Theology & Philosophy of Preaching

The faithful preaching of God’s Word is to be the component to a pastor’s life and work. God communicates with His followers through the faithful preaching of His Word. Men called by God are to be faithfully obedient to the preaching of His blessed Word. The preaching of God’s Word is to be clear to the reader and faithful to the text. Faithful preaching of the Bible is the passionately responsible, authentic revelation of the Christ-centered Scriptures through the power of the Holy Spirit to glorify and exalt the name of the Triune God.

First, one must understand that the preaching of God’s Word is to obey the charge by Paul (to Timothy) to “preach the Word” (2 Tim. 4:2). As Paul wrote in 1 Tim. 4:13, the pastor is to “…give attention to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation and teaching.” Furthermore, the pastor is to teach the principles outlined in Scripture (1 Tim. 6:2). It is God’s command that His Word be preached, not man’s personal ideas or desires. It is God’s Word that is to be proclaimed, as it carries authority and power within the lives of believers. The prominence of faithful preaching is to be taken from the Bible itself, as it is from God. Any messenger of God needs to bring the inspired, inerrant, and infallible Word of God to the entire world in conjunction with its correct context in exposition (Matt. 28:16-20). As Ezra read from God’s Law, he interpreted it so that the hearer could better understand. Expository preaching is true to the text. Therefore, take the Word of God and apply it for life and godliness so that people may spiritually mature (2 Pet. 1:3-11). This is to be done through the understanding of sound doctrine and verse-by-verse understanding of the Scripture (Titus 1:9).

Second, the preaching of God’s Word is to be glorifying to God and the purpose of which He has ordained. Isaiah 55:11 states that “…My word…will not return to Me empty…without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.” God’s Word will not return until the sovereign decreed is fulfilled. The preaching of God’s Word is never in vain. God’s Word glorifies who He is and convict sinners (Heb. 4:12). Preaching is never useless, as God uses it to accomplish His absolute plan. The doxological preaching of God’s Word should be both in the message content and the delivery of the message itself, exhibiting a balance of morality and theological teaching.

Third, the preaching of God’s Word takes clear priority above everything else within the local church. The Pastorals outline the need for preaching and teaching God’s Word with all authority. The primary concentration of the local church is to give a clear proclamation of God’s Word and the truth that is crucial to the life of the believer. Preaching is to be spiritual, as the believer is to be “Word fed and Spirit led.” The pastor is to be Spirit-empowered in his approach to preaching the Spirit-inspired Scripture. Furthermore, the believer’s life is to be Spirit-enlightened in the hearing and doing of the Word (Jas. 1:22). Biblical preaching is transformational to the heart, not just to the head. The ultimate, intended purpose of preaching is to effect transformation on the hearer, not to impart the information. The effect information is to transform the hearer into the likeness of Christ. Being Spirit-empowered, the proclamation of the Word allows the Holy Spirit to move in order to soften hearts to the gospel message. The preacher’s authority comes only from the Word of God, as the Holy Spirit directs the words in order to accomplish the Lord’s sovereign purpose because the gospel is powerful (Lk. 4:18; Rom. 15:19; 1 Thess. 1:5).

Fourth, the preaching of God’s Word is to be delivered as the “truth through personality.” The pastor’s given perception, whether through personal life or listener’s perception, plays a dramatic role in the drama of sermon delivery. Therefore, preaching is to be incarnational. The preacher must feed the “flock” in a gentle, loving way. In addition to this principle, the genuine concern for the spiritual life of the believer must be considered.

Fifth, preaching “the Word” means preaching Jesus! The context of Scripture is centered around the gospel message, as the entire span of biblical revelation is reaches its climax at the resurrection of Christ from the dead. The Old Testament points directly to the coming Messiah (Is. 53). The Gospels proclaim that the Messiah has come. Finally, the Epistles and Revelation center around the core theological tenants about the Savior. It is urgent that each individual message be centered around the good news: man’s sin, God’s holiness, Christ’s atoning work, saving faith in Christ, and obedience to Christ’s Lordship. In order for this to happen, preaching must be urgent. At the end of the earthly life, each person will enter eternity – heaven or hell. Any ethical assertive that is presented should be rooted in a gospel representation. The preacher must preach with a tone of urgency that begs of the hearer to fully trust Christ alone for salvation. For the believer, the preacher must preach the message in order for them to walk worthy of what God has called them to do, remaining holy and centered on Christ each day.

The preaching of God’s Word must be presented in a passionate, yet practical way. The first key in passionate preaching is to truly understand what is being preached is the absolute gospel. The preacher must be persuasive in presentation so that the teaching can be practical to the lives of the hearer. True success in the pulpit is based on faithfulness to the Word of God. Being faithful in the pulpit calls for diligent work in study and preparation. The goal is to stand before the Lord with a joyful confidence in the work that has been done to bring glory to the Lord Jesus for all eternity.

[1]

The above illustration models, according to William Barnett, “The distinction…arises from the difference between doing and knowing…the contrast is between practice and theory, between the moral man and the theoretical or intellectual man."[2] This idea play a key factor in the exposition of the Scriptures. The Western world has largely adopted the allegorical interpretation of Scripture, as it can open a door to unfaithful preaching and “handling” of the Word. The sometimes creative forms of exposition are not usually the most accurate interpretation of the text. In contrast with the Hebrew way of things will happen in view of biblical eschatology, the Greek mindset of the west has emphasized the idea of a “timetable” with dates and “signs” in which people attempt to “check” off the fulfillment of prophecy. This mentality neglects the application of proper hermeneutics in biblical preaching.

The science-based methods of interpretation, from a Western standpoint, will produce distortions within passage exegesis. Those in Christian academic sometimes embark on a relentless quest to view the Bible as a textbook that answers questions about God. In order to understand the Bible in a way that does correctly interpret the text, it is best to view the Bible through Jewish (Hebrew) eyes. The preaching of God’s Word has become centered on making people “feel good” about everything. Christ-centered preaching is to include this simple truth: Jesus Himself said that only the Father knows the time of His coming (Matt. 24:36) so we are not supposed to waste our time trying to determine the time, as we are to be ready all the time because Jesus can come at any time. The Bible is to be interpreted in a special way because of its divine inspiration.

In order to prepare an author-intended sermon, there are six basic steps when considering the overall process of hermeneutics and homiletics. First, faithful preaching begins with the “flesh of the text” in that one makes basic observations and interpretations based on the Interpretive Journey.[3]

[1] Matthew Willmington, “PLED 251 Class Room Lecture,” (2017).

[2] William Barrett, Irrational Man a Study in Existential Philosophy (New York: Anchor Books, 1990), 121.

[3] "5 Steps to Understanding Any Biblical Text: The Interpretive Journey from "Grasping God's Word"," Zondervan Academic, February 21, 2017, accessed November 06, 2018, https://zondervanacademic.com/blog/5-steps-to-understanding-any-biblical-text/.