Sermon Discovery:

Outside the home, preaching is the most important work we can do.

God had one Son and he was a preacher.

God chose the foolishness of preaching to save mankind.

Preaching Can Be Difficult

You stand before both God and people to be judged by what you say and how you say it.

Having and idea and preaching once or twice is much easier than being in the routine of preaching.

Some have said no one should preach more than 40 lessons a year. This is probably not realistic. Typically, our preachers deliver around 200 sermons or classes annually.

69% surveyed by Tom Ranier said sermon preparation should take between 10-20 hours per sermon (https://churchanswers.com/blog/how-much-time-do-pastors-spend-preparing-a-sermon/).

Writing just 42 sermons a year would be equivalent to producing 3 full-length non-fiction books a year.

Preaching Can Be Awesome

We want to find a method which honors the Scriptures as God’s word.

We want to find a method which honors the text God revealed.

We want to find a method that streamlines the sermon discovery and building process.

So, how are we going to find an awesome method for discovering and building awesome sermons?

Types of Sermon

Topical

several passages used

covers a lot of ground

easy to take Scripture out of context

Textual

One verse or phrase forms the outline

Gets deep into Scripture and theology

Can be very dangerous since each phrase can be manipulated.

Expository

A paragraph is studied, presented, and applied to the congregation.

Covers the text well and shows theology/doctrine in context.

Can become a lecture or too academic.

Step 1: Discover the Main Point

Find the main idea in the passage

Read, read, and read until the point comes through.

This is not your idea—this is the idea presented in the paragraph you have chosen.

There will, of course, be several points to emphasize in every line of Scripture.

Focus on one text.

Finding the main idea is the most fundamental step.

Find how that main idea is explained, proved, illustrated, and applied.

After you discover the main point of the paragraph, you can begin to focus on on discovering what God said about that one main point.

How does God prove the point?

How does God show the main point is necessary?

How does God relate the main point to you?

Step 2: Structural Outline of the passage:

Divide the passage into phrases to reveal the structural outline.

Indent the subordinate or helping phrases

The main phrase will be highlighted by being to the left

Details and explanations of the main phrase will be progressively to the right.

Arrows can be drawn in the text to show the relationship between phrases

Practice in Romans 1:1-6. From the structure of the passage, great sermon outline can be gained.

Who was Paul? Identify who Paul is according to Romans 1:1.

Who Is Jesus? Identify who Jesus is from Romans 1:3-4.

Who are Christians? Identify who Christians are from Romans 1:5-6.

Try a longer passage in Romans 10:5-13.

This passage answers the question: “How Can the Just Live By Faith?”

Moses said the one who does the commandments shall live by them.

But, righteousness by faith says—Rom 10:6-8.

The righteous live by faith when they live a life of confession—Romans 10:9.

Confession and Belief summarize faith—Romans 10:9-10.

Confession and Belief does not lead to shame—Rom 10:11.

Confession and Belief has no racial boundaries—Rom 10:12.

Confession and Belief, and therefore salvation by faith is for all who call on the name of the Lord—Rom 10:13.

Step 3: What do you have now? Focusing on the Structural Outline

You now have a main point or thesis and a structural outline.

The main idea is the thesis statement

How God explained, proved, illustrated, and/or applied the main idea becomes each of your main points.

Example: Romans 6:12–14 “Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.”

Title and Main Point: “Lord, Reign In Me”

Let not sin therefore reign

Where: in your mortal body,

What Does Sin Want: to make you obey its passions.

What Must We Not Do: Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness,

but present yourselves to God

Why?: as those who have been brought from death to life,

What does God deserve and demand?: and your members to God as instruments for righteousness.

What is life like now?: For sin will have no dominion over you,

Why is our life like this?: since you are not under law but under grace.

Step 4: Discover the Theological Messages

Every passage is like a treasure chest containing hundreds of treasures. Every sermon should take one treasure and hold it up for the church to see. To appreciate all the treasures in the box and to narrow each sermon to one treasure at a time, I like to ask three questions of every passage.

My Three Theology Questions for Every Passage:

What does this passage teach about God?

What does this passage teach about me?

What does this passage teach about salvation?

Why Ask These Questions?

These questions help me understand what each passage teaches.

These questions help me focus on a narrow and presentable aspect of the passage (I tend to be overwhelmed with everything a passage teaches and unable to focus on one thing the passage teaches).

These questions help me think about how to apply the passage to my life and to my church.

These questions help me grow spiritually/theologically.

What would these questions look like?

What does this passage teach about God?

God alone is worthy of my allegiance

God’s grace leads to obedience

What does this passage teach about me?

I am caught in a struggle between sin and God

I have to choose between sin and God

What does this passage teach about salvation?

Salvation could be seen as the individual presenting himself/herself to God as a servant

Presenting myself to God as a servant prevents sin from ruling over me and destroying me.

Step 5: Building the Sermon Outline

The sermon outline

Gives order to your presentation of what you have studied.

Secures a persuasive progression from audience to God to action.

The sermon outline has three main parts:

The Grab—introduction to the text

The Grasp—discussion of the text (all your Bible study and outline of the material)

The Graft—application of the text.

The Grab:

You have to start where the people are.

You have to give them a reason to want to go to Scripture.

You have to “get them on the bus” to explore the text.

You have to provide a reason they want to listen.

The Grasp:

This is where your structural outline is filled out.

You have your structural outline from the text.

Each point needs Scriptural support.

Each point needs illustration.

The Graft:

This is where the ancient text is applied to today.

Grafting the text into someone’s life involves answering the questions:

What do I need to do?

What do I need to feel?

What do I need to think?