Stage 6 – Message Idea

Controversy, Defensiveness and Timing

/ Peter Mead / Leave a comment

Obed submitted a comment on The Full Meal Deal concerning the timing of presenting a controversial or challenging topic. I suppose we could complicate things, but it seems to me that there is a fairly simple principle here. Know your listeners well enough to know how they may react to a controversial idea. If they are likely to get defensive, then lay the groundwork first. I use the image of a boxer’s guard (forgive the martial imagery if you are a pacifist in the sporting arena). Is what I am going to say likely to bring up the hands to guard the face? If so, then what follows will only strike to the surface. As a preacher I need to preach so that the hands remain down and the idea gets through.

The classic example of this is Peter on the day of Pentecost in Acts 2. “God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ!” That idea was very likely to stir up a negative reaction among a crowd of Jews in Jerusalem just weeks after Jesus’ death. So Peter did not present the idea in the introduction. This idea was not printed on the notice sheet or bulletin (they would have noticed and put the bullet in, so to speak!) This was not a deductive sermon. Peter knew the listeners’ likely reaction, and used the first part of the sermon to prepare the people for the big idea. Once it came, their reaction was not murderous, but they were convicted.

If your idea is controversial. If the listeners are likely to become defensive. Then time the presentation of the idea. Preach so their hands remain down and the idea gets through, not only to the head, but so that they are “cut to the heart.”

Carefully Communicate Compelling Characters

/ Peter Mead / 4 Comments

As preachers we always run the risk of preaching in black and white. We read a biblical text, compile the facts and preach them. Biblical writers wrote in a time where detail concerning characters in the narrative was sparse to say the least. We don’t read physical descriptions very often, other details are usually lacking and a character’s character is often only hinted at. Yet today we preach in a world where character detail and description are much more prominent (in advertising images, commercials, dramas, movies, etc.)

Warning! – The danger here is that we preach from the biblical lack of detail in a manner that resembles an abstract or colorless lecture. We can easily preach messages that people don’t relate to, can’t connect with and probably won’t be touched by.

Possibility! – The text often does give us more than we may at first notice. So with a little extra work and care, perhaps we can preach narrative texts in a more compelling and gripping way.

Definitely! – First we must be sure to make the most of whatever the text does give us. Don’t skim over a physical description, or the meaning of a name, or dialogue from their lips, or any other statement regarding the person.

Carefully! – Typically the text will not give enough information to build a full profile of a character. But carefully proceed to build more of a profile if you can. Consider all pertinent biblical, historical and cultural information. In areas where there is no possible certainty, perhaps suggest possibility without being definite. “Perhaps he felt . . . or was . . . or wanted . . .”

Remember that your goal is to preach the idea of the text with relevance to your listeners. Don’t get sidetracked into endless character profiling like an obsessive detective in a crime drama. Of course, facts are critically important. However, remember that lectures can be boring, but characters in dramas are compelling.

Peter has responded to a comment on this post.

Integrity in Directions You Give

/ Peter Mead / Leave a comment

Yesterday morning I set out early to drive across the country to a church where I was scheduled to preach. I’d checked the journey on the internet and knew I needed to allow 2.5 or 3 hours. I got in the car and programmed the GPS (SatNav if you’re British!) with the postal code of my destination. Finally it was ready to navigate and told me I’d arrive at my destination at 7:41pm. That was a little after the 10:30am meeting I was supposed to preach at! So I checked the map and reviewed the turns. It took me to the south coast and along a little ways, but then directed me to catch a ferry over to the island of Guernsey (by France), then to catch another one back to another port. 10 hours at sea to progress half an hour along the same coast! I decided to trust the map on this occasion.

