A Vision for Preaching: Understanding the Heart of Pastoral Ministry

by Abraham Kuruvilla

This book by a well-respected teacher of preachers develops an integrated biblical and theological vision for preaching that addresses the essentials of this most important activity in the church. Drawing on influential voices from church history, Abraham Kuruvilla reclaims what has been lost through the centuries and offers fresh insights, showing preachers what they can aim for as an ideal in their preaching. He helps preachers have a better conception of what it means to preach, a fuller understanding of the divinely granted privilege of preaching, and a greater excitement for the preaching ministry. Concluding biblical reflections reinforce the teaching of each chapter.

240 pages, Paperback

First published September 22, 2015

About the author

Abraham Kuruvilla (PhD, University of Aberdeen) is professor of pastoral ministries at Dallas Theological Seminary in Dallas, Texas, and is a practicing dermatologist. He is the author of several books, including Privilege the Text! A Theological Hermeneutic for Preaching, and has written a number of preaching commentaries. A past president of the Evangelical Homiletics Society, he blogs regularly at homiletix.com.

Reviews

[Peter Jones · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this book more than I did. The chapter titles were interesting and his definition of preaching was excellent. Several chapters were really good, such as the one on application and the connection between preaching and sacraments.

However, the author tried too hard to be unique. He used words that were odd or made up. In one chapter he tries to distance his method from the older method of point by point exposition. This section was muddled and it seemed like he ended up right back where the older guys were.

The book is not bad and there are some good portions. But I would not recommend it to a preacher or someone training to be a pastor. There are better books on preaching out there.

[Nickolas Wingholt · Rating 3 out of 5]

If Manual explained the "how" of Kuruvillas preaching method, Vision expands upon the "what." With an aim toward pastoral ministry, each chapter details what preaching "is" and why it is so important to the life of a healthy church. Even if you don't walk away agreeing with him 100%, there is a lot to be gained here. 1st time read. 3/5.

[Ben Cook · Rating 4 out of 5]

Refreshing. Some views on worship were based on shaky assumptions. But his overall argument of letting the word shape your application and to really gun for heart and life change was encouraging.

[Daniel Kingsley · Rating 1 out of 5]

Christ-iconic preaching

Kuruvilla views preaching as sacramental and to take place in the church. This results that there should be differences of Evangelical sermons and church sermons. As believers in a church know the gospel they do not need it rehearsed through every text of scripture.He points out that application is the key part of the sermon. That the sermon is to help the congregation be conformed to the image of Christ. This is what he brings up Christ-iconic preaching. Finally discussing that preaching should be doxological he builds to the point that God is glorified when his people are holy. This preaching should encourage the congregation to be holy. My fear is applying these principles would result in moralistic sermons even though Kuruvilla explicitly states that it is though the spirit that Christians follow God. For him preaching is more about applying a biblical passage to the church than about preach the gospel( thus my low rating). Application is very important but it needs to be demonstrated through the lenses of the Gospel in every sermon otherwise they become moralistic sermons consisting of try harder. Every congregation will have a mixture of those who are not Christians in addition to those who need to be reminded of the truths of the Gospel, therefore pastor’s should always preach the Person and work of Jesus Christ.

[William Horton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was worried this book would just be yet another unnecessary manual on how to do expository preaching, but was pleasantly surprised to find that it is a much more interesting description of the biblical heart behind preaching, why preaching matters so much, and what it actually does in the life of a Christian. An easy read, but lots of good content.

[Ryan Ross · Rating 3 out of 5]

A theology of preaching that is really good in some spots, but overall deficient. I think Kuruvilla’s Christiconic hermeneutic misreads the Bible and doesn’t understand how people are transformed through biblical preaching. If fully applied, I fear it would lead to more moralistic preaching.

[Bret Hammond · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've been listening to a few of Kuruvilla's sermons and interviews lately and have enjoyed him. I want to read A Manual for Preaching, but this seemed like a good place to start.

I love Kuruvilla's vision for preaching (not the book, the actual vision). It's complete, though a little long. Maybe it needs to be. It certainly seems to tackle the task of preaching from every side and move toward the necessary outcomes.

