Good afternoon
everyone, welcome to the class,
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How to prepare a
meaningful sermon.
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No doubt most of you are here
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because you want to
learn the steps and principles
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of preparing a
powerful and effective sermon.
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Because it's inevitable
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especially if you
are a church leader,
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that at some point in your life,
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you're going to be
asked to preach a sermon,
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or give some sort
of devotional talk,
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maybe share your testimony
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or make some kind
of public presentation.
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So what we're
gonna do in this class
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is we're going to go
through simple principles,
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step by step on how
to study for a sermon,
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how to prepare for it,
how to write the sermon,
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and then how to
effectively present it.
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And I can assure you
these steps are so simple,
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anyone can understand it.
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So this class is open to
men, women, children, in fact,
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these are the same principles
that I use in order to prepare
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and to be able
to present a sermon.
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So let's have a
word of prayer together,
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and then we're just gonna
jump right into session one,
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which is probably
the shortest of them all.
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So let's pray together.
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Heavenly Father, Lord,
You have called each of us
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to be ministers
for you in some way.
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And so, Father,
those that are here today
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are sensing that
perhaps you're calling them
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to speak for You publicly.
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And they want to be ready
when that opportunity comes
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or they want to
improve the opportunities
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they've already been given.
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And so we simply
ask Your Holy Spirit
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to fulfill Your
Word, Lord, where You said
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You are willing to give
each of us spiritual gifts
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and to equip us to do Your work.
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These things we ask
in Jesus' name, amen.
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All right, let's start
with session number one,
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because one of the first
things we're gonna have to learn
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is the tools for
a speaker to use.
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So before we go
into the mechanics
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of how to choose a subject
and how to construct a sermon,
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I wanna start
with the very basics
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of how to use
certain study tools,
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because there's tools
you need to understand,
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how they're used and
how you can utilize them
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to prepare for your sermon.
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So let's start
with tool number one.
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And actually
let's start with this.
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I was reading
some books on preaching
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during my lifetime,
and interestingly enough
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the experts say
that for every minute,
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for every hour of
public speaking that
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or rather for every
minute of public speaking,
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you should spend
an hour preparing.
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Now I want you
to think about that.
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An hour
preparing for every minute
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of public speaking.
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That means if you're
preaching a 30 minute sermon,
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how many hours of
preparation would that require?
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Thirty hours.
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And most laypeople that I
know, who work full time jobs
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and have family responsibilities
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and other
responsibilities in their life
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do not have 30 hours a
week to prepare a sermon,
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would that be true?
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In fact, to be honest with
you, I don't know many ministers
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that spend 30 hours a
week preparing a sermon
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'cause they'd
have very little time
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to do other things.
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So what we need to do
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in this class is give principles
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and steps that anyone can
use, especially the layperson.
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So let's start
with tool number one,
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which is gonna be the obvious.
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The first tool we need to
know how to use is the Bible.
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Now somebody ought
to say amen to that.
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Now you may think
that's rather elementary,
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but I can tell you from
hearing what various people say,
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especially those that
come to evangelistic meetings,
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one of the reasons they
come is because they don't feel
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they're receiving the
Bible where they're going.
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They don't feel
that they're being fed.
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And unfortunately
sometimes there are churches
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that are a
little more interested
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in telling stories, and humor,
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and entertainment
during the sermon time
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than actually
presenting the Word of God.
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And so if God is giving
you and I an opportunity to,
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you know, preach a sermon,
we should take seriously that
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we need to
preach a Bible sermon.
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And that we need to share things
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that come from the Word of God,
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'cause that's what
folks are hungry for.
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So let's say that you
have chosen the subject
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and the passage
that you wanna preach on.
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That means you're gonna have
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to take some time to read
that passage from the Bible,
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how many times do you think?
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Certainly more than once.
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You're gonna read
that passage multiple times
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from the scriptures
over and over again.
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You're gonna take
time to really think about
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what it's saying,
use your imagination,
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place yourself in the
shoes of the character
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and think about
what's happening there
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and you'll probably
wanna read it numerous times
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out of various
versions of the Bible,
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because sometimes
you may see something
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in one version that
you didn't see in another.
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Now it's perfectly
fine if a person says,
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well, there's only one version
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I like to use and
that might be the version
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that you preach
from and that's okay.
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But when you're doing
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your personal studying
to prepare for the sermon,
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it's okay to use various
translations of the Bible.
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You know, if you're a good old
King James person, that's fine.
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You can do your
preaching from that version
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but in personal study,
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many times it is helpful
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to read it from
different translations
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because it helps
you to see things
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that maybe you
didn't see before.
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So you're gonna spend a
sufficient amount of time
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reading that
passage over and over
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because you're gonna see things
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the 10th time that maybe
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you did not see
the first two times.
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Does that make sense?
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I mean the only way you
can preach a Bible sermon
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is if you get very
familiar with the passage
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and the text that
you're gonna be using.
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So this should be
the number one study tool
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for the lay preacher
and that's the Bible.
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Now you probably
expected me to say that,
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but there are other
tools that can be helpful
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also though they are
not the primary ones.
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Another is a Bible Concordance.
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Now just out of
curiosity how many people here
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are familiar with
and have ever used
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a Bible Concordance,
can I see your hands?
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Okay, most of you have.
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But for the sake of those
who might be watching on camera,
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let me briefly
explain how Concordance works,
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why it is helpful.
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Probably one of the most popular
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is Strong's
Exhaustive Concordance.
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And the reason
this can be essential
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is that a Concordance
will list every single word
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that's in the Bible
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and it will do it
in alphabetical order
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and then it will
tell you every text
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where that word is used.
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So if you were
preaching on a certain subject,
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it'd be really helpful to find
all the text to talk about it.
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For example, if you
take a look at your notes.
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Say you were doing a
study or a sermon on reverence.
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You would look up
reverence in a Concordance
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and it would list for
you every text in the Bible
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that uses the word reverence
and it would also give you
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the original Hebrew
or Greek word behind it.
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In fact, on the screen
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let me just give you an example
of what's in a Concordance.
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Suppose you did look
up the word reverence,
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now it would list
more than three texts
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like what's on the screen
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but I just picked
three of them out.
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Leviticus 19:30 says,
"Reverence my sanctuary."
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1 Kings 1:31 says that,
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"Someone did
reverence to the king."
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And then
Ephesians 5:33 talks about
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"A wife
reverencing her husband."
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Now let me ask you something.
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Are all three of those
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three different
kinds of reverence,
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what do you think?
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Yeah, I mean, do
you reverence the king
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the same way you
reverence God's sanctuary?
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And do you reverence
your spouse the same way
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you might reverence
the king, so to speak?
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All of those are
different kinds of reverencing,
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if you wanna call that a word.
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And what could be
helpful with a Concordance
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is if you will notice
there in Leviticus 19:30,
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where it says,
"Reverence my sanctuary."
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Right at the end
there is a number there.
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Now what number is
it? Can you see it?
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Yeah, 3372, now that
is not a page number,
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what that is, is in
the back of the Concordance
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is likely to be
something called a Lexicon.
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And it will list all
those numbers you see,
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it might go from
like 1 to 10,000.
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And so I take 3372,
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I look that
number up in the Lexicon
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and it's going to give me
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the original Hebrew word
behind the word reverence.
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And on the screen
there it's the word "yare".
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I'm sure I'm not
saying that right.
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And that means to fear,
to revere, or to be afraid.
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Knowing that may give me
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a more specific
definition of the word,
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help me to understand
it a little bit better.
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Same thing with 1 Kings 1:31
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where it talks about
doing reverence to the king.
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What's the number at the end
of that line, can you tell me?
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7812.
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So, I look up
7812 in the Lexicon
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and it tells me the
original word is "shacah",
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and that means to be prostrate,
to bow, or to humbly beseech.
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And so that gives
me a richer meaning
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of what the English word
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reverence means in that passage.
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And there are
certain parts of the Bible
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where it can be
very helpful to know
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what the original
language is saying.
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Let's give another example.
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Suppose you were
preaching a sermon
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on the
importance of forgiveness,
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God forgiving us
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or more so us being
able to forgive others.
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If you were going to
prepare a sermon like that,
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obviously it would
be helpful to look up
00:10:02.53\00:10:04.83
forgive in a Concordance
00:10:04.87\00:10:06.84
and find out all the verses
where the word is mentioned,
00:10:06.87\00:10:09.74
because you will likely use
00:10:09.77\00:10:11.47
some of those
verses in your sermon.
00:10:11.51\00:10:14.14
Now in the Concordance,
00:10:14.18\00:10:16.01
it's going to
list Genesis 50:17,
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where it says, "Forgive, I
pray thee now the trespass."
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At the end it
has the number 5375,
00:10:23.22\00:10:26.69
so I would turn to the
back of the Concordance,
00:10:26.72\00:10:29.46
look up the number
5375, and it would tell me
00:10:29.49\00:10:33.53
the original
Hebrew word is "nasa"
00:10:33.56\00:10:37.20
which means to carry
away, to pardon, or to bear.
00:10:37.23\00:10:41.14
And I would do
the same thing there
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for Matthew 6:12,
that's the Lord's Prayer,
00:10:42.84\00:10:45.91
where it says to,
"Forgive us our debts
00:10:45.94\00:10:47.68
as we forgive our debtors."
00:10:47.71\00:10:49.81
The original Greek word
behind forgive in that passage,
00:10:49.84\00:10:54.02
I would take the number 863,
00:10:54.05\00:10:56.79
look it up in the
back of the Concordance
00:10:56.82\00:10:58.62
and it would tell me
that it's the word "aphiemi",
00:10:58.65\00:11:02.02
which would
mean lay aside, omit,
00:11:02.06\00:11:04.63
or how God actually
sends away our sins.
00:11:04.66\00:11:08.40
And so just knowing that,
00:11:08.43\00:11:10.40
just gives me a
much deeper look at
00:11:10.43\00:11:12.67
what the text might be saying.
00:11:12.70\00:11:15.00
So that's how you would use
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the study tool of a Concordance,
00:11:16.57\00:11:18.87
and you don't even have
to know Hebrew or Greek.
00:11:18.91\00:11:21.28
Now just one word of caution,
in the back of the Concordance,
00:11:21.31\00:11:26.31
there is a Hebrew and
a Greek lexicon, okay.
00:11:26.35\00:11:30.02
When you're looking
up Old Testament text,
00:11:30.05\00:11:32.12
the Old Testament
was written in Hebrew,
00:11:32.15\00:11:33.92
so you gotta go to
the Hebrew lexicon.
00:11:33.96\00:11:35.99
The New Testament was written
in what language, you know?
00:11:36.02\00:11:39.96
Written in
Greek, so you got to go
00:11:40.00\00:11:41.66
to the Greek lexicon.
00:11:41.70\00:11:43.40
So you know if
I was to take 5375
00:11:43.43\00:11:46.03
on this slide here and
I was to try to look that
00:11:46.07\00:11:48.54
word up in the Greek lexicon,
00:11:48.57\00:11:50.74
I would be given
the wrong definition
00:11:50.77\00:11:52.77
because Genesis
is the Old Testament,
00:11:52.81\00:11:54.94
so you look it up
in the Hebrew lexicon.
00:11:54.98\00:11:57.65
Does that make sense so far?
