Skip to content

Soul Preaching

Menu
  • Home
  • Contact Us
  • Popular Updates
    • Preaching Methods
    • Homiletic Theory
    • Sermon Construction
    • Exegesis
    • Feature Articles
  • SUBSCRIBE
Menu

Importance of Style

Posted on April 7, 2009

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Some have said that I spend too much time writing about “style.” These individuals say that what is important is not the “style” but the “content.” They argue that one of the greatest problems with much African American preaching is spending too much time worrying about the style.

Style Affects Listener Understanding

I will answer this in two ways. First, style affects how the hearer understands the message. We all have heard about preachers who have great content, but they just can’t deliver the message. Listen to your favorite lecturer at college. Did she speak in a monotone way? Did she deliver the message with animation that comes from knowing and loving the material?

It is interesting that some preachers who claim to ignore style have great style themselves. They may not “whoop” but they are masters of cadence. They may not use various pulpit devices, but they make explicit use of call and response. Simply put, a “no style” style will turn the people off and make your material almost non understandable. Style affects how the hearers understand your message.

It is true that there are some preachers who only have style, and they don’t have a message that corresponds to it. The important thing is for preachers to have a strong message and embody that message in their mannerisms, word choice, style, and yes other areas of content.

Most of Communication is Nonverbal

The second problem with those who wish to say style is unimportant is that style affects the message itself. We are told that the vast majority of communication is in nonverbal. It is the way you say something. It is the glisten in your eye. It is the strength of your convictions. All of thesee parts will come through in what we call “style.” No content is not something that is totally independent of style. Style is a part of the content.

You can say the phrase “God is a good God” while mocking the statement. How? In the way you say it, the body language could say something else. You can say the same phrase while celebrating it. You can say the same exact phrase while trying to convince yourself of it. You can say the same phrase in many ways, but changing the WAY you say it.

Preaching Style is Important

Preaching style is important. How you say something affects how it is hard. In addition, How you say something affects WHAT is heard. So we should not ignore the question entirely. Now you may think that SoulPreaching.Com spends too much time talking about stylistic concerns. Perhaps we do, I think we do not, in any case, all of us should spend some time thinking about this important characteristic of preaching.

Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc, or its affiliates.

Related posts:

7 Steps to a Good Sermon or How To Create and Preach a Sermon Default ThumbnailStealing Sermons Default ThumbnailShould You Use Visual Aids? Default ThumbnailProstitution of the Black Preaching Tradition – Style but no Substance

1 thought on “Importance of Style”

  1. Roger B. Abuloc says:
    January 29, 2011 at 9:58 pm

    Certainly style is part and parcel of a message. No matter how brilliant is your content but if there’s deficient in your delivery, the message then would just be regarded as “one of those things,” or very ordinary. The meat of the message is lost by a poor style. And therefore, less understandable and anemic in the delivery.

Leave a Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Recent Posts

  • Stop Sleeping In The Pulpit
  • Thou Shalt Have Good News
  • The Answer Is In The Records
  • Just Keep the Ball In Play
  • The Importance of Good News
  • Preaching Advent With Imagination
  • Why The Thorn

Free Email Training

Sign up for the New Preaching TIPS Email Newsletter. You will recieve 5-7 emails a week.

Click Here

Revised Common Lectionary

    Instagram

    shermancox

    Instagram post 18041906996079829 Instagram post 18041906996079829
    Instagram post 17910296783919000 Instagram post 17910296783919000
    Instagram post 18035493148903548 Instagram post 18035493148903548
    Instagram post 17887097775081541 Instagram post 17887097775081541
    #smule #smuleduet #easylikesundaymorning #smule #smuleduet #easylikesundaymorning
    I feel Good #smule #smuleglobal I feel Good #smule #smuleglobal
    Instagram post 18087447073438590 Instagram post 18087447073438590
    Instagram post 17851233018147535 Instagram post 17851233018147535
    Instagram post 17907649217946063 Instagram post 17907649217946063
    Intro to prayer Intro to prayer
    Instagram post 17982108473571505 Instagram post 17982108473571505
    Instagram post 18030258256647195 Instagram post 18030258256647195
    Instagram post 18128574130309862 Instagram post 18128574130309862
    Instagram post 18388873843007811 Instagram post 18388873843007811
    What’s on the wall when I’m singing? What’s on the wall when I’m singing?
    How bout some blues harp. With a blues guitarist. How bout some blues harp. With a blues guitarist.
    Goodness of God cover. Goodness of God cover.
    Instagram post 18229306630087412 Instagram post 18229306630087412
    Instagram post 17972316937910455 Instagram post 17972316937910455
    Logged into lose it and it said Logged into lose it and it said
    Load More Follow on Instagram

