Smith interviews Dr. Tony Evans on his commitment to expository preaching.  He discusses his personal mindset in both study and in delivery of sermons as well as why expositional preaching is so needed in the church today.  This is 2 minutes of pure gold.  Enjoy the video!

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If we’re preaching the Most Important Message Of All, then it’s a tragic irony if the preacher is the biggest distraction from it’s contents.  In this episode, Smith & Southerland discuss the 5 big (very common) distractions preachers commit when delivering a message.

Episode 9 Download

Will you confess your own (past or present) here below?  Did we miss any?  Leave your COMMENTS below!

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posted by Scott Newton Smith

You’ll rarely hear me preach a sermon aimed at the entire congregation.

I know that may be confusing so here’s what I mean…

I mean sermons that might be titled “3 Signs of A Healthy Church” or “The Main Job of The Local Church.”

I’ve learned over time that when sermons that have  a broader aim are preached, folks are usually thinking, “Glad he’s saying that.  They really need to hear it!”

My sermons are typically aimed at the individual.  Even though I may say “we” and “us” often through the message, there is still retained a very distinctive “you” quality.  That is, I want to aim the message very tightly, not very broadly, helping each listener feel a sense of personal responsibility to the text-driven, Bible-derived principle being preached.

No one gets off the hook by virtue of “this is a group effort.”

I’m not saying that there is never a place for a congregation-wide message where the pastor or preacher is giving a broader appeal.  If the text goes there, I have to go there.

I’m just saying that when a message is aimed at a larger body and worded as such, its impact is diffused in proportion to the number of people sitting there listening.

This is precisely why there was so much more accountability in the  messages that Jesus preached to the twelve versus the messages He preached to the crowds.

(The implementation of His agenda rested on the actions of the smaller group — the disciples.  And when He had the Special Three — Peter, James and John — around the campfire and looked them each in the eye and said “you must…” there were fewer others to shirk responsibility off onto.)

While we can’t physically segment down our Sunday crowd into smaller groups and clip through the sermon three-by-three, or even twelve-by-twelve, we can certainly maintain a sense of individuality among the collective in terms of presenting the mandate of individual choice to believe and obey… and enjoy the fruits of that both individually and collectively as a result.

So my sermon title would more likely be, “3 Signs of a Healthy Christian” or, “The Main Job of Every Believer,” knowing that if each individual feels the impact of that message, then the collective will benefit as well by default.

Your thoughts?  Please leave a comment >>>

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by Joel Southerland

John Maxwell is set to release a new book entitled Everyone Communicates, Few Connect very soon. I was able to read an excerpt from the book before its release. The opening paragraph of chapter 1 says it all:

“According to experts, people are bombarded with 35,000 messages a day. Everywhere we go, everywhere we look, someone is trying to get our attention….Our world is cluttered with words.”

For the preacher, those are chilling words. We have the Truth that we need to communicate to people. What we communicate changes lives, influences eternity, determines destinies. We can’t afford NOT to communicate!

How does that affect us this Sunday? It means while we are studying the Word of God this week, it is also worth taking time to study how we can make the message connect with the audience. We can have the greatest points and exegesis in the world, but if we don’t connect, we won’t be effective.

How about putting some prep time into connecting before Sunday’s sermon? Spend time praying and planning for your sermon to instantly and eternally connect with those who hear.

(We’ve got some great stuff on the way that will be an extremely practical help to you on this.  Stick around.)

Question: What do YOU do that seems to help the audience connect with YOU and/or your sermon?  Comment below…

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In this episode, Smith and Southerland interview Pastor Brad Whitt about his amazing filing system that allows him to categorize and file everything:  illustrations, old sermons, digital audio files, books and even old preaching tapes.

And he can retrieve any of it by simply typing in a keyword or Scripture reference.

Mentioned in the show:

• The Paper Tiger (Free trial!)

• Evernote

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Have you used something similar?  Anything you would like to ask or add? Leave your comments.

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A big challenge for the preacher is to quickly connect with the congregation early in the sermon.

In this episode,  Smith and Southerland five proven ideas to instantly connect with your audience of sermon listeners.

(Don’t miss the special announcement at the end!)

Action Step: Pick one of these ideas that you haven’t tried before and go for it this Sunday.

What are some strategies that you use to instantly connect with your congregation? Leave your comment!

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Posted by Joel Southerland
We’ve been preaching that you need a predictable melody in your sermons in parts 1 and 2. 

But there are also times you really need to break it.

I’m a child of the 80′s – when Ronald Reagan and Rock ‘N Roll were king!  I have repented since, but I grew up listening to Aerosmith, Def Leppard, and other bands with cool fonts.

