Category: Preaching and Teaching

Why I don’t like using quotes in sermons

I recently saw this little quote on Twitter. I think the general sentiment is true for preachers in that a bigger point is being made.  We need to ensure that the voices heard and examples used in church are not limited to narrow group of people within the church.  Do we use illustrations about women? … Continue reading Why I don’t like using quotes in sermons

Don’t hide the Psalms in the summer holidays

We’re about to hit the English summer school holidays and up and down the country, churches will be rediscovering the Psalms – or at least the people who are around and in church will be. There’s a tendency to expect attendance to drop as people head off on holiday, ministers themselves take a break and… Continue reading Don’t hide the Psalms in the summer holidays

Don’t write your sermon too soon

Yesterday, I mentioned this article which has provoked the latest cycle of sermon length controversy.  Now, as I said yesterday, a sermon takes as long as it takes. Some of us might actually need to give a bit longer to our sermons and some of us probably could do with shaving 10 minutes off! However,… Continue reading Don’t write your sermon too soon

Time for God? – Thoughts on sermon length

Every so often a little controversy will brew over how long exactly a sermon should last. This seems generally seeking to split between three precise and seemingly arbitrary times, 10 minutes, 20 minutes and 30 40 minutes (nothing under 10, over 40 or anything in between the options). The latest controversy seems to have been… Continue reading Time for God? – Thoughts on sermon length

It’s okay to go off-piste when preaching … providing you signpost it clearly

There’s been a few occasions when I’ve been preaching where something has struck me and I’ve felt it particularly relevant and helpful but it hasn’t been something that the passage specifically addresses. Rather, it’s been a question arising perhaps out of something the passage leaves unaddressed.  There have been other occasions where I’ve drawn an… Continue reading It’s okay to go off-piste when preaching … providing you signpost it clearly

Beyond Repair? (Mark 3)

Here’s my sermon outline from today. Introduction We loved our little Citroen C3.  It took us everywhere and we spent thousands of pounds on annual repairs.  Until one day, on a journey to Bradford after a decade and 100k miles, it decided to die. We crawled up the M6 and M62 at a dangerous snail’s… Continue reading Beyond Repair? (Mark 3)

How do we approach studying Mark’s Gospel?

It is possible to work through the Gospel in one of a few ways. This might include  Picking up a number of themes and tracing them through the Gospel as a series of sermons on The Kingdom of God, The Son of Man, Suffering and the Cross etc. A longer and detailed series might have… Continue reading How do we approach studying Mark’s Gospel?

What the Archbishop didn’t say

Last weekend, before we got back to things like parties in Downing Street and whether the Prime Minister tells the truth, the media and social media were full of reports and debate about what the Archbishop of Canterbury had said in his Easter Day sermon.  Reports focused on some statements critical of the UK’s Rwanda… Continue reading What the Archbishop didn’t say

Signs of the Times (Mark 13) – Preaching in a crisis

Over the past couple of weeks as we’ve seen Russian tanks and troops role into Ukraine and the awful spectre of nuclear conflict has been threatened against the West, I’ve written a bit about how we handled apocalyptic literature and questions about the end times. I thought it might be helpful to share an example… Continue reading Signs of the Times (Mark 13) – Preaching in a crisis