In Preaching Articles: "Sermon Planning"

15 Sermon Starters For Your Easter Message

By SermonCentral .com on Apr 2, 2021

Let these great thoughts prime the pump for your Easter sermon. Start with great words and develop them uniquely for your congregation.

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 7:17-24, John 10:1-18, John 20:1-30, Acts 2:1

Tags: Easter, Message, Preaching, Jesus Christ, preaching  (view more)  (view less)

Start With A Bang! Open Your Sermon Strong

By Tyler Scarlett on Nov 21, 2024

A preacher's worst fear is that the congregation will stop listening. What's far more dreadful is if the people never were listening in the first place.

Scripture: Proverbs 3:5-6

Tags:

The Status Quo Every Sermon Should Break

By Peter Mead on Nov 22, 2024

The truth is that our entire world is upside down. Every cell in this universe is corrupted by the fall.

Scripture: Romans 1:28-32

Tags: Truth, Preaching, upside down, Status Quo, preaching  (view more)  (view less)

Change Your Sermon By Changing Your Spices

By Erik Raymond on May 19, 2023

Are you constantly mining the same sources for your sermon illustrations?

Scripture: Psalm 38:1-10, Colossians 4:1-5

Tags: Read, Preaching, Devotional, Spices, Classic, preaching  (view more)  (view less)

One Small Change Will Energize Tomorrow's Sermon

By Erik Raymond on Mar 4, 2023

So often, it's the little stuff that makes the biggest impact.

Tags: Fresh, Preaching, Impact, bland, preaching  (view more)  (view less)

Does Your Sermon Pass The Geography Test?

By Chris Surber on Aug 18, 2025

The Gospel is for everybody everywhere. Is your sermon?

Scripture: Colossians 3:1-5

Tags: pain, Sin, Preaching, suffering, affluence, preaching, Pain  (view more)  (view less)

Every Sermon Needs A Strategy: What's Yours?

By Peter Mead on May 25, 2024

Peter Mead presents five big questions you should ask after you've studied the text.

Scripture: Zephaniah 1:12-18, Acts 8:26-40

Tags: Preaching, Relevance, God's Heart, main idea, reinforce, preaching  (view more)  (view less)

4 Fresh Sermon Topics For The Christmas Season

By Ray Hollenbach on Dec 20, 2025

Some people think the Christmas verses are the stuff of Christmas pageants and cheesy dramas. They are also fuel for great preaching.

Scripture: Matthew 1:18-20

Tags: Christmas, Preaching, Dreams, God's sovereignty, family crisis, preaching  (view more)  (view less)

3 Building Blocks Of A Truly Memorable Sermon

By Sherman Haywood Cox on May 26, 2023

Help your listeners connect with your preaching points--and their purpose!

Scripture: Hebrews 11:35-40

Tags: Preaching, Building Blocks, memorable sermon, strong points, illustrate, preaching  (view more)  (view less)

Sharpen Your Sermon With A God-Centered Checklist

By Jared Moore on Sep 19, 2025

If you want to help your people focus on God when they leave church tomorrow, here are 11 things that you cannot do.

Scripture: Romans 12:1-2

Tags: Preaching, Checklist, joke, Sharpen, preaching, God centered, God Centered  (view more)  (view less)

Avoid The Wreck: 7 Ways To Crash A Sermon

By Carey Nieuwhof on Sep 24, 2025

What's the difference between a sermon that changes someone's life and one that no one can remember even as they drive out of the parking lot?

Tags: Preaching, Resistance, Ruin, call to action, preaching  (view more)  (view less)

My Sermon ... With A Little Bit Of Bible Thrown In

By Sherman Haywood Cox on Apr 15, 2023

"If you ain't struggled with the Scripture, we have something else other than a sermon."

Tags: Bible, Scripture, Preaching, Research, preaching, bible  (view more)  (view less)

Your Sermon May Solve Problems But Is That Enough?

By Sherman Haywood Cox on Oct 11, 2025

Address people where they are, but take them to another place to meet the Sovereign of the Universe.

Tags: Preaching, preaching

The Little-Known Secret About Spontaneous Sermons

By Scott Attebery on Oct 29, 2025

There's a "curve" to sermon prep that led to great messages--do you know it?

Tags: Preaching, preaching

What's The Big Idea Behind Your Sermon?

By Peter Mead on Dec 30, 2025

Ideas change lives. People give themselves to ideas. And Christianity is a content-based faith

Tags: Preaching, preaching