PRINCIPLES OF PREACHING

CHAPTER ONE
THE OBJECT OF PREACHING

1. WHAT PREACHING IS
A. Preaching has been defined as:
"A manifestation of the Incarnate Word from the Written Word by the spoken Word" Bernard Manning.
"The audible sacrament ... an exposition, an exposure of God's revelation in Christ
declared in the scriptures, in the power of the Holy Spirit in such a way that a mind is
stimulated, a will is challenged and a heart is warmed" - Dr. Donald Coggin.
Transferring the Word hot from the heart of the preacher to the hearer.
Truth poured through personality - Phillip Brooks. The audience does not hear a
sermon, they hear a man.
Bishop William A. Quale had this in mind when he rejected standard definitions of
homiletics. "Preaching is the art of making a sermon and delivering it?" he asked. "Why
no, that is not preaching. Preaching is the art of making a preacher and delivering
that!"
The sermon is the preacher up to date and true preaching is the outrush of the soul in speech.
In its ultimate sense, it is the communication of the heart of God to the hearts of men.
B. 1 Peter 4:11 declares that the preacher is the "oracle of God" which is defined in the
dictionary as being a vehicle for divine inspiration or revelation. The Living Bible says, "Are
you called to preach? Then preach as though God Himself were speaking through you".
C. There are 3 main Greek words used in the New Testament to describe preaching:
a) EUANGELIZO - "to preach good tidings". This is mostly used in connection with evangelism
and has to do with the content of the message. It is almost always used of the good news
concerning the Son of God.
b) KERUGMA - "A proclamation by a herald". This indicates the prophetic nature of the
preacher. He speaks for God and his message is designed to compel a decision. The verb
"kerusso" means "to be a herald" or to proclaim.
This explains why Paul encouraged his young associate Timothy to "preach the word" (2 Tim.
4:2). Preach means "to cry out, herald, or exhort". Preaching should so stir a man that he pours
out the message with passion and fervour. Not all passionate pleading from a pulpit, however,
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possesses divine authority. When a preacher speaks as a herald, he must cry out "the word".
Anything less cannot legitimately pass for Christian preaching.
c) PARRHESIAZOMAI (Acts 9:27) - means to be bold in speech. It refers to the courage
necessary to be an unfettered preacher of divine truth. The preacher's task is not only to
comfort the disturbed, but to disturb the comfortable, and for this he must not be afraid of
the faces of the people. Jeremiah 1:8, and Joshua 1:5-6.
Preaching is fundamentally a part of the care of souls, and the care of souls involves a
thorough understanding of the congregation. An able shepherd knows his flock.
To expound the scriptures so that the contemporary God confronts us where we live requires
that the preacher study his audience as well as his Bible, and addresses them both boldly and
with relevance.
2 . GOD'S INTENTION THROUGH PREACHING
A. To Manifest Jesus - Tit. 1:3, Acts 5:42, 8:35, 10:36, 11:20, 17:18, 1 Cor. 1:23, 2 Cor. 4:5.
B. To save them that believe - To create new life through the creative word.
C. To impart faith - Rom. 10 : 8, Acts 14 : 7-9 .
D. As a vehicle for the demonstration of the power of God. Mark 3:14-15, 16:20, 1 Cor. 2:4,
Luke 8:1, and 4:8.
E. To reconcile to God - 2 Cor. 5:18-19, and Eph. 2:17.
F. To warn and to teach - Col. 1:28.
3. THE CALLING OF GOD IS RELATED TO PREACHING
If a person is called to the "Ministry", there must be an ability to preach in the same way that
one of the qualifications of an elder is that he has the ability to teach (1 Tim. 3:2, and Tit. 1:9).
Note that Paul was called to be a preacher and an apostle (1 Tim. 2:7 and 2 Tim. 1:11). These
other scriptures indicate that preaching is an integral part of the calling: Mark 3:14, Luke 4:18,
Romans 10:15, 1 Cor. 1:17, Acts 16:10 and Mark 1: 38. There is an element of the prophetic in
every truly called man or woman of God, though they may not have the ministry of a prophet.
The ability to preach is unique. It is God-given and cannot be manufactured. It begins with a
burning heart in the preacher and results in changed lives in his hearers. Jeremiah said, "His
word is as a fire in my bones".
4. THE POWER OF PREACHING
A. Mark 16:15-16, Luke 11:32, 1 Cor. 1:18, 21, Romans 1:16, Luke 4:32, Mark 1: 22.
B. Preaching compels a decision if it is truth inspired by God. 2 Cor. 3:6. The message will
create action or reaction in the hearers. Acts 2: 37, 13:42-50, Luke 4:18 & 28-29.
C. God will honour truth. The miracle of preaching is that if it is truth God will give you results
to the level of both your faith and your proclamation. e.g. Evangelicals do not preach the
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full gospel, but get many souls saved. Isaiah 55:11 declares that God's Word will not return
to Him void, but will accomplish that which He pleases and prosper in the thing where to He
sends it. He watches over His word to perform it. Jeremiah 1:12
5. YOU GET WHAT YOU PREACH FOR.
The content of the message is not as important as the orientation of the preacher. If his
philosophy of the Christian life is a condemnatory or legalistic one, he will convey that life-style
regardless of his sermon subject. On the other hand, if the preacher is faith-filled and positively
oriented, he will always develop those qualities in his hearers.
The overall commitment of the preacher will determine the type of message he will consistently
bring and the ultimate effect he will have on people, e.g.
a) Oswald Smith of the People's Church, Toronto had a life-long commitment to Missions. His
Church for many years has been among the leading Churches in this field.
b) Evangelicals get few miracles in their meetings because their consistent position is that the
days of miracles is past.
c) Those who constantly carry a fight to their people in their preaching, either fighting the
congregation or Board or fighting some cause (i.e. anti-permissive society, anti-charismatic,
anti-catholic, etc.) tend to get their fight returned to them.
In this regard, both the commitment and orientation of the preacher is critical.
Whatever his particular philosophy may be or his commitment to certain doctrines, the overall
orientation of every preacher must be to winning souls. Some may claim exemption from this
because they have the Gift of the teacher, etc. The two greatest teachers in the Church's
history Jesus and Paul, were also constantly motivated by souls (Luke 19:10 and Rom. 9:1-3).
Whatever our calling, we must all do the work of an evangelist. 2 Tim. 4:5. George Sweeting,
President of Moody Bible Institute points out that regardless of the differing themes of history's
great preachers, their one overriding passion was for souls.
Our Concern for the Unconverted
"Some folk like to live within the sound of Church or chapel bell, I want to run a rescue shop
within a yard of hell." - C.T. Studd.
Study the lives of great Christians and you will notice the great themes that characterised their
ministries.
Charles G. Finney was gripped with human responsibility.
Count Nicholas Zinzendorf wrote hymns, sermons, and pamphlets emphasising, "I have one
passion - Jesus"
George Whitfield preached "Ye must be born again" so often that many people criticised him.
When asked why he used the same text over and over, he answered, "Because you must be
born again!"
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Jonathan Edwards often emphasised God's judgement; Billy Sunday stressed: "Be sure your
sin will find you out"; Gipsy Smith's forte was the beauty of Jesus; and A.B. Simpson's heart
was world evangelisation
D.L. Moody also had a major theme. He printed the words "God is love" on every light in the
old Moody Church. His personal study of God's love evoked the response, "I just could not help
loving people". A sermon on God's love ministered to him so completely, tears would stream
down his face.
But each of these - and every person God uses - has in common a passion for souls. Their
fervent desire to see people come to Christ made the difference.
The Apostle Paul also felt this burden. "I speak the truth in Christ - I am not lying, my
conscience confirms it in the Holy Spirit - I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my
heart. For I wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers
..." (Rom. 9:1-3a).
He said in essence, "What I have is real. I care about people and my conscience confirms it by
the Holy Spirit".
We know what it's like to be troubled by stealing, lying, and immoral acts, but do we have the
same attitude toward the unconverted? People perishing without Christ were on Paul's
conscience.
To the Ephesians he wrote, "Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of
you night and day with tears" (Acts 20:31).
The same was true of the Lord Jesus. He looked on the multitude and "was moved with
compassion". Since God loves people, so must we.
The word "compassion" stems from two latin root words, "com" meaning "with", and "passion"
meaning "to bear" or "to suffer". The compound simply means "to suffer with". Do you suffer
with those outside of Christ?
John Henry Jowett in his book "A Passion for Souls" said, "The Gospel of a broken heart
demands the ministry of a bleeding heart". He added, "We can never heal needs that we do
not feel".
Paul went further. He possessed what we might call a redemptive passion. What did he mean
when he wrote, "I wish ... myself ... cursed ... for the sake of my brothers"? Paul would give up
his own salvation if, by so doing, his kinsmen could be won.
This same fervour apparently possessed Scotsman John Knox to agonise in prayer, "Give me
Scotland or I die"!
Rachel felt a deep inner concern because she was childless. Embarrassed, ashamed, and
desperate, she cried out to her husband, Jacob, "Give me children, or I die!" (Gen. 30:1).
Only when you and I experience this same heart cry for the unconverted, will God grant us
spiritual children.
- Georqe Sweetinq (President, Moody Bible Institute)
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6. THE GOALS OF PREACHING

A. Inspirational - It must impart God to the people and bring the uplift of the Holy Spirit to them.
B. Motivational - It must produce change in their lives. They must be motivated to repent and
live according to God's word and plan for their lives. It is the preacher's task to motivate the
Church to its ministry. Phillip Brooks said, "You must count your work unsatisfactory unless
you burn men's brains and awaken their consciences".
C. Relational - Preaching should establish the relative positions of God and man, & then man
to man. Matt. 21:37-40.
D. Revelational - It should bring forth the whole counsel of God for that congregation. There
should be an element of fresh truth being constantly revealed. Matt. 13:52. It is not enough
to impart information. It is essential that his messages should have revelation from God.
Facts of the Word which God has taught him personally.
E. Confrontational - Not in a negative, destructive sense, but with respect to being able to
accept the responsibility to challenge and change a city. The preaching which has no goal
to change its community has lost its reason for being.
F. Proportional - Preaching must be:
a) Balanced - It is possible to be so caught up with ultimates that practicalities are
ignored. There should be a proper balance between what is revealed and what is
relevant.
b) Consistent - The preacher ought not to go after fads or new emphases unless he can
see that he can make it part of his ministry for all time. Zig-zagging in ministry will
produce confusion, inaction and frustration in the congregation. Paul advised Timothy
to be consistent. 2 Tim. 4:2 - "be instant in season and out of season".
7. THE QUALITY OF THE PULPIT DETERMINES THE CHARACTER OF THE CHURCH
A. Preaching is the basis of the Pastor's authority.
Dr. Harold Okenga, for 33 years Pastor of Boston's famed Park Street Church, declares, "You
cannot stand and converse with people from the pulpit; you'll lose them. If you have a strong
pulpit ministry, you are going to have a strong Church, no matter if everything else is lacking. If
you have a strong counselling Church without a strong pulpit, you'll have a weak Church.
Preaching has got to be there, or people are not going to come. It has to be enlightening,
interesting, and challenging. Conversational preaching is a mistake. You have got to develop
certain points, like a syllogism. You have to develop something people can follow, an outline
with alliteration. When you get through, people can say, `That's what he said about this and
that's what he said about that'."
B. In fact the preacher must go further and preserve his pulpit from the inane and unworthy. If
he allows the credibility of his pulpit to be called into question by the preaching of others, it
will inevitably reflect on him.

