Matthew BoffeyBy Jeffrey Arthurs It was said of Winston Churchill that “he mobilized the English language, and sent it into battle.” I exhort you, send your best words into battle against the world, the flesh, and the devil. Send language forth like soldiers...
Faithlife StaffBy Lucas O’Neill, author of Preaching to Be Heard Many sermons are like meals from typical fast-food chains—flavor at the expense of nutrition. It’s easy, fast, cheap, and tastes addictively good. Your We begin with the text and we surrender the...
By David Helm Scottish poet Andrew Lang once landed a humorous blow against the politicians of his day with a clever line indicting them for their manipulation of statistics. With a slight alteration in language, the quip could equally be leveled...
You will preach narrative far better if you know this literary archetype. The Bible is full of stories, and most of them revolve around a hero. From Abraham to Moses to Deborah to the True and Better Hero, much of Scripture is a hero’s journey...
One quality above all others gives your sermon intro the hook it needs. Here’s how to work that quality into your intro. All ad writers agree that a headline is the most important part of any ad. Famous ad writer David Ogilvy once said, “On the...
What makes a sermon good? Sometimes when people think about preaching, they think about a bunch of rules (i.e., there are three things that go into an introduction; the ways in which you make a good outline; if you are going to use illustrations...
Some time ago I went to church—I go to church regularly—and on this particular Sunday I did not have any responsibilities (i.e., I didn’t have to preach, I didn’t have to read the Scriptures). I had some friends who went with me. They were folks...
The first legalist you must agitate is yourself. At the start of the year, many of us are mindful of how we want this year to be different. Which means sooner or later we have to ask, “How do I change?” I’ve been thinking about how the Bible answers...
In a previous post, I shared an excerpt from the preface to the Preaching the Word Commentary Series, edited by Dr. R. Kent Hughes. I want to follow up with a personal word about Dr. Hughes and his approach to preaching. I’ve never met Kent Hughes...
When there is so much to read, why invest time reading about preaching and teaching a controversial topic like eschatology? Walter Kaiser speaks to this in the introduction to his book Preaching and Teaching the Last Things. Here are two solid...
Morris ProctorOne of the most talked about Logos 7 features is the Sermon Editor which continues to evolve and improve. A case in point is an almost unnoticed enhancement in the recently released Logos 7.4. Unless you know it’s there, you’re apt to overlook it...
Daniel MotleyLearn John Piper’s Bible study methods right in the world’s most powerful Bible software. Featuring 100 videos, Look at the Book focuses directly on the text of Scripture with nothing coming between you and the text. Watch as John Piper underlines...
Holly MarrAs Easter Sunday approaches, now’s a great time to ask how to make sure your Easter sermon connects with your audience. Here are three ways to do just that. Preach with power through vivid illustrations and practical application Since the days...
Mark WardEven if you’ll never preach a single sermon in your entire life, you should still know what good preaching is. And not just so you can spot (and avoid) bad preaching; not even so you can seek out good preaching. You need to understand what...
Jake MailhotGood contextualization is critical to communicating the message of the Bible. But good contextualization is hard work. It requires intimate knowledge of both Scripture and the audience that you’re trying to reach. In his new book, Excellent...
Andre KazadayevAsk just about any church, and they’ll tell you they record sermons. While the process from church to church is a little different, the end result is the same—an audio file posted to the sermon archive on the church website. But what if you could...
Taylor JonesHow would you rate your preaching skills? When you walk up to the pulpit on Sunday morning, what do you carry with you? Maybe it’s a gnawing anxiety over a point you needed just one more hour to develop. Or perhaps it’s excitement for the central...
One of the first steps of any Bible study is to develop an outline of your passage. It’s a straightforward way to grasp the argument, flow of thought, and themes in that section of Scripture. As you’re developing an outline, it’s immensely helpful...
During the summer, church life slows down. Many small groups go on hiatus, and schedules fill up with travel plans and other adventures. During this downturn, pastors and ministers look forward to fall and winter when things start to pick up again...
Ryan PembertonMost Christians would agree that a biblical sermon is a good thing, but how many would actually be able to define what makes a biblical sermon biblical? “The fact is, most people think biblical communication is a style,” says Dr. J. Kent Edwards...
Paul KirbyWhat if reading a commentary could be like listening to a good sermon? The Preaching the Word Series offers commentaries on 41 books of the Bible, written in the style of expository sermons on the texts and rich in practical application. And during...
“This is not the world of 100 years ago,” notes Dr. Tim Sisk, pastor, professor, and missionary to Japan and Bolivia. “It’s a very different world, and there are a number of different issues that impact how we take the gospel there.” The changing...
Friday, June 19 was Charles Spurgeon’s 181st birthday. In celebration, there are three exciting ways we’re helping you benefit from the vast wisdom of “The Prince of Preachers.” You could even win paperback copies of two volumes in the Spurgeon...
For most of us, September to May is the busiest time of the year. Even if you wanted to further invest in your studies, there’s little time. But with the summer season, things begin to slow down and suddenly there’s time for all those books you’ve...
Simon VilleneuveThis article is the last post in a three-part miniseries on Memorial Day. It is written by special guest Jeff Struecker. Read more about his story in part one, “Remember America’s Heroes” and part two, “Reflections on Faith, Freedom, and Our Future...
John Calvin called the Psalms “an anatomy of all the parts of the soul,” meaning there is not a single emotion in all of life that is not articulated in the book of Psalms. When Dr. Mark Futato realized the Psalms’ broad relevance to all of...
Ryan Rotz“Building a sermon is kind of like being an architect,” says Dr. Kent Edwards. “[If] you travel around the world, you’re going to see that there are many different styles of buildings. . . . Architecture is remarkably different, but there [are]...
Logos’ Pre-Publication program gets the titles you want into Logos, while also giving you the best discounts on those resources. Currently, there are dozens of valuable Bible reference works from Eerdmans available on Pre-Pub. You can get up...
Miles Custis“It’s easier to catch a baseball than a handful of sand.” Dr. Bryan Chapell uses this example in his new Mobile Ed courses to illustrate the importance of keeping a unified theme in your sermons, rather than presenting a handful of scattered ideas...
Logos Mobile Ed’s Preaching and Discipling Foundations Bundle is a 10-course bundle that covers a wide array of topics related to ministry. It provides great teaching by leading speakers on topics like preaching, discipleship, ethics, and specific...