Preaching 101: The Big Idea: Crafting a Sermon Around Your Big Idea

If you're just starting out preaching, this can be one of the simplest and easiest templates you can use.

Introduction:

The point of your introduction is to engage the audience while creating tension. By the end of the introduction you want to create a situation where the audience WANTS to hear your big idea.

• How can you engage the audience while pointing towards your big idea?
  
• How do you get them to ask the question your big idea answers?
  
• How can you get the audience to be desperate to hear your big idea?
  

Transition:

• State the big idea

Body Part 1 - Explain the Big Idea:

Go to where scripture teaches the big idea and teach the passage. Teach any background and historical information which helps explain the big idea. However, avoid any background information which simply bogs down the message in useless details. At this point you must throughly and accurately build a biblical case for the big idea (hopefully the big idea came from the passage and not you searching for your idea in scripture).

Body Part II - Apply the Big Idea:

Once the big idea has been explained, you need to give specific examples of what this passage means for the audience or what the audience should do because of the big idea. The more specific the better. 

Things to Consider

• What are they struggling with? How does the big idea offer hope?
• Where do they spend the majority of their time (family, school, work, etc.)? How can they apply the big idea in that place?
• How does the big idea offer hope to their life?
• What changes should they make because of the big idea?

Conclusion:

For your conclusion you want to paint a picture of what could happen if each person actually lived out the big idea. Your job is to motivate the listener to act.