In Preaching Articles: "Believe"

Three Root Causes Of Stalled Spiritual Transformation

By Thom Rainer on Mar 4, 2020

Why does spiritual growth sometimes stall out in believers? Thom Rainer offers his view and solutions from a study of the Corinthian church.

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 3:1-3

Tags: Spirit, Church, Growth, Discipleship, Preaching, Transformation, Growth in Christ  (view more)  (view less)

Theology? Philosophy? What Do They Have To Do With Real Preaching?

By Mike Miller on Nov 24, 2024

Our theology of preaching is what we believe the Bible says about preaching. Our philosophy is how we put our beliefs into practice.

Scripture: Jeremiah 17:1-20, Jonah 3:1-10

Tags: Preaching, Theology, philosophy, preaching

The Power Of Concentration For Doing A Little More

By Brandon Cox on Sep 20, 2023

I believe that most of us can do more, need to do less, and that it’s possible to do more and less at the same time.

Tags: priorities, focus, energy, church leadership

Moms, Your Secret Sacrifices Matter

By Shanna Mallon on May 5, 2021

Mothers, resist the temptation to believe that if you're sacrificing and serving and no one notices, what you're doing must not matter at all. It matters.

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 4:16-18

Tags: mother's day, Motherhood, eternal rewards, Serving in Secret

How Smart Preachers Help Propagate Dumb Ideas

By Larry Osborne on Jun 11, 2021

Smart people can believe some really dumb things. What's worse--I think I've taught some of them from the pulpit.

Tags: advice, cliche, platitude, preaching, Preaching  (view more)  (view less)

Preaching On The Run: 7 Tips For Bi-Vocational Pastors

By Todd Hiestand on May 17, 2020

"My sermon prep is no longer about how many hours I 'spend studying.' With this approach, I genuinely believe that every hour of the week is sermon prep."

Tags: Preaching, preaching

Preaching A Notable Sermon Without Using Notes

By Rev. Tejado Hanchell on Aug 18, 2020

"I believe every preacher should have at least one sermon in his heart that he could preach with or without notes if called upon at a moment's notice."

Tags: preaching, Preaching, memories, memorization

There Is No 'us' Or 'them,' There Is Just 'us'

By Jeff K. Clarke on Dec 16, 2021

One of the primary reasons we struggle with differing views on any subject is that we believe acceptance equals agreement. That is, to accept a person or their argument is to agree with them.

Scripture: John 13:34-35

Tags: Love, Fear, conversation, anger, disagreement  (view more)  (view less)

How To Teach Old Testament Characters

By J.d. Greear on Feb 24, 2025

"I believe most contemporary teaching on Old Testament stories is hopelessly moralistic, giving us merely examples to emulate rather than a Savior to adore and hope in."

Scripture: Psalm 23:1-6

Tags: Old Testament, David, Preaching, preaching

Good & Bad Cases Of Church Discipline

By Ray Hollenbach on Mar 10, 2025

A real church incident exposes why believers distrust discipline. Yet Scripture shows discipline is meant to heal, not harm, calling us to restore one another with Christ’s presence.

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 5, Matthew 18, Hebrews 13, Philippians 3, Galatians 6  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: pastoral care, Pastoral Care

Does Your Preaching Strike A Grace/Truth Balance?

By SermonCentral .com on Oct 15, 2021

In 25 years our church has only been picketed twice--two weeks in a row!--first by radically liberal nonbelievers for speaking truth, and then by radically conservative believers for showing grace.

Scripture: 2 Kings 2:8-9, Isaiah 40:1-15, Luke 18:1-8

Tags: grace, gospel, preaching, Grace, Gospel, Truth, Preaching, Balance  (view more)  (view less)

7 Things Forgiveness Is Not

By Ron Edmondson on Jun 9, 2022

Understanding forgiveness doesn’t make it easier to forgive, but it does make it more meaningful. I believe understanding the process could make us more likely to offer the forgiveness we are commanded to give.

Tags: Grace, Forgiveness, relationships, Loving Others, Being merciful , grace  (view more)  (view less)

7 Ideas For Creativity In Series Planning

By Peter Mead on Jun 26, 2023

I believe in preaching series through books of the Bible. I do it. I teach others to do it. But I think we could all do with some extra creativity when it comes to planning a series.

Scripture: Habakkuk 2:4

Tags: Bible, Preaching, preaching the Word, sermon series, preaching, bible  (view more)  (view less)

How To Make Christmas Your Best Outreach Of The Year

By Carey Nieuwhof on Dec 18, 2023

You might think it’s an event you do, or perhaps it’s Easter. But whether Christmas has historically been your best opportunity to reach unchurched people or not, I believe it could be.

Tags:

9 Things I Learned From Preaching About Homosexuality

By Josh Reich on Mar 3, 2021

Your language and tone tells your church how to communicate it. Not only are you training your church what to believe about homosexuality, but you are also training them how to talk about it, what they will sound like.

Tags: Preaching, Homosexuality