There is nothing quite like delivering your first sermon. Really there is nothing quite like delivering any sermon. It is a unique event. And with this many young men launching into the ministry (or even those that have been going at it for awhile) often look to books for help in preaching.
If that describes you here are a few books that I would recommend.
On Preparing a Sermon
Christ-Centered Preaching by Bryan Chapell. This is the best book that I have ever read on preparing a sermon.
Preaching to a Post-Everything World by Zack Eswine. Eswine is a wonderful addition to Chapell’s work. He adapts Chapell to a post-modern context.
Biblical Preaching by Haddon Robinson. This is a classic. Robinson will help you craft sermons of a little different style than those suggested by Chapell.
On Delivering a Sermon
Preaching with Bold Assurance by Hershel York. Dr. York teaches preaching at SBTS. That should tell you something.
Preaching with Passion by Alex Montoya. This is one of those preaching texts that gets to the heart of the preacher. His chapter on brokenness is phenomenal.
Spirit-Empowered Preaching by Arturo Azurdia. Azurdia makes a great case that Spirit-empowered preaching only comes through Christ-centered sermons.
Lectures to My Students by Charles Spurgeon. This will help with far more than just delivering sermons. But there is so much material in this book that a young minister could camp out for quite some time.
Why Johnny Can’t Preach by T. David Gordon. Gordon analyzes how the media has shaped the message. This is a great caution for every preacher to heed.
On Preaching
Feed My Sheep by Various Authors. A compilation of essays that makes the case for the necessity of faithful preaching.
The Supremacy of God in Preaching by John Piper. If you could sit with Jonathan Edwards and John Piper for about an hour and ask them about preaching this is the book that you’d get.
Between Two Worlds by John Stott. Stott believes that the preachers task is to bridge the gap between the world of the Bible and the world of today. This book shows the preacher how.
He is Not Silent by Albert Mohler. Dr. Mohler believes that most contemporary preaching is no longer confident in the power of God’s Word. This is a plea to restore that confidence even in our postmodern context.
If you can only get three…
Get Chapell, Eswine, and Piper.
If you can only get one…
This is a tough choice but I have to say get Chapell’s book.
