Didn't Make the Final Cut:
The hard part of preaching isn't coming up with content.
The hard part of preaching isn't “what am I going to say?”. It's actually “what am I going to cut?”. That's why some sermons seem like pastors get paid by the word.
So I've decided to take some material that got cut and put it on the blog. If Murphy comes up with the technology, maybe someday we can put this material on the sermon podcast and feature “Director's Cut” editions of sermons.
Here was a chunk that got cut from “My God, My God, Why Have You Forsaken Me?”:
"We can lose the impact of hell when we teach on it, because in our day: hell has no fury, because we have trivialized it.
We tell jokes about it, it is depicted in cartoons, it's just a word that makes it into our casual conversations! My knee hurts like hell, that was a hell of a game, he is one hell of a hard worker.
Hell has no fury because we have trivialized it, and people don't know what the Bible actually says about it. People are blissfully ignorant! I have heard many people say regarding hell I know I'm going there, and that's okay – all of my friends will be there.
Such a foolish and tragic statement! You have no idea how horrible hell is! The Bible says it is a place of darkness, weeping, gnashing of teeth, and eternal torment."
I believe all of this is true, but for the sermon Sunday, it didn't fit with the rest of it the way I hoped it would. So it got cut.
See you Sunday!
Pastor Jeff
