustration. There are King James preachers who love Thees and the Thous of Thy Holy Word.

E. Stanley Jones: Exegete of Culture, Evangelist for Christ

In 1938, Time magazine honored E. Stanley Jones with the distinction of "world's greatest missionary evangelist." Time's laudatory expression was not an isolated one. Christians and non-Christians celebrated the multi-faceted contributions of this visionary man. For instance, his missionary work in India coupled with his outspoken efforts for Indian self-determination in the early decades of the 20th century caused one Indian government official to say Jones was "the greatest interpreter of Indian affairs in our time."

What Is the Gospel: An Interview with Chris Seay

Chris Seay is the church planter and pastor of Ecclesia in Houston and a widely known author. He has written a number of books, including The Gospel According to Lost, The Gospel According to Tony Soprano and the recently released The Gospel According to Jesus. He recently visited with Preaching editor Michael Duduit.