C. To this end. the preacher must dedicate himself to be a man of intense personal study that
he might rightly divide the Word of truth. 2 Timothy 2:15 If he is not growing in God his
pulpit ministry will be weakened with a corresponding malaise in the church.
CONCLUSION
Preach the Word of God urgently at all times, whenever you get the chance, in season and out
of season, when it is convenient and when it is not. Correct and rebuke your people when they
need it, encourage them to do right, and all the time be feeding them patiently with God's
Word. (2 Tim. 4:2 - Living Bible)
Anyone sensitive to the Scriptures knows the awe of the ministry. Matthew Simpson in his
"Lectures on Preaching" put the preacher in his place:
"His throne is the pulpit; he stands in Christ's stead; his message is the Word of God; around
him are immortal souls; The Saviour, unseen, is beside him; the Holy Spirit broods over the
congregation; angels gaze upon the scene, and heaven and hell await the issue. What
associations, and what vast responsibility!"
*************************

MAN'S NOBLEST EXERCISE.

by E.M.Bounds
During this affliction I was brought to examine my life in relation to eternity closer than I had
done when in the enjoyment of health. In this examination relative to the discharge of my duties
toward my fellow-creatures as a man, a Christian minister and an officer of the Church, I stood
approved by my own conscience; but in relation to my Redeemer and Saviour the result was
different. My returns of gratitude and loving obedience bear no proportion to my obligations for
redeeming, preserving, and supporting me through the vicissitudes of life from infancy to old
age. The coldness of my love to Him who first loved me and has done so much for me overwhelmed and confused me; and to complete my unworthy character
I had not only neglected to improve the grace given to the extent of my duty and privilege, but
for want of that improvement had, while abounding in perplexing care and labour, declined
from first zeal and love. I was confounded, humbled myself, implored mercy, and renewed my
covenant to strive and devote myself unreservedly to the Lord.--Bishop McKENDREE.
The preaching that kills may be, and often is, orthodox dogmatically, inviolably orthodox. We
love orthodoxy. It is good. It is the best. It is the clean, clear-cut teaching of God's Word, the
trophies won by truth in its conflict with error, the levies which faith has raised against the
desolating floods of honest or reckless misbelief or unbelief; but orthodoxy, clear and hard as
crystal, suspicious and militant, may be but the letter well shaped, well named, and well
learned, the letter which kills. Nothing is so dead as a dead orthodoxy, too dead to speculate,
too dead to think, to study, or to pray.
The preaching that kills may have insight and grasp of principles, may be scholarly and critical
in taste, may have all the minutiae of the derivatio and grammar of the letter, may be able to
trim the letter into its perfect pattern, and illumine it as Plato and Cicero may be illumined, may
study it as a lawyer studies his textbooks to form his brief or to defend his case, and yet be like
a frost, a killing frost. Letter preaching may be eloquent, enamelled with poetry and rhetoric,
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sprinkled with prayer, spiced with sensation, illumined by genius, and yet these be but the
massive or chaste, costly mountings, the rare and beautiful flowers which coffin the corpse.
The preaching which kills may be without scholarship, unmarked by any freshness of thought
or feeling, clothed in tasteless generalities or vapid specialities, with style: irregular, slovenly,
savouring neither of closet nor of study, graced neither by thought, nor expression, nor prayer.
Under such preaching how wide and utter the desolation ! how profound the spiritual death!
This letter-preaching deals with the surface and shadow of things, and not the things
themselves It does not penetrate the inner part. It has no deep insight into, no strong grasp of,
the hidden life of God's Word. It is true to the outside, but the outside is the hull which must be
broken and penetrated for the kernel. The letter may be dressed so as to attract and be
fashionable, but the attraction is not toward God nor is the fashion for heaven. The failure is in
the preacher. God has not made him. He has never been in the hands of God like clay in the
hands of the potter. He has been busy about the sermon, its thought and finish, its drawing and
impressive forces, but the deep things of God have never been sought, studied, fathomed,
experienced by him. He has never stood before " the throne high and lifted up," never heard
the seraphim song, never seen the vision nor felt the rush of that awful holiness, and cried out
in utter abandon and despair under the sense of weakness and guilt, and had his life renewed,
his heart touched, purged, inflamed by the live coal from God's altar. His ministry may draw
people to him, to the Church, to the form and ceremony; but no true drawings to God, no
sweet, holy, divine communion induced. The Church has been frescoed but not edified,
pleased but not sanctified. Life is suppressed; a chill is on the summer air; the soil is baked.
The city of our God becomes the city of the dead; the Church a graveyard, not an embattled
army. Praise and prayer are stifled; worship is dead. The preacher and the preaching have
helped sin, not holiness; peopled hell, not heaven.
Preaching which kills is prayerless preaching. Without prayer the preacher creates death, and
not life. The preacher who is feeble in prayer is feeble in life giving forces. The preacher who
has retired from prayer as a conspicuous and largely prevailing element in his own character
has shorn his preaching of its distinctive life-giving power. Professional praying there is and will
be, but professional praying helps the preaching to its deadly work. Professional praying chills
and kills both preaching and praying. Much of the lax devotion and lazy, irreverent attitudes in
congregational praying is attributable to professional praying in the pulpit. Long, discursive, dry,
and inane are the prayers in many pulpits. Without unction or heart, they fall like a killing frost
on all the graces of worship. Death dealing prayers they are. Every vestige of devotion has
perished under their breath. The more dead they are the longer they grow. A plea for short
praying, live praying, real heart praying, praying by the Holy Spirit--direct, specific, ardent,
simple, unctuous in the pulpit--is in order. A school to teach preachers how to pray, as God
counts praying, would be more beneficial to true piety, true worship, and true preaching than all
theological schools.
Stop ! Pause ! Consider ! Where are we ? What are we doing? Preaching to kill ? Praying to
kill ? Praying to God ! the great God, the Maker of all worlds, the Judge of all men ! What
reverence! what simplicity ! what sincerity ! what truth in the inward parts is demanded ! How
real we must be ! How hearty ! Prayer to God the noblest exercise, the loftiest effort of man the
most real thing ! Shall we not discard forever accursed preaching that kills and prayer that kills,
and do the real thing, the mightiest thing--prayerful praying, life-creating preaching brings the
mightiest force to bear on heaven and earth and draws on God's exhaustless and open
treasure for the need and beggary of man.
***********************************
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THE MESSAGE
CHAPTER TWO
1. THE MAN IS THE MESSAGE
A. Preparation of the Preacher.
The sermon can never be different to the man. We convey what we are regardless of what we
say. Matthew 12:34.
The key to preaching is that there is a man or woman sent from God - John 1:6. The process
worked out in John's life is no different from that applicable to every servant of the Lord - there
are years of preparation. E.M. Bounds said, "It takes 20 years to make a message because it
takes 20 years to make the man". While this time would not be the same in all cases, there
must be preparation of the preacher.
Before a man proclaims the message of the Bible to others, he should live with that message
himself.
Regrettably, many preachers fail as Christians before they fail as preachers because they do
not think biblically. A significant number of ministers - many of whom profess high regard for
the Scriptures - prepare their sermons without consulting the Bible at all. While the sacred text
serves as an appetiser to get a sermon under way or as a garnish to deco rate the message,
the main course consists of the preacher's own thought or someone else's thought warmed up
for the occasion.
"Anything less than a divine assignment in the pulpit reduces the preacher to contemptible
politics, grovelling employment, crawling subservience, and lack of self-esteem" - C.M. Ward.
B. Authenticity. It is all too easy for a preacher under the stimulus of an attentive crowd to "talk
further down the road than he has walked". In all things we must be authentic. We can only
impart what we have received.
a) Practise what you preach
b) Preach to yourself
c) Constantly be stretching upward for yourself and your congregation.
2. BE CHRISTOCENTRIC
The Bible is full of subjects to preach on. This is in itself a danger for it is possible to preach a
lifetime without ever preaching Christ to the people. There is no point to being an expert on
False Cults, Prophecy, Pentecostal Gifts, Healing, Theology, etc. if your message does not
constantly lift up Jesus. The following is a quotation from one of the greatest preachers of all
time:
CHARLES SPURGEON'S ADVICE TO HIS STUDENTS
I know a minister whose shoe latchet I am unworthy to unloose, whose preaching is often little
9

better than sacred miniature painting - I might almost say holy trifling. He is great upon the ten
toes of the beast, the four faces of the cherubim, the mystical meaning of badgers' skins, and
the typical bearings of the staves of the ark, and the windows of Solomon's temple: but the sins
of the businessmen, the temptations of the times, and the needs of the age, he scarcely ever
touches upon. Such preaching reminds me of a lion engaged in mouse-hunting or a man-ofwar cruising after a lost water-butt.
More and more I am jealous lest any views upon prophecy, church government, politics, or
even systematic theology, should withdraw one of us from glorifying in the Cross of Christ.
Salvation is a theme for which I would fain enlist every holy tongue. I am greedy after
witnesses for the glorious Gospel of the blessed God. O that Christ crucified were the universal
burden of men of God. Your guess at the number of the beast, your Napoleonic speculations,
your conjectures concerning a personal anti-christ - forgive me, I count them but mere bones
for dogs; while men are dying and hell is filling, it seems to me the veriest drivel to be muttering
about an Armageddon at Sebastopol or Sadowa or Sedan and peeping between the folded
leaves of destiny to discover the fate of Germany.
Of all I would wish to say this is the sum: my brethren, preach CHRIST, always and evermore.
He is the whole Gospel. His Person, offices and work must be our one great, all
comprehending theme. The world needs still to be told of its Saviour, and of the way to reach
him. Justification by faith should be far more than it is the daily testimony of Protestant pulpits;
and if with this master-truth there should be more generally associated the other great
doctrines of grace, the better for our Churches and our age.
Jesus said, "If I be lifted up I will draw all men unto me" ... John 12:32. Note also the cry of the
heathen in verse 21 - "Sir we would see Jesus". Preacher - learn how to weave everything you
say around the one prominent and central theme of the person and work of Jesus Christ.
3. BE REDEMPTIVE AND RESTORATIVE
Some preachers take perverse delight in flaying their congregation alive and you will also find a
few spiritual sadists who enjoy being lashed from the pulpit. The preacher who falls into the
trap of satisfying the "lunatic fringe" in his congregation can write off the rest from effective
function in the body of Christ. Do not preach the unworthiness of people or attempt to make
them small. Always lift up Jesus as the total solution to every human problem. If you declare
their sin without their Saviour, you have brought them back under the Old Testament dispensation and reduced them to hopeless failure and a futile program of legalism to try and
please God. They will then live in Eternal Insecurity. The preacher must never take the lid off
the Ark of God and expose the Law without it being covered by the shed blood on the Mercy
Seat.
The mark of spirituality is the ability to restore - Galatians 6:1. Anyone can accuse and destroy,
but only the mature can "rescue the perishing, care for the dying, and snatch them in pity from
sin and the grave, weep over the erring one, lift up the fallen and tell them of Jesus - the mighty
to save".
Our ministry must constantly attempt to bring people, both sinners and saints to a redemptive
state, rather than a condemnatory one.
(Recommended reading on this theme = "Love Acceptance and Forgiveness" - by Jerry Cook)
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4. PREACH REPENTENCE
In order to bring people into right relationship with God, it is necessary to establish a basis of
true repentance - a sorrow for and a forsaking of sin.
Much modern preaching is self-centred instead of God centred. Lift up the majesty and
holiness of God. Exalt the Lord with such clarity that man's need is exposed and a desire
created to be like God.
There must be a change in people's lives. It brings no glory to God if you add people to the
Church who continue to be unrepentant and unregenerate. Never appeal for enlistment, but for
heartfelt genuine repentance.
The word "repentance" occurs more than 50 times in the New Testament and in most of its
books. Hebrews 6:1 lists it as one of the foundations of the Christian life.
Pity the man who fails to understand that his sermon should change lives in some specific way.
A.W. Tozer speaks a perceptive word to all of us:
There is scarcely anything so dull and meaningless as Bible doctrine taught for its own sake.
Truth divorced from life is not truth in its Biblical sense, but something else and something less
.... No man is better for knowing that God in the beginning created the heaven and the earth.
The devil knows that, and so did Ahab and Judas Iscariot. No man is better for knowing that
God so loved the world of men that He gave His only begotten Son to die for their redemption.
In hell there are millions who know that. Theological truth is useless until it is obeyed. The
purpose behind all doctrine is to secure moral action.
Henry Ward Beecher appreciated the importance of purpose when he declared, "A sermon is
not like a Chinese firecracker to be fired off for the noise it makes. It is a hunter's gun, and at
every discharge he should look to see his game fall".
5. PREACH THE GOODNESS OF GOD
God so loved that He gave - John 3:16. There never was a truer word said than the slogan
adopted by Oral Roberts, "God is a good God". Even our repentance is dependent on this.
Romans 2:4 says that it is the goodness of God which leads us to repentance.
Dr. David Yonggi Cho, pastor of the world's largest church, the Assembly of God in Seoul
Korea, lists the following things as keys to developing a successful preaching ministry.
A. Minister strongly on the three-fold blessings of God - 3 John verse 2:
a) Prosperity
b) Healing
c) Spiritual well-being
The curse on Adam was three-fold:
a) Loss of fellowship - spiritual death
b) Physical death and sickness
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c) Environmental death - destruction of our prosperity.

