How many times have you listened to a sermon and can remember the illustrations used by the preacher but not the point of them! - or listened to an illustration that makes an entirely different point to the one that the preacher is trying to put across. Using illustrations has an art but Jack Hughes makes it easier for you to by studying a master it too.
This is one of the most helpful books on preaching that I have read. The subtitle "With Illustrations from the Sermons of Thomas Watson" shows why the book is so good. Watson was one of the great Puritan preachers, a vivid wordsmith, and one to be imitated. This was a very helpful book.Here are some Watson samples: "Whoever brings an affliction to us, it is God that sends it." "Zeal in a minister is as proper as fire on the altar." "He who has only a painted holiness shall have a painted happiness." "How many souls have been blown into hell with the wind of popular applause?"
Very helpful encouragement to use word pictures in preaching. He warns against the "pit of abstraction" as it is easier for some (me) to sound more like Berkhof than Jesus. To this end, he surveys the work of Thomas Watson, the master.
A rousing and practical instruction on “adorning” our sermons with vivid language. I disagree with some of his comments about hermeneutics, but otherwise it’s useful.
This is a helpful book which points to the neccessity of and method of illustration in Preaching. There are many helpful illustrations in this book, including an extensive catalogue of word pictures from the Puritan preacher Thomas Watson.
This book will make you think about the power of words! Jack Hughes did a magnificent job with this book... The appendix in the back that has Thomas Watson's words catalogued are worth the price if the book.