The role of celebration has traditionally played an important role in Afracian-American preaching. Frank A. Thomas defines celebration as “the culmination of the sermonic design, where a moment is created in which the remembrance of a redemptive past and/or the conviction of a liberated future transforms the events immediately experienced.”1 Celebration is an emotional moment when the Holy Spirit takes center stage to effect change based on the established cognitive logic presented within the message on the good news of the Gospel in the Bible. The celebration should come out of or lead to life transformation through encountering the Holy Spirit that lead to deeper relationship with Jesus Christ. The goal of preaching is to lead to life transformation
This is not merely a cerebral process achieved through the presentation of facts, but it requires a emotional and spiritual encounter with the Holy Spirit. This process is best achieved through an appeal to the senses that helps congregants experience the Bible. As Thomas states, “If we want people to experience rather than solely intellectualize the good news, then we must construct sermons that help people see, taste, hear, touch, and feel the gospel.”2 The greatest motivation for life transformation is through personal identification with Gospel and the presented need for Jesus Christ. This occurs the the engagement of the senses so that individuals become emotionally involved in the story of God presented in the Bible leading to them, through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, to find their place with the continually unfolding story of God at work in the world
The focus of the book on preaching that leads to the celebration of the good news of the Gospel profoundly impacts the approach every preach takes to sharing the Gospel. The desire to invite people into the Gospel story and walk away celebrating the good news that Jesus Christ has come that all might come to know His grace and have a restored relationship with God should be the focus of every sermon. However, all too often preachers get side tracked with other agendas that detract from the good news. Thomas ' homiletic presented in chapter five is also very beneficial in creating a process through which sermons that lead to celebration can be formed. Thomas “The Preaching Worksheet”4 is particularly useful in helping preachers collect their thoughts before beginning the writing process and ensuring that the sermon will be balanced in the presentation of the problem of sin and the promise of grace leading to a desire response and
N.T. Wright: During my first semester at Northwestern College, I was assigned the book, “The Challenge of Jesus” by N.T. Wright for one of my Biblical Studies courses. This book and every other book Tom Wright has written has dramatically impacted my Christian faith. Dr. Wright has not only defended the basic tenants of the Christian faith, but also has shown how an academically-minded pastor ought to love and care for his or her congregants. N.T. Wright was previously the Bishop of Durham and pastored some of the poorest in the United Kingdom. His pastoral ministry has helped shape his understanding of God’s kingdom-vision which he is diagramming within his magnum opus “Christian Origins and the Question of God”. This series has instructed myself and countless other pastors to be for God’s kingdom as we eagerly await Christ’s return. Additionally, I have had the privilege of meeting with N.T. Wright one-on-one on numerous occasions to discuss faith, the Church, and his research. I firmly believe Tom Wright is the greatest New Testament scholar of our generation and he is the primary reason why I feel called into ministry.
In 1741, Jonathan Edwards, a Puritan preacher of that time, had one thing on his mind: to convert sinners, on the road to hell, to salvation. It just so happened to be, that his way of doing that was to preach the reality to them and scare them to the point of conversion. Sermons of this time were preached to persuade people to be converted and to me it seemed that Edwards just had a special way of doing it. Just as people are being influenced by rhetoric appeals today Edwards used the same method on his congregation. In “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” Jonathan Edwards positively affected his readers using pathos, logos, and ethos, while trying to convince the unconverted members of his sermon to be born again.
Lee includes Scripture, Gospel, Hymns, Prayers and concludes the sermon in an “Amen” (37) by switching the posture to the audience. Perelman examined, “Every technique promoting the communion of the speaker with his audience will decrease the opposition between them” (79). Since Lee’s meaningful sermon consisted of the most essential techniques, her audience recognized her authority and capability to preach. She not only knew about the role of a minister, but also knew how to carry out her responsibilities as a minister, which enforced the appeal to ethos from the audience’s point of view. Lee compelled the audience to reconceive their discrimination of women
In 1741 a Puritan preacher, Jonathan Edwards, delivered a sermon to a congregation in Enfield, Connecticut. He moved many people and helped them to become saved and trust in Jesus Christ. In “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”, - which is the name of the sermon by Jonathan Edwards- the author uses each rhetorical appeal to connect with his congregation. The whole purpose of Edwards’ sermon was to try and get all the unsaved men in his congregation to trust in Jesus Christ as their savior and be converted. He was a very persuasive man who successfully reached out to his congregation by digging down deep and coming in contact with many people’s personal lives and making them think long and hard about why they are lucky enough to wake up every morning. In his sermon, Jonathan Edwards uses the three rhetorical appeals- ethical, emotional, and logical- to reach out to his congregation and try and help them to see why they should trust in Jesus Christ.
