Hearing God's Word: Expositional Preaching

by Bobby Jamieson

Overview

Expositional preaching gives life and health to the church. It shapes, forms, and reforms the church, and it reveals the character of God. Participants will learn to understand their joyful responsibility in sitting under a pastor's teaching, and pastors will be encouraged to preach expositionally—from the Bible!

The 9Marks Healthy Church Study Guide series is a series of ten 6–7 week studies covering the nine distinctives of a healthy church as originally laid out in Nine Marks of a Healthy Church by Mark Dever. This series explores the biblical foundations of key aspects of the church, helping Christians to live out those realities as members of a local body. Conveniently packaged and accessibly written, the format of this series is guided, inductive discussion of Scripture passages and is ideal for use in Sunday school, church-wide studies, or small group contexts.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781433525315
Publisher:	Crossway
Publication date:	04/30/2012
Series:	9Marks Healthy Church Study Guides
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	64
File size:	484 KB

About the Author

Bobby Jamieson (PhD, University of Cambridge) serves as an associate pastor of Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, DC. He previously served as assistant editor for 9Marks. Jamieson and his wife have four children.

Bobby Jamieson (PhD, University of Cambridge) serves as an associate pastor of Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, DC. He previously served as assistant editor for 9Marks. Jamieson and his wife have four children.

Read an Excerpt

CHAPTER 1

WHAT IS TRUE SPIRITUALITY?

GETTING STARTED

This entire six-week course is about expositional preaching:

• What it is

• Its biblical basis

• How it builds the church

• Why it's important for every church member to pay close attention to both what is preached and how it's preached

What Is Expositional Preaching?

Simply stated, expositional preaching is preaching that takes the main point of a text of Scripture, makes that the main point of the sermon, and applies it to life today. Expositional preaching is preaching that exposes the meaning of Scripture and brings it to bear on our lives.

Since the goal of expositional preaching is simply to explain and apply God's Word, we're going to take a step back for this first study and think about why God's Word is so important for the life and health of the church.

What Is True Spirituality?

In this first study we are going to consider the question, What is true spirituality? That's a question on a lot of people's minds today, not just Christians. While being "religious" is decidedly unpopular, spirituality is in, big-time.

1. What are some things you've heard non-Christians say about spirituality?

2. What are some things you've heard Christians say that true spirituality consists of?

MAIN IDEA

True spirituality consists in hearing, believing, and obeying God's Word. That is why God's Word is the source of the church's life and health, and why pastors should preach expositionally.

DIGGING IN

In Psalm 19 David writes,

1 The heavens declare the glory of God,
1. Verses 1 through 6 focus on one way God makes himself known and verses 7 through 11 focus on another. How would you summarize the two ways God reveals himself that are celebrated in this psalm?

2. What do we learn about God from his revelation of himself in creation (vv. 1–6)?

3. What can't the creation teach us about God and about how we are to relate to him?

4. What do the terms law (v. 7), testimony (v. 7), precepts (v. 8), commandment (v. 8), and rules (v. 9) all refer to? What does this suggest about how God communicates to us?

5. List all the things David says God's Word does in verses 7 through 11. Describe the human need or situation each of these actions addresses.

6. Based on this passage, how would you respond to someone who said that true spirituality is too deep for words?

Another passage that demonstrates the absolute centrality of God's Word in the Christian life is the familiar story of Mary and Martha from Luke 10:38–42:

38 Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. 39 And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to his teaching. 40 But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, "Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me." 41 But the Lord answered her, "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, 42 but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her."

7. Describe Martha's activity and mind-set that we see in this passage.

8. Suppose we didn't have Jesus's words in verses 41–42, and you wanted to defend Martha. How might you make a case for why she is more spiritual than Mary?

9. What does Jesus commend Mary for doing? (Hint: It's not for simply giving herself a break!)

10. What does Jesus mean when he says that listening to his teaching is the "one thing" that is necessary?

A Spirituality of the Word

These two passages teach us that hearing, believing, and obeying God's Word is absolutely central to how we relate to God.

