Proclaimer Blog
Sermon illustrations part 4
Where do you get your sermon illustrations from?
I wonder if there's a better way than either Mr A or Mr R. In reality, it's a strategy we both use. Here it is in essence:
- many passages have their own illustrations – or, at least, colour. Preachers ignore these at their peril. "We all, like sheep, have gone astray" says Isaiah. There's no need there for an illustration about lemmings (which, by the way, do not behave as the video games suggest). The simile is right there for you.
- many things that need illustrating are well illustrated by stories from the Bible. It makes me laugh that some preachers are almost evangelistic about not have any cross references but are happy to liberally quote the BBC website. The Bible is full of stories that illustrate hard things. Why not use them?
Added to this is the importance for the preacher of simply looking around. Spurgeon makes much of this in his "Lectures to my students.". For him, it was being aware of the natural world (flaura, fauna etc) and using these to illustrate. Perhaps our vista may be slightly broader, but – in essence – being a good sermon illustrator is often about just keeping your eyes open.
What is more, this kind of "look around you" illustrating will make your sermons sound more contemporary immediately. (I say "sound" advisedly, because a contemporary sermon is surely one that hits home to current listeners, rather than one which is "trendy" and "happening"). For example, I preached on Numbers 5-6 last weekend and was trying to show from Numbers 5.1-3 that God was interested in holiness because he was both holy himself and present. My illustration was that you can admire a skillful athlete from the stands, but you don't need to be skillful yourself. However, God is present with his people. You're not in the stands. You're on the track with him. I used the athletics illustration because – right around the corner from us – we'd just hosted the anniversary games at the Olympic Park.
Which brings me to one of the most important rules about illustrations which I have just broken.
Please, no sports illustrations.
Must you? Really?