Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1917-02-22
Reu. Harry B. Foster
"My First Sermon
"7hat sermon gave me q message
that Wlth Uara0us adaptations
has been often preached"

| well remember my first sermon. Its incuba-
ton and bringing forth was serious process and
the physical and mental travail attending its pro-
duction could not be forgotten.
Before entering the seminary my pastor ad-
vised me to write a sermon. The idea seemed
good, and the undertaking was inviting. SO |
selected my text one that appealed as the basis
OF good sermon, world beaten" as it were
Most every FIRST sermon" is prepared with that
thought in mind by its young and hopeful and
ambitious author. This text was | Cor. lo:l3
Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like
men, be strong" Well, do you know that was
as far as ever got with that text. Personally
| had no message, from anybody to anybody
The text itself seemed like Gibraltar in its
strength, perfectly unassailable and capable OF
no improvement, so it seemed to me then-and
there il rested.
Some weeks after entering the seminary, we
juniors were assigned texts upon which to pre-
pare sermons. In the Presbyterian seminaries
the classes are known as junior, middler and
senior Ny text was Peter l:l3: BLESSED be
the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ
which according to his abundant mercy, hath
begotten us again unto lively Qiving) hope
by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the
dead"
Accustomed as most of us were to lyceum
work, practically all college graduates, the tur-
MOL Of those first few days following was pathet-
icaL This was different somehow from any
thing we had ever attempted We had re-
ceved some instruction in sermonic build
ing, in the selection OF the central theme
in breaking the text up into its natural
divisions and this sermon was to be of that type
an expositiona sermon-perhaps the most helpful
and valuable, and the most needed of all sermon
building plans By that mean the sermon is
an exposition, or explanation and application OF
the text itself, the text afording even the divi-
sions Of the sermon. So went to work We
had also been instructed to do our best on the
text before searching the commentaries. | doubt
if many OF us followed that advice. | know very
soon l plunged into everything | could find
copious notes were made some fine extracts
found, so good that they seemed to be just what
| would naturally say on the subject.
In a few weeks had enough notes for ELI
buster" while the sermon was to be but hall
an hour in length The portion of it we must
give before the faculty and students was limited
to twelve or fifteen minutes, and was to consist
of the the introduction and one division, or one
division and the conclusion, in full with the rest
in outline 1t about broke my heart to cut out
the fine things ! had gotten together and then
finally to practically discard them all and give
my own message, a message which undoubtedly
had been enriched by that vast research. After
weeks of such labor, much of it wild and fruitless
the theme finally selected was THE Christians
Hope" First, its source Goods mercy. Sec
ond, its securement (by the new brth). Third
its surety (Christ's resurrecton). The introduc-
ton and second division decided to prepare for
the faculty and students, emphasizing the fact
that the Christians hope is the hope of the child
spirit born-hrst, that it has to do with this
life: and, second, the positive assurance of the
life to come, living hope, IAN inheritance incor-
ruptibe, and undehled and that fadeth not away"
That thought got into my blood and when the
night came for its delivery, was like race horse
Juggling, pulling on the lines, it was was with
difficulty that | kept to the committed words Of
that carefully prepared and written manuscript
| finally had gotten a message. | knew from
whence it came, and it was as much to my own
heart as to any who might hear. The first and
third divisions have never been developed with
reference to that sermon, for that one division
gave me message full long for the usual SER
mona sermon, too, by the way, with various
adaptations, that has been often preached, and
which, as it has grown and been more or less
enriched from experience, is one of the best that
have, and one that like to preach.