I remember once that a new station was launching in our area and to kick off the debut, it was going to play one song all day, 24 hours straight.  What song in the early 1980′s would they possibly choose to play all day and all night?  Of course, “I Love Rock ‘N Roll” by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts.  I thought, Wow! Twenty-four hours of a great song!

I tuned in early that morning and every chance I had I listened all through the day… “I love rock ‘n roll ♪ so put another dime in the juke box, baby ♫ I love rock roll ♪ so come and take the time to dance with me…” ♫ (YELL!)

Great song, great music, one problem… it got old.  By that afternoon I needed something different.

Sometimes we pastor – and our listeners – need a change up in our melody.  Even if the preaching has been connecting, do something to give them a little break from the norm.  It’s good for them and good for you.

Here are a few ideas:

1. Alternate your outlining style. Alliterate then don’t. Use six points one night instead of three.

2. Have a guest speaker. Use a young preacher in the church.  Use a denominational or parachurch speaker.  Often, a guest speaker’s change of rhythm (except the young preacher-boy protege who copies you) will cause folks to respond to things you have been preaching all along. You’re not necessarily looking for a better message but a different rhythm.

3. Preach a topical sermon. There I said it.  Do it (then get forgiveness and move on).

4. Use a “prop.” Do something crazy.  I used a remote control car one time on speaking of the power of the Holy Spirit and I ran it all over the church.  People still talk about it and it broke my preaching rhythm in a good way.

5. Do a character sketch monologue. Instead of preaching a predictable Christmas sermon, write out the Christmas story from the perspective of Zacharias telling the story after-the-fact.  Do the costume and everything.  Go all out.  Your people will love it and it will give them some fresh perspective.  (If you’ve never don this before, it will feel awkward at first, but I’ll bet your people will ask you to do more of them in the future.)

There are many other things to do – but just do them when you feel as if you are in a rut or your people are needing a little variety. Then, when you go back to your singing the next Sunday, it will be beautiful music.

Action Steps:

• Write 3 positive things you that you do stylistically that contribute to your own melody.  This will force you to think about your own “melody” in a way that you probably haven’t before.
• Write 3 ideas that you could do over the next quarter to “change up your tune” a bit.

Let us know your answers to the above!

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Posted by Scott Newton Smith

The showdown.  The “early service.”  You know… the get-it-over-with crowd.  They sat there, droopy eyed and lifeless.  They had barely survived the song service.  The music guy, bless his heart, had done the best he could.  Just before I went up, he glanced at me as if to say, We’re fallin’ back, Cap’n, troops are demoralized.  We gav’er all we had.

I took the pulpit with a twitch in my eye and a bit wider stance than usual. Anticipation was rising in me.  Moisture began to form on the back of my neck.  (Click “play” now below for effect and keep reading.)

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They looked at me — or through me — I couldn’t tell.  I had been here before… and had been beaten before.  But not this time.  I was ready.  When I drew, it would all be over.  They’d be hooked.  I’d be sure of it.

What was my secret weapon?

It wasn’t anything I took with me into the pulpit.  It was something I took with me into the study.

It was an assumption.  It was the assumption that they would come into the service with no desire to listen. It was the assumption that they expected me to be boring, low-key and dry, that they would tune me out before giving me a chance.

So, I did my sermon development with the mindset that I have to help them listen.  I have to make them listen.  I have to provide irresistible, interesting content.

That one mindset trick alone boosts my creativity every time by at least 50% or more.  While it doesn’t always guarantee that every sermon will be a zinger, I always at least get better ideas faster and with greater ease.  I always start thinking outside the box more.

I work harder than most might, but it’s because I’m going for a bigger expected payoff in audience interest.  The result will tend to be far better than just passing the sermon time hoping the congregation will be spiritual enough to grab a nugget or two, rather a life-changing message that grabbed their attention and therefore, gripped their heart.

How ’bout you?  Do you have a mindset that helps you boost your creativity when preparing for delivery time?

If they don’t listen, is it their fault or ours, preacher?  What do you think?  Leave your comments below.

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Posted by Scott Newton Smith

So, how do you achieve melody in your preaching?

1. “Take it To The Bank” Sermon Structure

Predictable consistency is fundamental in achieving melody.  When you understand the way the mind catches ideas, (for instance, that illustration naturally follows explanation and application naturally follows those), the pattern becomes “baked into” the structure of each message.

2. “Subliminal” Signals

I’m tongue-in-cheek here in saying “subliminal” but truthfully, your soft transitions between points, the similar ways that you introduce an illustration, or even the message, become consistent “cues” that subconsciously signal how your development material is about to change.

The listener may not consciously be aware that there is a pattern here, but would notice if it changed… even if he could not quite put his finger on it.

