When I first began to preach my focus was twofold: Inward – preparing my heart, praying over the message, working hard on the text and seeking to communicate faithfully; Upward – crying out to God to pour out his Spirit, and make these dry bones live. As far as it went, this was all fine. However, I gave little thought to my audience. Preaching was all about letting the ‘bees out of my bonnet,’ which, even if sanctified by prayer, were unleashed on my unsuspecting audience, hopefully with a sting in the tail.
I now spend much more time thinking about the context into which I speak. I am more aware of how the congregation hears the preaching. Plus, the kind of response to which I call the congregation is more nuanced than ‘and may the Lord help us to apply these lessons to our lives. Amen.’
I agree that I overstate my case, but not by much. This article will address two questions:
1 How may hearers of sermons listen fruitfully?
2 What types of call to response should I, as preacher, be looking for?
