Truth Magazine

By H.E. Phillips

In New Testament days the apostles preached to assemblies of men and women that Christ is Lord, and that his word is the power of God unto salvation (Rom. 1:16,17). “Gospel Meetings” refer to assemblies of people who have come together for the purpose of hearing the gospel of Christ preached to them. Philip, one of the seven chosen to minister to the needy widows (Acts 6:3-5), was sent by the Holy Spirit to the city of Samaria where he preached Christ in a gospel meeting. His preaching was very successful in that city in that “both men and women” were baptized, and it produced great joy in that city. Such meetings occurred all through the New Testament where the apostles and inspired men led the way in preaching the gospel of Christ. Where the church existed, such efforts continued down through the ages by those who knew the mission of the church as “the pillar and ground of the truth” (1 Tim. 3:15).

Churches of Christ have engaged in “meetings” where the gospel was preached on some regular basis from the middle of the last century. The nature, purpose and duration of these meetings have changed over the past one hundred years.

I do not have an abundance of recorded historical information of the early practice of “gospel meetings” among churches of Christ after New Testament times. The nature of this article must depend upon my own experience and the information I have gathered from some gospel preachers of the generation before me. As a young man I spent hours talking to older preachers about their experiences in preaching the gospel. I have especially benefited from talking with such men as Ben F. Taylor, H. Leo Boles, Foy E. Wallace, Jr., Roy E. Cogdill, Charles M. Pullias, C.E.W. Dorris, H.C. Shoulders, N.B. Hardeman, B.C. Goodpasture, and some others. I read history books on the restoration period, and the work of preaching among churches of Christ. For fifty years I read the “new reports” in most of the religious journals among us. That should give a cross section of the general practice of “Gospel Meetings” through the years. From these sources I shall try to construct some historical information regarding gospel meetings. I offer you my understanding of the information gleaned from these sources. You must judge whether this article is of any value to you.

Such meetings as I am discussing were not always known as “Gospel Meetings.” They were referred to as “Protracted Meetings” because they continued over a period of time. They were sometimes designated “Evangelistic Meetings” because the main purpose was to reach denominational people and those who belonged to no church. They were also called “Tent Meetings” in some localities because they were conducted under tents year after year.

After the Civil War and just before World War I, some “Meetings” were arranged by more than one church “cooperating” to provide the place and the preachers for the meeting. Most preachers of that time, including David Lipscomb, E.G. Sewell, and others associated with the Gospel Advocate, opposed this practice.

Occasionally, a debate on doctrinal differences developed from gospel meetings. During the days of J.D. Tant, C.R. Nichol, J. Early Arceneaux, Foy E. Wallace, Jr., Roy E. Cogdill, W. Curtis Porter, and others, many debates with denominational preachers were conducted. Most of these debates developed from gospel meetings in those days. During the I930s and 1940s some churches were established in communities where debates were conducted as the result of “gospel meetings.”

Between World War I and World War II gospel meetings were conducted in school houses, court houses, barns, in brush arbors, tents and occasionally in denominational buildings. The purpose in those meetings was to convince and convert alien sinners to Jesus Christ. Usually large numbers were baptized during the course of each gospel meeting.

My experience in gospel meetings did not begin until near the end of World War II. Reflecting upon the gospel meetings at that time, I believe several factors merged to make them as successful as they were. Some of these factors were: The war turned many to religion to seek God for a solution for their problems that grew out of divided families and the anxieties of war. Opportunities were opened for the gospel in the countries where the military had been during the war. The militant attitude of many churches of Christ during the years immediately following the war made them aggressive in evangelism. Gospel meetings began to increase in number and preachers began to devote their full time to preaching in meetings rather than local work.

During the 1930s and 1940s gospel meetings would often span three Sundays, and sometimes go through the third Wednesday evening. These long meetings resulted from increasing interest as they continued. I remember several meetings in which I preached during the middle ’40s and through the ’50s that would continue a week or more beyond the date advertised to close. The interest continued to mount and both churches and preachers were eager to continue. How could one stop an effort when from one to twelve came to be baptized every night, and several were restored to the Lord each night?

