 okay there it is okay we'll let's pray and then we'll get started okay let's pray father we thank you once again Lord even as we gather together Lord we thank you that Lord where two or three are gathered you are there in our midst Lord and we just acknowledge your presence even as we gather online digitally Lord we acknowledge your presence and we thank you that you are here speaking to us doing things in our spirit that no human being can and I thank you that you are edifying us and putting things in our hearts Lord and taking things out I thank you Lord that there is a it's a time of learning and unlearning as well and we just yield to that entire process and we just say come Lord have your way in our lives God we thank you and we come at this time into your presence into your mighty hands and I pray that you will have your way and fulfill your plans and purposes in our lives we thank you in Jesus name we pray amen amen okay so I good to see you all back so we this is biblical preaching and last session we looked at before we went into you know biblical preaching we wanted to look at interpretation right how do we rightly interpret it and the fact that Paul writing to Timothy and exhorting Timothy and saying you know give heed to the doctrine charge some that they teach no other doctrine that they do not give heed to fables and so on and telling Timothy rightly divide the word and in doing so you will save yourself and the others who hear you and so on so we see a lot of importance that Paul gives to the the word the written word and and the rightly dividing of it and the teaching of it and so on and the reason is this that with the teaching of the word comes the revelation and with the revelation the conviction in our hearts and with the conviction each person is believers move to action and you know living and with that we change the destiny our destinies are you know change so it all starts with the teaching and the revelation so as we are called each one of us called to be preachers and we saw that first Peter 2 and we see that we are called to be communicators I think that's a that's a word which a lot of us can resonate with but all of us are called to proclaim to herald the message that God gives us we are called to proclaim the virtues of him who called us from darkness into his life so all of us are his mouthpieces all of us are like we see you know like we are called to be ambassadors of reconciliation and each one of us now there's no place for comparison because our call will be unique and I can guarantee you that each one of you you know will you know as you're submitted to God and yes you're walking in step with God that you will be salt and light that you will be mouthpieces that you will be ambassadors of reconciliation you know in your sphere of influence and and that's the place that's the greatest place that's the best place to be in the sphere of influence in the you know center of his bill right so while all that is great and we are looking at some of the things some of the basics some of the foundational things so so we don't want to put the cart you know in front of the horse so he's just putting the right place here so we last session we dealt with the the interpretation and how to go about it some of those basic foundation and rules you know that you can use it as a ready reckon I just go back to it time and again and and today we are looking at the introduction of homolytics and it's in page eight in your notes if you can go there so we see that homolytics the term itself is it refers to the science and art of of preparing and communicating or delivering a message right a discourse you know what is a discourse a discourse is it's it's simply a talk that a preparation and talk about a particular topic right it's a conversation so the word homily the greek word homily refers to that and homos means a saying and homilars the audience and assembly or a crowd so in homolytics we address all that and we call it a science you know some people say it's a science and an art well it is because there is some exactness to it in the sense you know there is some specifics to it which will actually help us communicate it really well and is and we can call it an art because there is you know there is creativity and god has actually given us that right yeah human personality is involved in the communication of the message so just because a human being with a flawed human being right with the flaws in personality god chooses to use even that to communicate the message if you look at the the early church if you look at the disciples they were completely transformed by the power of the holy spirit well but they if you look at them as human beings they were you know they had limitations they had they were flaws they were then and so on but the the power of god over shadowed their limitations over shadowed their weaknesses and you know time after time you hear testimonies of people and I remember I remember this testimony about a person who who was in wyvan you know youth with a mission and this teenager who shared the gospel with with this person I forget his name but I remember the incident that this person went on to become to really do great things in ministry really god used him in a mighty way to move about to bring about a move of god and so on but the fact is that she came and shared the gospel stumbling through her words and you know she she shared the gospel and in fact it says that the girl went back saying okay that's that was most terrible you know that the thing that I ever did but the fact is the holy spirit used those words to convict this person's heart and this person was ready and open and through that he his life was changed right so well god does use human personality it is an art we can be we are creative and use our intellect and so on but always depending on the power of the holy spirit both for inspiration and for the communication right both for inspiration and the communication of the message so it was Saint Augustine who brought these terms you know like homilia and so more sorry sermo into the into the church and and from which we get the english words preaching and sermon and so on right so it's it's