If "speaking prophetically" means "speaking truth to power," what does that look like? What does it mean to speak prophetically? How do we, as believers, speak truth to power? Below I've compiled several famous sermons as examples of what it means to speak as a prophet in our cultural context today.
If you'd like to learn more about speaking prophetically, you can listen to my Doctor of Ministry (D.Min) section on this topic or read about it here.
1) "Christ in the Rubble," a Liturgy of Lament by Munther Isaac
Munther addresses the crisis in Gaza from Bethlehem on Christmas Eve.
2) Mother Teresa speaks at the National Prayer Breakfast in 1994
Mother Teresa addresses President Clinton and Gore on the topic of abortion.
3) "I Have a Dream" by Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
"I Have a Dream" is a public speech that was delivered by American civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom on August 28, 1963, in which he called for civil and economic rights and an end to racism in the United States. Delivered to over 250,000 civil rights supporters from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., the speech was a defining moment of the civil rights movement and among the most iconic speeches in American history." - YouTube Video Description
4) "It Takes Conviction to Construct a Cathedral" by William Sloane Coffin in 1984
"William Sloane Coffin Jr. (June 1, 1924 – April 12, 2006) was an American Christian clergyman and long-time peace activist. He was ordained in the Presbyterian Church, and later received ministerial standing in the United Church of Christ. In his younger days he was an athlete, a talented pianist, a CIA officer, and later chaplain of Yale University, where the influence of H. Richard Niebuhr's social philosophy led him to become a leader in the civil rights movement and peace movements of the 1960s and 1970s." - Wikipedia
5) "Race in America" by Phil Vischer via the Holy Post
Phils Vischer, the creator of Veggie Tales, addresses the problem of racism in America shortly after the death of George Floyd.
My Examples of Speaking Prophetically
My example of speaking prophetically. I reference both Mother Teresa's speech and MLK's speech.
The section of my Doctor of Ministry thesis paper addressing prophetic speech.