00:11:57.68\00:12:00.22
I mean it's wonderful
the tools we have today,
00:12:00.25\00:12:02.42
that they didn't even
have a 100, 200 years ago.
00:12:02.45\00:12:05.35
I don't have to be a scholar,
you don't have to be learned
00:12:05.39\00:12:09.66
and educated in
Greek and Hebrew.
00:12:09.69\00:12:11.89
Concordances
and lexicons tell us
00:12:11.93\00:12:14.46
what the original text is saying
00:12:14.50\00:12:16.53
and that can be
very, very helpful.
00:12:16.56\00:12:19.27
One more note
about the Concordance,
00:12:19.30\00:12:21.57
I took an actual
picture from this Concordance,
00:12:21.60\00:12:25.27
and if you'll notice,
it's kinda small print,
00:12:25.31\00:12:27.68
you see where it
says Genesis 50:17
00:12:27.71\00:12:30.75
and then it says 'F' there,
00:12:30.78\00:12:32.18
that's just an
abbreviation for forgive,
00:12:32.21\00:12:34.68
and then right at
the end if you notice it,
00:12:34.72\00:12:37.39
there's the number 5375.
00:12:37.42\00:12:39.49
That's what an
actual Concordance
00:12:39.52\00:12:42.06
will look like.
00:12:42.09\00:12:43.43
If you know how to use it,
00:12:43.46\00:12:44.79
it can be something
that's very, very helpful.
00:12:44.83\00:12:49.06
Let's go the next study tool,
00:12:49.10\00:12:50.97
let's talk about
the Bible commentary.
00:12:51.00\00:12:53.47
How many of you have
00:12:53.50\00:12:54.84
Bible
commentaries in your library?
00:12:54.87\00:12:56.20
Can I see your hands?
00:12:56.24\00:12:58.17
Okay, if you don't, I
would highly recommend
00:12:58.21\00:13:02.01
that you get the Seventh-day
Adventist Bible commentaries
00:13:02.04\00:13:06.08
for your library.
00:13:06.11\00:13:07.45
Especially if you're
gonna be a lay preacher
00:13:07.48\00:13:10.85
and share
things from the pulpit.
00:13:10.89\00:13:12.62
You can buy it at
any Adventist bookstore
00:13:12.65\00:13:15.69
if you prefer the hard copy,
this is what it looks like.
00:13:15.72\00:13:19.06
Or if you're more
of a digital person,
00:13:19.09\00:13:20.66
you can actually get the CD-ROM
00:13:20.70\00:13:22.40
and you can put
it in your computer.
00:13:22.43\00:13:24.67
But it is an excellent tool
00:13:24.70\00:13:26.94
for explaining the meaning
behind a text and maybe giving
00:13:26.97\00:13:30.97
some of the
background information
00:13:31.01\00:13:32.47
that we don't understand.
00:13:32.51\00:13:34.84
Let's do an example.
00:13:34.88\00:13:36.28
If you were to look up
00:13:36.31\00:13:37.65
Acts 9:5 in
your Bible right now,
00:13:37.68\00:13:41.05
that would be the story of Jesus
00:13:41.08\00:13:43.08
appearing to Saul on
the road to Damascus.
00:13:43.12\00:13:46.86
And in that
passage Jesus tells Saul
00:13:46.89\00:13:50.59
to stop kicking
against the goads.
00:13:50.63\00:13:53.93
Now when's the last
time you told someone
00:13:53.96\00:13:55.56
to stop kicking
against the goads.
00:13:55.60\00:13:58.17
Not too often.
00:13:58.20\00:13:59.57
We don't even
use the word goads,
00:13:59.60\00:14:01.44
we don't use that
phrase in the 21st century,
00:14:01.47\00:14:04.21
so the question is,
00:14:04.24\00:14:05.57
what in the world
is He talking about?
00:14:05.61\00:14:07.34
What does that mean?
00:14:07.38\00:14:09.14
Well, if I will look Acts
9:5 up in the Bible commentary,
00:14:09.18\00:14:14.05
it would explain to me
what that phrase refers to.
00:14:14.08\00:14:17.49
And here is what it would say,
00:14:17.52\00:14:19.19
a goad, the goads
were things like boards
00:14:19.22\00:14:22.62
that you would
put in between the ox
00:14:22.66\00:14:25.53
and the cart with
which you're plowing, okay.
00:14:25.56\00:14:27.86
Because, you know,
00:14:27.90\00:14:29.23
someone might have
an ox on their farmland
00:14:29.26\00:14:31.50
and then they would have a cart
00:14:31.53\00:14:33.13
where they're
plowing and many times
00:14:33.17\00:14:35.04
the ox would kick the
cart and would be very stubborn
00:14:35.07\00:14:39.37
not wanting to
listen to what the master
00:14:39.41\00:14:41.68
or the farmer was saying.
00:14:41.71\00:14:43.41
So they would put
what's called a goad
00:14:43.45\00:14:46.25
in between the back of the ox
00:14:46.28\00:14:48.25
and the cart so he
couldn't kick back like that.
00:14:48.28\00:14:50.85
It was a way to
make the ox submit
00:14:50.89\00:14:53.52
and surrender and
to control the animal.
00:14:53.56\00:14:57.06
So when Jesus says to Saul,
stop kicking against the goads,
00:14:57.09\00:15:01.56
he's telling Saul to surrender,
00:15:01.60\00:15:05.13
to stop resisting conviction
and give himself to Jesus.
00:15:05.17\00:15:10.54
Understanding that
makes the text come alive
00:15:10.57\00:15:14.58
and it makes more sense.
00:15:14.61\00:15:16.31
If that makes
sense what I just said,
00:15:16.34\00:15:17.91
can you nod your
heads or say amen?
00:15:17.95\00:15:19.81
All right, like for
example, let's do another one.
00:15:19.85\00:15:21.88
Ruth 3:7, if you ever
read the story about Ruth,
00:15:21.92\00:15:25.42
it says that when Boaz
was laying in the field,
00:15:25.45\00:15:28.79
Ruth went, uncovered his
feet and laid down beside him.
00:15:28.82\00:15:34.00
Well, when we hear
that in the 21st century,
00:15:34.03\00:15:37.37
we have no idea what that means,
00:15:37.40\00:15:39.00
that just sounds weird to us.
00:15:39.03\00:15:41.44
But if you look it
up in the commentary,
00:15:41.47\00:15:43.51
it tells us that
the custom of that day
00:15:43.54\00:15:46.34
is when a woman
00:15:46.37\00:15:47.71
who wanted to be
redeemed by her kinsmen.
00:15:47.74\00:15:50.45
When she uncovered
the feet and laid down
00:15:50.48\00:15:52.65
beside the man at his feet,
00:15:52.68\00:15:54.78
it was like a marriage proposal.
00:15:54.82\00:15:56.75
It was like saying,
00:15:56.79\00:15:58.12
I want you to redeem
me as my nearest kinsmen,
00:15:58.15\00:16:00.69
I want you to marry
me and take care of me.
00:16:00.72\00:16:03.76
And so when you understand
what that custom meant,
00:16:03.79\00:16:07.33
the text makes a
whole lot more sense.
00:16:07.36\00:16:09.56
So that's why Bible commentaries
00:16:09.60\00:16:11.53
can be very, very important.
00:16:11.57\00:16:14.50
The third tool is
a Bible dictionary.
00:16:14.54\00:16:18.27
Now, how many are familiar
with a Bible dictionary,
00:16:18.31\00:16:20.24
have you ever used one?
00:16:20.28\00:16:21.61
Okay, few of you have.
00:16:21.64\00:16:23.14
It works just like
00:16:23.18\00:16:24.51
a secular
dictionary like Websters.
00:16:24.55\00:16:27.38
What it will do is
that you can look up
00:16:27.42\00:16:28.88
information on
people, places, things.
00:16:28.92\00:16:32.29
So, for example,
00:16:32.32\00:16:33.66
like I preached on
Jonah this morning,
00:16:33.69\00:16:35.69
I could look up
Jonah in a Bible dictionary
00:16:35.72\00:16:38.56
or encyclopedia
00:16:38.59\00:16:40.03
and it would tell me
some historical information
00:16:40.06\00:16:43.03
that maybe, might not
be recorded in the Bible.
00:16:43.06\00:16:45.63
Or it will take things
00:16:45.67\00:16:47.00
from different
parts of the Bible
00:16:47.04\00:16:48.44
and put it all
into one place for me,
00:16:48.47\00:16:50.81
and I can learn
something about Jonah.
00:16:50.84\00:16:52.87
I can look up
places like Nineveh
00:16:52.91\00:16:55.94
and probably when
I wrote that sermon,
00:16:55.98\00:16:57.38
I probably looked up
Nineveh in the Bible dictionary
00:16:57.41\00:17:00.78
and that's where I got
00:17:00.82\00:17:02.15
the background
information of this city.
00:17:02.18\00:17:04.85
You can look up
customs, you can look up tools,
00:17:04.89\00:17:08.72
for example, when Jesus says,
00:17:08.76\00:17:11.16
"Take My yoke upon
you and learn of Me
00:17:11.19\00:17:14.46
for I am meek
and lowly of heart."
00:17:14.50\00:17:17.53
In order to
understand practically
00:17:17.57\00:17:19.27
what He means,
00:17:19.30\00:17:20.64
you have to know what a yoke is.
00:17:20.67\00:17:22.84
And so to look up yoke
in the Bible dictionary
00:17:22.87\00:17:26.37
and understand once
again that it was kind of a,
00:17:26.41\00:17:29.01
something that was put
on an animal to control it,
00:17:29.04\00:17:31.88
Jesus was saying,
take My yoke upon you
00:17:31.91\00:17:35.05
because it's
light and it's easy.
00:17:35.08\00:17:38.02
It's not like the yokes
and the burdens of this world.
00:17:38.05\00:17:41.82
So it helped me to
understand what Jesus meant.
00:17:41.86\00:17:44.36
As well I could look
up plants or flowers.
00:17:44.39\00:17:47.40
And since in the
Bible, did you know that
00:17:47.43\00:17:50.07
Jesus is compared
00:17:50.10\00:17:52.00
to the 'Rose of
Sharon' in scripture,
00:17:52.03\00:17:53.50
did you know that?
00:17:53.54\00:17:54.87
I could look up
the 'Rose of Sharon',
00:17:54.90\00:17:56.81
learn about that
flower and it would tell me
00:17:56.84\00:17:59.24
something about
the character of Jesus
00:17:59.27\00:18:01.14
because Jesus is
compared to that flower.
00:18:01.18\00:18:04.31
So this where a Bible dictionary
00:18:04.35\00:18:06.28
and encyclopedia
can also be helpful.
00:18:06.31\00:18:09.48
But let's go to another tool.
00:18:09.52\00:18:11.85
How about books
written by Ellen White?
00:18:11.89\00:18:15.76
Now, once again,
the Bible is going to be
00:18:15.79\00:18:17.23
our number one source,
00:18:17.26\00:18:19.03
but sometimes the
Spirit of Prophecy books
00:18:19.06\00:18:21.46
can be excellent
tools for pulling out
00:18:21.50\00:18:24.23
the practical
lessons that are in the text.