The New Testament teaches that we're born again through the Word of God (1 Pet. 1:23). We obtain faith through the Word of God (Rom. 10:17). We grow in godliness through the Word of God (John 17:17). And we receive encouragement and hope from the Word of God (Rom. 15:4).

These are some of the reasons why God's Word is the source and substance of true spirituality. True spirituality is a spirituality of the Word.

Why Pastors Should Preach Expositionally

Because God's Word is the source and substance of true spirituality, pastors should preach sermons in which the main point of the text of Scripture is the main point of the sermon. Expositional preaching is the starting point for a healthy church: God's Word teaches us who he is, how we have sinned against him, what he has done for us in Christ, what he requires of us in response, and how he provides everything we need — through his Word! — to bring him glory.

11. In light of the two passages we've studied, how would you respond to someone who said that in order to be really spiritual we need to:

a) Contemplate images and icons that represent God?

b) Pursue a direct, unmediated, mystical experience of the presence of God?

c) Devote ourselves to social action, and discover God "at work" among the poor?

d) Hear God speaking to us inwardly?

12. How should this understanding of Word-centered spirituality shape:

a) What our churches do in their corporate gatherings?

b) How we evaluate sermons?

c) What we hope to get out of sermons?

d) How we listen to sermons?

CHAPTER 2

WHY YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR CHURCH'S TEACHING!

GETTING STARTED

1. Have you ever walked out of a movie? Why?

2. When was the last time you changed the TV channel or radio station because you objected to the content? What would have been the effects of continuing to watch or listen?

The reason many of us have walked out of movies, turned off TV shows, or changed the radio station is that we understand that we are responsible for what we see and hear. We must carefully weigh what we take in through media, what we allow to influence us, and what we approve of. This will sometimes mean rejecting what we see or hear by turning it off.

In a similar fashion, Scripture teaches that all Christians have a responsibility to ensure that the teaching they receive in their local churches is faithful to God's Word.

MAIN IDEA

Every church member is responsible for ensuring that the teaching in his or her church is faithful to God's Word.

DIGGING IN

One passage that teaches this clearly is Galatians 1. Paul begins his letter to the Galatians:

1 Paul, an apostle — not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead — 2 and all the brothers who are with me,

To the churches of Galatia:

3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, 4 who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, 5 to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel — 7 not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. 8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. 9 As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.

10 For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ. (1:1–10)

1. To whom does Paul address his letter (v. 2)? What implications does this have for how we read this passage?

2. What is Paul astonished about (v. 6)?

3. Describe the "some" Paul refers to in verse 7. Judging from the following verses, what are they doing to the Galatians?

4. Whom are the Galatians deserting (v. 6)? What does this tell us about the consequences of hearing and embracing false teaching?

5. On whom does Paul pronounce a curse (twice!) in verses 8 and 9? What does this teach us about Paul's understanding of the gospel?

6. Look back at verse 1. From whom does Paul derive his authority? Does this mean that everything Paul says is automatically true (see v. 8)?

7. What does this say about the authority of pastors and elders today — where does it come from? How is that both similar to and different from Paul's authority?

Because the authority of a pastor's teaching is derived from and subject to God's Word, pastors should make it their aim to faithfully proclaim God's Word.

How should they do this? Generally speaking, pastors should preach through books of the Bible, making sure that the main point of the passage is the main point of the sermon. That way, God's Word sets the agenda for what a congregation learns, not the preacher.

8. Drawing on the whole passage, summarize in your own words what's wrong with the churches in Galatia and whom Paul holds responsible for this situation. (Hint: There may be more than one responsible party.)

9. Based on Paul's teaching in this passage, who would you say is responsible for what is taught in your local church?

10. What are some of the dangers of congregations entrusting this responsibility entirely to their leaders? In other words, what problems might arise if regular church members aren't exercising doctrinal discernment?

