Sermon

===Lutheranism and Reformed Christianity===
[[File:Doop van Prins Maurits in de Grote Kerk te Apeldoorn ds.dr. H. Berkhoff tijdens, Bestanddeelnr 254-8166.jpg|thumb|A [[Reformed Christianity|Reformed]] Christian minister preaching from a [[pulpit]], 1968]]
The [[Protestant Reformation|Reformation]] led to [[Protestant]] sermons, many of which defended the [[schism (religion)|schism]] with the Roman Catholic Church and explained beliefs about the Bible, theology, and devotion.<ref> Hans J. Hillerbrand, ''Encyclopedia of Protestantism: 4-volume Set'', Routledge, Abingdon-on-Thames, 2016, p. 1843</ref> The distinctive doctrines of Protestantism held that [[salvation]] was by [[sola fide|faith alone]], and convincing people to believe the Gospel and place trust in God for their salvation through Jesus Christ was the decisive step in salvation.

In many Protestant churches, the sermon came to replace the [[Eucharist]] as the central act of Christian worship (although some Protestants such as [[Lutheran]]s give equal time to a sermon and the Eucharist in their [[Divine Service (Lutheran)|Divine Service]]). While Luther retained the use of the [[lectionary]] for selecting texts for preaching, the Swiss Reformers, such as [[Ulrich Zwingli]], [[Johannes Oecolampadius]], and [[John Calvin]], notably returned to the patristic model of preaching through books of the Bible. The goal of Protestant worship, as conditioned by these reforms, was above all to offer glory to God for the gift of grace in Jesus Christ, to rouse the congregation to a deeper [[faith]], and to inspire them to practice works of love for the benefit of the neighbor, rather than carry on with potentially empty rituals.