quite interesting to you know to look at the history of homiletics and how it was in the church and probably you know you could read that on your own there are plenty of online resources you can just read that and see how in the early church that people actually you know how it came into being and though it went to an extreme of you know the oratorical oratorical standards of those days like theater and drama and all that so the speech and everything you know coming in a certain form but at the same time they were there were preachers who were down to the down to earth very practical and they said no this art form which is there secular in secular in the secular realm or theater you know we can only use it to some extent you know so there were people like Saint Augustine there were people like I think the Bishop of Hippo I forget the name but they were very careful you know in the communication of the message they were very down to earth in the preaching which of the gospel and the and the teaching of the word right so I just want to share a particular instance that happened one that I heard and so two two instances one that I heard and another one that I experienced okay so is everyone ready for a couple of stories okay the first one is something that I experienced okay so this was in a railway station in control a controlment railway station not too far from where I stay about five kilometers so I was waiting for the train and it was it was a night train I was waiting for the train and sitting there with my luggage then I saw this this person kind of senior gentleman and he had a mic he had actually his his team had a had a mic he had a mic his team had you know like a portable loudspeaker and he had the Bible with him and and he was preaching like he was he was walking down the platform up and down and he was preaching he was dressed in white and so on senior and then it was like a group of three or four people just traveling walking with him and he was he was preaching but the fact is that well he was using a lot of scripture he said you know he was talking you know young man you know he would say what would it what would it profit if you gain the whole world and lose your soul and and then he would just you know just keep moving on and some of it was barely audible right so but he was doing that and then when I experienced that then I saw that people are doing their own things right people are doing their own things and some of them they just looked at it funnily and they said okay is something happening okay so I looked at it one thing in my heart now I really appreciated the fact that he was you know he was out there that night it was pretty cold and he was a senior person and he was out there doing that right for because he had a and he wanted to do that share the gospel but I was just thinking about the effectiveness of it right effectiveness of it in the sense I was thinking was it effort in the right direction I'm sure that God will use it I was sure of that even that God will use but I was just thinking about the kind of effort put in and the kind of impact that that was there right people well you know people were just doing their thing and I could hardly hear anything because he was moving on and it seemed as if the agenda was I'll preach the gospel uh in the containment railway station right I'll preach the gospel and you know that evening I've preached the gospel there and it was part of a checklist right I couldn't help but think of that I think that was one scenario the other one was something that I heard that that in a in a busy bus stand that every every week I think it was a Thursday or a Friday every every weekly ones afternoon that two people would come they would set up their sound system their audio system obviously it was in a place where all this was allowed so in India this many years ago they would set it up and and preach okay and and talk to the people to preach you know like some would it was a busy place some would stand and here many would be walking by and and so they would come they would they would preach for about maybe 45 minutes or so non-stop and then they would pack everything and go okay so so this person who was actually watching this whole thing a couple of times and he went to ask them right you know what are you you know he was a believer through so he asked them what are you doing so then they said no we are preaching the gospel then said okay but who's listening right so he said brother that doesn't matter you know we are called to preach and whoever wants to listen can listen who wants to receive can receive but we will preach so I was actually in a communication workshop and many years ago and and then this person shared this so it's talking about so both these instances where people were very sincere right people were sincere they had a burden they were very sincere no doubt about it they were well-meaning believers no doubt about it they had a burden they wanted to share the gospel no doubt about it but the way in which we they went about doing it raised the question of can there be a better way right can there be a better way of engaging the people with the gospel or sharing from the word can they be a better way right so which which brings us to this fact that when we prepare and you know share we put in efforts to you know prepare which does not which which is okay logically we put the material together we we are led by the spirit of God we want to preach what is the heart of God for that audience but you also want to take effort to to communicate in a manner that people receive right in a language that people receive people understand and in a in a way that reduces all the walls all the barriers you know as it is we know that the gospel brings ridicule okay we know that the gospel is offensive right and it would help if we would communicate in a manner that without adding to that right without adding already to the fact that the content is offensive but we we can do our best to not put up barriers and not put up you know our own fences our own blocks for the people in order to hear okay so what are we saying we're saying that we it'll be good if we get an understanding of you know of