00:18:24.27\00:18:28.24
So if I am studying a
certain passage in the Bible,
00:18:28.27\00:18:30.91
I may want to get
out one of her books
00:18:30.94\00:18:33.14
and read about that story in it
00:18:33.17\00:18:35.48
and it might help
me to see some things
00:18:35.51\00:18:37.45
that I didn't
see on the surface.
00:18:37.48\00:18:39.81
So I would encourage everyone
00:18:39.85\00:18:41.85
to have at least these
books in their library.
00:18:41.88\00:18:44.19
Patriarchs and Prophets,
00:18:44.22\00:18:46.09
that covers from
Genesis to Kings.
00:18:46.12\00:18:49.29
Prophets and Kings
00:18:49.32\00:18:50.66
which is what I'm
holding in my hand here,
00:18:50.69\00:18:52.69
that goes from Kings to Malachi.
00:18:52.73\00:18:55.36
The Desire of Ages
goes from Matthew to what?
00:18:55.40\00:18:59.27
It will go to John and
the Acts of the Apostles
00:18:59.30\00:19:01.40
goes from Acts to Revelation.
00:19:01.44\00:19:03.91
And two other ones
that could be helpful,
00:19:03.94\00:19:06.01
Thoughts from the
Mount of Blessing,
00:19:06.04\00:19:07.81
because that covers
the Sermon on the Mount
00:19:07.84\00:19:09.71
and then
Christ's Object Lessons,
00:19:09.74\00:19:12.11
because they cover
the parables of Jesus.
00:19:12.15\00:19:14.55
So if I was going to do a sermon
00:19:14.58\00:19:16.05
on one of the parables,
00:19:16.08\00:19:17.75
Christ's Object Lessons
would be an essential resource.
00:19:17.79\00:19:22.72
Now, her books
won't necessarily give you
00:19:22.76\00:19:25.49
historical
background, but what it will do
00:19:25.53\00:19:29.73
is pull out the
practical lessons
00:19:29.76\00:19:32.13
of how to apply it
to our lives today.
00:19:32.17\00:19:35.40
And really that's what
people want to know in sermons.
00:19:35.44\00:19:38.37
I mean it's fine to
give facts and figures
00:19:38.41\00:19:40.48
and you know if you
want to use big words,
00:19:40.51\00:19:42.61
but what people
really wanna know is,
00:19:42.64\00:19:44.61
how do I take these lessons
00:19:44.65\00:19:46.85
and make them
relevant for my life today.
00:19:46.88\00:19:49.38
Her books really help
us to be able to do that.
00:19:49.42\00:19:53.25
And so those are
the basic study tools
00:19:53.29\00:19:55.82
that you're gonna
need to learn how to use
00:19:55.86\00:19:58.16
as you prepare for a sermon.
00:19:58.19\00:20:01.23
So let's take a little break
00:20:01.26\00:20:02.96
and then we will
go into section two,
00:20:03.00\00:20:05.23
how to actually prepare
and study for the sermon.
00:20:05.27\00:20:10.31
All right.
00:20:15.18\00:20:16.51
Let's make our
way to session two,
00:20:16.54\00:20:18.21
how to prepare for a sermon.
00:20:18.25\00:20:21.12
And this is
going to be the part,
00:20:21.15\00:20:22.48
where now we're going to learn
00:20:22.52\00:20:24.35
how to take
notes for the sermon,
00:20:24.39\00:20:26.72
we're not gonna write it yet,
00:20:26.76\00:20:28.19
but how to take notes,
kind of like a first draft.
00:20:28.22\00:20:31.43
So let's pretend
that you have been
00:20:31.46\00:20:33.23
asked to preach a sermon.
00:20:33.26\00:20:35.56
And so the first thing
that you're gonna have to do
00:20:35.60\00:20:37.30
is to choose a subject.
00:20:37.33\00:20:39.83
Now how many different,
potential subjects do you think
00:20:39.87\00:20:42.64
there are from the Word of God
00:20:42.67\00:20:44.37
that you could
possibly preach on.
00:20:44.41\00:20:45.97
What number do you think?
00:20:46.01\00:20:48.24
Hundreds? Thousands?
00:20:48.28\00:20:51.81
Maybe more. So many
that it's innumerable.
00:20:51.85\00:20:54.75
So somehow you're
going to have to figure out
00:20:54.78\00:20:57.69
what's the one subject
I'm gonna preach about.
00:20:57.72\00:21:00.39
So obviously number one,
00:21:00.42\00:21:01.99
you're gonna pray about
it and ask God to guide you.
00:21:02.02\00:21:05.03
But some questions
that you can ask are these,
00:21:05.06\00:21:08.63
is there anything that I
have learned or experienced
00:21:08.66\00:21:11.53
recently in my life
that I could preach on?
00:21:11.57\00:21:14.50
Because really,
00:21:14.54\00:21:15.87
personal experience is the best.
00:21:15.90\00:21:17.61
Is there something
that you've gone through
00:21:17.64\00:21:19.14
in the last six months
00:21:19.17\00:21:20.51
or the last couple
years of your life,
00:21:20.54\00:21:22.64
that you would like
to share with people
00:21:22.68\00:21:24.48
that you think would be helpful.
00:21:24.51\00:21:26.21
I mean, have you
learned something about faith
00:21:26.25\00:21:28.55
and what it means to trust
God in difficult circumstances?
00:21:28.58\00:21:32.05
Have you learned something about
00:21:32.09\00:21:33.76
what it means to
be faithful in tithe
00:21:33.79\00:21:36.86
and surrender the
financial side of our life?
00:21:36.89\00:21:40.40
Have you learned something about
00:21:40.43\00:21:41.76
what it means to
really understand
00:21:41.80\00:21:44.00
and enjoy Sabbath rest?
00:21:44.03\00:21:46.00
I mean, it could be
many different things.
00:21:46.03\00:21:48.24
Have you had an
experience where you learned
00:21:48.27\00:21:50.31
what it truly
meant to forgive someone?
00:21:50.34\00:21:54.08
So those are
questions you may ask,
00:21:54.11\00:21:56.24
what have I experienced recently
00:21:56.28\00:21:57.98
that maybe God
wants me to talk about?
00:21:58.01\00:22:00.82
Another question might be,
00:22:00.85\00:22:03.05
what are the
needs of your church?
00:22:03.08\00:22:05.05
And you gotta
answer that honestly, okay.
00:22:05.09\00:22:07.26
Not what do you think
your church should know
00:22:07.29\00:22:09.86
or what do you
want them to know,
00:22:09.89\00:22:12.69
what are the real
needs of your church?
00:22:12.73\00:22:14.86
What are they
going through right now?
00:22:14.90\00:22:16.87
Do they need some messages
on family relationships?
00:22:16.90\00:22:20.57
Do they need messages on faith?
00:22:20.60\00:22:22.94
Something about witnessing
or maybe something about unity,
00:22:22.97\00:22:26.24
what are the
needs of your church?
00:22:26.27\00:22:28.74
And really the only
way you can answer that
00:22:28.78\00:22:30.85
is by spending some
time in prayer and saying,
00:22:30.88\00:22:33.05
"God, guide me, what subject
do you want me to choose?"
00:22:33.08\00:22:38.95
Now, a couple of
pieces of advice.
00:22:38.99\00:22:41.49
Do not pick controversial topics
00:22:41.52\00:22:45.09
to preach about.
00:22:45.13\00:22:46.76
And what I mean by that
00:22:46.80\00:22:48.13
is there are certain hot topics
in the church in every age.
00:22:48.16\00:22:52.20
And we're sometimes
tempted to talk about that.
00:22:52.23\00:22:54.90
Now there is a time
and a place to talk about
00:22:54.94\00:22:57.14
controversial subjects,
00:22:57.17\00:22:58.97
11 am on Sabbath
morning is not the time.
00:22:59.01\00:23:02.94
You don't wanna
pick times and things
00:23:02.98\00:23:04.68
that are gonna divide
people, pull people apart
00:23:04.71\00:23:08.15
and stir
unnecessary controversy.
00:23:08.18\00:23:11.19
And one of the reasons
for that is again at 11 am,
00:23:11.22\00:23:15.02
you have a whole
plethora of people
00:23:15.06\00:23:17.13
of different
backgrounds that come to worship
00:23:17.16\00:23:19.79
and they're looking
for something positive.
00:23:19.83\00:23:21.86
You have people
00:23:21.90\00:23:23.23
who are of high
spiritual maturity,
00:23:23.26\00:23:25.17
you have people
who are just beginning
00:23:25.20\00:23:26.94
their walk with the Lord.
00:23:26.97\00:23:28.40
You have people
00:23:28.44\00:23:29.77
whose lives are
going pretty well
00:23:29.80\00:23:31.84
and you have people
00:23:31.87\00:23:33.21
who are going through
the valley of discouragement.
00:23:33.24\00:23:35.54
You have guests that maybe
are coming for the first time,
00:23:35.58\00:23:38.31
maybe the spouse
of the church member.
00:23:38.35\00:23:40.85
The last thing they
need is to come and to hear
00:23:40.88\00:23:44.62
the dirty laundry
internally of a local church
00:23:44.65\00:23:47.86
or even the worldwide church.
00:23:47.89\00:23:50.19
We're wanting to pick subjects
00:23:50.23\00:23:52.43
that will be a
spiritual blessing
00:23:52.46\00:23:54.20
to all kinds of people.
00:23:54.23\00:23:56.93
Now that doesn't mean that
00:23:56.97\00:23:58.30
we put our head in
the sand like an ostrich
00:23:58.33\00:24:00.00
and we don't talk
about difficult subjects
00:24:00.04\00:24:02.07
but that's why you
have a church board,
00:24:02.10\00:24:04.44
that's why you
have a board of elders,
00:24:04.47\00:24:06.74
that's why you business meeting
00:24:06.78\00:24:09.04
so that can be
talked about internally.
00:24:09.08\00:24:11.18
It is not necessary
to air that at 11 am
00:24:11.21\00:24:14.38
when you have both
guests and visitors here
00:24:14.42\00:24:17.32
because it's going to
give them the wrong impression.
00:24:17.35\00:24:20.82
Does that make sense to you?
00:24:20.86\00:24:22.46
So refrain as far as possible
00:24:22.49\00:24:25.13
from choosing
controversial subjects.
00:24:25.16\00:24:27.93
The other thing is, try
not to pick your favorite
00:24:27.96\00:24:32.27
hobby horse to preach about.
00:24:32.30\00:24:35.27
And if you don't
know what I mean by that,
00:24:35.30\00:24:38.54
most churches have probably
00:24:38.57\00:24:40.01
had someone get up
and every time they get up
00:24:40.04\00:24:43.38
for the last 10
years, it's the same subject
00:24:43.41\00:24:47.08
over and over again
and they feel they've got
00:24:47.12\00:24:49.88
to make their
church see it their way.
00:24:49.92\00:24:54.29
When I'm asked to
preach on the Sabbath morning,
00:24:54.32\00:24:57.79
preaching is not a right,
00:24:57.83\00:25:00.23
preaching is a
privilege that can
00:25:00.26\00:25:02.96
and should be taken
away if it is abused.
00:25:03.00\00:25:06.94
So I'm not going to get up here,
00:25:06.97\00:25:08.30
there's no need to get up here
00:25:08.34\00:25:09.90
and to bang people
on their head about
00:25:09.94\00:25:11.64
why they should be
a vegan vegetarian.