This curse has been taken away in Christ. Gal 3:13
B. Concentrate on solving problems.
Seldom do normal people lose sleep over the Jebusites, the Canaanites, or the Perizzites, or
even about what Abraham, Moses, or Paul has said or done. They lie awake wondering about
grocery prices, crop failures, quarrels with a girlfriend, diagnosis of a malignancy, a frustrating
sex life, the rat race where only the rats seem to win. If the sermon does not make much
difference in that world, they wonder if it makes any difference at all.
On the other hand, we would do well to remember J.D.Baumann's observation, "We are very
much like the people of the ancient world. It is only in some superficial thoughts, rational
beliefs, and mental moods that we are different. In all of the basic heart realities we are the
same. We stand before God exactly as people in every age have stood before Him. We have
all experienced David's guilt, the doubting of Thomas, Peter's denial, the falling away of
Demas, perhaps even the kiss of the betrayer Judas. We are linked across the centuries by
the realities and ambiguities of the human soul".
Sermons catch fire when flint strikes steel. When the flint of a person's problem strikes the
steel of the Word of God, a spark ignites that burns in the mind. Directing our preaching at
people's needs is not a mere persuasive technique; it is the task of the ministry.
On this basis a congregation has the right to expect that the preacher is at least aware of their
problems before he offers solutions.
C. Teach the people to be successful. If you help your people to a successful life, they in turn
will make you successful.
D. Develop a right self-image in the people.
In short, if you want to have a developing congregation, concentrate on feeding them
wholesome, attractive and appetising food.
Your only major problem will be how to accommodate them all!
6. NEVER APOLOGISE FOR THE GOSPEL
The preacher, whatever his calling must have some degree of the prophetic in his ministry. He
belongs to God and not the people.
Because of this, he must be careful to preserve himself from entanglements with his people
which would weaken his message. He must be able to preach without fear or favour and this
will not be possible if any "owns" him.
While biblical ideas must be shaped to human experience, men and women must be called to
conform to biblical truth. "Relevant sermons" may become pulpit trifles; unless; they relate the
current situation to the eternal Word of God.

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STEALING GOD'S WORD

CHAPTER THREE
INTRODUCTION
It is an awesome responsibility and an inestimable privilege to speak in the Name of the Lord. It
cannot be taken lightly.
Jeremiah 23:9-32 deals with the case of unworthy preachers and God's attitude to them.
God says that He is against the prophets that steal His word from their neighbours mouths (v
30-32). The Living Bible says, "I stand against these `prophets' who get their messages from
each other, these smooth tongued prophets who say `This Message is from God!'. Their
made-up dreams are flippant lies that lead my people into sin. I did not send them and they
have no message at all for my people says the Lord".
This scripture is applicable to the modern situation where preachers get their messages from
books, ideas or tapes of others' sermons and not from personally seeking God. It is all the
more applicable when we read verse 20 - this will be happening in the "latter days".
From time to time various emphases go round the Church and many jump on the bandwagon
and begin to promote that new idea or trend without fully checking its source or implications.
We have often heard the claim, "This is what God is saying to the Church!", and yet it has
turned out to be another dead-end or a non-event or even a damaging delusion.
This does not mean that God is not bringing more light to His Church - a fresh revelation of His
purposes or a prophetic redirection of the church's emphasis or energy. However, it is vitally
important that we know that we have heard from God before such a claim is made. A stolen
message will incur the wrath of God.
There is a certain process of production with God's Word (note Hebrews 4:2). As far as the
preacher is concerned, the primary requirement is that he has gotten his message from God
directly. Many a preacher who strongly resists the doctrine of human mediators is content to
accept all his ideas and spiritual teaching from others and does not gather his manna for
himself.
1. THE PREACHER'S SOURCE
A. Jesus ordained His disciples to "be with Him", that He might send them forth to preach and
to have power. This is still the right order of the Ministry.
B. Standing in the counsel of God (Jer. 23:18) - this means living close enough to God to both
hear and see God's Word.
C. The Preacher's source material is the Words of God's holiness (v 9). There is incredible
power in the unadulterated Word of God to change the human heart. Verse 29 says that
God's Word is like a hammer that breaks the rock or like a fire. Modern ministers who are
not serious about God's word have made God a laughing stock before the world.
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2.RUNNING WITHOUT A PERSONAL MESSAGE

Verse 21 says "I sent them not yet they ran". Note Hebrews 5:4. No man takes this honour to
himself, but he that is called of God. 2 Samuel 18:1832 gives the story of Ahimaaz of Cushi.
Ahimaaz ran without the message and brought confusion.
Unless the Word of God becomes ours and is the message lived in us, we are stealing the
message from someone else's mouth.
Every preacher must establish whether he has:
a) Been sent;
b) Has a message.
If so, his responsibility is to cause the people to:
a) Hear the Word of God (verse 22)
b) Speak it faithfully (verse 28).
3. WRONG MOTIVATIONS OF PREACHERS
A. Prophesying in Baal. Whatever does not come from God will not glorify God and will
therefore glorify self or Satan. An adulterated message will not be owned by God. The Lord
called these prophets "adulterers" (verse 10, 14). They attempted to mix God's Word with
more acceptable ideas.
B. A vision of their own heart and not out of the Word of the Lord (verse 16). Their own false
concepts coloured their delivery of the Word.
C. Stubbornness. (Verse 17) The margin translates "imaginations" as "stubbornness". The
refusal to be adjusted by God or receive correction in their ministry. Knowing that they were
not bringing the word of the Lord but persisting in their perverse way.
D. Lies (verses 32 and 26). It is only a short step from self-deception to deliberate deception
of the people. Modern religions abound in the lying assessment of God's Word and
mockery of His truth. Yet these spurious ministers dare to speak in His name. Let us
beware in case we who have received so much light should minister that which is inferior or
deceptive.
E. Lightness -- Verse 13 calls it folly. Taking God lightly and treating His Word without respect
in the pulpit will breed contempt for true spiritual values in the people.
F. Bowing to the expectation of the people. These prophets were motivated by a desire to
pacify the people who were disturbed by the preaching of Jeremiah. In the last days people
with "itching ears" will choose preachers who will tell them only what they want to hear (2
Tim. 4:130. Saul, King of Israel bowed to the people pressure and lost his kingdom. Aaron
did the same and made a golden calf resulting in 3000 being slain.

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4.COUNTER PRODUCTIVE PREACHING

The Lord indicted these prophets because their ministry had harmed the work of God instead
of helping it.
A. The people were not turned away from their evil ways - v 22.
B. They caused the people to forget God - verse 27.
C. They elevated idolatry in preference to God - verse 27.
D. They caused the people to err - verse 32
5. THE PREACHER'S JUDGEMENT
God said he would bring evil upon these spurious prophets and make their way slippery.
Every Minister carries a greater responsibility than his congregation 1 Corinthians 3 is often
thought to apply to the whole Church, but it actually speaks of the judgement of ministers at the
Judgement Seat of Christ. We will be called to account for what we have built on the
foundation of the local Church which is Jesus Christ. Verses 9 and 10 declare that the Church
is a building erected by various ministers. Verse 13 declares that our work will be tried and only
gold, silver and precious stones will remain. All "light" stuff will be burned. If the minister has
not profited the people he will suffer loss. It is a terrible thing to defile the temple of God - the
local Church (verse 16).
Any minister who causes or allows uncleanness, strife, heresy, etc., to enter or remain in his
congregation is falling short of his responsibility.
ORIGINALITY
While God hates the preacher to draw his message from the mouths of other preachers
instead of standing in His counsel, it is inevitable that others will make an impact on him.
It is not wrong to share truth that has been imparted to you by others. No-one can be totally
original. We are the product of our environment to a certain degree and will be taught and
inspired by others' preaching, teaching and writings. Paul committed Timothy to teach the
things which he had learned from Paul (2 Tim. 2:2). The key thing in using others' material is
two-fold:
a) Acknowledge the source if quoted directly; and
b) Absorb the truth to the point where it becomes part of your own life and experience
and you can be authentic in preaching it.
The word must become flesh in you, and then it will live in the hearts of others.

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16

VARIOUS PREACHING STYLES

CHAPTER FOUR
The preacher should use a variety of styles in preaching. He should approach his subject in
differing ways, rather than having a stereo-typed routine to his message.
There are many ways in which his message may be presented some of which are:
1. TEXTUAL PREACHING
This message is generally confined to a verse or two of scripture and all of the points are
drawn exclusively from that section of scripture alone.
For example, Isaiah 45:22 - "Look unto me, and be saved, all the ends of the earth; for I am
God, and there is none else." can be broken into the following sections:
A. The Greatest Blessing - "be ye saved"
B. To the Greatest Number - "all ye ends of the earth"
C. With the Greatest Security - "For I am God"
D. On the Easiest Terms - "Look unto me"
E. Through an Exclusive Way - "There is none else".
This method of preaching cracks open a verse of scripture to discover its central truth. It
involves choosing an appropriate statement of Scripture, investigating it, analysing it,
discovering all the truth it contains, and then presenting that truth in an orderly and progressive
manner that is easy for the hearers to assimilate.
There are literally hundreds of texts which are best developed by this method. Some good
examples would be: John 3:16, Romans 6:23, Ephesians 2:8-9, Rev. 3:20, etc.
2. TOPICAL PREACHING
This method seeks to develop the message from the perspective of a subject rather than a
specific text. Even if a text is used as the rationale of the message it is generally only as a
foundation to the message or a springboard to other points.
A. The preacher may use a number of texts to build up a subject. For example, he may take
the subject of "Justification". His aim would be firstly, to discover everything the Bible has to
say on this enthralling subject.
He would then arrange all the Scripture references and thoughts he gets into an orderly format
17

so that he can develop his theme as fully and faithfully as possible. His objective is to tell his
audience everything they should know on this important subject. Of course, he may not be able
to do this in one teaching session.
B. Alternatively he may begin with various points he wishes to convey and then seek to
support these points from scripture.
An example of a topical message on Salvation would be:
a)
b)
c)
d)

Salvation from the Power of Sin

Salvation from the Person of Sin
Salvation from the Penalty of Sin
Salvation from the Presence of Sin