In African American Pastoral Care: Revised Edition, Dr. Wimberly spoke about responding to God’s unfolding and continually changing times when dealing with healing and reconciliation. In this revision of his classic book, Dr. Wimberly updated his message by examining current issues in African American pastoral care, counseling, and outreach ministry in the community. Dr. Wimberly reminded us that we need to do more for our members and proposed new pastoral care approaches to the crisis of disconnection. Using his own narrative, he explained and described how pastors and church leaders can claim a new narrative method for reestablishing the African American village. His paradigm for African American pastoral theology is inspiring African Americans.
When looking at the common theme that Barth develops in God Here and Now, it becomes apparent for the need of congregation to justify, ratify, and promote the Bible as the living word of God. When and where the Bible constitutes its own authority and significance, it mediates the very presence of God through the congregation. Encountering this presence in the Church, among those whose lives presume living through the Bible’s power and meaning. Barth states that the Bible must become God's Word and this occurs only when God wills to address us in and through it. The Christ-event is God's definitive self-disclosure, while Scripture and preaching are made to correspond to him as a faithful witness becomes the perfect statement according to Barth (Barth, 2003, p. 61).
Welcome to Gospel Spreading Church. (n.d.). Retrieved March 28, 2011, from Gospel Spreading Church: www.http://gospelspreadingchurch.com/
In an age when culture continues to lower standards of intellect, Marva Dawn makes compelling observations and suggestions for the Church to rethink its strategy on impacting society. How do we evangelize without weakening the message of what we are communicating? The majority of her text focuses on the worship environment generally, but later she focuses on music, preaching, and liturgy specifically. According to Dawn, a gathering of believers should emphasize God as the subject and object of worship, challenge each individual to grow in godly character, and accentuate the community of believers (not only in the room, but throughout history as well). Through this grid, she encourages leaders and participants to evaluate each worship element.
Lloyd-Jones, David M. Studies in the Sermon on the Mount. Grand Rapids, Mich: Eerdmans, 1976. Print
Hull, Bill. The Complete Book of Discipleship: On Being and Making Followers of Christ. Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress, 2006. 43-44. Print.
St. Matthew. “The Sermon on the Mount”. A World of Ideas. Ed. Lee Jacobus. 9th e. Boston: Bedford,
into a richer experience of worship and a more effect life of service" (Crabb, 1977, p.31). The method to establishing an
Overall, this book helped me become more aware of my weaknesses with my preaching style and also gave me tools to strengthen them. The examples are very basic and practical and helped highlight key skills and situations that a preacher can experience when doing a sermon. This book added more knowledge to me and gave me new insights that I can use as a tool when I go back with my ministry as a youth worker.
Using this method, he successfully engages the congregation through descriptive narratives and relating ideas to current times. As part of the narratives he includes descriptive biblical stories beginning with the story in his text, claiming it as a “scary story”. He further re-enforces this scary story concept by sharing two more biblical passages where a scary story exists. These biblical narratives are the beginning of what Wilson would call the second page of the sermon where the trouble in the text is given. This of course was preceded by his first page that discussed the idea of having scary stories in our lives today (trouble in the world) by using a vivid personal illustration. He continues to use vivid illustrations to hammer in his focus on the church needing to be friends to the downtrodden because God responds that way. He designs the third page to share the Gospel in the text reminding us that God responds to continual injustice by sending his son to be the friend that everyone needs. The one who stands up for injustice and never leaves your side. Finally, he concludes with the fourth page by demonstrating how churches can live the gospel in the world today. They do this through friendships with people in their surrounding community whose stories might be
Luke shares that as Jesus began his ministry, he was filled with the power of the Holy Spirit (Lk 4:14). Although rejected by many, the Holy Spirit assisted Jesus in his teaching in the synagogues, healing of the sick, and deliverance of the possessed.