Selected Sermons

What Are Selected Sermons?

George Whitefield wrote Selected Sermons in 1740, during the Puritan era when Reformed theology was being applied with unprecedented rigor to every dimension of the Christian life. The greatest orator of the Great Awakening, whose sermons model evangelical preaching at its finest.

George Whitefield demonstrates the power of the spoken and written word in service of the gospel. These writings combine careful biblical exposition with urgent application, showing that the truths of Scripture are not merely historical curiosities but living words that address every generation.

The work remains essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the Christian intellectual tradition and the ideas that have shaped Western civilization.

Why Selected Sermons Still Matters

Selected Sermons endures because it addresses questions that never go away:

• The power of the Word. This work demonstrates that faithful exposition of Scripture is one of the most powerful forces in history.
• Timeless wisdom. The questions this work addresses — about God, humanity, truth, and meaning — are not historically confined. They are permanent questions that every generation must face.
• Intellectual rigor. George Whitefield demonstrates that Christian faith and careful thinking are not opponents but allies.

In a world of disposable content, works like this endure because they speak to what is permanent in human experience.

Why Classical Schools Teach It

At Saints Classical Academy, Selected Sermons is part of our commitment to reading the greatest works of the Christian tradition in the logic and rhetoric stage(s). Reading George Whitefield teaches students to:

• Engage with primary sources from the Christian intellectual tradition rather than relying on secondhand summaries
• Develop the ability to follow and evaluate sustained arguments — a critical skill for the rhetoric stage
• Practice analytical thinking by examining the logical structure of the author's arguments
• Join the "Great Conversation" — the ongoing dialogue between the greatest minds in Christian history

This is education as it was meant to be — not just learning about great ideas, but being formed by them.