Homiletics

Too Obvious To State?

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I was in a conversation with a friend the other day and his question prompted a response that I heard previously from Haddon Robinson.  Interestingly, I don’t remember Haddon overtly teaching this concept, but it came out several times in responses to questions he was asked.  Perhaps these three principles (from Aristotle, I believe), are too obvious to state.  Let me state them anyway:

A message needs unity – that is, a message should be about one thing.  Not three things, or numerous things, but one thing.  A sense of unity is important.  If it’s missing then the listeners will supply an imposed unity (often in the form of only remembering your most poignant or amusing illustration . . . which can be frustrating when you are later met with, “Hi!  You’re the preacher who preached the message about the child lost in the funfair!”, when actually you were preaching about salvation but didn’t make that clear by presenting a united message!)

A message needs to be in order – Often a message that makes total sense in the order of 1, 2, 3, 4, simply does not communicate  when it is structured 1, 3, 4, 2.  Or even worse: 1, 3, part of 4, part of 2, rest of 4, etc.  The speaker should think through the order of the message and make sure it makes sense.

A message needs a sense of progress – It needs to be going somewhere.  Without progress the message is about as enjoyable as treading water, in a confined space, with limited air (perhaps it’s only me that feels claustrophobic in a too slow message?)  The preacher needs to give a sense of going somewhere so that the journey through the message can be more satisfying than enduring the ticking of the clock.

Unity, order and progress.  Basics.  Obvious ones, perhaps, but probably worth stating to ourselves now and then!

Most Important

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How about starting the week with a quote from Pasquarello’s We Speak Because We Have First Been Spoken (p4):

“For this reason, the most important element of sermon preparation is the theological, spiritual and moral formation of the preacher through the Spirit’s empowerments of faith, hope, and love, which are completed by the gifts of wisdom, understanding, counsel, strength, knowledge, godliness, and fear of the Lord (Isa.11). Learning the ‘grammar’ of the preaching life requires cultivating habits of the mind, heart, and body – including speaking truthfully – that are intrinsic to the church’s vocation of knowing and worshiping the triune God. If this is true, preaching excellence will be the fruit of listening to God’s prior Word and act before we ourselves presume to speak.  And because the depth and riches of God’s Word are too great to absorb in a lifetime, we will have cause to listen for eternity.”

I’ll basically leave the post there, but it’s worth remembering that this week is not just about preparing this Sunday’s sermon . . . it’s more about the relational investment in response to the work of God in your life as He shapes you into the person, and the preacher, He wants you to be.  Suddenly sermon prep isn’t confined to one box in our schedule!

Don’t Rush

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I’m not referring specifically to the speed of delivery here.  Some of us need to slow down sometimes, others could really do with speeding up slightly, and we all need to be sensitive to the particular listeners before us.

I am referring to the pace of information being offered.  It is easy, especially after studying for many hours, to overload the listeners’ bandwidth.  Listeners need time to process information.  Images take time to form.  Stories take time to tell.  Take the necessary time.

As well as taking the necessary time, be aware of the aural equivalent of optical illusions.  There are things we do that may not speed up the pace the words are emerging, but will give the impression that the information is rushing out:

1. Mini illustrations, quotes and anecdotes. It is easy to jump through illustrations really quickly.  It may work, or it may overwhelm the bandwidth.

2. Piling up Biblical illustrations. It is so easy to jump in and out of a biblical book, then another, and another.  All the while you are seeking to underline the point of the main passage, but listeners can easily feel overwhelmed with unfamiliar contexts and content (even if they know the contexts, it still takes mental effort to process a passing illustration).

3. Key explanations unrestated. It is easy to make a vital connection.  I was just listening to a sermon where a key, critical, vital connection was made in the space of a handful of words.  “Here xyz means jkl.”  It was a link that required some backing up and explanation.  It slipped by and the next five minutes I was struggling to listen because I didn’t get the four-word sentence (I understood the sentence, but couldn’t see how he got there from that verse).

4. Transitions. While it is possible to drive quickly down the straight road, we need to slow down through corners.  Transitioning between one point and the next is a critical moment in the message, but it is so easy to fly through the bends.

5. Multiple purposes. If you are trying to achieve too many things, the message will feel choppy and disconnected.  When listeners can’t follow the flow that comes from unity of purpose, they will feel like the message is firing in multiple directions and therefore struggle to take it all in (in fact, they won’t, they’ll reprocess for unity and probably make the main thing the most compelling illustration or story used!)

