EMA: unsearchable riches

Having missed last year, due to conference overload, it was a real treat for me to return to the Proclamation Trust’s annual conference, The Evangelical Ministry Assembly.

The conference, celebrating its 35th birthday, ran from 12–14 June, and was hosted at London’s Barbican Centre. The title was ‘The Unsearchable Riches: Preaching Christ from all Scripture.’ Each day was comprised of four sessions: a ‘study to pulpit’ teaching lesson; a thematic lecture; a small group seminar; and an expository sermon.

As always, catching up with friends during coffee breaks, and thundering out old and new hymns, provided characteristically enriching garnish. However, for those ministers suffering from conference overload this time around, what follows is a quick sample of the aforementioned meaty sessions.

From study to pulpit

Vaughan Roberts (St. Ebbe’s, Oxford) began each day with a talk from Habakkuk. Here Roberts sought not to model expos-itional preaching, but rather how to assemble a model exposition. By ‘unscrambling [his] thought processes when approaching an Old Testament passage’ he attempted to help ministers in their preparations. A highlight were his five key questions to ask when approaching a text: What’s the ‘meat’?; What’s the ‘motive’?; What’s the ‘message’?; What’s the ‘mood’? (an aspect, that Roberts claimed, many British preachers often neglect); and Where’s the ‘Messiah’?

On day two, he warned of ‘spiritualising’ (moving too quickly to Christ without discerning the text’s first audience) and the danger of ‘moralistic preaching’ (jumping to applications without reference to Christ’s fulfilment).

Spurgeon and Biblical Theology

On the first morning, Andrew Atherstone (Wycliffe Hall, Oxford) gave a wonderful ‘pen portrait’ of the Baptist minister, Charles Haddon Spurgeon. Packed with so many memorable Spurgeon quotes, this was a conference highlight for many. He outlined the great preacher’s dramatic conversion and underscored how the key elements of that conversion (God’s sovereignty over the circumstances of it, God’s powerful Word that convicted him, and Christ-centered preaching he heard that day) were significant for his own pulpit ministry.

Another highpoint was James Hamilton (Southern Baptist Seminary, Kentucky) who lectured on Biblical Theology. For me, his most insightful moment came in the initial introduction on the power of story. He explained that both Christians and non-Christians have a controlling narrative that they live their lives by. From there Hamilton further emphasised the significance of story. Not merely the emotive power of narrative, but how every story told gives birth to (or reinforces) an entrenched world-view. This session made me ponder whether our churches have sufficiently harnessed the evangelistic power of Biblical Theology.

Small group seminars

After lunch and a daily perusal of the extensive bookstall, each delegate had opportunity to attend seminars designed to aid the preacher in drawing out Christ from the Old Testament. Christopher Ash (Tyndale House) taught this principle from Psalms, Nigel Styles (Cornhill Training) from Daniel, Gwilym Davies (Cornhill) from Proverbs, and Carrie Sandom (Proclamation Trust) from Old Testament narrative. There were also streams for the evangelist, the novice preacher, and the experienced expositor, led by Rico Tice (All Souls, Langham Place), Andrew Sach (Grace Church Greenwich), and David Jackman (Proclamation Trust), respectively.

Expository sermons

Each day an expositional sermon sought to implement principles discussed in previous sessions. Hence, on day one, Sam Allberry (St Mary’s, Maidenhead) preached from Ezekiel 34. He explained that Christ is the greatest pastor of God’s people – the needed, promised and blessed shepherd.

On Wednesday, William Taylor (St Helen’s Bishopsgate) preached Christ powerfully from 2 Chronicles 18. Drawing on King Jehoshaphat’s failure, Taylor also emphasised our temptation towards royal patronage. His application was clearly for evangelical Anglicans, increasingly under pressure from Canterbury to put unity before Christian principles. However, the temptation to ‘affiliate with some who hate God’s Word and his people’ is undoubtedly a pull all feel in the current cultural climate. The sermon was brave, timely and challenging.

Adrian Reynolds (FIEC) gave the final exposition. He preached from Ezra 2 on Israel’s faithful return to Jerusalem. Here he helpfully underscored that ‘Christ fulfils God’s people at their best.’ Christ is the definitive Israelite, who was the holiest and most sacrificial worshipper. While he also challenged those ‘in Christ’ to be similar worshippers, his chief point was very much the heartbeat of the conference: the most godly and most glorious application comes when the expositor unearths the riches of Christ.

‘The sum of all for those who seek such a treasure-trove of blessings, these blessings of all kinds, is this: from nowhere else than him can they be drawn; for they are ours in Christ alone.’ (John Calvin)