3 Types of Sermons and How to Use Them
So you’ve been called to preach? Where should you begin?
I would like to encourage those preaching for the first time by offer some pointers, suggestions on how to go about the work of communication. As with translation, the work of preaching is accomplished only when communication has happened. Only when the sermon lands within an audience can one say that the task of preaching is being accomplished.
As with translation, the work of preaching is accomplished only when communication has happened. Only when the sermon lands within an audience can one say that the task of preaching is being accomplished.
I would like to share some models for various ways in which to present the message of the Gospel. In broad swathes, I follow a work by James Braga, How to Prepare Bible Messages (Colorado Springs: Multnomah Books, 2005) because of how useful I have found it for teaching aspiring preachers. In this work, he proposed sermons come in three basic forms: topical, textual, and expository. I would add theological sermons and narrative sermons as other ways of composing a sermon and no doubt these categories overlap with the previously mentioned. I would like to suggest some descriptions of these categories for beginners (and those of us who have been doing this for a while).
1. Topical Sermons
A topical sermon is, well, built around a topic. One might start with biographical sermons on a biblical character to explore a topical sermon. The danger of this kind of sermon is that since you choose the topic, it is easy to use the Bible to make the point you want to make but not necessarily one that the Bible is itself making in any of the text used. I would encourage beginners to use this model sparingly until one has a good sense of the whole sweep of Scripture like that provided in B121 New Testament Literature and B111 Old Testament Literature.
2. Textual Sermons
A textual sermon is one that is based on a key text or texts. The key points are derived from the text(s) but the text in the main provides the theme of the sermon. Homiletician Paul Scott Wilson offers an interesting variation on this type of a sermon in his The Four Pages of the Sermon: A Guide to Biblical Preaching (Nashville: Abingdon, 1999). He suggests that the move of the sermon might follow this path: from problem in the text/problem in the world to solution in the text/solution in the world.
3. Expository Sermons
An expository or exegetical sermon is one that seeks to expound the text, to have the impact of the text on its original audience to become the experience to today’s hearers. As Braga notes, the “sermon is drawn directly from the passage, and the outline consists of a series of progressive ideas centered on that main idea” (61). This method teaches a congregation how to read the Bible carefully and with this model the preacher is least likely to miss the point of the text. Furthermore, while one is staying close to the text, there is much room for creativity in aiding the congregation to hear, feel, and experience the gospel.
Now that you’ve selected a type of sermon, how do you go about digging into the Biblical text and communicating it to your audience? We’ll be digging into how pastors, ministers, and preachers can do just that in our upcoming blog posts as part of this How to Preach series, but the best way to improve your preaching skills is through practice and feedback. Consider joining us for P3135 Intro to Preaching or P4135 Advanced Preaching and learn alongside others passionate about communicating the Gospel.
P3135 Intro to Preaching
A course designed to guide the student in constructing and communicating a biblical message based upon a given passage of Scripture using proper expository and presentation skills. Emphasis will be given to researching and articulating a “Big Idea” from selected passages of Scripture.
P4135 Advanced Preaching
This advanced course in homiletics sharpens the skills in effective sermon preparation and delivery begun in Homiletics I and begins to explore creative and contemporary models of preaching from both the Old and New Testament. Students will deliver at least 3 sermons in various ministry settings and receive both peer and instructor feedback.