Friday, May 7, 2010

Calvin on preaching

Recently I reviewed Bruce Gordon's biography of John Calvin. This post is part five of a short series of snippets from the book.

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Gordon summarizes:

“In preaching the minister was to teach the people the Word of God, but they were not merely learning; the Word had to embrace their heart and move them. Through the spoken word Christ is present in the community. As Thomas J. Davis has put it: ‘Preaching spans the gap between the “then” nature of the events of the Gospels and the “now” nature of redemption.’” (p.139).

The preacher must keep an eye open on the events of his day (293).

References:

Bruce Gordon, Calvin (New Haven [Conn.] and London: Yale University Press, 2009).

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