Feed My Sheep: Preaching God’s Word is a much needed resource for today’s preachers. Author Emanuel Clever III writes that like much of life, preaching is a journey with never-ending ups and downs because the ultimate goal is perfection, consistently delivering sermons that touch the heart and mind. Sermons are meant to transform the lives of every hearer to the point that they leave that space and daily apply what they have learned. Let me say it like this. Preaching perfection is like a feast. But typically, most people feast only now and then, perhaps only on special occasions or holidays.
As preachers, we may serve a good meal every Sunday, but if we are honest with ourselves, we don’t serve a feast every week. To use another analogy, we may get on base Sunday after Sunday—and I’ve heard a lot of great preachers in my life—but I don’t know anyone who knocks it out of the park every single time they step up to preach. While we preachers may serve good wholesome meals each week, the goal should be to serve a feast every time.
In Feed My Sheep, preacher and author Emanuel Clever III writes:
“If preaching is the primary means by which most people will be fed God’s Word, then it makes sense to spend a lot of time in the kitchen (study). Failure to do so leads too many preachers to serve microwave meals full of popular clichés, repetitive phrases, and lackluster exegetical work with no real depth.”
Dr. Clever’s book describes preparing a sermon as a chef prepares a four-course meal, with hors d’oeuvres, an appetizer, the main course, and dessert.
