Expository Preaching

Wilderness Temptations in Ministry

/ Peter Mead / Leave a comment

Early in Mark’s Gospel, we see Jesus healing the sick, casting out demons, and teaching with authority. His reputation spreads quickly. Crowds gather. Momentum builds. Yet the very next morning, while the people of Capernaum are looking for Him, Jesus is found alone in a solitary place, praying.

That moment is revealing. When ministry seems to be “working,” Jesus withdraws into the wilderness. It reminds us that wilderness moments are not interruptions to ministry—they are often central to it.

The Gospels tell us that Jesus faced temptation in the wilderness at the outset of His ministry, but the pattern doesn’t end there. Throughout His life, Jesus repeatedly faced moments when the temptation was not overt sin but misdirected ministry—shortcuts, distortions of His calling, or alternatives to obedience.

This pattern mirrors the lived reality of ministry across time. The temptations we face often change with the seasons of life, but the wilderness remains a place where motives are tested, and hearts are revealed.

The Early Years: The Temptation to Chase Position

In the early years of ministry, the wilderness temptation often comes disguised as enthusiasm and opportunity. There is energy, idealism, and a hunger to make a difference. Like Jesus in Capernaum, things can move quickly. People respond. Doors open. Encouragement flows.

The temptation at this stage is not laziness or compromise; it is confusing fruitfulness with faithfulness.

For Jesus, staying in Capernaum would have made perfect sense. The people were receptive. The ministry was effective. Yet He resists the pull of early success, saying instead, “Let us go somewhere else—to the nearby villages—so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.”

In the early years, the wilderness temptation is to let affirmation define calling. We begin to believe that visible results are proof of divine direction. Prayer can quietly give way to activity. Dependence on God can be replaced with confidence in gifting.

The wilderness calls us back to a deeper question:
Am I pursuing what is effective—or what I am sent to do?

The Middle Years: The Temptation to Chase Power

In the middle years of ministry, the landscape shifts. Experience grows. Responsibility increases. Structures develop. With them comes influence—and often authority.

This season brings its own wilderness temptation: the temptation to control outcomes.

At this stage, ministry no longer feels fragile; it feels manageable. We’ve seen what works and what doesn’t. We know how to organise, plan, and lead. Yet it is precisely here that dependence on God can quietly erode.

Power itself is not the problem. Jesus exercised authority with clarity and compassion. The danger arises when power becomes a substitute for trust—when leadership becomes about maintaining control rather than discerning obedience.

In the wilderness, Satan offered Jesus authority without the cross—influence without surrender. Jesus refused it, choosing obedience over efficiency. The same temptation presents itself in subtler forms during the middle years of ministry: shaping vision around what we can sustain, protecting systems we’ve built, or resisting disruption because it threatens stability.

The wilderness question here becomes:
Do I trust God enough to remain open-handed—even with what I’ve built?

The Later Years: The Temptation to Chase Peace

In later years, the wilderness temptation often looks very different. The drive for impact may have faded, and the appetite for control softened. What emerges instead is a longing for peace—not the profound peace of Christ, but a peace that avoids strain, conflict, or cost. It is the false peace of comfort.

After years of service, sacrifice, and endurance, the desire to step back is understandable. Yet the temptation is to confuse rest with retreat.

Jesus never chose comfort over calling. Even as He faced rejection, suffering, and ultimately the cross, He did not withdraw into self-preservation. His peace was rooted in obedience, not in the absence of difficulty.

In later years of ministry, the wilderness may feel quieter, but it can be just as testing. There is the temptation to disengage emotionally, to avoid costly obedience, or to coast on past faithfulness rather than present surrender.

The wilderness asks a final searching question:
Am I willing to remain faithful—even when the work feels costly and unseen?

Why the Wilderness Remains Essential

Across all three seasons—early, middle, and later years—the wilderness serves the same purpose. It strips away false motivations and exposes what truly sustains us.

For Jesus, the wilderness was where His identity was clarified: Son of God, obedient servant, sent by the Father. For those in ministry, wilderness seasons reveal whether our sense of calling is anchored in Christ or in outcomes, influence, or comfort.

The wilderness is not a sign of failure. It is often the place of formation.

Jesus emerged from the wilderness not diminished, but strengthened—clear about His mission and resolute in obedience. If the Son of God was shaped by wilderness testing at every stage of His ministry, we should not be surprised when our own calling is refined the same way.

