The Mandate of Biblical Inerrancy, Authority, and Sufficiency: Expository Preaching

"Preaching ought to reflect our conviction that God’s Word is infallible, inerrant, and If we believe that “all Scripture is inspired by God” and inerrant, must we not be equally committed to the reality that it is “profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work” (2 Tim 3:16-17)? Expository preaching is the proclamation of the truth of God as mediated through the preacher

Paul gave this mandate to Timothy: “I solemnly 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: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction” (2 Tim 4:1-2, emphasis added). Any form of preaching that ignores that intended purpose and design of God falls short of the divine plan.

The only logical response to inerrant Scripture is to preach expositionally. By expositionally, I mean preaching in such a way that the meaning of the Bible passage is presented entirely and exactly as it was intended by God. Expository preaching is the proclamation of the truth of God as mediated through the preacher.

GOD’S WORD IS INFALLIBLE AND INERRANT

Too often, preaching does not reflect the reality that God’s word is infallible and inerrant. In fact, there is a discernable trend in contemporary evangelicalism away from biblical preaching and a drift toward an experience-centered, pragmatic, topical approach in the pulpit.

Many evangelicals hold to limited inerrancy, but they cannot have their cake (trustworthy Scripture) and eat it too (limited inerrancy). If the Bible is unable to produce a sound doctrine of Scripture, then it is thus incapable of producing, with any degree of believability or credibility, a doctrine about any other matter. If the human writers of Scripture have erred in their understanding of Holy Writ’s purity, then they have disqualified themselves as writers for any other area of God’s revealed truth. If they are so disqualified in all areas, then every preacher is thoroughly robbed of any confidence and conviction concerning the alleged true message he would be relaying for God.

The Final Authority, Period.

"Anyone who faithfully and correctly proclaims the Word of God will speak with authority.

It is not our own authority. It is not even the ecclesiastical authority attached to the office of a pastor or teacher in the church. It is a still greater authority than that. Insofar as our teaching accurately reflects the truth of Scripture, it has the full weight of God’s own authority behind it. That is a staggering thought, but it is precisely how 1 Peter 4:11 instructs us to handle biblical truth: “If anyone speaks, let him speak as the oracles of God.”

Of course that is a profound threat to the tolerance of a society that loves its sin and thinks of compromise as a good thing. To speak boldly and declare that God has spoken with finality is neither stylish nor politically correct. But if we truly believe the Bible is the Word of God, how can we handle it any other way?

Many modern evangelicals, cowed by post-modernism’s demand for latitudinarianism, claim they believe Scripture, but then shy away from proclaiming it with any authority. They are willing to give lip service to the truth of Scripture, but in practice they strip it of its authority, treating it as just another opinion in the great mix of post-modern ideas.

Biblical Manhood and Womanhood Series

Study Helps and Recommended Resources at LCBC

This Sunday at 9am we conclude our adult Sunday School hour series on "Biblical Manhood and Womanhood" and Related Contemporary (Culture) Matters.

Luther once said, “If I profess with the loudest voice and clearest exposition every portion of the truth of God except precisely that little point which the world and the devil are at the moment attacking, I am not confessing Christ, however boldly I may be professing Christ. Where the battle rages, there the loyalty of the soldier is proved. And to be steady on all the battle fields besides is merely flight and disgrace if he flinches at that point."

May we who believe model the things we've been taught in Scripture (1 Tim. 2:9-15; Eph. 5:22-33; 1 Cor. 11.; Gen. 1-2; Titus 2) in a society that believes it knows better than God. His ways are best and his precepts and guidelines are always for His glory and our good.

As we considered many modern day examples of "the worldly world" and the "compromised church" may the Lord give us humility, grace, and courage to hold the line!

Please continue to pray for us at Lake Country Bible Church.  SDG!

How to Handle the Hard Passages of the Bible (pt. 3)

Dr. Chou is helping us understand why dealing with difficult areas of scripture matters. Today I want to take the time to look at some specific hard passages to show not only how to think through difficult questions but also why the answers to these questions are beautiful. We could look at a plethora of different issues, but we only have space for three. Picking up where we left off yesterday.

