Jones, D. Martyn, Preaching & Preachers: Edited by Kevin de Young, Grand Rapids:Zondervan, 2011
Jones, D. Martyn, Preaching & Preachers: Edited by Kevin de Young, Grand Rapids:Zondervan, 2011
Jones, D. Martyn, Preaching & Preachers: Edited by Kevin de Young, Grand Rapids:Zondervan, 2011
Martyn,
Introduction:
Preaching and Preachers is primarily educational and holds many biblical truths that can
be brought to any age. Dr. Jones believed that expository preaching was the way to true
preaching and his opinions on preaching may not suit everyone, but they were proven
successful lover his life of preaching and are carried on by many today.
Book Reading
Martyn Lloyd-Jones believed the call to preach was the highest and most celebrated call
a person could ever have. He also believed that the church needed real preaching more
With-this-in-mind Jones traces the history of preaching and why he believes the church
has accepted something which is less than true preaching and he does it in a no nonsense
manner. Dr. Jones begins with the first church and gives his proofs for the importance of
preaching in the church by showing from New Testament passages that this was what
Jesus considered the primary task. The apostles, when confronted with the first church
crisis believed they should make prayer and proclaiming the Word their primary tasks
and asked the church to find a group of men who met certain spiritual criteria to minister
to the congregation in matters other than prayer and ministering the Word.
Dr. Jones contends that the modern church has strayed from the preaching of the Word
and replaced it with secondary things. The preaching has become more about social
problems and ethical issues than about the resurrection gospel of Jesus Christ. The
church no longer wants to be crucified with Christ and reconciled to God through His
life-giving blood. No, it wants to treat symptoms and not the sin which has left the
church powerless. To this illness Dr. Jones warns that only a return to true biblical
preaching will revive the church and God’s people. From the problem confronting the
church Dr. Jones defines and explains what true biblical preaching is and what it does.
This preaching does not take a topical form and give us philosophies, and opinions, but
is the actual Word of God. This preaching, states Dr. Jones, will be evangelistic,
When it comes to the act of preaching Dr. Jones should involve the entire person and be
naturally animated and not planned. This preaching should be accomplished with the
authority of the sender, God Himself, and be free in the sense that it is controlled by the
Holy Spirit and not notes. Preaching should also contain an urgency supported with
warmth for the hearers as one under the same denunciation as they do and with love. It
should be with power as the function takes over and preaches things you did not plan or
study. It’s one aim or goal is that people would experience God and His eternal truths.
Although all Christians should proclaim the gospel message to people in the world, not
all Christians are called to be preachers. The preacher is called to preach, and this call is
separate from the general call of God to lost people to come to Christ Jesus. The call to
preach is awareness in one’s soul to separate themselves for God’s purposes and should
also come with an overwhelming desire to see lost people come to a saving faith in
Christ. This call will should be confirmed by church. The one called to preach should
never feel that they are adequate in any way to preach as an ambassador of God except in
Dr. Jones next directs preaching as it concerns the congregation. The congregation’s
ability to understand what’s being preached. Dr. Jones also explains the problem in the
is adamant that the pulpit should control what the congregation hears and not the other
way around. This, according to Dr. Jones does not mean that we do not consider those
who will hear the message. Preachers should not become so dogmatic in their
presentation that they cannot be understood by those listening. If they are young in
Christ, meaning their knowledge of the Bible, they will not understand complicated
doctrine and teachings without first being fed enough of the Word to understand it,
preach accordingly. This also means that the preacher never assumes that everyone in the
congregation is a Christian even if they say they are. This calls for preaching evangelistic
messages, doctrinal messages, and edifying messages on a altering basis. Do not neglect
to preach the gospel because some may hear and be saved even though they once thought
they were.
How does one prepare to be a preacher?
Dr. Jones has much to say about this subject and begins with controlling one’s self in
every aspect of their lives. A preacher’s prayer life is vital to the man who wants to be a
preacher God can use. This requires discipline to set aside certain times to be with God
and it requires that one live in a constant state of prayer even while they are performing
other tasks. Bible reading, and study are absolute necessities for the preacher and they
must always be learning and feeding the Word into their life.
The prepared preacher must prepare sermons, and this is a subject Dr. Jones has much to
say about. Since Dr. Jones is an expositor he believes sermons should be textual, but does
not, himself, preach verse by verse through an entire chapter and does not believe a series
is the way to preach because it inhibits the Holy Spirit from directing week by week. He
does, however, believe in preaching special sermons for designated days such as Easter
Preaching and Preachers goes on to speak of the sermons form and developing the
proposition and the points the text makes from that proposition. Dr. Jones does make a
skeletal outline of his sermons but writes the sermon out to get all-of his points and
supporting Scriptures together in his mind and then allows the Holy Spirit the freedom to
spiritualizing something into the text that is not there, and he also cautioned against using
discouraged the use of such illustrations even to the point of stating they are a disgrace.
There is a chapter in Preachers and Preaching of things preachers should avoid and one
on altar calls do’s and don’ts, and reasons for not repeating sermons.
The last chapter of Preachers and Preaching concerned the anointing of the Holy Spirit to
preach the Word. It is to be sought prior to the sermon preparation process. Dr. Jones
explains the function of the Holy Spirit coming upon the Old Testament prophets which
allowed them to be used in powerful ways by the Spirit. This anointing was upon Jesus
when He ministered on this earth and came in power on the Day of Pentecost to empower
the apostles and others to witness boldly of Jesus Christ and His death and resurrection.
This anointing is still available today according to Dr. Jones and is vital to powerful
Recommendation:
As a preacher of the word of God I recommend all preachers and students to read this book if
you want to improve your preaching and it will give you enlightenment towards the proper way
of preaching. As preacher we are required to study and read books that can help us improved our
preaching with correct interpretation and exegesis so that we can teach properly at church and
one of the good books about preaching is Dr. Jones D. Martyn in his Preaching and Preacher
book. This book is really helpful and useful when it comes in preaching enhancement and
acquiring techniques. Hope you read it and may it helps you a lot like it does to me.
A Partial fulfillment for the course of Homiletics
Submitted to:
Rev. Joey Y. Diangco Ph. D
Submitted By:
Raymond L. Mortel