Preaching from the Inside Out by Charles B. Bugg, Broadman, $14.95
Preaching can become routine. In the pressure to get it done, we can lose sight of why we do it and how it could be done better.
One remedy is to come at preaching from the inside out; that is, ask about the what and why of preaching before tackling the how of it. Chuck Bugg’s infectious passion for preaching shines through the what and why. His disarming candor about his own mistakes gives authenticity to his discussion of how. The result is a delightful, inspiring conversation with this professor of preaching at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky.
Preaching to Strangers by William H. Willimon and Stanley Hauerwas, Westminster/John Knox, $9.99
William H. Willimon, dean of the chapel at Duke University, speaks there to people who are largely anonymous to each other. Often skeptical of Christianity, they pose a challenge. How should he (and we) preach to such people? In Preaching to Strangers, we get ten of Willimon’s sermons and responses to them from Willimon’s friend and colleague, theologian Stanley Hauerwas.
Willimon longs to preach convincingly by meeting people where they are. In contrast, Hauerwas emphasizes the radical change of life that discipleship requires. Together they reject the idea of making Christianity seem familiar to strangers; they want people to encounter the historic faith in all its distinctiveness (an implicit critique of user-friendliness?). The result of their collaboration is a good collection of sermons and some heady discussion of theology and preaching.
Preaching the Topical Sermon by Ronald J. Allen,Westminster/John Knox, $11.99
Ever have an issue arise that no concordance mentions? Ever need to address a community tragedy when time for exegesis is scant? In these cases, Ronald J. Allen argues, you may want to preach “topically”-addressing the issue from the perspective of the gospel as a whole, not from a single text or texts.
Allen, associate professor of preaching and New Testament at Christian Theological Seminary, offers a thorough method for preparing the message, describes possible sermon structures, and gives wise counsel for dealing with controversial subjects. Sample sermons demonstrate his suggestions at work.
Nature, God and Pulpit by Elizabeth Achtemeier, Eerdmans, $16.99
The environment is a hot topic. Unfortunately, many people have been influenced more by New Age pantheism than by biblical teaching about the created order.
Elizabeth Achtemeier, adjunct professor of Bible and homiletics at Union Theological Seminary in Virginia, has stepped forward with a corrective. She offers a summary of biblical teaching about the nature of the Creator and creation. She exposes the errors of New Age thinking while constructing a positive alternative.
She also includes several sermons designed to show how preachers can speak out about God, nature, and the environment from a solidly theological, scriptural understanding.
Speaking from the Heart by Richard F. Ward, Abingdon, $10.95
We all know how deadly passionless sermons can be. Is speaking with contrived zeal any better? We may have to face a tough choice: be flat or be false.
Richard F. Ward, assistant professor of speech communication at Candler School of Theology, points the way out of the dilemma. He helps us tap into our experience with Christ as part of developing an authentically passionate style. He suggests exercises to help us discover our own native strengths as communicators, then refine those in light of timeless principles of good speech.
-Grant Lovejoy
Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
Fort Worth, Texas
97 Summer/93
Copyright © 1993 by the author or Christianity Today/Leadership Journal. Click here for reprint information on Leadership Journal.