11. What does exercising this responsibility look like in practical terms for the average church member? What are some ways that the members of your church exercise responsibility for what is taught?

12. Does this mean congregations should begin to tell pastors what to preach? Or to appoint review committees for a pastor's sermons? How does a church simultaneously embrace this responsibility while also submitting to their leaders (Heb. 13:17)?

13. What are some ways you personally have exercised responsibility for what is taught? Are there more ways you can or should do this?

CHAPTER 3

THE POINT OF PREACHING — WHAT MAKES A GOOD SERMON GOOD?

GETTING STARTED

1. What's the purpose of listening to sermons?

2. What's not the purpose of listening to sermons? List several examples.

Two studies ago, we considered the fact that God grows and gives life to his people through his Word. And in the previous study, we saw in Galatians 1 that church members are responsible for ensuring that the teaching in their church is faithful to God's Word.

Since God's Word is all-important for Christian life and growth, and since we as church members are responsible for ensuring that God's Word is faithfully taught, we need to understand what good preaching is and how to benefit from good preaching. These aren't just topics for seminary students. Every Christian has an eternal interest in good preaching.

In this study, we want to think specifically about the point of preaching and the related question, what makes a good sermon good?

MAIN IDEA

God's people need to hear from God. Therefore, good preaching is preaching that places its highest priority on faithfully communicating God's Word.

DIGGING IN

Let's begin near the beginning by thinking about what went wrong in the world and why fallen humanity is in the condition it's in.

In Genesis 2, God told Adam and Eve, "You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat" (vv. 16–17). Sadly, Adam and Eve disobeyed God.

Here's how God describes what went wrong: he said to Adam, "Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, 'You shall not eat of it,' cursed is the ground because of you" (Gen. 3:17).

1. How does God describe Adam's failure?

2. In discussing Genesis 3, we often focus on the sin of pride, or the sin of wanting to become like God, which are ways of characterizing a heart problem. But it's also important to see that these "heart failures" showed up in Adam as "ear failures." What then do we learn from this passage about sin generally? Using the language of this passage, how will the temptation to sin show up in our lives?

3. If we, as fallen humans, are continually tempted to set our desires on hearing from voices other than God's, what kind of preaching will we wrongly desire to hear?

4. As you sit and listen to sermons, what are some ways in which you personally show more interest in voices other than God's?

The apostle Paul was someone who knew well the importance of listening to God's Word as opposed to false teachers, humanly devised philosophies, or any other competitor. In one of the last letters of his life, he writes to his longtime disciple Timothy,

16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. 4:1 I 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: 2 preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. 3 For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, 4 and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. (2 Tim. 3:16–4:4)

5. According to verse 16 of chapter 3, where does the Bible come from? Why should this cause us to believe and obey everything says?

6. According to verses 16 and 17 of chapter 3, what will the Bible do for Christians?

7. In light of these two verses, how would you characterize the point of preaching? How would you answer the question, "What makes a good sermon good?"

8. Read 4:1. Paul starts with the words, "I charge you. ..." By what or by whom does Paul charge Timothy? What does this say about how serious Paul is about what he's about to say? (Keep in mind that Paul is probably nearing his death and sitting in his prison cell as he writes to Timothy.)

9. Here at the end of his life, what is Paul most anxious to charge Timothy to do (4:2)?

10. What exactly is it that Timothy must preach (4:2)? What else might Timothy be tempted to preach?

Because God's people need to hear from God, and because God charges preachers to preach his Word, preachers should realize they have nothing truly valuable to say other than what's in God's Word. That's the job — to faithfully say again what God has already said in his Word; to explain it and apply it to the congregation so that, by the power of the Spirit, their lives will be conformed to God's will.

What makes a good sermon good? A good sermon is one that faithfully proclaims and applies the meaning of God's Word.