what basic communication is right and and I'm sure that most of you I see the you know I see the names here and based on you know what you shared in the previous year and so on so I know that some of you are involved in ministry most of you are and doing some for some sort of ministry some sort of sharing either online or otherwise right and so I appreciate that so some of the stuff that we are looking at today some of the basics of communication might be something that is already in place in your life right so it could be a repetition but I just felt that because it is very important it it it's it's it's good if we go back to it right and of course we have it on the notes it's good that we revisit it and spend some time on it okay so let's look at communication you know some of the basics of communication okay so we know that you know some components in the communication process is there is a sender let's say if this classroom setting there is of course a sender or a messenger which is in this case it would be me that I'm communicating the message there is of course the receiver which is all of you the audience you are receiving the message and then there is the message itself the content of what we are what I am sharing which is you know this class on biblical preaching and this topic about homiletics and introduction so that's the content those are three basic components right but also there is a fourth element or a fourth component which is the the medium okay here it is something that we're doing online and the message comes to you digitally it can be it can be a new something that is written something that is you know done digitally or email it can be it can be a book so so there is also the medium okay so for us to understand that there is the speaker there is the audience there is the message and there is the medium okay so so we know that all these elements are there okay and for us to know that okay as a communication the process starts we know that it starts with the communicator or the one who is sending the message in the heart and mind of the communicator now that's that's important for us to know so if I'm communicating okay does it start does it really start with me you know especially when it comes to a message that we are sharing does it really start with me yes and no yes it starts with us in the sense we are the ones who initiate that process we are the ones who are placed in that setting and we we share the message but it really starts in the heart of God if you look at it right if you look at the big picture you know it really starts in the heart of God and us engaging with the heart of God and and getting that assurance that witness in our hearts that yes this is something that I can I want to share okay so yes it involves preparation but the the message you know the the pros I'm talking of course about preaching typically it starts with the heart of God and us engaging with the heart of God and receiving that a message right and going about sharing it okay so we have different means of sharing that message so and since we are all called to communicate the message and we're all called by God in unique ways to to in in place to and place in specific realms to communicate the message the the way in which we communicated could be very very different it could be something that is written out it could be something that is maybe sung it could be something that is that is preached in a formal setting like a pulpit church ministry setting we could have all these different methods or ways by which the message is communicated okay um having said that there are certain barriers to communication there are certain barriers and it helps if we understand what the barriers are um it helps for us to understand and now you know more and more meetings are are you know happening in an online setting so um it helps for us to understand what the barriers are I remember some of the some of you shared uh and gave some very good feedback about um the last year year end when we asked about okay how can I be more effective in presenting and you shared you know I've so I've taken note of that um so to be more engaging to have some you know so all this feedback so um so the thing is for us to understand that okay this is the medium and in the communication process there are bound to be some barriers okay so if I understand that then I can be prepared I can be prepared beforehand and if I understand I can identify the barriers you know as I see it cropping up I can identify the barrier and probably troubleshoot it right so um so let's look at some of the barriers okay so um some barriers could be the language the poor language itself you know the language itself could be a barrier like if I speak a different language and you speak a different language and there is a disconnect straight away okay I I remember um you know it's one of the meetings we had a few years back and and yeah at the beginning of the meeting the first message I think uh yeah I think I was sharing that and then we just went full on um you know shared for about 45 minutes and uh and then we finished we thought I thought okay I think it was received well people were attentive and all that um what we what we did not what we failed to do is to check whether people needed translation right and that was the day one so and during the course of the day we we asked and said okay do you need translation into you know Hindi and other languages then a lot of hands actually went up okay um so um then we realized that maybe the first message may not have gone on you know really well people were attentive people sat but to what extent did they actually you know receive the message that was shared so the language itself okay um that it needs to be the right language so people understand and so on um but the other thing within language itself is the several other things like the rate of speech uh or maybe um you know a lot of things like what I'm doing right now like um which could actually distract a person from receiving the message um so within the language itself that could be a barrier um then the level of volume if I'm speaking too soft or if I'm speaking too loud that can be a hindrance