Or on Sin:
a) The Cause of Sin
b) The Curse of Sin
c) The Cure of Sin
Or on the River of the Holy Spirit (Ezek. 47):
a) The Source
b) The Course
c) The Force.
The preacher may preach on current events, prophecy, or against the Occult or Humanism,
or How to Win over Worry, or How to have Victory in the Thought Life, etc., and then back
up these points from scriptures.
This type of message would generally draw heavily on illustrative material, either from the Bible
or other sources.
A topical concordance is of immense value when preparing such a message. There one can
quickly find every Scripture reference relating to the topic concerned. This would be the most
common form of preaching.
3. EXPOSITORY PREACHING
This is the message based on a complete passage of Scripture. It may be a chapter, or a book,
or a section of a chapter, but it will be a section with a common theme.
Expository preaching is the communication of a biblical concept, derived from and transmitted
through a historical, grammatical, and literary study of a passage in its context, which the Holy
Spirit first applies to the personality and experience of the preacher, then through him to his
hearers.
Some examples of sections of the scriptures which would be best dealt with by the expository
method are:
a) The Christian's Armour - Eph. 6:10-l8
b) The Fruit of the Flesh and the Spirit - Gal. 5:16-23
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c) Romans, chapters 6-8 - Freedom, Failure and Fruitfulness

d) Isaiah 53 - The Suffering Messiah,
Most expository preaching would concentrate on extracting the main message from a whole
book of the Bible in either of two ways:
A. One message on the central truth of the Book, i.e. an overview of it
B. A series of messages - chapter by chapter, or section by section, to extract all the major
ideas from the book.
The word "expository" (from "Exegesis") means an exposure, exhibition, a setting forth, a
description, explanation or commentary. While topical preaching is generally a declaration of
truth, exegetical preaching is more of an explanation of truth and an attempt to demonstrate
the harmony of the passage preached on. It is interpretative & leans heavily on the context
rather than on external illustrations.
This type of preaching more naturally suits the "Teacher" and should only be attempted by
experienced preachers as it can be dull and tedious if not handled skillfully.
Clear, relevant biblical exposition does not take place Sunday after Sunday by either intuition
or accident. Good expositors have systems for their study.
4. BIOGRAPHICAL PREACHING
This message is based on the life and experiences of a Biblical character. The events of
his/her life or the dealings of God in him or her are used as illustrations of Biblical truths. For
example:
a) Faith under Fire - from the story of Shadrach, Meshach, & Abednego (Dan.3)
b) Victory over Temptation - from the life of Joseph and the event of Potiphar's wife
(Gen. 39)
c) Overcoming Insurmountable Odds - from the event of David & Goliath.
Every biography recorded in the Bible holds important significance for us. Every life has
something to teach us.
The study of Bible characters is very enthralling and absorbing. Choose a particular person.
Read every reference to them that occurs in the Bible. Make notes of every thought that comes
to mind.
Begin to assemble those thoughts into chronological order, that is the order in which they
occurred.
- Study the birth of the person.
- Consider the circumstances of their upbringing.
- Focus upon the dealings of God in their life.
- How did they react to such?
- What did they learn from it?
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- If they were a success in life, what made them successful?

- If their life ended in failure, where did they go wrong?
- What can we learn from their life?
This type of preaching would draw most of its illustrative material from the person's life and
experience.
The biographical message lends itself to being made interesting as it is easy to weave the
storyteller's skill into it.
However this advantage can also lead to its major disadvantage - it can become wearisome
and over long if every point in the person's life is strained out for some truth.
5. TYPOGRAPHICAL OR INTERPRETATIVE PREACHING
This is the art of uncovering and communicating truth which is hidden beneath the surface of
the various "types" in the Bible. A "type" is a person, object or event which is symbolically
prophetic of someone or something yet to come. It is similar to, and characteristic of, that
person or event. In its biblical application, it refers to a Bible character or event which
foreshadows some future one.
For example, the Passover Lamb in Exodus is a type of Christ. Every detail of that paschal
lamb spoke prophetically of the redemptive role Christ would play as the "Lamb of God" (John
1:29). Every prophetic symbol in this event of Exodus 12 was fulfilled when Christ died for the
sins of the world.
Biblical types are often referred to as "shadows of things to come". Such persons and events
cast a shadow into the future, portraying the shape of things to come.
Much of the Bible is written in this obscure form and the Laws of Interpretation need to be
applied to it in order to understand what the passage is really saying. For example, the account
of the building of the Tabernacle in Exodus is not just a record that it was done and how. Each
part has a special significance. This type of preaching is Revelatory. It concentrates on bringing
to light hidden things. The typographical or Interpretative areas include the Tabernacle, The
Song of Solomon, The Parables, The Book of Daniel, Revelation, and much of Ezekiel.
In addition to this many of the experiences of people are also typical rather than merely
illustrative, e.g. Elijah and Elisha and the double portion anointing, Ruth and Boaz, Esther,
Isaac and Rebekah, etc.
The interpretation and exposition of Bible types is a rather specialised task which deserves the
skill of those who are mature and knowledgeable in biblical subjects. Novices should avoid
attempting to preach from the more profound types, as unskilled interpretations can lead into
all kinds of unfortunate error.
A deep and thorough knowledge of the whole Bible is essential in those who seek to expound
the meaning of the types. Such teachings should be substantiated and undergirded by the
whole Bible.
When you first attempt to teach from biblical types, please try to keep the following principles in
mind:
A. Begin with the simpler types in which the implication is very obvious.
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B. Never try to interpret every tiny detail of the type. Keep to the broader outline of truth.
C. Avoid being dogmatic as to what the type teaches.
D. Never base your doctrinal position on the teaching of types. Types should illustrate doctrine,
not initiate it.
6. ANALYTICAL PREACHING
This type of sermon relates to the detailed analysing of a subject in order to extract the greatest
amount of truth from it, and from this truth, to teach the underlying principles involved.
This is in some ways similar to both Expository and Topical preaching. However, it would
generally deal with the passage or subject more exhaustively and minutely than either of these
other types of preaching.
There will often be a concentration on "word studies" or even the grammatical construction of
the text or passage.
This type of preaching would generally be appropriate for a congregation which already has a
solid Biblical understanding, i.e. a Minister's Conference or a Seminar for Church Leaders, etc.
It would not generally be suitable for an evangelical meeting, etc.
7. ANALOGICAL PREACHING
Much of the Bible is written in the form of analogy. It teaches a truth from a parallel case. The
writers often use a natural subject from which to teach a spiritual truth. It involves the
comparison of similar functions, or the process of reasoning from parallel cases. The
analogical sermon endeavours to communicate truth contained in an analogy.
Examples of this type of preaching would be the comparison between:
a) Saul of the Old Testament, and Saul of the New Testament; or
b) Samuel and Samson - who both had very similar beginnings but
endings; or

totally different

c) The two books, Ecclesiastes and Song of Solomon, which though written by the same
author, express totally different perspectives on spiritual life. This type of sermon
would use the analogies to show the reasons why they are different, and then apply
that truth to the hearer's lives.
8. SERIES PREACHING
While this type of preaching may include all of the types listed above, it is different in that each
message, while being complete in itself, is essential to the next stage in the series. There
would usually be a brief recapitulation of the points covered so far before each new message
was begun.
One of the advantages of series preaching is the opportunity to cover a number of subjects
cohesively, or without anyone feeling that you singled them out to preach at. i.e. if you preach a
series on the Ten Commandments, when you cover lying or adultery, etc. these cannot be
21

seen to be a personal attack.

Another advantage is that long subjects can be adequately treated in a comprehensive way
and thus misunderstandings can be avoided.
The series should not be over-long, except for very gifted preachers.
9. EXHORTATIVE PREACHING
This is listed separately even though any one of the categories mentioned may be exhortative.
It is possible to develop a message which has as its primary motive the urging of people to a
better relationship with God or a more productive relationship which may include some, all or
none of the above types of preaching.
It would be "extemporaneous" or have large sections that were spontaneous. It is the type of
preaching which is very inspiring, stimulating and effective in the very short-term. It is not
possible to preach this kind of exhortative message constantly. After a few times it ceases to
be effective. The preacher would generally draw upon his experience of the Word as a whole
rather than base his message on specific study on a specific subject.
This style is often used to deliver the more inspirational type of sermon. Evangelistic messages
can be presented very effectively in this way. The sermon flows from the heart and often
carries a strong emotional involvement.
This kind of preaching can be exciting and stimulating when presented by a capable and
experienced preacher. It stirs the emotions as well as informing the mind.
There are two potential weaknesses in this style. The first is that it often lacks in meaningful
content and the minds of the hearers are not edified. The second is that the delivery may
become over-emotional and become irrational and unconvincing.
10. PROPHETIC PREACHING
Every preacher should have some element of prophecy "bubbling forth" ("inspired utterance")
in his preaching.
However, it is possible that the prophetic anointing can come upon a preacher who will then
speak his message with such anointing and authority that it goes beyond ordinary "planned"
preaching and is also different to extemporaneous exhortative preaching, which is where the
preacher draws upon his Biblical knowledge deliberately, but spontaneously. The prophetic
message is often a revelation to the preacher as well. While this may be very stimulating to the
preacher, it is quite dangerous unless the preacher has the ability to think fast enough to check
his facts while he is speaking. There is a possibility of error or heretical ideas being taught if no
prior thought or study has been given to the subject. Note 2 Tim. 2:15.
Prophetic preaching is rare and should be considered the exception rather than the rule, and
would be more in the area of the Prophetic Office than other ministry gifts.

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PREPARING THE MESSAGE

CHAPTER FIVE
1. THE BIRTH OF THE MESSAGE.
A. The preacher must develop his seed-thoughts and ideas for the message in prayer.
Without the sense that God is providing the inspiration for the subject, the preacher
becomes a speech maker deciding at his own discretion the points to be made and so
speaking from the mind, will only reach minds. However the preacher is essentially the
mouthpiece of God. There must be an element of the prophetic in his preaching regardless
of his Ministry Gift. He should speak as the oracle of God. 1 Peter 4:11 and Ex. 4:12.
An old recipe for a rabbit dish starts with, "First catch the rabbit" without the rabbit there is no
dish. The obvious question facing the preacher in preparing his message is, "What does God
want me to say?" "From which text, topic or passage should I draw the message?"
B. Once having prepared his own heart to receive a seed-thought from God, he should
develop a sensitivity to the ways in which the Holy Spirit will generally bring that
seed-thought to him.
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)

The prevailing needs of the hearers

Current events or circumstances
Direct inspiration from personal study or prayer or revelation - i.e. a word of wisdom
God's dealing with the preacher
The preacher's own vision for the Church.