During this period gospel meetings nearly always had day (morning or afternoon) services and evening services every day of the meeting. The preaching was distinctive and forceful. Doctrinal error was exposed and immorality was condemned without apology. Obedience was emphasized in clear language with Bible examples.

During the first half of this country the “pay” for gospel meetings was not what it is today. Often preachers traveled many miles and preached two full weeks or more, and received less than enough to pay for their travel expenses. That happened to me several times during my first twenty years of preaching. I remember talking to brother H.C. Shoulders in my home in 1948 or 1949 about his experiences in gospel meetings. He was in his 80s at the time. He told me that on one occasion he traveled over one hundred miles for a meeting, which lasted two weeks. On the last Sunday the brethren “took up a collection for the preacher” and brother Shoulders said he received $6.29. He put in $2.00 of that amount. He had to travel by train to his next meeting, and borrowed $10.00 from a brother to buy the train ticket. After two weeks in the second meeting, he received $8.50 for his labors. His total income for preaching in two gospel meetings for four weeks was $14.79. I think he said his expenses were about $39.00 for those meetings. That was not an isolated incident! I have preached in a few meetings that cost me up to $50.00 out of pocket to pay my travel expenses above what I received for the meetings. Most every gospel preacher of my generation had this same experience. Later churches began to pay preachers more for assisting them in gospel meetings.

During the 1950s gospel meetings were used by some preachers and churches to promote certain doctrinal issues that later divided churches across the land. The liberal ideas of the social gospel, institutional agencies through which churches should pool their financial resources in evangelism and benevolence, and cooperation of churches through one eldership became the central theme in many gospel meetings across the land. This led to division. During the ’50s and ’60s I had many gospel meetings canceled because of the influence of the promoters of church supported human institutions.

Gospel meetings began to be for shorter periods of time in the 1960s. The six day annual meeting became the pattern. During this period of time many churches re-quested preachers to deal with a specific subject during these six days. Usually that subject concerned the issues of that time.

During the ’70s and ’80s the three day meeting became popular. Some churches decided to have one full week (six days, Sunday through Friday) meeting and a three-day meeting (Friday, Saturday and Sunday) during the year. The three day meeting generally was directed toward some special subjects.

Today serious concern plagues churches in general over the country regarding gospel meetings. It is becoming more difficult to get people to attend a gospel meeting. Forty or fifty years ago the buildings were filled from the first night with denominational people and those who were not members of any religious body. The members were able to bring their neighbors and family members. The members of the church where the meeting was conducted came regularly every day and night to the preaching. They did not depend upon faithful members of neighboring churches of Christ to have a decent audience. Interest increased during the meeting and many were obedient to the gospel. But now it is difficult to get the members of the church having the gospel meeting to attend more than Sunday morning and Wednesday night. We must depend upon other churches of Christ in the area to provide a audience, and that is not as easy as it was a few years ago. There am exceptions, of course

Over the past two decades efforts have been made to stimulate gospel meetings by having a “lectureship” in which two or more gospel preachers preach in three or four services each day on special subjects. These efforts expect to attract the attention of several churches in an area and rely upon their attendance to provide a good audience. The problem is that it does not attract aliens sinners and denominational people. The more mature and faithful Christians enjoy these lessons, but the ones who need them are not there.

Gospel meetings provide a good way to edify a local church and reach some few who come a time or two, but they are not presently reaching the lost people who need the gospel. We must work harder to encourage people to attend meetings where the simple gospel of Christ is preached. We must secure men who will earnestly preach Christ unto the people, and preach “the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ” (Acts 8:12).

Guardian of Truth XXXVII: 16, p. 2
August 19, 1993

By Dorris V. Rader

The fact that it pays to advertise is well known by all successful businessmen in the business world. Could it be that this is one area in which quite often “the children of this world are wiser in their generation than the children of light” (Luke 16:8)? As popular as Coca-Cola is, they still feel that it pays to advertise. Without a doubt this is one reason for the common knowledge of this beverage. One preacher, on a preaching tour of another continent, stated that he found more people who had heard of Coca-Cola than had ever heard of Jesus Christ. Good advertising gets good results.

