from Adam Hamilton
There were not many highlights from Annual Conference this year but one of them was the presence of Rev. Adam Hamilton as our Bible study leader. Hamilton is no stranger to us as we have used many of his books and videos in our adult study groups. He is the founding and lead pastor at Church of the Resurrection in Kansas City, Missouri. Today this church is the largest in our denomination.
We were blessed to have Hamilton with us for three ninety-minute sessions at Conference and he comes across in person just as he does on his videos, someone who is quite comfortable with who he is and what he is doing.
The part of this presentation that caught my attention was his definition of the Five Components of Preaching that should connect with a congregation. He started with the idea that the preacher should be teaching something that the people did not previously know. Now what this might be is of course going to be different from one sermon to another. It might be a biblical connection or some application to daily living that hadn’t previously been considered.
Secondly, the sermon should touch the hearts of its listeners. One effective way to do this is by the use of stories. Next, Hamilton suggests that every good sermon should have a “call to action,” something the congregation is charged with doing, and the more specific the better.
His fourth point is so simple that you wouldn’t think it needs to be said but maybe it does…the sermon should be interesting! Finally, it is important to highlight the biblical connection of the message. He summarized these points by simply saying that each sermon should reach “the heads, the hearts and the hands of the congregation.”
So that is what Pastor Hamilton believes…what about you? Can you remember the last time you left the sanctuary still mulling over something Pastor Kelly or I said in our message? What do you think makes for a good message? I’d love to hear from you so shoot me an e-mail with your thoughts!
Summer Blessings! Pastor Andy