Let’s beware of things we may do that give the sense of being too fast.  Allow listeners enough time in the passage you’re preaching to let it soak down into their lives and saturate their hearts.

Preaching and Practice

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I know I recently started Darrell Johnson’s book and mentioned that I would review it, but have not had a chance to finish it since.  And I know that I should probably finish that before I start another.  But, well, too late.  I just started into Michael Pasquarello’s We Speak Because We Have First Been Spoken. So far so good.

Here’s a taste:

If we are what we know and love and become what we do and say, our way of speaking will be intrinsic to, and indicative of, what we are and what we hope to be by the grace of God.  And while most preachers will acknowledge the importance of “practicing what you preach,” they give too little attention to the manner in which the character of a preacher’s way of being, the conversation of one’s loves, habits, and desires, is communicated as “preaching what you practice.”

It is vital that we realize that “effective preaching” (a term Pasquarello would probably resist) is built not only on the communication of our words, but more substantially by the communication of our life.  So I am challenged by the relative clarity of not only “practicing what we preach,” but actually “preaching what we practice.”

Worth pondering.

Gracious Reinforcement

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Isn’t that what God does with us?  Gracious reinforcement.  Over and over God patiently teaches us what we need to learn – not just information, but lessons of the heart, lessons of life, lessons on His character, His values, His heart.  There is a certain rhythm in life, subtle and below the surface, inaudible, but real.  It’s the rhythm of God’s dealing with us as His children.  None of us learn what we need to learn first time, every time.  For most of us, most of the time, it takes time, patience and repetition before something sinks in.

What we observe in our own spiritual walks, or in the lives of those around us, is part of what the preacher is called to participate in.  Preaching is not a one-hit job.  You don’t present a truth and then move on knowing the listeners now have that truth under their belts.  You don’t encourage a specific response to God and then look for horizons new in your preaching ministry.  The truth is that preaching also needs to tap into the rhythm of patient change, of gracious reinforcement.

Oh, there are crisis moments, but not every Sunday.  There are times when a single message will radically transform a life.  Pray for that, preach for that, but know that most fruit grows imperceptibly slowly.

The difficulties that come with this ministry are not simple.  While God works inaudibly and often below the surface, the preacher works audibly, visibly, obviously and overtly.  This opens the preacher up to the challenge of avoiding monotony and sameness while preaching to graciously reinforce the handful of big big ideas that weave their way through Scripture.  Patience required implies discouragement faced, and it does come in so many forms – natural and otherwise.

And all along the way, as we look to God to work His heart changing work in others, asking for patience and strength to press on . . . all the while He is working in us, in our hearts, and patiently, persistently, He presses on.  Praise God for His gracious reinforcement in us, and hopefully, through us too.

Table Talk

/ Peter Mead / 1 Comment

Today’s post isn’t one.  It’s a 35-minute interview I did with Mike Reeves over at theologynetwork.org in their Table Talk series.  It’s all about preaching and how our view of God influences our view of the Bible and therefore our approach to communicating it.  So, here’s the link and I hope this is helpful: theologynetwork.org – Table Talk.

Going Deeper Than Instruction

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In a lot of preaching situations it is easier to simply present the text and press home the imperatives.  Whether or not there is technically an imperative in the grammar, we can easily turn a passage into an instruction and press for change through our words.

I wonder how often we miss the opportunity to go a step or two deeper and recognize the “why” behind the “should”?  Typically the epistles offer lists of instructions, but in the context of the letter, these instructions are very much set in the context of theological truth.  We are to present our bodies as living sacrifices, but it is in view of God’s mercies that we are to do so.  We are to walk in a manner worthy, but specifically it’s in a manner worthy of the calling we have received.  We are to set our hearts on things above, where Christ is, but this is in light of the Christ presented in the first two chapters.

Instruction and imperative don’t just sit on their own as burdens to place on people, but as appropriate response to the captivating truths of who God is, what He has done and so on.

As a preacher it is much easier to simply give instruction and apply pressure, but we must consider how to make sense of those instructions so that instead of pressured compliance, we might see captivated response.

Beware of Insular Evaluation

/ Peter Mead / 1 Comment

Whether you are in a church with one preacher, or a church with numerous preachers (team or itinerant or mix), it is important not to grow complacent through insular evaluation.  I’ve come across this more than once.  Having only really listened to preaching in their own church, people have made comments like, “We have some of the best preaching in the area!” or “The bigger churches in the city don’t have anything more to offer than we get here!”

