Six Unhappy Substitutes for Expository Preaching
In sure conventional Scottish Presbyterian church buildings, a couple of minutes earlier than a worship service begins, the parish official ascends the steps of the pulpit carrying a big Bible. Laying the e book instead, he marks the passages for that morning with ribbon markers. After a short pause, he then descends the steps and disappears.
When the service begins, the official returns, this time in entrance of the minister. He steps apart, permitting the minister to make his manner into the pulpit. Then the official follows behind him and closes the door. (These pulpits are a lot bigger than what most of us are used to!) The minister stays locked, primarily, within the pulpit along with his Bible.
Though these proceedings are in no way a typical requirement for devoted church buildings, they do talk the centrality of God’s Phrase in a worship service. Whereas the minister stands over the e book bodily, in actuality he stands beneath its authority. No matter else occurs within the service, it’s clear he’ll preach the Bible by preaching the Bible.
True preaching bears the marks of doctrinal readability, a way of gravity, and convincing argumentation. Tragically, a lot of what constitutes preaching right now can be unrecognizable to Christians in generations previous. It pays scant consideration to the Bible, is human-focused, and barely makes greater than a superficial affect on its hearers. Within the absence of bread, the plenty have turn out to be accustomed to cake.
In our day and in sure contexts, the expositor of Scripture has been eclipsed by a variety of different personas. Figuring out and understanding them will assist us to higher make sure that the preaching in our church buildings is certainly what it must be.
The Cheerleader
Whatever the passage in view, that is the preacher who’s at all times positively inspirational. A superb Sunday for the cheerleader is one the place his individuals snigger, are affirmed and affirming, and go away extra confident than after they arrived. On this paradigm, a quest for private wholeness replaces a priority for holiness.
True preaching bears the marks of doctrinal readability, a way of gravity, and convincing argumentation.
This preacher prefers to depart the instructing of the Bible—e.g., wrestling with troublesome doctrines or exegetical examine of a textual content in its context—to small teams or midweek Bible research. His job is as a substitute to “pump them up” and put together the individuals for the approaching week. Consequently, the sheep go away the constructing stirred however not strengthened.
The Conjurer
When the congregation declares, “Wasn’t it superb what the preacher obtained out of that textual content?” we shouldn’t instantly assume that’s a superb factor. It isn’t sufficient to confer with the Bible each every now and then in a sermon, talking generic truths about God. Devoted preaching proclaims fact from particular texts, displaying others the biblical foundation for what he’s saying.
R. W. Dale, professor of divinity at (a really completely different) Yale in 1876, shared along with his college students,
I at all times consider the tips of these ingenious gents who entertain the general public by rubbing a sovereign between their fingers until it turns into a canary, and drawing out of their coat sleeves half-a-dozen good glass globes stuffed with water, and with 4 or 5 gold fish swimming in every of them. For myself, I prefer to take heed to a superb preacher, and I’ve no objection on the planet to be amused by the tips of a intelligent conjurer; however I desire to maintain the conjuring and preaching separate: conjuring on Sunday morning, conjuring in church, conjuring with texts of Scripture, just isn’t fairly to my style.
A stable conviction that the Bible is the Phrase of God will hold preachers from “conjuring up” meanings that aren’t within the textual content. The sermon isn’t a product to pitch in a winsome manner. It’s the proclamation and utility of divine fact.
The Storyteller
This man has satisfied himself that since everybody loves a superb story, and since individuals are much less inclined to observe the exposition of the Bible, it’s okay if he works to develop his storytelling present on the neglect of the onerous work of Bible exposition.
Clearly, tales may be helpful. They had been a part of Jesus’ teachings, in spite of everything. However the truth that Jesus used earthly tales with heavenly which means doesn’t grant right now’s preacher license for telling tales devoid of divine which means and which have little earthly use.
Martyn Lloyd-Jones, in his e book Preaching and Preachers, describes some males as “essayists somewhat than preachers”—males stuffed with literary flourish and expression however devoid of biblical content material and substance. Greatest that tales are as a substitute used sparingly, deliberately, and for illustrative functions.
The Entertainer
Trendy worship gatherings can, at their worst, foster an strategy within the preacher’s thoughts which makes him one thing of a performer somewhat than a pastor. They could additionally foster an surroundings wherein the individuals come to sit down again and calm down, assessing the efficiency as a substitute of possessing a coronary heart angle of obedience to the truths preached.
A stable conviction that the Bible is the Phrase of God will hold preachers from conjuring up meanings that aren’t within the textual content.
There’s all of the distinction on the planet between the congregation skilled for leisure and the one hungry for exposition. The previous says, “Let’s see how Pastor does this morning. We’ll give him marks out of ten for size, humor, and transparency.” As quickly because the preacher begins enjoying to his viewers in these phrases, he turns into an entertainer.
However the church that gathers for the exposition of Scripture has a unique coronary heart posture, saying, “Lord, we come now to listen to from You in Your Phrase. We ask You to talk to us.”
The Systematizer
The minister who views a biblical textual content as a backdrop for or springboard right into a doctrinal lecture could properly match this class. As an alternative of exegeting a passage and drawing doctrine from it, he begins with doctrine and finds a verse which will or could not assist it. He places the doctrinal framework first and the textual content second.
Little question, a pastor’s theological framework impacts how he understands the Bible. However devoted preachers have to be cautious to have Scripture rule their frameworks and never the opposite manner round. Folks shouldn’t be in search of a pastor’s theological framework; they need to starvation for—and be served—the Phrase of God.
The Psychologist
Many modern pulpits are stuffed with pseudopsychologists: purveyors of “useful insights” with little reference to the Bible. This unhappy substitute creeps in subtly. It’s not that these males overtly put aside the Bible. In truth, if requested, they could say, “We’re instructing the Bible week in and week out; we simply have a type of fill-in-the-blanks strategy”—“Seven Rules for Efficient Fathering,” “The Prime Ten Challenges Dealing with {Couples} As we speak,” and the like.
However stroll the aisles of those congregations, and hopefully you’ll hear the individuals saying, “Convey out the E book” (Neh. 8:1 NIV)—“Simply give us Bible!”
No Actual Substitute
Every of those unhappy substitutes isn’t any actual alternative for exposition in any respect. God saves, sanctifies, and retains His church by means of the preaching of His Phrase (2 Tim. 3:16–4:2). If right now’s church is to reach her mission, then she should reclaim the centrality of biblical preaching.
James W. Alexander, writing about Scottish Presbyterians in an earlier period, paints an image of the type of results true preaching can have on a church:
Each man and each lady, nay, nearly each little one, carried his pocket-Bible to church, and never solely regarded out the textual content, however verified every quotation; and because the preaching was in nice a part of the expository sort, the required consequence was, that the entire inhabitants grew to become intimately acquainted with the construction of each e book within the Bible, and had been capable of recall each passage with its applicable accompanying truths.
Might God renew within the hearts of ministers a devotion to preaching the Bible!
This text was tailored from the sermon “What Occurred to Expository Preaching?” by Alistair Begg.
