Light and Heat: The Puritan View of the Pulpit [Paperback]

Bruce Bickel (Author), R. Bruce Bickel (Author, Preface), Bruce, R. Bickel (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 180 pages
• Publisher: Soli Deo Gloria Ministries; 1 edition (March 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1573580910
• ISBN-13: 978-1573580915
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #150,388 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Puritan Pulpit Ponderings, January 2, 2002

By 

Mark Driscoll (MarsHill Church Seattle, Wa USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Light and Heat: The Puritan View of the Pulpit (Paperback)

A succinct and fascinating historical survey of the Puritan view of Scripture, preaching, and the gospel that includes their more contemporary progeny such as D. Martin Lloyd-Jones and Charles Haddon Spurgeon. The book is primarily a collection of the great Puritan preachers own words and serves as a potent piece of instruction and inspiration in our day of soft pulpits offering chatter and self help-help over a declaration of sin and grace. The appendix includes a contrast of the Finney and Puritan gospels that is a practical help regarding the preaching of the gospel.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Preaching in the Puritans Own Words, March 14, 2007

By 

Brett W. Avants (Saint Charles, MO United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Light and Heat: The Puritan View of the Pulpit (Paperback)

I read this book based on the recommendation of Mark Driscoll. This is a short book of two sections focusing on the role and importance of preaching the Word of God in the Puritan Christian worldview. One section is The Puritan View of the Pulpit, and the other is The Focus of the Gospel in Puritan Preaching, each about 80 pages. All I can say is, WOW! I was immediately humbled and fired up at the same time after reading the words of these great men. The Puritan view of the pulpit is aptly represented by their use of this word as opposed to the use of platform, stage, or podium. They held an incredibly high view of the pulpit and preaching ministry that was based on their high and reverent view of God and the Scriptures. They viewed their task with respect and seriousness, because it is through preaching the Word that God sovereignly draws people to Himself. The words of these Godly men are an antidote to the non-gospel man-centered fluff that is often spoken from the "platform" in a lot of 21st century American churches today. The second section is a comparison between the Puritan approach to preaching and what Finney and modern evangelism usually teach. The appendix is a three-page 25 point summary contrasting the Puritan view of preaching and the approach of Charles Finney, the approach now adopted by many evangelical churches. The book also has a decent bibliography of additional reading for those interested in further exploration of Puritanism. Highly recommended.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Book Review: Light and Heat, June 1, 2010

By 

Alexandre Costa (Columbus, OH USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Light and Heat: The Puritan View of the Pulpit (Paperback)

I'll be honest about something. I don't know if I just read two books or one. In the first section/book, Dr. R Bruce Bickel writes about exactly what the title says. He focuses on the Puritans and how they approached the preaching of the Word in the pulpit. It then ends with a conclusion and bibliography. The second section/book then goes on to describe the Puritan view of the Gospel, which also ends with a conclusion and bibliography. Did I just read two books or one? I don't know. Does it matter? Nope.

Overall, I thought the book was a very useful and practical introduction to Puritan preaching. The author seems to present a concept that is foreign to today's churches. When most Puritan preachers entered the pulpit on Sunday mornings, they really believed that God was the one speaking through them with a unique power that was not present anywhere else. They really believed that their calling was one of the highest callings, if not the highest calling a man could have on this earth. Both thoughts seem to be absent from most churches today.

The second section/book focuses on the Gospel, and I wish that it could be more widely distributed. It opens with the Puritan view of God, and then goes on to the Puritan view of man, and that's really all you need to understand their view of the Gospel. Understanding the true natures God and man is the key to understanding the Gospel, and the author does an excellent job of describing both from the lens of a Puritan preacher.

I have two small complaints though. First, I know that the Puritans had to have had their disagreements, but the author seems to portray their thought as universally like-minded. This just can't be true. Second, the book may have more quotes from words than actual words from the author himself. This made the reading of the book laborious at times. It felt like I was reading more of a research paper than an actual book.

I still wholly recommend this book for somebody looking for a brief, but not easy introduction to Puritan theology and ecclesiology. I would, however, like to point out that it is not worth its price on Amazon. I am assuming that the price is so high because the book is out of print, and it didn't sell many copies when it was originally printed. I don't know though.