3 Simple Steps to Preach Lofty Theological Ideas from Our Earthly Plane
When Jesus preached about the kingdom of heaven, he didn't explain what the “kingdom of heaven” meant.
Instead, he used commonplace metaphors like a mustard seed, leaven, and treasure buried in a field to preach lofty theological ideas from an earthly plane.
He didn't preach about theology. He preached an experience of it.
How? He used familiar language and objects as metaphors to do the heavy lifting for him.
What did his chosen metaphorical objects have in common?
First, they were commonplace.
Second, people experienced them through their five senses.
Third, the metaphor conveyed an emotion.
To accomplish this, he had to first be able to say in his own words what the concept meant.
He had to be able to define it for himself so he would recognize an object or experience as an apt metaphor when he saw it.
He also had to have experienced the concept emotionally to know that an object or experience fit.
For example, I imagine that when Jesus…
…intuited that the kingdom of God was like the tiniest seed that unfurled into the mightiest of bushes, his tongue muted in wonder.
…connected that the action of yeast, a substance as common as the daily bread it leavened, was in fact uncommonly holy, his next taste of bread was the most delicious he’d ever eaten.
…felt intense joy that the kingdom of God was present, that he pictured that joy as if a poor man had just unearthed treasure buried in a field.
We preachers often toss out theological words like mercy, grace, or compassion without thinking or rooting them in lived experience. We leave them in the sky-high realms of theory.
Because we struggle to take a big, important word and make it real, we explain at length instead of offering listeners an experience.
But Jesus showed us that the process to finding adequate metaphors is quite simple.
We can adapt his process to bring lofty theological concepts down to earth.
Step 1: Define the Concept
Just like Jesus had to understand what the kingdom of God was before he could choose a fitting metaphor, we have to know what a theological concept means too.
Start by defining the concept, and do so simply in a complete sentence.
Before you object that something as complex as mercy, grace, or compassion can be reduced to a single sentence, I agree with you.
But I didn’t say it had to be only one sentence. In fact, if you have more than one, it gives you more ground to work from. Just make sure that each definition is one simple, complete thought.
For our purposes here, I’ll offer just one definition of mercy:
God’s mercy makes a mockery of common sense by X-ing out a justifiable sentence after an offense.
Step 2: Free-Associate from the Definition
Use keywords in the definition as launching points to brainstorm synonyms, antonyms, images, common phrases, and random thoughts.
As you jot them down, note the emotions and any images that arise.
Don’t worry whether they are “correct” or “will preach” at this stage. You’re letting loose your creativity and experience.
When the Spirit connects these ideas together, she creates wisdom, so you’re giving her material to work with!
Have fun! Play!
For example, here are some of my free associations.
Mercy trades punishment for relationship.
Emotions: resentment and relief
Image: arms crossed over one’s chest let down to relax at the side; exchanging a fist for an open hand of welcome
Mercy is a free pass.
Emotions: resentment and relief
Image: A “get out of jail free” card from Monopoly.
Mercy is extended with hope—but not strings. That is, there is hope that the offender won’t reoffend (at the very least) and will repair what they broke, but whether they live into that hope or not, mercy will be extended ad infinitum.
Emotion: distrust; resigned to not trying to hold back the flood of God’s mercy
Images: the jail cell door is open but I’m still in the cell hunting for the string (the catch) that has to be there somewhere; mercy that is as strong and wide as gale force winds
Mercy takes what was expected (i.e., punishment: full stop) and instead cracks the future open wide.
Emotion: incredulous; pensive; on edge; too goo to be true
Images: exchanging a period at the end of a sentence for a comma or ellipses; waiting for the sound of a slamming door that never comes; waiting for the other shoe to drop
Step 3: Draft Metaphors
Notice the free associations above and reword them into metaphors and analogies.
Note the emotional connotations an image conveys and the kind of experiences it invites people into.
For instance, here are some I came up with based on my brainstorming above:
Mercy is the absence of a lock, door, or jailer for the dungeon. We’re the only ones who put ourselves there and can leave anytime.
Emotions: distrust; too good to be true
Uses: offer an experience that God’s punishment is fictitious; we’re the ones who punish ourselves.
Mercy is like waiting for the other shoe to drop that never does.
Emotions: distrust; pensive; tense; too good to be true
Uses: offer an experience that we can wait forever because there is no other shoe to drop. Mercy is truly without a price.
Mercy is like searching for the string that was never attached.
Emotions: distrust; incredulous; wondering what the catch is
Uses: when wanting to offer an experience that there is no catch. Mercy is truly letting us off scot-free.
Mercy is like the infinity sign of belonging.
Emotions: distrust that mercy isn’t realistic, practical, or reasonable; wanting to draw the line on who’s in and who’s out after an offense; shame and fear to get kicked out of the club
Uses: when wanting to offer an experience that mercy is never-ending, and is applied over and over, endlessly, or an experience that you can’t get kicked out of God’s club.
Mercy is like an ellipsis: it invites the story to continue.
Emotions: wanting to justify that mercy and relationships have ultimate limits
Uses: when wanting to convey that mercy creates possibilities for a continued relationship, whereas common sense would cut it off.
Mercy is like a five-Michelin-star restaurant dinner bill that’s waived by the manager—even when he knows you accidentally-on-purpose left your credit card at home.
Emotions: thinking we can pull one over on God; taking mercy for granted (which in itself, receives mercy)
Uses: when wanting to convey an experience that even deliberate sins receive God’s mercy
Mercy is like gale-force winds: good luck trying to spread your arms wide enough to stop it.
Emotions: resentment; smugness for knowing who deserves mercy and who doesn’t
Uses: when wanting to convey an experience that God manages the mercy and it’s ridiculous to try to stop it—so we may as well get swept up by it!
Mercy is like standing alone outside the huddle only to have the huddle surround and and absorb you.
Emotions: feeling ashamed, shunned or isolated by our offenses, or shaming, shunning, or isolating the offender
Uses: when wanting to convey an experience of God’s welcome after an offense, as the father did for the prodigal son
Finally
Look over your drafts: Do they match Jesus’s practice of using commonplace objects or anecdotes that can be experienced physically and emotionally?
If not, revise until they are as simply worded as Jesus’s were.
Create a folder or spreadsheet of metaphors and tag them by their theological word and the emotions.
The next time you’re highlighting a theological idea, reach for your folder.
And while you’re there create a few more for the next time by using those three easy steps: define, free-associate, and draft!
“For God’s Sake”: A Lenten Sermon Series
Working on your Lenten sermons?
Use these sermon themes as a springboard to inspire your ideas and jump-start your process.