The Moment of Truth: A Guide to Effective Sermon Delivery

by Wayne V. McDill

Sermon it's more than the mere presentation of a persuasive speech on a religious theme. It is God's way of keeping the original vision alive. This book will show you how.

Genres: Christian, School

208 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 1999

Reviews

[Jay Budzilowski · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Moment of Truth: A Guide to Effective Sermon Delivery
By Wayne V. McDill
1999
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SUMMARY:
Instructional book on preaching/sermon preparation and delivery.
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EXCERPT:
Preaching that is in harmony with God’s communication plan will make its aim to call for a faith response in the hearer. (P.15)
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REVIEW:
Dr. McDill has written a useful sermon preparation and delivery textbook. This book would be beneficial for anyone developing their preaching/teaching abilities; from beginner to advanced. McDill examines not only the “how” of preaching but also the “why.” McDill is very direct about his preferences in sermon preparation and delivery, and some of those preferences may not be for everyone. He presents his methods as “This is how I do it, so it is probably the best way for anyone to do it.” His methods are very well thought out, and very useful, but I don’t believe they are universal by any means. I know that most preachers would scoff at McDill’s determination that the best way to preach is without any notes.

[Andrew Ivester · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has some noteworthy sections, particularly towards the end when McDill discusses styles of preaching and delivery. He makes a compelling case for extemporaneous preaching without notes and gives helps and warnings for that model. The middle of the book is slow and too detailed on the ins and outs of oral communication and how the voice works. Overall a solid book, but not in the category of great.

[Brett Dickson · Rating 2 out of 5]

McDill offers some helpful material for the preaching event (organization, notes/manuscript/extemporaneous, etc.) in the latter half of the book. From early on, however, he makes clear that the audience is the most important element in the preaching event– even over and above Scripture. His attempt to shine a light on an aspect of the preaching event that has been ignored by many homileticians, turns out to be the most important element after all!

[Jake Auton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great theoretical knowledge and a really good argument/encouragement for extenporaneous preaching (as opposed to my manuscript method). However, there was almost no practical advice, and the one piece of advice he did give was that the pastor should never chew gum in public lest he look ignorant. A bit of a drag and repetitive at times. The highs were high, and the lows were incredibly boring.

[Jacob Reed · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall, I would say that this is a good book on the preaching moment. He makes a solid case for his applications. The book was printed in 1999 so there are some cultural statements made that are no longer relevant or accurate but still worth the read.

[Caleb Pineda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book on the mechanics of preaching. Helpful thoughts on reading the audience
and strong argument for preaching with no notes. But also a lot of technical information that is not super helpful.

[Evan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good solid preaching book. Gives the reader a basic understanding of what actually goes on during the preaching event.

[David Watson · Rating 3 out of 5]

An average book on preaching. Argues for preaching without notes.