Transcript Homiletics - Hope Family Fellowship

Homiletics
The Art of Preaching
From A Non-Expert!
Goals and Credits…
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To help each one of us do a better job
in our presentations of the Scripture
Two parts today – some definitions, and
principles, and some “how to” pointers
Acknowledgement – Some of the
material is condensed from a graduate
level class presented by Dr. Frank
Longino – Liberty Theology Seminary
What is Preaching?
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“The art of moving men from a lower
life to a higher life.” – Beecher
“The communication of truth through
personality.” – Anonymous
“Preaching is divine truth voiced by a
chosen personality to meet human
need.” A. W. Blackwood
The clothing of ideas in words - Longino
What is Preaching?
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Declaring God’s Word as recorded in the
Bible
It is not about man’s ideas of God, but
what God has done for man.
The uniqueness of a Biblical sermon (as
opposed to a speech) is due to the
subject matter, the material used, and
the results promised!
The Bible
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The whole counsel of God is revealed through
history
The Old Testament focus is on God’s dealing
with His people and a forward look to the
coming Messiah
The New Testament centers in the New
Covenant established by God’s redemptive act
in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ!
What Should We Preach?
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Christian preaching should
center in God’s redeeming
action set forth in both
Testaments, climaxing in
Jesus death and
resurrection!
It is all about Him, not us,
our style, our self-worth,
value, acceptance, at-aboys, education, but about
Jesus Christ!
3 Primary Words Used For
Preaching
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Euanggellizo – evangelize, Gospel
Kerusso or kerygma – herald
Katanggello – to proclaim publicly
What we proclaim is life-changing, sin
correcting, faith building and eternal!
The foolishness of preaching
Rom. 1:15-16, 1 Corinthians. 1:21
2
Tim. 4:1-2
What Obstacles Do We Face?
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Over communication – email, instant
messages, text messaging, chat rooms, junk
mail, newscasts, fast paced everything, ADD
Our enemy is preaching constantly against
the truth – movies, educational system (antiChrist profs), false gospels, etc
Football forum example – the perception of
Christians is not good – Right wing extremist
nuts no different from any other nuts…
A Short History…
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OT prophets were the first preachers – boldly
proclaiming the Word of the Lord
Then men like Ezra, Nehemiah, etc.
Early Church followed the synagogue style
Early Church Fathers – extensive
writers/preachers
Reformation – prolific writers/proclaimers
17th – 18th centuries ushered in higher
criticism, scholarism, etc.
Criticism Defined…
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Higher Criticism – attempts to investigate the
origins of a text, especially the text of the
Bible. Higher criticism, in particular, focuses
on the sources of a document and tries to
determine the authorship, date and place of
composition of the text.
Lower Criticism, known as textual criticism,
which is the endeavor to establish the original
version of a text.
History Continued
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19th and 20th Centuries ushered in
modernism, and new technology
21st Centuries expanded technology and
attention deficit - boredom
A move towards “Seeker Friendly” as opposed
to “Believer” centered
A tendency to be relevant to our society
through being a sub-culture against being a
counter-culture
What will history say about this season in
church pulpits?
Martin Luther - “Table Talk”
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– “A preacher should have these virtues;
First, to teach systematically; secondly, he
should have a ready wit; thirdly, he should be
eloquent; fourthly, he should have a good
voice; fifthly a good memory; sixthly, he
should know when to make an end;
seventhly, he should be sure of his doctrine;
eighthly, he should venture and engage body
and blood, wealth and honor, in the Word;
ninthly, he should suffer himself to me
mocked and jeered by every one.”
Principles of Rhetoric
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Rhetoric – “Discourse that aims to
influence men.” “The art of speaking or
writing effectively.”
Inventio – subject matter
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A. Ethos – Character of the speaker – the
importance of perception
B. Pathos – Ability of the audience to
identify with the speaker
Rhetoric…
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Dispositio – Arrangement of material
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Progression of thought, order of ideas,
establishing cause and effect, logical climax
Elocutio – Style
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Depends on the setting – formal, informal,
classroom, home, open air, pulpit, audience
type
Rhetoric
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Pronuntiatio – Delivery
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Includes, cadence, meter, poetic, gestures,
posture, etc.
Memoria – memory, the ability to call
upon other resources from the brain
Spiritu Sanctu – The anointing of the
Spirit – His promise to bless His Word
On To Practical Matters…
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The first main point is…any guesses?
