In Preaching Articles: "real people"

A Dozen Bad Easter Eggs: 12 Mistakes We Should Avoid This Year

By Joe Mckeever on Mar 31, 2020

Joe McKeever gets real with advice learned by the hard experience of many Easters.

Scripture: 2 Timothy 2:1-13

Tags: Easter, Preaching, mistakes, Fail, preaching  (view more)  (view less)

Loving Muslims Begins With Honesty

By SermonCentral .com on Apr 24, 2020

Do Christians and Muslims worship the same deity? It has become one of the most pressing and controversial questions in the world in the last fifteen years.

Scripture: 1 John 5:12, John 8:19, John 5:42-43, John 5:23

Tags: Islam, World Religions, disagreement, loving people, Identity of Jesus, what Muslims believe  (view more)  (view less)

How Do We (Or Should We) Motivate Our People To Read The Bible?

By Peter Mead on Oct 4, 2019

"We should be concerned when there is a lack of motivation for God's Word--both in our own lives and in those we care about."

Tags: Preaching, Accountability, motivate, read Bible, preaching  (view more)  (view less)

3 Keys To Overcoming Barriers To Bible Engagement In The Church

By Paul Caminiti on Jan 18, 2025

In North America, we have more Bibles than ever, but less and less real engagement. Why?

Scripture: 2 Peter 1:12-21

Tags: Bible, Scripture, Preaching, BIBLE STUDY, Biblical, Bible Study, bible study, preaching, bible  (view more)  (view less)

People Don't Want To Sit And Listen Anymore: 4 Ways To Connect With A New Generation

By SermonCentral .com on Nov 25, 2019

Most people who leave the church aren't leaving God. Many of them are leaving the way we do church to try and find God.

Scripture: Romans 3:21-31, Acts 20:7-12

Tags: Preaching, Listen, Shift, disconnect, distrust  (view more)  (view less)

What You’ll Never Hear About Preaching In Seminary

By Mark A. Howell on Sep 24, 2024

Perhaps you've heard these suggestions before. The real issue is whether they are active in your ministry week to week.

Tags: Preaching, preaching

Randy Alcorn: Are You Willing To Be Hated For Speaking The Gospel Of Truth?

By SermonCentral .com on Sep 13, 2022

"It's not our job to be popular. Let's represent the real Jesus, the whole Jesus, not just the culturally acceptable one."

Scripture: Mark 8:33-38

Tags: Preaching, Hated, gospel of truth, preaching

The Ultimate Character Test Any Great Leader Passes

By Carey Nieuwhof on Nov 14, 2023

Moral failure takes out more leaders than it should. But real success is deeper than just avoiding the ditch.

Tags: leadership, Character, Faithfulness, Home Life, Integrity, Popularity, pastoral leadership, church leadership, First Things First, Leadership Failure, True Success, e, Leadership  (view more)  (view less)

Are You Serving Slop In The Pulpit?

By Sherman Haywood Cox on Aug 25, 2021

Sherman Cox warns, "There's an inclination today to resort to tactics and tricks to manufacture a connection to the congregation that is neither real nor helpful."

Scripture: Romans 14:1-23

Tags: Preaching, pulpit, Insult, frown

Good Friday: 4 Preaching Points To Remember

By Ray Hollenbach on Apr 6, 2020

We want to embrace the resurrection, but Good Friday is an opportunity to remind your people that Jesus calls us to the Cross, too.

Scripture: Matthew 16:21-25

Tags: Good Friday, Preaching, help, Why Jesus Died, Why Jesus Bled, Why People Lie, preaching  (view more)  (view less)

Pastor And Prophet

By Lance Witt on May 11, 2024

"When it comes to our preaching, we live in the constant tension between pastor and prophet. On one hand, as pastors we want to encourage and care for the sheep. So, in our preaching we want to be uplifting and hopeful. On the other hand, as prophets we must sometimes say the hard things that the sheep don’t want to hear."

Scripture: Jeremiah 5:30-31, 2 Timothy 4:3-4, Galatians 1:10

Tags: Teaching, Preaching, Pride, People pleasing, pastoral leadership, selfish ambition, Pastoral Ministry, Pulpit Ministry, preaching, teaching  (view more)  (view less)

7 Phrases Christians Like To Say That Aren’t True

By Lori Hatcher on May 31, 2024

"We’ve all heard them—phrases that sound wise, insightful, and biblical. But are they really? Let’s look at some common sayings, compare them to the Bible, and see if they hold up."

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 1:8-9, James 1:14, 1 Corinthians 10:13, 1 John 3:10, Daniel 10:11, Psalm 148:2  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Theology, Know the Truth, Biblical truth, chosen people, Enduring Hardship, help in temptation, guard the truth, Contending for truth  (view more)  (view less)

Cut Off Your Hand, Tear Out Your Eye

By Ray Ortlund on Aug 3, 2022

Hard words are not harmful words—when they come from Jesus. The real Jesus loves us enough to accept us freely and confront us honestly.

Scripture: Colossians 2:23, Philippians 3:14, Hebrews 13:21, Matthew 5:6, Titus 2:11-12, Hebrews 12:4, 1 Corinthians 9:27, Matthew 5:29-30  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Righteousness, Theology, soul care, Hard Teaching

How To Share Your Faith

By Josh Reich on Jul 16, 2022

Inviting someone to church or sharing your faith about Jesus can be awkward. It is nerve wracking, scary and often times not what many followers of Jesus want to do. Yet, the reality is if you are a follower of Jesus, you are to be a witness of Jesus. (Acts 1:8) That is a key and crucial piece of your new identity in Christ. It is not optional.

Scripture: Acts 1:8

Tags: Evangelism, Outreach, Witnessing, Inviting People, Christian Witness, Sharing My Testimony, Sharing Your Faith, Gospel Presentation, evangelism  (view more)  (view less)

One Hard Truth Of Leadership

By Ron Edmondson on Sep 3, 2022

There is one truth about leadership every leader must understand, but is difficult to receive by some leaders. The probability is good you won’t like this truth either.

Tags: leadership, church conflict, fear of man, People pleasing, pastoral leadership, Pastoral Ministry, church ministry, good leadership, Leadership  (view more)  (view less)