THE SERMON TEXT

 

 

 

 

 

 

(MORMON SCIENTIST DISPROVE MORMONISM THROUGH DNA,

AND THE LACK OF LINGUISTIC,AND ARCHAEOLOGICAL EVIDENCE. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svfxSscxh8o)

By Ken Blue

Several fallacies surround the idea that the text determines the sermon. It does not. For example, if you are going to preach a wedding, you already know the occasion and the subject. You now search for a text to support the event. The same is true with the funeral. You begin your search for a text you feel appropriately supports your purpose. When you preselect a topic to teach, you then search for scripture to support it. In each case, the event or topic dictates the scripture you will use.
Almost every sermon by Dr. Jack Hyles was a topical message. It would be difficult to find a sermon by the great Charles Spurgeon that is not topical in nature. The 500 sermons by DeWitt Talmage are all topical. Most of the messages by the prophets, by the Lord Jesus and by the Apostle Paul were topical. So, the assumption that the best method is the verse by verse expository method will not stand the test of Scripture.

Having said that, let us not assume that book studies or expository preaching should be neglected. They should not. I believe every book in the Bible should be taught and preaches. Doctrinal and word studies are important. The problem facing many pastors is that they have not learned how to make these studies relevant and helpful to the believers or the lost. They are dispensers of information but not agents of transformation.

When preaching books of the Bible, it best to look at the paragraphs within the chapter and then seek for the one point the Holy Spirit is teaching. The topic should be extracted from the paragraph; the surrounding verses will support your topic and purpose for the message.

Some books do not lend themselves to the above method. Two of these are Leviticus and Proverbs. When dealing with books like these, it is best to look for a topic and then cross-reference to other passages within the book to support the topic or subject.

For the beginning pastor, it is best to choose the smaller books to teach. Stay out of the deep waters until you learn to swim. Don’t be a parrot, simply regurgitating what others have said. Before you study for your sermon, pray and ask God to show you things He wants you to emphasize. The average preacher is preaching in the third person, at people, not to them. What I mean is, he stands before others telling them about people and events that have no relevance, significance or bearing on their daily lives.

As you can see, the text may or may not determine the sermon. If one chooses the topical method only, people will not understand the structure and dispensational nature of God’s Word. So, mix it up. Unless a pastor has mastered the expository method of preaching, he must take care, least he become too “teachy” and stunt the growth of his members and membership growth.