The challenge, in every season, is the same: to resist the temptation to reshape our calling around what is easier, safer, or more rewarding—and instead remain faithful to the One who called us.

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As Far As It Depends On Me

/ Peter Mead / 1 Comment

As we launch into a New Year, there are many unknowns.  We do not know what today will bring, let alone twelve months of days.  We cannot predict global affairs or the specific circumstances in any one of our lives.  This means that, above all else, we need to entrust our steps to God and walk forward by faith.

However, it may be helpful to reflect on our heartfelt intentions as we head into the New Year.  In Romans 12, Paul gives such a helpful thought on interpersonal relationships:

If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.

(Romans 12:18)

Paul knew that it would be unrealistic to hope to control outcomes when we have no control or even influence over the actions and responses of others.  The context makes it clear that people will act dishonorably, and people will perpetrate acts of evil.  And we could add that in the church, people will behave unwisely, unkindly, and destructively toward relationships we have poured ourselves into over many years.  It is tempting to want to sort it all out, correct everyone, and fix the mess.  Paul is more realistic.  We can only do what we can do.

What is true in relationships is also true in all areas of ministry.  We can only do what we can do.  So in that spirit, here are three areas to consider as we head into 2026:

So far as it depends on me, I desire to live prayerfully this year. 

How would you define your priorities for your walk with the Lord this year?  This is the most important relationship you have, so it is wise to think through how you intend to lean into it in the coming months.  Perhaps you want to prioritise time in the Word of God, listening to His heart and values to shape your own.  Perhaps you want to prioritise rest and the rhythms of sabbath to support your spiritual health.  Perhaps you want to lean into times of prayer in a fresh way—transparency with God in all areas of life and struggle, responsive prayer with your Bible reading, and/or dedicating greater time to intercessory prayer.  Of course, so much depends on Him, and so much is still unknown.  He may grow your relationship with Him in ways you have never considered, and maybe might never choose.  Nevertheless, it is good to pray through what this relationship looks like from your side as you head into the New Year.

So far as it depends on me, I desire to live presently this year.

We have other relationships that matter massively, too—marriage, parenting, other family relationships, friendships, ministry connections, etc.  Every single person represents a multiplicity of potential unknowns.  We don’t know anyone else’s future any more than we can understand our own.  However, we can pray through how we are thinking about and prioritising important human relationships as we head into the New Year.  Perhaps you want to schedule more dates with your spouse, maybe even an overnight getaway or two during the year?  Perhaps your children have suffered because of your ministry commitments, and you want to prioritise the shrinking time you have with them before they leave home?  Maybe one of your grown children is struggling and you want to find a way to invest in their situation for a season?  The intention could be definite and marked on your schedule, or it could be a value you desire to integrate into your rhythms of life—maybe the desire to be present in whatever conversation or situation you are in, undistracted by technology or the busy swirl of other commitments.

So far as it depends on me, I desire to live purposefully this year.

The best-laid plans any of us make are quick to be interrupted by unforeseen complications—heavy traffic, problems with our computers, a broken washing machine, an unexpected phone call from someone in trouble.  My wife and I sometimes remind each other that an hour going as planned is unusual in a fallen world!  The problem is that the overwhelming swirl of urgent needs and demands can make us feel hopeless and lose heart.  We could easily say, for the next month, I will just do whatever interrupts me and whatever issue presents itself.  It feels like we could live life with absolutely no priorities or purpose because there is always so much to do.  The New Year is a good time to consider prayerfully what really matters.  What really matters in our relationship, in our parenting, in our home, in our church, in our ministry roles.  What should I prioritise because only I can do it?  That could be reading to your children before bed a certain number of times each week, or it could be starting a new ministry in your church that nobody else can do.  And if it means saying yes to something, it will mean saying no to other things.

As we head into 2026, let’s prayerfully consider both our inability to influence and control everything and our desires for what we can shape about the year ahead.

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Please check out The Biblical Preaching Podcast, and be sure to subscribe so that you don’t miss any episode:

Catching Up With The Podcast

/ Peter Mead / Leave a comment

It has been a busy few months and I haven’t posted links to the podcast on here as much as I had planned. But let’s do a quick catch-up:

After a sequence of weddings, I shared some thoughts on preaching at a wedding. The last months included some great interviews, including:

Andy Paterson – Firstly, on how the Word does the work of ministry, and then, the relationships of a preacher.

