The Present Preacher

Good preaching depends on being attentive – to God, to the Bible, to the congregation, to the context, to what influences and shapes the preacher. This practical, confidence-building guide is for all who want to develop their preaching by homing in on that which points to God in the now. Encouraging preachers in the ways that will make authentic connections with others, it demonstrates that preaching in today’s culture requires preachers to ‘show up and be present, in person’ rather than speak 'in role' or act as religious spokespersons who take no responsibility for their message. Based on the authors’ own training of ordinands, it offers: • Insights on how to develop the habit of noticing God in the world; • Strategies for opening up and finding fresh meaning in familiar Bible texts; • Ways of understanding what influences your congregation and your own theology; • Sample sermons that embody these principles.

No one man or woman has ever been in a position to see the presidents, and the presidency, so intimately, over so many years. They called him in for photo opportunities. They called for comfort. They asked about death and salvation; about sin and forgiveness. At a time when the nation is increasingly split over the place of religion in public life, The Preachers and the Presidents reveals how the world's most powerful men and world's most famous evangelist, Billy Graham, knit faith and politics together.

This unique volume draws on the wisdom of Christian thinkers and preachers from across the ages to present a warm and informative collection of insights on the art of preaching. Gathering the writing of figures as diverse as Augustine, John Chrysostom, Jonathan Edwards, Gardner C. Taylor, and Barbara Brown Taylor, The Company of Preachers provides experienced advice on effective preaching, direct from the pens of those who have known it best. The book is arranged in seven divisions, each covering a central component of the preaching task. Editor Richard Lischer, himself a distinguished preacher and teacher, gives a brief introduction to each selection. Aptly presenting a theological and historical cross-section of the church's homiletics, this volume will be invaluable to preachers, students preparing for ministry, and others seeking models of powerful Christian speech. Features insights on preaching from: Augustine Karl Barth Dietrich Bonhoeffer Walter Brueggemann Rudolf Bultmann Horace Bushnell David Buttrick John Calvin John Cassian John Chrysostom Fred B. Craddock C. H. Dodd Jarena Lee Jonathan Edwards Charles Grandison Finney P. T. Forsyth Harry Emerson Fosdick Gregory the Great George Herbert Martin Luther Henry H. Mitchell John Henry Newman Phoebe Palmer Paul Ricoeur Oscar Romero Friedrich Schleiermacher Charles Haddon Spurgeon Barbara Brown Taylor Gardner C. Taylor John Wesley, and many more

Should women who preach, preach as women? Preaching Women argues that far from being a gender-neutral space, the pulpit is a critical place in which a gender imbalance can begin to be redressed. There is a vital need for women preachers to speak out of their experience of living as women in today’s culture and church Filling a glaring gap in the literature around homiletics, Filling a glaring gap in the literature around homiletics, Preaching Women considers reasons why women preachers should preach from their experiences as women, what women bring to preaching that is missing without us, and how women preachers can go about the task of biblical preaching. With a foreword by Libby Lane.

Pastor, preacher, and New York Times bestselling author of The Prodigal Prophet Timothy Keller shares his wisdom on communicating the Christian faith from the pulpit as well as from the coffee shop. Most Christians—including pastors—struggle to talk about their faith in a way that applies the power of the Christian gospel to change people’s lives. Timothy Keller is known for his insightful, down-to-earth sermons and talks that help people understand themselves, encounter Jesus, and apply the Bible to their lives. In this accessible guide for pastors and laypeople alike, Keller helps readers learn to present the Christian message of grace in a more engaging, passionate, and compassionate way.

Preachers Present Arms is the result of many years of research in libraries, religious periodicals (including many obscure ones), newspaper clippings, innumerable pamphlets, sermons, and addresses of the war periods. Pertinent books on the subject run into the hundreds of volumes. Many of the startling facts in Preachers Present Arms are the result of personal interviews and correspondence both at home and abroad. Over the span of nearly two thousand years, the institution of the Christian church has been eager to convert the whole world to its own interpretation of the will of God and the gospel of Jesus Christ. In so doing it has been confronted with one crisis after another. Most of the time, as the pages of history will testify, it has floundered in utmost confusion. From one point of view, its gravest and most tragic years have been those in which this church identified itself and participated gladly in some of the bloodiest wars of all times, all to carry out the will of the Almighty. The Crusades and Holy Wars of the past are stark reminders. Yet, even in our own time these holy wars continue. This book is the startling and terrifying story of the part played in this country by the churches and the clergy during the first World War-the consciences of ministers conscripted, innocent men railroaded to prison, churches turned into recruiting stations. In Preachers Present Arms a skilled analyst of social forces examines the merciless regimentation of ideas and conduct inherent in modern warfare. His sobering account of the surrender of the ministers to war hysteria in that dark period of the world's history-from 1914 to 1918-is in no sense an attack upon the clergy. Rather, in demonstrating how preachers were caught in the vortex of war madness, the book transcends the immediate field of its inquiry and demonstrates the influence of war psychology on the leaders and molders of public opinion. Included in this thought-provoking volume is a brief description of the churches and the clergy in World War II, and an analysis of the situation with respect to organized religion and our participation in the war in Vietnam.

In these pages you will find a vision of preaching that is both illuminating and inspiring. Drawing from biblical and theological resources as well as years in the pulpit, Darrell Johnson takes us far beyond the mere mechanics of delivering sermons. He dynamically unpacks the link between the human task of speaking to a congregation and the real, gracious action and presence of the living Christ in and through our proclamation. Johnson assists preachers to profoundly engage the biblical text and then liberates them to make use of their own personality, gifts and abilities as they communicate that message. This book is for any pastor or student who wants to cultivate a deeper pulpit approach, one that participates in the transforming mystery of God working through our less-than-perfect proclamation. Here is a solid foundation for preaching the good news as if God was living, Jesus was resurrected and the Holy Spirit was faithfully at work among us.