Page 32 - Homiletics I Student Textbook

An idea…may be considered a distillation of life. It abstracts out of the particulars of life what they
have in common and relates them to each other. Through ideas we make sense out of the parts of
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our experience.

A proposition has unity…a sense of oneness. It is not a collection of random, unrelated, and scattered
thoughts. It is a statement around which the entire sermon revolves and finds its mooring. It has
order…structural relationships. It is an accurate reflection of the entirety of the text, presented in a
well-organized form.

A proposition has progress…moves toward a goal. It has purpose, be it to persuade, convince, instruct,
encourage, etc.

The Formation of the ‘Big Idea’

The ‘Big Idea’ or proposition of the sermon has two components, two parts.

Subject

The subject tells what the passage or sermon is talking about. It identifies the question the passage or
sermon is asking. To arrive at the exact, narrow subject of the passage, follow these steps:

1. Determine from your study of the text what the author is talking about. This will give the broad
subject of the passage (ex. temptation, difficulties, rewards in heaven, etc.).

2. Ask the underlying question the author is answering. This will give the narrower subject of the
passage. This question can then be turned into an incomplete subject-phrase. The answer to the
question becomes the complement to that subject-phrase. Here are some examples:

Subject Question Subject-Phrase
“Temptation” What are the sources of temptation? The sources of temptation…
“Difficulties” Why does God lead us into difficulties? Why God leads us into difficulties…
“Rewards in Heaven” Who will receive rewards in heaven? Those who receive rewards in heaven…

Underneath every idea or assertion of fact is an assumed question for which the author is supplying the
answer. Ask the subject in the form of a question and it will quickly narrow it to a subject-phrase.

Complement
The complement tells what the passage or sermon is saying about what it is talking about. It identifies
the answer to the question the passage or sermon is asking.

1. A subject cannot stand alone. By itself it is incomplete, and therefore it needs a complement.
The complement “completes” the subject by answering the question, “What am I saying about
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what I am talking about?”

Complement from above examples:
Complement

42 Robinson, 38.
43 Robinson, 40.
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