C. When this seed-thought is discovered, plant it in the heart and allow it time to germinate.
Some call this the pressure cooker method - put the ideas into your heart and apply the
heat of prayer until it comes to the boil.
Often a message is brought forth before it is ready and is as unpalatable and difficult to
assimilate as a half-cooked steak.
Francis A. Schaeffer in his book "True Spirituality" argues that the great battle for men takes
place in the realm of thought:
"Ideas are the stock of the thought-world, and from the ideas burst forth all the external things;
painting, music, buildings, the love and the hating of men in practice, and equally the results
of loving God or re God, in the external world. Where a man will spend eternity depends on his
reading or hearing the ideas, the propositional truth, the facts of the gospel ... either his
believing God on the basis of the content of the gospel or his calling God a liar .... The
preaching of the gospel is ideas, flaming ideas brought to men, as God has revealed them to
us in Scripture. It is not a contentless experience internally received, but it is contentful ideas
internally acted upon that make the difference. So when we state our doctrines, they must be
ideas, and not just phrases. We cannot use doctrines as though they were mechanical pieces
to a puzzle. True doctrine is an idea revealed by God in the Bible and an idea that fits properly
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into the external world as it is, and as God made it, and to man as he is, as God made him,
and can be fed back through man's body into his thought-world and there acted upon. The
battle for man is centrally in the world of thought."
People shape their lives and settle their eternal destinies in response to ideas.
What do we mean by an idea? A glance at the dictionary demonstrates that defining an idea is
like packaging fog. The word "idea" itself moved into English from the Greek word "eido" which
means "to see" and therefore "to know". An idea sometimes enables us to see what was
previously unclear. In common life when an explanation provides new insight, we exclaim, "Oh,
I see what you mean!" Still another synonym for "idea" is "concept", which comes from the verb
"to conceive". Just as a sperm & egg Join in the womb to produce new life, an idea begins in
the mind when things ordinarily separated come together to form a unity that either did not exist
or was not recognised previously.
The preacher must allow such "ideas" to grow within him until they are ready to be born.
No-one is helped by a "still-born sermon".
A. Every message must have a specific aim. This should be able to be stated in a few words.
A smorgasbord of truths will generally be more confusing than helpful, and vague purposes
in preaching will defeat the preacher before he starts.
We concentrate our thought with greater efficiency if we know as we begin what we intend to
accomplish.
Vague purposes or unthought-through subjects produce sermons like dropped lemon meringue
pie - they splatter over everything, but hit nothing very hard!
J.H. Jowett in his Yale lectures on preaching said,
"I have a conviction that no sermon is; ready for preaching, not ready for writing out until we
can express its theme in a short, pregnant sentence as clear as crystal. I find the getting of
that sentence is the hardest, the most exacting, and the most fruitful labour in my study. To
compel oneself to fashion that sentence, to dismiss every word that is
vague, ragged,
ambiguous, to think oneself through to a form of words which defines the theme with
scrupulous exactness - this is surely one of the most vital and essential factors in the making
of a sermon: and I do not think any sermon ought to be preached or even written until that
sentence has emerged, clear and lucid as a cloudless moon. Yet Sunday after Sunday men
and women leave church unable to state the preacher's basic idea because the preacher has
not bothered to state it himself."
B. Aim to get one major concept across.
Three or four points not related to a more inclusive point do not make a message. They make
three or four sermonettes all preached at one time.
Surveys of congregations show that people complain that sermons often contain too many
ideas. While this is probably not an accurate observation it is more likely true that many
sermons fail because they deal with unrelated ideas. A sermon should be a bullet and not
buck-shot!
The preacher must discipline himself to avoid including material, however good, which will
24

develop a second theme.

C. Packaging the "big idea".

To successfully get his own major concept across the preacher will need to carefully package it
in a number of illustrations and subsidiary points which will all help to:
a)
b)
c)
d)

re-state,
explain,
prove, and
apply the central truth and theme of the message.

D. Generally this theme will be expressed in, or launched from a specific text or brief passage
of scripture.
3. COLLECTING THE MATERIAL
A. From the time that the seed-thought is clear until the message is preached keep a file (or
notebook) on that theme. Every day add to it the thoughts gained through prayer and study,
or the illustrations from life or your own experience which occur to you.
B. The preacher should give himself to diligent specific study of the subject in the following
ways:
a) Reading scriptures associated to the subject and comparing the text or preaching
passage with similar passages or Biblical events.
I. A cross reference Bible and concordance will be a useful tool in this type of
research.
a) Check the background to the text or passage of scripture by:
I. Ascertaining to whom it was written and why. We cannot decide what a passage
means to us unless first we have determined what the passage means. To do this
we must sit down before the biblical writer and try to understand what he wanted
to convey to his original readers.
II. Its relationship to the context.
III. The use of Bible Dictionaries.
IV. Check key words and the meaning of names in a Hebrew or Greek lexicon which
will often bring out hidden truths or illustrations.
V. The use of his library and resource file to support and illustrate the message.
VI. Reading the passage in various translations can also throw new light on it.
VII.Drawing on his memory for key illustrations to give the message relevancy.
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VIII.The use of imagination to create parabolic or hypothetical or humorous illustrations.

4. COLLATING THE MATERIAL
The message should have:
A. A Specific Introduction
a) An interesting story, an attention arresting point, a gripping title or announcement, or
the use of some humorous illustration can help to gain the attention of the hearers.
b) The preacher should make the most of his first twenty-five words to seize the attention
of his hearers. This needs to be well planned for maximum impact as this will set the
tone for the rest of the message. An introduction should command attention.
c) The message should never be introduced with an apology. If you are ill-prepared let
the congregation discover that fact for themselves. In many cases, they will not find
out.
d) Keep the introduction short. The introduction should only be long enough to capture
attention, raise needs, and orient the audience to the subject, the idea or the first
point.
An old woman said of Welsh preacher, John Owens, that he was so long spreading the table,
she lost her appetite for the meal!

e) The introduction should not promise more than it delivers. When the preacher fails to
meet the need he has raised or the expectation he has aroused, the congregation will
feel cheated. Sensational introductions to mediocre sermons resemble broken
promises.
f) The aim or theme of the message should be clearly spelled out in the introduction or
immediately following it.
g) The application of the sermon should begin in the introduction, and not the conclusion.
h) It is often best to leave the Bible reading until after or part way through the introduction.
This will often help to keep the people's attention through the scripture reading, instead
of allowing them to tune out because they feel that they already know the subject being
read.
B. A Body
The effective message will have a logical sequence and progression of points. The preacher
should ensure that it makes sense and is easy for his hearers to follow and remember:
a) Unless it is remembered it has been lost and is therefore without value. Not everyone
will give you their attention, but most people want to remember what the preacher
says. It is his responsibility to assist them to do this.
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b) Effective sermons maintain a sense of tension - the feeling that something more must
be said if the message is to be complete. There should be the sense right from the
start of the sermon that it is leading somewhere specific, thus maintaining the interest
of the hearers in the progressively unfolding plot of the message.
c) Some form of connecting the various points needs to be given careful thought. This will
enable the message to flow as one message concentrating totally on the chosen
theme instead of degenerating into a spiritual smorgasbord of a multitude of unrelated
and unconnected points.
Words or phrases such as "therefore" or "this then leads us to", or an illustration or suitable
scripture or a question, can form good connectors.
d) The various main points illustrating, developing or explaining the theme should then fill
up the body of the message:
I. There should not be too many.
II. Each of these points should be titled to give them clarity. Sometimes the use of
alliteration or associated titles will help organise the message and give it clarity.
III. Use the listeners general knowledge to lead them from the known to the unknown
or from the natural to the spiritual.
IV. Give specific attention to illustrating the points you are making. The clearer such
illustrations are the easier it will be for the congregation to both understand and
remember the message as a whole.
V. Each point should be a statement, not a question. Questions do not show
relationship because they are not ideas. The points in outline should answer
questions, not raise them. Questions may be used in the delivery of the sermon as
transitions introducing new points. Such transitional questions precede a point and
are placed in parenthesis.
VI. Whenever possible lead the people to self discovery of truth by implying the point
rather than stating it directly. When you say something directly, it is simply not as
potent as it is when you allow people to discover it for themselves.
C. A Conclusion
Just as an airplane pilot needs special planning and concentration to land his craft at a
pre-designed point, so the skillful preacher should never be in doubt about where or how his
sermon will land. Some outstanding preachers treat this part of the message so seriously that
they prepare it first. It should produce a feeling of finality and then allow the minister to call for a
verdict from the people. Either directly or indirectly the conclusion of the message should
answer the questions raised and make the people face another question. "What am I going to
do about this?" "Am I willing for God to work this into my life?", etc.
27

a) Some of the elements which can be used to conclude the message are:
I. An illustration or short story which sums up the "big idea".
II. A re-statement of the message in the form of a summary. However it should only
be used to tie loose ends together and not be a second preaching of the sermon.
Restatement differs from repetition. It says the same thing, but in a different way
and is necessary to effective communication. People need to be reminded as much
as they need to be informed. One formula for sermon development that should be
respected, if only because it is old says, "Tell them what you are going to tell them;
tell them what you are telling them; then tell them what you have told them".
III. A quotation from some lucid or well-known source or from a hymn or poetry can
successfully draw the message to a conclusion.
IV. A question - the bible abounds in this type of conclusion.

V. Application - a direct statement of truth applied to the hearers was often used by
Jesus to sum up His message - i.e. Matt. 21:44, Mark 8:38, etc.
b) New material or a new direction should not be introduced in the conclusion. These
final moments drive home what has been said and must not take the hearers off into
new avenues of thought.
c) The conclusion should conclude the sermon without announcing its appearance. It is
better not to say, "Inconclusion", or "Finally", as most people have come to expect that
"Finally" does not necessarily mean immediately!
d) The conclusion should make a smooth progression to an
enable the application of the message to be acted upon.
I.

altar call possible and

Appeal to the mind by summarising the message.

II. Appeal to the will be persuasion.
III. Appeal to the emotions by motivating a response and application of the message in
the hearer's life.

5. PREACHING NOTES
It will be helpful for the preacher to write out his points either in full, or precis form in order to
establish to himself if that point really fits in or is necessary to the message. Writing tends to
sharpen our thinking.
It is best for the preacher to finally produce an outline of his message covering all his main and
subsidiary points, even if he does not use it to preach from. The skeleton outline is best, - a
precis of the main and subsidiary points with relevant scriptures.
A. If notes are used, he should learn to use them as a guide rather than a rigid prison of his
ideas. The Lord will often provide spontaneous inspiration during the message and the
preacher should be free to include it if it does not detract from the theme being dealt with.
B. As much as possible all the main texts and references should be committed to memory.
28

C. Always keep the notes, even if they are never used to preach from again. They become an
important part of your resource file representing hours of study on that subject.
D. Always record on your sermon notes where and when the message was preached.
6. PLANNED LANGUAGE
Give diligent and prayerful thought to the use of language to convey your message. It will only
be as clear, concise and cohesive as the vocabulary you use. Work hard to find the best ways
of saying things so that people will readily appreciate the point and be impelled to act on it.
Remember that the aim of education is to simplify not complicate. Commit to memory key
phrases, etc. Words can capture and colour the preacher's thoughts.
7. SATURATE THE MESSAGE IN PRAYER
Pray constantly in the Spirit while preparing and collating the material. The Holy Spirit will bring
wisdom to your mind and assist you in making it a creative and inspiring message.
8. DEVELOP A POWERFUL MEMORY
It will be helpful to employ your memory as much as possible. If you can memorise your main
and subsidiary points and the scriptures to be used, you will be freed from the limitation of your
notes and be much more flexible in your preaching. This, however, is not essential. Some of
history's most effective preachers read their sermons word for word!

