In Preaching Articles: "Lessons From History"

Sorry, Pastors – The Growth Of The Church Is Not Up To Us

By Karl Vaters on Jun 5, 2024

"Preaching the Word, training disciples and ministering to the community may or may not increase the number of people who sit in front of me from Sunday to Sunday. But it will produce a healthy church."

Tags: Church Growth, Surrender, Healthy Church, God's Church, God in control, pastoral leadership, call to discipleship, church leadership  (view more)  (view less)

Mapping Fault Lines In America | Micah 3

By Jerry Shirley on Jan 29, 2026

In Micah 3, the prophet maps the spiritual fault lines of a nation under judgment. Find what that means for America today, and what God expects from His people.

Scripture: Micah 3:1-12

Tags: America, Hope, corruption, repentance, compromise, Complacency, Spiritual Renewal, Compromise, Corruption, Repentance  (view more)  (view less)

52 Quotes For This Generation Of Church Leaders

By Brad Lomenick on Apr 15, 2020

Concise leadership insights from Brad Lomenick reveal how young leaders think, what drives vision, how decisions shape culture, and why authenticity fuels influence.

Tags: Church, leadership, Pastors, Leadership General, Leadership, church, Team Development  (view more)  (view less)

When Passion Fades: 5 Reasons Preaching Becomes Lifeless

By Peter Mead on Aug 10, 2024

Passionless preaching drains a congregation. These five causes, from frozen delivery to cold hearts, reveal why sermons fall flat and how pastors can revive authentic zeal.

Scripture: 2 Timothy 1:6, Romans 12:11, Psalm 34:8, Colossians 3:23, Revelation 2:4  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Preaching, Spiritual Renewal, preaching

10 Ways To Half-Bake Your Sermon: Part 1

By Peter Mead on Aug 13, 2024

Many sermons feel flat because the text is only half-used. These common mistakes show how preachers drift from Scripture and how to return to full, faithful exposition.

Scripture: 2 Timothy 2:15, Nehemiah 8:8, Luke 24:27, Acts 17:2-3, 2 Timothy 4:2  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Bible, Preaching, Text, preparation, preaching, bible  (view more)  (view less)

Are You A Well-Defined Leader?

By John Holm on Jul 19, 2021

Leadership success does not primarily depend on knowledge or technical skill. Effective leaders are those who understand themselves, live from clear values, and remain steady in the face of pressure.

Scripture: Proverbs 4:23, Proverbs 16:32, James 1:19-20, 1 Timothy 4:16, Matthew 7:24-25  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Leader, Character, self awareness, define, Leadership General, leader, Self Awareness  (view more)  (view less)

Effective Pastors Never Do These Deadly 5 Things

By Joe Mckeever on Jan 11, 2021

Great advice from Joe McKeever: "Don’t ever resign your church in a fit of passion. In a rush of anger. That’s a huge no-no for preachers."

Tags: Preaching, preaching

How To Avoid Settling For Good Enough Ministry

By SermonCentral .com on Apr 5, 2022

You can take a stand against “good enough ministry” in your church with a simple practice adopted from the business world: writing down how things should be done.

Tags: Excellence, details, church and business, church organization

I Write Stories During Sermons

By Carolyn C. Givens on May 12, 2021

Some believers process truth most deeply through narrative. This article explores how imaginative engagement during sermons can be disciplined by Scripture rather than distracted from it.

Scripture: John 1:14, Jeremiah 31:33, 2 Corinthians 5:20, James 1:21, Hebrews 4:12  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Parable, Preaching, Story, Engage, narrative, preaching  (view more)  (view less)

Why Good Sermons Can Be Boring

By Joe Mckeever on Nov 14, 2025

You brought a sermon you knew beyond a doubt was from the Lord and inspired of God.Halfway through, you could sense the congregation’s minds wandering. How could this happen?

Tags: Preaching, preaching

It’s Getting Crazy For Pastors And Politics

By SermonCentral .com on Apr 9, 2024

I’m not a politician. I learned from one pastor, who said, “If I thought politics could save the world, I wouldn’t have become a pastor.”

Tags: Politics, unity, Religion, diversity, pastoral leadership, Unity, Diversity  (view more)  (view less)

God's Grace Sermon Outline

By Josh Read on Mar 11, 2026

Grace might be the most preached-on topic in the history of the church and the least understood. Every pastor has a grace sermon in their back pocket. The problem isn't that we preach it too rarely. The problem is that we've filed it under "God is nice to us" and moved on. Dietrich Bonhoeffer identified this seventy years ago and named it precisely: cheap grace. Grace as doctrine, as principle, as system. Grace without discipleship, grace without the cross. Most congregations have heard enough grace sermons to believe God accepts them. Far fewer have heard one that made them uncomfortable. This outline is for that second sermon. Not grace as comfort but grace as disruption. The kind that doesn't just forgive what you were but refuses to leave you there.

Scripture: Titus 2:11-12, Romans 6:1-2, Ephesians 2:8-10, John 8:10-11, 2 Corinthians 12:9, Genesis 6:8, Luke 7:47, 2 Corinthians 5:14-15  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Grace, grace, sermonprep, SermonPrep, PastorLife, ChurchLeader, GodsGrace, PreachingWithPurpose  (view more)  (view less)

The Danger Of The Unrelated Point In Preaching

By Sherman Haywood Cox on May 2, 2023

A sermon can contain many true statements yet still fail if those truths are disconnected from the text’s main point. Preachers must discipline themselves to maintain clarity and focus.

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 2:2, 2 Timothy 2:15, Nehemiah 8:8, 1 Corinthians 14:33, Proverbs 4:25  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Power, Preaching, Homiletics, points, aside, preaching  (view more)  (view less)

Stop Asking Jesus Into Your Heart

By J.d. Greear on Sep 12, 2025

Surveys show more than 50% of people have prayed a sinner's prayer and think they're going to heaven even though there is no detectable difference in their lifestyles from those outside of the church.

Tags: Jesus, Salvation, Preaching, sinners prayer, preaching  (view more)  (view less)

Running The Race With God Beside Me: Eric Liddell’s Journey Of Faith - Part 2

By Duncan Hamilton on Mar 27, 2024

Liddell wasn’t for sale at any price. He told one congregation that ‘the greatest danger was victory,’ which he further defined as ‘bringing a man up to a level above the strength of his character’. He appealed to another to ‘keep sport free from anything that tends to lower its purity and value’ and to ‘engage in it’ for ‘the sport’s sake alone’. He revealed to a third that no cheering from an athletics crowd had given as much pleasure as his religion.

Scripture: Genesis 19:30-38

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