RELAX
Fear, shortness of breath, confusion,
reading all hinder the presentation
Put away all distracting props – clicking
pen, glasses on and off, on and off, etc.
Begin slowly and breath
Vary Your Voice
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Pitch – tone, inflection
Pace – speed, too fast or two
slow aim for about 100 words
a minute – Unity Service…
Volume – emphasis lowering
can be as effective as
screaming
God’s Word is still the focus
not the instrument – “Sinners
in the hands of an angry God”
was read in a monotone voice
The Attitude of the Preacher
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Reverence of the Scripture, read
carefully and with honor
Humility – we do not have all the
answers, nor have we arrived
We are simply God’s ambassador
Mannerisms – beware – ask others to
honestly critique you – zipper, fill words
Preaching and life should be one
Three Main Sermon Types
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Topical – love, joy, sin, almost
anything – guided by subject matter
Easiest to keep unity of message
Easily grasped by the average audience
today
Allows great latitude
Allows for a Biblically comprehensive
treatment of a topic
Some Disadvantages
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Easy to get into rut – baptism, family, $
Easy to only preach on what interests the
speaker and not necessarily what is needed
by his hearers
If a hammer is your only tool, all is a nail
Easier to get into error since context can be
ignored
“Text without context becomes pretext”
Lev. 25:44 God wants us to have slaves
Textual Sermon
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A short unit of verses (4 or less) and
the topic and subjects flow from the
text
Romans 1:16 –
1. The Gospel is the power of God
2. It is the power of God unto salvation
3. It is the power of God unto salvation
to those who believe
Advantages/Disadvantages
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Basically same as topical
Easy to grasp by most audiences
NIV grammar is excellent for this
Still easy to pick only texts you like
Still easy to avoid context
Isogesis (to put the meaning in) vs.
exegesis (to draw the meaning out)
Prince of Sermons
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Expository – An entire
book, a chapter, etc
Forces the teacher to
deal with topics not
normally addressed
Helps keep verses in
their context
What does it say and
what does it mean?
Helps limit “proof
texting”
Disadvantages…
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Lose focus of what you are trying to
communicate
Not applicable to your audience
Can limit ability to deal with current
issues
Get lost in detail and rabbit trails
Attention span of modern listeners
Many Types of Sermons
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Points – a progressive line of thought
Twin – two conflicting or contrasting –
positive vs. negative
Interrogative – Journalist questions –
who, what, where, why, when, and how
Ladder – point to point like a lawyer or
as in a debate
Sermons
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Jewel – turning a verse round and
round like a gem (as opposed to
cinnamon roll)
Hegelian – Thesis, antithesis, and
synthesis
Thematic – “High Cost of Low Living” or
“It’s Friday, but Sunday’s Coming”
Rebuttal – to correct false teaching
Life-situation – problem solving
Which One Is Right?
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How long should a piece of rope be?
Depends on the need doesn’t it?
It’s not a matter of right and wrong, but
right and left
I prefer topical or expository of large
sections of Scripture
Easier to stay closer to the context and
get the full picture
Sermon Preparation Begins
With A Prepared Preacher!
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We must be in right relationship
with God
We must have a valid idea to
preach! - Battles are fought on
the field of ideas
Where do I get one?
Bible must be the ultimate
source
Needs of the hearers –
instruction, correction,
edification, vision, etc
Flash of inspiration – God is the
God who still speaks, we often
fail to listen!
Valid Idea…
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Personal experiences – victory or defeat
A planned program – a book, whole
Bible, Homiletics, parenting etc
Next, is the task of correlation
A scripture must be secured
immediately for any idea no matter
where it comes from!
Four Basic Uses of Scripture
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Text – what does it say, what does it
mean
Context – helps define what the text is
saying
Illustration – other texts using the same
word, principle or idea
Support – doctrine is made by multiple
text (not one!) Can you think of any
doctrines based on 1 verse?
Planned Rabbit Trail…
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How do we know if a doctrine is central,
critical, one to be used as a basis of
fellowship?
It should surface in multiple places
…Gospels, Paul, Peter, James, John,
Beware of limited texts as the basis of
doctrines…
Proper Interpretation is a Must
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Crash course on Hermeneutics
Factors involved in proper interpretation
The historical setting – not written to us
– what did it mean to the original
hearers/recipients?
Grammatical structure
Meaning of all major words
Scriptural cross-references
Proper Interpretation
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Context is important – paragraph,
chapter, book, Testament
What type of literature am I reading?
