A sermon is a little like a horse. Each has three basic parts: a head (introduction), a body, and a tail (conclusion). It's easy to see why a horse needs a head, but why does a sermon need an introduction?
Sermon introductions should fulfill at least five purposes. Perhaps you don't need all five in every sermon, but you should have all five in your mind every time you prepare a sermon.
1. An introduction establishes audience rapport. Sensitive speakers begin their speeches by making friends with the audience. Establishing good audience rapport is extremely important because your impact as a speaker is determined less by what you say than by what your listener thinks of you while you say it.
As a pastor, your sermon introduction should be shorter than the introductions used in other speaking situations. First, because the early parts of the worship service should already have warmed and united the listeners, putting them in a worshipful frame of mind. Second, be cause as pastor, you have already established your rapport through every sermon previously preached, every marriage per formed, every funeral conducted, every ministry done for your congregation.
The introduction should not likely comprise more than 10 to 15 percent of your sermon. Don't spend so much time setting the table that there's no time left to eat.
2. An introduction gains attention. The young preacher asked, "What's the best way to get the attention of your congregation when you stand up to preach?" The old preacher answered, "Give them something to attend to."
Never stand up until you know exactly what your first and last sentences will be. And make that first pitch right across the plate, belt-high. If you don't get your listeners' attention in the first 60 seconds, you may never get it.
3. An introduction arouses interest in your topic. I heard a minister whose topic was legalistic religion begin "Nine teen hundred years ago there was a religious group who kept all the Ten Commandments, paid a faithful tithe, was most faithful in every detail of religious life--and they murdered Christ!" Now, there's an introduction that aroused interest in the topic.
The introduction is the first part of the sermon presented, but it should be one of the last parts of the sermon prepared. It's important to know something about per sons before you introduce them to others. And it's necessary to know a great deal about your sermon before you decide how to introduce it to your audience.
4. An introduction gives your theme. Most speakers give their subject in the introduction, but few clarify their theme. The subject is much less interesting than a good theme, for the subject merely says what you're going to talk about. The theme tells what you're going to say about it. It is your sermon in a sentence. Don't say "I'm going to talk about attitudes." Rather; say "The thought I would like us to think through together this morning is this: We see things, not as they are, but as we are."
Some don't want to give their theme in the introduction because they want to maintain an air of expectancy. But a good theme can awaken interest and make the rest of your sermon easier for listeners to understand.
A few days ago I stood where Abraham Lincoln gave his famous Gettysburg Ad dress. At the traditional site from which he spoke in dedicating this American Civil War cemetery there is now a monument to freedom. It has a large figure at the top. Four other figures, symbolizing four aspects of freedom, surround the base.
Walking around the monument, I viewed it from the east, then south, west, and north. From each side I saw the freedom symbol, but the additional figures below helped me understand more completely what freedom means.
Let the large freedom figure symbolize your sermon theme. The smaller figures are the other parts of your sermon. Your listeners will get more out of your theme if you let them see it first, then see it better as you approach it from its various sides.
5. An introduction presents a presummary. If you've seen the whole picture, a jigsaw puzzle is a lot easier to put together. If your introduction gives a little overview of your sermon, the congregation will find it a lot easier to put together as they listen. For example, you might tell them, "First we'll talk about why we ought to love; then we'll learn how to love." Or: "Let's look at Jeremiah's background, his message, and his reward. "
I wouldn't suggest that every sermon needs a pre-summary. But fear only simplistic ideas, not simple organization. You can't hit people between the eyes while you're preaching over their heads.
