Preaching

The best way to stay fresh in the pulpit is to read books on preaching and then apply what you learn. A sermon is made up of distinct parts—the greeting, introduction, background, exposition, conclusion, and closing prayer—and preaching books offer Scripture-based insight into how to prepare each one well. As you learn to craft a stronger introduction, a clearer exposition, or a more effective conclusion, your preaching doesn’t just improve—it changes. And change is the very definition of … [Read more...]

I recently finished Timothy Keller's biography, written by Collin Hansen. In the bonus material was a lesson taught by missionary Elizabeth Elliot. She said "The speaker has three speeches: 1) The one he prepares, 2) the one he actually delivers and 3) the one his audience thinks it heard. And there's not necessarily any relationship between them." I got a real kick out of hearing her say this. It's not just funny, it's true! It's unfortunate, but what we say is not always what people hear! … [Read more...]

There are some topics in Scripture mentioned more than others (i.e. salvation by grace through faith vs works). I always cringe a little when something I've already preached on, comes up yet again in the preaching calendar. I think "Won't our people be tired of hearing this yet again?" Well, I came across something so good recently that I want to share here that has set me free from the fear of preaching on a topic I've already preached on 2-3x. The apostle Paul wrote in Philippians 3:1, … [Read more...]

Here are some habits I've gotten into that really help me with being prepared come Easter Sunday. Don't wait until the last minute to write the Easter sermon. The closer you get to Easter the more the pressure builds. Some people say they work best under pressure but whether you do or don't, you simply will not have the time to implement creative ideas the longer you wait to write your Easter sermon. Nor will you have the time to commit the message (by and large) to memory if you wait until … [Read more...]

For the first six years or so of the church I would always walk up on stage with about 10 typed pages of notes. As I preached I would turn the stack of pages up there on the pulpit with me. I was quite tied to my notes. But about two years ago we started image magnification and the feedback I got from those producing the service was that all those pages on the pulpit didn't look good on the screen. So I decided to get rid of them. I committed to walking up on stage with just my Bible, like many … [Read more...]