00:25:11.67\00:25:14.91
Now, there's
nothing wrong with that.
00:25:14.94\00:25:17.78
But if that's a subject that
00:25:17.81\00:25:19.15
I just am going to
preach every time I'm up front
00:25:19.18\00:25:21.28
and come down
really hard on people,
00:25:21.32\00:25:23.18
that's my favorite hobby horse.
00:25:23.22\00:25:25.19
Is that what the church needs?
00:25:25.22\00:25:26.72
Or is that just what I
want to be able to share?
00:25:26.76\00:25:29.39
You understand what I'm saying?
00:25:29.42\00:25:30.76
And it could be a whole
bunch of different subjects.
00:25:30.79\00:25:32.69
It's okay to have
favorite subjects.
00:25:32.73\00:25:35.56
But keep in mind,
this is about 11 am.
00:25:35.60\00:25:38.73
This is about
what your church needs,
00:25:38.77\00:25:41.60
not what you feel you
want to push upon them
00:25:41.64\00:25:44.54
and want them to
know, like, I'll give you,
00:25:44.57\00:25:47.28
I'll give you an
example that really happened.
00:25:47.31\00:25:48.81
I won't tell you where.
00:25:48.84\00:25:50.38
But I remember
there was a church
00:25:50.41\00:25:53.11
somewhere in this world
00:25:53.15\00:25:55.22
that someone was asked to preach
00:25:55.25\00:25:58.22
and they got up front and
they used that opportunity
00:25:58.25\00:26:02.22
to complain about something
that was happening in that city
00:26:02.26\00:26:07.26
that I was involved in.
00:26:07.30\00:26:09.26
And they actually
almost mentioned certain people
00:26:09.30\00:26:13.17
by name and talked about
it in a very derogative way.
00:26:13.20\00:26:17.37
And it upset, it
upset a lot of people,
00:26:17.41\00:26:19.67
you know, in the
church, I wasn't there,
00:26:19.71\00:26:21.04
but I got phone calls
about it and everything.
00:26:21.08\00:26:23.35
They said, should we,
00:26:23.38\00:26:24.71
should you do
something about it?
00:26:24.75\00:26:26.08
I said, "No, I'm not
going to do anything.
00:26:26.11\00:26:28.12
That's up to your local church.
00:26:28.15\00:26:30.09
If your local
church is going to allow
00:26:30.12\00:26:32.22
people to stand up front,
00:26:32.25\00:26:34.06
and to do those kinds of things,
00:26:34.09\00:26:35.86
then I guess
that's, that's up to them."
00:26:35.89\00:26:38.89
Well, see, the point is,
00:26:38.93\00:26:40.63
we're looking
for positive subjects
00:26:40.66\00:26:42.83
that are going to bless people,
00:26:42.86\00:26:44.67
things that may be controversial
00:26:44.70\00:26:46.63
or divide there's
a time and a place,
00:26:46.67\00:26:49.60
but it's probably not
11 am on Sabbath morning.
00:26:49.64\00:26:53.04
So keep that in mind when
you're choosing a subject.
00:26:53.07\00:26:56.04
Your next step,
00:26:56.08\00:26:57.68
you now have to
study that subject.
00:26:57.71\00:27:00.55
So, you're going to have
to find a passage in the Bible
00:27:00.58\00:27:05.45
that illustrates
whatever that subject may be.
00:27:05.49\00:27:09.02
So if you've
chosen to preach on faith,
00:27:09.06\00:27:11.69
that means you're
going to have to find
00:27:11.73\00:27:13.23
a passage in the Bible
that talks about faith.
00:27:13.26\00:27:17.83
Now primarily, what
we're going to talk about
00:27:17.87\00:27:19.70
here is what's
called expository sermons
00:27:19.73\00:27:23.20
and all expository sermons are,
is you're taking one passage
00:27:23.24\00:27:28.11
or one story from the Bible,
and you're pulling out of it
00:27:28.14\00:27:31.75
or exposing all the
lessons that are in it,
00:27:31.78\00:27:35.38
you know, you're not
going all over the Bible.
00:27:35.42\00:27:37.29
That's a
different kind of sermon,
00:27:37.32\00:27:38.65
we'll talk about that later.
00:27:38.69\00:27:40.02
But expository means
you find one passage,
00:27:40.06\00:27:42.59
preach on that story,
00:27:42.62\00:27:44.29
and bring out the
lessons that are in it.
00:27:44.33\00:27:47.16
So, after you've
chosen the subject,
00:27:47.20\00:27:49.93
find a passage from the Bible.
00:27:49.96\00:27:52.67
And one of the
things that may be helpful,
00:27:52.70\00:27:54.50
you can go to any
Christian bookstore
00:27:54.54\00:27:56.10
and you can find
what's called a topical Bible.
00:27:56.14\00:27:59.54
And what a topical Bible
is, it lists different topics,
00:27:59.57\00:28:02.91
it's not in order, you know,
00:28:02.94\00:28:04.98
like Genesis,
Exodus, Leviticus, etc.
00:28:05.01\00:28:07.65
It's listed
topically, and then it gives you
00:28:07.68\00:28:10.29
all the passages in the Bible
00:28:10.32\00:28:12.19
that will talk about that topic.
00:28:12.22\00:28:14.42
And so it actually
makes your job much easier.
00:28:14.46\00:28:17.43
So go invest in a topical Bible,
00:28:17.46\00:28:19.93
probably cost you 20 bucks
00:28:19.96\00:28:21.90
or more if you're going
to get a really fancy one.
00:28:21.93\00:28:25.00
It's well worth it, if
you're going to preach.
00:28:25.03\00:28:27.94
So you've chosen your subject,
00:28:27.97\00:28:30.41
and you've chosen the passage
with which you're going to use.
00:28:30.44\00:28:33.71
So now what you're
going to need to do
00:28:33.74\00:28:35.84
is take a few hours,
and you've got a study
00:28:35.88\00:28:38.85
that particular
passage using the study tools
00:28:38.88\00:28:42.45
that we mentioned
in session number one.
00:28:42.48\00:28:45.22
Does that make sense thus far?
00:28:45.25\00:28:46.99
So that's going to mean,
00:28:47.02\00:28:48.36
I got to take time
to read that passage
00:28:48.39\00:28:51.39
in various
versions of the Bible.
00:28:51.43\00:28:53.73
Look it up in the SDA commentary
00:28:53.76\00:28:55.96
and see if I can get
some good information.
00:28:56.00\00:28:58.63
If any of Ellen White's
books comment on that passage,
00:28:58.67\00:29:02.20
try to find one.
00:29:02.24\00:29:03.81
And, of course, spend
time in prayer and meditation.
00:29:03.84\00:29:07.08
Now, while you're doing that,
00:29:07.11\00:29:09.01
that's going to
take you a few hours,
00:29:09.04\00:29:10.51
you're not going to
do that in half an hour.
00:29:10.55\00:29:12.91
I mean, you shouldn't
do it in half an hour,
00:29:12.95\00:29:14.88
you're looking at maybe
two, three, maybe four hours,
00:29:14.92\00:29:19.42
where you're just
going to the study tools,
00:29:19.45\00:29:21.69
and you're
learning about that passage.
00:29:21.72\00:29:24.16
And then while
you're doing that,
00:29:24.19\00:29:25.63
and this is important,
00:29:25.66\00:29:27.20
you're taking notes on
what you're learning, okay?
00:29:27.23\00:29:30.47
The notes are in
no particular order,
00:29:30.50\00:29:33.23
just as something strikes you,
00:29:33.27\00:29:35.60
as something
impresses your mind,
00:29:35.64\00:29:37.97
you're going to write
that down on a piece of paper,
00:29:38.01\00:29:40.58
because trust me,
00:29:40.61\00:29:41.94
you're not going to
remember it later, okay.
00:29:41.98\00:29:43.98
So you're going two, three hours
00:29:44.01\00:29:46.25
and it may not
be all in one day,
00:29:46.28\00:29:48.48
reading different
versions of the Bible.
00:29:48.52\00:29:50.39
Something stands out
to you. I'm taking notes.
00:29:50.42\00:29:53.59
When I look it up
in the commentary,
00:29:53.62\00:29:55.62
I'm taking notes of
something that might impress me.
00:29:55.66\00:29:58.63
If I use the Bible dictionary,
00:29:58.66\00:30:00.26
if I'm reading something
in the Spirit of Prophecy,
00:30:00.30\00:30:03.33
write it all down.
00:30:03.37\00:30:05.20
And so you may have two or
three or four pages of notes
00:30:05.23\00:30:09.00
that are in no
particular order whatsoever.
00:30:09.04\00:30:12.07
You're just trying to start
by getting it down on paper.
00:30:12.11\00:30:15.58
Later on, you'll use those notes
00:30:15.61\00:30:18.08
when you start
actually writing your sermon.
00:30:18.11\00:30:20.95
And some of the
things you write down,
00:30:20.98\00:30:22.88
you're not going to
use in the sermon anyway.
00:30:22.92\00:30:24.85
But you're not judging
that when you're taking notes.
00:30:24.89\00:30:26.65
You're just writing down things
that the Holy Spirit leads you
00:30:26.69\00:30:29.56
to believe are important,
and putting that on your notes,
00:30:29.59\00:30:32.86
probably two, three, four pages.
00:30:32.89\00:30:35.26
After you've done that,
00:30:35.30\00:30:37.70
try to force
yourself to do this part.
00:30:37.73\00:30:41.87
Summarize what lesson
00:30:41.90\00:30:43.77
you want to teach in the sermon.
00:30:43.81\00:30:46.17
Summarize it in one sentence.
00:30:46.21\00:30:49.74
Why do you think that
is? You know why that is?
00:30:49.78\00:30:52.81
Because when you go
to write your sermon,
00:30:52.85\00:30:55.35
that one sentence summary
is going to keep you on track.
00:30:55.38\00:30:59.25
Have you ever
got up and listened
00:30:59.29\00:31:00.62
to someone preach a sermon,
and they're all over the place.
00:31:00.66\00:31:03.19
They go over here,
and they go over here,
00:31:03.22\00:31:05.13
and they're not kind of focused
00:31:05.16\00:31:06.80
or centered on
one particular lesson.
00:31:06.83\00:31:09.16
Now God can still use that.
00:31:09.20\00:31:10.93
But sometimes to the listener,
it can be very frustrating
00:31:10.97\00:31:15.50
because you're left asking,
what was this sermon about?
00:31:15.54\00:31:19.87
So after you've taken your notes
00:31:19.91\00:31:21.81
and used your study
tools, summarize it.
00:31:21.84\00:31:25.35
One simple sentence,
what is it you want this
00:31:25.38\00:31:28.95
sermon to be about?
00:31:28.98\00:31:30.72
And that will go a long way
00:31:30.75\00:31:32.59
to keeping you
focused and on course
00:31:32.62\00:31:35.02
when you start
to write it, okay?
00:31:35.06\00:31:37.36
So now, let's actually do
this practically and for real.
00:31:37.39\00:31:41.60
In the handouts that you have,
00:31:41.63\00:31:44.00
there is a
sermon on Daniel 1:1-15.
00:31:44.03\00:31:49.30
Now, you'll notice I
wrote that a while back.