that can be something that that doesn't help that's a distraction um and also uh some of the things like in the environment if there is a lot of noise okay um I don't know if you can hear but I'm actually the third floor uh and there's a lot of wind okay so even though the windows are this window is closed but there is a shoes that's that's coming in um so I think because the mic is close uh to me you can't hear it but there is a you know constant blowing of the wind and it's pretty strong um so I just closed all the windows and and even through the cracks you can I can hear it right um so it can be a situational and environmental noise maybe um how many of you have preached and you've uh you have a baby crying in the background anyone you can just put your hand up uh you share the word yeah baby crying in the background and uh superjit okay sam um and uh and the worst thing is uh yeah sit down um worst thing is everybody's turning there right everybody's turning towards the child and uh Kennedy okay everybody's turning towards the child and um uh and the parents are blissfully unaware in the sense uh parents are fine you know this is what the child does you know I'm not doing anything I'm just sitting there and uh the child is crying and and you're just hoping you know I hope somebody takes the child out you know people are turning around and and some people are you know uh saying all those suddenly they're talking all these baby language and they're saying cuckoo and all that and then they're trying to pacify the child and and here you are trying to share you know it can be very distracting um but at the same time I've I've seen some preachers you know no matter what's happening around you know the the earth could be uh you know falling the earth could be shaking they're just they're just preaching away you know uh it's it's it's a real treat to what such people you know preach they're not they they're just unmoved by all that's happening but the fact is that uh environment right uh it also it plays an important part so um yeah one needs to adapt one needs to troubleshoot okay so the other thing is um there could be many other things but I'm just you know sharing a few things poor delivery poor preparation um so if I'm not prepared then I'm constantly uh double checking thinking um about the message to be preached and it's it doesn't have the flow that is supposed to have and maybe there are too many pauses in between and between sentence one and sentence two and um and people have started looking at the time people are looking at their notes people are looking at their phones and you know or it is too fast too rapid and people are uh have lost track like what is he saying what is she saying so these are some things which which don't seem to be very spiritual yes or no right they're not they're not spiritual in the sense they don't seem to be spiritual but the fact is they influence or obstruct certain times um the spiritual act of preaching maybe there is prayer maybe there is worship and things that are in the natural in the environment they they kind of cause uh a distraction or act as barriers so as much as possible you know uh for it's good for us to be aware so we can be prepared beforehand um and it's good for us to work on it right okay uh okay till here anything that you guys want to add to it you know maybe uh share about uh you know uh in the physical environment any other thing that you've noticed uh which can be a distraction yes i'm go ahead please um thank you thank you sir um I think um it's just um the world that we live in now um limits our attention span and this wasn't this wasn't uh in the case of problem appearance or even 20 30 years back you know uh man I keep having these kind of conversations with my mom dad and anyone else like like the maximum my parents would like when they were sitting in for a sermon listening to a preacher the maximum they would battle is uh probably some news they heard over the radio in the morning that also not everybody had to but now you know uh I think we're back like when they're sitting the preach I mean I look around and so the preachers preaching away but then there's constant WhatsApp buzzes happening Instagram feeds being uploading Facebook likes coming in and uh and there's all we have this especially the youth that's coming up I think they're not coming in with a free space so that's I think that's a new added component uh which which I for me it um I see it as an opportunity for the way we preach I know for the fact that like you know when we talk about communication a lot of people would agree that it has its best if it's two-way there is uh you know both and to that I feel like a long preaching even more than 5 10 like we I think if someone goes on stage especially if you don't have visual I mean if you see the person on stage and the person is really blessed um you know I've seen you I've seen uh and you can like you know there's uh you can hold the audience uh at least the major population of it but even then it's so easy to sit in the audience and you listen to it's so easy to zone out right yeah so those are yeah those are some added components like you said sam yeah increasingly the attention span is uh you know uh amongst certain groups of people maybe the younger generation it's it's it's really reducing and and not not just the younger generation you know it could be the older folks also uh but the yeah that's how it is that's how uh you know things are presented in the media as well so yeah so those are things to be mindful of when we preach and share and also to be aware of you know what is the best method possible yeah you're right you're right so so we you have a presentation you have you know you mix up those things so that you um grab the attention of the person yeah we do that um okay anyone else current challenges uh maybe in the environment you know as you communicate a message share message okay go ahead Rupa thanks sir uh I our fellowship most of them are on duty because they're working in the hospital and when they attend the meetings I hope I you can hear me sir yeah I can hear you yeah go ahead yeah sure so I we have followed a rule that those who