Subtitle: Proclaiming Truth With Clarity and Relevance

Donald Sunukjian studied under Haddon Robinson at Dallas Seminary, then also taught there. He now teaches at Talbot Seminary in LA. Sunukjian has an ability to think through elements of preaching in minute detail, yet has a communication style that is clear and accessible – both in person and in his writing. These qualities have combined to make this a great book.

This is definitely another book in the Haddon Robinson school of thought. The process is similar, the emphasis on the main idea and the purpose are evident, delivery without notes is encouraged, etc. Incidentally, the reader should not be intimidated by the “zigzag” big idea – if Sunukjian came up with such effective preaching ideas regularly, surely more would be included in the book! He admits that you go with what you have, and only sometimes is the preaching idea a real humdinger.

He defines biblical preaching simply as “Look at what God is saying to us!” Throughout this 370 page book, numerous biblical examples are given to make clear the point being taught. Sunukjian has a large bank of example sermons that show up throughout the book so that the variety is not random and overwhelming, but reinforcing and familiar.

His ability to think through the details comes out in areas such as whether to use inductive or deductive approaches according to the material being covered, or how to preach a chiastic passage so contemporary listeners will understand it.

Sunukjian’s speciality is the subject of oral clarity – preaching so listeners can follow. His six elements of oral clarity are detailed in a chapter, but exemplified throughout the book. Sunukjian demonstrates a real awareness of what works for the listener, a concern sometimes missing in other “how to” preaching texts.

After the process is detailed, there are two sample sermons presented in the appendix. These are repeated with helpful explanatory notes to guide the reader through the process.

In a book of 370 pages, it seems strange to point to a section being too short, but the delivery chapter is very short. However, it is fair to say that if a preacher follows the teaching throughout the book, then delivery will be improved. If there were any other negatives, it would be a slight discomfort with one or two of the biblical examples. Again, this is a small point since most are handled very effectively.

Overall this is a very strong book, perhaps even a great book. As I read preaching books, I mark helpful points with post-its. Many books have only a handful sticking out, this one has a forest of post-its! As an introductory text for a preaching class, this would work well. As a supplemental book for those of us who’ve read other textbooks, this is definitely worth having. It has many definite strengths, is clearly organized and engagingly written. This definitely makes my list of top preaching books.