Modern Messages From the Minor Prophets, David Pharr

Modern Messages From the Minor Prophets, David Pharr

If a preacher is looking for good sermon material to preach that a congregation really needs to hear, then the preacher should spend some time in the study of the division of the Bible we call the Minor Prophets. This reminds me of a story about Tom Butterfield (or as I have heard him affectionately referred to as “Old Tom”) who wrote to his brother George asking him to send Tom some sermons he could use. George sent him a New Testament! That will preach!

The term “minor” is not in reference to their worth or importance but to the actual length of the writings when compared to the “major” prophets. The Minor Prophets are abundant in lessons for Christians in the United States. I have several good books on the Minor Prophets, but David Pharr’s book is one I wanted to add to my personal library. It is an excellent source of material that can be converted to sermons that congregations need to hear! In fact, this material was a series of lessons presented at a Preacher’s Workshop, but the demand for the material led to the publishing of brother Pharr’s material in book form.

Often we hear about our country being given over to materialism. Indeed this is a disease that appears to have infected some in the church. The condition today is not unlike the situation when God sent the prophets to teach and warn Israel to “consider their ways”; e.g., Haggai 1:5. Indeed, many in the church and our nation need to reflect on their priorities. In his outline, “Stealing From God But Cheating Self” from Malachi 3:8-12, brother Pharr’s conclusion states: “We have been commanded to give as we have prospered. Liberal giving is an act of faith. Covetousness and the miserly giving that proceeds from it are characteristic of criminals and heathen, not faithful servants of a beneficent God.” This book will show us what messages God gave through the prophets for the nation of Israel to reflect upon. Indeed we need to hear and heed the messages of the Minor Prophets.

David Pharr attended Freed-Hardeman College (and was classmates with Alan Highers, Editor of The Spiritual Sword), Rio Grande College, and Southern Christian University. He was the former director of the East Tennessee School of Preaching. He has published the Carolina Messenger for several years and is a frequent writer for The Spiritual Sword. Any material written by brother Pharr is worth our consideration.

Originally printed West Virginia Christian, Vol. 12, No. 2, February 2005, p. 8. Reprinted by permission.