By the term advertising, I mean publicizing, making an appeal in behalf of what we are endeavoring to do and seeking to encourage people to attend. I do not believe that advertising in the fullest sense is accomplished by merely posting a sign that includes the words “Gospel Meeting,” the date, time and speaker. That says something to be sure, but does it fully advertise the meeting? How many people who see this statement really have a proper concept of what a gospel meeting is?

One preacher, who preaches in a number of meetings each year, related to me about preaching in a meeting which he felt had been kept a closely guarded secret. It seems that even other congregations in the town were not made aware that the meeting was being held. Announcements had been made only from the local pulpit. Beyond this, nobody had bothered to noise it abroad. Needless to say, the meeting was poorly attended. Most likely, some of the brethren felt that they had selected the wrong man for the meeting. The preacher likely felt that his time would have been better spent somewhere else. I am sorry to say that at times, some brethren appear to feel that we have no responsibility beyond seeing that we have some preaching in our building from time to time. If people are as interested as they should be, they will find out about this and come. If they don’t, then we have done all that is expected of us. After all, we tell ourselves, “you can’t make people come “

What to do about advertising a meeting is discussed at least annually in most “men’s business meetings.” Frequently, the matter of advertising is passed over with very little thought. The question may be raised as to who will see that the newspapers get an announcement of our meeting. And maybe brother Blank will finally say, “well I guess I can see to that.” Then, someone may ask if it would be agreeable with all to pay the preacher the same amount we paid last year (and the year before that and so on). That sounds good enough to everybody and so we are now ready for our annual big meeting. Admittedly, this may be a somewhat overdrawn picture in many cases, but I strongly suspect that many will hear a familiar note in the above. And frankly, if men in the business world operated with such little forethought and prudence in their secular business, there would be far more failed businesses than we now see. The consequences of failed spiritual endeavors are far greater than those of our secular affairs. Are you listening?

Surely, it is the part of wisdom to use various media opportunities to let the community know what we are offering through such efforts as our gospel meetings. Attractive newspaper ads and articles may be most helpful. Television and radio spots may be and should be used most effectively. But let us not salve our consciences by relying solely on these as fulfilling our responsibility to let the community know about our efforts. There is much more to really advertising a gospel meeting.

A number of years ago I read an enlightening report in the Eastland News, the bulletin of the Eastland church in Nashville, Tennessee (Aug. 18, 1966). Visitors during their meeting had been given a visitor’s card which asked how they came to know about the meeting. The results were tabulated from the cards in order to evaluate the various forms of advertising done prior to that particular meeting. Below you can see the results of that study.

Personal invitation from members 56%

Announcement of other congregations 30%

Letters and cards from members 22%

Eastland News (bulletin) 21%

Daily newspaper 17%

Other congregations (bulletins) 4%

Sign in the yard 3%

The above information should stimulate us to put more on the personal contact method of advertising. Armed with the above evidence, the church where I now preach decided, on one occasion, to rely exclusively on the personal contact method. The membership was informed that all the advertising would be done on that basis. Cooperation was truly outstanding. The results were most gratifying. We had the best attended meeting ever, with more visitors than any previous effort. The personal aspect had been the difference. We all know this to be the case, but we do not always make proper use of it. Am I advocating that congregations abandon the use of news-paper, radio, television, and other forms of advertising? Not at all. By all means, make full use of these with attractive, carefully worded messages. But we all know what works best. Even realtors will tell you that their best advertisement comes through personal contacts with satisfied customers. Without the personal advertisements, we lose so much that could otherwise be gained.

While writing this article, I received an invitation to a “special sale” of new and used automobiles. It caught my attention and I found myself seriously considering attending this sale. Now, I had known for some time that I really needed to consider replacing my present “experienced car.” I asked myself just why I had considered this sale, when every day I see car dealers advertisements in the paper and “for sale” signs on individual cars and pay very little attention to them? The answer hit me. This one was a “personal invitation” from the dealer. He had called me by name, and stated that he was not placing any ads about this sale in the papers or on the air waves. It was all by personal invitation. A few of us who had been invited were requested to bring our “invitations” with us to get in for this special sale. Ah, that was it! These people were taking an interest in me. Now, of course I know they had something to profit from it. But, it didn’t hurt at all to know that I had been personally invited. You see how it works when people show an interest in the individual. Examples of the importance of recognizing the value of the individual could be multiplied from the Scriptures.