11. What might distract Timothy — or any pastor — from fulfilling this charge? What do you think Paul means by "in season and out of season" (4:2)?

12. How do verses 3 and 4 in chapter 4 remind you of our meditation on Genesis 2 and 3?

13. Should good preaching be measured by its outcome or its content?

14. What should churches be looking for in their preachers? What should you look for in a preacher when you are choosing a church?

(Continues…)

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Excerpted from "Hearing God's Word: Expositional Preaching"
by .
Copyright © 2012 9Marks.
Excerpted by permission of Good News Publishers.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

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Table of Contents

Introduction An Essential Mark of a Healthy Church: Expositional Preaching, by Mark Dever,
WEEK 1 What Is True Spirituality?,
WEEK 2 Why YOU Are Responsible for Your Church's Teaching!,
WEEK 3 The Point of Preaching — What Makes a Good Sermon Good?,
WEEK 4 How Does Expositional Preaching Work?,
WEEK 5 How the Word Should Fill the Church's Gatherings,
WEEK 6 Preaching Is Not the Only Ministry of the Word,
Teacher's Notes,

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

“9Marks, as a ministry, has taken basic biblical teaching about the church and put it into the hands of pastors. Bobby, by way of these study guides, has taken this teaching and delivered it to the person in the pew. I am unaware of any other tool that so thoroughly and practically helps Christians understand God’s plan for the local church. I can’t wait to use these studies in my own congregation.”
—Jeramie Rinne, Senior Pastor, Sanibel Community Church, Fort Myers, Florida

“Bobby Jamieson has done local church pastors an incredible service by writing these study guides. Clear, biblical, and practical, they introduce the biblical basis for a healthy church. But more importantly, they challenge and equip church members to be part of the process of improving their own church’s health. The studies work for individual, small group, and larger group settings. I have used them for the last year at my own church and appreciate how easy they are to adapt to my own setting. I don’t know of anything else like them. Highly recommended!”
—Michael Lawrence, Senior Pastor, Hinson Baptist Church, Portland, Oregon; author, Biblical Theology in the Life of the Church

“This is a Bible study that is actually rooted in the Bible and involves actual study. In the 9Marks Healthy Church Study Guides Series a new standard has been set for personal theological discovery and corresponding personal application. Rich exposition, compelling questions, and clear syntheses combine to give a guided tour of ecclesiology—the theology of the church. I know of no better curriculum for generating understanding of and involvement in the church than this. It will be a welcome resource in our church for years to come.”
—Rick Holland, Senior Pastor, Mission Road Bible Church, Prairie Village, Kansas

“In America today we have the largest churches in the history of our nation, but the least amount of impact for Christ’s kingdom. Slick marketing and finely polished vision statements are a foundation of sand. The 9Marks Healthy Church Study Guides Series is a refreshing departure from church-growth materials, towards an in-depth study of God’s Word that will equip God’s people with his vision for his Church. These study guides will lead local congregations to abandon secular methodologies for church growth and instead rely on Christ’s principles for developing healthy, God-honoring assemblies.”
—Carl J. Broggi, Senior Pastor, Community Bible Church, Beaufort, South Carolina; President, Search the Scriptures Radio Ministry

“Anyone who loves Jesus will love what Jesus loves. The Bible clearly teaches that Jesus loves the church. He knows about and cares for individual churches and wants them to be spiritually healthy and vibrant. Not only has Jesus laid down his life for the church but he has also given many instructions in his Word regarding how churches are to live and function in the world. This series of Bible studies by 9Marks shows how Scripture teaches these things. Any Christian who works through this curriculum, preferably with other believers, will be helped to see in fresh ways the wisdom, love, and power of God in establishing the church on earth. These studies are biblical, practical, and accessible. I highly recommend this curriculum as a useful tool that will help any church embrace its calling to display the glory of God to a watching world.”
—Thomas Ascol, Executive Director, Founders Ministries; Pastor, Grace Baptist Church, Cape Coral, Florida