00:31:49.34\00:31:52.14
At that time, I
don't write my sermons
00:31:52.17\00:31:54.24
out word for word.
00:31:54.28\00:31:55.61
It's kind of more
like a extended outline,
00:31:55.64\00:31:59.21
now depending on
your personality,
00:31:59.25\00:32:00.85
you may do it differently,
00:32:00.88\00:32:02.42
you might just write an
outline and then go with it.
00:32:02.45\00:32:05.65
Or you may want to
write it word for word.
00:32:05.69\00:32:07.72
Now, I will tell you this,
00:32:07.76\00:32:09.56
the times that I
have forced myself
00:32:09.59\00:32:11.59
to write it word for word,
I remember it a lot better.
00:32:11.63\00:32:15.90
Because what you write down,
00:32:15.93\00:32:18.50
you really have to
process in your mind
00:32:18.53\00:32:20.17
and you remember it better,
00:32:20.20\00:32:21.54
but that's going to
depend what your personality is.
00:32:21.57\00:32:24.14
So, let's say you're
preaching on faithfulness.
00:32:24.17\00:32:28.44
You have chosen
Daniel Chapter 1.
00:32:28.48\00:32:32.31
So what you're going to
do now is take a few hours,
00:32:32.35\00:32:35.42
and you're going to study
the passage of Daniel 1:1-15.
00:32:35.45\00:32:40.36
You're going to read it
multiple times in your Bible.
00:32:40.39\00:32:42.79
You're going to read it
00:32:42.82\00:32:44.16
in different
versions of the Bible.
00:32:44.19\00:32:46.09
You're going to look
it up in the commentary.
00:32:46.13\00:32:48.63
You're going to look things
up in the Bible Dictionary.
00:32:48.66\00:32:51.23
You're going to get
out Prophets and Kings,
00:32:51.27\00:32:53.13
and read what Ellen
White wrote about that story
00:32:53.17\00:32:56.20
and find some very
precious lessons in it.
00:32:56.24\00:32:58.94
And then you're going to
summarize in one sentence,
00:32:58.97\00:33:02.44
what's the lesson
that you want to teach?
00:33:02.48\00:33:04.41
And for me in that sermon,
00:33:04.45\00:33:05.88
it was summarized
in this simple sense.
00:33:05.91\00:33:08.78
God calls His people to stand up
00:33:08.82\00:33:11.59
for their convictions.
00:33:11.62\00:33:13.36
That's what I wanted
the lesson to be about.
00:33:13.39\00:33:15.66
And that's actually
the message you heard
00:33:15.69\00:33:17.56
during Sabbath
school this morning.
00:33:17.59\00:33:19.89
Okay. Let's try this again now.
00:33:19.93\00:33:23.13
And I may, we may
turn the camera off later
00:33:23.16\00:33:25.03
and actually have you do this.
00:33:25.07\00:33:27.84
Let's say you decided
00:33:27.87\00:33:29.20
to preach a sermon on witnessing
00:33:29.24\00:33:32.64
and the importance of the church
00:33:32.67\00:33:34.04
being faithful to
the gospel commission.
00:33:34.08\00:33:36.61
Well, if that's your
subject, what is the first thing
00:33:36.64\00:33:39.61
that you're going to have to do?
00:33:39.65\00:33:41.28
You're going to have to pray
about it and decide on what.
00:33:41.32\00:33:47.16
Well, after
you've done the subject,
00:33:47.19\00:33:48.66
what do you have to decide?
00:33:48.69\00:33:50.03
You've chosen the
subject, what do you need next?
00:33:50.06\00:33:52.89
First thing on the screen.
00:33:52.93\00:33:55.46
The passage, you
got to find the passage
00:33:55.50\00:33:58.57
that talks about that subject.
00:33:58.60\00:34:00.94
So, let's say that
you've chosen Luke 5:27-32.
00:34:00.97\00:34:05.97
That's the story
where Jesus calls
00:34:06.01\00:34:08.31
Matthew to be a disciple.
00:34:08.34\00:34:10.18
And it specifically describes
00:34:10.21\00:34:11.91
how Jesus went to the gatherings
00:34:11.95\00:34:14.38
and the feasts of
the tax collectors.
00:34:14.42\00:34:17.42
So, if that's the subject
and passage you've chosen,
00:34:17.45\00:34:21.29
now, you're going to
have to take a few hours.
00:34:21.32\00:34:23.32
And you're going
to read that passage
00:34:23.36\00:34:25.56
in multiple
versions of the Bible.
00:34:25.59\00:34:27.13
Have you heard this before?
00:34:27.16\00:34:28.93
You're going to look
at it in the commentary,
00:34:28.96\00:34:31.37
the Bible Dictionary, find
out who tax collectors were
00:34:31.40\00:34:35.00
and what they were all about.
00:34:35.04\00:34:36.71
Read what Ellen
White says about it.
00:34:36.74\00:34:38.51
The whole time,
you're writing down notes
00:34:38.54\00:34:41.14
about things that
00:34:41.18\00:34:42.51
just kind of
grab your attention.
00:34:42.54\00:34:44.85
And at the end, you're
going to force yourself
00:34:44.88\00:34:47.12
to summarize in one sentence,
what you want the sermon
00:34:47.15\00:34:50.19
to be about before you write it.
00:34:50.22\00:34:52.55
And so in this case,
my summary sentence was,
00:34:52.59\00:34:56.83
Jesus calls us to build
relationships with lost people.
00:34:56.86\00:35:00.86
That's what I wanted the
whole sermon to be about.
00:35:00.90\00:35:03.03
God calls us to
associate with people
00:35:03.06\00:35:05.83
that don't know Him,
00:35:05.87\00:35:07.34
just like Jesus associated
with the tax collectors,
00:35:07.37\00:35:11.57
and that's going to
help me stay on target
00:35:11.61\00:35:13.41
when I write my
sermon, or else, you know,
00:35:13.44\00:35:15.58
I'll be tempted to go off
00:35:15.61\00:35:16.98
in all sorts of
different directions.
00:35:17.01\00:35:20.22
So that's how you
start studying for it.
00:35:20.25\00:35:22.58
All right.
00:35:28.69\00:35:30.03
Let's make our
way to session three.
00:35:30.06\00:35:31.39
And here we're going to learn
how to construct the sermon,
00:35:31.43\00:35:35.20
or how to actually
develop it and write it,
00:35:35.23\00:35:38.37
because at this point,
you've chosen your subject.
00:35:38.40\00:35:41.40
You've chosen your passage,
and you've taken a few hours
00:35:41.44\00:35:44.71
to use your study tools,
00:35:44.74\00:35:46.41
and you've
written about two or three
00:35:46.44\00:35:47.84
or four pages of notes.
00:35:47.88\00:35:50.01
Now you're ready to
start writing the sermon.
00:35:50.05\00:35:52.95
And to do it,
we're going to divide it
00:35:52.98\00:35:54.92
into four simple parts.
00:35:54.95\00:35:57.15
It always makes it
easier when you take a big job
00:35:57.19\00:35:59.85
and you divide it
into smaller parts,
00:35:59.89\00:36:02.66
one section at a time.
00:36:02.69\00:36:04.69
So let's learn how to do that
00:36:04.73\00:36:06.53
when we are
constructing a sermon.
00:36:06.56\00:36:09.36
These are the basic
four parts to a sermon.
00:36:09.40\00:36:13.03
Number one is the introduction.
00:36:13.07\00:36:15.74
And that is basically a story
00:36:15.77\00:36:17.57
or something that
is going to introduce
00:36:17.61\00:36:20.08
your subject to the people.
00:36:20.11\00:36:22.28
The body of the sermon
00:36:22.31\00:36:23.95
is where you actually talk about
00:36:23.98\00:36:26.21
what's going on in the passage.
00:36:26.25\00:36:27.82
You're describing it.
00:36:27.85\00:36:29.38
And this is where
you're going to go back
00:36:29.42\00:36:30.75
to English class in high school,
00:36:30.79\00:36:32.35
and you're going
to use the five W's.
00:36:32.39\00:36:34.42
You remember what they are?
00:36:34.46\00:36:36.93
Who, what, where, when, and why.
00:36:36.96\00:36:39.39
You're answering
all those questions
00:36:39.43\00:36:41.26
from the passage.
00:36:41.30\00:36:42.63
Who is speaking here?
Who are the characters?
00:36:42.66\00:36:45.80
What's
happening? What's going on?
00:36:45.83\00:36:49.00
When is this taking place?
Why is it happening, etcetera?
00:36:49.04\00:36:52.84
That's the body of the sermon.
00:36:52.87\00:36:55.14
Then when you get to the
end, you have what's called
00:36:55.18\00:36:57.75
the conclusion that is
where you bring out the lessons
00:36:57.78\00:37:02.58
from that passage,
00:37:02.62\00:37:03.95
this is where we
apply it to our life today.
00:37:03.99\00:37:07.36
And then the very
last part is the appeal.
00:37:07.39\00:37:10.59
And this is where you're going
to appeal for your audience
00:37:10.63\00:37:14.23
to make some type of decision
00:37:14.26\00:37:16.70
based on what they
just heard from you.
00:37:16.73\00:37:19.33
So those are the four
simple parts of a sermon.
00:37:19.37\00:37:23.14
Let's take some time to
explain how each part works.
00:37:23.17\00:37:27.31
And then we're
actually going to apply it
00:37:27.34\00:37:29.11
to some of the
sermons and texts that
00:37:29.14\00:37:31.15
we already
looked up in this class.
00:37:31.18\00:37:33.45
So let's start
with the introduction.
00:37:33.48\00:37:36.45
Probably the
introduction and the appeal
00:37:36.48\00:37:39.79
are the two most
important parts of a sermon.
00:37:39.82\00:37:43.29
Because when it
comes to the introduction,
00:37:43.32\00:37:46.36
pretty much, people
are already deciding
00:37:46.39\00:37:50.03
in the first
two or three minutes
00:37:50.07\00:37:51.40
of your sermon,
whether they want to listen
00:37:51.43\00:37:54.07
to the rest of it.
00:37:54.10\00:37:55.44
You think
that's true, yes or no?
00:37:55.47\00:37:57.01
I mean, they're
making their minds up
00:37:57.04\00:37:58.37
in the first two
or three minutes.
00:37:58.41\00:37:59.74
So in the beginning
you've got to do something
00:37:59.77\00:38:02.01
that gets their attention.
00:38:02.04\00:38:03.78
Now, I'm not suggesting
you got to do gymnastics
00:38:03.81\00:38:05.81
or flips on the stage.
00:38:05.85\00:38:07.35
But they have to
know this is something
00:38:07.38\00:38:09.85
that's going to be
worthy of listening to.
00:38:09.88\00:38:12.12
So many times an introduction,
00:38:12.15\00:38:14.56
it could simply be a story
that introduces the subject.
00:38:14.59\00:38:19.09
It could be an
interesting fact or a statistic.
00:38:19.13\00:38:22.90
It could be a question
that you invite the people
00:38:22.93\00:38:25.13
to think about and consider.
00:38:25.17\00:38:26.97
It might be a current news item,
00:38:27.00\00:38:28.54
you know,
something in the newspaper
00:38:28.57\00:38:30.34
that's happening
in the world today.