    Recent Posts

    • Stop Sleeping In The Pulpit
    • Thou Shalt Have Good News
    • The Answer Is In The Records
    • Just Keep the Ball In Play
    • The Importance of Good News

    Archives

    • September 2024
    • March 2024
    • December 2023
    • November 2023
    • October 2023
    • January 2020
    • December 2019
    • October 2019
    • September 2019
    • March 2019
    • August 2018
    • June 2018
    • January 2018
    • December 2017
    • November 2017
    • October 2017
    • September 2017
    • August 2017
    • April 2017
    • March 2017
    • February 2017
    • January 2017
    • December 2016
    • November 2016
    • October 2016
    • July 2016
    • June 2016
    • May 2016
    • April 2016
    • March 2016
    • February 2016
    • January 2016
    • November 2015
    • October 2015
    • September 2015
    • August 2015
    • July 2015
    • June 2015
    • May 2015
    • April 2015
    • March 2015
    • January 2015
    • November 2014
    • September 2014
    • August 2014
    • July 2014
    • June 2014
    • May 2014
    • April 2014
    • March 2014
    • February 2014
    • January 2014
    • November 2013
    • October 2013
    • September 2013
    • July 2013
    • June 2013
    • May 2013
    • April 2013
    • March 2013
    • December 2012
    • September 2012
    • August 2012
    • July 2012
    • June 2012
    • May 2012
    • April 2012
    • February 2012
    • January 2012
    • November 2011
    • October 2011
    • September 2011
    • August 2011
    • July 2011
    • June 2011
    • May 2011
    • April 2011
    • March 2011
    • February 2011
    • January 2011
    • December 2010
    • November 2010
    • October 2010
    • September 2010
    • August 2010
    • July 2010
    • June 2010
    • April 2010
    • March 2010
    • February 2010
    • January 2010
    • December 2009
    • November 2009
    • October 2009
    • September 2009
    • August 2009
    • July 2009
    • June 2009
    • May 2009
    • April 2009
    • March 2009
    • February 2009
    • January 2009
    • December 2008
    • November 2008
    • October 2008
    • September 2008
    • August 2008
    • July 2008
    • June 2008
    • May 2008
    • April 2008
    • March 2008
    • February 2008
    • January 2008
    • December 2007
    • November 2007
    • October 2007
    • September 2007
    • August 2007
    • July 2007
    • June 2007
    • May 2007
    • April 2007
    • March 2007
    • February 2007
    • January 2007
    • December 2006
    • November 2006
    • October 2006
    • September 2006

    Categories

    • 11Cartoons
    • 11Fiction
    • 11Instruction
    • Associate Ministry
    • Audio
    • Basic Preaching
    • Bible Study
    • Black Church
    • Black Preaching Style
    • blog
    • Book of the Month
    • Book Reviews
    • Devotional
    • Exegesis
    • Feature Articles
    • feedburner
    • Fixing the Sermon
    • Funeral
    • General
    • Gospel Music
    • Headline
    • History
    • Homiletic Theory
    • Issues
    • MiniBlog
    • Ministry
    • Negro Spirituals
    • Planning
    • Podcast
    • Practice
    • Prayer
    • Preaching
    • Preaching Methods
    • Preaching Style
    • Premium
    • Questions and Answers
    • racism
    • Scripture Selection
    • Sermon Analysis
    • Sermon Construction
    • Sermon Craft
    • Sermon Editing
    • Sermon Outline
    • Sermons
    • Software
    • Theology
    • Titles
    • Uncategorized
    • Video
    • Web Ministry
    • WebSeminar
    • Whooping
    • Without Notes
    ©2025 Soul Preaching | Design: Newspaperly WordPress Theme