Author: Administrador

Mark 14:32-42 We note, first, the place (14:32a): And they came to a place which was named Gethsemane: And we note, also, the pain (14:32b-34): and he saith to his disciples, Sit ye here, while I shall pray. (14:32) An enclosed piece of ground was there at Gethsemane. The Lord seems to have left the … Continue reading “Jesus In The Garden”

We’re in the season of awards – the Emmys, the Grammys, and the “Big Kahuna” of awards shows: the Oscars. By the time you read this, the Oscars will have been presented (Feb. 27), but as I write this a few weeks before the big night, I’m going to go out on a limb and … Continue reading “The Envelope Please . . .”

If nothing else, preachers and their hearers generally agree that the sermon is the centerpiece of the worship service. Without downplaying the other elements of the worship service, they claim that the sermon is the “word from the Lord” for which worshipers come seeking. Evaluating the sermon, then, is a matter of crucial importance. Following … Continue reading “Evaluating The Sermon: Ten Elements To Consider After You Preach”

In Cambridge, England near the bus station stands Emmanuel College. Stone walls surround the college, but inside is a courtyard manicured like a golf course. In 1705 William Law entered that college. The fourth of eight children, William grew up in a Christian home, experienced death because four of his siblings died, and learned about … Continue reading “Preparing The Heart For Preaching”

As the story goes, on a Sunday night a young pastor was driving home, his wife beside him. It had been a busy weekend at the church. The Sunday night sermon had lasted longer than usual since the preacher felt unusual liberty and unction in the pulpit. They drove in silence for some miles, he … Continue reading “What Makes A Great Preacher?”

This interview first appeared in the September-October 1992 issue of Preaching. James Earl Massey will be one of our featured speakers at this year’s National Conference on Preaching in Nashville (for more information, visit www.preaching.com/ncp), so it is a timely moment to revisit our conversation with one of America’s premier preachers. For more than four … Continue reading “Preaching for a Decision: Interview with James Earl Massey”

What happens if preachers go out on strike? That’s a question some churches in Canada may have to answer if a group of pastors is successful in unionizing the 4,000 ministers in the United Church of Canada, that nation’s largest Protestant denomination. According to David Galston of Hamilton, Ontario, one of the major problems requiring … Continue reading “Pulpit Or Picket?”

Last summer I got in touch with my feminine side and took a day trip with my wife, Lisa, to the world’s largest flea market in a little town called Canton, Texas. That day, I watched in amazement as thousands of shopping fanatics, in triple degree Texas heat with perspiration dripping off their noses, pushed … Continue reading “Communicating With Creativity”

Nine years ago, Alan Nelson became the lead and founding pastor of Scottsdale Family Church, a congregation he planted nine years ago in the northeast valley area of Phoenix. Since then, the church has grown to an average attendance of about 1,000, and Alan has written ten books about ministry and leadership. (In fact, he’s … Continue reading “Creating Messages That Connect: An Interview With Alan Nelson”

Determining a sermons subject is half done when a preacher has discerned what the biblical writer was saying. We do not fully understand the subject until we have also determined its purpose. It is too easy to preach on a doctrinal topic or an exegetical insight without considering the spiritual burden of the text for … Continue reading “The Fallen Condition Focus And The Purpose Of The Sermon”