Before we can answer what makes good preaching, we have to ask another more basic question: what even is preaching? In his book, Preaching Pure and Simple, Stuart Olyott lists four things that define preaching:

1. It is heralding a message given by the King (kerusso): this tells us about the source of the message and the authority with which it comes.
2. It is announcing good news (euangelizo): this tells us about the quality of the message and the spirit in which it is given.
3. It is bearing witness to facts (martureo): this tells us about the nature of the message and the basis on which it is constructed.
4. It is spelling out the implications of the message (didasko): this tells us about the target of the message (the hearer’s conscience) and the measure of its success (did it change anyone’s life?).

Stuart insists that preaching means all four of these things. If I were to put his four points into a sentence: preaching is God’s factually attested message of good news in Christ that aims to lead the hearer to change in light of its specific implications for them.

If that is what preaching is, we can come onto our specific question: what makes good preaching? Here are some key features largely taken from Stuart’s book:

1. Exegetical accuracy: understanding the intended meaning of the text and then explaining it accurately.
2. Doctrinal substance: explaining how a passage fits with the wider system of doctrines taught in the scriptures.
3. Christo-centric: recognising the bible is all about Jesus and explaining how this passage relates to him.
4. Structurally clear: having a clear structure, telling people what you are going to say and where you are going from the outset, signposting where you are as you go through and summarising what you have said.
5. Vivid illustrations: using simple word-pictures that clarify the text and help people to retain its meaning.
6. Pointed applications: thinking carefully about what this passage means for different people in front of you and applying it directly to their various situations in very specific ways.
7. Helpful delivery: speaking in a way that can be heard, understood, followed and digested. Use of tone, emphasis and intonation that serves the message as well as helpfully structuring sentences.