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Tag: Spurgeon

What is Expository Preaching?

Written by MattMacNaughton on . Posted in The Church. 2 Comments on What is Expository Preaching?

*For the next few weeks, we’ll be taking a look at the meaning of “Expository Preaching”, its Biblical precedence, and the importance of Expository Preaching in the life of our church. 

Before the first words came out of his mouth, John the Baptist was destined to preach (Mk 1:1-4). His sole purpose in life was to pave the way for the coming of the Messiah. As a blood relative of Jesus, John could have easily developed anger towards his cousin (or jealousy for that matter). But he strived to prepare the hearts of the people of Israel to hear and see their Messiah. Dressed in camel’s skin and probably in need of a bath, John proclaimed God’s message to anyone who was in hearing distance. Though John’s ministry was short lived, he was constantly preaching, and what he was preaching is still the same message today: Jesus Christ. Preachers of the Word of God can learn from John the Baptist and see the need to bring people to Christ. The “Prince of Preachers” Charles Spurgeon understood this:

“The motto of all true servants of God must be, ‘We preach Christ; and him crucified.’  A sermon without Christ in it is like a loaf of bread without any flour in it. No Christ in your sermon, sir? Then go home, and never preach again until you have something worth preaching.” 

Charles Spurgeon understood the importance of preaching and the importance of Christ in the sermon. Many pastors today have forgotten what preaching is all about. The desire for their sermons is that they be presented creatively and for entertainment. Like Spurgeon states, these men should just go home. Their desire to help the people of God has turned into a hindrance in their congregation’s spiritual walk with the Lord. This is because they have forgotten, or possibly never understood, what preaching is all about. 

One of my biggest concerns is the growing problem of Bible illiteracy in our country. We have professing Christians that haven’t opened up the Bible in years, and we have politicians misquoting Scripture to fit their political agenda and Christians applauding how their politicians love the Bible. 

This is why we preach the Bible here at Grace Life Church. We preach God’s Word to God’s people because the Holy Spirit uses God’s Word to help us know God and the power of the gospel. We do not need to be entertained, but rather fed from the Word of God. My heart for you is to see Christ formed in you. To see you grow in holiness. To see you grow in Christlikeness. And to see this happen, I know you need to know how to study God’s Word on your own.

Preaching as defined by Merriam-Webster Dictionary is “to urge acceptance or abandonment of an idea or course of action”. Haddon Robinson states that preaching was God speaking “through the personality and message of a preacher to confront men and women and bring them to Himself”. Preaching is not simply standing in front of a congregation and delivering a creative sermon, it is proclaiming the message from the True God to people who need Him and need to walk closer with Him. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 2:1-5,

[1] And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. [2] For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. [3] And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, [4] and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, [5] so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God. (ESV)

It is the preaching of God’s Word that leads us to know Jesus Christ and him crucified. This is my heart for you. And this is why we are committed to expository preaching. Let’s define what expository preaching is:

Expository Preaching is taking a specific text of Scripture and proclaiming the truth of the text through intentional study of the geographical, historical, and redemptive context, exposing the one intended meaning of the text and then applying it to modern day listeners within the church for the glory of God.

Expository preaching brings our attention to the Word of God. It begins with the text, stays in the text, and drives us to the text. And when we look at the text, we see that the whole of Scripture is not about us but rather the glory and splendor of a redeeming God. 

Allistar Begg states, “Since expository preaching begins with the text of Scripture, it starts with God and is in itself an act of worship, for it is a declaration of the mighty acts of God. It establishes the focus of the people upon God and His glory before any consideration of man and his need.”

Mark Dever goes on to say, “The first mark of a healthy church is expositional preaching. It is not only the first mark; it is far and away the most important of them all, because if you get this one right, all of the others should follow… If you get the priority of the Word established, then you have in place the single most important aspect of the church’s life, and growing health is virtually assured, because God has decided to act by His Spirit through His Word… The congregation’s commitment to the centrality of the Word coming from the front, from the preacher, the one specially gifted by God and called to that ministry, is the most important thing you can look for in a church.”

The preaching of God’s Word is a vital ministry within the church. No church can function Biblically without it. The preaching of God’s Word must bring attention to Jesus Christ and the listener’s need for Him. The goal and desire of every preacher must be to preach Jesus and Him crucified.

And as we’ll see next week, the Old Testament and New Testament have much to say about the proclamation of God’s Word to God’s people.

 

By His Grace,

Pastor Matt

Why We Have a Preaching Team at Grace Life

Written by MattMacNaughton on . Posted in Discipleship. No Comments on Why We Have a Preaching Team at Grace Life

I can remember my first sermon clearly. I was taking a speech class my senior year of high school and since I already knew I would be going to seminary once I graduated, I decided to turn my speech into a sermon. The sermon was a short gospel presentation from Matthew 7:13-14.

“Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.”

I remember being extremely nervous and wanting to back out at the last minute. I remember seeing my mom and my youth pastor watching from the pews. I remember my blue shirt and red tie that was poorly tied. I remember this nervous tick my foot would do and wondering during the sermon why my foot was doing that and how I could possibly be thinking about that while I was preaching! Funny thing is, my foot still does it every once in a while.

I can’t remember the sermon points and no great revival was launched from that chapel sermon, but I do remember clearly thinking that this was something I wanted to spend the rest of my life doing: preaching the gospel to people who needed to hear it. 