*************************************

29

PREACHING RESOURCES
CHAPTER SIX
The successful minister will need to develop a wide range of resources to assist him in the
preparation of his messages. He will not be able to retain all the necessary material he has
been exposed to for instant recall mentally, and will therefore need to know where he can find
the right illustrations and ideas.
The Resource File will be made up of the accumulation of his research, ideas and experiences
and should be put together in such a way that he will be able to quickly extract from it this
information.
1. THE COLLATION OF RESEARCH DATA AND ILLUSTRATIONS.
The wise minister will read as much as possible. Leaders are readers. The challenge though is
to retain what he reads by creating a file of the information gained from reading:a) Always read with a pen or scissors handy. Cut out the sections you feel you can use
from magazines or note the subject and central idea from the book together with the
Title and page.
b) It is better to collect too much than too little. Absorb everything you read which catches
your attention - collect quotes, ideas, illustrations, information, full articles, news
reports, statistics, personal experiences, biographical sketches, catchy titles,
statements, humour etc.
2. THE ORGANISATION OF THE RESOURCE FILE.
It is next to useless to collect all this information unless it is properly organised so that you can
get access to any item almost immediately.
a) Use manilla folders and if possible set them up in a filing cabinet in alphabetical order.
b) Use a separate folder for each subject.
c) Title the folder with the subject, i.e. - MERCY, FAITH, ANGER, WORSHIP etc.
d) Number the articles or illustrations in each folder. - If they are small quotes or
statements paste or attach them to a sheet of plain paper. Number the sheet and then
identify each item on the sheet as :1,:2,:3 etc. i.e. The first item under Mercy may be
a full magazine article or story containing 2 or 3 pages mark it Mercy No. 1. The next
item may be the sheet of plain paper with a number of small items attached. The
sheet would be marked "Mercy No. 2" and each item would be marked as 2:1,2:2,2:3
etc.
e) Cross reference the items. If an article, quotation etc. could be used under more than
one category either copy it if it is small and include it under all applicable categories or
file it under the most appropriate one and refer to it under other categories. i.e. Anger
30

No. 12 may be applicable to Emotions, Hatred, or Forgiveness. You then may have,
Emotions No. 27 - see Anger No. 12, Hatred No. 8 - see Anger No. 12, Forgiveness
No. 42 - see Anger No. 12.etc
3. DEVELOP YOUR LIBRARY.
Treat books as valuable sources of information and build up your library as much as possible.
However all the information should be identified in your resource file also. As you read the
books write on a note pad the various items of information and then include this in the file, i.e.
Perfection No. 27:5 see "Holiest of All" - Andrew Murray page 106; Discipline No. 4:1 see "Dare
to Discipline" - James Dobson, page 21.
4. WRITE AS YOU LISTEN.
When you hear other preachers take notes and as soon as possible afterward transfer their
ideas and quotes to your resource file, i.e. Leadership No. 27:1 - "God could only give the 70
Elders what Moses already had. He could not give them more than their leader had received" Judson Cornwall at Calvary Temple 17/10/82.
Also catalogue all the information on cassette or video tapes, i.e. "Divorce and Remarriage"
No. 18 - Message by Jack Hayford - Tape File No. 82.
It means a disciplined approach to study to develop a resource file but it will become one of the
greatest investments the preacher will ever make.

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31

THE ART OF COMMUNICATION

CHAPTER SEVEN
There are three types of preachers: those to whom you cannot listen; those to whom you can
listen; and those to whom you must listen. The congregation generally decides during the
introduction of the message what kind of preacher is addressing them.
A message ineptly delivered arrives still-born.
An inept preacher will be satisfied to get his ideas out of his head or heart, but an effective
preacher strives to get his ideas into other people's heads and hearts.
A Russian proverb offers wise counsel to the preacher: "It is the same with men as with
donkeys: whoever would hold them fast must get a very good grip on their ears!"
Preaching has not achieved its ultimate unless the message is received, understood and acted
upon. While there is a sense in which preaching is declarative, and is valid whether it is
received or rejected, it must always be understood.
A mist in the pulpit becomes a fog in the pew.
Before we can effectively understand how real communication occurs, we must ask ourselves
some questions:
1. WHAT IS COMMUNICATION?
For many years it was believed that communication was based on the idea of the telephone that communication occurs when the receivers (people) receive 100% of the sender's
(preacher's) message. However people are not necessarily like telephone receivers and are
not always able to receive or decode the message sent to them.
In the early 1960's Marshal McLuhan shook the foundations of communication studies with the
statement, "The medium is the message".
With this statement he pointed to two basic facts:
a) The message is not central to the act of communication.
b) The communicator (medium) is central.
While many people would dispute McLuhan's hypothesis, there is a lot of truth in it as far as
preaching is concerned. In fact, it is totally in line with one of the basic principles of ministry "God's methods are men". Preaching is more than imparting true information. It is the packaging of that information in a man or woman demonstrating the authentic nature of the message.
In other words, the preacher becomes his own message regardless of what he preaches.
Communication therefore is nothing less than the establishment and nurturing of relationships
between parties involved.
32

Communication is an event, not merely content. It is a life-inspiring or life-changing meeting.

Communication is taking the risk to share yourself with people, rather than your words alone.
The ultimate act of communication was when God Himself took on human flesh and became
His own message. Jesus did not bring the message. He was the message.
2. WHAT IS THE GOAL OF THE MESSAGE?
This needs to be clearly thought out. What is the preacher's intended result? Does he simply
want to be a successful orator? Is his goal to get off the hook for another week? Or has he
planned to impart a quality of truth to his hearers which they will receive into their lives and be
changed through it. True preaching is not to merely to inform the mind, but to form the life.
Phillip Brooks declared, "You must count your work as a preacher unsatisfactory unless you
waken men's brains and stir their consciences?.
Preaching will never go beyond its goals.
3. HOW CAN WE IMPROVE COMMUNICATION SKILLS?
A. The use of Body Language
Communication studies by Psychologist Albert Mehrabian show that 93% of what we convey is
unspoken. This dominant non-verbal part of any communication includes both body language,
and tone of voice.
The complete message
The preacher should take care to develop skills of conveying himself and his message in
consistent ways. If there is a difference between what we feel and what we say, the message
will be confused. It is a contradiction to preach about the love of God with a closed fist and a
scowl.
As a handshake will tell you much about a person, so your non-verbal communications will
reveal much to your audience about your attitude to your message.
During the introduction an audience gains impressions of a speaker that often determines
whether or not they will accept what he says. If he appears nervous, hostile, or unprepared,
they are inclined to reject him. If he seems alert, friendly, and interesting, they decide he is an
able person with a positive attitude toward himself and his listeners.
B. Never be dull
It is the unpardonable sin of preachers. If you dare to be dull it says that you did not care
enough about your hearers to get fire and truth from God and package it attractively.
Charles Spurgeon, who was called the Prince of Preachers, says of Jesus:
"Jesus preaching was attractive; He sought above all means to set the pearl in a frame of gold
so that it might attract the attention of the people. He was not willing to place Himself in a
parish church and preach to a congregation of thirteen and a half, but would preach in a style
that people felt they must go to hear Him. Some of them gnashed their teeth in rage and left
His presence in wrath, but the multitudes still thronged to hear Him and be healed. It was no
33

dull work to hear this King of preachers. He was too much in earnest to be dull and too humane
to be incomprehensible."
a) The development of a vivid style of language and presentation will enable a
congregation to "experience" the message.
Communication which taps a listener's experience appeals to both mind and feelings. To
achieve this the Minister should use both sight and sounds. The congregation sees his
gestures and facial expressions and hears his words.
b) In order to develop the skill of being vivid the Minister must be observant. We cannot
represent life clearly unless we first observe it accurately.
c) Vividness develops when we let nouns and verbs carry our meaning. Adjectives and
adverbs clutter speech and keep company with weak words. According to E.B. White,
"The adjective has not been built that can pull a weak or inaccurate noun out of a tight
place". Strong nouns and verbs stand alone. A "tall man" should become a "giant", a
"large bird" a "pelican". Say "he bellowed", not "he talked loudly"; or "he trotted" rather
than "he went quickly". Be especially careful of qualifiers like "very", "so", "quite",
"rather", "too". They betray a failure to choose words of substance. "Scalding" has
strength, "very hot" does not; "excruciating" hurts more than "too painful"; and
"scintillating" paints a better picture than "so interesting". When choosing verbs use live
ones. Finite active verbs make sentences go. The principle to follow is "Somebody
does something". Passive verbs suck the life out of speech. "Opinions and judgments
are formed by us on the basis of what we have known" sounds dead. "We think as we
have known" possesses vitality. "A good time was had by all" lies there while
"Everybody enjoyed himself" moves.
Verbs, like nouns, wake up the imagination when they are precise. He "went" gets him there,
but not as clearly as "crawled", "stumbled", "shuffled", "lurched". She "shouts", "shrieks",
"rants", "whispers" tells us what "says" does not.
d) While language is important the most successful antidote for dullness in the pulpit is
not brilliance but reality. A preacher who experiences his own sermon will have little
trouble conveying it to others adequately. Thomas Betterton (1635-1710) once said,
"Actors speak of imaginary things as though they were real, while too often you
preachers speak of real things as though they were imaginary". The preacher MUST
live his message.
C. Make your message clear
The following quotation illustrates the need for clarity in our communications:
In the classified ad section of a small-town newspaper, the following advertisement appeared
on Monday:
"FOR SALE: R.D. Jones has one sewing machine for sale.
for Mrs. Kelly who lives with him cheap."

Phone 958 after 7 p.m. and ask

34

On Tuesday: "NOTICE: we regret having erred in R.D. Jones' ad yesterday. It should have
read: One sewing machine for sale. Cheap. Phone 958 and ask Mrs. Kelly who lives with him
after 7 p.m."
On Wednesday the ad was confused again. Finally on Thursday the ad read: "NOTICE: I,
R.D. Jones, have no sewing machine for sale. I smashed it. Don't call 958 as the telephone
has been disconnected. I have not been carrying on with Mrs. Kelly. Until yesterday she was
my housekeeper, but she quit."
If the message is garbled, the response will be weak or even negative.
1 Cor. 14:8 - "For if the trumpet give an uncertain sound, who shall prepare himself to the
battle?"
Napoleon had three commands for his messengers which apply to any communication: Be
Clear! Be Clear! Be Clear!
Years ago President Calvin Coolidge returned home from the church service one Sunday and
was asked by his wife what the minister had talked about. Coolidge replied, "Sin". When his
wife pressed him as to what the preacher said about sin, Coolidge responded, "I think he was
against it".
D. Develop story-telling skills
Learn to tell stories effectively and to paint pictures with words and the tone of your voice.
Package the message in illustrated form.
Note Nathan's technique with David - 2 Samuel 12:1-13.
When we gossip, we gossip not about ideas but about people. When popular news magazines
such as "Time" handle compound-complex subjects such as the economy or political upheaval
in China, they do so in part by discussing the people involved. Narration within a sermon
describes the individuals and events embraced in biblical accounts. Every passage has its
people - sometimes they stand there laughing, cursing, praying, and at other times they hide
and we must look for them. In every text, though, there is always somebody writing and
somebody reading. Pull aside a doctrine and you'll find personalities. For example, grace does
not exist in cold storage in heaven. There is only someone giving grace and another receiving
it. The Holy Spirit knew the value of narration when He filled the Scriptures with it, and Jesus
demonstrated the impact of narration in the parables He told.
Narration can supply background in a sermon by filling in the history, setting, or personalities
involved.
E. Use Illustrations
Examples or illustrations of your points are like windows that let in light to your message. It is a
mistake to fill the sermon with abstract, theoretical or technical information.
Illustrations aid memory, stir emotion, create need, hold attention, and establish rapport
between the speaker and the hearer.
35

