Hands-free narration of this study — good for the car.
Synopsis
A sermon needs a theme the way a building needs a blueprint or a train needs a track — without one, a sermon spreads in every direction like a flood instead of flowing purposefully like a river. A theme is distinguished from a topic or title: the topic is a short label for the bulletin, while the theme is the preacher's own fuller statement of the sermon's purpose, illustrated by the difference between the topic 'Paul's Swan Song' and the fuller theme drawn from 2 Timothy 4:6-8. Two kinds of themes are described: rhetorical (a subject with modifiers, such as 'The Blessings of God's People') and logical (a subject with a predicate, such as 'Faith in Christ is the Only Means to Salvation'), the latter suggesting divisions that prove the theme. Selecting the right theme for the occasion means diagnosing the congregation's present need — through prayer, visitation, or general community conditions — rather than searching for a clever outline; a preacher without such diagnosis is called a 'ministerial quack.' A good theme should be comprehensive, biblical, dynamic, and specific, and additional notes add that it should be accurate, honest, interesting, usually present-tense, and may be phrased declaratively, imperatively, interrogatively, hortatively, exclamatorily, or definitively.
Key points
- A theme functions like a blueprint or riverbank, giving a sermon direction; without one it becomes a directionless flood.
- A theme differs from a topic: the topic is a short public label, the theme is the preacher's fuller statement of purpose.
- There are two kinds of themes: rhetorical (subject with modifiers) and logical (subject with predicate, suggesting proof divisions).
- The right theme is found by diagnosing the congregation's present need through prayer, visitation, and observation, not by hunting for a clever outline.
- A good theme should be comprehensive, biblical, dynamic, and specific — and, per the additional notes, accurate, honest, interesting, and clearly stated.
Key texts
- 2 Timothy 4:6-8
From the course book
How to Select a Theme · pp. 21-24 (reader pages 21-24) · Open the reader
- “A theme-less sermon is like a flood, which spreads in every direction; a sermon with a theme is like a river flowing within its bank in a certain direction.” (p. 21)
- “A preacher who preaches sermons without a diagnosis of his people's need is a ministerial quack and will do people about as much good as a quack doctor.” (p. 22)
- “Sermon themes should exhibit the following qualities: they should be comprehensive, Biblical, dynamic, and specific.” (p. 22)
Put it into practice
- Before outlining, write your theme as a full sentence distinct from your announced topic or title.
- Test your theme against the four qualities: comprehensive, biblical, dynamic, specific.
- Diagnose your congregation's present need through prayer or visitation before finalizing the theme.
- Comprehension
1. What two everyday comparisons does the course use to explain why a sermon needs a theme?
- Comprehension
2. How does a theme differ from a topic or title?
- Scripture
3. Read 2 Timothy 4:6-8. What theme does the course draw from this passage, distinct from its topic 'Paul's Swan Song'?
- Doctrinal Clarity
4. Distinguish a rhetorical theme from a logical theme, with an example of each.
- Comprehension
5. According to the course, what is the first question a good preacher should ask, and what should he not ask first?
- Doctrinal Clarity
6. Why does the course call an undiagnosed preacher a 'ministerial quack'?
- Comprehension
7. List the four qualities the course says a sermon theme should have.
- Contrast
8. Contrast a theme on the bare word 'Faith' with a theme like 'Faith that Overcomes the World.'
- Scripture
9. What ways does the course say a preacher can discover the congregation's present needs?
- Application
10. Think of your next sermon opportunity: what present need of your hearers should shape your theme, and how will you word it as a full sentence?