Marcus Honeysett – First, on painting with fire, then on the nature of true transformation, and finally, on the heart of the preacher.

Steve Mathewson, we crossed the ocean to hear from Steve on the importance of all scripture in our preaching, and then we reminisced together about lessons learned from our mutual mentor, Haddon Robinson!

Jonathan Lamb – back to the UK to hear from Jonathan on crossing cultures as we think about preaching, and then we thought about how preaching models for listeners!

Rick McKinley – and once more back to the US to hear from an experienced pastor in the Portland metro area on connections required to connect with our listeners, and a great discussion about the role of humility in preaching.

Along the way, we have had some bitesize episodes on specific subjects, like adding to the text, is something missing in your preaching?, preaching the prophets, preaching at Christmas, and highlighting historical accuracy when we preach.

Mike and I have also enjoyed some helpful discussions: thoughts on being a guest preacher – something we’ve both done quite a bit of over the years!, landing a message, bad preaching (another area where we have experience!), a chat about Pleased to Dwell in anticipation of the advent season, and a chat about preaching at Christmastime!

We hope these episodes have been helpful for you, and if you have missed any, please do catch up! As ever, we really appreciate any help in getting the word out about the podcast – sharing links, liking, subscribing, etc., is all really helpful. If you particularly like an episode, please do let others know about it on social media – thank you in advance!

The Day

/ Peter Mead / Leave a comment

I can remember the first time I saw a Star Wars film in the cinema. This was back in the 1980s. With popcorn in hand, we found our plush velvet seats and tried to get comfortable. Then we were plunged into darkness. A slight pause. And then it began. In just two minutes, I was transported into another world. Everything normal seemed like a distant memory. “A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…” Then the blast of the brass section of an orchestra as the film title appeared. Three paragraphs of background story to orient us, and we were there. The start of the Star Wars movies was genuinely epic.

The Bible can, and should, have that same effect on us. Lifting us out of the everyday rhythms of life and helping us to see another whole realm of reality. For instance, consider the theme of The Day of the LORD. It is mentioned eighteen times in the Old Testament, plus dozens of other references like “on that day.” It is that future moment when God would step into history, bringing judgment for the wicked and blessing for His people.

Not only is it anticipated in the Old Testament, but it is also still anticipated in the New Testament. Consider, for example, 2 Peter chapter 3. There, Peter describes how scoffers will ridicule the idea of anticipating that day. Their tactic? They will suggest that “nothing really changes.” And how effective that tactic can be. Nothing really changes. So why should we be concerned about anything happening in the world? Nothing really changes. Why should we try to influence what is going on around us? Nothing really changes. Why look for something to break in from outside of our world? Nothing really changes. Today is like yesterday, and tomorrow will be more of the same. As one fiction writer put it, “it is a pity that thoughts always ran the easiest way, like water in old ditches.”

And yet, the Bible wants to lift our eyes and our hearts beyond our psychological preference for predictability. It wants us to know, and live in light of, the reality that one day, God Himself will step into history again.

Consider one of the passages that anticipates “that day” – Malachi chapter 3. For the first few verses, we read of how God is coming, the messenger of the covenant who will come like the purifier’s fire, like fuller’s soap. Two vivid images of cleansing, purging, separating – that fire so hot that metal melts and the impurities are separated; that lye that pulls out the impurities from fabric and bleaches it clean. The Lord is coming to cleanse and purify. Yes, the focus is on restoring proper worship, but the imagery is imposing and intimidating. 

We might expect the passage to conclude with a call to run. Run for your lives! Flee this terrible day that is coming! And yet, as in so many of the “Day of the LORD” passages, we find an invitation. This God, who is coming to purge and to cleanse, is a God of grace who invites His people to draw near to Him.

In verses 6 and 7, God speaks of His character. He does not change, which means they are not consumed (because He keeps His promises). But they should change. They should change direction. They have gone away from God, but if they return to Him, then He will return to them. As James later put it, “Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you” (James 4:8).

They asked how they could return. So God raised the issue of their giving. In verses 8-12, God describes how they should test Him (an unusual concept in the Bible!) by seeing if they could outgive God. They never would be able to do that! As we come to the end of the chapter, we find that some of the people who were challenged to give of their treasure, which really belonged to God anyway, were also moved in heart to fear God and be responsive to Him. So they are described as being God’s treasured possession. 

