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JWC - Southfield

Ministerial Staff Resource Page

Find recent PowerPoints, Handouts, Teachings, and other resources that may be helpful in your ministry. 

JW Associate Ministers.jpg

The Altar Call

Click Here to review the teaching on the Altar Call

Qualifications for a Preacher

Click Here to review of the Qualifications & Rules for Preachers, from the A.M.E. Zion Book of Disicpline

What We Believe: Articles of Religion

Click Here to review the 24 core beliefs of the A.M.E. Zion Church that every preacher should be familiar with.

Exegetical Process

Click Here to see the Powerpoint.

Click Here for an example of a filled out Exegesis Process

Step 1

•Select a Text

•Reconsider where the text begins and ends

•Establish a reliable translation of the text

•Assess what you bring to the text

Due: Dec. 12, 2022

Step 5

•Check the text in the commentaries (at least 2)

Due: Feb. 13, 2023

Step 2

•Read the text for basic understanding

•Are there words I need to research?

•What do I understand? What do I not understand?

•What pops out at you? Where is the tension in the text?

•Place the Text in Larger Context

•Is this pericope part of a bigger story?

•What is happening before and after this text?

Due: Dec. 12, 2022

Step 6

  • Write a one-sentence responses to each of the following question.  The skill with which you craft these three statements will determine, in large part, the communicability and accessibility of your sermon. In one sentence each, write the

1. The Sermon Claim

2. The Sermon Focus

3. The Sermon Function

  • Write one-page explication of your focus and function that articulates how you intend to shape the sermon. How will the sermon clearly communicate what the sermons wants to say and the response to which the sermon invites the community?

Due: March 13, 2023

Step 3

•Listen Attentively to the Text

•Ask critical questions

•Identify inconsistencies in the text

•Write a paraphrase

•Stand in the shoes of the biblical character

•Look for details that appear unusual or out of place, conflict

•Locate Center gravity

•What questions does the text answer?

Due: Jan. 9, 2022

Step 7

  • Write the Sermon:

    • Describe the time of the church year during which you expect to preach a sermon from this text:

    • Describe a congregation with whom you expect to preach this text:

Due: April 10, 2023

Step 4

•Explore the text historically

•What is the history in the text and the history of the text?

•What is the genre of the text

•Explore the text theologically

•Discern what theological claims are present in the text regarding God-in-relation-to-humanity

Due: Feb. 13, 2023

Preaching Book List

Introduction to the Practice of African American Preaching by Frank A. Thomas

The Certain Sound of the Trumpet: Crafting a Sermon of Authority by Samuel D. Proctor

The Certain Sound of the Trumpet: Crafting a Sermon of Authority by Samuel D. Proctor

I Believe I'll Testify: The Art of African American Preaching by Cleophus J. LaRue

Celebration & Experience in Preaching by Henry H. Mitchell

Illustrations Unlimited: A Topical Collection of Hundreds of Stories, Quotations, & Humor by James S. Hewitt (Editor)

Other Book Resources

The Black Church in the African American Experience by C. Eric Lincoln & Lawrence H. Mamiya

African American Christian Worship by Melva Wilson Costen

Spiritual Formation: Following the Movements of the Spirit by Henri Nouwen

Can a Sistah Get a Little Help by Teresa L. Fry-Brown

Canaan Land: A Religious History of African Americans by Albert J. Raboteau

A Black Theology of Liberation by James H. Cone

Online Resources

Wesley Masterclass Handout Resources

1

The Role of Associate Ministers in the Local Church

See the handout from Rev. Dr. Eleazar Merriweather on The Role of Associate Ministers in the Local Church.

2

The Minister & The Public Square

Engage with Rev. Nathaniel Moody on the intersection between Christ and Culture, and the Minister and Public Square

3

Emotional & Spiritual Support for Ministers

Review the handout on Emotional and Spiritual Support for Ministers with Rev. Alesia Hillsman-Terrell. Review the importance of care of the minister before pouring out to others.

4

Planning & Organizing for Ministers

Keep sharp and on top of things, by learning skills from Rev. Kenya James on Planning and Organizing.

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