Some time back, I was interviewed on the art of preaching. Because I’ve been thinking about preaching more lately, I thought it might be helpful to pull this interview out and share here what I said there. May these words bring life to your practice of preaching the Word.
Paul the apostle famously declared that he determined “to know nothing but Christ and him crucified.” We would all likely agree that “we preach Christ,” and that Jesus Christ is the center of our preaching. But, how would you describe the central goal of preaching for yourself?”
The goal of preaching is to draw bridges between the Word of God, the Spirit of God, and the people of God. Our responsibility as preachers is to make the Word and Presence of God accessible to the person seeking a deepening relationship with him. It is much more than tranferring information. It is encounter. In practical terms, our work as preachers is to preach the Word (be faithful to the text) and preach for transformation (be faithful to the call to make disciples). That’s my general rule.Never get too far from the Word of God, and never get too far from the spiritual needs of the people who are actually in front of you.
John Wesley taught Rhetoric and Koine Greek while a fellow at Lincoln College. This comes across in Wesley’s printed sermons as he states up front his major argument then he usually issues three points supporting his argument then summarizes these points at the end of his sermons. How does this differ from your approach to preaching and do you see any benefit in Wesley’s style of preaching in the 18th century? Are there distinctive characteristics of Wesleyan preaching? If so, what are some of them?
Wesley was a teacher and a movement maker. He was brilliant at synthesizing theology and his sermons are proof of that. I am convinced that what he taught and preached only worked because Wesley was the guy God tapped for that work. And to think that most of what he wrote, he penned while riding on the back of a horse! I can barely discipline myself to write when there are no distractions. I can’t imagine writing at the level of depth and coherence Wesley accomplished while bumping along on the back of an animal. He was singularly gifted and anointed for the moment he was in. For the rest of us, the challenge and opportunity is to let Wesleyan theology seep into our preaching and into the souls we serve.
Some time back, I had the privilege of preaching at a seminary that educates a mostly reformed audience. The most common comment I received after I preached that message was, “You preach like a Wesleyan.” I’m not at all sure they meant that as a compliment, but I was deeply moved (and gratified) by the thought that my preaching might be distinguished in that way. Wesleyans are distinguished by our commitment to expository preaching that calls the community into sanctification — not just wide but deep. Wesleyan spirituality — and Wesleyan preaching, by extension — is Spirit-driven and experimental. Our preaching ought to have that accent. Ultimately, sanctification is our Wesleyan distinctive. Kevin Watson says that if we are not preaching entire sanctification, we are taking up a needless place in the Body of Christ. So when I say that we must preach transformation, that’s what I’m really talking about. I’m talking about preaching a passion for being made perfect in love in this life.
How do you go about deciding what to preach: that is, how do you develop a plan for preaching throughout the year? How is prayer incorporated in your preaching?
I’m a series preacher. Somewhere in the early fall, I begin to listen to the Lord for a word for the year. And I mean I really begin to listen. I spend time soaking in prayer and in the Word and listening for what the Lord wants to say over my people. God has always been faithful to give me that kind of word, one that acts like a banner over the year (see my blog on “counting the stars” for more on this process).
Once I get a word, I go looking for themes. When I was preaching weekly, I would usually pull together our preaching team (for more on preaching teams, look up my articles on Seedbed), and we explored those themes with our congregation in mind. By the end of November, I would usually have the first half of the year planned out and the second half of the year in process. By January, I’d usually have the whole year mapped out. It wasn’t written in stone, but the place gave us a good guide to start with.
Usually I was intentional enough about prayer and study and a little holy conferencing around the series I schedule that I didn’t need to make significant changes. And once the year was mapped out, I began to flesh out each series of messages and decide who among our team is best suited to preach what. All of it, of course, was bathed in prayer.
I can’t imagine any part of the preaching life not being bathed in prayer. That remains the biggest part of my process, as I continue to teach, preach, and guard the faith in my current capacity.
In the past thirty years there has been more of a “Teaching” method employed by well known pastors whereby the message is utilized as an opportunity to reach unchurched persons with the Gospel. Outlines are given and practical life application messages are used to instruct unchurched/ new Christians in their young discipleship and growth. What are your thoughts on this style and why do you practice this method or why do you choose to preach in another style? What have you found to be the particular challenges of preaching in the twenty-first century? How have you tried to respond to these challenges?
If we’re talking about seeker-sensitive preaching, I’ll confess that I began there but no longer view that way of preaching as the most effective way to shape a congregation spiritually. At least, not as I understand my own call, even as an evangelist. I am now more interested in seeing folks experience an authentic, living faith. I want to challenge folks to do their own work, to read their own Bibles (rather than reading from a screen), to take their own notes. When I was preaching in a local church weekly, I began every message with this line: “The best way to engage the Word is with your Bible, something to write on and something to write with. If you need a Bible, raise your hand and someone will bring you one.” It used to be that several people would raise their hands every week. Before long, most folks were actually bringing their Bibles (yes … Methodists are bringing their Bibles!). People knew we’d be opening the word and that I expected them to take their own notes, and do their own work. When new people came, they picked up on that pretty quickly and brought their Bibles or grabbed one on their way in. There is something beautiful about looking out and seeing folks paging through their Bible and taking notes. And we were doing this in a community of folks who had little or no church experience. Just last Sunday, someone came to me after worship (I still attend the church I served for 21 years) and said she hadn’t been in church since the 80s, but she found significant healing in our service. That tells me that a call to spiritual depth won’t scare away; it may actually draw them in. Preach the Word and preach transformation and trust the Holy Spirit to help folks connect.
