The church has gone through a lot changes as it has lived on in different cultures and generations over the past two thousand years. The non-essentials have changed when necessary, but we have worked to keep the essentials right at the center of our public gatherings. We celebrate the gospel in communion and baptism; we sing of psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. The Scriptures are read, and prayers are offered. And for many, the preaching of Scripture is the centerpiece. I recently wrote an article for Preaching Magazine called, Sermons That Stick in an effort to encourage other preacher to communicate Scripture faithfully and effectively. Below are just a few sentences taken from each point of the article.

To preach in a way that connects with our hearers I encourage the readers to:

1. Enter Their World
Preachers who engage their listeners consider what their world looks like. Jesus did that. Preaching to a mostly agrarian society, His sermons were full of plowing, sowing and reaping analogies. He knew His culture, and He preached into that culture.

2. Open the Book
Entering our listeners' world is only as meaningful as we make the connection between their world and God's revelation. Majoring on heart-stirring stories, transparent confessions and motivational injunctions are the paths of least resistance for speaking; a sermon devoid of the Word will not "stick" in a person and result in lasting transformation. Only the Spirit and the Word can do that.

Do you point people to the Scripture as you preach? Your authority as a preacher comes from one source--the Word of God.

3. Pull Back the Curtain
If you want your sermon to stick, you must pull back the curtain to reveal who God is, who we are and what He really wants. It is too easy for preachers to slip into becoming moral teachers--religious instructors who pass out rules for spiritual living without pulling back the curtain on God and ourselves; pulling back that curtain is what our people need the most!

4. Call for a Response
Preaching never should aim merely at the head, but also at the heart and will. Intellectual preaching changes the mind for a while.

Convictional preaching changes the heart for eternity. God gave us His Word that we might be transformed, not just informed. Therefore, solid preaching always calls for a response.

On the simplest level, this response is faith and repentance. We are called to leave something and believe something; but calling for faith and repentance is only helpful when it is specific, clear and seen in light of the gospel.

Head over to Preaching Magazine and read the entire article, and come back here to discuss.