00:38:30.37\00:38:32.24
Or it could be something
from your own life experience.
00:38:32.27\00:38:35.88
Those are the kind I
love to use as introductions,
00:38:35.91\00:38:38.71
my own experiences.
00:38:38.75\00:38:40.58
That's going to get
people's attention right away.
00:38:40.62\00:38:44.25
Now you may wonder,
00:38:44.29\00:38:45.62
so where do I find these things?
00:38:45.65\00:38:48.19
Where do I find
stories like this
00:38:48.22\00:38:50.03
and interesting
facts and statistics?
00:38:50.06\00:38:53.26
Well, you're going to have
00:38:53.29\00:38:54.63
to learn to do
reading in your life.
00:38:54.66\00:38:56.36
You know, if you
read the newspaper,
00:38:56.40\00:38:58.57
obviously, you're going
to have current news items.
00:38:58.60\00:39:01.17
If you're looking for stories
00:39:01.20\00:39:02.54
that introduce
different subjects,
00:39:02.57\00:39:04.54
probably one of the best things
00:39:04.57\00:39:05.91
you could do is go to
a Christian bookstore.
00:39:05.94\00:39:08.58
And many of them will sell books
00:39:08.61\00:39:11.01
that have thousands of different
00:39:11.05\00:39:12.58
sermon illustrations in it.
00:39:12.61\00:39:14.32
You know, you
could look up faith,
00:39:14.35\00:39:15.68
they'll give you a bunch
of stories to introduce faith,
00:39:15.72\00:39:17.95
you know, unity, I mean,
00:39:17.99\00:39:20.52
whatever subject
you can think of,
00:39:20.56\00:39:22.02
they'll give you
all sorts of stories
00:39:22.06\00:39:24.36
that will introduce it,
00:39:24.39\00:39:25.73
you could probably
buy that for 20 bucks
00:39:25.76\00:39:27.13
or less at a
Christian bookstore.
00:39:27.16\00:39:30.33
And maybe another option
00:39:30.37\00:39:32.33
that at first I didn't think of,
00:39:32.37\00:39:35.10
actually email,
would you believe that?
00:39:35.14\00:39:38.24
Every so often, actually,
00:39:38.27\00:39:40.31
more than every
so often these days,
00:39:40.34\00:39:43.55
we all usually have
someone who gets forward happy.
00:39:43.58\00:39:47.22
Have anybody like that on email?
00:39:47.25\00:39:49.12
Where it seems
like they forward you
00:39:49.15\00:39:50.55
everything in the book.
00:39:50.59\00:39:51.92
Now usually that annoys me.
00:39:51.95\00:39:53.46
But I have found a
couple of times that
00:39:53.49\00:39:55.52
when they have
forwarded me stories
00:39:55.56\00:39:57.36
instead of
deleting it right away,
00:39:57.39\00:39:59.29
I'll just take a
quick minute to read it
00:39:59.33\00:40:01.33
and look at it.
00:40:01.36\00:40:02.70
And I found a few actual
good sermon illustrations
00:40:02.73\00:40:06.60
in some of those forwards.
00:40:06.63\00:40:08.34
So you may want to print it
off and save it in a folder.
00:40:08.37\00:40:11.37
I even know some preachers
who have a file cabinet,
00:40:11.41\00:40:13.94
every time they
come across a good story,
00:40:13.98\00:40:16.01
they will file that
story away in a cabinet,
00:40:16.04\00:40:19.01
or just save it in
their computer somewhere
00:40:19.05\00:40:21.35
because
there'll always be a time
00:40:21.38\00:40:23.35
when you can use it.
00:40:23.39\00:40:24.72
So you have to be
willing to do some reading,
00:40:24.75\00:40:26.55
and maybe buy some
sermon illustration books
00:40:26.59\00:40:30.36
at a bookstore, but by far,
00:40:30.39\00:40:32.59
think of your
own life experience.
00:40:32.63\00:40:34.13
You have a story about yourself.
00:40:34.16\00:40:35.93
That's probably
a good thing to do,
00:40:35.96\00:40:37.67
to share that introduction.
00:40:37.70\00:40:40.14
I will give you a hint on this.
00:40:40.17\00:40:42.57
If you are married,
and you have a family,
00:40:42.60\00:40:46.68
do not share
stories about your family
00:40:46.71\00:40:48.94
without their permission
00:40:48.98\00:40:51.95
especially if
they're negative stories.
00:40:51.98\00:40:54.62
I mean,
sometimes negative stories
00:40:54.65\00:40:56.18
make a point too, like
you notice this morning,
00:40:56.22\00:40:59.45
at the 11 am sermon
when I shared the story
00:40:59.49\00:41:01.86
of quitting seminary and how,
00:41:01.89\00:41:04.26
you know, Markita screamed at me
00:41:04.29\00:41:05.69
when I wanted to quit
00:41:05.73\00:41:07.06
and locked
herself in the bathroom.
00:41:07.10\00:41:08.60
I wouldn't dare tell that story
00:41:08.63\00:41:10.23
without getting her
permission to do so.
00:41:10.27\00:41:12.73
Because the last
thing you want to do
00:41:12.77\00:41:14.70
is surprise your
spouse or even your children
00:41:14.74\00:41:18.61
with a story
that embarrasses them.
00:41:18.64\00:41:21.11
The church may think it's funny,
00:41:21.14\00:41:23.14
but you're going to
have a quiet ride home.
00:41:23.18\00:41:26.58
So, make sure you get
permission to do that.
00:41:26.61\00:41:29.48
If you're going to
share a negative story,
00:41:29.52\00:41:31.22
it's usually
best to use yourself
00:41:31.25\00:41:34.02
because you're safe with that,
and people can relate to it.
00:41:34.06\00:41:37.19
But even if it's a positive one,
00:41:37.23\00:41:38.79
if you're using
real life people,
00:41:38.83\00:41:42.03
make sure that you
get their permission
00:41:42.06\00:41:45.63
or use fictitious names.
00:41:45.67\00:41:49.27
So just, you know,
00:41:49.30\00:41:50.64
you can use your
judgment on that.
00:41:50.67\00:41:52.01
But the introduction needs to be
00:41:52.04\00:41:53.38
something that
grabs their attention
00:41:53.41\00:41:55.94
right from the beginning.
00:41:55.98\00:41:57.91
Second, this is
the body of the sermon.
00:41:57.95\00:42:00.98
When I'm writing it,
00:42:01.02\00:42:02.35
this is now where
I'm going to describe
00:42:02.38\00:42:04.29
what's happening in the passage,
00:42:04.32\00:42:06.35
I'm going to write it out
and describe it with feeling,
00:42:06.39\00:42:09.16
you know, with emotion,
00:42:09.19\00:42:10.86
talk about what's
taking place there.
00:42:10.89\00:42:13.40
Use all the notes, all the notes
00:42:13.43\00:42:15.66
you just wrote
from your study tools.
00:42:15.70\00:42:18.40
That's what you're going to use
00:42:18.43\00:42:19.80
to start
writing out your sermon.
00:42:19.83\00:42:21.94
Because if you just try to
look at a blank piece of paper,
00:42:21.97\00:42:25.67
and write what
comes to your mind,
00:42:25.71\00:42:27.81
you're going to be
very, very frustrated,
00:42:27.84\00:42:29.51
you're going to be
all over the board.
00:42:29.54\00:42:31.11
That's what you do
00:42:31.15\00:42:32.48
when you're simply taking notes.
00:42:32.51\00:42:34.25
So you don't have to go
in any particular order.
00:42:34.28\00:42:36.45
But now when it comes
to writing the sermon,
00:42:36.48\00:42:39.32
you can use your notes
and you can start writing it
00:42:39.35\00:42:42.79
in a more organized way.
00:42:42.82\00:42:44.96
And you have information
and material to work with.
00:42:44.99\00:42:48.93
Does that make
sense. Can you say amen?
00:42:48.96\00:42:51.10
So that's what the body
of the sermon is going to be.
00:42:51.13\00:42:53.84
Then comes the conclusion.
00:42:53.87\00:42:56.91
This is where
you're going to share
00:42:56.94\00:42:59.44
one or two lessons
00:42:59.47\00:43:01.84
that we can
learn from the passage.
00:43:01.88\00:43:04.28
Now notice, how
many lessons does it say?
00:43:04.31\00:43:07.18
One or two, not seven
or eight, not 10 or 12.
00:43:07.22\00:43:11.92
Because once you get
past number three or four,
00:43:11.95\00:43:14.36
I'm telling you,
nobody's going to remember it.
00:43:14.39\00:43:16.79
One or two
lessons from the passage.
00:43:16.83\00:43:20.03
If there are 10
lessons from the passage,
00:43:20.06\00:43:22.70
and it's quite
possible there is, guess what?
00:43:22.73\00:43:25.40
You can preach a series
of sermons on that passage,
00:43:25.43\00:43:28.60
and you can use
different lessons
00:43:28.64\00:43:30.27
in another sermon,
00:43:30.31\00:43:31.64
but usually one
or two is sufficient
00:43:31.67\00:43:34.98
if you want the people to
particularly remember them,
00:43:35.01\00:43:38.58
and take time to explain
00:43:38.61\00:43:40.75
how can I relate
those lessons to my life
00:43:40.78\00:43:44.45
or to your life today?
00:43:44.49\00:43:46.52
That's the conclusion part.
00:43:46.55\00:43:48.62
And then finally,
the most important part
00:43:48.66\00:43:51.96
of the sermon is the appeal.
00:43:51.99\00:43:56.00
This is where now
you're going to invite
00:43:56.03\00:43:59.07
the people to make a decision
00:43:59.10\00:44:01.57
or take an action
based on what they heard.
00:44:01.60\00:44:04.54
The whole point
of preaching a sermon
00:44:04.57\00:44:06.91
is to influence people.
00:44:06.94\00:44:08.48
Does that make sense, yes or no?
00:44:08.51\00:44:10.65
Because if I preach a sermon,
00:44:10.68\00:44:13.88
and I don't make
any appeal for a person
00:44:13.92\00:44:16.62
to make some kind of
choice in their life,
00:44:16.65\00:44:18.99
I haven't really
preached a sermon.
00:44:19.02\00:44:20.72
I've just simply given a lecture
00:44:20.76\00:44:23.66
and filled their
mind with information.
00:44:23.69\00:44:26.66
And a sermon is
more than information.
00:44:26.70\00:44:30.40
It's to draw a
decision out of people,
00:44:30.43\00:44:34.00
it may not be a
decision to be baptized
00:44:34.04\00:44:36.04
or join the church.
00:44:36.07\00:44:37.41
It could be any simple,
00:44:37.44\00:44:38.77
small decision in
their spiritual life,
00:44:38.81\00:44:40.91
maybe to recommit
themselves to Jesus,
00:44:40.94\00:44:43.91
to forgive someone,
00:44:43.95\00:44:46.61
to pay more
attention to their family,
00:44:46.65\00:44:49.52
to be more faithful in
their daily devotional life.
00:44:49.55\00:44:52.62
I mean, it could be
100 different things,
00:44:52.65\00:44:54.99
but I need to ask
them to make a decision.