Last, but not least, let each of us realize that our daily life is an advertisement of all our efforts as the people of God. Let us so live that others can truly see that we have “been with Jesus” (Acts 4:13). They must see that what we are offering to others is truly the rule in our own life (Phil. 1:27). That, dear brethren, will be effective advertisement of all our gospel efforts. Without this, little will be accomplished by any other type of advertisement. May God help us that what we are daily will magnify Christ and work in conjunction with other efforts to effectively advertise all our meetings, special and any other efforts.

Guardian of Truth XXXVII: 16, p. 14-15
August 19, 1993

By Weldon E. Warnock

Gospel meetings can still be an effective method to save lost souls, as well as edify and motivate the church. Most congregations usually have one or two meetings a year with great evangelists to preach in their protracted efforts. It has been my privilege to have been involved in many of these through the years, both as speaker, and as the local preacher working with congregations in conducting a meeting with a guest preacher.

Vividly, I can remember great meetings with such brethren as Frank Puckett, Homer Halley, Roy Cogdill, James Cope, Foy Wallace, C.D. Plum, H.E. Phillips, Jack McElroy, Luther Blackmon, Marshall Patton, Lloyd Nash, Fred Dennis, and others. Truth was preached and men and women were delivered from the bondage of sin. What these men preached during those days is what the churches need to hear now.

1. We need the old, Jerusalem gospel in gospel meetings. Men are lost in sin. The only remedy is the gospel of Christ. If the day of preaching the pure, unadulterated gospel is outdated, then the day of salvation is outdated. Paul wrote, “It pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe” (1 Cor. 1:21). Salvation is contingent upon preaching.

Preaching saves, but not just any kind of preaching. It must be gospel preaching (Mark 16:15-16). Paul said the gospel is the power of God unto salvation (Rom. 1:16). The word “power” is a translation of the Greek word dunamis, from which we get the word “dynamite.” The gospel is, therefore, the dynamite of God, powerful enough to blast sin out of man and man out of sin.

The apostle Paul was cognizant of the fact that the gospel was to be preached in order to save men. He wrote to the Corinthians, “I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; by which ye are saved” (1 Cor. 15:1-2). The glad tidings of salvation was not beneath the dignity of this grand apostle. He wasn’t interested in public acclaim, impressing the intellectuals, or endearing himself to the socially elite, but he was only concerned about preaching Christ and him crucified. “When I came to you, I came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know any thing among you save Jesus Christ, and him crucified” (1 Cor. 2:1-2).

Many have become disenchanted with the old gospel and fascinated with a new gospel. They are enthralled with clichés, sound-bites, trite sayings, scenarios, book and newspaper reviews, stories, accentuating the positive and eliminating the negative, etc., instead of the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ. You hear very little Scripture and no analysis of the one or two given. Some of us are simply beating the air in our preaching with no substance. Paul says, “Pre ach the word” (2 Tim. 4:2). Of course, this would include a broad spectrum of biblical subjects.

2. We need to preach a simple gospel. Too many preachers are pre-occupied with the highly intellectual, theological and philosophical approach to preaching. It appears they are full of themselves, trying to demonstrate their much learning. Formal education of preachers is good and beneficial in many ways, but we need to realize it is a tool, a means to an end, and not something that elevates us above others. (Neither should we glory in our ignorance.) Foy Wallace used to say that he had all the degrees necessary to preach the gospel when he was normal  98.6.

Some of us get carried away with Greek and Hebrew. We can’t say a dozen words without going into the original language. I commend a brother who knows Greek and Hebrew. It is most helpful. But to give us a course in foreign languages every time he preaches is a little much. Marshall Keeble was in a debate many years ago with a sectarian preacher. The preacher resorted to the Greek. Keeble hardly knew anything about Greek. He asked for all in the audience who knew Greek to raise their hands. No hands went up. Keeble looked at his opponent and said, “We better stick with the English  something our audience is acquainted with.” Brother Keeble knew how to simplify truth.

