Bedhead Theology

  Another gospel preacher that we can glean from is Benajah H. Carroll (1843–1915).  Carroll was born near Carrollton, Mississippi, into a large family led by his father, a Baptist minister and farmer. The family moved to Arkansas and later to Burleson County, Texas, where Carroll spent most of his youth. He entered Baylor University as a teenager, showing strong intellectual gifts, especially in debate. His studies were interrupted by the Civil War, during which he served first with the Texas Rangers and later in the 17th Texas Infantry of the Confederate Army. Carroll significantly impacted preaching in the twentieth century through his evangelistic fervor and focus. B. H. Carroll spurred the thrust of evangelism by creating the Department of Evangelism within the Home Mission Board and within Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. [1] His evangelistic focus gave rise to the Southern Baptist commitment to evangelistic preaching. I offer three observations of the preachi...

  Another preacher who stands among the giants of the nineteenth century is Alexander Maclaren (1826–1910). Maclaren was committed to the ministry of the pulpit and studied to equip himself for the role. [1] Where Spurgeon held the title of “Prince of Preachers,” Maclaren held the title of “Prince of Expositors.” He proved the title’s truthfulness through his commitment to exegeting Scripture with his sermons—he stayed with the text. His preaching held to the power of the text, so he required nothing else for his sermons. [2] While describing Maclaren, Dargan stated, “[He had] a keen, trained, disciplined intellect, accurate knowledge of the original languages, easy acquaintance with the best Biblical scholarship, and, above all, an ardent love for the Bible, made him an incomparable explorer into its storehouse of truth and a wonderful expounder of that truth to others.” [3] He was not negligent of the necessity of the appeal to his congregation. In fact, he held the primary ...

Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1834–1892) was undoubtedly evangelistic in his preaching. He was known as the “Prince of Preachers” because he arranged his sermons around the text and was only occasionally textual-topical and highly typological.  Within his Lectures to My Students resides a treasure trove of wisdom that illuminates the man and his unwavering confidence in Christ. Spurgeon noted in his journal that someone tricked him into preaching his first sermon. Despite his lack of formal education, he was ahead of his time and emphatically Christ-centered in his preaching. What is more, the humanity of Spurgeon shone through in his openness about his bouts with depression. I want to offer three observations about the preaching of Charles Spurgeon. Persuasive Exposition Spurgeon sought to persuade the unrepentant in his sermons and his writing. In All of Grace, he demonstrated the significance of his desire for the lost. Specifically, he did not conceal his intentions toward the lost....

John of Antioch (349–407), often referred to as Chrysostom (meaning the “golden-mouthed”), stands as a bulwark in early Christian preaching. Larsen declared him “unquestionably the greatest preacher of the early church.” [1] His dedication to biblical exposition characterized his preaching. Chrysostom would take a passage of Scripture and provide an exegetical address with application. He had a keen ability to take the text’s literal meaning and apply it pastorally to his congregation’s needs. [2] Chrysostom’s preaching demonstrated his position as an astute student of rhetoric. His rhetoric demonstrated animated expressions as he traversed from exposition to appeal. Thus, he established that the sermon began with exegesis and concluded with its exhortation. Rhetorically trained by Libanius, Chrysostom was prolific in his oratory ability, and his rhetorical approach was grounded in his conviction toward holiness ( ethos ), his exegetical work ( logos ), and culminated in the exhortati...

  Charles Simeon was born on September 24th, 1759, in Berkshire, England. He served as the vicar of Holy Trinity Church in Cambridge until his death in 1836—over 54 years. He held that his conversion, in 1779, was greatly influenced by Thomas Wilson’s writings. Simeon found a copy of Essay on the Composition of a Sermon . This book set the trajectory of Simeon’s preaching towards text-driven exposition. First, as a great expositor, he translated it into English and had it republished. He held a deep conviction to help the next generation of preachers towards textual faithfulness. This stands as the foundation of his major written work, Horae Homileticae —a twenty-one-volume sermon outline of exposition. He had some impactful accomplishments, including his role in founding the Church Missionary Society (1799) and establishing the Simeon Trust (1816). Charles Simeon’s entire ministry exhibited a “radical commitment to Scripture and a passion for preaching.” [1] Charles Simeon’s exam...

Who was Benjamin Keach (1640-1704)? We often find ourselves learning about historical figures that had a lasting impact on our lives, yet we are often unfamiliar with them. Benjamin Keach is one such person. Keach was an influential 17th-century Particular Baptist preacher and theologian. He was born in Buckinghamshire in 1640. He worked as a tailor early on due to his family's poverty. He was baptized at the age of 15 and began to preach at 18. He served as the minister for the congregation at Winslow before moving in 1668 to the church at Horsleydown, Southwark, where he remained as pastor for 36 years.  Benjamin Keach was ardent in his conviction that the Bible was not merely to be explained, but it was a necessity that the Scriptures be applied to the conscience. He greatly emphasized the authority of Scripture over church tradition. His preaching revealed a confidence that when preaching, God speaks directly through His Word. This became the primary means by which God awakened...

The gospel is everything! This statement, as simple as it is, speaks to the very heart of preaching. Looking across the culture around us, we find that Faithful preaching must speak the truth with grace to move hearts toward Christ. Haddon Robinson declared, “When we concentrate on ideas, with the desire to make listeners understand and accept them, strong delivery comes naturally.”  Erasmus argued that the purpose “in persuasion is to have the hearer want to embrace the honorable and the useful.”  Thus, the goal is to move the heart. However, in this goal, it is imperative to note the impact of delivery. Francis Bacon understood delivery when he compared logic to a fist and rhetoric to an open palm.  He asserted that logic handles reason in absolute truth, whereas rhetoric handles reason through the lens of popular opinions. Essentially, a logical argument can affirm the truth but possibly in a heavy-handed manner. Conversely, a rhetorical approach can present the truth ...