Preaching Like Peter: Applying the Speeches in Acts 2, 3, 4, and 5 to a Mainline Protestant Pulpit

Abstract

This thesis looks to Peter as a model of witnessing to Christ through the act of preaching. Its primary material are the speeches delivered immediately after the arrival of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2, 3, 4, and 5. A study of the similarities those speeches reveals the basic components of Peter’s model: the involvement of the Holy Spirit; building the sermon on recent miraculous events; presenting a clear, concise, and consistent version of the kerygma; making use of Scripture as evidence; and finishing with a call to response. To apply Peter’s model to a mainline Protestant pulpit, the author utilized her observations in the preparation and delivery of a Christmas Eve sermon. The effectiveness of that application was measured through an anonymous follow-up survey and a comparison of January attendance with the previous year, as well as the author’s own impressions. Although the application of Peter’s model did not translate into a miraculous increase in attendance, the survey responses and the author’s positive experience indicated that it is both possible and beneficial to follow Peter’s example in contemporary preaching.