I enjoyed Kuruvilla's Vision for Preaching (the book, not the actual vision). He has masterfully structured this book, chapter by chapter. In fact, it reminded me of the structures of some of his sermons in its simplicity and comprehensiveness.

He begins each chapter by taking us back to his vision, highlighting the portion the chapter will tackle, attaching a section from Psalm 119 to the task, and moving ahead. Each chapter references 1 Samuel 15 as he seems to build a sermon within the book, exploring that particular chapter's aspect within the text and his hermeneutics.

My favorite portion of each chapter was his Reflection section at the end, where he unpacks a bit of Mark's Gospel. That work was worth the book itself, and I will likely need to get his recently published commentary on Mark!

I did find myself asking as I read, "Who is this written for?" Is this a book for beginning homiletics students or those taking a deeper look? I don't know that I could talk a lot of my preacher buddies into tackling this book. Kuruvilla's simple structure is often betrayed by complex phrases and words (I swear sometimes he's just making words up!). Why settle for a simple word when a more grandiloquent one will do the job?

Having said that, I still found the book valuable and enjoyable. I'm glad I tackled it, and I look forward to reading his other works and listening to more of his messages.

[Fred · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kuruvilla’s vision of preaching is both exegetical and traditional. For him, preaching happens in the context of the church, from a pericope of scripture, to a congregation, for the formation of godliness. It is a comprehensive vision that nevertheless feels unnecessarily restrictive.
The book is very well organized and filled with solid homiletical advice. Preaching is biblical. Preaching is pastoral. Preaching communicates, applies and gives glory to God. Preaching relies on the Holy Spirit. None of this is revolutionary. In his more unique points, like that preaching is ecclesial – it should be done in church – or that preaching is pastoral – you should know the people in your congregation, there seems to be a refusal to acknowledge how this might not work in contemporary settings. How can preaching be pastoral for those with multiple congregations? He does not say nor does he even acknowledge that reality. Preaching must be applied, but what does that look like?
The best part of the book is on communication where Kuruvilla seems to be pushing against the traditional three point sermon. Indeed he does not think “points” should be made at all. “Points” are boiled down abstractions that lose all the vitality of the original context. A sermon must have “movements” like a song or a story and not points like an outline or lecture. He shares some newer thinking on communication theory and challenges the exegete to move beyond the literal “semantic” meaning of words to the purpose of the words. He asks “what the text in question is doing?” What is the author doing and how does it fit theologically into the whole of biblical truth. These are great insights and they are the heartbeat of the book. And for them Kuruvilla is to be commended.

[Stephen · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Each sermon on a particular pericope is God's gracious invitation to humankind to live in his ideal world by abiding by the thrust of that pericope....as humankind accepts that divine invitation, week by week and pericope by pericope God's people are progressively and increasingly inhabiting his ideal world and abiding by the precepts, priorities, and practices of that world. One pericope at a time, the various aspects of Christian life, individual and corporate, are gradually being brought into alignment with the will of God for the glory of God -- God's world is becoming reality. This is the goal of preaching." (p.96)

[Chuck · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kuruvilla does an admirable job of defending his vision for preaching (whether or not you agree with all his conclusions). Any thoughtful preacher will benefit from being challenged about such things as: how to find Jesus in passages (not what you might think), theological interpretation, setting the sermon in the context of worship, and others.

But, for me, the best part of the book was the reflection on Mark's gospel at the end of each chapter. Kuruvilla demonstrates his methodology in ways that make his ideas clear. His treatment of Mark is insightful and helpful.

[Hopson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This may be the best book on preaching I've ever read (and I've read a lot). Kuruvilla offers a healthy and helpful vision for what preaching should be and must be. Perhaps most helpful to the raging debates within (especially Reformed) homiletics is Kuruvilla's understanding of "Christiconic" preaching, which aims to preach Christ by preaching a facet of Christlikeness from the text under consideration.

For Tim Challies' 2016 Reading Challenge, this is the book I read about preaching.