The Conquest of Canaan

Moving from the law, we encounter the Conquest. Often people will ask, “How could a loving God demand the mass slaughter of men, women and children and the seizure of land?”

Is this really historical?

This is an issue that not only bothers unbelievers but also believers. Some people argue that this really never happened and so God really never ordained such killing. Before answering the question above, we need to make sure we understand what the Bible teaches.

The writers of Scripture consistently view that what happened in the Bible is historical and the basis for theology. Jesus’s historical resurrection is the basis for a theology of hope (1 Cor 15:13-14). His death on the cross is a proof of God’s love (Rom 5:8). The Flood is a demonstration of God’s judgment (2 Pet 3:6). In all these examples, the reality of history anchors the truthfulness of theology. Thus, one would expect that the book of Joshua, written in the same type of language as all these other events, would also be real history that grounds theology. This is how other biblical writers read that passage (1 Kgs 16:34; Heb 11:30-31).

In fact, counter to what some people claim, archaeological evidence exists that supports the biblical account. At the site of Jericho, people have observed a pot amidst a layer of destruction. Archaeologists discovered that this burned pot was filled with grain. This implies that Jericho was destroyed at a point of time, without much of a siege, and soon after the harvest (for the pot was full of grain). That is exactly what the Scripture says (Josh 5:11). So archaeology doesn’t contradict the scriptural record. The biblical account records real events that have left traces to this day.

Aren’t conquests acts of hatred?

How to Handle the Hard Passages of the Bible (pt. 2)

In Handling the Hard Passages, Part 1, Dr. Chou helped us look at why dealing with difficult areas of scripture matters. If you didn’t get a chance to read that post yet, it would be beneficial for you to check it out as a foundation to understanding today’s topic. This week I want to take the time to look at some specific hard passages to show not only how to think through difficult questions but also why the answers to these questions are beautiful. We could look at a plethora of different issues, but we only have space for three. We’ll take a look at them in Biblical order.

Creation in Genesis 1

One question is how should we understand the creation account in Genesis 1, especially in light of modern scientific discovers.

Creation isn’t an issue we should just tolerate or be embarrassed by. For us as Christians, scriptural truth hangs upon this doctrine.

Before discussing this issue, we need to make sure we know what the Bible says. I believe in 6 (24 hour) day creation, but how did I come to that conclusion? The world might think this view is crazy but we need to show we have not crazily handled God’s word.

Was it a miscommunication, myth, or myth-busting?

We can begin to think through this issue using the C. S. Lewis’s logic of “liar, lunatic, or lord.” Either what Jesus said is not real, He didn’t mean what he said, or He spoke the truth. In the same way, either Genesis is not historical (myth), there were ambiguities that allow for evolution (miscommunication), or it is history that bust myth (myth-busting).

In evaluating these views, we can first ask whether Genesis 1 is a myth. Scholars point out similarities between the Bible and other myths. For instance, both the Bible and those myths mention a firmament. But the myths talk about how a god slices a goddess in half and puts half of her body in the sky and the other half below. With that, the similarities are not that similar. The Israelites would see how different Genesis 1 is from any myth.

The next option is miscommunication. People argue that Genesis is not entirely clear on what a “day” means in the text. However, Genesis 1:5 says,“And there was evening and there was morning, one day.” The term “one” is important. As opposed to “first,” which shows order, “one” tells you what counts as a day: evening and morning (not millions of years). The Bible defines itself. Similarly, people use what’s called the gap theory which says there’s this big gap in the first verses of Genesis 1. But, if you go through all the instances of parallel grammatical constructions in Hebrew, you’ll find out that there are no gaps in any of them. So Genesis doesn’t have the ambiguities people suggest. It is clear.

Handling the Hard Passages of the Bible (pt. 1)

When it comes to interpreting the Bible accurately there is no one that I trust more than Dr. Abner Chou.  Abner Chou is first and foremost a devoted follower of Christ and a committed churchman.  He is also a first-rate scholar who has been uniquely gifted by God.  When it comes to the Biblical languages (Hebrew/Greek), hermeneutics, and exegesis Dr. Chou is the man.

