How To Write A 3 Point Sermon: It was not until I had to prepare three sermons per week that I developed the skills to write 3 point sermons.
How To Write A 3 Point Sermon?
I learned homiletics (the science and art of preaching) at seminary. However, it was not until I had to preach multiple sermons each week that I learned the skills to write 3 point sermons.
While at seminary I was given the tools to be a student of God’s word. I learned to diagram the original language. I learned to set out the exegetical outline of the text.
It’s not that I couldn’t find the information to put sermons together. That was not the problem. My problem was how to frame that information so that I could present it to the congregation in a cohesive and sequential way without taking days to do it.
When you are preaching multiple sermons a week, you need a method of sermon preparation that gives you time to write those sermons.
I decided that I would develop a method or a structure that would enable me to write multiple sermons with ease. Once I developed that structure, I simply needed to refine it.
After nearly thirty years of preaching weekly sermons, I have found structure to be the key to writing 3 point sermons with ease.
1. The Sermon
Before we look at how to write a 3 point sermon, we need to understand that a sermon has three parts – the introduction, the body and the conclusion.
The introduction introduces the body of the sermon. The body of the sermon is the sermon outline. It is the bulk of what you are going to talk about. The conclusion concludes the sermon with application and action.
I usually describe the sermon to students by comparing the sermon to an airplane flight. The take-off is the introduction. The flight is the sermon and the landing is the conclusion.
2. The Sermon Example
The example sermon I would like to use in this post comes from Luke 23:39-43. It is a sermon that I prepared for Easter Friday. I titled the sermon: The Crosswords of Calvary.
There are three CROSSWORDS of Calvary.
- Words of Rejection (Luke 23:39)
- Words of Repentance (Luke 23:40-41)
- Words of Redemption (Luke 23:42-43)
3. The Sermon Outline
The body of the sermon is the sermon outline. Therefore, I construct the sermon outline before I write any sermon content.
I divide the sermon outline into three parts – the main preaching point, sub-points and incidental points and the key word or hinge word. By doing this, I developed a method of writing a 3 point sermon. This is not new. You can learn this from the resource materials below.
By understanding the three parts of the sermon outline, you can quickly frame the information from your study of the Scriptures into a sermon outline.
A. The Main Preaching Point
The main preaching point of the sermon outline is the topic of the sermon or the subject of the sermon or the main idea of the sermon.
After studying Luke 23:39-43, I noticed dialogue taking place. Therefore, I titled the sermon: The Crosswords of Calvary.
B. The Sub-points and Incidental Points
Once I titled the sermon, I asked the how, what, where, when and who questions of the title. By asking these questions, you will be able to expand and explain the main preaching point.
The what question fits best in this case. What are the Crosswords of Calvary? They are words of rejection, words of repentance and words of redemption.
You may want to expand and explain a sub-point. You do this by adding incidental points. I expanded the first sub-point with two incidental points: These words are not new words and these words are still heard today.
The sermon outline would now look like this:
There are three CROSSWORDS of Calvary.
- Words of Rejection (Luke 23:39)
- These words or not new words
- These words are still heard today
- Words of Repentance (Luke 23:40-41)
- Words of Redemption (Luke 23:42-43)
C. The Key Word or Hinge Word
To swing the sub-points from the main preaching point, you will need to work a key word or hinge word. The key word or hinge word needs to be a plural noun. I actually used the word Crosswords as the key word or hinge word.
The first Crosswords of Calvary are words of rejection. The second Crosswords of Calvary are words of repentance and the third Crosswords of Calvary are words of redemption. This allows the sermon to progress sequentially with a natural flow so that your congregation can follow what you are about to preach to them.
Once you master the structure of the sermon outline, you will write 3 point sermon with ease. You will know how to write a 3 point sermon with cohesion and sequence!
4. The Sermon Complete
Once I have constructed the sermon outline, I write sermon content to the sermon outline with appropriate illustrations.
Then I write the introduction to the sermon and then I write the conclusion with application and action.
5. Resources For How To Write A 3 Point Sermon
Haddon W. Robinson, Biblical Preaching: The Development and Delivery of Expository Messages
Bryan Chapell, Christ-Centered Preaching: Redeeming the Expository Sermon
Charles W. Koller, How To Preach Without Notes
James Braga, How To Prepare Bible Messages
Eugene Lowry, The Sermon: Dancing The Edge of Mystery
David Buttrick, Homiletic Moves and Structures
Steven D. Mathewson, The Art of Teaching Old Testament Narrative
Eugene Lowry, The Homiletical Plot: The Sermon as Narrative Art Form