Latest / Reformed Thinking / Open-Air Preaching: Posture, Action, and Gesture | Charles Spurgeon
Transcript
- 0:00Reformed thinking. Welcome to Reformed thinking,
- 0:02where we consider how biblical truth shapes every facet of our
- 0:05lives in service to God. Today we're doing a special deep
- 0:08dive into, well, a topic that might genuinely surprise you.
- 0:12It's the physical elements of preaching.
- 0:14We're talking about how a speaker stands, how they move,
- 0:17what their gestures communicate. You might wonder, how
- 0:20significant could these things really be?
- 0:22I mean, when we talk about the Spirit's work and the Word of
- 0:24God itself, well, you might be astonished at how much thought
- 0:28has been devoted to these small things by my figures like
- 0:31Charles Spurgeon. That's absolutely right.
- 0:33When we think about sermons, our minds, you know, rightly go
- 0:35straight to the message. The theology of the spiritual
- 0:38preparation that primary. But as Spurgeon wisely observed
- 0:41from his huge experience, even seemingly minor details can
- 0:45either, well, they can adorn the truth or they can detract from
- 0:48it. Our deep dive today unpacks his
- 0:51pretty wide-ranging thoughts on posture, gesture in action.
- 0:54We'll see why these aspects, the secondary, weren't what he
- 0:57actually called a holy care from those who proclaim God's word.
- 1:00We'll look at the good, the bad, and yeah, there's sometimes
- 1:03quite comical examples he offers.
- 1:04And consider what this tells us about presenting truth clearly
- 1:07and and without hindrance. So for you, our listener, as you
- 1:11get ready to plunge into this with us, our mission is to offer
- 1:14a particular perspective on sermon delivery.
- 1:17We're bringing a Reformed theological lens to even the,
- 1:20well, the mechanics of speaking, because we believe every part of
- 1:23our service to God matters. You'll gain a distinct view into
- 1:26why these details are significant, how they can impede
- 1:30a message, and what contributes to effective sort of unobtrusive
- 1:34communication. Get ready to look at preaching
- 1:36from an entirely fresh angle. OK, well let's open this up
- 1:39then, Spurgeon. He starts by establishing a very
- 1:42distinct hierarchy, doesn't he? What's the main thing here and
- 1:45where do these physical elements fit in?
- 1:46He's remarkably direct on this. He states quite clearly that the
- 1:50sermon itself is the main thing, it's matter, it's aim, and the
- 1:54Spirit in which it is brought before the people.
- 1:56The sacred anointing upon the preacher and the divine
- 1:58enablement applying the truth to the hearer.
- 2:00Me, he says, are infinitely more important than any details of
- 2:04manner. So that sets the theological
- 2:06framework straight away. God's truth, the Spirit's work,
- 2:09the preacher's heart, these are absolutely supreme, infinitely
- 2:12more important. He really stresses that, doesn't
- 2:14he? There's no wiggle room there.
- 2:15The content, the spiritual life of the message, that's king.
- 2:18Everything else supports it. It doesn't over shadow it.
- 2:21Which fits perfectly with our Reformed view that God's Word,
- 2:24brought alive by His Spirit, is the chief means of grace.
- 2:28Exactly. Yet, and this is the interesting
- 2:30part, despite being comparatively small and
- 2:33inconsiderable matters, posture and action should be regarded
- 2:37with holy care. Now this is a contradiction.
- 2:40It's more about stewarding all things for God's glory,
- 2:43recognizing that even small things can impact how the
- 2:47message is received. He uses this really neat
- 2:49classical illusion. Even the sandal in the statue of
- 2:52Minerva should be correctly carved.
- 2:54The idea is that in any great work, especially God's work,
- 2:57every detail contributes to the whole thing, its integrity, its
- 3:00beauty, its effectiveness. It demands care and everything.
- 3:04That's a powerful image, the sandal on the statue, it really
- 3:07paints a picture of that holy care.
- 3:09And it uses biblical analogies to small flies.
- 3:12Make the apothecary's ointment to stink and little foxes spoil
- 3:16the Hinds. You might be listening right now
- 3:18thinking, why spend time on this seemingly trivial stuff?
