Open-air preaching
Open-air preaching, street preaching, or public preaching is the act of
In the Bible
One of the earliest open-air preachers of Christianity, according to the
After Jesus' death and resurrection, many of his apostles and followers started street preaching the gospel in the Temple of Jerusalem and in other open spaces.[1][2]
The Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry lists the "many examples of street preaching in the Bible" as including Noah, Solomon, Ezra, Jeremiah, Jonah, John the Baptist, Jesus Christ, Peter, Paul, Phillip and Apollos.[6]
Reformation
During the
Evangelical Revivals
Early
Open-air preachers throughout history have often noted that preaching to large crowds often causes preachers to be abused in certain ways, even having objects thrown at them such as rotting vegetables or unsanitary liquids of many varieties.[14] It was said that one of the regular practices of American evangelist Dwight L. Moody in the late 1860s "was to exhort the passersby in the evenings from the steps of the court house. Often these impromptu gatherings drew as many hecklers as supporters."[15]
In the late 19th century and early-to-mid 20th century many famous open-air preachers in the United States began to preach, such as Billy Graham and Billy Sunday.[16] Graham in particular used a combination of open-air preaching and the recent advent of televangelism to broadcast his sermons, which often took place in large venues such as stadiums, to large portions of the world and millions of Americans.[17]
Charles Spurgeon, the famous open-air Baptist preacher of England, believed that open-air preaching was instrumental in getting people to hear the gospel who might otherwise never hear it,[2][18] and today, open-air preachers such as Ray Comfort believe that it reaches many more people at once than other approaches to evangelism do.[19]
Notable open-air preachers
Historic
- Saint John the Baptist
- Saint Dominic
- Saint Francis of Assisi
- Saint Vincent Ferrer
- William Booth
- D. L. Moody
- Charles Spurgeon
- John Wesley
- George Whitefield
- George Wishart
Active in the 21st century
- Micah Armstrong
- Jed Smock
- Ray Comfort
- Samuel Chambers(State Street Preacher)
- Reinhard Bonnke
- David Grisham
References
- ^ a b c d Spurgeon, p. 234
- ^ Charles H. Spurgeon.
- ^ "Bible Gateway passage: Matthew 5:1 - New International Version". Bible Gateway.
- ^ "Beginner's Discipleship Class 13c : Why Street Preaching is Biblical". Real Bible Believers. 29 March 2020.
- ^ "What is Biblical Street Evangelism? - Right Biblical Street Evangelism". www.conformingtojesus.com.
- ^ Tony Miano/Matt Slick, "Are There Examples of Street Preaching in the Bible?" Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry http://www.carm.org/biblical-examples-street-preaching
- ^ Spurgeon, p. 235
- ^ Spurgeon, p 236
- ^ Spurgeon, p. 241
- ^ Spurgeon, p. 257
- ^ Gibson, James. "Wesleyan Heritage Series: Entire Sanctification". South Georgia Confessing Association. Archived from the original on 29 May 2018. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
- ^ The first Great Awakening Archived 2010-01-25 at the Wayback Machine, Tony Cauchi, Jamaica Gleaner
- New York Times
- ^ Spurgeon, Pg. 250
- ^ "A History Of Street Preaching". Soulwinning.info. Archived from the original on 2012-08-22. Retrieved 2013-02-15.
- ^ "Billy Sunday Salty evangelist". ChristianityToday.com. Archived from the original on 2007-02-15.
- ^ "Lee, R. "The History Guy: The Reverend Billy Graham"". Archived from the original on 2007-01-13. Retrieved 2007-02-04.
- ^ Spurgeon, p. 255
- ^ "The Evidence Bible", Ray Comfort, Bridge-Logos Publishers, 2003, p. 1183
Bibliography
- ISBN 0-310-32910-8