A chapter that begins with such overpowering imagery of judgment is so full of God’s overflowing grace. Yes, the Day of the LORD is terrifying, and many in this world should be shaking with fear at what is coming. And yet, for those of us who know what it means to belong to this God, we can look forward, waiting, anticipating, hoping. We live today in light of that day, knowing that the old ditches of life are not forever. We understand that the “nothing really changes” mindset is doomed to be proven profoundly wrong. We wait, knowing that with a blast of the brass section of heaven’s orchestra, we will be transported into another time. 

Honestly, I am not concerned with whether we agree on the details of what is to come in the future. I am worried that we are discouraged by the scoffers who claim that nothing really changes. Let’s read God’s Word and let it lift our eyes and our hearts. We have a God who has stepped into time and history and who will again. His coming will shake up everything. And we who live in anticipation of that day should live differently today. 

In light of Malachi 3, let’s be sure to turn to God now and be ready for that day. Let’s consider our “tithing” – that is, our giving and investing in eternity today. And let’s rejoice at the privilege of being His treasured possession. May the Lord use us now as we live for Him, and wouldn’t it be great if He came back soon!

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With Christmas coming soon, it is time to start making plans … especially if you are involved in preaching or teaching! Check out the latest episode of the podcast, and please do subscribe so you don’t miss any of the forthcoming episodes!

Going Beyond the Text?

/ Peter Mead / 1 Comment

When we preach a Bible passage, we need to preach the text.  That may sound obvious, but many don’t do it.  Some preachers use the text as a launching point – they read the text and then preach an associated thought from their own thinking or theology.  Others bounce briefly off the text and then preach other passages with some perceived connection. 

God is the best communicator, so as preachers, we want to reflect his communication as best we can.  When you are preaching a passage, really try to preach it.  That includes helping your listeners to see what is there, to understand what is there, and to feel the force of what is there.  To really preach a passage is not simply to educate listeners in the meaning, although that is a good start.  It is to get them into the text and get the text into them, and it is to introduce the God who is revealing himself through the text so that they experience the transformative power of a personal encounter.  The preacher is not merely teaching, but introducing, match-making, and fanning the flames of the relationship between listeners and God.

If we commit to truly preaching a passage, then we will come up against the challenge of saying more than the text says.  That is, if we are really committed to a high view of the biblical text, are we straying if we add any detail not overtly stated in the passage?  If we have a biblical narrative, are we restricted in telling the story so that we cannot fully tell it, but instead end up preaching theological points connected to it?  Are we trying to cram a 100-word reading into a 4000-word speech without really saying anything beyond the 100 words of the passage?

Here are five thoughts that may help when it comes to the subject of “adding to the text.” 

1. Think about the “informing texts” – As well as the passage you are preaching, there will be other passages that inform the content of your preaching passage.  Any passage quoted, or alluded to, or that provides the relevant history (think Acts for some of the epistles) should be considered as fair game for helpful content as you preach your passage.

2. Consider “related texts” – This is more subjective, but some passages are more related to your preaching text than others.  The same author or the same time period will tend to be more related than a distant author and era (unless the era is earlier and may have informed your writer, but then we are back to number 1: informing texts).  Related texts can be helpful, but don’t lean on them so much that your preaching passage is lost in the process.

3. Make plain “assumed knowledge” – When the Bible writers wrote, they were not thinking of readers in a different culture, language, location, and historical era.  So there is a lot of background information that is assumed.  The author might assume the reader knows who the Pharisees were, named individuals, cultural events, or societal norms.  Geographic descriptions weren’t needed for the original readers, but they might be highly helpful for modern listeners to make sense of the setting of a passage.  It is not going beyond the text to state overtly what is implicitly assumed within the text.  Study the background, the culture, the geography, etc., and help people to understand, visualize, and feel the impact of the passage as you preach.

4. “Imagined” thoughts and feelings in a passage can be shared honestly – We don’t know what was going through a character’s mind, or even what was happening in their life around the events of a story.  Where we use our imagination to help bring a passage to life, be sure to help listeners know that you are not asserting divine revelation.  I was listening to a Haddon Robinson sermon recently, and he said something like, “I’m not sure he said this, but I know we do…”  It was a helpful way to connect the real-life aspects of the story to the real-life experiences of Haddon’s listeners.  “I can imagine how Peter may have felt…” is a perfectly legitimate statement because your listeners know you are using your imagination.

