HOM-102
Homiletics II: Building a Teaching Series
Turning study into a finished lesson or video series, ready to teach or publish.
Topics: Series planning, Slide design, Recording
Suggested resource: Your existing production workflow: decks, worksheets, and YouTube upload kits.
Week 1: Planning a Series
Reading: Practical exercise — no reading assigned
A series is more than a stack of individual lessons; it needs its own single big idea that each lesson builds toward, the way a good book's chapters each advance one overall argument. Before writing lesson one, outline where the series needs to end and work backward, making sure each lesson has a distinct, non-overlapping job to do in getting there. Plan for somewhere between three and six lessons for most topics — long enough to go deep, short enough that people can commit to finishing it, which matters as much for a video series as it does for a live class.
Key terms: Series-level big idea, Working backward from the ending, Distinct lesson roles, Series length
Discussion Questions
- Think of a teaching series you finished versus one you abandoned partway through. What made the difference?
Challenge: Pick one topic from Terms 1–3 of this institute and outline a four-lesson series on it, with one clear job for each lesson.
Week 2: Visual Aids and Slide Design
Reading: Practical exercise — no reading assigned
A slide should support what you're saying, not repeat it word for word — if people are reading your slide, they're not listening to you. Keep text minimal (a phrase or a key verse reference, not a paragraph), use one visual idea per slide, and make sure any scripture you display is easy to read from a distance. Since you already have design and video experience, the temptation will be to over-produce; resist it enough that the content, not the polish, stays the obvious point of the lesson.
Key terms: Slides support, don't repeat, One idea per slide, Readability, Content over polish
Discussion Questions
- What's the worst slide deck you've ever sat through, and what specifically made it bad?
Challenge: Build a five-slide outline for the series you planned in Week 1, following the one-idea-per-slide rule.
Week 3: Recording and Editing for YouTube
Reading: Exodus 35:30–35
When God called Bezaleel to craft the tabernacle's furnishings, Scripture describes it as a genuine spiritual gifting applied to skilled, technical work: “he hath filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship… to devise cunning works” (Exodus 35:31–33) — craftsmanship in service of worship was never treated as a lesser calling than preaching or prophecy in Scripture, only a different one. Good audio matters more than good video for a teaching series, viewers will forgive average picture quality far more readily than they'll forgive audio they have to strain to hear. Edit for pace: cut dead air and false starts, but don't over-cut to the point that natural, sincere delivery starts to feel artificial.
Since you already run a full production workflow, this week is less about learning new skills and more about applying your existing process specifically to this series, including a clear title, thumbnail, and description that tells a viewer exactly what they'll learn, treated with the same “cunning,” skilled care Bezaleel brought to his own craft.
Key terms: Exodus 35:31–33's spirit-filled craftsmanship, Technical skill as a genuine calling, Audio over video, Existing production workflow
Discussion Questions
- What's one thing about your current video workflow you'd want to adjust specifically for a teaching series versus a single-topic video?
- How does Bezaleel's example change how you think about the value of your own technical, production skill as part of ministry, not separate from it?
Challenge: Record and roughly edit the first lesson from your Week 1 series outline, start to finish, even if it's not polished yet.
Course Exam
Five questions for review or self-testing.
Q: What should a teaching series have that a single lesson doesn't need?
Reveal Answer
A series-level big idea that each lesson builds toward, with a distinct job for each lesson.
Q: What's the rule for slide design in this course?
Reveal Answer
One visual idea per slide; slides support what you're saying, they don't repeat it.
Q: Why does audio quality matter more than video quality for a teaching series?
Reveal Answer
Viewers forgive average picture quality far more readily than audio they have to strain to hear.
Q: What is a reasonable series length, according to this course?
Reveal Answer
Roughly three to six lessons — long enough to go deep, short enough to finish.
Q: What should a video's title, thumbnail, and description accomplish?
Reveal Answer
Tell a viewer exactly what they'll learn (discoverability).