Abner's latest book, The Hermeneutics of the Biblical Writers: Learning to Interpret Scripture from the Prophets and Apostles, is a must read.  Pastor John MacArthur told me a while ago that I needed to purchase another book Dr. Chou edited, because "Abner's chapter alone is worth the price of the book."  That resource is titled, What Happened in the Garden?: The Reality and Ramifications of the Creation and Fall of Man.

Dr. Chou has agreed to serve as my academic adviser for my forthcoming doctoral dissertation on "Proclaiming John's Gospel For All It's Worth."  But today at PTL I want to post an article Chou wrote on "handling the hard passages of Scripture."  This is part one of two.  Tolle Lege

We all get embarrassed sometimes. Whether it be by a messy house, a family member, or a quirky habit. To try and diffuse our embarrassment, we do things like stuffing our messes in a closet when company is on the way, or cropping the offending family member out of our profile pictures. We want to hide these embarrassing things because we believe they would make us seem to be less than we are.

We can have the same mentality about handling the hard passages or doctrines in Scripture. People like to argue about six-day creation, election, or certain laws in the Old Testament. They say they are contradictory or morally objectionable. How could God do that?

Unfortunately, we treat these hard passages just like the things that embarrass us. We often want to diffuse the situation and do some so-called “damage control.” Just like with a quirky habit or a messy house, the reason we do this is because we believe those questions are beneath us.

However, that should not be. All of God’s Word is profitable and it is authoritative truth. It stands above us and convicts us, not the other way around (Heb 4:13). We need a better way to think through these “difficult” issues.

Before thinking through various examples, we need to think through some fundamental issues about these texts. That will give us some important perspective in handling these texts well.

HARD PASSAGES ARE GOOD

First, we need to have the right goal in dealing with these “hard” passages. We do not want to merely show that a doctrine is not that bad. We can’t have an attitude like, “eat your vegetables because they’re healthy for you even though they’re disgusting.” We don’t want to say, “Well, this doctrine is good for you even though I think it’s terrible.” We want to say with all confidence, “this is a good doctrine.” We want to demonstrate that, like all of Scripture, these “hard” passages are beautiful and necessary. We have nothing to be ashamed about in the Scripture.

Why Expository Preaching?

Matt Waymeyer teaches Greek and Systematic Theology at TES and serves on the pastoral staff of Grace Immanuel Bible Church in Jupiter, FL. Below is a brief conversation TES had with Matt about local church ministry.

"Why are you committed to expository preaching?

Let me begin with a definition. Expository preaching is the authoritative proclamation of God’s Word in which the preacher clearly sets forth the divinely intended meaning of the biblical text and brings the contemporary implications of its timeless truth to bear on the lives of the people. My commitment to this kind of proclamation flows out of my conviction that Scripture is the Word of God. Because the Bible is God’s Word, it possesses a trustworthiness, an authority, and a transforming power that no other source possesses. Therefore, to the degree that we faithfully preach the divinely intending meaning of the biblical text, our preaching carries that same trustworthiness, authority, and transforming power. But conversely, to the degree that we depart from the divinely intended meaning of a given passage, our message has forfeited its trustworthiness, authority, and transforming power, and we make ourselves not worth listening to.

What do you believe are the benefits for a pastor if he has a thorough understanding of Hebrew and Greek? What do you think are the potential limitations without a grasp of the original languages?

The primary benefit of knowing the original languages is that it enables the pastor to be more accurate and precise in his understanding of the biblical text. This is foundational to everything he does as a shepherd, from preaching to counseling to formulating his systematic theology. The original languages are especially critical to his preaching ministry. Every semester I tell my Greek students that precision in the study leads to clarity in the pulpit. In other words, if you want to be a preacher who clearly presents the divinely intended meaning of Scripture from the pulpit, you must be precise in your own understanding of Scripture in the study, and so much of that precision comes from the original languages.

Preach the Word!

A Pastor's Job Description: What Do You Do All Week Long?