are on due on call will sit at the back of the church not in the front and they'll they'll have it in vibration mode so that when they get a call or something they'll go outside and others will not be disturbed and with the children also we made a provision that the small children with mothers will have an enclosure so that people will not be disturbed during the prayer and also I make it an interactive most of the time so that we make it interactive so the people will not attention span will not be losing even children I make them I involve them if they come to church so giving them a portion to read or asking them relevant questions so that they will not be feel left out or yeah and and certain uh not to bring eatables inside the church because I tell them you don't take eatables into the classroom so we are in a holy place we don't have to drink and eat during the small span of time we'll give this time we'll honor God by giving this time not eating and drinking we are not fasting but at least restrain because one child starts eating the other one will be disturbed yeah I make it a it's a it's because it's a small group it's easy for me I for me I think okay because it's around 70 people it's easy to manage bigger groups bigger groups it will be difficult yeah and 70 is a big I mean it's a sizable crowd yeah good thanks for sharing that thank you thanks yeah actually when you when you mentioned eatables I was reminded of my first or the second you know mystery with the children and that was a very defining moment for me to decide that that was children's ministry was not for me so I'll probably share that another time but yeah thank you thank you for sharing that okay let's let's move on and the other thing that we understand is that you know let's say we have how many people here 28 people here and you know the way 27 of you receive a certain message that is being shared is very different it's going to be different right because certain certain things would would be emphasized would be highlighted of course God is making real certain things to your heart right and he knows the need of each and every person so he's you know highlighting certain things quickening certain things and and even things that the speaker did not even plan or plan to emphasize and he or she just mentions that and the holy spirit just takes hold of that and you know put that in our heart so that's that's a beautiful part right beautiful aspect that despite our words God is speaking right and with our words that God is having the Lord is having a parallel conversation with each one of us and that's a that's the greatest reassurance that any speaker can have you know saying Lord I I didn't prepare please forgive me and but I know that you're speaking that even as I speak and whatever you know I'm bringing I know that you will speak you know that's a great thing but over and above that each of us because of our experience and and stuff that we have gone through and maybe you know your temperament that morning oh yes beth shared about utikis falling asleep during paul's discourse absolutely and paul just went through the night I think he has a powerhouse so much revelation just coming out overflowing and he just shared that and poor utikis fell asleep fell from the top floor but didn't I yes he didn't yes that was again and you know an opportunity for the power of God to be displayed he didn't yes but the fact is that you know all of us have received the word through our filters you know maybe it is language maybe it is culture maybe it is our life experience so we receive that so the way it is perceived the message is very subjective you know the way it is received so it helps to understand the audience you know it helps to to see what kind of a audience it is that you are actually speaking to right that's that's a very important thing right many times it's a it's a mixed group maybe people from different walks of life different levels of education different you know different ethnicities like like in our class right so but we will have some commonalities like that you know I can talk about I I cannot go too much you know talk about the local things or be very colloquial about things here in Bangalore or India or you know which which might go which might not really resonate with you right so there is some common ground and and and that's the that's the thing that we could you know use so we need to be aware of that right so the fact that it will be perceived a little differently so you be aware of that okay if I use this illustration how is it going down right if I if I use this for example you know I remember we went for an outreach to a college and now this was a very very strict college Christian management but the the hostel did not have you know no television no of course this is before the days of internet and I mean internet being widely prevalent or before the days of smartphones so so we went to college and the speaker you went for an outreach for an evening time and then the speaker actually is talking about you know I'm sure you must be watching television I'm sure you must be watching this match you must be following this and everybody's you know staring at the speaker and and he was like what you guys don't watch television then everybody said no television the hostel you know they they did not have television and they were not they did not even get newspapers so it wasn't kind of a very you know kind of very restrictive kind of an environment so so then the preacher said okay sorry wrong wrong illustration it doesn't work here right so you be aware of this that if I share this illustration this is a great illustration and it's it's good it really brings out the truth but how is it going to be perceived right if I'm you know so you that's the thing you know just to be sensitive to see how is it's going to be perceived the other thing is also to be aware of the response of the congregation it helps to understand okay now this is very very difficult right when you're doing online I'm just going by faith I know some of you must be lying down some of you must be walking around maybe you've got the phone I mean the the the mic or you know you're listening