This is what I’ve committed my life to doing as the Pastor of Grace Life. God has called me to deliver His Word to His people and to disciple and develop leaders for God’s glory. Part of doing this is training, equipping, and providing opportunities for other men to preach God’s Word to God’s people. This is why developing Biblical preachers within a local church is important to the doctrinal health of a local church. 

Over the summer, you will hear God’s Word preached from men within our church as they share with you the eternal truths found in Hebrews 11. These men are faithful men who love our church and support the gospel work within our church. They have studied diligently in preparation for their sermon, and I know they will be a blessing to you. They are to me. 

Here is why we have a preaching team at Grace Life Church. 

A preaching team serves as a reminder of the church’s need for God’s Word, not one communicator.

The pulpit I stand behind each Sunday to preach God’s Word is not my pulpit; it belongs to Jesus Christ, the Perfect One who died for His bride, the church. The Book I preach from is not my book; it’s the Holy Spirit Inspired Word of God that makes us wise to salvation and equipped to do every good work (2 Timothy 3:16-17). And it is my belief that the most important component within a church is the preaching of God’s Word. Having more men capable of preaching God’s Word is a benefit to the health of the church.

Pastor Steve Lawson wrote this in the forward to his book on John Calvin.

“As the pulpit goes, so goes the church. In this hour, pastors must see their pulpits again marked by sequential exposition, doctrinal clarity, and a sense of gravity regarding eternal matters. This, in my estimation, is the need of the hour.”

The church doesn’t need a dynamic communicator, it needs the preaching of God’s Word. Charles Spurgeon says this:

​​“My brethren, if we are to see the church of God really restored to her pristine glory, we must have back this plain, simple, gospel-preaching. I do believe that the hiding of the cross beneath the veil of fine language and learned dissertation is half the cause of the spiritual destitution of our country. Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners. He came to seek and to save that which was lost. I would sooner say these few words and then cease my testimony, than utter the most splendid oration that ever streamed from the lips of Demosthenes or of Cicero, but not have declared the gospel of Christ. We must keep to this. This must be the hammer that we bring down upon the anvil of the human heart again, and again, and again. God forbid that we should glory save in the cross of Jesus Christ our Lord! God forbid that we should know anything among men save Jesus Christ and him crucified!”

A preaching team provides an opportunity to develop Gospel-centered, Biblically-driven preachers.

The development of Gospel-centered, Biblically driven preachers keeps the focus on God’s Word and not man. But there must be a space for these men to learn, grow, and actually preach to the church. It is difficult to become a gospel preacher within the church if you have no opportunities to preach to the church.

Preaching is not easy. Writing a sermon and preparing to preach it is very similar to writing a term paper. Several hours of research, writing, reading, and studying goes into the final manuscript that will be delivered to the saints on Sunday. This is after years of working to study better and after having several years of seminary training. 

For the men who will be preaching over the summer, they have had several months to work on their text of Scripture. They are doing their prep work in their free time while learning the ins and outs of deep study of the Bible and then putting the pieces together to form a sermon. They’re thinking about illustrations, applications, and transitions, and they’re wrestling with the final outline that will be heard on Sunday, all without the years of training that most preachers have. 

This process takes practice and patience. It takes encouragement and critique. It takes grace and prayer. It takes Holy Spirit strength to stand before the church and deliver the Word of God to the church under the weight of knowing their words will be judged one day. And when they preach God’s Word to us, we respond with joy for the preaching of God’s Word and encourage them and thank them for preaching to us.

A preaching team provides necessary rest for the main preacher. 

I think about the sermon text from Sunday night until I deliver it the next Sunday. It is not uncommon for me to spend 10-20 hours working on a sermon every week while also keeping up with pastoral responsibilities. Early on as a preacher, I didn’t realize the mental strain writing a sermon would bring, and there are seasons I find myself needing to be preached to instead of being the one preaching.

Having a preaching team helps me rest physically, mentally, and spiritually. I hate not preaching, but I’m a better preacher when I have weeks off on the sermon calendar. The Sundays I don’t preach allow me to take a vacation with my family and be fully present with them (instead of trying to outline the sermon in my head or on my phone.) The Sundays I don’t preach allow me to prepare for future sermon series and handle other pastoral responsibilities. The Sundays I don’t preach frees me to sit and listen to the preaching of God’s Word.

Having faithful men step in now to preach to our church allows me to rest and prepare. It makes me a stronger preacher. It makes me stop and breathe. It makes me look at God’s Word not for sermon prep, but for the much needed spiritual nourishment for my soul.

A preaching team aides in the planting, replanting, and revitalization of more gospel focused churches in our community. 

We want to plant more churches in our community and serve churches who are on the verge of closing their doors and one of the necessary components to these causes is having faithful men who can teach others also (2 Timothy 2:2). I believe that the Lord will raise up men within our churches to one day pastor church plants or serve as a guest preacher in a church with no pastor. Preaching has a Kingdom impact not just within our church, but in other churches as well. Having a preaching team opens up opportunities for us to make more disciples who make disciples. 

I am thankful for the men who will be preaching over the summer. When they preach, encourage them. Tell them how the Lord used their sermon to speak to you. Show up and listen to them, because they are heralds of God’s message. The text they will preach from is the Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.

By His Grace,

Pastor Matt