Timely Preaching, Timely Worship

Today's hearers do not always marvel at the words of their preacher. However, such can happen when the preacher's sermon is a timely word in their hearts and lives. What preacher has not had the experience of one or more hearers mentioning how timely the sermon just heard was-yet the preacher may have had no clue about anything in the situation of the hearer or hearers! What in a sermon and worship service may enhance the experience of timeliness by those present?

Devote Yourself to the Public Reading: Enhancing the Role of Scripture Reading in Worship

The Bible often is read poorly in our church services; but when it is read well, it can minister as deeply as a Spirit-empowered sermon. Unfortunately, in many churches public reading of the Bible is little more than homiletical throat clearing before the sermon; but as W.E. Sangster asserted: "Bible reading offers the widest scope for the enrichment of public worship, and it is a great pity that the Scriptures are often so badly readWhen the Book is well read and made to live for the people, it can do for them what sermons often fail to d It can be the very voice of God to their souls."

Don’t Miss the Messiah!

Scholars refer to the Book of Psalms as "Humanity's Hymnbook." There are many messianic psalms predicting certain events in the life of our Lord. Someone quipped that the Bible is actually a "Him book," because from Genesis to Revelation it is all about Him, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Text-Driven Preaching: An Interview with David Allen

David Allen is Dean of the School of Theology at Southwestern Baptist Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas, and one of the editors of the new book Text-Driven Preaching (B&H Academic). Preaching Editor Michael Duduit recently spoke with Allen about the book and the challenge of biblical preaching today.

The Difference Between Hymns and Praise Choruses

In his Worship Matters newsletter, Bob Kauflin recently shared the following story (original author unknown): An old farmer went to the city one weekend and attended the big-city church. He came home and his wife asked him how it was.

Have Americans Abandoned Theology?

In his Dec. 30, 2003, New York Times column, David Brooks observes, "Nearly 200 years ago, Alexis de Tocqueville was bewildered by the mixture of devout religiosity he found in the United States combined with the relative absence of denominational strife, at least among Protestants. Americans, he observed, don't seem to care that their neighbors hold to false versions of the faith."

Bringing Focus to Staff Meetings

Rick Warren explains that in preparing for weekly staff meetings, "For years I asked my team to bring me a brief weekly report on a small 3-by-5 card. This kept the reports short and to the point. Then those cards became our weekly meeting agenda. Today we use email. Here are the four things you want to know as a leader:

The Year in Books

The January-February issue of Preaching magazine has a major focus on the best books published during the past year, and we are not alone.

Why Do We Seek Power?

In his book Basic Christian Leadership (InterVarsity Press), John Stott discusses the focus on power in 1 Corinthians 1:17--2:5: "This concentration on power makes an immediate appeal to us today, for we live in a society that worships power. Not that this is new. The lust for power has always been a characteristic of the human story, at least since Adam and Eve were offered power in exchange for disobedience...

A Process Helps You Make Progress

Adrian Rogers was my own pastor for several years when I was a young person, so I particularly enjoyed James Davis' recent article on things he learned about preaching from Pastor Rogers. Here's one excerpt: