When we preach, we always have a mixed crowd, so we are thinking about five principles to help us preach effectively. Yesterday, we started by affirming that it is possible to preach effectively to a mixed crowd and by assuming that we have a greater mix than we can see. (Remember, for our discussion of different mixes at play, please check out the latest episode of The Biblical Preaching Podcast.)

So, continuing our list:

3. We need to learn about our listeners.  When it comes to our own church, we can consider several levels of analysis.  We can think about the culture in which our church exists and the specifics of the locality.  Is it urban, suburban, or rural?  Is it close to the cultural centre of society or at a distance from what is happening in the “big smoke?”  Then we can think about our congregation: What are the typical profiles of people?  Are there many people in a certain age and stage of life?  What about typical education levels or employment types?  There is a more specific analysis, too – pastorally, to get to know the individual people and families in the church.  (As a guest speaker, you may only be able to analyse the level of culture, locality, and a brief guess at typical profile, but your preaching will still be better for it!)

4. We need to preach sermons that aim to land in the lives of our listeners.  It is tempting to preach generic biblical truth and hope that listeners will grab hold of that truth for themselves.  Don’t settle for vague generalisations.  Our task is not only to be comfortable in the world of the biblical text but also to be targeted in our relevance to specific situations.  Listeners will translate and personalise specifics but allow generalisations to float on by. Authentic expository preaching is not only faithful to the biblical text, but it also requires effective communication from the preacher that emphasizes relevance to the listener.  True expository preaching also relies on God to be at work:

5. We need to pray for God to work in a profoundly personal way.  We know that God cares about congregations with an awareness of the groupings within that congregation.  Take, for instance, how God inspired Paul to give Titus specific instructions for each group in the church (Titus 2:1-10), or to help Timothy think about different groups in the Ephesian church (1 Timothy 5:1-2).  We know that God cares about individuals (for instance, see Psalm 17:6-8).  And we can be confident that God wants to continue his work in his people and complete what he has begun (Philippians 1:6).  So let’s be sure to pray that as we preach, God will land the message in very targeted and specific ways in those that hear us.

Please check out the conversation on the latest episode of the podcast. We really appreciate any help in getting the word out about this new resource. In the next post, I will offer a starter guide for evaluating the mix that makes up your congregation.