- 3:21But Spurgeon warns that these minor faults, these small flies,
- 3:25they can spoil an otherwise good ministry over time.
- 3:28He says pretty bluntly that faults, and Even so secondary a
- 3:31matter as posture, have prejudice men's minds and so
- 3:35injured the success of what would otherwise have been most
- 3:37acceptable ministries. It's not just about adding good
- 3:40things, it's about removing the bad.
- 3:42Which leads to some maybe surprising practical advice, he
- 3:45says. Is that so much incumbent upon
- 3:47you to acquire right pulpit action as it is to get rid of
- 3:50that which is wrong? So it's a preventative mindset
- 3:53first. Clear away the clutter, the
- 3:55distractions. Before you try to add fancy
- 3:57techniques. Make sure the vessel is clean.
- 3:59That really is a striking point. We often focus on what to add,
- 4:03you know, what new skills to learn.
- 4:05But here the main thing is removing hindrances, stripping
- 4:08away anything that distracts. And that applies way beyond
- 4:12preaching, doesn't it? In so many areas of service, a
- 4:14distracting habit when teaching or even just talking seriously
- 4:17with someone. It does.
- 4:18He even says, and this is quite stark, that being a motionless
- 4:23dummy is actually better than being an active and even
- 4:26vigorous incarnation of the grotesque.
- 4:29His priorities Crystal clear. The goal is an amazing oratory
- 4:33for its own sake. It's making sure nothing, not
- 4:35even like overly enthusiastic but awkward gestures, distract
- 4:38from the truth. The message is central.
- 4:41The delivery should just serve it quietly.
- 4:43OK, now here's where it gets really interesting.
- 4:45Spurgeon has some incredibly vivid examples, examples of how
- 4:48ineffective or, you know, distracting physical delivery
- 4:50can completely derail A sermon. What are some of these pitfalls
- 4:53he talks about? Oh, he doesn't hold back.
- 4:56He talks about how ridiculous action can throw a preacher into
- 4:59the rear rank and kept there no matter how smart or spiritual
- 5:03they are. It's sad, but a poor
- 5:05presentation can really over shadow genuine gifts and solid
- 5:09teaching in many people's eyes. That's why these small things
- 5:12need that holy care. Right.
- 5:14And he notes that the general public, especially those who
- 5:17come to scoff, they often see nothing but these little
- 5:20oddities and absurdities. It gives them an excuse for
- 5:23inattention, helps them resist the message.
- 5:25He talks about a suicidal style of preaching, things like a
- 5:28discordant wine, singular attitudes, extraordinary
- 5:31mouthings. These things can make a good
- 5:33man, you know, respected for his character, but people just won't
- 5:36listen to his message. There's that story about good
- 5:39Christian men not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
- 5:41Hearing someone like that, the absurdity clashes with the
- 5:45seriousness. It's tragic, really.
- 5:46And it goes beyond just being ridiculous.
- 5:49Spurgeon points out times when the action absolutely
- 5:52contradicts the meaning of the words.
- 5:53Who That creates? This a jarring disconnect for
- 5:58the listener. It undermines the sincerity.
- 6:00You hear one thing, see another, and you tend to believe what you
- 6:03see. And the examples are so clear,
- 6:05like crying oh heaven while pointing down at the floor.
- 6:09That's a classic. He mentions.
- 6:10Or describing dying weakness by like banging on the pulpit,
- 6:14wringing your hands while talking about the joys of faith.
- 6:16Or gripping the pulpit like grim death while telling people to
- 6:19hold earthly things with a loose hand, clasping your hands tight
- 6:23while saying the gospel is expansive, opens its arms to men
- 6:26that should be arms open wide rants and preaching the gospel
- 6:29of peace like you're in a fight or of free Christ with a
- 6:31clinched fist. He compares that to Bendigo the
- 6:34boxer and making a revolution of both fists while saying, and I
- 6:37will give you rest. I mean that just creates a
- 6:39ridiculous idea, completely cancels out the peace.
- 6:42And it's not just gestures. The tone is huge too.
- 6:45That Abbe Molloy anecdote is perfect.
- 6:48A preacher says depart ye cursed but in this super bland gentle
- 6:52way and this witty guy interpreted as come here my lad
- 6:55and let me embrace you. It shows how tone and manner can
- 6:59totally reverse the meaning. It's about the whole picture.
