Author: Administrador

Preachers are a practical bunch. We very quickly make assessments on sermon ideas such as “that will preach” or – one of my favourites – “that dog will hunt.” I know, it doesn’t sound too holy or spiritual. Remember, we are a practical breed. I recently had an opportunity to teach a seminary course on … Continue reading “Preaching The Parables Of Jesus”

Several weeks ago, I took a short-term missions trip with my church to Eastern Europe. I decided to pack light and carry on my luggage, thereby avoiding the hassle of losing it to that dark abyss (otherwise referred to as “checked baggage”). Packing light meant taking little more for reading than my Bible and a … Continue reading “The 2005 Survey Of The Best Software For Preachers”

David Murrow is a television writer and producer who attended a variety of churches over the years, and discovered that “no matter the name on the outside, there are always more women on the inside.” That prompted him to launch a study which resulted in his book Why Men Hate Going to Church (Thomas Nelson). … Continue reading “Why Men Hate Going To Church: An Interview With David Murrow”

Sometime ago I was invited to preach in a church that emphasizes relationships.  The individual who called made it clear that their pastor does not give an invitation at the conclusion of his message.  “We don’t want to put people on the spot” was the way he phrased it.  Politely I informed the gentleman that my … Continue reading “Proclamation Demands An Invitation”

On Thanksgiving Day, sprawled on my couch watching a football game, I had an epiphany about preaching. The home team was scoring at every opportunity – moving up and down the field, connecting on passes, breaking through lines, racking up touchdowns, and kicking extra points. The visiting team was strong in a lot of ways, … Continue reading “Negotiating The Red Zone: Taking Your Sermon To A Successful Conclusion”

I’ve written on this subject before, but the examples just keep coming. We live in a culture in which people don’t always want to come out and say what they mean – particularly those people who are trying to sell us something. We’ve always had euphemisms around – “senior” instead of old, “pre-owned” instead of … Continue reading “A Pre-Owned Rose Is Still A Used Flower”

A travel agency was upset that their local Yellow Pages advertised that their agency specialized in “erotic” tours when their ad was supposed to say “exotic”. Oops! Just a difference of one word (in fact, one very small letter) resulted in a huge flood of interested but disappointed callers and eventually a lawsuit. As Mark … Continue reading “Sensitive Preaching On Sexual Topics”

For years, my grandparents had a sign in their yard that read, “Done Ploughing.” Had my grandfather been a preacher in the sixteenth century, Hugh Latimer would have taken issue with that sign. Hugh Latimer (1490?-1555), the most illustrious preacher of the English Reformation, believed preaching was indispensable to Christianity. Perhaps no preacher in England … Continue reading “Past Masters: Hugh Latimer”

A Case for a Spirit-Driven Methodology of Expository Preaching In a recent Knight Ridder news service article on the Holy Spirit, Michael Clerkley, pastor of Lighthouse of Church of God in Christ, had this to say about the Holy Spirit’s role in a Christian’s life:  “We are Clark Kent, but with the Holy Ghost, we become … Continue reading “Clark Kent or Superman?”

The twenty-first century did not begin well, nor did it bode well, for the human race. Terrorism, wars, viruses, and tsunamis dominated news headlines worldwide. The entire world of opinion leaders, my audience, was troubled by thoughts on the problem of evil. However, God was opening up an annual global audience for me on primetime … Continue reading “Developing Topical Evangelistic Sermons That Are Audience-Driven”