Expository Preaching

Most preachers today shun expository preaching.  It used to be a more regular fare in the pulpit, but it is not an easy kind of preaching for the preacher and it is difficult for the people in the pew if it is not done well.  A lot of preaching today is more topical, meaning that the preacher chooses a topic and finds some Scripture to sprinkle in the sermon so it comes across as Biblical preaching.  What is often missed is that Biblical preaching starts with the Scripture instead of using it for window dressing.  

When we hear good Biblical preaching we know it.  No one has to point it out to us.   This past Sunday's  worship service was outstanding in so many ways.  Though it was liturgical, it never seemed heavy.  The worship space was alive acoustically and the music by the congregation and choir was full of blessing.  The preacher was a young woman not too many years out of seminary who preached what was an expository sermon on the story of Lazarus.  She showed no fear of using a big chunk of Scripture and kept all of us engaged with her as she proclaimed the Word of the Lord.  She was the kind of preacher who restored and renewed my faith in the new generation of preachers.   

The sermon she preached was clear.  It was not a sermon designed to impress, but one crafted to inspire.  She allowed the Scripture to preach the sermon.  It was the kind of sermon which caused those of us who did not carry a Bible to worship to wish for one.  There was no Bible thumping, but it was clear that the Bible was the authority for what was being preached. When the sermon ended, there was a strong invitation to encounter Jesus in a personal way.  It was a good day of worship and I left grateful that I was one of those who shared the hour with the gathered people of God.