- 7:03Spurgeon also warns about going too far with imitative action.
- 7:06You know, acting things out literally.
- 7:08It seems like it would help, but it can backfire badly.
- 7:10Definitely. He tells this story about a
- 7:12young preacher trying to illustrate shutting out God's
- 7:15truth. So he closes his eyes for
- 7:17shutting your eyes to the light, puts fingers in his ears for
- 7:20stopping your ears, turns his back for turning your backs upon
- 7:23salvation. As a result, not seriousness,
- 7:26but laughter. People just found it theatrical
- 7:28and funny, not moving. The message got lost in the
- 7:30performance. That makes me think of that
- 7:32famous story about Edmund Burke and Parliament with a dagger.
- 7:36He was warning about the French Revolution, pulls out a dagger,
- 7:39throws it down dramatically and shared in the wit, just says the
- 7:42gentleman has brought us the knife.
- 7:44Where is the fork? Totally killed the mood.
- 7:47Shows how dramatic gestures can just fall flat or seem silly.
- 7:50Exactly. Overdone actions like that
- 7:52strike others. From its comic side, the focus
- 7:55shifts from the message to the preachers performance or just
- 7:59how funny it looks. The goal is Christ not being a
- 8:03spectacle. And then there's a really simple
- 8:05but crucial point. Just not making eye contact.
- 8:08Yeah, ministers lose a great influence, Spurgeon says, when
- 8:12they cannot look at their people during pleading time.
- 8:14Those moments of earnest appeal, it's fundamental to connection,
- 8:18especially when you're trying to reach hearts without eye
- 8:20contact. It feels distant, impersonal.
- 8:22It really does. It's hard to connect if you're
- 8:24not looking at someone. You imagine these preachers
- 8:26staring at their notes or the ceiling, or just into space
- 8:29while pleading. Look to Jesus upon the cross.
- 8:32How can you convey that urgency, that personal call, if your eyes
- 8:36are somewhere else? It feels like you're talking
- 8:38about them, not to them. It's why someone like Doctor
- 8:41Whelan made this resolution. If he preached again, he'd
- 8:44preach directly to men, looking them in their faces and not
- 8:47looking at the paper on the desk.
- 8:50It shows this conviction that direct personal engagement
- 8:53through the eyes is vital for the gospel meeting people eye to
- 8:57eye, literally and spiritually. OK, so it's really clear what
- 9:00not to do. But where does all this
- 9:02awkwardness actually come from? Is it just how some people are
- 9:05or can preachers work on it? Well, Spurgeon does acknowledge
- 9:08that some men are just naturally very awkward in their persons
- 9:11and movements. He puts it down to their
- 9:13broadens up their upbringing, their habits, or even an innate
- 9:17lumpishness and lumberliness. He humorously says you could not
- 9:22make them elegant if you braid them in a mortar among wheat
- 9:24with a pestle. So yeah, some people just aren't
- 9:27naturally graceful. That's quite an image, like the
- 9:29rustics gate he mentions. Awkward on a city street but
- 9:33fine in a field. So if some awkwardness is just
- 9:36innate, is there any hope or are they stuck?
- 9:39No, there's definitely hope. Spurgeon recommends drill
- 9:42exercise like in the military. He explains how drill helps with
- 9:45posture, arm swing, chest expansion, knowing what to do
- 9:48with your hands. It teaches you how to walk
- 9:50uprightly without thinking about it.
- 9:52It makes movements shipshape, you know, orderly, well
- 9:55executed. It's about cultivating a basic
- 9:58physical poise so it becomes natural.
- 10:00Not clumsy self consciousness. Not about being a dancer, just
- 10:03competent. And beyond just natural
- 10:05awkwardness, he links awkward gestures to other things too,
- 10:08like feeble utterance or just feeling nervous and lacking
- 10:11power. Right.
- 10:12He uses Doctor James Hamilton as an example.
- 10:14A brilliant speaker, apparently. Beautiful thoughts, really
- 10:17fervent, but he lacked vocal force, couldn't project well,
- 10:21and this led to painful action. He was constantly straining,
- 10:24standing on tip toes, sort of throwing out his words in
- 10:27handfuls just to be heard in his large church.
