Posts Tagged ‘Expository Preaching’

Preaching is God’s ordained method to convey his Word and build his church. As such, preaching is every pastor’s principle responsibility and every church’s primary need. Therefore, every pastor must preach, and preach well, every Lord’s day.

However, good sermons, like good meals, do not just happen. They are intentionally crafted by bringing together essential elements. In the case of preaching, one essential element is key words. Determining which words to add and which words to subtract is an indispensable component of sermon preparation. Read more

Sermons are comprised of words, and every sermon rises or falls on the words that preachers choose to deploy. The words preached come with the power of life and death; thus, the preacher must carefully choose his words.

The point is not so much eloquence as it is intentionality. Over the years, as I have monitored my own preaching and observed others, I have come to realize how intentionally using a few key words will strengthen most any sermon. For example, consider these five: Read more

Checklists can be helpful for most every area of life. For example, before traveling I always review a mental list to make sure I’ve appropriately packed and have my logistical bases covered.

Over the years, I’ve also developed a mental checklist that I typically ask of every sermon before I preach it. Like traveling, this checklist is important because in the rush of getting out the door, I can overlook an essential element to the preaching process if I don’t intentionally pause and reflect upon the task at hand. These seven questions help me do just that.
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Preaching is an art and a science. One’s personality, gifting, training, ministry context, and countless other variables comprise the art of homiletics. The science of preaching is far more objective, theological, and certain. While the art of preaching can vary widely, the science of preaching is far more fixed, and should be far more settled. And, as I have argued, it should be settled in a commitment to preach the Word, a commitment to expository preaching. Read more

This morning I am going to read II Timothy chapter three, verses one through five. Paul writes, beginning in verse one:

I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths. But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.

“Preach The Word.” This exhortation is situated front and center in these five verses and front and center in this book. It comes with added momentum since we’ve looked at chapter three. There is a contrast of the difficult times which will come and which are upon us; times of the culture and the world, but most especially these difficult times will trickle into the church as well. Read more