Liturgical Language in African-American Worship and Preaching

Language used in black preaching has a musical ring and rhythm. The spirit and delivery of this language has much to do with the emotional vitality of worship in black churches, a fine example of how the aesthetic qualities of language shape the meaning and experience of worship.

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Drama and Preaching

Drama and preaching are both means for communicating biblical truths. Yet they are fundamentally different in their most typical forms, with preaching presenting a message and drama representing a narrative. This article gives helpful historical perspectives to the use of drama in worship, as well as guidelines for the appropriate relationship of preaching and drama in worship today.

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How to Evaluate Preaching

Authentic preaching is responsible for its place in the total Christian community. It belongs not only to the preacher, but also to the congregation. It reflects the memory and expectation of the people of God in times past and in times present. It is rooted in the Word and standing in the world. True preaching steps onto the bridge between the mundane and the majestic, between mud and stars, and, recognizing the awesome mystery of the preached Word, dares to speak for God.

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Ordaining Women to Ministry

In recent years, as more and more women are able to fulfill their calling to ministry through ordination and pastoral ministry, more and more women are preaching. What does this mean for worship and spirituality? If Christian worshipers are hearing the Word preached by women, how does this change worship? Will preaching change as more and more women do it?

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Jewish Storytelling

Christian storytelling is rooted in the ancient Jewish tradition of telling stories. In telling the story, its reality and power are made present to the hearers, so that by entering into the story they experience its significance and power to shape their perspectives and the living out of their own stories of faith.

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Developing the Art of Storytelling

Storytelling is an art that needs to be developed in today’s churches. Storytellers succeed through using dialogue, developing action and plot, opening up the imagination, and learning how to tell the story well. The following entry is one pastor’s account of the transforming power of story in his own preaching. Its original title, “Spinning Yarns,” suggests the necessity of retaining the first-person perspective because the best stories are our stories—stories told from personal experience.

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Preaching Lectio Continua

Preaching through a biblical book, also known as lectio continua (Latin, meaning to read continuously) is presented here from the Reformed perspective as a viable option to preaching through the lectionary or preaching topical sermons.

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Interpretation and Preaching

Since the time of the Protestant Scholastics, sermons have been designed according to a schema: subtilitas intelligendi, subtilitas explicandi, subtilitas applicandi—careful understanding, explication, and application. A text was exegeted, interpreted, and applied in what was often a tri-part sermon.

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The Preaching of John Wesley (1703–1791) and George Whitefield (1714–1770)

In the mid-eighteenth century, John Wesley and George Whitefield became famous through their revivalistic preaching. Although based on a Scripture, it differed from Reformed preaching in that it was not exegetical and did not place as much emphasis on correct grammatical, historical, and theological contexts. Instead, Wesley and Whitefield developed topics and presented applications for their listeners. Sin, grace, and reconciliation with God were their favorite themes. Wesley united this message with a zeal for sanctification. This style of preaching was directed particularly toward the poor, resulting in a tremendous movement for social and political justice.

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