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"What do you do as a Senior Pastor all week long?"  I have also been jokingly asked, "What is it like to only work one day a week?"  Since no two pastorates are exactly alike every minister of the gospel will answer this question slightly different; (my weekly schedule has itself changed over the years based on a number of variables).   A pastor's official job description is set forth in the following Scriptural texts: Acts 6:1-4; Eph. 4:11-16; Col. 1:28-29; 2 Tim. 2:15; 4:1-4; 1 Tim. 5:17-18; Heb. 13:17.

Here is a basic breakdown of my roles and responsibilities as I seek to faithfully serve the people of God: 

1) Preaching and teaching (2 Tim. 2:15; 4:1-5; 1 Tim. 5:17-18).  Weekly I prepare the Sunday morning sermon exposition and the Sunday School hour (teaching time).  Our church has embraced the priority of PREACHING and values verse-by-verse exposition as the main spiritual diet (John 21:27).   In my early years I also taught a weekly bible study during our Sunday evening service.   I currently teach a combined adult SS class and deliver a weekly sermon exposition during our worship service.  I also teach the T & T students during the AWANA year and provide a short devotional during prayer meeting when Awana is not in session.  For many years I spent a lot of time preparing teaching material for our men's leadership training and development ministry; (see #6).  The congregation and lay leaders have always given me ample time (see Acts 6) for expository study (Tuesday-Saturday) and for in-depth expository preaching during the morning worship service!  For this I rejoice!

2) “Leader among leader” responsibilities (1 Pet. 5; Heb. 13:17; 1 Cor. 11:1).  The week before our monthly leadership meeting I put together the monthly agenda.   I have always had a great relationship with our chairmen.  The chairman and I talk on the phone or meet in person as much as is needed.   As I have stated many times before faithful lay leaders are the backbone of the church.

3) Worship planning.  I put together the order of worship for the upcoming month.  I generally do this the last week of the month.  I often correspond with our lay praise leaders and with our secretary as I complete this task.  Our liturgy planning includes Scripture texts, praise songs, special offertories, Scripture reading/readers, etc.  Thankfully, our congregation has not engaged in any fruitless worship wars during the time I have been here.  Our service includes Worship through adoration, worship through prayer and offering, worship through hearing God's Word read, and worship through the exposition of Scripture, and worship through the ordinances (communion and baptism).

Preaching Acts (Derek Thomas)

Dr. Derek Thomas recently preached through the book of Acts and was subsequently asked to write an expositional commentary in the Reformed Expository Commentary series.   In view of this he was the right man to come and instruct a group of 60 D. Min students at TMS on preaching the Acts of the apostles.  This edited version of his lecture notes should be helpful to pastors and layman alike.

Historical background: Acts is the second part of a two part history on the life, death, resurrection, ascension, and expansion of the Church of Jesus Christ.   The Holy Spirit is the continued representative agent of the ascended Christ (the Divine Paraclete).

Acts is based in a multi-cultural setting.  This book demonstrates how biblical Christianity came to be with other religions and worldviews (eg. Acts 13:8; 16; 19).  This book highlights church planting in a "multicultural setting."

History is often retold and rewritten in a dishonest and biased manner (holocaust denials, moon landing deniers).  Luke has no interest in this kind of thing.  His account is the exact truth of what took place in the first century.

Presuppositions of Expository Preaching (Derek Thomas)

Basic presuppositions of expository preaching:

A) All Scripture is God's Word and is exactly as God intended it to be.

We must be convinced that the Bible is the inerrant and all sufficient Word of God (2 Tim. 3:16-17; Heb. 4:12).  

Exalting the Bible is not bibliolatry (Psalm 138:2)!  On the Emmaus Road, Jesus wanted his disciples to be confident in the integrity of the Bible (note Luke 24:36-49).

Do you ever secretly think, "I need to add a little in order to help this message/Bible study come alive?" Perhaps when you find yourself in Leviticus 11.  We should never tamper with or try and improve the inspired text.  It is pure and perfect in all of it's mysteries.

