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Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God

Sometimes you just need a good dose of the classics.  I recently listened with great intensity as I heard the classic sermon, "Sinners in the hands of an angry God" by Jonathan Edwards, originally given in 1741.  The recording that I listened to was either made in the 50's or made to sound like it was recorded 50 years ago.  The scratchy sounds reminded me of listening to a well loved LP.  The voice of the orator heralded the poignant words of the sermon notes as if Edwards himself had risen from the grave to preach this masterpiece to a much needed audience.  The result of the old-time sound made it easy to believe that I was sitting in church listening to Jonathan Edwards preach this hell-fire and damnation sermon.  It was said when this sermon was first preached, the congregation began clutching the pews in fear that the ground would open up and swallow the wretched sinners.    

The other classic that I have been enjoying is Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis.  Instead of reading this again, I purchased the audiobook so I could listen to it.  At work, in my car, going for a walk are all places in which I have been enjoying this classic.  I have to confess, I didn't know that C.S. Lewis was so funny.  The printed matter didn't convey to me the same sense of humor that I am now enjoying.

May I recommend that you immerse yourself in a classic, whether for first time or the 10th time.  They are classics for a reason and have had impactful influence on the greatest theologians and pastors alive today.

You can find the sermon "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" many places on the web but here is a great resource for all things classic - Christian Classics Ethereal Library, www.ccel.org.  Here's a direct link to the sermon.  http://www.ccel.org/ccel/edwards/sermons.sinners.html 

An audio version is available at Sermonaudio.com.  It's not the one I listened to but it is a free audio version as well as a pdf version of the sermon.  http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?SID=770213541

ENJOY!

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