Preaching to a Post-Everything World: Crafting Biblical Sermons That Connect with Our Culture Paperback – April 1, 2008

This book gives a way forward in preaching to a world where people are more media saturated and less biblically literate. The author focuses on timeless scriptural and preaching principles while applying them to our contemporary situations and audiences. He takes into account the multiple audiences in a post everything world and shows how to not just be “relevant” but how to be prophetic.My only critique is that it tended to be a bit too technical with different acronyms and they were not catchy enough or placed into the context of sermon preparation until the appendix. It would have been better to put many of the ideas in the context of preparation instead of just using examples of how they fit in a sermon. I feel like a journey through the steps of preparation using the principles and ideas would have been more engaging.

There are great preaching books, there are terrible preaching books, and there are good preaching books. This book falls in the good category. The reason is because of the great start to the book. There are some elements within the model that it provides that are excellent. The insights are thought provoking, and helpful to the average preacher. One of the best thoughts is the Context of Reality. This is the idea of the emotions, a reality behind the text. What is happening? You can see the pain of a father, the doubt of the disciples, and allow this to come alive in the sermon. You are doing more than preaching a dead text, you are preaching the life of the text. These stories happened in time, and allow this in time factor to come out. I like the focus on preaching a redemptive message. End with hope. The author notes three major voices for this culture. There is the prophetic, which is helpful, but can be over done, and hence a post modern culture will tune it out. There is the voice of the priest, and there is the voice of the sage. You are preaching wisdom. The sections that break down the various topics, like war, are not as insightful, except for the one on idols in the culture. This was good, and insightful. It talked about making the idea of idol relevant in this culture, which it highly is for those who know how to address it. This book will not change everything you are doing, but it will certainly improve your preaching, and up date it for this world. This is an excellent book to read this year. I would put it on the preacher’s reading list. The last section, provides the model, or the four stories that are happening in society. This provides a easy framework to follow in a sermon. I like the format of it.

I came to this book in hopes of getting some tips on incisive communication methods for breaking through the morass of our modern world. I did not find that. If you've taken more than one preaching class, then you've heard everything that I read before I gave up on this book. it may have been written as a homiletics 101 textbook, and it would serve fairly well in that purpose as an introduction - albeit one filled with tangled lists and a less-than-linear direction - to all the preaching tropes that new students haven't yet been exposed to.in the portion I made myself read it seems like the author's approach to the "post-everything world" was to find a cultural common denominator in the actual condition of the Biblical text and use that to break through, which is really just the bedrock foundational starting point of Biblical preaching and many degrees less novel than what I was hoping to find in this workalso 2 things1 this author LOVES lists of things - you've got lists on lists on lists on lists - here are 5 things about this and now let's talk about four things about that first of the five things while I quote Francis Schaefer again (I'll return to this shortly) have you ever seen a preacher use three different lists in one sermon. given the way this book is written, i can only assume that what you'd hear from Eswine.2 this author loves Francis Schaefer - it must be the knickers - find you someone who loves you like Eswine loves Francis Schaefer.if you've got north of 10 credit hours on homiletics/preaching at any level or are a well-read student of the craft, I'd point you elsewhere. as i had to give up on this book and go read elsewhere. It may have some utility for a student newly exposed to the craft, though I would warn them that using lists in their sermon manuscripts the way that Eswine does in this book will totally obfuscate their communication to their millennial and younger "post-everything world" audience

Standing in the long line of Christ-centered preachers Zack Eswine offers Preaching in a Post-Everything World. Quite a bit has changed since the days of Geerhardus Vos and even since the first edition of Bryan Chapell's landmark manual Christ-centered Preaching. Eswine offers this book as a new chapter in the Christ-centered preaching movement.Eswine writes in a way that will appeal to the preachers of a post-everything world. The seminary student or graduate will find this a needful corrective to the sometimes impractical world of academia. The non-seminary educated preachers will also benefit greatly from the non-technical everyday approach this book takes. Throughout this book Eswine holds the delicate balance of being Christ-centered and culturally relevant.There were numerous times in this book when I had to put the book down and pray that the Lord would change my heart. The Lord used this book to reveal idols in my own heart and areas where I lack a pastor's heart. This book is both convicting and informative. This is one of those books that you have to read numerous times. Thankfully, there are helpful appendixes to assist in preparing sermons.Honestly, there is very little that I could not recommend in this book. It is biblical, practical, well-written, attractive, informative; really everything you would desire in a preaching book. I would say that it will help you best if you have read Bryan Chapell's Christ-centered Preaching. In my opinion you cannot read one without the other.

Having read other Eswine books I was a little disappointed in this one. There are helpful things in here for the preacher but so much of it I would say is just common sense. It is by no means a bad book just not as helpful as I hoped it would be.

Useful, thought provoking. Would be useful for seminary students to discuss. Helpful also for those in ministry. Even the challenge to think about how others think will be of assistance.

I could not recommend this book more to preachers in the Western world, dealing with the effects of "post-Christendom". It will both bed down your faith in your gift, whilst stretching your 'craft' and providing helpful ways to preach God's Word in today's society.