If you’ve preached at or attended a church long enough, you know about sermon series. They are a thoughtful way to guide your congregation through a meaningful spiritual journey. Instead of focusing on one message, a sermon series allows you to explore a theme or biblical book in greater depth over several weeks. It provides a clear direction and helps people connect with the message week after week.

But crafting a sermon series is more than just prepping a single sermon. It requires lots of planning in advance and coordination with various other church elements. Thankfully, developing a sermon series doesn’t have to be complicated. In this podcast, we’ll break down everything you need to know about planning a sermon series and provide you with 7 actionable steps you can take to walk you through the process.

Sound good? Let’s jump in.

Estimated reading time: 11 minutes

Table of contents

• A Sermon Series?
  • Preaching Calendars
  • Expository Preaching
  • Sermon Series
• 7 Steps to Sermon Series Planning
  • Step 1: Pray
  • Step 2: Identify Theme
  • Step 3: Create Title
  • Step 4: Develop an Outline
  • Step 5: Prepare First Sermon
  • Step 6: Coordinate Elements
  • Step 7: Evaluate
• Planning Your Sermon Series
• More Resources on Sermon Series

A sermon series is a set of messages planned and preached over several weeks that focus on a common theme, book of the Bible, or topic. Instead of delivering a standalone sermon each week, a pastor can take the congregation on a journey that builds week after week. Sermon series can be based on a specific book of the Bible, such as Ephesians, or on a topic like prayer or faith.

One of the advantages of a sermon series is that it allows the pastor to teach more deeply on a subject, giving time to explore it from different angles. This approach not only helps church members connect the dots but also keeps them engaged over time.

According to Pew Research Center, 40% of churchgoers are somewhat satisfied with the sermons preached each week. With engaging sermon series, we might be able to decrease the number of somewhat satisfied Christians and increasethe number of very satisfied Christians!

A key tool in developing sermon series is the preaching calendar. A preaching calendar allows pastors to plan upcoming sermons over the course of several months or even an entire year. This can include not only the themes for a sermon series but also individual sermon titles, Scripture passages, and key points.

By organizing a sermon series calendar, pastors can ensure that they cover a range of topics throughout the year, helping the congregation experience the entire Bible over time. This also gives church leaders time to align worship, activities, and small group studies with the themes of the series.

Planning ahead also means the pastor can avoid last-minute sermon prep, giving more time for prayer and study, which leads to stronger messages.

Sermon series often work well with expository preaching, where a pastor goes through a book of the Bible verse by verse. This approach helps the congregation understand the context of Scripture, not just isolated verses, and ensures that the full message of the Bible is taught. Expository preaching in a sermon series format can be particularly helpful in guiding church members through complex or lesser-known books of the Bible, giving them a richer understanding of God’s Word.

Another benefit of sermon series is that they can be aligned with the church calendar. For example, series on topics like Advent, Christmas, or Easter can be planned to coincide with key events in the Christian year. This helps the congregation focus on the themes of the season, such as hope, sacrifice, or resurrection. A well-planned sermon series calendar can ensure that these special times are given the attention they deserve while also balancing the teaching of broader biblical themes.

Sermon series offer numerous benefits for both pastors and congregations. With the help of a preaching calendar, pastors can plan upcoming sermons to cover important topics and books of the Bible over time. Whether through expository preaching or topical series, this approach helps church members grow deeper in their faith and understanding of the entire Bible.

By aligning the series with the church calendar and collaborating with church leaders, pastors can create meaningful and impactful journeys for their congregations, week after week.

And that’s everything you need to know about sermon series! As you can see, they can be really helpful tools to add depth and variety to your church’s messages. On the other hand, they can seem daunting and complex to plan. That’s where this section comes in.

Here, we’ll take you through a step-by-step process of planning a sermon series from start to finish. By following each of these steps, you’ll be able to plan a sermon series without feeling overwhelmed. If you’re new to preaching or you’ve spoken a hundred messages, this process can be helpful for you.

Let’s dive in.

The first step in crafting a sermon series, just like the first step in anything, is to pray for guidance. Before choosing a theme or writing any sermons, it’s important to seek direction from God. Prayer allows pastors to c...