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Last Minute Sermon Idea...Look at the Text Differently

Submitted by shermancox on Wed, 2008-03-19 07:19.
Ok...It is late and you need a sermon. You look at the text and you only see what you always see. What can you do? A simple tip provided by Charles Koller in the book How to Preach Without Notes might help.

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A Basic Sermon Model - Three Points and a Poem

Submitted by shermancox on Fri, 2008-02-08 01:32.
One of the most persistent models of preaching has been termed "Three points and a Poem." What it means is that the preacher makes three points and then ends with a poem. Some preachers have termed the same sermon method as "Three points and a celebration."

I have been listening to the sermons of a few preachers and have found that this format is still being used even by some well regarded preachers. Just like any art form, there are variants, but here is one description of the parts of such a sermon.

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Frederick Haynes' Stories - Improving Your Preaching

Submitted by shermancox on Mon, 2007-11-12 07:34.

How to Use Stories to Strengthen Sermons.

I make a habit of listening to Dr. Frederick D. Haynes III of Friendship West Baptist Church in Dallas Texas. Dr. Haynes incorporates stories into his preaching very effectively. These stories are gleaned from various sources.

Finding Stories

Preaching from First Naivete to Second Naivete

Submitted by shermancox on Mon, 2007-08-27 07:57.
Paul Ricoeur's hermeneutical method is explored in this post. There are three steps in the method. We move from an understanding of the text on its own terms called "first naivete'." Then we go to a critical analysis where we compare and contrast the text to our own present reality. Then we end with a second naivete that names God in contemporary experience in light of the critical analysis. Read this post for a deeper understanding of this powerful method of preparing sermons.

To Whoop or Not To Whoop - Musicality in Black Preaching

Submitted by shermancox on Thu, 2007-08-16 23:29.

Whooping is one of the components of the Black Preaching Tradition that grabs the attention of many congregates and preachers.

Three Layers of Justice Preaching

Submitted by shermancox on Mon, 2007-08-13 10:32.

The Eco Justice Ministries website has a post up entitled Three Layers of Environmental Preaching.

The author of the post is specifically talking about preaching on the Environment, but one can easily adapt the discussion to such issues as Racism, Classism, or other issues that might be a problem in your particular parish.

Issues Preaching

Preaching Patterns - Moves and Structures

Submitted by shermancox on Mon, 2007-08-13 07:13.
The Patterns for Preaching series continues with a look at David Buttrick's method. Here the sermon is a series of moves with the intention of forming community consciousness. How do you create a sermon that directly moves a community? That is what Buttrick's method attempts to do. This post outlines his method.

Four Pages of a Sermon

Submitted by shermancox on Wed, 2007-08-08 07:03.
This is Paul Scott Wilson's method for preaching that incorporates four distinct views of the material into the sermon for a well rounded sermonic approach. He moves from Trouble in the Bible to Trouble in the World to Gospel in the Bible to Gospel in the world.

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