Homiletics:

The Art and Science

of Preaching
Part 2
VII. Types Of Preaching (See II Timothy 4:2.)

A. Reproof—to refute, expose false teaching and practice

Job 26:11, “The pillars of heaven tremble and are astonished at his reproof.”
 
Proverbs 1:23, “Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my
words unto you.”
 
Proverbs 1:25, “But ye have set at naught all my counsel, and would none of my reproof:”
 
Proverbs 1:30, “They would none of my counsel: they despised all my reproof.”
 
Proverbs 5:12, “And say, How have I hated instruction, and my heart despised reproof;”
 
Proverbs 10:17, “He is in the way of life that keepeth instruction: but he that refuseth reprooferreth.”
Proverbs 12:1, “Whoso loveth instruction loveth knowledge: but he that hateth reproof is brutish.”

Proverbs 13:18, “Poverty and shame shall be to him that refuseth instruction: but he that regardeth re-proof
shall be honoured.”
 
Proverbs 15:5, “A fool despiseth his father’s instruction: but he that regardeth reproof is prudent.”
 
Proverbs 15:10, “Correction is grievous unto him that forsaketh the way: and he that hateth reproof shall die.”
 
Proverbs 15:31 - 32, “The ear that heareth the reproof of life abideth among the wise. 32 He that refuseth
instruction despiseth his own soul: but he that heareth reproof getteth understanding.”
 
Proverbs 17:10, “A reproof entereth more into a wise man than a hundred stripes into a fool.”
 
Proverbs 29:15, “The rod and reproof give wisdom: but a child left to himself bringeth his mother to shame.”
B. Rebuke—to scold in love
Proverbs 9:8, “Reprove not a scorner, lest he hate thee: rebuke a wise man, and he will love thee.”

Proverbs 13:1, “A wise son heareth his father’s instruction: but a scorner heareth not rebuke.”

Proverbs 13:8, “The ransom of a man’s life are his riches: but the poor heareth not rebuke.”

Proverbs 24:25, “But to them that rebuke him shall be delight, and a good blessing shall come upon
them.”

Proverbs 27:5, “Open rebuke is better than secret love.”

Ecclesiastes 7:5, “It is better to hear the rebuke of the wise than for a man to hear the song of fools.”

Luke 17:3, “Take heed to yourselves: If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he
repent, for-give him.”

I Timothy 5:20, “Them that sin rebuke before all, that others also may fear.”

II Timothy 4:2, “Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all
longsuffering and doctrine.”

Titus 1:13, “This witness is true. Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the
faith;”

Titus 2:15, “These things speak, and exhort, and re-buke with all authority. Let no man despise thee.”
C. Exhort
1. Interpreted “advocate”— “to run to one's side and pick him up” in I John 2:1, “My little
children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an
advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:

2. Help, encourage, assurance and comfort sermons I Thessalonians 4:1, “Furthermore then
we beseech you, brethren, and exhort you by the Lord Jesus, that as ye have received of us
how ye ought to walk and to please God, so ye would abound more and more.”
I Thessalonians 5:14, “Now we exhort you, brethren, warn them that are unruly, comfort the
feebleminded, support the weak, be patient to-ward all men.”

I Timothy 6:2, “And they that have believing masters, let them not despise them, because
they are brethren; but rather do them service, because they are faithful and beloved, partakers
of the benefit. These things teach and exhort.”

II Timothy 4:2, “Preach the word; be instant in sea-son, out of season; reprove, rebuke,
exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.”

Titus 1:9, “Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by
sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers.”

Titus 2:6, “Young men likewise exhort to be sober minded.”

Titus 2:9, “Exhort servants to be obedient unto their own masters, and to please
them well in all things; not answering again;”

Titus 2:15, “These things speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no
man despise thee.”

Hebrews 3:13, “But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of
you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.”

I Peter 5:1, “The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a
witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be
revealed:”
D. Devotional
1. Deals with our intimate relationship to God.

2. Worship, communion with the Holy Ghost, seeking the Lord, hearing His
voice, etc.

E. Exegetical
 Explanation or interpretation of the Bible.

F. Expository
 Expose everything a portion of Scripture says.
VIII. The Sermon
Each sermon is in three parts:

• The Introduction

• Body of the message

• The Conclusion / Invitation Another way to say it...