00:44:55.02\00:44:58.99
If you think about
political candidates,
00:44:59.03\00:45:01.53
next year, if not already,
00:45:01.56\00:45:03.70
eventually you're going to start
00:45:03.73\00:45:05.07
hearing debates.
00:45:05.10\00:45:06.57
And you're going to start
hearing them giving speeches.
00:45:06.60\00:45:09.37
And I don't care what
party you attend to support,
00:45:09.40\00:45:13.54
when you hear the
candidate making a speech,
00:45:13.58\00:45:16.14
particularly
when it's televised,
00:45:16.18\00:45:18.25
what does he or she do
at the end of his speech
00:45:18.28\00:45:21.72
or the debate?
00:45:21.75\00:45:23.08
What do they do?
00:45:23.12\00:45:24.62
They make an
appeal for you to do what?
00:45:24.65\00:45:27.72
To vote for them.
00:45:27.76\00:45:29.09
Everything they're
saying is meant to influence you
00:45:29.12\00:45:32.76
to make a decision,
00:45:32.79\00:45:34.46
hopefully one that's
positive and in their favor.
00:45:34.50\00:45:37.37
So if the world knows
how to make an appeal,
00:45:37.40\00:45:41.20
shouldn't God's
people in God's church know
00:45:41.24\00:45:43.77
how to make positive appeals
00:45:43.81\00:45:45.74
and invite people
to make a decision?
00:45:45.77\00:45:49.54
Now we'll spend more
time talking about, later on,
00:45:49.58\00:45:52.38
how to make those appeals.
00:45:52.41\00:45:53.98
But there are basically
four or five different appeals
00:45:54.02\00:45:56.79
you can do.
00:45:56.82\00:45:58.15
Some of them you saw today.
00:45:58.19\00:45:59.79
One is asking people
00:45:59.82\00:46:01.72
to bow their heads in their seat
00:46:01.76\00:46:03.36
and pray silently.
00:46:03.39\00:46:04.99
You know, at the
end of the sermon,
00:46:05.03\00:46:06.49
you know, you might
invite the person to say,
00:46:06.53\00:46:08.36
I just wanna give you a
minute or two to just pray about
00:46:08.40\00:46:11.80
the things that we've
learned from God's Word,
00:46:11.83\00:46:14.44
and see what the Holy
Spirit may lead you to do,
00:46:14.47\00:46:16.91
what choices you might
need to make in your life.
00:46:16.94\00:46:20.48
And then the
organist or pianist,
00:46:20.51\00:46:22.04
or whomever plays
for a minute or two,
00:46:22.08\00:46:23.85
while people
silently bow their heads.
00:46:23.88\00:46:26.45
That's asking people to
make some sort of decision.
00:46:26.48\00:46:29.65
Another one is the
raising of hands like we,
00:46:29.68\00:46:31.79
like we did today.
00:46:31.82\00:46:33.32
Where you, you know,
00:46:33.36\00:46:34.69
you may make an appeal
that goes something like this.
00:46:34.72\00:46:37.99
Maybe today, you
sense that you need to have
00:46:38.03\00:46:40.30
a stronger devotional life,
00:46:40.33\00:46:42.20
that you need to
spend more time with Jesus.
00:46:42.23\00:46:45.20
You know, if it's
your desire to say, Lord,
00:46:45.23\00:46:47.30
please give me a deeper
hunger and thirst for Your Word.
00:46:47.34\00:46:50.61
Help me to be faithful
in spending time with You,
00:46:50.64\00:46:53.64
I want to invite you
to just raise your hand
00:46:53.68\00:46:55.34
right now, as we pray.
00:46:55.38\00:46:57.61
And then you
have a word of prayer.
00:46:57.65\00:46:59.41
When the person
raises their hand
00:46:59.45\00:47:01.22
and they're saying, "Yes,
00:47:01.25\00:47:02.58
I want to have a
stronger devotional life."
00:47:02.62\00:47:04.75
Is that making the
decision, yes or no?
00:47:04.79\00:47:07.39
That is making a decision.
Same thing with standing.
00:47:07.42\00:47:10.89
If you want to be
ready when Jesus comes,
00:47:10.93\00:47:12.69
would you stand with me
as we sing our closing song?
00:47:12.73\00:47:15.90
That is a decision.
00:47:15.93\00:47:18.13
And my favorite one,
00:47:18.17\00:47:19.77
which you might
have figured out,
00:47:19.80\00:47:21.30
is the altar call,
00:47:21.34\00:47:23.00
where you actually
invite people to come forward
00:47:23.04\00:47:24.97
because that is
a major decision.
00:47:25.01\00:47:26.94
It's not easy to
get out of your seat
00:47:26.98\00:47:28.84
and to come forward.
00:47:28.88\00:47:30.61
And some people
prefer to use decision cards,
00:47:30.65\00:47:33.82
where they hand out
the cards ahead of time,
00:47:33.85\00:47:36.05
and they go over
those cards at the end
00:47:36.08\00:47:38.69
and people turn them in.
00:47:38.72\00:47:40.62
And again, we'll talk about it
00:47:40.66\00:47:41.99
in more detail
just a little bit later.
00:47:42.02\00:47:45.29
So now, let's go
back to Daniel 1,
00:47:45.33\00:47:47.76
the passage that
we already looked at,
00:47:47.80\00:47:50.27
and if you will take your packet
00:47:50.30\00:47:52.07
that you were given,
you will notice on the page
00:47:52.10\00:47:55.34
that says expository sermons.
00:47:55.37\00:47:58.77
If you would turn that page,
00:47:58.81\00:48:00.78
you should see a
sermon that is entitled,
00:48:00.81\00:48:03.88
Dare to be a
Daniel, if you have that,
00:48:03.91\00:48:07.05
would you just hold
it up for me to see?
00:48:07.08\00:48:08.98
So I know we're all
looking at the same thing.
00:48:09.02\00:48:10.75
Okay.
00:48:10.79\00:48:12.22
Now again, I have changed it
00:48:12.25\00:48:13.59
since the time that
I have written this.
00:48:13.62\00:48:16.16
And this is the
much, much shorter version,
00:48:16.19\00:48:18.59
but I'm giving it to you
because I want you to see
00:48:18.63\00:48:21.20
the four parts of
the sermon in here.
00:48:21.23\00:48:24.73
Now, you won't have
time to read it now,
00:48:24.77\00:48:26.17
don't read it
while I'm speaking.
00:48:26.20\00:48:28.17
But I want to go through
00:48:28.20\00:48:29.54
the four parts of
this particular sermon,
00:48:29.57\00:48:31.77
and then when you read it,
00:48:31.81\00:48:33.17
it'll make a whole
lot more sense to you.
00:48:33.21\00:48:35.51
So this is a
story that you actually
00:48:35.54\00:48:37.88
heard this morning at 10 am,
00:48:37.91\00:48:40.35
about being faithful in
the small matters of life.
00:48:40.38\00:48:44.69
You will notice
that in the introduction,
00:48:44.72\00:48:47.16
the introduction
was a story that I told,
00:48:47.19\00:48:50.39
about how I
compromised my convictions
00:48:50.43\00:48:53.36
about the Sabbath one day,
00:48:53.40\00:48:55.16
you might remember
me telling that story.
00:48:55.20\00:48:57.60
That was the story
00:48:57.63\00:48:58.97
that introduced
the subject, okay,
00:48:59.00\00:49:01.64
got people's attention at
least I'd like to think that
00:49:01.67\00:49:03.97
it got people's
attention from the beginning.
00:49:04.01\00:49:07.64
Then if you go into
the body of the passage,
00:49:07.68\00:49:11.48
this is where you start.
00:49:11.51\00:49:12.85
I start describing
what's going on here
00:49:12.88\00:49:15.38
in Daniel Chapter 1.
00:49:15.42\00:49:17.49
And you describe,
00:49:17.52\00:49:18.89
what's it like for Babylon
to be attacking Jerusalem?
00:49:18.92\00:49:23.02
What are the people thinking
00:49:23.06\00:49:24.39
as they're losing their
homes and their families?
00:49:24.43\00:49:27.96
What's it like
for these young men
00:49:28.00\00:49:29.66
to be taken captive,
00:49:29.70\00:49:31.63
led out of the city knowing that
00:49:31.67\00:49:33.23
they'll probably
never return again?
00:49:33.27\00:49:36.20
How did they
feel having to adjust
00:49:36.24\00:49:38.31
to a new
environment like Babylon?
00:49:38.34\00:49:40.31
You talk about all that
00:49:40.34\00:49:41.68
because that's
what's in the passage,
00:49:41.71\00:49:43.04
you know, describe
the pressure to fit in.
00:49:43.08\00:49:46.72
Were they
thankful to Nebuchadnezzar,
00:49:46.75\00:49:48.42
for what he did for
them and sparing their lives?
00:49:48.45\00:49:51.79
And how are they going to deal
00:49:51.82\00:49:53.36
with all the
temptation around them,
00:49:53.39\00:49:55.76
described the dilemma in
not eating the king's food.
00:49:55.79\00:49:59.89
Take time to describe
Daniel's steadfastness,
00:49:59.93\00:50:02.30
his faith in doing what's
right in even a small matter.
00:50:02.33\00:50:06.63
That's what you find
in the body of the sermon.
00:50:06.67\00:50:08.70
It's all about
00:50:08.74\00:50:10.07
what is
happening in the passage,
00:50:10.11\00:50:12.64
you're describing it in detail.
00:50:12.67\00:50:16.58
The next part
would be the conclusion.
00:50:16.61\00:50:19.15
And if you'll
turn the page on that,
00:50:19.18\00:50:21.32
there should be a
section, section three,
00:50:21.35\00:50:23.62
that says conclusion,
with lesson in parenthesis.
00:50:23.65\00:50:28.36
Now, your conclusion
section is going to be bigger
00:50:28.39\00:50:31.06
than what I made it right here,
00:50:31.09\00:50:32.43
because some of my
sermons are by memory.
00:50:32.46\00:50:35.03
But in that section,
the lesson that I wanted
00:50:35.06\00:50:38.13
to bring out was one simple one.
00:50:38.17\00:50:41.40
God calls us to be faithful,
00:50:41.44\00:50:44.11
even in the
small matters of life.
00:50:44.14\00:50:47.48
So I expand on that lesson.
00:50:47.51\00:50:49.58
And if you can come up
00:50:49.61\00:50:50.95
with an
illustration in daily life,
00:50:50.98\00:50:53.52
then you can talk about that.
00:50:53.55\00:50:55.68
But that's the one
lesson that comes out
00:50:55.72\00:50:57.49
on the conclusion that
I wanted them to remember,
00:50:57.52\00:51:01.46
and I think it
worked in that sermon,
00:51:01.49\00:51:04.13
because I've
heard some of you say,
00:51:04.16\00:51:06.39
and actually repeat that lesson
00:51:06.43\00:51:08.90
that I preached a 10 am.
00:51:08.93\00:51:10.73
So that told me,
that you got the point,
00:51:10.77\00:51:13.30
and that you got
that one main lesson.
00:51:13.34\00:51:16.71
That's why when
you're writing your notes,
00:51:16.74\00:51:18.77
I told you to try to
summarize in one sentence,
00:51:18.81\00:51:21.18
what you want the
sermon to be about,
00:51:21.21\00:51:23.14
because it keeps you on track.
