Congratulations to Dr. John Koessler! His newest book, Folly, Grace, and Power: The Mysterious Act of Preaching has just been named one of “The Year’s Best Books in Preaching” by Preaching Magazine. An excerpt from the Preaching Magazine article is included below, or you can read the whole article here.
John Koessler’s book Folly, Grace and Power: The Mysterious Act of Preaching (Zondervan) is a rare volume that deals seriously with the issue of the theology of preaching.
Too much contemporary preaching is trivial, Koessler believes, as it attempts to “smooth out the rough edges of the Christian life and offer pat answers to the audience’s problems.” We follow in Fosdick’s steps, attempting to use preaching to “solve the audience’s problems,” when that is not the primary purpose of preaching. In fact, “it is entirely possible that some preaching, if it is true to Scripture, may actually create problems.”
He explores the divine and human dimensions of preaching and discusses the nature of the authority of biblical preaching. He emphasizes the necessity of preachers as those who speak for God, trumpeting “God’s final word by preaching Christ crucified.” Along the way, Koessler offers counsel to preachers in today’s church. He concludes with a reaffirmation of the essential partnership of preaching and theology and reminds us that preaching is an eschatological act—we proclaim the Christ who came and is coming again.
I’ve mentioned before the Folly, Grace, and Power has also won a Preaching Today Book Award and was a finalist for a Christianity Today Book of Year Award. So, the reviews are in, the critics have spoken: preachers – you really should read Folly, Grace, and Power.
