Just A Thought

Jonathan Edwards was one of New England’s most influential preachers and a catalyst for the Great Awakening, a revival that swept thousands of people into churches during the early 1700s. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy goes so far as to say that Edwards "is widely acknowledged to be America's most important and original philosophical theologian." His preaching (rather God’s anointing) stirred large crowds and triggered very emotional responses. As is often the case when God moves mightily on men, Edwards and other men who preached passionately, as well as those who responded with any obvious demonstration of emotion, were often accused of being fanatical. My question is: Shouldn’t preaching be passionate, and shouldn’t people respond in kind?

Some might argue that church should be staid and solemn, and that parishioners should sit quietly or respond only through pre-planned readings. Undoubtedly quiet and order have their place in public worship, but is that the way early Christians did it? Does that fit the Biblical model?

Consider the following reports concerning preachers and parishioners who lived in the first couple of centuries:

• Jesus summed up all of Christianity by admonishing his followers to: “Love the Lord your God with all your passion and prayer and intelligence.' This is the most important, the first on any list. But there is a second to set alongside it: 'Love others as well as you love yourself.' These two commands are pegs; everything in God's Law and the Prophets hangs from them." (Matthew 22:37-40 MSG)
• On the very day the church was established, the main speaker (St Peter) “lifted up his voice”, and the congregation spoke in languages they did not know until some thought they were drunk. (Acts 2)
• A critic of a third century, apostolic preacher said, “(1) He was accused of striking his thigh with his hand and stamping with his foot when he preached. (2) Those in his congregation frequently clapped their hands and shook or waved handkerchiefs as he preached. (3) Members of his congregation shouted and danced, or leaped about, as he preached!” p145 (Malchion, Epistle, quoted in Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History 7:30, Post-Nicene Fathers 1:314.)

Have you noticed, most people have no problem with passionate politicians, passionate movie stars, passionate musicians, passionate singers, passionate rappers, or passionate sports figures. In fact, in many cases, we insist on their passion. For example, during America’s last presidential contest the crowds went wild over their candidates and celebrated their passionate speaking abilities. The candidates who were considered boring quickly dropped out of the race. We didn’t reject the passionate politicians as fanatics. Furthermore, many readers are among the thousands of people who regularly attend rock concerts, political events, ball games and dance halls where people are often purposely whipped into a frenzy in an effort to create a “good time.”

Ironically, unlike preachers and their audiences, those mentioned above don’t even have as much to be passionate about. Few, if any, of the above mentioned pursuits are a matter of eternal life and death. Neither are the attendees usually responding to someone who died for them. Nor are the participants typically helping others to embrace a cure for sin and a kingdom that will go on forever. So, to be fair, preachers and their audiences should be more passionate than any other group that meets. It might be said that the only appropriate way to preach is with passion and anointing, and that the only appropriate way to respond to preaching is with one’s whole being. In short, the answer to my question is “Most certainly!”