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Preaching is bringing the truth of the text and people’s needs together through application. My feeling is that both verse-with-verse (topical) and verse-by-verse (expository) preaching can produce a healthy church. The point is to truly dig into the text once you’re there.
3. What is the most practical way to say it? According to John 10:10, Christianity is a lifestyle, so preaching must teach people how to live. Jesus was always practical with His doctrine because His purpose was to change the behaviors of His hearers, starting at the level of their beliefs.
4. What is the most positive way to say it? When I’m abrasive, I’m never persuasive. Sadly, the gospel often has a negative image because it is communicated in negative terms. Even the words preach and sermon have negative connotations to them in our current culture. I believe that a constant diet of negative sermons are detrimental to the health of a church and ultimately produce a church that is negative and resistant to positive leadership.
The most destructive kind of preaching is when the sermon is merely a release of a pastor’s pent-up frustrations. Where did we ever get the impression that a good sermon must make people feel bad? If your preaching is just a weekly highlight of the “sin of the week,” go back to the drawing board, and go back to the biblical gospel of truth and grace, of hope and redemption.
Dr. Steve Greene is now sharing stories, teachings, and conversations with guests who lead with love on Love Leads, a new podcast. Listen now.
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