00:51:23.18\00:51:25.15
And if you keep repeating
that sentence in the sermon,
00:51:25.18\00:51:28.18
people will remember it.
00:51:28.22\00:51:31.75
And then lastly, the appeal.
00:51:31.79\00:51:33.96
If you will read that part,
00:51:33.99\00:51:35.89
the appeal was
basically asking people,
00:51:35.92\00:51:39.13
if there are any areas
of compromise in their life?
00:51:39.16\00:51:43.00
Are they willing to
dare to be like Daniel?
00:51:43.03\00:51:46.53
And are they willing to stand up
00:51:46.57\00:51:48.00
for their
convictions at all times?
00:51:48.04\00:51:50.51
That was the appeal.
00:51:50.54\00:51:51.87
And I appealed
by inviting people
00:51:51.91\00:51:53.51
to raise their
hands and say, Lord,
00:51:53.54\00:51:56.18
would You give me a
heart like Daniel had,
00:51:56.21\00:51:59.35
and those who raised their hands
00:51:59.38\00:52:01.78
were making a decision.
00:52:01.82\00:52:04.65
Does that make sense, yes or no?
00:52:04.69\00:52:06.76
Can you see the four
parts in that sermon?
00:52:06.79\00:52:10.16
Good. Let's do
another one, okay?
00:52:10.19\00:52:12.73
In fact, when I preach tonight,
00:52:12.76\00:52:14.76
I actually want you to come back
00:52:14.80\00:52:17.47
and I want you to
follow and see if you can find
00:52:17.50\00:52:20.44
the four parts of
the sermon tonight.
00:52:20.47\00:52:22.64
Get a piece of paper,
00:52:22.67\00:52:24.01
and I actually
want you to write down
00:52:24.04\00:52:26.37
and see if you can
summarize all four parts
00:52:26.41\00:52:29.14
and if you've been able
to find them in the sermon,
00:52:29.18\00:52:31.61
because once
you understand this,
00:52:31.65\00:52:34.15
you'll be able to sit through
00:52:34.18\00:52:35.52
different
sermons from preachers,
00:52:35.55\00:52:37.29
maybe things you see on 3ABN,
00:52:37.32\00:52:39.15
and you'll be
able to say, oh, yeah,
00:52:39.19\00:52:40.69
that's the introduction.
00:52:40.72\00:52:42.42
Okay, here's the conclusion.
He's bringing out the lessons.
00:52:42.46\00:52:44.79
All right, here
comes the appeal.
00:52:44.83\00:52:46.76
You know, when you
know those four sections,
00:52:46.80\00:52:49.23
it just makes it so much easier
00:52:49.26\00:52:50.97
to write a
sermon and to be honest,
00:52:51.00\00:52:53.30
it makes it easier
for the congregation
00:52:53.34\00:52:55.20
to understand it,
because it's simple.
00:52:55.24\00:52:58.77
I've read books
on preaching where,
00:52:58.81\00:53:01.48
there's like 14 different
steps to preaching a sermon.
00:53:01.51\00:53:05.45
And I'm reading that thinking,
00:53:05.48\00:53:07.62
I'm not even following
what the guy is saying.
00:53:07.65\00:53:10.45
So if I can't follow it,
00:53:10.49\00:53:12.39
I know laypeople
aren't going to be
00:53:12.42\00:53:13.76
able to follow it.
00:53:13.79\00:53:15.12
So, four simple
steps is all you need.
00:53:15.16\00:53:18.63
And I don't know about you,
00:53:18.66\00:53:20.00
but I prefer
things that are simple.
00:53:20.03\00:53:23.57
Let's try the next one
here. Oh, no, let's go to this.
00:53:23.60\00:53:26.84
The introduction,
story of Sabbath compromise.
00:53:26.87\00:53:30.81
The body of the sermon
describing Daniel 1 in detail.
00:53:30.84\00:53:35.21
The conclusion, God
calls His people to stand
00:53:35.24\00:53:38.75
for their
convictions at all times,
00:53:38.78\00:53:40.65
even in the small matters,
00:53:40.68\00:53:42.22
and the appeal,
asking folks to commit,
00:53:42.25\00:53:46.35
to stand up for
their convictions
00:53:46.39\00:53:48.92
when they're tested.
00:53:48.96\00:53:50.79
That makes a
sermon understandable.
00:53:50.83\00:53:54.46
Let's do another one.
00:53:54.50\00:53:56.00
Now, this one
you haven't done yet,
00:53:56.03\00:53:57.70
and if we had time,
00:53:57.73\00:53:59.07
I would actually
have you read this,
00:53:59.10\00:54:00.90
but the next sermon
if you turn the page
00:54:00.94\00:54:03.54
is one of my favorite.
00:54:03.57\00:54:04.97
It's called Matthew's
party. Do you see that?
00:54:05.01\00:54:08.34
When you go
through Matthew's party,
00:54:08.38\00:54:10.15
you'll notice I have
the four sections in boxes,
00:54:10.18\00:54:13.42
they're actually
enclosed in a box.
00:54:13.45\00:54:16.45
And the
introduction to this sermon
00:54:16.48\00:54:19.32
is the story of
finding lost keys.
00:54:19.35\00:54:22.06
Or actually, I should tell you
what the sermon is about first.
00:54:22.09\00:54:24.93
Luke 5 is Jesus calling
Matthew to be a disciple
00:54:24.96\00:54:28.43
and how Jesus associated
with the tax collectors.
00:54:28.46\00:54:32.10
And basically the lesson is,
00:54:32.13\00:54:33.77
God wants us to
reach out to lost people.
00:54:33.80\00:54:37.31
So the introduction
for this story that I used,
00:54:37.34\00:54:40.58
was a story of me
finding lost keys.
00:54:40.61\00:54:44.01
How frustrated I was that
I lost something important,
00:54:44.05\00:54:47.42
and how overjoyed I was
00:54:47.45\00:54:49.15
when I finally
was able to find it.
00:54:49.18\00:54:51.72
That's the story that
introduced the subject.
00:54:51.75\00:54:54.79
Now I could have
used 100 different things.
00:54:54.82\00:54:56.69
I could have told
a story of someone,
00:54:56.73\00:54:59.33
of a Christian who formed
00:54:59.36\00:55:00.70
a friendship
with a non believer,
00:55:00.73\00:55:02.50
or I could have
got on the internet,
00:55:02.53\00:55:04.27
and I could have found
some interesting statistics
00:55:04.30\00:55:07.17
of how many
people there are that
00:55:07.20\00:55:08.67
have never heard the
name of Jesus in this world,
00:55:08.70\00:55:11.41
maybe things
from the 10/40 Window
00:55:11.44\00:55:13.51
and as such.
00:55:13.54\00:55:15.11
Any of those
things could have been
00:55:15.14\00:55:16.91
a good
introduction to the sermon.
00:55:16.95\00:55:19.61
Then when you turn the page,
00:55:19.65\00:55:20.98
you come to the
body of the sermon.
00:55:21.02\00:55:24.15
That's where I read
the passage to the people.
00:55:24.19\00:55:27.26
And then I start describing
what's going on there.
00:55:27.29\00:55:31.03
Remember, the five W's?
00:55:31.06\00:55:33.29
Who, what, where, when, and why.
00:55:33.33\00:55:38.27
And so I can talk about,
wow, what was it like for Jesus
00:55:38.30\00:55:41.60
to call
Matthew, a tax collector?
00:55:41.64\00:55:44.67
What were the
other disciples thinking
00:55:44.71\00:55:46.91
when they saw a
wicked, evil tax collector,
00:55:46.94\00:55:50.31
become part of the appointed 12?
00:55:50.35\00:55:54.88
What was John thinking?
00:55:54.92\00:55:56.99
What was Peter thinking?
00:55:57.02\00:55:59.09
What was Jesus thinking?
00:55:59.12\00:56:01.46
Then you can describe
how Jesus went to the party
00:56:01.49\00:56:05.69
of Matthew's old friends.
00:56:05.73\00:56:07.80
He went to their feasts.
00:56:07.83\00:56:09.63
You can describe what
went on at that party.
00:56:09.66\00:56:13.54
What do you think tax
collectors talked about?
00:56:13.57\00:56:16.37
Did they crack any
jokes that made Jesus
00:56:16.40\00:56:18.37
or the disciples uncomfortable?
00:56:18.41\00:56:21.28
Why did Jesus
choose to go there?
00:56:21.31\00:56:24.41
You could take
time to talk about
00:56:24.45\00:56:25.78
what is a tax collector anyway?
00:56:25.81\00:56:27.88
Why is a tax collector
considered to be immoral?
00:56:27.92\00:56:30.59
You would have to look that up
00:56:30.62\00:56:31.95
in the
commentary and other parts.
00:56:31.99\00:56:33.82
And it will tell
you that tax collectors
00:56:33.86\00:56:36.12
were looked at as enemies,
00:56:36.16\00:56:37.93
because they
collected money for Rome,
00:56:37.96\00:56:40.86
and they took your
money and gave it to Rome,
00:56:40.90\00:56:44.07
and usually
charged you two times more,
00:56:44.10\00:56:46.97
and they kept part
of it for themselves.
00:56:47.00\00:56:49.07
That's how they got rich.
00:56:49.10\00:56:51.41
They didn't care if
people wouldn't like them.
00:56:51.44\00:56:53.48
They didn't care
00:56:53.51\00:56:54.84
if they were
going to be ostracized
00:56:54.88\00:56:56.21
by their own race.
00:56:56.24\00:56:57.71
It was a way to get rich quick.
00:56:57.75\00:57:00.78
And since tax
collectors were mostly men
00:57:00.82\00:57:04.05
who had a lot of money,
00:57:04.09\00:57:06.05
these were the kind of
guys who hung around themselves
00:57:06.09\00:57:09.09
and had some very
interesting parties to go to.
00:57:09.12\00:57:12.36
And you can be
reading between the lines,
00:57:12.39\00:57:14.13
if you know what I mean.
00:57:14.16\00:57:15.73
That's what tax collectors were.
00:57:15.76\00:57:18.20
That's why they are lumped in
00:57:18.23\00:57:19.57
with sinners and
publicans and prostitutes, etc.
00:57:19.60\00:57:23.44
And so Jesus goes to
one of these gatherings
00:57:23.47\00:57:27.68
and that went directly against
everything in the culture
00:57:27.71\00:57:32.45
that He lived in.
00:57:32.48\00:57:34.88
Hi, this is David Klinedinst.
00:57:34.92\00:57:37.75
I hope you've been blessed
by the presentation today.
00:57:37.79\00:57:40.99
If you would
like more information
00:57:41.02\00:57:42.69
about our ministry,
00:57:42.72\00:57:44.26
or about our other
seminars and presentations,
00:57:44.29\00:57:47.46
visit our websites
at davidklinedinst.org,
00:57:47.50\00:57:52.53
or discoverbibleprophecy.org.
00:57:52.57\00:57:56.27
If you'd like to make a donation
00:57:56.30\00:57:57.91
to keep these
sermons on the air,
00:57:57.94\00:57:59.91
you can contact us
00:57:59.94\00:58:01.34
at Discover Prophecy Ministries,
00:58:01.38\00:58:03.88
PO Box 850,
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00:58:03.91\00:58:09.75
or call toll
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00:58:09.78\00:58:15.22