B) Our own spiritual condition impacts the man of God's handling of Scripture; (1 Timothy 4:16; 2 Timothy 2:15).  

Let us remind ourselves of at least these three things:

20+ Practical Helps For Preachers and Teachers (Derek Thomas)

Derek Thomas at TMS July 2016

During his lecture at TMS Derek Thomas offered 20+ practical helps related to preaching in no matter order:

A) Be a shepherd expositor.  Preaching to the same people in the context of the local church is much different than being a circuit (conference) teacher.  In some ways, shepherd-leaders will shape their expositions to the needs of their people; (see notes above with regards to Text-driven sermons).

B) Know your strengths and weaknesses and play to your strengths and work on improving your weaknesses.  Preachers do not have the exact same strengths and weaknesses.  For example, not every pastor can preach fresh sermons if they only exposit a few verses week after week.  Honestly access your own gifts and your limitations.  You are likely not Martyn Lloyd-Jones. 

C) Preach sequentially.  Over 40 years the primary diet Dr. Thomas has served his flock is verse-by-verse, book-by-book expository preaching.  He has preached through approximately 40 books.

D) Preach different genres.  Variety will grow you as a preacher and will likely help the congregation track with you over a lengthy ministry in the same place.  On occasion it is helpful to break from your verse-by-verse series in order to preach a series on the vanishing conscience, or prayer, or Christian liberty, etc.

STYLE In Expository Preaching (Dr. Steve Lawson)

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In a recent lecture at TMS Dr. Steve Lawson made a compelling case of how both substance and style are critical components of effective expository preaching.

I) Introduction: What is Sermon Style?  Why is it important? "Though substance is of greater importance than style, style should not be an afterthought."  Preachers should try and be a scientist with regards to hermeneutics and exegesis and an artist with regards to homiletics.

When it comes to good preaching it is not only what we say but how we say it.  This is especially true in the day and age in which we live.

Faithful pastors typically exegete the text the same way; the difference between a good preacher and a great preacher often comes back to homiletics.  Many popular preachers sacrifice content and depth in effort to be viewed as relevant and often in hopes of drawing larger crowds.  We should strive to excel at both (exposition and application/implication; substance and style).

II) The Advantages of Style- A) It draws and repels people for good and bad.  B) It can help people to listen; (do not be the bland leading the bland).  C) It can help people receive the truth; (like salt on a steak).  D) It can help people digest the truth; (like digestive enzymes).  E) It can help people remember the timeless truths in your sermon. F) It helps people share the principles they learned as they communicate this message with others.  G) It can help people apply the text with greater ease (James 1:22-25); application on Monday-Saturday is the crucial.  Liberty in Christ is freedom to do the right thing.

4 Practical Benefits of Expository Preaching

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In today's post Dr. Paul Lamey highlights the practical benefits of expository preaching for preachers and hearers alike.

"I believe preaching best suited for lasting fruit is expository in nature. It is preaching that is firmly rooted in God’s Word. Expository preaching means that the text of Scripture is the starting point of the message. The text provides the basis for the sermon’s theme and shape. It also means that the meaning of the text is the goal of the sermon as any application must be rightly related to what God intended to convey in His Word. In simple terms, the point of the passage is the point of the sermon. God wants people to hear from Him, not us.

Christian preaching is expository preaching; that is, it endeavors to explain the biblical text in its literary and historical context and applies the message to the needs and problems of the audience. Put simply, the goal of preaching is to explain the intention of the biblical author for the building up of the congregation (Scott M. Manetsch, Calvin’s Company of Pastors, 160).

However, don’t think that expository preaching is a mere methodology or a formula to follow. It is not an exegetical lecture or a meandering through a passage merely rehashing the arguments of commentaries. It is a philosophy of preaching that sees the goal of the sermon as conveying the truth that the Spirit intended in giving the Word. The result is the Spirit uses our sermons in ways that we could never anticipate.

My Opinion Doesn't Really Matter Much And Neither Does Yours...

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"My function is very clear: I simply want to disclose to my church, in every environment, what is the mind of Christ."
— John MacArthur