PREACHING WHERE GIANTS HAVE TROD
An interview with Joel Gregory
Brian Larson and Marshall Shelley
April 1, 1992
Joel Gregory faces an awesome task: to be only the third pastor this century of First Baptist Church in Dallas, Texas. A church with 29,000 members and 7,000 in attendance each Sunday. A church that is the largest landowner in downtown Dallas (five city blocks). A church with a payroll bigger than most churches have members (400). A church where he follows two of the greatest expositors of this century: George W. Truett (pastor from 1897-1944) and W. A. Criswell (pastor from 1944-1991 and now senior pastor).
While that awesome task may be unique, he faces another awesome task that he shares with thousands of pastors: to preach the Word faithfully and effectively. LEADERSHIP editors Brian Larson and Marshall Shelley sat down with Joel Gregory in his second floor office and talked about preaching and following a great preacher.
Many people remark that your sermons are well-crafted, that they're an art form. Is that something you consciously strive for?
I spend a lot of time on a sermon's structure and framework, which may produce artistry as a byproduct. I'm a structuralist rather than a storyteller. I don't have any conscious desire to present the sermon as an aesthetic experience or a piece of art. Any artistry results from my desire to get the Word of God out of then into now.
Why is structure important to you?
Structure is pleasing and memorable. It's the way people think in Western civilization. Some good minds have said the Bible is more amorphous, more story-driven, and that's true, but I'm not certain the people I preach to receive truth best that way. We start classifying and categorizing with babies: we look at their toes and say, "This little piggy went to market, this little piggy stayed home."
My goal is for the sermon ...
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