Hellfire and Brimstone preaching............

[Tater77]

These are some very good replies :thumbs:

Every now an then you need it laid bare in front of you in a blunt fashion.

I guess 31 years of the same verses repeated to be started to get to me. I had just always felt that the subject was hovered on too much each week.

But I'm so happy to be a church now that gives a balance of sermons. And the pastor is a great speaker, which helps a lot.

 

[Harold Garvey]

I need well-balanced preaching. The world needs hellfire and brimstone preaching. The sad thing is many churches are now become a mission filed and in need of evangelization. The again the "fishbowl" preaching on hell usually ends up creating introverts instead of converts when the same people are "saved" several times.

Jesus preached on everything, but especially hell to the hardhearted. He preached fundementals to those he knew were tenderhearted and earnest in their faith but just not knowledgable able heavenly things; thus the Beatitudes.

Hellfire and brinstone preaching all the time? I have never seen it all the time in nearly 60 years. Everytime I hear preaching on hell I am saddened their are people who hear this and still refuse to come to Jesus, but it assures me when the Spirit of God lets me know I am His and He is MINE!

 

[Jkdbuck76]

I know two guys that do that all the time....scream, pound the pulpit, spit and go HA! at the end of every sentence. One of these guys even screams during wednesday nite bible study. And his congregation seems to love it.

The other one I know helps fill in the pulpit at our church....on Sunday nights ONLY. We have let him preach for 2 sundays in a row and on the second sunday, only half of the people showed up.

What do these guys think? That Jesus won't show up unless they
YELL AT THE TOP OF THEIR LUNGS!!!!???

I got news for guys like that: we have PA systems. You don't need to holler.


Some people grew up in homes where all their parents did was to yell at them and verbally abuse them. Gee....guess which type of person leaves during a service like that?

 

[BigBossman]

It depends. Generally, I prefer a fiery preacher. I remember going to two different churches when I was a teenager. I went to an Assembly of God church & the preaching there was just that, fiery. One thing I didn't like was the pastor of that church would regularly do what I call "Baptist Bashing". During his sermon, he would almost always insert a negative remark about Baptists.

The Baptist church I went to was nice, but the pastor never once raised his voice while preaching. In fact, it was more "teaching" than "preaching". There were times that I would struggle to keep my eyes open during the sermon & forced myself not to yawn. I wanted to pay attention, but couldn't.

I think it was just a difference in preaching styles. The pastor who can deliver God's word with fire in his voice will always keep my attention.

My parents were brought up in two different denominations. My dad is a Baptist & my mom was brought up in the Pentecostal church. I suppose that makes me a Bapticostal.:laugh:

 

[Jedi Knight]

"I suppose that makes me a Bapticostal." That means you can teach deep theological truths in a different language!:laugh:

 

[gb93433]

some of the sermons that have had the greatest impact on me were spoken with great conviction and power but not usually with a loud voice. People will often listen better to someone who speaks with a lower voice than someone who yells.

 

[Jon-Marc]

I like preaching to be somewhere between boring and ranting--but past the halfway mark of those two; neither of those is OK with me. I've heard preachers that nearly put me to sleep, and I've heard some that left me with a headache. One preacher with a doctorate in theology used such big words that I couldn't understand much of what he said. He was a new pastor there, and I soon left that church. I've heard preaching so dry that it would turn water into dust if that was possible.

 

[HankD]

Unless one has been educated in a Christian school, the American Great Awakening is probably rarely taught. Hell fire and brimstone were central to much of the preaching. One of the "Fiery" preachers of that time was Jonathan Edwards and his famous "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" (1741).

Here is an exerpt:

But the great God is also willing to show His wrath, and magnify His awful majesty and mighty power, in the extreme sufferings of His enemies. Rom. 9:22, "What if God, choosing to show His wrath and make His power known, bore with great patience the objects of His wrath--prepared for destruction?" And seeing this is His design, and what He has determined, even to show how terrible the unrestrained wrath, the fury and fierceness, of Jehovah is, He will do it to effect. There will be something accomplished and brought to pass that will be a dreadful witness. When the great and angry God has risen up and executed His awful vengeance on the poor sinner, and the wretch is actually suffering the infinite weight and power of His indignation, then will God call upon the whole universe to behold that awful majesty and mighty power that is to be seen in it. Isa. 33:12-13, "The peoples will be burned as if to lime; like cut thornbushes they will be set ablaze. You who are far away, hear what I have done; you who are near, acknowledge my power!"
Thus it will be with you that are in an unconverted state, if you continue in it; the infinite might, and majesty, and terribleness of the omnipotent God shall be magnified upon you, in the inexpressible strength of your torments. You shall be tormented in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb; and when you shall be in this state of suffering, the glorious inhabitants of heaven shall go out and look on the awful spectacle, that they may see what the wrath and fierceness of the Almighty is; and when they have seen it, they will fall down and adore that great power and majesty. Isa. 66:23-24, "'All mankind will come and bow down before me,' says the LORD. And they will go out and look upon the dead bodies of those who rebelled against me; their worm will not die, nor will their fire be quenched, and they will be loathsome to all mankind."
Found in the public domain at: http://www.biblebb.com/files/edwards/je-sinners.htm

I have read that Edwards did not preach this sermon but simply read the text to the congregation. There is evidence to the contrary.

