Pastor J.D. Greear has an excellent article HERE on the method he uses to determine when to cite sources and avoid plagiarism. His main points are listed below.
1. If I ever preach the gist of another person’s sermon, meaning that I used the lion’s share of their message’s organization, points, or applications, I give credit.
2. If I glean an interpretation of a passage from someone, but the organization of the points, application and presentation are my own, I generally do not feel the need to cite.
3. When I take a direct point or a line or the creative wording of a truth from someone, I feel like I should cite.
4. When I give a list that someone else has come up with or offer some piece of cultural analysis, I feel like I should cite.
5. If I hear a story told by someone else that reminds me of a story of your own, and I tell that story from my own life, I don’t think I need always to identify where I got the idea for that story from originally.
