Preparing a Narrative Sermon

Preparing a Narrative Sermon is similar and different from preparing a typical sermon. Instead of preparing a sermon in the Aristotelian rhetorical style, the narrative sermon tells a story from the Scriptures and invites the listener into the story. This approach is more contemplative, creative, and intuitive than the typical sermon that utilizes Aristotelian logic and rhetoric (Lowry 4ff.). This does not excuse lazy Bible study, or inept exegesis, but it does allow for the preacher to incarnate the text in a new way that flows more fully from their own spiritual life.

So, how does one prepare a Narrative Sermon? First, preachers need to have a consistent spiritual life. How is your time with God? Do you spend time in prayer, devotional reading of Scripture and other works, and contemplation? What you do publicly is rooted in what you do privately. No matter what politicians attempt to tell us: these should not be separated! Ultimately, I would argue that they cannot be separated anyway. So, we cannot allow our private spiritual lives to degenerate without our public spiritual leadership doing the same, even though we may attempt to cover it up! Invest in your personal spiritual life! This is foundational for your entire ministry, not just preaching.

Second, preachers should be reading and studying Scripture in an ongoing, systematic way (Lowry 102). This primes the pump for sermon preparation. While you may preach from the lectionary or through books of the Bible, it will surprise you how often the text that you are studying, outside of sermon preparation, will relate to your sermon preparation. Frankly, most preachers that I know do not have much of a Bible study outside of their sermon preparation time. This is unfortunate. Spiritually and practically, it is a helpful practice to study the Scriptures outside of your sermon preparation time. I will make this next comment multiple times in this article. When something catches your attention in the Scriptures, write it down!

Third, preachers have to choose the text of Scripture that they will be preaching (Lowry 15-16). Before I began preaching through books, and later, using the lectionary, I struggled with this one! I would spend an inordinate amount of time trying to choose the passage for my next Sunday or Wednesday message. It is helpful to plan your preaching. This helps you not to waste valuable study time! Even if you do not preach through books or use the lectionary, then prayerfully choose some method of selecting texts ahead of time that will work for you and your congregation.

Fourth, preachers need to read and re-read the text in several different translations (Lowry 102). I was instructed to do this in my undergraduate and graduate bible interpretation courses, and it is sound advice. Obviously, if you know the original languages and have maintained your original language skills, then use the Hebrew, Aramaic, or Greek. For the rest of us, utilize several different English translations. Write down your observations as you read the text. A word or phrase from a particular translation may speak to you. You may identify significant differences in translation that you need to address later. Listen to the text with your mind and heart. Once again, write it down!

Fifth, the first four points are typical of sermon preparation in general. These next ones are more specific to narrative preaching. Remember, narrative preaching has a plot. Eugene Lowry says, “a sermon is a plot (premeditated by the preacher) which has as its key ingredient a sensed discrepancy, a homiletical bind” (12). Plots consist of the intersection of a problem and resolution, or a need and a theme. So, preachers need to determine whether the text gives you the problem or the resolution, or in some cases, both (Lowry 96). Dig deep. Do not settle for surface type answers! You are not only looking for what the text says, but why the text says it (Lowry 19). Make a list of potential problems and/or solutions from the text. Be sure to keep all of the notes that you’re making because they may end up being included in your sermon!

Sixth, if your text only contains the problem or the solution, then look for the opposite (Lowry 96). If the problem is not in the text, then consider what problems the solution may have been speaking to originally or how it might speak to similar problems today. If the solution is not in the text, then consider other Scriptures that may provide the answer. These other Scriptures may be in the same biblical book or they may not. Make a list of these. Based upon the biblical text, you are writing a short story, a narrative sermon. These steps are crucial to narrative sermon preparation.

Seventh, how will you know when you have found the discrepancy, the intersection point, between the problem and the solution? Keep looking until the discrepancy is not only known, but felt (Lowry 96). If it does not engage you, the preacher, then how will it engage the congregation on Sunday? Generally speaking, it won’t. Until you can clearly articulate this intersection point, and it engages you emotionally, then do not be satisfied with what you have found. Continue looking until you discover the felt discrepancy that engages you and will drive the sermon. Use your notes! Compare the problem notes with the solution notes. See where the felt discrepancy exist. Once you think that you have them, write them out several times. Play with the words to find the most engaging and creative way that you can say it.

Lastly preachers, when you can clearly identify the discrepancy, or homiletical bind, then you may have your sermonic idea (Lowry 99). Sermon ideas must contain a sense of ambiguity for the preacher and the congregation (Lowry 90). That ambiguity will drive the narrative sermon. Another thing that it does is to keep the interest of the listeners. Lowry comments, “It should be noted in the context of the parallel between sermons and literary plots that the suspense of ambiguity – the not knowing what or why or how – is the key to the attention of the audience” (24). How will the ambiguity be resolved? What will the resolution be? These keep the congregation interested and alert, well, most of them! Do not give them the solution too early!

Follow-Up: My next article will be on Plotting the Narrative Sermon. In other words, it will cover the necessary steps to planning and writing your narrative sermon. This article is foundational for that one.

Summary: Steps to Preparing a Narrative Sermon:

1. Attend to your own personal relationship to God

2. Study the Scriptures in an ongoing, systematic way (Lowry 102)

3. Choose the text of Scripture that you’re preaching (Lowry 15-16)

4. Read and Re-Read the text in several translations (Lowry 102)

5. Determine whether the text gives you the problem or solution (Lowry 96)

6. Look for the opposite of #5 (Lowry 96)

7. Keeping looking until the discrepancy/bind is known and felt (Lowry 96)

8. When you can identify the discrepancy then the sermonic idea is born (Lowry 99)

Sources:

My articles will only provide an introduction to Eugene Lowry’s The Homiletical Plot and some of my own reflections. For a complete explanation of narrative preaching, please see his book.

Lowry, Eugene. The Homiletical Plot: the Sermon as Narrative Art Form (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2001).

Lowry, Eugene. Website: http://www.eugenelowry.com/

My Book Review of Eugene Lowry’s Homiletical Plot: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/7940249/book_review_the_homiletical_plot_by.html?cat=38

My Narrative Sermons on 1 Samuel:

I am attempting to learn how to preach narrative sermons. These are some of my attempts.

1 Samuel 1: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/8340729/narrative_sermon_why_is_god_against.html?cat=52

1 Samuel 2: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/8319861/narrative_sermon_could_my_kids_really.html?cat=37

1 Samuel 3: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/8351675/narrative_sermon_an_unfamiliar_voice.html?cat=37

1 Samuel 4: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/8358917/narrative_sermon_all_alone.html?cat=44

1 Samuel 5-6: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/8370439/narrative_sermon_can_god_fail.html?cat=44 (This is my first sermon from this passage.)

1 Samuel 5-6: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/8375203/narrative_sermon_why_acknowledge_god.html?cat=44 (This is my second sermon from this passage.)


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