3.  Cadence

Lep!  Lep!  Lep, Right, Lep!  Yep.  Cadence.  There is a meter and a pattern — sub-patterns as well — that develop based on your personal preaching style (although this one often reflects the preacher that mentored you).

In the early years of preaching cadence is choppy, if there.  In the later years, it begins to smooth and flow.  Regular patterns emerge and become familiar to the listener.

Which of these three do you see most regularly present in your preaching?

Which one is hardest to achieve?

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Posted by Joel Southerland

Does your preaching have a “melody”?  It should.

If you will listen closely, you will notice that good preachers have a melody to their preaching.

What do I mean by melody?  Good preaching has a rhythm to it, like a good song.  A random collection of musical notes does not make a good song, and a random collection of words, points, illustrations, and appeals does not make a good sermon.

The message needs a melody, an almost predictable rhythm that the listener can subconsciously “sync up” with as the sermon flows, both in the content and the delivery.

In order to have melody in your content, the sermon needs the words and principles organized into a consistent logical order that the listener learns to anticipate and follow. You get melody in delivery by having a rhythm to your voice and body language.

Now, in case you’re wondering, I’m not talking about a “preacher voice.”  That kind of “patterning” can be distracting.

I’m not talking about something overt either, as in, say, the African-American tradition.  Nothing wrong with that per se, but this melody is one white boys can have.  It’s just subtle.

The melody needs to be there, nonetheless.  And the better your listeners learn to follow the melody, the more relaxed and attentive they will be while listening.

If you are a preaching pastor, the congregation needs the benefit of the same melody from sermon to sermon.  Not the same message, the same melody.

When a preacher’s delivery style and sermon organization are consistently prepared and of good quality week to week, this creates a beautiful “pulpit “song.  Your congregation will learn to trust you.  They will give you an energy while you preach.  They will learn to “sing” with you.

The melody is not a rut – it is a rhythm.  The rhythm is not something with which the listeners get bored.  The rhythm is the music that helps deliver the words and message.  Develop the melody of your preaching and your preaching effectiveness will take a giant leap forward.

In the two upcoming posts I’ll share some ideas on how to develop a melody and then how to keep the rhythm from becoming a rut.

Until then, keep singing!

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posted by Joel Southerland

…Just kidding! In the area of politics and the pulpit there has not been a more controversial year on record. One group recently challenged the 1954 IRS ruling and defied the “gag” order on pulpits by the IRS and openly endorsed a candidate. You can read their story here: http://elections.foxnews.com/2008/09/29/pub-pastors-participate-pulpit-freedom-sunday/ .

Is that what we should be doing? In my personal opinion – No.

However, I am all for pastors preaching the subjects that often get deemed “political.” There are truths of Scripture that are essential to the Christian faith that we should stand for unequivocally (and loudly) – the biblical model of family, racial equality, human rights, sanctity of life, etc.  Leading up to election time, those should all get mentioned or preached. In our church, we normally supply Christian voter guides for our members so they know where each candidate stands on these issues.

BUT, endorsing a candidate, in my opinion, crosses the line. And here’s why: EVERY CANDIDATE HAS THE POTENTIAL TO LET YOU DOWN! Both John McCain and Barak Obama bear that potential.

I can imagine the frightening scenario of endorsing a candidate that stands for everything I believe in until inauguration, and then his/her first act as President would be to take action in the opposite way. What are you going to do then? How will you respond to that? What if the person you endorse suddenly “changes their minds” on an issue near and dear to the heart of the church?

OOPS! You can imagine what would happen. The negative press. The scorned members. The church upheaval.

So, what do you do with your pulpit at election time? Keep silent? NO WAY! Just preach the truths of the Word of God. Stand for the issues from a biblical perspective. Your congregation knows exactly where every candidate stands. Let them “put 2 and 2 together.”

It is more important to know where the Bible stands on an issue than where a candidate stands. If I refrain from endorsing a candidate but rather stand on biblical truths, I have earned the right to hold his feet to the fire when they stray.

Politicians change their minds – God does not!

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Is expository preaching the only way to go?  What about topical preaching and textual preaching?  In this episode, we share pretty strong opinions on this but we feel we have Scriptural backing on the issue.

We also spend some time clarifying what expository preaching really is.

Expository preaching as defined by some greats that are mentioned in this episode:

Expository preaching is the presentation of biblical truth derived from and transmitted through a historical,  grammatical, Spirit-guided study of a passage in its context which the Holy Spirit applies first to the life of the preacher and then, through him, to his congregation. — Haddon Robinson

Expository preaching is the Spirit-empowered explanation and proclamation of the text of God’s Word with due regard to the historical, grammatical, contextual and doctrinal significance of the given passage with the specific objective of invoking a Christ-transforming response. — Stephen Olford

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posted by Joel Southerland

One of the secrets to making preaching “go the extra mile” is making sure there is something in your sermon that is memorable.

