Articles

Get encouraged & inspired through a variety of topics from ministry life to church leadership development to trending ideas for church growth.

John A. Broadus: Professor and Preacher

One of America's greatest preachers spent most of his ministry not as a pastor but as a professor, then president, of a young Baptist seminary.John A. Broadus, born January 24, 1827 in Culpepper County, Virgini... Continue Reading...

Preaching and the Power of the Word

Michael Duduit

In his book The Reformation of the Sixteenth Century, Roland Bainton includes a priceless story from the early days of Zwingli's ministry in Zurich. The year was 1519, and Zwingli's ministry in the city had rec... Continue Reading...

Preaching and Pastoral Care<br/>First of a five-part series

Wayne E. Oates

For most of Christian history, preaching and pastoral care would not be spoken of with a plural verb. Preaching and pastoral care were seen and practiced as a singular experience. The earliest formulations of p... Continue Reading...

Zwingli: Reformation through preaching

One of the key figures of the Protestant Reformation of the sixteenth century, Huldruch (Ulrich) Zwingli understood the effective proclamation of the Word of God to be central to any meaningful religious reform... Continue Reading...

Build a Foundation for Effective Evangelistic Preaching

Lewis A. Drummond

Evangelistic proclamation has for centuries assumed a major role in the communication of the church. But the contemporary moment has witnessed an attenuation of the evangelistic thrust in many pulpits. Some eve... Continue Reading...

Finding Sermon Illustrations in Nature

Gerald Walton Paul

On a sunny March morning near Canada's capital city I sauntered along a deserted railway line enjoying the journey immensely. I watched tree sparrows picking weed seeds, melt water trickling towards the river, ... Continue Reading...

Sermon Writing and Preaching Is a Process of Individuation

John Mundy

Sermon writing and preaching have become for me, and perhaps other ministers, something more than just another function of church life. It has become, in fact, a whole process of self-examination, spiritual gro... Continue Reading...

Come on, preacher, stand up and preach

Lynn P. Clayton

Come on, preacher, preach.Don't coddle me, don't just stroke me beyond credibility, don't insult me by thinking I'm stupid. Don't try to pass off as the message from on high cheap, unprepared remarks. Don't jus... Continue Reading...

The Privilege of Proclaiming Good News

Michael Duduit

The coming of the Christmas season is a reminder of the glory of being a preacher of the gospel.Those who stand in the Christian pulpit to proclaim the Word are part of a rich heritage that leads back to a Gali... Continue Reading...

Apathy in the Pew: Preaching to the Uninvolved (Part Two)

Don M. Aycock

A. Challenge the Assumptions They Live ByAll of us live out of our assumptions and presuppositions about life. One way to hook my interest, if not my anger, is to challenge or attack the presuppositions I live ... Continue Reading...