5. Only “assert what the text asserts” – While sanctified, humble, and informed imagination can be helpful, it should never be the substance of your preaching points.  Let the thrust of your message, both at the level of the main idea and the main points, come from the passage.  Do not make assertions based on assumptions, imagination, or guesswork.  An example comes from Psalms where the historical setting is not stated but only guessed, and then the preacher makes a point that depends on a guessed historical setting.  Let the text drive the points you are making.  Use your imagination to help proclaim the passage.

Seasoned preachers know that the bigger challenge will always be what to leave out, rather than what to add to a message.  But in some settings, people have an overly restricted view of what should be said in a sermon.  They fear saying anything more than the passage itself states overtly.  That can restrict effective preaching. 

Let’s make it our goal to plumb the depths of our passage, to proclaim it as fully and engagingly as possible, and to make sure that it does its work in bringing listeners into an encounter with the God who reveals himself through the Word. 

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Here is last week’s podcast episode on this subject:

Love Jesus, Love the Gospel

/ Peter Mead / Leave a comment

It does not surprise me when I find scholars who do not believe the Bible is God’s inspired Word and also have a problem with the Apostle Paul.  But it still surprises me to find Bible-believing Christians who view Paul negatively.  For some, this is a reaction to his argumentative persona and intellectual presentation of complex truths.  For others, the antagonism comes from the feeling that he is misogynistic or overly self-referential.

Where there is a specific criticism based on a particular passage, it helps to study that passage in its context and take into account the rest of his writings as well.  But where the criticism is more a general feeling (i.e. he is too argumentative or complex), I think what helps is to try to enter into his world and see Paul in action.

At the beginning of Galatians, we find an extended biographical section that, at first glance, may appear self-congratulatory.  However, delving into Paul’s world is a worthwhile endeavour.  Not only will we find a brilliant and articulate fighter for the truth of the gospel – perhaps even a hero of the faith –  but we will also find a motivation we can emulate.  Maybe most of us will never be as brilliant as Paul.  But all of us could love Jesus and the truth of the Gospel as Paul did.  And if we did, perhaps the global and eternal impact would be beyond anything we have dreamt.

Let me try to give you a taste of this.  On Paul’s first missionary journey, as recorded in Acts 13-14, Paul and Barnabas arrived in the region of Galatia, preached the gospel, and saw churches established.  They were understandably excited as they headed for home base to report what God had done.  But when they arrived, they discovered that others had followed in their footsteps and sought to correct their ministry.  The criticism?  Paul was not a full apostle, and Paul did not preach a complete gospel message.  Perhaps Paul was portrayed as well-intentioned, and his message was seen to serve as a good starting point.  But these later teachers were promoting themselves as representatives of the Jerusalem apostles and their Law-based message as a more complete and committed version of what God expects.

Paul was livid!  He wrote Galatians to ward off this falsehood and try to win back the hearts of the believers before they were pulled away by this destructive corruption of the good news he had preached.

Why did Paul write with an edge?  (No pun intended)  Why does he seem to be shouting?  Why is Paul so sharp with them?  (Ok, that was slightly deliberate for the context!)  The answer is that Paul loved Jesus, the Gospel, and the believers in the Galatian churches.  Like a parent shouting sharply at a child walking towards a busy road, Paul was desperate to get their attention.

In the latter verses of Chapter 1, he laid out his apostolic credentials.  This was not about showing off but about exposing the lies being told about him.  He did not derive his authority from Jerusalem. He had barely been there.  His authority came from God himself.  And in the opening verses of Chapter 2, he focused on his Gospel message.  It was a message that he had laid before the Jerusalem apostles.  Even under pressure from the same false teachers, Paul’s Gentile companion Titus had not been compelled to be circumcised.  The highest council of apostles, the inner circle itself, had affirmed his calling with a hearty handshake and no doctrinal caveats.