Jesus was the master teacher. Much of his preaching was with one and two syllable words and the common people heard him gladly. He employed illustrations of which his hearers were familiar. We would do well in imitating Him. (Even the meat of the gospel can be preached with clarity.) I hear brethren talking about component parts and constituent elements to “prove” a position. If it requires all this kind of mental calisthenics to understand truth, many of us am in trouble.

Some of the old-timers used to say that they like to shuck and shell the corn in order that the calves could eat it. I recall a statement attributed to Fred Dennis. He said that Jesus told Peter to feed his sheep  not his giraffes. Paul wrote that Christ sent him “to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect” (1 Cor. 1:17).

3. We need to preach a certain gospel. Let us proclaim facts, not theories, certainties and not doubts. Truth can be understood (John 7:17; 8:32; Eph. 3:3-4; 1 John. 2:21). Preach it with conviction! Act like we believe it!

Many times preachers raise questions and never give any answers. The audience leaves the meeting bewildered. What has happened to the bold statement in sermons: “The Bible says”? Some of us would rather quote Shakespeare, Freud, Billy Graham, Charles Stanley, Charles Swindoll or Pat Robertson than the God of heaven. Shame on us! What do these men know about going to heaven. They don’t have the words of life!

Let’s preach with certainty that there is only one way to be saved, one church, one faith, one baptism, one inerrant, inspired Bible, one Lord, one pattern for worship, one organization of the church, and one absolute moral code. Preach it, brother, and not this general, “tip-toe-through-the tulips” type of preaching that resembles a pep talk before the big game in the NCAA finals.

People need to know they are lost if they have not obeyed the gospel. They need to be brought face to face with their sins. When the people on Pentecost heard Peter, they were pricked in their hearts (Acts 2:37). A lot of preaching being done today wouldn’t nettle anybody. When we preach about improving our self-image and making alien sinners and erring saints feel good about themselves, we are being stupid, to put it bluntly.

W. Curtis Porter wrote several years ago, “Preaching that is not distinctive enough to make the lost realize they are lost is not the kind of preaching it takes to save men. Whenever an unfaithful brother, one guilty of sins against the high heaven, or with an ungodly attitude toward the word of the Lord can sit under a man’s preaching without feeling any discomfort or alarm, there is probably something wrong with the preaching. The man needs to be blasted with the gospel dynamite till he can see his lost condition. As long as your preaching allows him to feel secure in his sins he will not likely be redeemed from his sinful state” (Gospel Advocate). Brother Porter was right. Some think his remarks are from the back-waters of ignorance, prejudice and intolerance, but such thinking shows just how little these modem neophytes know about the gospel and the way to preach it.

This loose attitude toward truth lurks in the shadows in many places, if not brazenly in the open. I was talking to a young man recently and he rejected examples as binding and necessary inferences as obligatory. To him the only thing that mattered was commands. He maintained that the day and frequency of the Lord’s supper were optional. I asked him if once every ten years would be acceptable? I reminded him that my judgment was as good as his and if I decided that every ten years would be sufficient to observe the Supper, logically and scripturally, if he were correct, I would be right. Dusty Owens has been writing recently that the time and frequency of the Lord’s supper doesn’t matter. In fact, Dusty makes coming to worship in the assembly on any occasion a matter of whether you want to come or not. His thinking is as convoluted as the young man above.

Brethren, it is past time that we get back to preaching the doctrine of Christ in a sure, determinate, definite, decisive, unmistakable, unequivocal and absolute manner. I am disgusted, along with a lot of other brethren, with honey-mouthed men who masquerade as gospel preachers. Success in a gospel meeting is not judged by the hoopla of denominational campaigns. We need sound and healthy doctrine  not a placebo.

4. We need to preach a militant gospel. Foy E. Wallace said, “The church grew when the fight was waged and the battles raged. When the let-up came in the fight, the let-down came in the church. It is said that the denominations do not fight any more. That is because the church has quit fighting and they have nothing to fight” (The Gospel For Today).

