Fred Craddock, the finest preacher in America, died last Friday in Blue Ridge, Georgia. “Fred Craddock was a national treasure and a devoted servant of the church and Jesus Christ. His impact on preaching – in terms both of scholarship and practice – is incalculable,” said Tom Long, his friend and colleague in ministry.

I first met Fred when I was a young seminarian in Tennessee. I heard he was preaching at a Regional Assembly of the Christian Church in North Carolina. I drove my little Toyota Tercel over the Blue Ridge Mountains to the church where he was speaking. I had read a few of his books in school but had never heard him preach or seen him in person. I expected to see a man six feet tall with a booming voice. Instead, this short, little round person with a squeaky voice took the pulpit. I was shocked – until he started to preach. I was overwhelmed by the power and wonder of his words.

Fred’s preaching style evolved at a time when preaching in America was considered stale and tired. He once famously said that the problem with preaching is “that sermons are offered as though nothing were at stake.” His words haunt me every Saturday night as I review my sermon for the next day.

When I was in Atlanta I got to know Fred pretty well. He preached a few times for the church I was leading and he and I served on a committee of the regional church in Georgia. One time I wrote him a note to ask for help. “Fred, I’m working on improving my preaching. Is there a book or books you would recommend for me to read to help with this effort?” He wrote back, “You might try the Bible.” That was it. One line! And, he was right, too. The Bible, time and time again, has been the one place I have always returned whenever I’ve felt the need to renew and strengthen my work as a homiletician.

Fred had the uncanny ability to preach inductively, to invite the listener into a deeper conversation, not with the pulpit but with the sacred word. Fred believed that the church was the place where engagement with the text must happen. He wrote, “The believing community has never ceased bringing the Bible forward into each generation, making it a part of present values, relationships, world views and institutions.”

He was always more than willing to address difficult situations. In a recent interview he said, “The question is not whether the church is dying, but whether it is giving its life for the world.” He’s right about that to be sure.

I thank God for the life and witness of Fred B. Craddock.