“...Tell them what you are going to say...” “...Then say it...”
“...Then tell them what you have said.”
A. The Introduction
The introduction should...

... be an accurate signpost pointing to the sermon.

... create a hunger for the rest of the message.

... be a creation of intrigue.

... lead the people to feel that the sermon has the answer to an individual need.

... get people desirous for the preacher to continue.

... be the most articulate part of the sermon.

The Introduction could...

... be a question that needs an answer.

... be a statement that needs a completion.

... create curiosity as to where the speaker is going.

The title of the sermon should not be more spectacular than the sermon. Jesus got right
to the point:

 “Ye are the Light of the world...”

 “Ye are the Salt of the earth...”
 “A Sower went forth to sow...”

Some preachers can build to a climax and have people hang on long enough to get the one
point—MOST CANNOT! So let the cat out of the bag at the beginning so they know what
you are talking about right from the start. We are preachers not story tellers. Do not try to
be a great preacher, be a clear preacher. Our words should not be a mystery but crystal
clear.
“For if the trumpet give an uncertain sound, who shall pre-pare himself to the battle? So
likewise ye, except ye utter by the tongue words easy to be understood, how shall it be
known what is spoken? for ye shall speak into the air.” (I Corinthians 14:8-9). Some
preachers read a text, do not give a title, chase rabbits, say some good things, ramble on,
close and then leave hearers puzzled. The people wonder, “What was that all about?”
We should go to the other extreme. We should speak in such
clear and simple tones that it is not only perfectly under-stood
what we said, but it is impossible to misunderstand what we
said. “Seeing then that we have such hope, we use great
plainness of speech:” (II Corinthians 3:12).
The following four points should help achieve this in the
introduction:
1. Read the scriptures clearly. Make sure the scriptures fit your message exactly.

2. Say a short public prayer asking God to help the hearers to understand your specific
subject. You might want to bring up the subject in your prayer.

3. Repeat the title of your message loudly and clearly at least two to four times during your
introduction.

4. Have a well thought out brief introduction of the subject. Do not waste time in the pulpit.
Again, clarity is the goal:
I Corinthians 14:10-12, “There are, it may be, so many kinds of voices in the world, and
none of them is without signification. Therefore if I know not the meaning of the voice, I
shall be unto him that speaketh a barbarian, and he that speaketh shall be a barbarian
unto me. Even so ye, forasmuch as ye are zealous of spiritual gifts seek that ye may
excel to the edifying of the church.”

Build up the church, do not confuse the church!

B. The Body of the Sermon
 The first aspect of the body of your sermon is to come up with a skeleton outline regarding the
text and subject the Holy Spirit has led you to preach on.
 Examples of skeleton outlines could include:
1. Pointed message
Some truths we must preach require many points depending on the subject. Certainly these
subjects would need more than one point:

How to have a happy family Possibilities of faith— etc.

How to handle your finances Steps of man’s degeneracy (Romans 1)

How to go soulwinning How to interpret scripture

2. One Great Truth
 Preach a whole sermon stressing just one great truth:

 Duty

 Compassion

 Others

 Commitment

3. Alliteration
 Repetitions of the same first letter or sound in a group of words. Examples:

 Titus 2:14—Salvation, Sanctification, Service

 Philemon’s love—Refreshing, Receiving, Reciprocating

 Spirit filled Attitudes—Ephesians 5:18-21— Singing, Satisfaction,

Submission
4. Acrostic
 Word formed from the first letters of other words.

F-orsaking G-od’s G-od’s

A-ll R-iches R-esources
I A-t A-t
T-rust C-hrist’s C-hristian
H-im E-xpense E-xperiences
5. Verses that outline themselves
 Look up in your Bible and notice how easily these verses outline
themselves:

James 3:17 Titus 2: 4-5

II Chronicles 7:14 I Corinthians 13:4-8

The second aspect now of your sermon is to add some meat to the skeleton
outline. You can fill in the body of the sermon by using:

1. Definition of terms

 Use dictionary or concordance and then explain terms to the people.

Do not presume they know what words mean. “So they read in the
book in the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused
them to understand the reading.” (Nehemiah 8:8).
2. Illustrations
 Personal illustrations
 Borrowed illustrations from books
 People in the Bible that might illustrate the point.
 Facts pertaining to the topic from history, science, archaeology, encyclopedia, etc.
 Stories that make a point.
 Poems—Hymns, an appropriate poem or hymn that exactly fits the point.

