HERALDS OF GOD
you put pen to paper, with the question: "What is the aim and intention of this sermon? What is the central truth it is to convey? Can I concentrate that into a single sentence?" It is true, no doubt, that when Dickens first invented Pickwick there were only the haziest outlines of an idea in the author's mind what to do with the character he had created, true that the early instalments of the story were launched upon the world in serial numbers before any course had been charted or any plot conceived. But for the preacher it is imperative to see the end from the beginning. In every sermon, he must know exactly what truth it is that he is proposing to drive home to the hearer's minds. He must see clearly the objective to which he hopes to lead them. He ought to be able to define it to himself in a dozen words. Without such definiteness of aim, preaching remains self-stultified and ineffectual, and may never touch a single life. With it, the simplest words, taking wings from the Spirit of God, may reach the hidden depths of many hearts.
IV
I am reserving to a later point in our discussion the crucial matter of the choice of texts and subjects. In the meantime let us come to grips with the more technical questions of construction. Let us assume that a particular theme has laid hold upon your mind, so that you feel constrained to preach on it. You have prayed about it, and your main objective is clear.
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