- 10:30His physical movement showed his vocal struggle.
- 10:32And that difficulty, even with all his gifts, largely detracted
- 10:37from the power and popularity of his preaching.
- 10:39His rare qualities were shorn of half their strength.
- 10:43Kind of sobering, isn't it? How something physical can
- 10:45hinder a spiritual ministry so much shows how connected it all
- 10:49is. But Hamiltons response is really
- 10:52encouraging too. Spurgeon says he earnestly
- 10:54endeavored to overcome his natural disadvantage, even took
- 10:57lessons of more than one professor of elocution.
- 11:00He kept working at it, even though it was a physical defect
- 11:03beyond all remedy in his case. It shows that diligence, that
- 11:07stewardship, even if perfection is impossible, we do our part.
- 11:10So for awkwardness you really can't fix, maybe a physical
- 11:13limitation? What's the advice?
- 11:15In those cases, Spurgeon says, basically don't make a big deal
- 11:18of it. Commend the brother for managing
- 11:20so well. Let the soul triumph over the
- 11:22body through the message itself. But for faults you can fix, the
- 11:27instruction is clear resolve to overcome it.
- 11:31He mentions Edward Irving, who apparently started out awkward,
- 11:34constrained and unnatural, but through diligent culture, real
- 11:38effort transformed his manner into an aid to his eloquence.
- 11:43So improvement is possible. And what about just plain
- 11:46nervousness, something lots of people can relate to?
- 11:48What are the remedies there? 2 main things, practice is a
- 11:52great remedy and faith in God is a still more potent cure.
- 11:56He explains that as you get used to the people, feel at ease at
- 11:59home, your focus shifts off yourself and onto the message.
- 12:03Then you can go to work with all his heart, leading to those
- 12:05unsteady gestures, the ones that just flow naturally, which are
- 12:08the very best. He's a bit critical of just
- 12:10hiding nervousness behind a manuscript saying you should
- 12:12conquer the root issue, not just hide the symptoms.
- 12:15True confidence comes from practice and trusting God.
- 12:18He also notes that sometimes odd gestures pop up just from
- 12:21struggling to find the right word or getting tangled in a
- 12:24sentence. That's interesting how the brain
- 12:26working hard shows up physically.
- 12:28It is. He gives examples from observers
- 12:30of famous American speakers. Mr. Calhoun, when stuck, would
- 12:34twitch his collar, run fingers through his hair.
- 12:37Daniel Webster might scratch his eye, rub his nose or spread his
- 12:41knees and jam his hands in his pockets.
- 12:43Like physically trying to force the word out.
- 12:45Involuntary things born of that mental effort.
- 12:49And lastly, he talks about how speakers can gradually just fall
- 12:54into a suicidal style or pick up bad habits, get entangled in the
- 12:58meshes of an evil mannerism, these little unconscious things.
- 13:02Yeah, they can be really subtle, like tugging a button or just
- 13:04constantly twiddling fingers of free accompaniment to the
- 13:07speech, but totally meaningless and distracting little ticks
- 13:10that creep in. There's that funny story from
- 13:12Addison about the lawyer who twisted a piece of string while
- 13:15arguing his client stole the string and the poor guy just
- 13:18couldn't speak. Lost the case.
- 13:20Shows how ingrained those habits can become.
- 13:23And Spurgeon's advice, if you don't have these habits, be upon
- 13:27your guard, lest they should gradually yield to them.
- 13:30It's about constant self-awareness, spiritual
- 13:32discipline, guarding against those small destructive habits.
- 13:36Applies to all of us, really. No, it's not just the preacher's
- 13:39own habits, right? Sometimes the environment itself
- 13:41is the problem. Spurgeon had some really strong
- 13:44words for pulpits. Horrible inventions, he called
- 13:48them. What was his issue?
- 13:49Oh, his criticism of those old, enclosed, high sighted pulpits
- 13:53is sharp. Horrible inventions, yes, and a
- 13:56greater curse to the churches than is at first sight evident.
- 13:59He really saw them as a major hindrance to effective
- 14:01preaching. He even jokingly used Joshua's
- 14:03curse on Jericho about them. Shows how strongly he felt.