Good pulpit communication moves back and forth from the abstract to the concrete. Each time
the preacher states a broad general truth, the mind of the hearer asks, "for instance?". That's
when you need some example or incident which illustrates the point.
The best illustrations are those which represent your life experience. However, care should be
taken with illustrations that they do not take over the message and overshadow the point being
conveyed. It is too easy for the illustration to become an end in itself. Never tell a story for its
own sake. Draw illustrations from life, from your reading, from history, from science, from
current events, and from Biblical examples. As much as possible avoid pre-packaged
illustrations as they tend to be lifeless and stilted.
F. Use Humour
The best humour is in real life situations. Avoid slapstick and joke book humour and negative
humour. Never rubbish people in jest, and especially not your wife or husband. Use humour
like syrup on a sundae or icing on a cake - a little sets it off, but too much spoils it.
G. Relate your message to the people
It must always be relevant:
a) The preacher must not only answer the questions our fathers asked; he must wrestle
with the questions our children ask.
b) It will not be possible to do this, however clever you may be at putting ideas and words
together, unless you are genuinely interested in your people. This brings us back to
what communication really is. It is the developing of relationship between the
preachers and the hearers.
In order for you to be successful in knowing where your people are in life, you will have to
discipline yourself to the dynamic skill of "listening". Find out all you can about your people's
needs and study their aspirations and desires.
We speak at 120-l80 words a minute, but most people think at least five times faster than that.
Often when people are talking to us we let our attention wander. The ability to listen and
respond can make the difference in any relationship.
c) The preacher must adjust the delivery and style of his message to the level of his
congregation. Do not feed bones to babies or dishwater to adults!
H. Develop eye contact with the congregation.
Eyes communicate. They supply feedback and at the same time hold an audience's attention.
When you look directly at your hearers, you pick up clues that tell you whether they
understand what you are saying, whether they are interested, and whether they enjoy the
sermon enough to continue listening. An alert speaker will adjust what he says- for example,
adding explanation or illustrations - as he interprets these responses. Moreover listeners feel
that ministers who "look them in the eye" want to talk with them personally. Therefore pastors
who gaze over the audience's heads, stare down at notes, look out of windows, or worse,
shut their eyes while they speak, place themselves at a crippling disadvantage. Almost without
exception a congregation will not listen attentively to a speaker who does not look at them
36

while he talks. Just as significant, people mistrust someone who avoids eye contact and as a
result they undervalue what he says.
Even though you address a congregation as a group, you talk with them as individuals. As you
stand to speak, pause to establish personal contact with your hearers. Move your eyes over
the congregation and let them rest for an instant on several different people. Throughout the
sermon continue your eye contact. Plan to talk with one listener at a time for a second or two,
looking that person in the eye, then turn to someone else. Choose listeners in every section of
the auditorium, and keep the eye contact long enough so that they know that you have singled
them out and are speaking to them. If the congregation is very large, you can select a small
group in one area and look at them for a moment or two, then shift to another group, and
continue to do that throughout the sermon. Be sure not only to look at your listeners, but to
talk with them.
Concentrate on communicating to each one the message you eagerly want him to understand.
I. Study the ministry and communication skills of current successful preachers.
4. HINDRANCES TO COMMUNICATION
The preacher is himself the message. He can detract from it by:
A. His attitude. Never be casual or careless or flippant with the Word. People can see it! Never
advise the people that you have not had time to study properly. They will tune out
immediately. The lack of study is your problem. Do not make it theirs. If you have been
genuinely pressed for time by an unusual amount of urgent pastoral ministry depend on the
Holy Spirit's help to minister to the congregation and determine to be better equipped next
time.
B. Dress. Develop the art of being neatly and inspiringly dressed. John T. Molloy, author of
the book "Dress for Success" (Recommended Reading) and consultant to many of
America's top corporations in the attire their Executives should wear, has many suggestions
to make about the appearance of all successful leaders. While allowing for differences in
style and taste he states that there are two traits which are common to all successful
executives. Their hair is neat and combed, and their shoes are shined.
He also points out that negative reactions are usually generated by certain types of dress and
colours. The preacher is foolish to disregard these simple clues to good grooming, and
unnecessarily create an antipathy with his congregation which may dilute the impact of his
preaching.
One study in grooming showed that people make up their mind whether they like you or not in
the first 45 seconds and that the major part of this attitude is based on dress and mannerisms.
A Minister does not prove he is a great preacher by looking as though he dressed while looking
into a Greek text instead of a mirror.
C. Mannerisms. The preacher should deal with all offensive mannerisms which will take his
hearers' attention from the message. Gestures, habits, eccentricities which detract must
be broken. One of the most effective ways to overcome such habits is for the preacher to
listen to his audio tapes and better still, to watch his preaching on video tape.

37

When we address an audience, our position becomes unique and emphatic. Stuffing hands in
the pockets, stroking the hair or face, playing with a ring, fussing with a necktie, shuffling the
feet are the bad grammar of delivery. Mannerisms and repetitious behaviour peculiar to you
may go unnoticed by friends and be tolerated by associates, but in the pulpit they scream for
attention and divert people from what you are saying. In the pulpit, therefore, movement of the
body must be disciplined to be effective.
D. Poor Grammar and Use of Language.
a) Since the message is couched in words, the diligent preacher will do all in his power to
use them correctly. People tend to subconsciously correct the preacher's bad
grammar, pronunciation and emphasis, and so lose concentration on his message.
Poor grammar and faulty pronunciation unnerve a listener, and raise doubts about
the preachers competence.
b) Restrict the use of jargon. Religious terms like eschatology, pneumatology, Johannine,
exegesis, etc. used in a congregation setting do more to impress and often to confuse
than inform.
c) Use simple language. Always use a short word in preference to a long word unless it is
really necessary. Long words have a paralysis in their tail.
The average person has a vocabulary of about 600 words. The average Minister uses about
5000 words. Billy Graham says, "As I have grown older, I have had to study to be simple".
Legend has it that a few years ago a young copywriter came up with an ad for a new kind of
soap: "The alkaline element and fats in this product are blended in such a way as to secure
the highest quality of saponification, along with a specific gravity that keeps it on top of the
water, relieving the bather of the trouble and annoyance of fishing around for it at the bottom of
the tub during his ablution". A more experience ad man captured the same idea in two simple
words: " It floats".
George G. Williams maintains that from 70 to 78 percent of the words used by W.Somerset
Maugham, Sinclair Lewis, Robert Louis Stephenson, and Charles Dickens have only one
syllable.
Seventy-three percent of the words in Psalm 23, 76 percent of the words in the Lord's Prayer,
and 80 percent of the words in 1 Corinthians 13 are one syllable words.
No matter how accurately a phrase or word expresses a speaker's meaning it is worthless if
the listeners do not know what it means. "Speak", said Abraham Lincoln, "so that the most
lowly can understand you, and the rest will have no difficulty".
d) Avoid stale comparison, metaphors and clichs. Throw them out and get fresh sayings
that clarify the point and keep the audience alert.
e) Monotone delivery will bore. Emphasis on certain words either by a change of tone,
tempo or volume will maintain interest. The phrase in Ps. 23:1, "The Lord is my
Shepherd" has only five words. But if it is repeated five times, and each time a different
word is emphasised, the meaning changes.
38

E. Length of the Sermon. The mind cannot assimilate more than the seat can endure! Stop
when you get through.
Fredrick Temple, Archbishop of Canterbury in the late l9th Century, was a humane, liberal
and sensible man. It is said that he once remarked, "In making a sermon, think up a good
beginning, then think up a good ending, then bring these two as close together as you can."
An appropriate prayer could be - "Lord fill my mouth with worthwhile stuff, and nudge me when
I've said enough".
F. Avoid weak points. Always assess the total message once you have written your drafts and
delete any weak or unnecessary points. Remember that you can fool all the people some
of the time, and some of the people all of the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the
time. If you persist in using insupportable statements and points you will lose your credibility
and eventually your congregation.

Bernard Baruch states, "Every man has the right to his own opinion, but no-one has the right
to be wrong in his facts".
The aim of communication must be to make the hearers understand your message, because
a truth correctly comprehended will produce its own application. This won't happen unless you
can hold the attention of your congregation.

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39

SEEKING THE ANOINTING

CHAPTER EIGHT
Unless the preacher is anointed of the Holy Spirit, there is no point to him preaching his
message. Without the impetus of the Spirit his message will be either flat and lifeless, or it will
be humanistic in its motivations. 2 Cor. 3:6 makes it clear that without the Spirit, the word will
kill.
Peter said, "We have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from
heaven" (1 Pet. 1:12). In the New Testament the word was the "message", the preachers were
the "messengers", and the Holy Spirit was the "means".
It is self-evident that the anointing of God is not automatic and varies from person to person.
1. THE ANOINTING IS CONNECTED TO THE CALL
God's callings are His enablings and He will provide the resources for those He sends. The
level of the anointing for preaching is dependent upon the call to the Ministry. Because a
person decides to go and preach, it does not mean he is anointed to preach. Moses' anointing
to deliver Israel did not come until the Burning Bush experience. Prior to this, in his own energy
he attempted to deliver the people, but ended in failure.
2. THE ANOINTING IS DEPENDENT UPON RELATIONSHIP
Many preachers make the mistake of resting on the anointing given at their call as all that is
needed. This is termed "Travelling in the Gift". The only way that a successful ministry can
be maintained is by constant relationship with God. The Minister's prayer life will be reflected in
both the authority and fruit of his Ministry.
The Holy Spirit is the agent of our anointing.
We must understand that when we are joined to the Lord we are one spirit with Him. 2
Corinthians 13:14 and Philippians 2:1 point out that there must be fellowship and communion
with the Holy Spirit. He is not coming on us as a special act of God for a specific preaching
assignment, but is constantly released within us through us cultivating a deep relationship with
Him.
The faith we need to minister is greatly strengthened by this type of relationship. Seek God with
all your heart and become sensitive to the direction and impulse of the Holy Spirit within you.
3. THE ANOINTING
PHENOMENON

IS

NOT

NECESSARILY

ASSOCIATED

WITH

EXTERNAL

a) While on occasions God will give you feelings or signs that help you release your faith
through your preaching, this is not always so. Some of the strongest anointings you will
have will be when you feel nothing and may in fact be weak in yourself. Note 2 Cor. 12:9. If
God gives to you some blessing or sign associated with His anointing upon your life, do not
attempt to repeat it or seek it. These things tend to be at His discretion rather than ours
40

and can become distractions and diversions from the true anointing on another occasion.
b) The phenomena of human eloquence is not to be confused with the anointing. Apollos was
an eloquent preacher, but not Spirit-filled. Acts 18:24-25, and Hitler was both eloquent and
influential in his speeches!
4. MINISTER OUT OF
WORTHINESS

CONFIDENCE

TOWARD GOD AND NOT PERSONAL

Most preachers feel condemned for their failures or inadequacies in Ministry. It is a trap of
Satan to get us to look at ourselves instead of God. The effective Minister will cultivate an
absolute conviction that God is in charge and will honour His Word. This treasure we have in
earthen vessels that the excellency of the power may be of God and not of us - 2 Cor. 4:7. Do
your best and leave the rest.
5. GOD HONOURS HIS WORD
Preach truth, not fantasy. God can only respond to and anoint His own Word in the mouth of
the preacher. He will not support wild ideas or fallacies. Preach salvation, faith, love, holiness
of life, and concentrate on things that are clear in the Word. Do not major on obscure subjects
or teachings which need to be twisted out of shape in order to stand. The preacher should
generally go for souls in every service. One of the driving motivations of the Son of God in
coming to earth was to seek and save the lost. God can and will anoint the preacher who cares
for souls and reaches out in faith for them.
6. ALWAYS SEEK THE GLORY OF GOD AND NOT SELF-PROMOTION.
The desire to be popular in preaching is an insidious poison which will eventually cripple the
preacher. Deal with such motivations in prayer and fasting to subdue any other desire except
the unmitigated glory of God. He will never share His glory with another and the anointing is
part of His glory. If we take it to ourselves and use it for our own aggrandisement as Samson
did, we will be bereft of God's power and presence and left to handle the pressure of
ministering by ourselves.
7. TYPES OF ANOINTINGS
Not all anointings are the same as 1 Corinthians 12:7-11 points out. It takes skill, experience
and sensitivity to the Holy Spirit to determine what anointing is resting upon us from time to
time. There are occasions when an anointing to demonstrate God's power is present (Luke
15:17) and there are times when the Word of God preached is sufficient in itself (Jer. 23:29).
On occasions the preacher will be under a strong prophetic anointing but the next time he
ministers, that impulse of the Spirit may not be with him. This can be confusing if the preacher
does not learn to recognise and differentiate between the various anointings that come at
God's discretion from time to time.
+++++++++++++++++++++
THE PREACHING THAT KILLS
The preaching that kills may be, and often is, orthodox dogmatically, inviolably orthodox.
Nothing is as dead as dead orthodoxy, too dead to speculate, too dead to think, to study or to
pray.
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The letter may be dressed up so as to attract and be fashionable, but the attraction is not
toward God nor is the fashion for heaven. The failure is in the preacher. God has not made
him. He has never been the hands of God like clay in the hands of the potter. He has been
busy about the sermon, its thought, its finish, its drawing and impressive forces, but the deep
things of God have never been sought, studied, fathomed, experienced by him. He has never
stood before "the throne high and lifted up", never heard the seraphim song, never seen the
vision nor felt the rush of that awful holiness, and cried out in utter abandon and despair under
the sense of weakness and guilt, and had his life renewed, his heart touched, purged, inflamed
by the live coal from God's altar.