There is a "time" (God's timing) for this kind of preaching.

Ecclesiastes 3:1 To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:​

HankD​

 

[JohnDeereFan]

I need well-balanced preaching. The world needs hellfire and brimstone preaching. The sad thing is many churches are now become a mission filed and in need of evangelization.

A friend and I snuck into my mother's church and slipped Gospel tracts in the hymnals. May be the only opportunity they get to hear the Gospel.

 

[2serve]

I like Hell fire, damnation, spittle, pew jumpin, yeah I said "jumpin" Isle runnin, hymnal chunkin, microphone kicking preaching. It's personal preference. I also like Charles Stanley and I dont think he knows how to make spittle. none the less I know men of God who are the hellfire type and thats who they really are its not only about the delivery its also about whats being delivered.

How many of the hellfire opposers have you seen at their childs baseball game who say go johnny just do your best while you run. and how many of them say GO JOHNNY GO GO GO GO RUN RUN GO TO THIRD GO TO THIRD GO TO THIRD GO HOME GO HOME GO HOME GO HOME GO HOME GO HOME YEAH YEAH YEAH YEAH YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!! Why do they do that when thats not their normal tone, thats not who they really are they should be their selves.

 

[preachinjesus]

It is often noted by church historians that many of the leaders in the Great Awakenings weren't firey, loud preachers but soft and compelling in their tone.

As mentioned, Jonathan Edwards spoke in a soft voice but had people clinging to the support posts of his church as he read his Holy Spirit annointed sermon. Several of the other prominent preachers in that day were not known to yell and holler.

In many revivals across the world there have been multiple styles of preaching used. The compelling point is how the preachers and congregations allowed the Holy Spirit to be used to annoint their gatherings.

 

[sag38]

Most hell fire and brimstone preaching is not preaching. It's more like a diatribe.

 

[JohnDeereFan]

Most hell fire and brimstone preaching is not preaching. It's more like a diatribe.

I disagree. Paul Washer talks about Hell quite a bit and it's some of the best preaching I've ever heard.

 

[Jkdbuck76]

But when he does, does he scream at the top of lungs, pound on the pulpit, turn red, and spit on the front row (remember Gallgher with his Sledge-o-matic?)?

 

[JohnDeereFan]

But when he does, does he scream at the top of lungs, pound on the pulpit, turn red, and spit on the front row (remember Gallgher with his Sledge-o-matic?)?

Although he does have a naturally soft speaking voice, yes, he's been known to be very loud and very passionate when preaching about Hell and sin.

 

[sag38]

Personally, I prefer preaching where the Word sets the agenda.Most hell fire and brimstone style preaching that I have heard was not an exposition of God's word. Yes, the text was read but what was preached didn't really have anything to do with what was read. It was a spit spraying, yelling, diatribe. Yes, the truth was spoken, in a sense, but it was not really preaching. I don't know who Paul Washer is and maybe he is the exception to the rule. In fact, I'm not saying that all hell fire preachers do this.

 

[historyb]

Here is a little about him: Paul Washer

Here is a message he gave, very good

Paul Washer - Shocking Message (full length)

 

[JohnDeereFan]

Personally, I prefer preaching where the Word sets the agenda.Most hell fire and brimstone style preaching that I have heard was not an exposition of God's word. Yes, the text was read but what was preached didn't really have anything to do with what was read. It was a spit spraying, yelling, diatribe. Yes, the truth was spoken, in a sense, but it was not really preaching. I don't know who Paul Washer is and maybe he is the exception to the rule. In fact, I'm not saying that all hell fire preachers do this.

I would strongly encourage you to check him out. He doesn't do this at all.

 

[JohnDeereFan]

Here is a little about him: Paul Washer

Here is a message he gave, very good

Paul Washer - Shocking Message (full length)

You can download twenty or thirty of his messages at itunes. I've got them all and he is very good.

 

[Me4Him]

Without the spirit, we can do nothing,

And with the Spirit, we're not in control.

The day of Pentecost the disciples appeared to be drunk to everyone else.

Ac 2:4 And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

Ac 2:13 Others mocking said, These men are full of new wine.

Ac 2:15 For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day.

Would anyone like the style of a man who appeared to be drunk preaching???

And would you have the "Spiritual discernment" to know if it was Spirit or wine than made him drunk???

"Personal preferences" create the most friction between people and God, and between people, especially when they can't "Spiritual discern" God working in a way that is not their way.

A person preaching by the spirit is not in control of their words, any more than the disciples were, and the person with spiritual discernment will recognize it's not the person preaching but the spirit.

Preaching is not a "man to man" communication, but a "Spirit to Spirit".