efore leaving this survey of Morgan's major themes it may prove profitable to inquire whether or not he avoided certain themes. It has been said that Morgan neglected current events and social issues in his preaching. There is merit to this assertion in that he did not preach on such themes frequently. To say that he avoided them altogether, however, would be inaccurate. Edgar DeWitt Jones has quoted Morgan as saying: "It was never my habit in pastorates …. to preach on current events. But there have been hours when it was necessary that from the pulpit there should sound the prophetic voice to some national or international situation" (American Preachers of Today, p. 287). Fant writes, "Morgan did not dwell on current issues as much as some other preachers of his day. But he did not neglect them Morgan preached on specific social issues as well as on social injustice in general" (Twenty Centuries of Great Preaching, vol. VIII, p. 7). F.A. Robinson noted that he "made the gospel poignantly relevant to the perplexing problem of social conditions" (J. Morgan, p. 247). There were times when he adapted to significant events almost on the spot. Once in California, on the first Sunday in February of 1924, thirty minutes after the service started, he received a note that Woodrow Wilson (whom he knew personally and who frequently visited his meetings) had passed away. He said, "I abandoned my sermon, read Joshua 1.1-2, and spoke out of my heart for half an hour" (J. Morgan, p. 241). "Righteousness of Revenue" (Westminster Pulpit, vol. IV, p. 59), a sermon opposing the legalizing of dope, is an example of a sermon on social issues. "Suffer the Children" (vol. III, p. 73) on the treatment of children is another. It has already been noted in chapter one that Morgan rendered a great service to his countrymen through the series of sermons he preached in the fall of 1914 immediately following Britain's entry into World War I. To say that he ignored such themes, therefore, is inaccurate; it is true, by his own admission, that he did not preach on them frequently.
rnest Jeffs has offered another critique, that Morgan "cannot be claimed as a complete and typical champion of orthodoxy because of his significant avoidance of controversial phrases and emphases" (p. 169-70). There is truth in this, too, though it must be understood that Morgan felt justified in so doing. He felt his to be an apologetic by interpretation rather than by argumentation. Morgan relied heavily on the subjective experience of his hearers as proof of the Christian truth claims and is a major weakness in this approach; nevertheless, this affected Morgan's choice of themes. Another contributing factor was Morgan's fear of being branded sectarian (Turnbull, p. 437). He emphasized time and again the universality of the Church and the revelation of God for all Christians. He wrote: "Creeds do not ensure orthodoxy, for no individual church holds all the truth of the Church. The great body of truth is the property of the catholic Church, not of any section, nor yet of any individual member thereof" (The Spirit of God, p. 143). Not to deny the truth of this, such a position might be expected of one raised a Baptist, baptized a Methodist, ordained a Congregationalist and holding Presbyterian as well as Congregational ministries. One of his sons entered the Episcopalian ministry. It might also be expected of one who was an effective itinerate preacher dealing with audiences containing Christians of all denominations of Protestantism. Not surprisingly he said, "I preach positive New Testament truth. I am constantly bearing testimony to the central verities of our faith" (J. Morgan, This Was His Faith, p. 308); "my work, is wholly constructive and I believe that it is the only kind that is really of value" (Wiersbe, Walking with the Giants, p. 136). Given that Morgan was right to attempt to avoid sectarianism and negativism in his preaching; nevertheless he might have been a more effective apologist and might have been able to do much more to prevent the spiritual bankruptcy to come in future British generations had he chosen to treat controversial themes of the day positively and directly.
ll in all, however, Morgan's preaching demonstrated both balance and a consistent set of explicitly acknowledged priorities. The balance was achieved by preaching on a wide variety of themes and texts. Though preaching infrequently on social issues, he was able to bring Scripture to bear on national needs and issues when occasion demanded it. Not attacking controversial themes outright was a conscious choice that Morgan felt justified in, for he had thought through his method of apologetics. Morgan preached from the New Testament more than the Old Testament, though he preached more from the Old Testament than many preachers do.
e preached on the gospels more than the epistles, but one might expect this from a preacher who made it his explicit aim to draw attention to the Living Word through the Written Word. The Westminister Pulpit contains sermons from forty-eight of the sixty-six Bible books; sermons from the others can be found in other collections. Also, variety was not achieved at the expense of planned preaching. Members of his congregation at Westminster tell of his preaching passage by passage through Bible books (J. Morgan, p. 352). Through preaching on these themes and texts, Morgan was able to meet the needs of the crowds who thronged to hear him preach.
