Throughout history, God has chosen to use men and women to communicate his message. Whether through prophets or through preachers, God’s message has been entrusted to God’s messengers to proclaim. Christian preaching has been a foundational part of the New Testament church since the church was founded. It was modeled by Jesus Christ, handed down through the apostles to the early church fathers, and now it is a part of every Christian church to this day.
So, what is “preaching”? (and what is not preaching?) What makes “preaching” preaching? Can any form of public speaking done from a church stage on a Sunday morning qualify as preaching? And, why is preaching still important for the church today? These are important questions.
Phillips Brooks says that Preaching is “truth poured through personality.”(1) I love this definition! Preaching is an incredible task. It is the task of God’s messenger to relay God’s truth to individuals. And even as that truth is poured through the personality of the preacher, a faithful preacher will make every attempt not to alter or to distract from God’s truth.
To say this in a different way, preaching is not the opportunity for the preacher to share his own truth, agenda, or insights. It is not up to the preacher to design the version of the truth that he feels more comfortable communicating. Since preaching is God’s message communicated through God’s messenger, then a faithful preacher must fight the temptation to deviate from God’s message in leu of his own.
Robinson says,
“Those in the pulpit face the pressing temptation to deliver some message other than that of Scriptures – a political system (either right-wing or left-wing), a theory of economics, a new religious philosophy, old religious slogans, or a trend in psychology. Ministers can proclaim anything in a stained-glass voice at 11:30 on Sunday morning following the singing of hymns. Yet when they fail to preach the Scriptures, they abandon their authority. No longer do they confront their hearers with a word from God. This is why most modern preaching invokes little more than a wide yawn. God is not in it.”(2)
To complete this thought, Robinson then adds a simple yet profound statement,
“God speaks through the Bible.”(2)
Because God speaks through His word, all true Christian preaching should be expository.(3) Now, before I offend my brothers and sisters who may be a part of a church who would not label itself as “expository,” please let me define my terms. “Expository” simply means to expose. Delivering an expository message means that the preacher exposes what is in the Scripture. The preacher exposes the truth of God. The preacher exposes the truth of God as found in the word of God.
Robinson says,
“In reality, “expository” refers to the content of the sermon rather than its style. To “expound” Scripture means to bring out what is in the text, to reveal it. The expositor opens what seems to be closed, makes plain what is confusing, unravels what is knotted, and unfolds what is tightly packed.”(2)
This is the great and beautiful task of preaching; communicating the exposed word of God!
Whether your church walks through the Bible verse by verse, chapter by chapter, and book by book (verse-by-verse expository), or your church unpacks the prominent themes that come from the Scriptures that point to Christ (topical expository), praise God for your church! Praise God for churches who are committed to faithfully handling the Scriptures! Praise God for churches who stand on the ultimate authority of Scripture. As Robinson said, “when they fail to preach the Scriptures, they abandon their authority.” But, praise God for the churches who preach with authority, and who stand in confidence that God speaks through His word!
- (1) Phillips Brooks, Lectures on Preaching (New York: Dutton 1877) p.8
- (2) Haddon Robinson, Biblical Preaching; The Development and Delivery of Expository Messages (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic 2001) p. 20-21
- (3) John Stott, The Challenge of Preaching (Grand Rapids, MI: W. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2013) p.25