Biblical Preaching—what is it? Every preacher that fills a pulpit thinks they are preaching biblically, but are they? And who are we to say whether or not someone is preaching biblically?
Paul instructs Timothy to preach the word and not to satisfy itching ears, to guard the deposit entrusted to him, and protect sound (healthy) doctrine. Handling the Word of God is a delicate task, a high calling, and a humbling experience. The thought of standing before a people with the orders to explain and apply a text should cause us to bow before the throne of God because He entrusts His word to feeble men, and it should cause us to tremble before God because we will be held accountable for how we present His word.
Biblical preaching is proclaiming the same message that the author of the text is teaching. If what you say a text means is not what the author meant, then it cannot be biblical from that particular text. The present day meaning must be the same as the original author’s. Therefore, it seems that the best way to uncover that meaning is to preach expositionally, line by line. By doing so you are constantly dealing with context, which brings light to the author’s intent. Expositional preaching seems to me to be the best way of presenting the truth-meaning of a text, but I will say it is not the only way. Other methods can be employed such as topical or textual.
Here are some good questions to ask during preparation:
What is the author’s original intent?
How would the original audience have interpreted this text?
Paul instructs Timothy to preach the word and not to satisfy itching ears, to guard the deposit entrusted to him, and protect sound (healthy) doctrine. Handling the Word of God is a delicate task, a high calling, and a humbling experience. The thought of standing before a people with the orders to explain and apply a text should cause us to bow before the throne of God because He entrusts His word to feeble men, and it should cause us to tremble before God because we will be held accountable for how we present His word.
Biblical preaching is proclaiming the same message that the author of the text is teaching. If what you say a text means is not what the author meant, then it cannot be biblical from that particular text. The present day meaning must be the same as the original author’s. Therefore, it seems that the best way to uncover that meaning is to preach expositionally, line by line. By doing so you are constantly dealing with context, which brings light to the author’s intent. Expositional preaching seems to me to be the best way of presenting the truth-meaning of a text, but I will say it is not the only way. Other methods can be employed such as topical or textual.
Here are some good questions to ask during preparation:
What is the author’s original intent?
How would the original audience have interpreted this text?
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