right and but then you must be doing you I don't know you but so it's a very difficult thing when you don't see response but over a period of time of course you know that okay this is a class these are good people they are listening and so on but I remember once speaking to a congregation which was which was which was not like I don't want to mention the background but but the fact that they were not they were not Indian but they were also not you know a city kind of a thing but the fact is that you know I would look at them and and then share you know something you know and and ask them something it says you know lay aside all malice and all envy so I want to ask you you know I mean lay aside and I'm looking at them and they would quickly turn their eyes away okay they just over their eyes so and I'm like I'm smiling I'm trying my best but nobody is making eye contact can you just believe that so I felt that maybe I'm doing something wrong God maybe you didn't want me here today I'm doing something but I just went through and then I realized that with that ethnic group to look into a person's eye especially if it's you know a spiritual leader or a senior person to look into their eye would mean disrespect okay like over a period of time if you're just looking if you're staring if you're looking at them it would mean disrespect so they would quickly avert their eyes to avert their eyes means respect and and I'm I'm you know looking for a response maybe they'll not their head or you know say a hallelujah or amen and but the culture was that they they would they would avert their eyes and they would the fact is was that they were actually receiving but I but I was I wasn't aware of that so it helps it helps to know people's life orientation what is the you know how are they responding maybe sometimes people when you know that you look at the expressions you realize that what you shared is people are very expressive right I don't remember in Bible college I think this was yeah when we had the in-person classes there's this girl who would always you know in the sense if there was something that she did not understand did not agree with she would you know make that expression and I would immediately know that there was a problem and maybe if she had it maybe two others also had it so you know it was time to stop it was time to just slow down and ask a question and say you know did you get it you know so so you look at the audience you look at the congregation and based on their response if people are so all these things we're going to look at it in in our other classes also when we talk about the presentation body language expression and so on but these are some basics so we're going to we are just looking at this and the other thing is also that there could be verbal and non-verbal cues that with which we communicate you know communication is verbal at the same time our communication is also non-verbal you know there are expressions there are tones that indicate something that is communicating something and I remember that there was I had preached the I had shared I think I shared with you guys I'm not sure but I shared I finished a message finished the service then this person came this person from the congregation he came and said pastor you know I like I like the message I like your content about the way you speak you know you speak in a monotone and you know it's putting me to sleep he said I'm really sorry but it you know I your content is good but then the way you speak it's putting me to sleep and I was so glad that he actually took the courage to say that and after he said that he was actually felt very bad you know he was like I'm so sorry maybe I shouldn't have said that I apologize and all that and I said no no no it's it's good it's good that he told me that and I receive that you know I'll try to change I don't think I've changed very much but I am conscious of the fact that if I speak in a monotone I'm putting people to sleep right so I try to change that so the response of people non-verbal communication is more than yeah absolutely I see Albert Moherbian I see okay thank you thanks Sam so you understand you we pick up the cues from you know the expressions of people whether they are guarded whether they are you know whether they are open and so on so we'll we'll study that as well okay so I think that's all we have time for but let me just finish with a few other things that the language the functions of language okay we you can use language to report information like we can like how a news reporter would you using language but you are doing several things there you can report information you can get information like how an interview would be you can use language to interrogate and interview and receive to get information you can use language to give orders instructions direct you give direction you can use language for that and communication in our when we use language in our communication we can actually direct we can get information we can report information and we can also you know give them to our feelings right when and it all happens with language we give into our feelings we we say we can express that we are happy express that we are sad and we use language for that and also another important thing is to understand that the language that you use the words that you use and what you communicate it evokes certain response from the people like certain emotions from the hearers and well God has instituted it this way so that we can you know we can maybe praise him we can we can laugh together we can cry together and we can be inspired and motivated together but know that it's a it's a two-edged thing you know you can use it to manipulate you can use it to intimidate people and also you can use it in edifying ways like to to exhaust to edify to motivate to inspire and so on right so okay so with that we'll close we'll stop here if you have any questions you're always welcome to you know based on today's class you can put it in the in in in that link in that Google doc and then we'll continue next class okay so thank you have a great weekend God bless you all thank you sir thank you pastor thank you pastor thank you all right bye