Preaching Through Podcast Faithful & Fruitful

A killer introduction is critical for getting people to not just listen to your sermon... but actually care about the message you're about to share. A rookie preacher can captivate attention with a strong introduction as easily as a veteran preacher can lose people without a thoughtful and thought provoking introduction.
In this episode, we listen to and analyze examples of five different types of introductions, from incorporating humor to asking engaging questions. We'll also analyze what it is about these introductions that make them work so you can steal each approach and improve this crucial element of your messages.

The goal of an introduction is to immediately grip the hearts and minds of the listeners amid many distractions (i.e., cell phones) vying for their attention. Creativity, variety, and relying on the Holy Spirit’s leading is key.

While introductions are important, equally crucial is making the rest of the sermon pay off through strong argumentation and connecting it back to the main idea. Keep leveling up preaching skills by checking out the resources at faithfulandfruitful.com.

The Preaching Lab - https://faithfulandfruitful.com/preaching-curriculum/

Preaching Through the 4Gs - https://ptpodcast.buzzsprout.com/2016775/14621611

Preaching Through Camps and Conferences - https://ptpodcast.buzzsprout.com/2016775/13578103
Discover all of our free resources: https://faithfruit.us/podcast-links

Additional questions about this topic? Email us at info@faithfulandfruitful.com.

Preaching Through is powered by Faithful & Fruitful, leadership resources for pastors so they can have a faithful and fruitful ministry over the long-haul.

We all tend to shrink God down to size in our minds, crafting Him into a more comfortable and understandable being. 

But in today's episode, the focus is on expanding the vision of who God truly is in all His greatness, glory, goodness, and grace. We will unpack the profound implications wrapped up in what we call “the 4 Gs.” Even if you don’t preach an entire series on them, these God-centered truths can revolutionize how you communicate the gospel.

The main points of the 4 Gs are: 
God is great, so we don't have to be in control. Understanding God's power allows us to trust Him instead of trying to control everything. God is glorious, so we don't have to fear others. Recognizing God's majesty makes other people seem less intimidating. God is good, so we don't need to look elsewhere for satisfaction. God is the ultimate source of joy and fulfillment. God is gracious, so we don't have to prove ourselves. We can rest in God's grace rather than striving to earn worth.These good news truths should show up in our sermons again and again and feel familiar to your audience and core to your teaching. Repeating these aspects of God’s character reminds people of who God really is, and each one addresses a common struggle that comes from failing to see God properly. 

When we fail to regularly remind people of who God really is, it is human nature to fill that gap with our own thoughts and ideas, building a version in our minds that is often a lot like ourselves. It takes consistent reminders for our congregation not to lose sight of the true character of God.

Hearing about the 4 Gs should stir the soul and shape the way the gospel is preached. We must continually proclaim His greatness, glory, goodness, and grace until they saturate every fiber of our being. 

"You Can Change" by Tim Chester
https://amzn.to/3wBS9l7

"When People are Big and God is Small" by Ed Welch
https://amzn.to/3wGgBC4
Discover all of our free resources: https://faithfruit.us/podcast-links

Additional questions about this topic? Email us at info@faithfulandfruitful.com.

Preaching Through is powered by Faithful & Fruitful, leadership resources for pastors so they can have a faithful and fruitful ministry over the long-haul.

Whether you're a seasoned preacher or just starting out, a clear sermon structure is crucial for effectively communicating biblical truth. 

In today's episode, we'll be breaking down the essential architecture of an impactful sermon point. You'll discover the key elements that must be included to captivate your listeners' attention, convince them of the truth, inspire life change, and pave a smooth path from start to finish. 

We all know the difference between a disjointed, meandering sermon and one that feels focused and purposeful and the goal of this episode is to equip you with a clear blueprint to preach compelling, persuasive sermons that transform hearts and lives each week.

The main components of a sermon point are: 
- a clear one-sentence statement
- an explanation of what that statement means
- argumentation making the case for why the point is true using Scripture
- an illustration through a story or example to make it concrete
- application to bring the point home to real life
- and a transition to shift smoothly to the next part of the sermon. 

For new preachers, follow this structure until you master it. Then you can adapt it as needed. Seasoned preachers may need a refresher on using all these elements.

Having a reliable sermon structure allows the preacher a stronger sense of empowerment in the delivery because of a guiding framework during preparation. Just like following a well-designed floor plan when building a house, implementing these sermon architecture fundamentals will lead to solid, enduring communication. 

While creativity and personal style still have plenty of room to shine through, your underlying structure needs to facilitate clarity and persuasion. Whether your next sermon has one point or five, test out these sermon architecture basics and see what a difference they make. When people can easily follow where you're taking them, you have a captivated audience eager to apply God's truth.

