Let's be honest with each other: the temptation is to type "write me a sermon on Philippians 4" and call it a week. Please don't. Your people don't need a generic sermon. They need you, the shepherd who knows their names. Used well, AI is a research assistant, not a ghostwriter.
1. Ask questions before you write anything. Have it list the historical background, the key Greek or Hebrew words, and the main ways commentators have read the passage. Then check each one against your real commentaries. AI can be confidently wrong.
2. Make it argue with you. Paste your main idea and ask, "What would a skeptic, a new believer and a hurting widow each push back on?" That sharpens your application without writing it for you.
3. Outline in your words, then ask for gaps. Write your own outline first. Then ask where the logic jumps, or where a listener might get lost.
4. Stress-test your illustrations. Ask if an illustration is overused, or if it will land differently for different ages. Your stories should stay your stories.
5. Turn the finished sermon into follow-up. Once it's preached, AI is great at small-group questions, a devotional for the week, or a kids' version. It's your content, just reshaped.
A guardrail I keep: nothing from a chat goes into the pulpit unless I've checked it and would happily say it in my own words. Claude has a free tier (check ChatGPT's pricing page for its current plans), so you can try this without a budget conversation.