As preachers, at some level or other, people look to us for direction and guidance in life. Our task is to relevantly teach and apply the Bible to our listeners. There are two dangers to avoid, or maybe only one:

1. Don’t make it too complicated, be honest. People are not helped by complicated instructions that are hard to follow. Whether we are explaining how to resolve a conflict, how to pray, how to have personal devotions, how to make big decisions in life, etc. Whatever the “how-to” might be (and this is by no means suggesting every message should be or have a “how-to” element), we should be honest, but not unnecessarily complicated. This is not a time to impress people with overly detailed strategies. However . . .

2. Don’t make it too simple, be honest. I’d love my GPS unit to give me short-cuts, but only if they actually worked. Telling me I could get to somewhere in 10 minutes is no help when it will be a three-hour drive. When preaching it is easy to over-simplify and make unhelpful promises. Just do this and you will deal with all that pain. Just do such and such and it will be taken care of. False promises hurt people. When false promises don’t work, someone will get the blame. Maybe the preacher, maybe the person themselves for their own lack of faith, or maybe God. None of these options help. But really any blame for false promises rest with us.

When it comes to application, direction and instruction. Be honest. Don’t over-complicate and don’t over-promise. Don’t be dishonest. Be honest.

Preaching Inside the Fence – Part 2

/ Peter Mead / Leave a comment

Several days ago I suggested the image of preparing and preaching within a low fence. I’d like to suggest a reason for doing so that may not be immediately obvious. Very simply, you will enjoy the preaching process more. Let me give another example:

Almost four years ago the church I was involved in was working it’s way through Luke. I had Easter Sunday morning. It was tempting to read Luke, but essentially preach Paul. You know how it is, so simple to revert to the terminology, ideas and focus of a passage like 1st Corinthians 15. I resisted the temptation and erected a low fence. I studied within Luke’s writings. I saturated my preparation with Luke and worked to prepare a deliberately Lukan message. I didn’t want to just preach the resurrection, I wanted to preach Luke’s account of the empty tomb and risen Christ. I tried to grasp the significance and focus of the carefully written account in his gospel. I tried to use Luke’s terminology and present his concept of salvation. I wanted to preach in Luke’s language rather than Paul’s or John’s.

The message went well as far as I could tell. One discerning listener commented on the deliberate Luke language. Probably everyone else missed it. That didn’t matter. The big idea was as good as I could get from the text, the relevance was as deliberate and concrete as possible, the big things were what mattered. But for me, as the preacher, the attention to fine detail like choice of terminology made the study both exacting and rewarding. I felt like I’d tasted something of Luke’s great gospel in a way that I could so easily have bypassed.

I got a taste for preaching with a fence that day, and I’ve continued to do so whenever possible. I’d encourage you to try it if you haven’t already. Take the opportunity to push yourself deeper in whatever book you are preaching. It’s easy to revert to default thoughts from elsewhere, but you’ll enjoy it more if you don’t!

Bigger Passage – Bigger Big Idea?

/ Peter Mead / Leave a comment

Is it possible to arrive at one big idea for a passage, even if the passage is relatively long? The answer is yes, as long as you are dealing with a unit. Where there is a unit, there is some level of unity. In almost every case (maybe in every case), a book could be treated as a unit of Scripture. Within that greater unit there are sub-units. Perhaps we could call them major sections. Within major sections there are sub-sections. Within sub-sections there are complete thoughts. These terms are deliberately vague to allow for the different genres. But essentially a book is like a Christmas tree. The higher you go, the more is included within your chosen section.

For example, is it possible to determine a big idea for Ephesians 1:13-14? Yes, in the English Bible this is a sentence with a complete thought. (I know that for Paul it was not a complete sentence, but we’ll get to that!) Now if you step up a level, these two verses would be swallowed into 1:3-14. Again, big idea is possible, but would be different than just the last two verses of the section. Then you could step up a level again and preach that section swallowed within a larger unit – perhaps 1:1-2:10? Certainly you could move up to 1:1-3:21. Again, a big idea that would have to encompass more text, but still it could be a preachable big idea. Then you could move up another level and preach the whole book.

The main idea of a shorter passage becomes a point or movement within the main idea of a longer passage.

