“Rhetoric is persuasive communication in the service of Truth which should create an informed appetite for the Good” (Overstreet, Persuasive Preaching, p. 13)
What Preaching Is
“As Bullinger asserts in the Second Helvetic Confession, ‘The preaching of the Word of God is the Word of God.’ This is an astounding claim to make for the speaking of mere mortals like us preachers and for the hearing of mere mortals like our congregation” (Willimon, Proclamation and Theology, p. 16).
Word Before World
“In the Bible, word precedes world . . . Word precedes world. Words do not arise from things, but rather things are evoked by the Word. Word precedes all things” (Willimon, Proclamation and Theology, p. 12).
How Poetry Makes
“The prophets of Israel were poets who were preachers, preachers who were poets. They deconstructed old worlds and envisioned new worlds, with some of the pushiest, poetic, figurative, and powerful speech ever uttered, all on the basis of nothing but words” (Willimon, Proclamation and Theology, p. 11).
And Start With “The Clicking of Cuthbert.” Aloud.
“And preachers inclined to be lugubrious ought by all means to read in private some humorous selections, in order to maintain the equilibrium” (Broadus, Preparation and Delivery, p. 481).
Oceanic Theology
“I believe that the history of Christian preaching shows that preaching is always revived and carried forth on a rising theological tide” (Willimon, Proclamation and Theology, p. 3).
The Subject in Both Senses
“Preaching is about God and by God, or it is silly” (Willimon, Proclamation and Theology, p. 2).
But Other Than That, Be Yourself
“It is proper to repeat that at all hazards there must be life, freedom, power. Do not repress nature, though it must be governed; and do not force nature . . . No one can be in this respect so helpful as an intelligent wife” (Broadus, Preparation and Delivery, p. 475).
Start By Imagining You Can Preach
“Imagination in preaching is most important and most helpful. I am very ready to agree that it can be dangerous, but imagination, let us not forget, is a gift of God” (Martyn Lloyd-Jones, as quoted in Wiersbe, Preaching and Teaching With Imagination, p. 288).
Not Too Contrived
“Let the speaker see to it that his bearing shall be free, unconstrained, and not ungraceful . . . life and power are far more important than grace; and , in fact, timid self-repression destroys grace itself” (Broadus, Preparation and Delivery, p. 473).