Nice sentiments, but if they are based on no comparison, they are meaningless.  Now my point is not that we should be frantically comparing the quality of preaching in different churches or forming some sort of hierarchy.  My point is that we shouldn’t grow complacent based on these kind of comments.  It is part of our stewardship of the church and our own ministry to look to develop as preachers.  Part of the impetus or help for such development can come from a humble appreciation of others from outside of our own fellowship who may do something particularly well.  So a couple of comments:

1. Don’t try to copy another preacher, but do learn from them. You need to be you when you preach.  Copying mannerisms, style or content from another will not suddenly increase the work of God through you.  Preacher, be yourself, but let us recognize that others have strengths in areas we still need to work on.  Listening to other preachers can help strengthen us in areas of weakness.

2. Don’t be intimidated by other preachers. While some may be motivated by carefully listening to others, this is not always the fruit.  Some of us can easily be intimidated by the “mega-preacher” – especially after his message has been edited carefully for the podcast or radio show!  Incremental improvement is appropriate, but remember that your church needs you to give the best that you can give, not the best that someone else somewhere else can give.

3. Be wary of inter-church competition, esteem God’s work elsewhere. While it may be natural to compare and contrast, it’s not particularly healthy or helpful to be making comparisons between churches as if they were in a league competition.  Esteem what God is doing through others, recognizing that there are differences in style or approach.  A giving spirit and attitude toward others will not harm your church and ministry at all.

Let’s be wary of looking inward and deciding all is well.  Much healthier personally, as well as ecclesiologically, to be looking upward to the Lord and appropriately outward to others.

Old Favourites and Oft Avoideds

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Every passage in Scripture is equally inspired, but not every passage is equally known or esteemed.  Patterns of esteem can be traced, although they differ depending on church location, denomination and preacher preference.  So in some parts of the world the books of Samuel are always flavour of the month, while in other parts it is always epistles over narratives.  It seems like John and Luke tend to be preferred over Mark, while Romans gets more attention than 2nd Thessalonians, and 1st Timothy more than Titus.  Luke 15 gets more attention than Luke 14 and Genesis 22 is preferred to Genesis 10 or 5.  Psalms will get more hits than Ezekiel.  Not every passage is equally esteemed or known.

This situation does not therefore require us to bring balance by committing to rigid scheduling of a chapter a week for the next 23 years.  What it does ask of us is whether we ever break out of the familiar and offer our listeners a taste of the less familiar?

Last night I was asked to preach two messages from Ezekiel.  Not my usual hunting ground, but a very enjoyable experience.  I should return there more often.

There are reasons why old favourites tend to be old favourites, and mostly good reasons – clear truth, compelling application, familiar plots, etc.  But there are reasons why oft avoideds also deserve to be preached – they are equally inspired, after all.  So perhaps we should consider periodically offering a series, or at least a stand alone message, on a part of Scripture that might surprise our listeners.  Who knows, for some these oft avoideds might become old favourites!

Don’t Skip A Step

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A missed step jars.  Try to accompany someone singing who misses a beat.  Try a choreographed dance but miss a step.  Next time you’re figure skating in the Olympics, miss a step before going for your quad.  Ok, these examples are getting slightly less likely, but what about in preaching?  I suppose there are a lot of steps that can be skipped to the detriment of our preaching, both in preparation and in delivery.  Here’s one:

You explain a particular text.  It sets out some clear expectations of how we should be living in response to God – perhaps instruction, perhaps command.  Application is clear, so you present it.  But in doing so it is obvious that some or many listeners would have fallen short of this in their experience.  Perhaps the demands relate to morality, purity, relationship, thought-life, etc.  (It should go without saying that you recognized people might feel convicted before delivering the message.)  So since some or all listeners have already fallen short of the application of this text you reassure people of God’s love and grace.

Hold on.  Missed a step.  Too often, perhaps in this generation in particular, it is easy to preach comfortable messages and avoid the discomforting but vital step of calling for repentance.  Are people helped by being reassured of God’s grace without also being urged to repent?  If God is a relationally jealous God, and we have been adulterous and unfaithful to Him, then is it enough to have feelings placated by assurances of His goodness?  Surely a jealous lover’s goodness is little comfort to an unfaithful spouse unresponsive to the necessary conviction for sin?

It may be harder to preach, but giving people opportunity to repent, reminder to respond, must be a necessary step in some sermons.