The important thing to remember in preaching a larger chunk of text is that you still have to deal with a legitimate unit of Scripture. Also, the details in the smaller units cannot be reflected fully in a succinct big idea. Be very wary of over complicating a big idea for a bigger passage. It may feel more responsible with the text, but it will undermine your main goal of communicating the text relevantly to your listeners.

Take a Good Thing and Make It Better

/ Peter Mead / 1 Comment

Ideally the passage is studied fully, leading to a strong passage idea.  Then the congregation is taken into account and a message idea is formulated.  Great!  That’s already put the message into a league above many that lack such unity.  But just having a big idea or message idea is one thing, having a good one is another.  Some preachers try so hard to be pithy and clever they’ll sacrifice the idea on the altar of wit.  Don’t do that.  Others have ideas that are almost as long as the message itself.  Maybe more accurate, but they won’t communicate well, they won’t stick.  So how to refine a long idea?  How to take a good thing and make it better:

1. Write out the idea and count the words. I’m not a huge fan of rules in preaching, but several writers have suggested the idea should not be more than 15 or maybe 18 words in length.  I tend to agree, although it’s a flexible guideline rather than a rule.  If you need more, use them, but in reality most ideas could be refined without harming them.

2. Evaluate it phrase by phrase and trim words. Don’t say in six words what could be said in two. Are you using roundabout ways of saying something?  Could you be more direct?

3. Could internal lists be summarized? Within the idea you may have two or three qualifiers for an element, perhaps qualifiers that will be points in the message.  Consider whether these are needed at the level of the idea, or whether a summary term might be more memorable.  If the message is preached well then that summary word will be explained and defined by the message anyway.

4. Is there a more memorable option available?  Some will give up too much to make this step.  Don’t.  But if there is a song title, pithy phrase, play on words, movie line or contemporary proverb that can be adapted to add memorability to the idea, consider it.

Often just getting the idea in any form takes a lot of thinking.  But if you’ve got any energy and time left, consider how it could be leaner, meaner, more precise, more memorable.  None of us get a killer big idea every week.  Even the authors of preaching books only share the strongest few they’ve managed in years of ministry!  But effort invested here is effort well spent.  Work on the idea pays dividends in the message – you’ll be taking a good message and making it even better!

The Balancing Act of Evangelism

/ Peter Mead / 1 Comment

This Sunday may be it. The only chance you will get. There may be someone there this Sunday who may never come again. So it would be wise to spell out the gospel in detail, wouldn’t it? After all, this may be the only opportunity and so it would make sense to be sure to cover all the bases. This is the approach many of us from time to time. Perhaps aware of visitors or motivated by something we heard, we decide to pack the corners of our message with evangelistic information.

I’m not suggesting this is wrong. But it is certainly not so simple. There are two sides to this issue. On the one side you are preaching the text to people that ultimately need to either respond to the gospel, or continue to apply the reality of the gospel in their lives. It may well be that this is the only opportunity for somebody to hear the important details concerning themselves, their predicament, God’s provision, and so on. I’ve sat through many supposedly evangelistic messages that did a lot of work, but then failed to spell out how to respond. So perhaps we should look to present the gospel as fully as possible in every message?

On the other hand, are we not running the risk of forcing every text into a certain gospel form, rather than honoring the text in a truly expository manner? Are we not running the risk of adding detail to a message that does not support the main idea and thereby complicating the message? People find clear messages easier to follow, ones that are built closely around a single main idea. If they are easy to follow then the experience is more enjoyable and people are more likely to return for more. A message considered confusing and complicated will not motivate people to want more.

Perhaps part of the solution is to present the gospel every Sunday, but if it risks complicating the message in some way, then it could be presented at some other point in the service. This may be the last Sunday someone will be able to hear the gospel. Equally, it may be the last Sunday they will bother coming to church if the communication is overwhelming and complicated. Present the gospel, or motivate them to return for more, or maybe you can do both?

