Nearly a quarter of a century ago, the late Leonard Johnson spoke to our “Homiletics Class” at Faulkner University about preachers he had heard and known or who had influenced him in some way. Johnson, one of the university’s co-founders, was a wonderful tie to the Restoration Movement having known and heard many of the men who would have had contact with various restoration leaders of the 19th Century. Brother Johnson, who did so much good especially through foreign and stateside, short-term missions, made observations about the following men:

H. Leo Boles:  He did not use gestures, talked slowly, and held his testament in his left hand. He used simple sentences, choosing simple words with few syllables per word. He demonstrated that simplicity is powerful in preaching, that it is vital to proceed logically and change gears smoothly. Make the flow of the sermon logical.  Boles read the Bible to his father for six hours a day while his father was losing his eyesight. As the result, Boles gained so much incidental knowledge that spilled over into his preaching.

N.B. Hardeman:  He was an orator. He was logical, but his preaching was sophisticated. It was easy to remember him, but not as easy to remember his meaty sermons.

Gus Nichols: He could quote every Old Testament and New Testament verse on any given topic. This made his preaching rich. He believed that sectarianism cannot thrive when there is a gospel preacher around who knows the book. Brother Nichols also believed that it never paid to be mean or leave the impression that you think those in error are dishonest.

David Lipscomb (note: brother Johnson was 7-years-old when brother Lipscomb died, so this could be knowledge he learned second-hand): He epitomized the thoroughness of knowledge, which showed in his teaching and preaching. Brother Lipscomb would say, “No one knows enough about a subject until he reads every verse in the Bible about that subject.”

J.W. McGarvey: He was a powerful preacher with a great mind.

Brother Johnson mentioned these men to make a significant point.  They were all very effective, but they were diverse in style, personality, and manner. He urged us, “Don’t be a big-preacher mimic. Be yourself. When it comes to your preaching style and delivery, let it be out of your heart, your voice, and your mind.”  To brother Johnson, what was preeminent was to have substance to your sermon.  He referenced a well-known Nashville area preacher he had heard as a young man.  He said that this preacher was “a great orator, but he had no content. He had great adjectives, but no verbs. No meat. His method employed stringing people along, playing on the emotions.” He concluded, “We must have structure and organization in our content, preparation, and delivery.”

Leonard Johnson was a great source of common sense, wisdom, and insight. Not only was he an effective preacher, he was an effective observer of preachers. Each of us who preach would do well to develop a style that fits our own personality, out of our heart, voice, and mind!