Tim SiskDisciple · Pastor · Writer

Tools for the work

Preaching is a craft that requires tools. These are the ones I return to — lectionary calendars, commentary series, and books that have shaped how I read Scripture and stand in the pulpit.

None of these are exhaustive. All of them are honest. A preacher who uses them faithfully will be better prepared than one who doesn't.

lectionary & text tools

  1. Revised Common LectionaryThe official RCL calendar maintained by the Consultation on Common Texts. Three-year cycle, all seasons, all readings.Visit resource
    Calendar
  2. Working PreacherWeekly lectionary commentary from Luther Seminary faculty. Honest, scholarly, and written for preachers who stand in pulpits.Visit resource
    Commentary
  3. TextweekThe most comprehensive aggregator of lectionary resources on the web. Links to art, commentary, prayers, and sermon illustrations for every Sunday.Visit resource
    Aggregator
  4. The Text This WeekCurated links to exegetical resources, visual art, and liturgical materials organized by lectionary week.Visit resource
    Exegesis
  5. Bible GatewaySide-by-side translation comparison for any passage. Indispensable for hearing the same text in multiple voices before settling on a preaching translation.Visit resource
    Translation
  6. Blue Letter BibleOriginal language tools, Strong's concordance, and interlinear text. For when the English won't quite say what you need it to say.Visit resource
    Original Languages
  7. Sermon Brainwave (podcast)Weekly podcast from Working Preacher — three scholars talking through the texts in real time. Good for the drive to the office on Monday morning.Visit resource
    Podcast

books for preachers

  1. The Witness of PreachingThomas G. LongThe standard text for understanding what preaching is and what it is for. Long's chapter on the preacher as witness changed how I think about the task.
    Homiletics
  2. PreachingFred B. CraddockCraddock invented inductive preaching as a discipline. This book is the argument. Every preacher should read it once and then read it again.
    Homiletics
  3. The Art of Reading ScriptureEllen F. Davis & Richard B. Hays (eds.)Nine theses on how the church reads the Bible. The essay by Rowan Williams alone is worth the price of the book.
    Hermeneutics
  4. Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and PreachingVarious authors (John Knox Press)The series designed for preachers, not just scholars. Accessible without being shallow. A volume for every book of the Bible.
    Commentary Series
  5. The New Interpreter's BibleVarious authors (Abingdon Press)Twelve volumes. The most thorough commentary series available for working preachers. Exegesis and homiletical reflection in parallel columns.
    Commentary Series
  6. Engaging the WordMichael JohnstonA practical guide to biblical interpretation for preachers. Clear, honest about the difficulty of the task, and grounded in the life of the congregation.
    Hermeneutics
  7. Shaped by the WordM. Robert Mulholland Jr.On formational reading of Scripture — the difference between reading the Bible for information and reading it to be changed. Essential for preachers who want their study to be devotional as well as exegetical.
    Spiritual Formation
  8. Liturgy of the OrdinaryTish Harrison WarrenNot a preaching manual — a theology of the everyday. Preachers who read it will find their illustrations getting better and their theology getting more incarnational.
    Theology

This list grows slowly. I add a book when I'm confident it belongs here — not because it is popular, but because it has made me a better reader of Scripture and a more honest preacher.