Preacher, Be More Specific

One of the keys to being an effective preacher and teacher of the Bible is being clear. Clarity allows listeners to know what you’re saying, why you’re saying it, and what you want them to do in light of what you’ve said.

This is precisely why Dr. Robert Rayburn, founding President of Covenant Theological Seminary, would always tell his seminary students, “Christ is the only King of your studies, but homiletics is the queen.” What we preach is of first importance, but how we preach isn’t far behind.

Erwin Lutzer once told me that an easy way preachers and teachers can bring more clarity to their messages is by using plural nouns for outline divisions. In other words, using a carefully selected keyword for your sermon divisions is far easier for listeners to follow. Using words like “things” and “points” as keywords are not nearly as memorable as words like “reasons” and “statements.” I can personally testify that making this minor change makes a major difference in communicating with clarity.

In his book, 12 Essential Skills for Great Preaching, Wayne McDill gives a list of 265 words preachers and teachers can use to communicate more clearly when creating their outlines:

  1. abuses
  2. accusations
  3. acts
  4. actions
  5. actualities
  6. admonitions
  7. advantages
  8. affairs
  9. affirmations
  10. agreements
  11. aims
  12. alternatives
  13. assertions
  14. angles
  15. answers
  16. applications
  17. approaches
  18. areas
  19. arguments
  20. articles
  21. attitudes
  22. attributes
  23. aspects
  24. aspirations
  25. assertions
  26. assumptions
  27. assurances
  28. attainments
  29. attitudes
  30. attributes
  31. barriers
  32. beginnings
  33. beliefs
  34. benefits
  35. burdens
  36. calls
  37. causes
  38. certainties
  39. challenges
  40. changes
  41. charges
  42. claims
  43. clues
  44. commands
  45. commitments
  46. comparisons
  47. compensations
  48. compromises
  49. compulsions
  50. conceptions
  51. concessions
  52. conclusions
  53. conditions
  54. consequences
  55. contrasts
  56. corrections
  57. credentials
  58. criteria
  59. criticisms
  60. customs
  61. dangers
  62. decisions
  63. declarations
  64. defenses
  65. deficiencies
  66. definitions
  67. degrees
  68. demands
  69. denials
  70. destinies
  71. details
  72. devices
  73. differences
  74. distinctions
  75. directions
  76. directives
  77. disciplines
  78. disclosures
  79. discoveries
  80. distinctives
  81. doctrines
  82. duties
  83. elements
  84. encouragements
  85. essentials
  86. estimates
  87. events
  88. evidences
  89. evils
  90. examples
  91. exchanges
  92. exclamations
  93. exhortations
  94. expectations
  95. experiences
  96. expressions
  97. facets
  98. factors
  99. facts
  100. failures
  101. faults
  102. favors
  103. fears
  104. features
  105. finalities
  106. forces
  107. functions
  108. fundamentals
  109. gains
  110. generalizations
  111. gifts
  112. goals
  113. graces
  114. groups
  115. guarantees
  116. habits
  117. handicaps
  118. hindrances
  119. hopes
  120. hungers
  121. ideals
  122. ideas
  123. illustrations
  124. imperatives
  125. implications
  126. impressions
  127. improvements
  128. impulses
  129. incentives
  130. incidents
  131. indictments
  132. inferences
  133. injunctions
  134. insights
  135. inspirations
  136. instances
  137. instruction
  138. instruments
  139. intimations
  140. invitations
  141. issues
  142. items
  143. joys
  144. judgments
  145. justifications
  146. keys
  147. kinds
  148. laws
  149. lessons
  150. levels
  151. liabilities
  152. limits
  153. lists
  154. losses
  155. loyalties
  156. manifestations
  157. marks
  158. means
  159. measures
  160. methods
  161. mistakes
  162. moments
  163. motives
  164. movements
  165. mysteries
  166. names
  167. necessities
  168. needs
  169. notions
  170. objections
  171. objectives
  172. observations
  173. obstacles
  174. occasions
  175. offers
  176. omissions
  177. opinions
  178. opportunities
  179. paradoxes
  180. particulars
  181. parts
  182. peculiarities
  183. penalties
  184. perils
  185. periods
  186. phases
  187. phrases
  188. pledges
  189. points
  190. possibilities
  191. practices
  192. premises
  193. prerogatives
  194. principles
  195. priorities
  196. probabilities
  197. problems
  198. processes
  199. promises
  200. promptings
  201. pronouncements
  202. proofs
  203. prophecies
  204. propositions
  205. provisions
  206. qualifications
  207. qualities
  208. questions
  209. realities
  210. realizations
  211. reasons
  212. reflections
  213. refusals
  214. remarks
  215. remedies
  216. reminders
  217. requirements
  218. reservations
  219. resources
  220. responses
  221. restraints
  222. results
  223. revelations
  224. rewards
  225. risks
  226. routes
  227. rules
  228. safeguards
  229. satisfactions
  230. secrets
  231. sins
  232. sources
  233. specifications
  234. statements
  235. steps
  236. stipulations
  237. successes
  238. suggestions
  239. superlatives
  240. suppositions
  241. surprises
  242. symptoms
  243. teachings
  244. tendencies
  245. testimonies
  246. tests
  247. thoughts
  248. threats
  249. topics
  250. totalities
  251. truths
  252. undertakings
  253. urges
  254. uses
  255. values
  256. views
  257. violations
  258. virtues
  259. voices
  260. warnings
  261. ways
  262. weaknesses
  263. wishes
  264. words
  265. wrongs
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