MI-321 Biblical Preaching

A sermon can feed a church, or mislead it. Learn what a preacher is called to do, and how to build a sermon that is clear, faithful to the text and useful.

Following Biblical Preaching, this course starts with the preacher's calling: herald (one who announces God's message) and shepherd, a life of prayer and the Word, and dependence on the Holy Spirit. Then it takes you step by step through building a sermon: selecting and studying a passage until its central truth is clear, giving it a frame and an opening, and then developing, illustrating, applying and finishing it.

What you will study

• The preacher's calling: character before technique
• Topical, textual and expository sermons, and when to use each
• Four marks of effective preaching
• Selecting a passage and studying it to find its big idea
• The sermon's frame: the proposition, main divisions and subdivisions
• The introduction, the discussion and honest illustration
• Application that is specific and centred on the gospel
• A conclusion that calls for a response without pressure or tricks

Course materials

• Biblical Preaching, a WWES textbook
• The Bible