INTRODUCTION:God heard the prayer of Hannah, and He gave her a son. She understood what was at stake, and utters a glorious psalm of triumph, a prayer that served as a model for our Lord’s mother, Mary, when she triumphed in much the same way. The horn of Hannah was exalted—and this is a striking …
Because Motives Are Only Two-Dimensional in Bad Fiction
“The preacher who does not dirty his homiletical hands with the fact of the deeper and quite fluid complexity of the motive world will not be trusted in the sermon, in a counseling chamber, or in the church board meeting” (Lowry, The Homiletical Plot, p. 46).
Which Hinders the Cure of Souls
“The greatest single weakness of the average sermon is the weakness of diagnosis” (Lowry, The Homiletical Plot, p. 41).
Not Lost, Just Not There Yet
“While one should not give away the plot resolution, one must give direction to the ambiguity. The congregation nees to know the specific direction of the plot and some of what is involved, but without having the clue to resolution disclosed” (Lowry, The Homiletical Plot, p. 38).
But Only As Long as You Are Facing Christ
“If you preach from your weakness, you’ll never run out of material” (Andy Stanley).
Better Listen to Pilate
Pilate knew that it was out of envy that the leaders of the Jews delivered Jesus up (Mat 27:18). We know that Pilate was not a godly or a courageous man — he failed to deliver Jesus even though he knew He was being railroaded, and even though his wife had sent him a message …
Why All Other Titles Should be Interesting
“It should be noted in passing that this is an important purpose in an announced or printed sermon title — to help upset the equilibrium. Most titles tend to do the reverse. They appear to be drawn from the sermon’s conclusion (the scratch rather than the itch). As a result, the preacher has to move …
Birth and Dedication of Samuel
INTRODUCTION:We begin this story with the birth and dedication of Samuel. As with many of God’s great men, Samuel’s birth was remarkable. God loves the pattern of death and resurrection, and He also loves the pattern of barrenness followed by fruitfulness. We can see the same truth in how He makes the wilderness become a …
A Real Sham
“Competent fiction writers understand the human predicament well. As a result, their fiction has the feel of fact — of reality, while our fact — our reality — often has the feel of poor fiction” (Lowry, The Homiletical Plot, p. 25).
A Double Bind
“There are in fact preachers who fall into these two camps. Paul Scherer once described them: The one knows what to say but doesn’t know how to say it, and the other knows how to say it but has nothing to say” (Lowry, The Homiletical Plot, p. 17).