efore leaving this survey of Morgan's major themes it may prove profitable to inquire whether or not he avoided certain themes. It has been said that Morgan neglected current events and social issues in his preaching. There is merit to this assertion in that he did not preach on such themes frequently. To say that he avoided them altogether, however, would be inaccurate. Edgar DeWitt Jones has quoted Morgan as saying: "It was never my habit in pastorates …. to preach on current events. But there have been hours when it was necessary that from the pulpit there should sound the prophetic voice to some national or international situation" (American Preachers of Today, p. 287). Fant writes, "Morgan did not dwell on current issues as much as some other preachers of his day. But he did not neglect them Morgan preached on specific social issues as well as on social injustice in general" (Twenty Centuries of Great Preaching, vol. VIII, p. 7). F.A. Robinson noted that he "made the gospel poignantly relevant to the perplexing problem of social conditions" (J. Morgan, p. 247). There were times when he adapted to significant events almost on the spot. Once in California, on the first Sunday in February of 1924, thirty minutes after the service started, he received a note that Woodrow Wilson (whom he knew personally and who frequently visited his meetings) had passed away. He said, "I abandoned my sermon, read Joshua 1.1-2, and spoke out of my heart for half an hour" (J. Morgan, p. 241). "Righteousness of Revenue" (Westminster Pulpit, vol. IV, p. 59), a sermon opposing the legalizing of dope, is an example of a sermon on social issues. "Suffer the Children" (vol. III, p. 73) on the treatment of children is another. It has already been noted in chapter one that Morgan rendered a great service to his countrymen through the series of sermons he preached in the fall of 1914 immediately following Britain's entry into World War I. To say that he ignored such themes, therefore, is inaccurate; it is true, by his own admission, that he did not preach on them frequently.
rnest Jeffs has offered another critique, that Morgan "cannot be claimed as a complete and typical champion of orthodoxy because of his significant avoidance of controversial phrases and emphases" (p. 169-70). There is truth in this, too, though it must be understood that Morgan felt justified in so doing. He felt his to be an apologetic by interpretation rather than by argumentation. Morgan relied heavily on the subjective experience of his hearers as proof of the Christian truth claims and is a major weakness in this approach; nevertheless, this affected Morgan's choice of themes. Another contributing factor was Morgan's fear of being branded sectarian (Turnbull, p. 437). He emphasized time and again the universality of the Church and the revelation of God for all Christians. He wrote: "Creeds do not ensure orthodoxy, for no individual church holds all the truth of the Church. The great body of truth is the property of the catholic Church, not of any section, nor yet of any individual member thereof" (The Spirit of God, p. 143). Not to deny the truth of this, such a position might be expected of one raised a Baptist, baptized a Methodist, ordained a Congregationalist and holding Presbyterian as well as Congregational ministries. One of his sons entered the Episcopalian ministry. It might also be expected of one who was an effective itinerate preacher dealing with audiences containing Christians of all denominations of Protestantism. Not surprisingly he said, "I preach positive New Testament truth. I am constantly bearing testimony to the central verities of our faith" (J. Morgan, This Was His Faith, p. 308); "my work, is wholly constructive and I believe that it is the only kind that is really of value" (Wiersbe, Walking with the Giants, p. 136). Given that Morgan was right to attempt to avoid sectarianism and negativism in his preaching; nevertheless he might have been a more effective apologist and might have been able to do much more to prevent the spiritual bankruptcy to come in future British generations had he chosen to treat controversial themes of the day positively and directly.
ll in all, however, Morgan's preaching demonstrated both balance and a consistent set of explicitly acknowledged priorities. The balance was achieved by preaching on a wide variety of themes and texts. Though preaching infrequently on social issues, he was able to bring Scripture to bear on national needs and issues when occasion demanded it. Not attacking controversial themes outright was a conscious choice that Morgan felt justified in, for he had thought through his method of apologetics. Morgan preached from the New Testament more than the Old Testament, though he preached more from the Old Testament than many preachers do.
e preached on the gospels more than the epistles, but one might expect this from a preacher who made it his explicit aim to draw attention to the Living Word through the Written Word. The Westminister Pulpit contains sermons from forty-eight of the sixty-six Bible books; sermons from the others can be found in other collections. Also, variety was not achieved at the expense of planned preaching. Members of his congregation at Westminster tell of his preaching passage by passage through Bible books (J. Morgan, p. 352). Through preaching on these themes and texts, Morgan was able to meet the needs of the crowds who thronged to hear him preach.