3. Practical aspects
 
 Do not let people figure it out, explain it to them. For instance, explain what a
“prayer closet” is.
C. The Conclusion
• Remember:
 Tell them what you are going to say (the introduction), then say it (the body) and
then tell them what you said (the conclusion).

Take this opportunity to one more time explain the message. It would be wise to at least read your
points out loud again.

Also, if you feel that something was not clear in the message, try to clear it up briefly. Do not bore
people by preaching your whole sermon again, just highlight your main points. This will refresh their
memory of some-thing you may have said thirty minutes ago.
D. The Invitation
The invitation is not the time to put our Bibles away, straighten up the Hymn books, clean up the pews, and
get our coats and hats. It is the time to respond to God. The preacher should make that clear. It is the time
to apply the truth to our lives.

The goal is not to get people to the altar, but to have people take the message into their lives and be doers
of God’s word and not hearers only.

Jesus said, “My house shall be called the house of prayer...” (Matthew 21:13). We should try to get God’s
people to pray about the application of the message. An altar call is an appropriate way to do this. Invite
them to come and pray. The congregation could sing an ap-propriate hymn.
An appeal for the lost to be saved should also be given. They may come forward or may not. If
they come forward, pair them off with a soulwinner. If they do not come forward them just pray for
them and with them for salvation. You could perhaps repeat a sinner's prayer of repentance slowly
for them to say from their heart to God. Remember, “woe is unto me, if I preach not the gospel!” (I
Corinthians 9:16).

It usually is not appropriate to have an altar call at a funeral service, nursing home service or
Sunday school. However, people can pray to receive Christ as their Savior in their seats. Make
salvation easy—for it is easy. Why would God make it hard for someone to get saved?
IX. Pulpit Etiquette
Colossians 4:6, “Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer
every man.”

Luke 4:22, “And all bare him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth...”

 Least important nevertheless should be:

 
A. Your Appearance
 
 Be simple (not something that is excessive).
 
 Be clean (hair clean and cut).
 
 Stand up straight.
B. The Pulpit
1. Do not lean on it.

2. Do not move it around.

3. Do not play with it.

4. If possible, have a custom-made pulpit for your size.

5. Treat it as a sanctified place. (Do not worship it but have the children and adults
respect it.)
C. The Microphone
1. Talk into it.

2. Have the PA loud enough so people in the back row can hear you speaking in
normal voice levels.

3. Use more treble than bass.

a. Bass muddles your voice.

b. Treble allows your voice to be clear.

4. Better to be too loud than too soft. (At least you will be heard.)
D. Your Eyes
1. Make eye contact with all the people

2. Do not look at the same person. Look around.

3. Look over the top and scan the back if you are nervous.

4. Look away from distractions.

E. Your Hands
1. Do not play with the pulpit.

2. Do not keep adjusting the microphone.

3. Do not play with your glasses or your tie.

4. Do make appropriate gestures to help illustrate the message. Example: we

serve a “Big God”—spread your arms out.

5. Shuffle your notes inconspicuously.

F. Your Voice
 Be loud as to be understood by all. Preach with emotion—do not be a boring preacher!

Ephesians 4:15, “But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even
Christ:”

I Corinthians 14:8, “For if the trumpet give an uncertain sound, who shall prepare himself to the battle?”

Isaiah 58:1, “Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression,
and the house of Jacob their sins.”
John 7:37, “In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him
come unto me, and drink.”

John 12:44, “Jesus cried and said, He that believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent me.”

Luke 8:8, “And other fell on good ground, and sprang up, and bare fruit a hundredfold. And when he had said
these things, he cried, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.”

G. Be in good spirit when entering the pulpit

 Do not be in a bad mood. You are not fit to be a preacher if you cannot rule your
emotions! (Proverbs 25:28, 16:32).
Conclusion

God wants to use you. If you are going to be a preacher, aim high! Aim at doing this as well as anything
you do in your life.

We do not need any more preachers or pastors in the ministry who are not called and are not trying to be
holy. “Many pastors have destroyed my vineyard...” (Jeremiah 12:10).

Review these notes often and constantly look for better ways to communicate the truths of God. Study,
study . There will be a message from God buried in your study somewhere.
“Preach the word; be instant in season, out
of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all
longsuffering and doctrine.”

II Timothy 4:2
-END-