Communication
We gather together this evening brethren to lay before us the importance of understanding the will of the Lord and the way that we discover the will of God is in His word the Bible. You see the Bible reveals God's MIND, therefore, we are to KNOW it. It reveals the WILL of God, therefore, we are to OBEY it and it reveals the HEART of God, therefore, we are to LOVE it.
Now this is not original with me brethren but it is a wise truth that I once learned among others and as all truths are wise as they are found in the word of God.
Let's take up the topic of expository preaching. What is it? First of all expository preaching seeks to weld together the Biblical text under consideration and the contemporary world. John Stott said that it is his conviction that all Christian preaching is expository preaching. You see we can not see expository preaching as just one of many different styles such as topical or evangelistic, devotional or apologetic or prophetic.
Expository preaching is not just an accurate commentary on the Bible or a word study tied in with various lucid illustrations but it is declaring what God has said. It is explaining the meaning of the Bible which is first declaring what God has said. How can we explain the meaning? The meaning of what? The meaning of the Bible and what God has said. Therefore, we must declare the doctrine as found in the Scripture, the word of God, to announce or state
it in the plainess language possible, then we seek to explain or expound its meaning and then we show its relevance or practical application.
We apply it to the listeners heart or we seek to apply it to the listeners heart. Only the Holy Spirit, the only true teacher and third person of the Godhead, can truly bring about an understanding of the word and convict men of their sins. Perhaps one of the reasons some preaching today lacks effectiveness is because the Holy Spirit has not seen fit to enlighten our understanding and to convict of sin, righteousness and judgment.
Remember the parable of the sower? Some of the seed representing the word of God, fell on stony ground and among throns where there was either no root so the people had an emotional response, maybe made a profession and were baptized, even entered the visible church but there was no true saving faith, no priciple of grace. No root. Christ is not in them. Why? The ground is stony and hard. Hardness of heart will make the soil or soul unfit to receive the word of God which is Jesus Christ our root. Or the cares and riches of the world choked the word out. The word got crowded out as a field of weeds chokes out the good seed.
I remember once planting a garden with several rows of corn. I wasn't diligent in tending to this garden. Oh, yes, I watered it enough and it got plenty of sunshine but I let the weeds spring up unchecked and uncontrolled. Guess what? These weeds choked out that good corn and made it unfruitful and unproductive. Never did I see weeds grow so fast and furious. They strangled the souls of many professors. These are the religious people who never completely cast off their profession of Christ, who, nevertheless, love this world and culture and philosophy. They seek their peace and security and joy in what the world offers instead of what the word commands.
1 John 2:15 says, "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world."
Some people are mindless simpletons who never ponder the word preached. After church they talk about anything and everything except the preacher's sermon. Thus they neglect the word. They neither understand nor take pains to understand it and so Satan, the arch enemy of our souls, snatches the word before it is hid in the heart. Like birds that pick up the visible seed on the ground so Satan picks up the word that lies bare and naked on the surface of the heart.
David said, the Psalmist, "Thy word have I hid in my hear that I might not sin against three."
Hearing is not equivalent to hiding it. We must hear and by meditation and prayer so hide the word in the heart that the Devil can not take the word from us.
Knowing therefore these truths, let us give a more earnest heed to the things which we have heard preached and which we have read in our Bibles.
Carlton Pruitt ministers the gospel to the Los Angeles area. Formerly a Hollywood actor (SAG member)and junk removal expert he now spends most of his time studying the scriptures, writing articles, hymns and poems and doing street preaching. See his videos on www.YouTube.com. Type in LAStreetPreacher in the search bar. CONTACT at [email protected]
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