Dr. George Morris, who taught Evangelism at Emory and headed up the World Methodist Evangelism Institute at Candler, often said its a sin to preach the Gospel and not give a chance for the listener to respond, its also a sin to ask people to respond if the preacher hasn’t preached the Gospel. Do you preach for a verdict or a decision to be made when you proclaim the Gospel? What advice would you give to “hearers of preaching”?
Here’s what I would say to the hearers. For 27 years, because I am usually the preacher and spiritual leader in the rooms where I serve, I have had almost no opportunity to respond to a message by getting on my knees and letting God deal with me. Every week, I’m calling folks forward and every week I’m praying with people (even in my role as bishop), but I haven’t had much of an opportunity to be on the receiving end of that gift. That’s just how it is with the preaching life. But if I were sitting in a chair or pew, I wouldn’t let an altar call go by without going forward for prayer. I hunger for the chance to get on my knees and let God deal with me. I can’t imagine letting that window of opportunity pass by me … at least not often. The further I go into ministry, the more I hunger for those altar encounters. Something happens when we get on our knees. Humility happens. Confession happens. Honesty happens. Vulnerability happens. Why wouldn’t you want to go after everything God has for you? Why would you get up, get dressed, and drive across town to stay seated in a chair when you can find a “thin place” where Heaven meets earth on your knees? That’s what I’d counsel any lay person. Engage the message. Listen for God’s word for you. And get to the altar or get on your knees seek his presence.
Fred Craddock used to teach about sitting in two different Chairs: 1) Getting into the Word–doing the naive reading, studying the text and asking questions of context, etc. and exegeting the scripture for the author’s message and what the Holy Spirit is saying. 2) Then sitting in another chair “Getting out of the Word” when you exegete your audience, and this second chair is the chair of creativity. What is your rhythm, your method of dealing first with the text then how do you exegete your audience to be able to communicate to the Gospel?
I would agree that before I exegete the passage, and certainly before I exegete my audience, I must let the text exegete me. Nothing is as beneficial to me on that score than good, old-fashioned inductive Bible study. Read the Word. Read it out loud if possible (you’ll hear it differently). Circle every word that jumps off the page, and also the ones that just seem interesting. Walk through the passage and ask questions of every phrase, taking copious notes. Listen for themes and make connections. But before we start writing our message, we must first let the passage speak to us. What is God saying to ME in this passage? What is the transformation he is seeking for MY life? When I’ve made that connection first, everything else becomes more clear.
Only after you’ve done the above, then dive deeply into commentaries and do word studies. Let the main ideas begin to rise to the surface and attempt to create an outline. I say “attempt” because not every passage outlines neatly into three points. Let the Word speak. Don’t force it to fit your acronym or standard form. Let the ideas flow onto the page as you continue to pray. The best messages are the ones where the Word preaches to you first, then to your people.
Does it matter if you write a manuscript or preach from an outline or notes? I would say no, but with a caveat. Motivation is everything. If you’re avoiding a manuscript because it takes more time and effort, you probably ought to submit yourself to the process of writing a manuscript for a season, for no other reason than to discipline yourself with that practice. Manuscripts force us to make word choices and concept choices. They force us to think more deeply about how we say what we want to say. They help us avoid “filler” material. I envy those who can preach without them, but I don’t regret having the practice myself. It has been a source of sanctification for me and I know my folks have gotten a better word because of this discipline. Whether manuscript preaching is your practice or not, consider how exploring it might make your preaching more clear, more organized.
However you structure a message, always leave room for an invitation. That’s where the real care is, and where the spiritual work is done. Mold the invitation to the room, and listen for the Spirit. I don’t usually script my invitation because I want to look folks in the eye when I call them to a decision. I want them to know that this call comes from my heart, that I’m sincere in my desire to see them move forward with Jesus. A good invitation connects folks to the heart of God and leads to transformation. But it only works when we take authority. Rick Warren taught me this. When we stand and invite from a place of deep trust in God’s ability to show up, God tends to show up.
What does “taking authority” look like in your skin, and how does that differ from what it looks like in mine? Power and authority wear on each of us differently, sort of like how a shirt fits me differently than it fits the next person. We get in trouble when we try to wear someone else’s authority, just like we get in trouble when we try to wear someone else’s call. We also get in trouble when we don’t confidently receive the authority given us to walk out what we’ve been called to do. And that confidence is in the Lord, not in ourselves. In him.
The point is this: Take authority — your authority. And what I mean by “take” is: receive the authority that has been freely given to you to live out the call of God on your life. Find your voice, whether it is a preaching voice, teaching voice, evangelistic voice, global voice, or local voice. Find your own voice, so you can speak confidently the message God has given you.
Taking authority begins at the feet of Jesus. Whatever your call, it begins there, with learning who you are in Christ — understanding your identity as it is defined by Christ. Practically speaking, that means spending time in prayer, silence, and “waiting before the Lord.” It means journaling what you hear and discovering the priorities of a call. It means finding the courage to say no just as often as you say yes.
And it also means finding folks whose gifts are like yours, so you can begin to get a vision for how to live out what you’ve been given. Jesus’ own apprenticeship model teaches us that mentoring and being mentored is an important part of taking authority. Who in the world preaches Jesus the way you want to preach Jesus? I wish I could get back all the time and energy I spent trying to get an “attagirl,” from other preachers rather than looking for that rare person willing to challenge me at the deeper levels of authenticity and effectiveness. If I could share one thing with a younger me, it would be to more intentionally seek out mentors. I might also tell my younger self to stay after that sacred search for the treasure that is my authentic voice, because that is the headwaters of spiritual authority.
(some of the above text on taking authority first appeared in my book, When Women Lead)