- 14:06It's funny but highlights his passion for removing barriers.
- 14:10His main point was that these pulpits bury a preacher almost
- 14:13up to his shoulders. You just see an animated bust
- 14:17this confinement, he argued, quoting Austin's Karanomia, cuts
- 14:20off more than half of his figure, which is injurious to
- 14:24the graceful action Verve. He asks how could a lawyer plead
- 14:29a case effectively if they were imprisoned like that?
- 14:32You just can't convey full conviction with only half your
- 14:34body showing. Makes sense.
- 14:36You can't really project authority or warmth when you're
- 14:38stuck in a box. It's so different from images of
- 14:41someone like Chrysostom standing commanding versus a preacher
- 14:44just hunched over, notes only head and shoulders visible.
- 14:47The pulpy forces an unnatural posture.
- 14:50And ironically, this confinement leads to awkwardness when
- 14:53preachers leave the box, he mentions Thomas Binney.
- 14:56Strangely, enclosing open platforms with gowns shows how
- 14:59powerful habit is. Spurgeon just dryly notes There
- 15:02can be no real advantage in being enclosed in a wooden pen.
- 15:06So what happens when these animated bus get onto an open
- 15:09platform? Well, Spurgeon says, you can't
- 15:11really blame preachers for awkward postures.
- 15:13When they're stuck in those things, the pulpit dictates it.
- 15:17But then when they are on an open platform, totally visible,
- 15:20they feel awkward and exposed. They literally not know what to
- 15:24do with their legs and arms, leading to ridiculous attitudes
- 15:27because they're used to the box and haven't learned natural full
- 15:30body movement. I can relate to his personal
- 15:33experience too. Being short, he often had to
- 15:36stand on a hassock in deep pulpits and that Sydney Smith
- 15:39story is hilarious but also awful.
- 15:42His stack of hassocks collapsing mid sermon, illustrating cast
- 15:46down but not destroyed just shows how unstable and
- 15:49distracting those setups were. It does, and he concludes that
- 15:53these boxed up pulpits are largely accountable for the
- 15:55ungainly postures which some of our preachers assume when
- 15:59they're out of their cages, the environment literally fapes and
- 16:02often misshapes the delivery. And besides the structure, he
- 16:05lists all these petty annoyances inside the pulpits.
- 16:08They sound dreadful. They really do things like the
- 16:11abominable savor of gas from leaks.
- 16:13Gas lighting was common but leaky, making preachers feel
- 16:17sick or dizzy. Big lamps, cramping movement and
- 16:19pouring terrible heat onto the head, risking artificial coup de
- 16:23Soleil sunstroke. Uncomfortable seats like a
- 16:26mirror ledge, door handles poking you in the back.
- 16:29Even those curious good approach a bags early hearing aids like
- 16:32speaking tubes getting in the way, constant little
- 16:35irritations. It's hard to imagine dealing
- 16:38with those abominations that not only caused physical problems
- 16:40problems, but distracted everyone.
- 16:42How could anyone focus on God's message?
- 16:44He says such discomforts often throw the mind out of gear,
- 16:47disconnect our thoughts and trouble our spirit.
- 16:50And while preachers ought to rise superior, he acknowledges
- 16:54the flesh is weak. The mind is affected by these
- 16:56things. It all leads to that famous
- 16:58funny line. In ages to come, men will find
- 17:00an argument for the divinity of our holy faith and the fact that
- 17:03it survived pulpits, a testament to how much they hinder things.
- 17:06Yet the truth persisted. OK, wow.
- 17:09After all those warnings, all the things not to do, what does
- 17:12effective action actually look like?
- 17:14What's the ideal that Golden means Spurgeon talks about?
- 17:17The ideal, he says, is action that's unconstrained and
- 17:21natural, totally free from mannerism, primness and
- 17:24affectation. It shouldn't feel forced or
- 17:26fake. It should flow from the speaker.
- 17:28In the message. He puts it beautifully.
- 17:31Unstudied gestures are the very best and the highest result of
- 17:35art is to banish art and leave. The man is free to be graceful
- 17:38as the gazelle among the mountains.
