Publishing

Embed Your Public Library

The embedded public library lets you place Exlectio sermon content inside the church website you already have.

This is not meant to replace your church website. Your website can remain the main home for worship times, ministries, giving, events, staff, beliefs, and next steps. Exlectio provides the sermon archive piece: a searchable, organized public library that can live inside one of your existing website pages.

What an iframe is

An iframe is a small piece of website code that displays one web page inside another web page. Think of it as putting a live window to your Exlectio sermon library on a page of your church website. It is the same idea churches often use for maps, giving forms, livestreams, calendars, or registration forms.

You do not need to understand or write code to use an iframe. Exlectio gives you the finished code; your only job is to copy it and paste it into the right kind of block in your website editor.

When you embed the Exlectio public library, the rest of the page stays on your church website, while the sermon-library area is loaded from Exlectio. Visitors experience it as part of the page: they can browse sermons, search the archive, open sermon pages, and use the library without your website team manually rebuilding the archive every week.

The embed code usually begins with <iframe> and ends with </iframe>. In most website builders, you paste the entire code block into an HTML, custom code, or code block section on the page where the sermon archive should appear. Do not paste it into an ordinary text block, where visitors would see the code instead of the library.

Why churches use an embedded library

Embedding helps a church keep its existing website while giving the teaching ministry a stronger home.

Your church does not need to redesign the whole site just to make sermons easier to find. Add a page such as Sermons, Messages, or Resources, place the Exlectio embed on that page, and continue using the rest of your website as usual.

It also reduces duplicate work. Publish and organize sermons in Exlectio, and the embedded library can reflect that work on your website. Your team does not have to upload the same sermon details, series information, descriptions, and links into two different systems.

A dedicated teaching library can also serve people better than a simple media list. Visitors can return to a series, search by topic or Scripture, browse older messages, and keep learning from sermons long after Sunday. For many churches, that turns the website from a bulletin board into a living discipleship resource.

Before embedding

Your public library must be live, and embed features must be available for the workspace plan. You also need permission to edit the Sermons, Messages, or Resources page on your church website.

Open More, then Public Library Settings to find the embed options. Turn on the embedded library if it is not already enabled, make any desired appearance changes, and copy the complete iframe code. Keep this tab open until you have confirmed the embed works on your website.

Configure appearance

Embed settings can adjust the card style, border radius, font family, and display text. These settings affect the embedded archive, not the normal public library page.

Add the embed to any website builder

The names differ from one website builder to another, but the process is usually the same:

  1. Sign in to the editor for your church website.
  2. Open the page where you want the sermon library to appear. A page named Sermons, Messages, or Resources is a good choice.
  3. Add a block called Code, Custom HTML, Embed Code, or HTML. If you see both an Embed block and a Code block, choose Code or Custom HTML for the Exlectio iframe.
  4. Paste the complete iframe code from Exlectio. Do not change or delete part of it.
  5. Save or publish the page.
  6. Visit the page as a regular visitor would. Search the library and open a sermon to make sure it works.

Use the preview link in Exlectio before sharing it. If someone else manages your website, send them the complete iframe code along with the page where it should appear.

Step-by-step: Squarespace

Squarespace calls the place for this code a Code Block. Use a computer for this setup, since Squarespace's editor may show different options in its mobile app.

  1. In Exlectio, go to More > Public Library Settings. Confirm that your public library is live and the embedded library is enabled, then copy the entire iframe code.
  2. Sign in to Squarespace and open Pages.
  3. Select the page where the sermon library should live, then choose Edit. If you do not have a page yet, create one named Sermons, Messages, or Resources first.
  4. In the section where you want the library, click Add Block or an insertion point, then select Code. Do not select a normal Text block.
  5. Click the pencil icon to open the Code Block settings. Set the code type to HTML if Squarespace asks.
  6. Paste the full iframe code from Exlectio into the code field. Leave Display Source turned off; that setting is only for showing code to visitors.
  7. Click Save, then save or publish the page.
  8. Open the published page in a private/incognito browser window or on a phone. Confirm that the library appears, has enough vertical space, and that you can open a sermon.

If the library looks too short, return to the iframe code in Exlectio and use the height setting provided there. A taller library is usually more comfortable for visitors than a small scrolling box. Keep its width at 100% so it fills its page column cleanly.

Squarespace sometimes does not display embedded code while you are signed in to the editor, even though it works for visitors. Check the published page in a private/incognito window before assuming there is a problem.

Step-by-step: Wix

  1. In Exlectio, go to More > Public Library Settings and copy the full iframe code.
  2. Open the page in the Wix Editor where you want the sermon library to appear.
  3. Click Add Elements, then Embed Code.
  4. Choose Embed HTML (not a text element), and add it to the page.
  5. Click the new embed element, choose Enter Code, paste the full iframe code, and select Apply.
  6. Drag the element to the desired location and make it wide enough for the page. Increase its height so visitors can browse the library comfortably.
  7. Publish the page, then open it as a visitor and test the library and a sermon link.

Step-by-step: WordPress

These steps apply to the modern WordPress block editor. The block you need is called Custom HTML.

  1. In Exlectio, go to More > Public Library Settings and copy the complete iframe code.
  2. In WordPress, open the page where the sermon library should appear and select Edit.
  3. Click the + block inserter, search for Custom HTML, and add that block.
  4. Paste the full iframe code into the Custom HTML block. Do not use the ordinary Code block, which displays code as text.
  5. Use the block's preview option if available, then select Update or Publish.
  6. Open the public page and confirm the library displays correctly and links open as expected.

On WordPress.com, iframes may require a paid plan with hosting features enabled. If WordPress removes the iframe when you save, ask the person who manages the website plan or hosting to enable Custom HTML/iframe support.

If something does not look right

  • If visitors see code instead of the sermon library, move the iframe from a Text block to a Code or Custom HTML block.
  • If nothing appears, confirm that you copied the whole iframe, that the public library is live, and that embedded library access is enabled in Exlectio.
  • If the library is too narrow or short, make the Squarespace block or its column wider and use the iframe's width="100%" and a larger height value.
  • If your Squarespace plan does not permit iframe code in a Code Block, ask the person who manages your Squarespace subscription to review the plan's custom-code options or to add the iframe for you.
  • If your church uses another website builder, look for a Code, HTML, or Custom Embed block. Your website provider's support team can tell you where that block is located.

When you publish or update sermons in Exlectio, the embedded library updates automatically. You do not need to paste the iframe code again for each new sermon.