Sermon Architecture Tool
https://faithfruit.link/architecture

"You Can Change" by Tim Chester
https://amzn.to/3STfoyD

BONUS EPISODE: How to Prepare A Sermon
https://faithfruit.link/prepare-a-sermon
Discover all of our free resources: https://faithfruit.us/podcast-links

Additional questions about this topic? Email us at info@faithfulandfruitful.com.

Preaching Through is powered by Faithful & Fruitful, leadership resources for pastors so they can have a faithful and fruitful ministry over the long-haul.

Do you sometimes feel like an imposter when you step into the pulpit? Like you're trying to imitate other preachers rather than preaching as your authentic self? Finding your unique preaching voice can free you up to genuinely pastor your flock. 

Yes, the sound of your voice has something to do with it... but it's really much more than that! It is your personality, passions, delivery style, and other nuances about you that come together to form the authentic you in the pulpit. It's not just about the sound of your voice, but encompasses personality, passion areas, and delivery style. 

Imitation is a great place to start when discovering your voice (or discovering new parts of your preaching voice) but it's a terrible place to end. It's like learning to speak - kids naturally imitate sounds around them as part of the process. 

In this episode of Preaching Through Podcast get insights for integrating who you naturally are with the preaching tasks God has called you to. Try new things, employ different methods, get feedback, and land on what fits.

Whether you're funny or serious, subdued or animated, you'll pick up practical guidance on how to preach as the unique preacher God made you to be.
Discover all of our free resources: https://faithfruit.us/podcast-links

Additional questions about this topic? Email us at info@faithfulandfruitful.com.

Preaching Through is powered by Faithful & Fruitful, leadership resources for pastors so they can have a faithful and fruitful ministry over the long-haul.

Preaching through an entire book of the Bible can seem daunting. How do you keep people engaged week after week? What if you hit confusing passages or genealogies? And how slow should you take it - verse by verse or breezing through larger sections?

In this episode of Preaching Through Podcast we tackle all of the key decisions preachers face when planning a sermon series for preaching through books of the Bible:
Why teach sequentially and what benefits does it offer congregations?Determining pace and chunk size based on the book's contentBreaking up longer series over time to add diversityProviding context in early sermons without needing an overviewSummarizing stories well while pulling out key themesStocking up on commentaries and resources in advanceThe goal is to move past any intimidation factor while gaining confidence to handle longer blocks of Scripture faithfully. While the content if this episode represents just one way you could approach preaching through books of the Bible, you should be able to capture some practical tips for preaching the content in manageable, compelling, and understandable ways.
Whether you naturally preach verse by verse or prefer shorter topical series, this episode will equip you to better explore and teach the riches found in God's Word from Genesis to Revelation.

Resources mentioned in this episode:
Move: What 1000 Churches Reveal about Spiritual Growth
by Greg L. Hawkins and Cally Parkinson
https://amzn.to/48a4URa

Preaching Through A Sermon Calendar
https://faithfruit.link/ocy06xs

How to Prepare A Sermon
https://faithfruit.link/4gx6ou8

Bestcommentaries.com
A website that provides reviews and rankings of Bible commentaries for various books of the Bible.

The Bible Project
A nonprofit animation studio that produces short-form, fully animated videos to make the biblical story accessible to everyone, everywhere. 
https://faithfruit.link/uats01
Discover all of our free resources: https://faithfruit.us/podcast-links

Additional questions about this topic? Email us at info@faithfulandfruitful.com.

Preaching Through is powered by Faithful & Fruitful, leadership resources for pastors so they can have a faithful and fruitful ministry over the long-haul.

God's biggest rival isn't Satan, it's money.

Money is already sensitive topic for so many. When the church starts talking about money it ticks the boxes of culturally and emotionally difficult topics. Lead pastors should talk about money — Jesus did and even when he wasn't talking about finances, much of his stories and example involved the concept of money.

If you never talk about it, that sends a message.
If you always talk about it, that sends a message, too.

The needle we want to thread is when we talk about it, we do it well and we do it in a way that encourages people to become more like Jesus — not to simply give money.

As important as what you say is to the message, even more important is the heart of the pastor teaching the message.

In this episode of Preaching Through Money we offer up insights into heart issues, courage issues, and practical issues that can aid the preacher when teaching on generosity and finances.
Discover all of our free resources: https://faithfruit.us/podcast-links

Additional questions about this topic? Email us at info@faithfulandfruitful.com.

Preaching Through is powered by Faithful & Fruitful, leadership resources for pastors so they can have a faithful and fruitful ministry over the long-haul.