Preacher, do you want to be a help to people?

Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash Confession: I do not read or study the art or craft of preaching as regularly as I should. Though I’m not entirely sure what “regularly” is, I am quite sure that it’s more often than what I’m currently doing. That being said, Meditations on Preaching by Francis James Grimké has been a…

Appropriate Speech-Acts: Thinking Carefully about Who Says What When the Church is Gathered (Part 2)

In this post I’m building on Part 1. I want to focus on this: when the church gathers for corporate worship, and both men and women are given opportunities to speak, what are appropriate acts of speech for men and women? More specifically, if we say it is appropriate for a woman to prophesy when the…

Appropriate Speech-Acts: Thinking Carefully about Who Says What When the Church is Gathered (Part 1)

*This article has two parts: see Part 2. A generation ago, debates among egalitarians and complementarians were significant. Eventually, the camps settled into their own (two organizations emerged that generally represent the two sides: Council of Biblical Manhood & Womanhood and Christians for Biblical Equality). Today, however, within the settled camp of complementarianism, there are…

Find out which needs your audience finds most compelling, and tap into them – Joe Carter and John Coleman

Heuristics is a fancy name for “rules of thumb” or principles. Joe Carter and John Coleman share several heuristics in their book How To Argue Like Jesus: Learning Persuasion From History’s Greatest Communicator that “illuminate more fully the character of Christ’s communication and can have an enormous impact on the ways in which you communicate with others”…

The Expository Genius of John Calvin: Some Notes from Steve Lawson’s Book on Calvin’s Preaching

John Calvin is a heavyweight in the history of Christian thought. When thinking about any particular point of theology, theologians of all stripes are wise to wrestle with his ideas. Love him or hate him, his influence is unquestionably felt across the world. Karl Barth, an intellectual giant in his own right, says, Calvin is…

{New Post} Do you have ethos?

What is ethos? Joe Carter and John Coleman in their book, How to Argue Like Jesus: Learning Persuasion From History’s Greatest Communicator write, Ethos is the persuasive appeal of one’s character, and especially how this character is established by means of the speech or discourse. To put it more simply, ethos is argument by character. Against the views…

Hopefully, as a pastor you have ethos.

What is ethos? Joe Carter and John Coleman in their book, How to Argue Like Jesus: Learning Persuasion From History’s Greatest Communicator write, Ethos is the persuasive appeal of one’s character, and especially how this character is established by means of the speech or discourse. To put it more simply, ethos is argument by character. Against the…

22 Rules of Thumb in preaching or communication

Your basic message should contain good news. Start with your audience’s needs. Start with examples your audience will understand. Speak your audience’s language. Never speak about your speech. Use witnesses. Communicate with confidence. Get it right. Do not boast; act with humility. Know when to speak and when to be silent. Be enigmatic. Listen. Ask…