To read the clinic sermon " Add a Leaf to the Table, " click here.

So what? That question may be the toughest a preacher has to answer. The challenge facing biblical communicators is not only to pass on what the original author intended to communicate to his original audience, but to elicit life-change in our hearers as well. We must go beyond information to transformation.

We have no choice. When our sermons aim for transformation, we march lock step with the preachers in Scripture. Can you think of a sermon in Scripture that does not address the " so what " question? Moses ended his sermon to Israel in Deuteronomy 32 by saying, " They are not just idle words for you... By them you will live long in the land. " At the end of his sermon Joshua challenged Israel, " Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve. " In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus repeatedly called for concrete behavioral change.

What's more, listeners long for application. When Joe and Betty listen to you preach, they want to hear more than, " This is what the Bible means. " They also want, " This is what the Bible means to you. " If we cannot answer that question, we are not ready to preach the text. If we cannot, will not, or do not demonstrate how the Bible intersects everyday life, then we fall short of God's standards and people's expectations.

Fortunately, in the area of application, our clinic sermon does not fall short.

Strengths

Deals with everyday realities of life. The preacher's application strategy begins with the introduction. The discussion about potluck dinners is funny because it is familiar. The introduction signals that the preacher understands real life and wants the sermon to intersect real life.

Uses concrete words. Concrete language contributes to the junction of life with Scripture. " Our kitchen was standard fare: stove, refrigerator, ironing board that never came down except on special occasions. " When you hear that sentence you can see that kitchen.

Abstract words are remote from " real " life. Few people stand around at parties and discuss the tragedy of compound interest, but they do gossip about how the bank repossessed Jim's Corvette. This preacher does not talk about benevolence; he speaks about adding a leaf and pulling up a chair to a kitchen table. That is a slice of life we can understand.

Spreads application throughout message. The sermon does not relegate application to the last few moments; we see it beginning, middle, and end.

The introduction raises real issues of life and promises to resolve them before the sermon ends.

In the main body, the preacher describes the people who used to gather around the old chrome yellow table. Norma Jean, for instance, wore thick glasses and brought gifts of flashlights, pocketknives, and coin purses. These are concrete illustrations of what the preacher believes 1 Corinthians 11 is all about. When you look at the preacher's guest list, you see his big idea with skin on. He wants you to share with others as his parents did.

At the end of the sermon, we find application in abundance. " It could mean reaching into your pocket and taking out some Kleenex for a person.... It could mean calling people by name. "

Our clinic sermon answers the toughest question with practical answers. It allows the congregation to leave with what they want: knowing how God wants them to live. It is good preaching. It is biblical preaching.

Kent Edwards is associate director of the doctor of ministry program at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in South Hamilton, Massachusetts.

To read how Jeff Arthurs evaluated the application in this sermon, click here.

To respond to the editor, click here.

Kent Edwards is professor of preaching and leadership, and director of the doctor of ministry program at Biola University in La Mirada, California, and author of Deep Preaching (B&H).