The Mission of Preaching: Equipping the Community for Faithful Witness
Digital Verbum Edition
Overview
We hear plenty of discussion about missional theology, missional leadership and missional church planting. But what about missional preaching?
Now that the church in the West lives within a post-Christendom context, how should preaching look different? What homiletical assumptions arose within Christendom but are no longer relevant for a missionary church?
In The Mission of Preaching, Patrick W. T. Johnson develops the first missional homiletic, a model for preaching determined by the missionary encounter between the gospel and Western culture. Mobilizing the latest resources in homiletical theory and missional theology, he argues that preaching is a major form of the church’s witness to Jesus Christ, equipping the congregation for its witness to the world.
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- Develops the first missional homiletic.
- Presents a model for preaching determined by the missionary encounter between the gospel and Western culture.
- Argues that preaching is a major form of the church’s witness to Jesus Christ.
- Acknowledgments
- Abbreviations
- Introduction
- 1. The Preacher as Witness
- 2. The Witness of the Christian Community
- 3. The Witness of Missional Congregations
- 4. A Missional Homiletic of Witness
- Conclusion
- Author Index
- Subject Index
- Scripture Index
Rich with theological reflection and practical wisdom, Patrick Johnson’s The Mission of Preaching offers a refreshing reimagining of the nature and practice of preaching in the context of God’s mission in and for the world. While many books focus on the performance of the preacher as an individual, Johnson’s central claim—that faithful preaching forms all God’s people to bear vibrant witness—is a timely and important word.
—Angela Dienhart Hancock, assistant professor of homiletics and worship, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary
I’ve been waiting for a solid book on missional preaching, and it has finally arrived. Patrick Johnson brings into conversation some of the best writers in homiletics and missional ecclesiology, then invites us to practice confessional preaching that is centered on the person and work of Jesus, formed by a missional hermeneutic, and is contextual and communal. This book will help you equip the church for the sake of the world.
—JR Woodward, national director, V3 Church Planting Movement, author, Creating a Missional Culture
Patrick Johnson’s work on missional preaching is very appropriate and timely for pastors serving congregations in these very tense and challenging times. Whether you are an urban, suburban or rural pastor, Johnson’s work will aid you in developing sermons that will speak prophetically to what God has called your congregation to be at this time in its history. Johnson’s missional hermeneutic provides the preacher/pastor an interpretive lens to exegete culture, the congregation and the biblical text. The book is a great read for all preachers and pastors but especially for those who are looking to prepare their churches to engage their communities, address social justice issues or simply redefine the church’s mission for today. It underscores for its readers the importance of the church being a witness of Christ to the world.
—Tasha Vinson Brown, assistant dean, Northern Seminary