Pensees: Feed My Sheep (A Book on Preaching)

Feed My Sheep (A Book on Preaching)

Feed My Sheep: A Passionate Plea for Preaching
Author: Don Kistler, General Editor
Publisher: Soli Deo Gloria Publications
Number of pages: 285
Purchased: June 2003, Mt. Calvary Baptist Whetstone Conference, $10
Recommended by:
Tim’s Rating: FIVE STARS

Review: Soli Deo Gloria has assembled contributions from 11 separate heavyweight Reformed preachers (such as Al Mohler, James Boice, R. C. Sproul, John Piper, and John MacArthur) to create a truly unique and delightful book on preaching. It is unique in that the individual contributions create an interesting variety. It also enables one to pick the book up and read only one article in any one setting.

Al Mohler begins with an essay on the “Primacy of Preaching.” He connects it to the very nature of the Gospel. He sums up well the position of the preacher in regard to his congregation: “We are assigned a stewardship from God which is bestowed on us not for our benefit, but for the benefit of the church. It is as if we have been drafted, called out, assigned, and granted a stewardship that we do not deserve, and a stewardship that we are not capable of achieving and fulfilling. Nonetheless, God chose those instruments” (14).

The topics are as follows: the foolishness of preaching (Boice); expository preaching (Derek Thomas); experiential preaching (Joel Beeke); the teaching preacher (Sproul); preaching to the mind (John Armstrong); preaching to the heart (Sinclair Ferguson); preaching with authority (Don Kistler); evangelistic preaching (Eric Alexander); preaching to suffering people (Piper); and “A Reminder to Shepherds” (MacArthur).

The final chapter (based on 2 Corinthians 5:5-7) makes a good “pride pill” for the preacher who receives too many accolades from his congregation: “We ministers are weak, common, plain, fragile, breakable, dishonorable, and disposable clay pots who should be taking the garbage out—but instead we’re bringing the glory of God to our people” (285). MacArthur ends, though, on a positive note: “The amazing thing is that such weakness does not prove fatal to the gospel, because the gospel is not out of us. The great reality is, this is essential to the gospel, because it makes crystal clear where the power really lies. We are unworthy servants, but God has given us the treasure of the gospel. What a privilege!”

It is difficult to review the book as a whole, except to say that it is like a variegated flower, each petal of which is worth savoring. At the end of my copy I have written, “Great! Read it again!” And I already have read several chapters again.

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Tim Bixby is my younger brother. He pastors Cleveland Park Bible Church in Spartanburg, SC. Tim writes: “Brothers, I wrote these [book reviews] as an exercise in self-discipline and for future reference. I pass them on to you as a way to keep contact and share Christian fellowship.”