- 17:40It's about cultivating an authenticity that just is
- 17:43graceful. I love that gazelle image.
- 17:45It speaks of effortless, unselfconscious grace.
- 17:48He also mentions Greek and Italian farmers and shepherds,
- 17:51how they adopt graceful poses naturally in their work without
- 17:53any idea that they are doing so. It's pure nature.
- 17:56It's that unconscious grace, not a performance.
- 17:59Exactly, the goal isn't to practice postures before a
- 18:02glass, nor to imitate great divines.
- 18:04That just leads to fakeness. It's more about cultivating an
- 18:07educated nature like a discipline, self-awareness and
- 18:11refinement that naturally avoids being crude or absurd.
- 18:15Refining natural tendencies through spiritual discipline.
- 18:18Not imposing artificial techniques.
- 18:20Presenting yourself well for the message without becoming the
- 18:23message. So if naturalness is the base,
- 18:26then moderation seems key, not over the top.
- 18:29Look at ME actions. Absolutely, action should never
- 18:32be excessive. Now, what's excessive might vary
- 18:34culturally or personally, but generally violent and vehement
- 18:37actions, if they're not genuinely inspired, just tend to
- 18:40excite, ridicule, or distract. The energy needs control.
- 18:43And he gives those examples of really energetic speakers.
- 18:46John Guff, the temperance guy practically acting out his
- 18:49stories. Martin Luther supposedly
- 18:51breaking the pulpit board with his first.
- 18:53John Knox getting so worked up he seemed like he'd Ding the
- 18:55pulpit in Blads and knock it to pieces.
- 18:57Incredible passion there. Incredible passion, yes, and
- 19:00unique styles. But Spurgeon warns strongly
- 19:02against just trying to copy those extremes he rinds.
- 19:05This physical energy is not the power of God unto salvation.
- 19:09The real power is spiritual in the Word and Spirit, not just
- 19:12muscle or drama. Mimicking them without their
- 19:15spirit would just look awkward. Right, that's where John
- 19:18Wesley's advice seems helpful. Like never clap his hands, nor
- 19:21thump the pulpit. Keep hands below eye level.
- 19:23Mostly avoid perpetual motion. That babbling of the hands.
- 19:28It's about avoiding distracting excess.
- 19:30And Russell's idea of true vehemence fits here.
- 19:33It's the force of inspiration, something manly and noble,
- 19:36elevating, not degrading. It avoids the screaming and
- 19:39foaming, stamping and contortions of vulgar excess.
- 19:43A big difference between genuine fervor and just showing off.
- 19:46So if you are naturally energetic, the advice isn't to
- 19:49kill it, but maybe repress your energies a little.
- 19:51Wave your hands a little less, Smite the Bible, somewhat more
- 19:53mercifully. Channel it, discipline it for
- 19:56the message. Steward that gift.
- 19:58And beyond moderation, action needs to be expressive and
- 20:02appropriate. Gestures have to speak correctly
- 20:05match the words. They should be like a running
- 20:07commentary, reinforcing the message body and voice In Sync.
- 20:11And the body can be so eloquent. Those examples are great.
- 20:14Pointing someone out of a room, refusing A handshake for ill
- 20:17will, finger to lips for silence, head shake for no
- 20:20raise, eyebrows for surprise. A shrug, condensing volumes.
- 20:23Open arms for expansive clasped hands for concentration.
- 20:27We all understand these. He goes deeper too, into the
- 20:30eloquence of hands and face. Hands are our best allies,
- 20:34capable of silent music, expressing so much, asking,
- 20:37promising, threatening and treating joy, grief, doubt,
- 20:40number, time. He quotes Quintillion on this.
- 20:43Hands are almost a second language, and the face and eyes
- 20:46play a very significant part. The face shows pleasure, grief.
- 20:50The eyes are crucial for connection.
- 20:52Which brings us back to that key point, direct eye contact,
- 20:54especially when appealing to people.
- 20:56Definitely you must fix your eyes upon the people when you
- 20:59come to exhortation during that pleading time.
- 21:03Looking anywhere else is inappropriate.
- 21:05It's not just etiquette, it's a great influence lost if you look
- 21:09away. It's about connecting
- 21:11spiritually to. And it's not just hands and
- 21:13face, right? Quintillion said.