Jude wrote, “Ye should earnestly contend for the faith” (v. 3). This is a call to arms, a rousing battle cry. It means to “agonize, straggle.” Too many are forgetting we are engaged in a spiritual war that means life or death (Eph. 6:12; 1 Tim. 1:18; 6:12).

While the devil and his forces are running to and fro over the earth, some of us are joining hands with his cunning agents in compromise and duplicity. Religious error and moral degeneracy should not be allowed to have a safe sanctuary in the church. But regrettably, it does, such as unscriptural marriages, social drinking, immodest dress, no binding examples (although Jesus left us an example to walk in his steps, 1 Pet. 2:21), unity in diversity, instrumental music as a moot issue, and several other things.

First century preachers went out into the world and turned it upside down (Acts 17:6). I can envision some of our present-day “Zig Ziglar’s” in the synagogue at Antioch of Pisidia or amidst the multitudes at Ephesus. In both places they would have won the Chamber of Commerce award. But not Paul. He preached one Lord, one faith, one hope and one God. Should we do less?

Because false teachers still abound in our time, we must be militant. Truth is perverted (Gal. 1:6-10), exchanged for a lie (Rom. 1:25) and withstood (2 Tim. 3:8). Give us men like Joshua, Caleb, Micaiah, Jeremiah, John the Baptist, Stephen and Paul to fight the good fight. We don’t need flatterers, pussyfooters, apple-polishers, men-pleasers and hirelings. We need real, courageous men who preach the gospel out of love for the souls of men and women, boys and girls.

This is the type of preaching that we need in gospel meetings!

Guardian of Truth XXXVII: 16, p. 7-8
August 19, 1993

By Johnie Edwards

Gospel meetings include keeping and feeding the visiting preacher. Where to keep the preacher and what to feed him often becomes a problem with lots of churches. Preachers are easier to keep and feed than most guests you will have in your home. Often the preacher stays with whoever happens to volunteer to keep him. One place I remember going to stands out in my mind. When I arrived the lady of the house said, as I knocked on the door, “Come on in, you are going to stay here. Since we have air conditioning, we got stuck with you.” I knew I was in for a delightful week!

There are usually two extremes in keeping and feeding the preacher. Some go to too much trouble and then there are those who make little or no preparation for a decent place for the preacher to stay.

Where Should We Keep The Preacher?

Shall we keep the preacher in a motel or in a private home? I assure you up front, that with most preachers, they fit right into whatever the local church decides. I have stayed in motels and I have stayed with some of the finest people on earth.

1. Don’ t put the preacher in a place where gossip might start. Often a family will offer to keep the preacher where the man of the house goes off to work early in the morning and the preacher is left alone with the man’s wife during the day. This is not a good arrangement. Some are just looking for something to gossip about and here is a good place to get something started. We must “give none occasion to the adversary to speak reproachfully” (1 Tim. 5:14).

2. Let the preacher know where he will be staying. Sometimes the preacher has no idea where he will be staying until he gets to the place of the meeting. Knowing the place to stay may help the preacher in determining what to bring with him. Some churches wait until the last minute to make preparation for keeping the preacher and the place of stay is not ready for him!

3. Keep the preacher where he can have privacy. Everyone needs privacy whether at home or away. I have stayed in homes where you had to go through someone’s bedroom to get to the bathroom! This is not good. I recall staying in a home where a little boy kept coming into my mom and trying on my ties. If I decided to rest or take a nap, this same little boy would always come into my room and ask, “Mr. Edwards, are you asleep?” I would politely say, “Well not now!”

