Point of View

With the battle over the inerrancy of the Bible virtually behind us in the SBC, one would hope for solid preaching to abound. Many people sitting in the pews, however, recognize the all-too-often topical preaching for what it is—junk food at best (which does not lead to health) and cotton candy at worst (which people receive initially with joy only to walk away hungry, assuming the Christian faith cannot deliver genuine substance). While topical preaching may use numerous biblical verses, such preaching falls short of "declaring the whole counsel of God" (Acts 20:28) and "feeding (Christ's) sheep" (John 21:17). To fulfill God's call for the preaching task, we need to return to expository preaching, generally defined as the explanation of a biblical passage after thorough contextual analysis, and then applied to the hearers. I want to show the biblical basis for such preaching and give a few of its benefits.

The Old Testament notes the importance of explaining and applying Scripture while exhorting the hearers to obey. Both Moses and Ezra serve as prime examples of expositors, for Moses' reading of the Law led to an explanation of it (Ex 19-24) and he "undertook to expound" God's Law (Deut 1:5). "Expound" has the idea of making "distinct" or "plain" through careful instruction (cf. Deut 27:8). Moses also applied the Law to Israel (Deut 5:1) and exhorted Israel to obey it (4:1; 6:13; 8:1; 10:12-13; 27:1; 29:9; 30:15-20).

Similarly, Nehemiah 8 informs us that careful exegesis and application were the groundwork of Ezra's preaching—he wanted to "observe" what was written. His ministry of the Word is what we call expository preaching, for Ezra and other scribes "explained the law to the people ... . They read from the book, from the law of God, translating to give the sense so that they understood the reading" (vv. 7-8). One can describe Ezra's preaching as careful exposition of God's Word and helpful application of it to the people.

The New Testament highlights expository preaching in the ministries of Jesus, Paul, and Peter. Luke 4, Jesus' first recorded sermon, implies prudent explanation of Isaiah 61:1-2 and application to the people. Luke 4:21 is probably a summary of Jesus' sermon, for synagogue sermons in the early first century involved translating the Hebrew into Aramaic, interpreting the Scripture passage, and applying it to the audience. A few years later, in a post- resurrection appearance, Jesus clearly expounded every Messianic text of the Old Testament (Luke 24:27; cf. v. 44). The application was obvious, for the disciples proclaimed this news to others.

Likewise, Paul's homiletic model included exhortation/admonition (Acts 13:15; 20:31), explanation/doctrine (13:17-41; 20:20), and proclamation (13:32; 20:25; see also 28:23-24). Only such solid and multifaceted preaching as this could fulfill his goal of declaring "the whole counsel of God" (20:27). Correspondingly, Paul's mandate was to "give attention to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation and teaching" (1 Tim 4:13). The public reading of Scripture was at least a passage-by-passage approach, followed by exhortation/application of the Scriptures. Additionally, "teaching" focuses on the doctrinal substance, or explanation, needed in every expository sermon. Moreover, Paul's command to "preach the Word" integrated exhortation and instruction/explanation in sound doctrine (2 Tim 4:2-3). The "sound" (pure, healthy) teaching undoubtedly points at the substance, reiterating that exhorting/applying God's Word rests on careful explanation.

Finally, Peter's exposition of Joel 2 at Pentecost employs the analogy of Scripture, quoting Psalms 16 and 110 to explain the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, proving Him to be the Christ. Peter concluded by urging the people to repent to have their sins forgiven (Acts 2:40—see also Hebrews, a sermonic letter filled with exposition of the Old Testament and exhortation [see 13:22, for example] about living out the Christian life in light of the supremacy and sufficiency of the Person and work of Christ).

With this biblical basis in mind, let me briefly share a few benefits of expository preaching. First, preaching on a passage/section of Scripture is the natural way to read the text (not hopping around from verse to verse in a topical fashion). Second, such preaching encourages listeners to study God's Word, because they can invest a few minutes into understanding and applying God's Word to their lives similar to the way their pastor shows them in worship. Third, though anyone can misinterpret Scripture, explaining it in context increases the odds of rendering the text faithfully. Fourth, expounding a passage of the Bible during a message forces the preacher to speak God's Word rather than waste precious time giving his own opinion on a topic of personal interest. Fifth, years of faithful exposition help the preacher "declare the whole counsel of God" to his people. Finally, the application of the Bible shows the listeners the relevancy of God's Word for their lives.

May the biblical basis and these few benefits underscore the significance of expository preaching as the explanation and application of God's Word to people, i.e., giving people solid food! May preachers return to the Scriptural model and mandate in declaring the whole counsel of God in biblical exposition!

Joel R. Breidenbaugh is pastor of CornerStone Baptist Church in Panama City Beach and an adjunct instructor at The Baptist College of Florida, New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, and Liberty Theological Seminary.