Fear of Forgetting

/ Peter Mead / Leave a comment

I’m sure that I’m not the only one to get to the end of a message, sit down, and realize I forgot something.  A great illustration, a clever one-liner, some piece of support material.  When this happens, remember one thing – nobody else knows!  People listening accept what they hear as long as it makes sense and is somewhat engaging.  They don’t sit there thinking, “Well, that point would be better if it had a second illustration.” 

Elements of a sermon can be overlooked whether you preach without notes, with notes or with a manuscript.  It’s simply a reality of sermonic delivery that there is not a constant and equal attention given to that which is being said, that which the sermon design suggests should be said and the feedback being received from the listeners.  Sometimes our minds get ahead.  Sometimes we get distracted.  It’s alright.  People are not evaluating the sermon based on our manuscript.  They are listening to the delivery and if that goes well, then missed support material will not harm the message.

However, there are some elements that, if missed, can be very serious.  The main idea of the message should not only be included, but made to stick in the hearts of the listeners.  The surfacing of need for the message is very important in the early stages (and often not included in the prepared sermon or in the preached one!)  If this is overlooked then the listeners are unlikely to have genuine attention.  Also, the transitions of the message are important or people will get lost.

Pay attention to remembering the main idea, the creation of need, and transitions.  That clever one-liner or pertinent story from yesterday’s paper feels important to you, and may help if it gets in there, but won’t missed if you forget it.

Incoherent Preaching

/ Peter Mead / 5 Comments

Very few preachers are incoherent.  Yet many preachers are incoherent.  Before you accuse me of being incoherent, let me explain.  The other day I sat through a sermon from a visiting speaker.  I may be my own worst critic, but I try to be gracious to others.  Sorry.  On this occasion I failed.  Why did I have such a hard time with the message?  Because it did not cohere.

The man was coherent.  No reason to believe otherwise.  Every sentence made sense.  Every word fit in its context.  Yet at a higher level the message was incoherent.  It didn’t stick together.  The pieces may have made sense as distinct units.  But the reason for joining them together was unclear.  At a level higher than words or sentences, the message lacked unity.  All the parts of a message must be coordinated to form a single, unified whole.  Without this careful and deliberate cohesion, at a macro level the message is incoherent. 

The need for unity in a message is not a new idea.  It’s been a big idea since long before big idea preaching was defined.  But just because unity, or coherence, is a long established need in speech formulation, this doesn’t mean that we automatically achieve it.  It takes work to make a message cohere.  It takes hard work to avoid being incoherent!

Preach Like It May Their Last

/ Peter Mead / 2 Comments

If you are preaching today, it is tempting to be caught up in your own world.  Concerned about your presentation, the details of the sermon, even the peripheral details that you didn’t delegate to someone more passionate about them.  But know this – today’s sermon may be the last some of those people ever hear.

The tired teenager who is gaining the freedom to not have to come to church, but has not yet gained a sense of need for church.  Today may be their last.  The person who’s been coming for a while, but only fits in on the outside, by dressing right, yet on the inside is wracked with doubts and is tired of pretending.  Today may be their last.  The couple whose marriage is seconds away from complete train wreck and can’t keep up the show any longer.  Today may be their last.  The guy struggling with significant temptation who feels like he’ll cave in any day, but is currently painfully unaware of the waves of guilt that will follow.  Today may be his last.

Today may be the last time some people in your congregation hear you preach.  It may be their last sermon, their last Sunday morning at church.  We’ve all heard evangelistic messages that point out the urgency of the occasion.  “You may step out of here and be hit by a bus.  Do not delay!”  Let’s turn that urgency on ourselves for a moment.  Some of them may die before next Sunday.  But there are dozens of other reasons why you may not see them again.  The reasons are important, but so is this sermon.  How much more direct should it be?  How much more relevant?  How much more real should you be?  How much more urgent?

This may be their last.  Preach in a way that will make this sermon count.