- 21:15The side should bear their part, the whole body.
- 21:18Precisely, Cicero thought more could be done by the gesture of
- 21:22the whole body than just the hands.
- 21:24The entire frame, torso, shoulders, how you stand, it all
- 21:27contributes to an effective unified delivery that supports
- 21:30the message being fully present. And all of this comes back to
- 21:33just having a reverend and earnest posture overall.
- 21:37Yes, posture should be natural, educated and graceful, but
- 21:40critically, it shouldn't hamper the organs of utterance or cramp
- 21:43his lungs. Physical restriction hinders
- 21:46clear communication. The body should help, not hinder
- 21:49the voice. So avoid leaning over the book
- 21:52constantly or bending over confidentially all the time.
- 21:54That's seen as bad for the voice and just looks ungraceful.
- 21:57And definitely don't throw your head way back like you're
- 22:00talking to the ceiling unless it's a truly rare sublime
- 22:03moment. John Wesley advised the head
- 22:05should be modestly and decently upright, turning gently, not
- 22:10lapped like a statue, but not constantly bombing around
- 22:13either. Dignified, composed, but not
- 22:16stiff. And no slouching attitudes,
- 22:18lulling and sprawling. Our posture should fit the
- 22:21mission, Reflect A reverent and earnest spirit.
- 22:25Honor the gravity of the message and the God we serve.
- 22:28It's pulpit decorum. Ultimately, Spurgeon says, a
- 22:30preacher is closest to the golden mean when their manner
- 22:33doesn't attract any comet, good or bad.
- 22:35Why? Because it's so completely of a
- 22:38piece with the discourse that it is not regarded as a separate
- 22:41item at all. The delivery becomes invisible.
- 22:44The message shines through unimpeded.
- 22:46Manner serves matter. And that story about Mrs. Hannah
- 22:49Moore is perfect. Robert Hall praised her manners
- 22:51as perfectly proper, saying striking manners are bad
- 22:54manners. The best compliment is being so
- 22:56natural you're not noticed, letting the content be the
- 22:58focus. And he ends with that lovely
- 23:00image of the painter Claude Lorraine, paying indefatigable
- 23:03attention to the tiniest details.
- 23:05Mosses flowers to copy nature exactly that, he suggests, is
- 23:10the model for the preacher's care and delivery, all for the
- 23:13sake of the sublime truth. Small things attended to with
- 23:17holy care serve the grandest purpose.
- 23:20Clear, beautiful proclamation of God's Word.
- 23:24Wow, this deep dive into Spurgeon on posture, gesture,
- 23:28action, it really does give a fresh look at something we might
- 23:31think is secondary. It's so clear that while the
- 23:34sermon content God's Word, the spirits work.
- 23:37While those are absolutely supreme, even the physical side
- 23:40deserves, well, careful thought and discipline.
- 23:42It really does Spurgeon's arguments.
- 23:44There is strong call for diligence in everything related
- 23:46to proclaiming truth. By dealing with awkwardness,
- 23:49overcoming nerves through practice and faith, getting rid
- 23:52of distracting habits, preachers can help make sure nothing
- 23:54blocks the message. And understanding those awful
- 23:57pulpit designs. It gives you an appreciation for
- 23:59the ministry context through history and how vital it is to
- 24:02remove barriers to the Word. It leaves you with something to
- 24:05think about, doesn't it? If the sandal on a nervous
- 24:08statue needs care, if small flies can ruin the ointment,
- 24:11what small things in your own life, your own service could use
- 24:14some holy care to better enhance the truth you want to convey.
- 24:18How can you make sure your presentation, whether teaching,
- 24:21talking, leading points people to the content, not to you or
- 24:24some distraction? That's a really worthwhile
- 24:26reflection. This deep dive has shown us that
- 24:29giving God our best really means paying attention to everything,
- 24:32even the little details. All for His glory and the clear
- 24:36communication of His Word, honoring Him with our whole
- 24:39selves. That's all for this deep dive.
- 24:41Thank you for joining us on Reformed Thinking.
- 24:43Until next time, keep thinking Reformed and keep seeking to
- 24:46honor God in every detail.