"Preaching Life-Changing Sermons" (Jesse L. Nelson)

TITLE: Preaching Life-Changing Sermons: Six Steps to Developing and Delivering Biblical Messages
AUTHOR: Jess L. Nelson
PUBLISHER: Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Academic, 2022, (144 pages).

What is the purpose of preaching? For some, it is about giving instructions for living. Others see it as a way to relay information people needed to hear. Still, there are those who simply preach without thinking too much about it. For author and pastor Jesse Nelson, preaching is essentially about changing lives. The way to do that is to simply preach the biblical text. Nelson teaches us how we could preach the Bible faithfully and passionately via six steps. They are:

1. Seeking the Spirit
2. Selecting the Scripture
3. Studying the Scripture
4. Structuring the Sermon
5. Speaking in the Spirit
6. Sharing the Saviour

"Seeking the Spirit" reminds us that God's Word is to be taught according to the Spirit's leading. Through the disciplines of prayer, study, solitude, service, and submission, we let the Spirit guide us in the process of listening and discerning the texts to be preached. This is a crucial first step to enable us to be attentive to the leading of the Spirit. The second step is to select the Scripture. Nelson prefers to preach on whole books of the Bible. When it comes to selecting the texts, he uses two key questions: 

• "What does God want to say to the people?"
• "What do the people need to hear from God?"

The third step is to study the Scriptures. This is where the heavy lifting is needed week after week. For that, he gives readers four steps to do just that. This includes a list of questions to us so that we could inquire into the historical contexts. He provides a list of resources to aid preparation too. In the exegesis, he suggests the common Inductive Bible Study approach to Observe, Interpret, and then Apply the text. He shows us the different genres in the Bible to help us understand the background. Step four is about structuring the sermon for effective delivery. He provides readers with some of the most popular techniques available in the Christian community. Strategies such as Harold Robinson's "Big Idea Preaching," and Taylor and Proctor's way to structure the sermon. When the main point of the text is contextualized, one is ready to structure the Life-Changing Principle (LCP) of the sermon. The last two steps cover the delivery of the sermon with lots of practical advice to help the preacher to prepare. 

My Thoughts

This is an extremely easy-to-follow and apply book on preaching and preparing to preach. Point by point, Nelson leads us through the hermeneutical and homiletical processes of preaching. He summarizes all the steps and details in the appendices to help us get a better grip on the entire process. Those with theological training would see this book as a refresher of things learned in seminary. Those without formal training will see the book as a valuable primer to prepare and to preach the sermon. Yet, theological training aside, one important point emphasized throughout the book is the importance of prayer and discernment. Though preparation takes up the bulk of the time each week, being sensitive to the Spirit is crucial to the making of the sermon. Spiritual work needs to be done in step with the spirituality of the preacher. That is why I appreciate Step Five about speaking in the Spirit. For instance, knowing what to preach is one thing. Knowing when and how to preach it is yet another. Sometimes, preachers may prepare a particular passage but on the day itself, will preach on a totally different passage altogether. Stuff happens. When a major event occurs during the week, preachers need to adapt accordingly so as to connect with what the congregation is going through. Prayer must be the spiritual oxygen throughout the week. 

We all want to preach to change lives. That is a key goal of all preachers. I would caution readers one more thing. The work of conversion belongs to the Spirit. We can do our best in preparation. We can utilize the best tools. We can also deliver using our best abilities. Yet, without the Spirit, our sermons will be mere words. Our efforts will be lots of huff-and-puff without effectiveness. For people's hearts to be changed, the preachers' hearts must first be touched. May God use books like this to touch the hearts of preachers, that they may bless the people they preach to. 

Jesse L. Nelson (DMin, New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary)
is the senior pastor of Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church of Panama City, Florida, president of the Evangelical Homiletics Society,
founding member of Pastors United of Bay County, and mayor of
Lynn Haven, Florida.

Rating: 4.25 stars of 5.

conrade

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This book has been provided courtesy of Kregel Academic without requiring a positive review. All opinions offered above are mine unless otherwise stated or implied.