When you ponder the world Paul inhabited, it becomes clear that he was driven not by a desire to win arguments or a passion for self-promotion like an early social media influencer.  A deep love for Jesus drove Paul, and therefore, a passion for the gospel of God’s grace that truly transforms lives from the inside out.  It was that deep love that drove Paul to travel, to preach, to be misunderstood, to be persecuted, to suffer, and eventually, to die for the Lord that he loved.  In Galatians 2:11-14, it was that deep love that drove Paul to take a most uncomfortable step: he publicly called the great senior apostle Peter a hypocrite in front of his home crowd.

I’m not suggesting we should be looking for opportunities to poke others in the chest.  I’ve seen far too much bombastic finger-wagging on social media.  But I’ve also seen far too little courage in person when faced with character and behaviour that compromises the Gospel.  Will we be willing to take uncomfortable steps in the face of compromise, or will we be willing to take uncomfortable steps in the calling of missionary need? 

We cannot give ourselves a good talking-to and suddenly generate sacrificial motivation for ministry.  Neither can we muster up Paul’s level of theological brilliance just because we start to find him inspiring.  But we can gaze long and hard at Jesus.  We can ponder the wonder of the gospel of God’s grace in Christ deeply.  We can ask God to give us a heart-exploding glimpse into the wonder of who Jesus is and what Jesus has done.  Because if we see Jesus for who he is, if we get a sense of the wonder of the gospel, then perhaps we will start to share in Paul’s motivation for the truth of the gospel.

Why did Paul contend for the truth of the gospel, even in the face of opposition?  Two words from Galatians 2:5 – it was so that the truth of the gospel might be preserved “for you.”  And by extension, from Galatia down through two millennia, it was for it to be preserved for us.  May we be ever more captivated by the glorious good news of God’s great love for us so that we are motivated to preserve it for others.

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Podcast Catch-Up: Insights for Preachers

/ Peter Mead / Leave a comment

The last couple of months have been busy, to say the least. A conference with Josiah Venture in Czech Republic, the European Leadership Forum in Poland, two family weddings, two baptism services in the midst of a busy season at church – these all added up to not sharing much on this site. So, it is time for a catch-up on the podcast. What has been happening since the last post that was linked to an episode?

Mike and I discussed the various kinds of interruptions that can add some intricate dynamics to a preaching event. We also talked through the most basic sermon preparation process. While there is plenty of potential for complexity in the area of sermon preparation, we wanted to make sure the basic process is clear.

We have had quite a few bitesize episodes, including Peter on 5 Aspects of Natural Delivery, The Four Worlds of the Preacher, and Preaching Without Notes. (I will write another post on that subject soon!) Mike shared about the courage to confront yourself, and the potential poison of preaching ministry.

Along the way, we also had a couple of episodes hearing from Si Munsie of Life Church, Southampton. (Click here for part 1 on preaching to real people, and here for part 2 where we think about past employment and preaching.) And this week, we have part 1 of my interview with Andy Paterson, currently pastoring in Hong Kong – a fascinating conversation with a very experienced pastor-preacher! We have some great interviews lined up in the next months too.

So my apologies for being quieter on here and social media in recent weeks. We really do appreciate every encouraging comment, both in person and online. If you are able to subscribe on YouTube and in whatever podcast platform you use (eg Spotify or Apple), that really does help. Also, every like, comment, share, etc., is massively appreciated. Thank you for helping to get this podcast off the ground!

Mentored by the Text

/ Peter Mead / Leave a comment

I recently had the privilege of speaking at the Josiah Venture Spring Conference.  What a joy to spend those days with great people in a beautiful place, enjoying an excellent Bible book!  In light of that time, I have been pondering the idea of being mentored by the biblical text.

To begin the series of messages, I suggested that if we could time travel, we would be changed by spending half an hour watching Jesus, Moses, Daniel, Paul, or whoever.  If we could just be there and see them in action, we would be mentored by the experience.  But we have the Bible!  So why not allow the experience of the text to mentor us?  Time spent watching Jesus (in this case) should surely mark our lives in significant ways.

Here are some thoughts on “Preaching as Biblical Mentoring” –

1. The move from then to now is essential, but the move from text to sermon can be overdone.  I have seen sermons so crafted that listeners may marvel at the sermon construction but lose the passage.  Maybe our sermonic work of art is not as valuable as the inspired text.  After all, whatever we can do with the text is not as good as what God did when He inspired the text.  So perhaps we need to consider how to let the passage drive the message more in our preaching. 