THE ENERGY OF THE SPIRIT

James Hervey, the friend of Wesley at Oxford, describes the change which took place in him
through his anointing by the Spirit: While his preaching was once like the firing of an arrow, all
the speed and force thereof depending on the strength of his arm in bending the bow, now it
was like the firing of a rifle ball, the whole force depending on the powder and needing only a
finger to let it off.
O Holy Spirit, come upon us in Thy fullness, and teach us this secret of the irresistible might of
weakness - of doing great things for God through the energy of that Spirit by whom God does
great things for us!
- A.J. Gordon
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THE ALTAR CALL

CHAPTER NINE
Sunday, October 8, 1871 - date of the great Chicago fire. D.L. Moody was preaching in Farwell
Hall on the text, "What will you do with Jesus who is called the Christ." Soloist Ira Sankey then
sang, "Today the Saviour Calls".
Although Mr. Moody heard the fire bells and sensed the air was filled with smoke, he continued
urging his audience to consider choosing Christ and to return the following Sunday to make a
decision.
That night Farwell Hall burned to the ground and so did D.L. Moody's home and most of
Chicago.
Moody said that was the worst mistake he ever made. He determined from that experience to
always make the message of Salvation plain and to lovingly encourage spiritual decisions.
1. PREACH FOR A VERDICT
An evangelist is preaching for a decision. That is his heaviest burden. As Leighton Ford said, "If
you know you are going to preach and give an invitation, you are going to preach to the point of
commitment and response. It takes more out of you: not just the invitation, but the whole
message. Because its just not "Take it or leave it"; it's not just giving a little talk, or teaching, or
simply preaching a sermon. You are going for a verdict." Once that is done, the Holy Spirit
probes the conscience bringing one face to face with the ultimate question that Jesus asked in
His day, "Who do you say that I am?"
Billy Graham is equally emphatic that "especially at the invitation there is a great spiritual
conflict. This is the part of the evangelistic service that wears me out physically and
psychologically and spiritually more than any other. I sense that Satan is battling for the souls
of men and women." At the moment of invitation the gathering in the stadium or auditorium
becomes more than a mass meeting or a climax of months of preparation: the evangelist and
his audience are caught up in the primeval, elemental conflict of the universe, between good
and evil, the forces of darkness and the God of light. At that moment, there will be people who
turn from darkness into light, from the power of Satan to God.
It is uncertain how the term "Altar Call" originated, but the practice of calling for a decision to be
made as a result of the preaching is valid. In fact preaching which does not call for or compel or
lead in some way to a decision is like fishing by casting in the bait and hook without having it
attached to a line. There are plenty of Biblical examples for the invitation to be made for the
hearers to respond to the Lord.
A. Moses - While Moses received the law, the children of Israel became impatient for his
return. Their dissatisfaction led to carelessness and idolatry.
When Moses returned, he became angry. He burned the golden calf they were worshipping
and threw the ashes upon the waters. The next day Moses called the people together and
pressed them for a verdict. "Then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, Who is on
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the LORD's side? let him come unto me" (Exodus 32:26).
B. Joshua - Joshua, the successor of Moses, also urged a choice. At Shechem he challenged
the people, "Choose you this day whom ye will serve" (Josh. 24:15). And the people
responded. Joshua then recorded the decision of the people in the book of the Law of God
(Josh. 24:26) and erected a stone "decision card" as a witness to their response (24:27).
C. King Josiah - King Josiah also called upon the children of Israel to renew their vows to the
Lord (2 Chron. 34:31). But Josiah even went a step further. Verse 32 reads, "He caused all
that were present ... to stand to it." Josiah felt that his witness was incomplete until there
was a definite affirmation of purpose.
The Lord Jesus, too, set an example for us. He came saying, "Repent ye, and believe the
gospel" (Mark 1:15). To Peter and Andrew, He called, "Come ye after me, and I will make you
to become fishers of men" (Mark 1:17). He said, "Repent", "Believe", "Come", choose. He
sought for a decision.
Staggering though it may seem, God is calling people through you and me today. Charles B.
Williams translated 2 Cor. 5:20, "So I am an envoy to represent Christ, because it is through
me that God is making His appeal. As one representing Christ, I beg you, be reconciled to
God."
We must realise that the great Almighty God is calling men and women through what we are,
say, and do.
From Genesis to Revelation, we see God's hand reaching out to men and women. God called
Noah, "Come thou and all thy house into the ark" (Gen. 7:1). Through direct invitation, through
creating circumstances, and through angelic ministry (Heb. 1:14), He continually seeks us.
The New Testament, speaking of Jesus says, "The Son of man is come to seek and to save
that which was lost" (Luke 19:10). The Bible also closes with a loving, all-inclusive invitation:
"The Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is
athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely" (Revelation 22:17).
2. DO THE WORK OF THE EVANGELIST.
A. Regardless of your Ministry Gift, the preacher must exercise faith to see souls saved. The
overwhelming statistical evidence is that more people come to Christ and stand firm in their
faith through the regular ministry of the local Church, than through visiting evangelists.
B. The Pastor will need to break through the barrier of feeling incapable, and believe God for
souls in his ministry, and be bold to overcome his natural reticence. He must develop a
clear vision of people being saved and pray and believe for this to occur whenever he
preaches. He should not give up for lack of results initially. Ask for decisions.
C. While there are no techniques which are valid for this vital part of the service, there are
certain guidelines which will be helpful in conducting an appeal for decisions:
a) Plan for it. The preacher should spend a considerable time in preparation and prayer
for the altar call. It is almost as important as the message. If he has waited on God and
gotten a plan, then at the end of the service when he is under emotional stress or is
feeling drained he will not be caught without direction.
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b) Be sensitive to the mood of the meeting, and the leading of the Holy Spirit. There are
times when the appeal will be needed before you have preached all you planned to.
Quit at that point and call for decisions. There are occasions when the Altar Call could
even precede the preaching.
c) Be flexible. Avoid being too predictable in the way you conduct the appeal. While there
are certain basics such as inviting people to identify themselves, there are a variety of
ways in which you can do
d) Be specific. Spell out clearly what you are appealing for and make it absolutely plain
what you want the respondents to do. You may call for different needs in succession.
e) Establish contact with the convert. Do not let people slip through your hands because
you are embarrassed or fearful of offending them. It is essential to have them make a
specific profession of faith - Rom. 10:9.
f) Pray with the convert and for them.
I. Lead them in specific prayer renouncing and repenting of their sin and asking for
cleansing. Always include a faith element by having the convert declare that he is
saved.
II. Lay hands on them and break the power of habits and demonic forces in their lives.
g) Have Counsellors trained and ready. The Counsellors should be standing by the
person making a decision while the preacher is leading them in prayer. It is essential
that there be no time delay between the finish of the prayer and the introduction to the
Counsellor. They should be counselled in a place that is free from distraction and the
Counsellor should be fully familiar with all of the follow-up procedures of the Church
and should pray with the counsellee again before they leave.
h) Use music and singers during the appeal. Music is a God-given facility for conveying
the touch of the Spirit to the human heart. Note 1 Chron. 25:1, 2 Chron. 20:22, 2 Kings
3:15. This atmosphere of praise to God is most conducive to a spiritual response by
the hearers.
i) Be loving. Note 1 Peter 4:8 - Love shall cover a multitude of sins. Never be offensive or
crude or rude. Do not expose or embarrass people. Be considerate and courteous. Put
yourself in the place of the first time visitors to your Assembly whom you are seeking
to get a decision from. Do not use humour at this point. While it may be acceptable in
the message, it would almost never be acceptable during the appeal.
j) Don't drag it out. Long appeals will weary the people and turn them off rather than
draw them in. Have faith that the Holy Spirit is doing His convicting work in the
congregation and if there is no response in a reasonable
time, don't feel
uncomfortable about dismissing the congregation.
k) Generally hold an Altar Call in every service. Take every opportunity to compel a
decision for Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit will honour the preaching of the Word of God
and not just your gospel sermons.
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CONCLUSION.
Expect the convicting power of the Holy Spirit to be present whenever you preach to produce
real repentance. The word "convict" means "to awaken to a sense of guilt or sin".

Only the Holy Spirit can convict a lost soul of his sin and lead him to repentance. Jesus said,
"No man can come to me except the Father draws him (Jn. 6:44)." Repentance is a gift
conveyed to sinful man by the Holy Spirit - Acts 16:14, 11:18.
Spirit anointed preaching is a method used by God to strike conviction into the hearts of
sinners and professed christians alike.
Picture Savonarola under the anointing of the Spirit fearlessly raising his voice in condemnation
of sin in pleasure-mad Florence, Italy. The church had become so corrupt that as a preacher
he had to stand alone. Ever larger crowds came to the cathedral to hear him that there was
scarcely room to breathe. The hearers were as clay in his hands. Tears gushed from their
eyes, they beat their breasts and cried unto God for mercy: the church echoed and re-echoed
their sobs.
Look at Jonathan Edwards preaching his famous sermon, "Sinners in the hands of an angry
God." People actually grasped hold of the pillars and pews for they felt that they were sliding
into the pit of hell!
See John Wesley at Epworth. Denied the use of the church where his father had pastored for
40 years, he stood on his father's tombstone and preached the gospel. Conviction became so
intense that at times his voice was drowned out by the cries of the penitents and the sound of
weeping.
Consider George Whitfield preaching to ten thousand coal miners. As the word of God began
to penetrate their hearts little white gutters began to appear as the tears coursed down their
soot covered cheeks. Hundreds were thoroughly converted.
Surely Spirit anointed preaching is a God chosen method of bringing Holy Spirit conviction.
Finally: do your best and leave the rest to God. One of our strongest temptations is to try and
do too much. Jesus moved with a serenity and quietness in His ministry, and yet at the end of
His ministry He said to His Father, "I have finished the work which you gave me to do". He did
not heal all the sick, feed all the poor, or raise all the dead. He did what He could.
A PREACHERS PRAYER
I do not ask,
That crowds may throng the temple,
That standing room be at a price,
I only ask that as I voice the message,
They may see Christ.
I do not ask
For churchly pomp or pageant,
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Or music such as wealth alone can buy;

I only ask that as I voice the message,
He may be nigh.
I do not ask
That man may sound my praises,
Or headlines spread my name abroad;
I only pray that as I voice the message
Hearts may find God
I do not ask
For earthly place or laurel
Or of this world's distinction any part,
I only ask, when I have voiced the message,
My Saviours heart.

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