He died in 1990 at the age of 94. At the turn of this century, based on a survey done by Preaching magazine among their readers and editors, he was ranked as the most outstanding preacher of the 20th century. He was once Chaplain to the Queen of Scotland and New Testament Professor of Language, Literature, and Theology at the University of Edinburgh. He delivered the Warrick Lectures on Preaching at Edinburgh and the Lyman Beecher Lectures on Preaching at Yale. His books were influential and widely read. His name: James S. Stewart.
His book of previously unpublished sermons, Walking with God, was published in 1996. Do yourself a favor—read it and learn from this master communicator.
And don’t miss this gem told about James Stewart in a memoir in this volume:
One evening in April 1975, some hundreds of people gathered at the Assembly Rooms in Edinburgh at the invitation of the publishers of an American magazine with world-wide circulation. They were gathered to do honour to two of the greatest figures in the field of New Testament scholarship of their day. One of these was Professor James S. Stewart. He arrived by car at the appointed time. The doorkeeper told him that the limited parking space was for VIPs only. Professor Stewart apologized, drove his car a further half mile to a parking place, left it there and walked back (with his wife) to the hall. There are two things to be said about that. First is that James S. Stewart was regarded as a figure of international stature, whose name was revered throughout the English-speaking world. Second, of course, is that it simply did not occur to him that at that time, or at any other, he could possibly have been a VIP. These facts taken together may help to explain why the name of J. S. Stewart still rings bells.
He that humbles himself shall be exalted.