2. Overly crafted wording can hide rather than reveal the inspired text.  In the detail of the sermon, do we demonstrate our linguistic skill rather than elevating the text itself?  Our wordcraft may impress listeners, but is our goal to impress them?  Surely our pastoral goal should be for them to encounter God Himself in His word?  Let us make it our goal to communicate rather than to exhibit our craftsmanship.

3. The shape of an overly crafted sermon can hide rather than reveal the shape of the text.  I remember one moment as a student in a class.  I was the member of our group who went up to write our outline on the whiteboard.  “That is incorrect,” the teacher declared, “you have to make all the points parallel.”  I was taken aback and responded, “But, isn’t that the shape of the passage?”  The teacher looked at the Bible.  “Yes, it is the shape of the passage, but your outline has to follow the rules of rhetoric, so it is wrong.”  I politely pointed out that Haddon Robinson (who was in charge of the preaching department at that seminary for many years) had taught us to reflect the shape of the text in our sermons.  It became clear that there was a point of difference between these two excellent teachers.  I’m with Haddon.  Let’s aim for sermons that reflect the shape of the text rather than squeezing the text to fit our rhetorical expectations and standard sermon shapes.

4. Overly crafted rhetoric can hide rather than reveal the experience of the text.  As we preach, we should communicate clearly, with good organisation and a thought-through structure.  But sometimes, our sermons can hide the text and keep listeners from experiencing the tensions and contours of a passage.  So let’s use whatever skill we can, but remember that our goal is not to present the work of art that is our sermon.  No, our goal is to bring our listeners into a rich experience of the passage and, in doing so, to encounter God as He reveals Himself there.

5. We should preach so listeners can “see” the movie projected in their hearts.  I find it helpful to imagine every listener with a movie screen in their hearts.  If I prayerfully and carefully present the message to them, a movie should form on that screen.  It is easy to offer theological insights and speak theoretical truths.  But those screens will remain blank.  However, suppose I can effectively describe what is on the page.  In that case, my prayer is that they will not only understand it but also experience it.  And when they experience it, it will change their lives.  It can be like being mentored through the text by God revealing Himself in that passage.

I am sure there are more angles to consider on this subject.  Perhaps too much of our ministry uses the Bible, begins with the Bible, or connects to the Bible, but what people really need is to experience what God has given us in the Bible.  Supremely, the Bible reveals Him.  Let’s prayerfully shape our ministries so that people can encounter Him and not simply learn theological truth at arm’s length.

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Please check out The Biblical Preaching Podcast, on YouTube (click image below), or on any podcasting platform (Spotify, Apple, etc.)

How to Improve Your Delivery

/ Peter Mead / Leave a comment

Delivery matters.  And yet some do not want to think about improving their delivery. Perhaps they feel comfortable with the rhythm of preaching that their tradition and experience has set in place and do not want to tinker with something that seems to work. Perhaps they consider it more spiritual to avoid any hint of performance in their preaching. Maybe they believe that the content of the message, or even the vitality of their personal walk with God, should and will speak for itself.

There may be some preachers who are highly confident in their own rhetorical prowess and cannot imagine that everyone else is not continually wowed by their combination of presentational ease and flair. More likely, there could be many preachers who know they have delivery weaknesses but are hesitant to face them in case it is overwhelming. Then, there will be preachers who do not know how much their delivery impacts their communication and have never stopped to give the matter any thought.

Delivery matters. It either helps or hinders your attempts to communicate God’s Word with your listeners. Improving your delivery is both an act of love for your listeners and a matter of good stewardship of your ministry before God.  It is about making sure your good study and preparation is given a chance to get through, and it is about making it as easy as possible for the listeners to hear God’s word.

What if the best message is presented at too low a volume, with a persistent cough, distracting vocal mannerisms, and you can’t quite see the preacher – is it possible for you to listen to that sermon? While it’s possible to hear and still be impacted by the sermon, it will take extra effort on your part to fully absorb what’s being said. As a preacher, it’s an act of love to minimize the effort required for your listeners to truly engage with your message.

In this episode of the podcast, I present a simple three-step process to improve your delivery.  It is not complicated.  But the question is, will you follow this process and improve?

I’d love to hear from you – what is the one thing that you need to work on next?  Also, what have you worked on in the past and what did you find helpful?  Please do comment on this post, or after the podcast episode. Please click here to watch Episode 11.