4. Keep the preacher where the family is comfortable with guests. Some people are nervous when guests are in the house, especially the preacher. I recall being in a home, that, when we sat at the table to eat, the lady of the house made sure that I sat in a certain chair facing a certain wall! Later her husband told me, “You know why my wife made you sit where she did? She made me paint that one wall before you came, so it would look clean?” I was more interested in looking at and eating the food, than the wall. Don’t be up-tight when you keep the preacher. He is only human as you are. Often the children keep the parents upset, afraid they will act-up or say things to embarrass the parents. A little girl set the table, one time, as the preacher was dining with the family and the little girl did not give the preacher any utensils. When the mother asked, “Why no utensils for the preacher?” The little girl replied, “Mother, I heard you say the preacher ate like a pig!” Thank God for honest children. Learn to treat the preacher nice you want to be treated. Jesus said, “Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets” (Matt. 7:12).

A Family Who Kept The Preacher

The Bible tells us of a family who kept the preacher in the Old Testament. Please take the time to read these verses: “And it fell on a day, that Elisha passed to Shunem, where was a great woman; and she constrained him to eat bread. And so it was, that as oft as he passed by, he turned in thither to eat bread. And she said unto her husband. Behold now, I perceive that this is an holy man of God, which passeth by us continually. Let us make a little chamber, I pray thee, on the wall; and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a stool, and a candlestick: and it shall be, when he cometh to us, that he shall turn in thither. And it fell on a day, that he came thither, and he turned into the chamber, and lay them. And he said to Gehazi his servant, call this Shunammite. And when he had called her, she stood before him. And he said unto him, Say now unto her, Behold, thou hast been careful for us with this care; what is to be done for thee? Wouldest thou be spoken for to the king, or to the captain of the host? And she answered, I dwell among mine own people” (2 Kings 4:8-13). A great deal can be learned from this Old Testament story:

1. The Shunammite woman was full of hospitality. Preachers enjoy staying where the people “use hospitality one to another without grudging” (1 Pet. 4:9). This family in 2 Kings understood hospitality.

2. She recognized the Holy Man of God. Preachers need to learn to behave properly when they are guests in the homes of others. Pick up and put up. Make-up the bed and leave the bathroom clean when finished with. Be kind and courteous to the host. Display the spirit of Christ always; practice what we preach is essential on the part of the preacher. Set a good example that the hosts realizes a “holy man of God” is a guest in their home!

3. The preacher felt welcome. Evidently he did, for he kept “turning in thither to eat bread, as he passed by.” When feeding the preacher, let him eat as he deems best. Don’t try to overfeed him or stuff him. Most preachers like to eat and an enjoyable part of a gospel meeting is visiting and eating with the brethren, but don’t overdo it. Eating two meals and perhaps “cake and coffee” after services keeps the preacher so full, that he can hardly breathe, due to being overstuffed! Help the gospel preacher live longer by not insisting that he over-eat!

4. Knowing the needs of a preacher. Preachers need some basic things in the place where they stay. I have stayed in places with no closets, no lights, no chair or table, only a bed! This lady of Shunem recognized the needs of a preacher. She made ready for him, a bed, a table, a stool and a light. Wasn’t she thoughtful? A preacher needs to study everyday (2 Tim. 2:15); so, a table and a chair sure do come in handy, along with good lighting.

5. She showed care and concern. The preacher said, “Behold, thou hast been careful for us with all this care” (2 Kings 4:13). Folks who keep the preacher need to show care and concern. Most of the places I have stayed over the years have done just that. Those who do not know how to show care and concern ought not to be keeping the preacher in the first place.

6. The family expected nothing in return. When Elisha asked, “What is to be done for thee?” The woman said, “I dwell among mine own people.” She was saying, “You don’t owe me a thing; I expect nothing in return for what we have done.” Isn’t that a great attitude? The family who keeps the preacher usually gets far more out of the gospel meeting than anyone else. What better person do you know of being in your home than a dedicated holy man of God? The gospel preacher ought to be a man of knowledge concerning the Word of God. It is a good time to discuss some Bible subjects and ask questions that you have always wanted to ask.

Learn to treat the gospel meeting preacher as you do home folks. He doesn’t expect to be entertained. Just use the regular bed sheets and bath towels. He will sleep better and dry-off easier, than if you buy all new linens.

Preachers need to show appreciation for those who go out of their way to keep them and make them feel comfort-able while away from home.

Guardian of Truth XXXVII: 16, p. 9-10
August 19, 1993