Now, don’t get your hopes up if you’re thinking that I’m about to tell you how to get them to remember all three points, every illustration, every Greek word you define, and the title.  Sorry to burst any potential bubbles – they’re not going to remember all that.  They can’t.  It is too much information. You can’t either. Most who read this cannot remember the points to their sermon three weeks ago!

But that is not the way sermons work anyway. Sermons preach for change right now.  They are preached for decisions in the hour. Yes, we hope those decisions last for a lifetime, and they often do, but rarely will they know to attribute it to a Spirit-inspired sermon.

So, what do you do?

Here is how I approach preaching.  I want them to have something that they can go to work the next day and look at the guy or gal next to them and say, “Let me tell you what my Pastor said yesterday!” I don’t care if it is an explanation of the text, a current event news story, a funny or sad illustration, or anything in between.  I just want them to remember something.

Because, if they remember something, it will trigger the meaning of the entire message if the sermon was constructed properly.  And herein lies the blessing:  if they have something they are telling someone on Monday about your sermon on Sunday, they are functioning as evangelists!

Before you preach your next sermon, look it over.  See what is going to really stand out.  What is “remarkable,”  that is, what can they easily remember and remark about?  What can they repeat that will remind them of the big idea of the sermon?

When you begin to hear statements like, “Pastor, I was telling my friend what you said,” you will know you are multiplying your ministry and preaching effective sermons.

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posted by Scott Newton Smith

“I handle the problems in my church from the pulpit,” the pastor said to me confidently. And he will get up there Sunday next thinking, “Boy, I’m really gonna tell ‘em today! This one will get ‘em.”

He’s planning yet again to “fix” his opposition with a hard sermon.

What a joke. If that’s you, stop kidding yourself.

If you are taking 90% of your sermon time to try to fix the 10% of your audience who are opposing you, that is bad ministry stewardship on display. It doesn’t work. Would you invest 90% of your money in an investment that loses 90% of the time? Of course not. Where instead would you invest?

(...)
Read the rest of Don’t Neglect the Sheep for the Goats (160 words)

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Short mid-summer announcement.

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In this episode of The Sermonators, we discuss 3 key ideas for maximizing a personal assistant to streamline your workload and gain time in your week. Unless you already have these three ideas fully implemented, you could gain as many as five hours or more in your week.

Hey, bi-vocs… we also discuss how to find and use a volunteer assistant this week if you don’t have one yet.

(...)
Read the rest of The Sermonators Ep 4 – Three Ideas For Maximizing A Personal Assistant (also McDonalds vs. Starbucks) (11 words)

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Reverends, we must be more reverent to the Reverendettes!

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In this episode of The Sermonators, we discuss the role of the Holy Spirit in the pastor’s personal life, his sermon preparation and delivery.

Is effective preaching based on skill and technique or supernatural power from above?  Are The Sermonators unspiritual  because we teach skills and techniques?  At what point does your work in the study stop and the power of the Holy Spirit start?  As pastors and preachers, on what do we rely to transform the lives of congregation –  our work or His?

Items mentioned in this episode:

Spirit-Led Preaching: The Holy Spirit’s Role in Sermon Preparation And Delivery by Greg Heisler

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posted by Scott Newton Smith

Up front disclaimer: We’re not endorsing nor bashing Driscoll here at The Sermonators. We’re not groupies for any particular preacher “celeb.” You won’t find us pushing a particular preacher, nor a group of them. That’s not what this site (or our show) is about. Our job is to find and develop good content for busy pastors.

So, Mark Driscoll. Love’im or hate’im, there is something to learn from Driscoll’s experience in regards to our primary topics of time management and preaching management in ministry. The following sound bite is worth a listen.

Here’s the background: At a recent Resurgence Conference, Mark Driscoll, preaching pastor at Mars Hill Church in Seattle, WA indulged an interesting Q&A session about the more practical aspects of his ministry. I know that most of our audience here are not pastoring mega-churches as he is, nonetheless we get some good insights from his answers.

(...)
Read the rest of Mark Driscoll speaks about his time management habits and preaching (322 words)

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Posted by Joel Southerland

One thing I have noticed over the years is that a great preacher rarely gets dismissed from his church or gets asked to leave (of course there are always exceptions). In conjunction with that, the pastor who accomplishes much for the Church and Kingdom rarely runs into serious trouble.  Now, it doesn’t mean they will not have trouble – all pastors have church trouble – it’s part of dealing with people. But, there is a difference between SERIOUS church trouble and everyday church problems.

If a pastor is a dynamic preacher that feeds the flock in a way that leaves them wanting more he will develop such a following that it becomes near impossible to “mount a movement” against him. (...)
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