Meaning cannot conflict other passages
OT must be viewed through NT
We will speak confidently about what
we know well
Steps to Proper Interpretation
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Read text in several translations
Look up every word in original language
Restate in your own words
Consult commentaries – several and know
who wrote them and what they believe!
Read other places the words are used
What did it mean to the folks to whom it was
first written?
Assuming We Have Something
To Share, Then What?
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Get your thoughts organized and outlined
All points should connect and make sense
Sub points should divide main points
Explain, define, present arguments for or
against, illustrate, and a key pet peeve is…
MAKE APPLICATION
Allow for invitation to respond
Illustrations
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Illustrations – the good,
the bad, and the ugly
Can and should be used
to clarify, persuade,
impress a point, and to
aid in repetition and
argument
Many types including –
verbal, physical,
personal (I don’t
recommend using wife
or children)
Illustrations…
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Parables, analogy, biographical,
historical, simile or metaphor…all great
The Bad – Shouldn’t be told for the
sake of telling – lady in the balcony
Overused, undignified or of course,
unrelated
If you have to explain, avoid
Circumcision story…
Some More Practical Ideas
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“There is not a lack of
revelation, but a lack of
preservation of
revelation.”
How do we capture the
ideas, concepts,
thoughts, verses etc. that
God gives us?
Filing systems, computer,
I use “sermon garden”
Write it down!
How To Begin…
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Remember - this is the task of the preacher –
the clothing of ideas in words.
Step 1 – Choose your passage
Prayer, thinking, being requested to speak 
Length of text and length of time and your
audience
Type of message – topical, textual, or
expository
Step 2
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Study your passage (s)
Read as many translations as possible –why?
Consult resource materials – Lexicons,
Dictionaries, Concordances, Word Studies
Commentaries – use a variety and know what
is behind their comments – Calvinist,
Armenian, anti-pope, liberal, non-miracles,
etc. Each one will have an underlying view
Step 3
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Begin to develop the theme
Ask “what is he talking about here?”
“What is he saying about what he is
talking about?”
Ask the journalist questions
What type of text is it – parable, poetry,
proverb, historical narrative, command?
An Effective Preacher Must…
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Have passion
BG – “That’s why I’m so
giddy.”
Be involved in three
different worlds
The world of the Bible
The present world
scene
The world of that of his
immediate listeners
Step 4
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Restatement – Use your own words to
see if you understand what is being
stated
Explanation – What does it mean
Proof – Is it true (Jotham -2 Chron 27)
Application – What difference does it
make?
Make it personal to those listening
Ask, “What is the purpose of
this sermon?”
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It should seek to change lives in some
specific way
What do you expect to happen as a
result of your efforts? For example:
A Proposition to be proved – Jesus is
the Christ
A Principle to be applied – let hearers
also be doers of the Word
What We Expect…
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A Subject to be contemplated – Do not
forsake your gathering together…Why?
A Story to be told – people remember
stories…A certain man went down to
Jerusalem…mountain top vacation
Our goal is to be used of God in the
presentation of truth to affect change
General Outline…
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Introduction – something to grab
attention or set the focus
Body of the messages, points, subpoints, illustrations,
Application – Why did I preach this?
Conclusion – the purpose of a
conclusion is to conclude not just end 
How To Improve…
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Read good sermons – classics
Listen to others and critique
Listen to your own and critique
Listen to those who love you
Take some classes – Olford Institute
Read books on how to preach
Practice, practice, practice…
Some Summary Comments
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We have the honor of sharing God’s
very words with others
We must take it seriously and apply
ourselves to the pursuit of excellence
It is better to leave your listeners
longing for more than to have them
wishing you were finished…
Summary…
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2 Timothy 2:15 – “Do your best to
present yourself to God as one
approved, a worker who has no need to
be ashamed, rightly handling the word
of truth.”
Studying is not quenching the Spirit
God can and does anoint your
preparation
Summary…
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“I don’t use notes,” the preacher boldly
declares, and we all say, “we can tell!”
Spontaneous most times means
unprepared!
Go over your teaching several times
Practice it out loud
Boil it down to one sentence
Finally…
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God is the one responsible for the results
We pray, prepare and do our best; God is the
one who promises that His Word will not
return void…it will accomplish what He
desires – Isaiah 55…
Don’t quit if it doesn’t go as well as you think
it should have…you are not objective at this
point…
Be strong, be men of the Word! Stick close to
the Scripture, it is excellent material!