Biblical Preaching: The Development and Delivery of Expository Messages

by Haddon W. Robinson

Every sermon should have a theme, and that theme should be the theme of the portion of Scripture on which it is based.

In dependence upon the Holy Spirit, the preacher aims to confront, convict, convert, and comfort men and women through the proclamation of biblical concepts.

Preachers goals in sermon delvery

an idea begins in the mind when things ordinarily separated come together to form a unity that either did not exist before or was not recognized previously.

Idea = a relationship of formerly unrelated thoughts

We pursue the subject and complement when we study the biblical text.

“Your fellow Christians,” he thought, “will spend far more time on this sermon than you will. They come from a hundred homes. They travel hundreds of miles in the aggregate to be in the service. They will spend three hundred hours participating in the worship and listening to what you have to say. Don’t complain about the hours you are spending in preparation and the agony you experience. The people deserve all you can give them.”

Our investment is minor in compariison

Derek Kidner suggests eight of these subject studies in his brief commentary on the book.

Preaching through the proverbs

At the same time, there is no greater betrayal of our calling than putting words in God’s mouth.

Remember that you’re looking for the author’s ideas. Begin by stating in rough fashion what you think the writer is talking about—that is, his subject. Then try to determine what major assertion(s) the biblical writer is making about the subject, that is, the complement(s). If you cannot state a subject at this point, what is hindering you from doing so? Is there a verse that doesn’t seem to fit? Is the writer assuming a connection between his assertions that you need to state? Is it that you can’t figure out how this paragraph relates to what precedes or follows it? Is there an image the author uses that you don’t understand?

Begin by looking for a subject and compliment

A series of different questions must be raised when trying to understand a story. A sampling of those questions might be the following: Who are the characters in the story and why did the author include them? Do the characters contrast with one another? How do these characters develop as the story develops? What does the setting contribute to the story? What structure holds the story together and provides its unity? How do the individual episodes fit into the total framework? What conflicts develop and how are they resolved? Why did the writer bother telling the story? What ideas lie behind the story that may be implied but not stated? Can those ideas be stated through a subject and complement?

Understanding Narratve

The Bible speaks of the gift of pastor-teacher (Eph. 4:11). This implies the two functions should be joined, or else an irrelevant exposition may emerge that reflects negatively on God. As one bewildered churchgoer expressed it, “The trouble is that God is like the minister: we don’t see him during the week, and we don’t understand him on Sunday.” J. M. Reu was on target when he wrote, “Preaching is fundamentally a part of the care of souls, and the care of souls involves a thorough understanding of the congregation.”1 Able shepherds know their flock.

Able shepherds know their flock

When we make any declarative statement, we can do only four things with it: we can restate it, explain it, prove it, or apply it. Nothing else. To recognize this simple fact opens the way to understanding the dynamic of thought.

Ask myself do I need to explain this, prove it, or apply it

1. We Explain It: “What Does This Mean?” The first developmental question centers on explanation: What does this mean? Does this concept, or parts of it, need explanation? The question, “What does this mean?” can be pointed at different targets. First, it can be directed toward the Bible: “Is the author in the passage before me developing his thought primarily through explanation?”

Second, the developmental question, “What does this mean?” may also probe the audience. It takes several forms. If I simply stated my exegetical idea, would my audience respond, “What does he mean by that?” Are there elements in the passage that the biblical writer takes for granted that my audience needs explained to them?

Therefore, we must anticipate what our hearers may not know and, by our explanations, help them understand.

2. We Prove It: “Is It True?” Our second developmental question centers on validity. After we understand (or think we understand) what a statement means, we often ask, “Is that true? Can I really believe it?” We demand proof. An initial response of those of us who take the Scriptures seriously is to ignore this question. We assume that an idea should be accepted as true because it comes from the Bible. That is not necessarily a valid assumption. We may need to gain psychological acceptance in our hearers through reasoning, proofs, or illustrations.

We do well, therefore, to adopt the attitude that a statement is not true because it is in the Bible; it is in the Bible because it is true.

Scripture to be demonstrated in the world around us. That is not to say that we establish biblical truth by studying sociology, astronomy, or archaeology, but the valid data from these sciences second the truth taught in Scripture.

Sciences 2nd the truth about the Bible

Here is another thing that used to puzzle me. Is it not frightfully unfair that this new life should be confined to people who have heard of Christ and been able to believe in Him? But the truth is God has not told us what His arrangements about the other people are. We do know that no man can be saved except through Christ; we do not know that only those who know about Him can be saved through Him. But in the meantime, if you worried about the people outside, the most unreasonable thing you can do is to remain outside yourself. Christians are Christ’s body, the organism through which He works. Every addition to that body enables Him to do more. If you want to help those outside, you must add your own little cell to the body of Christ who alone can help them. Cutting off a man’s fingers would be an odd way of getting him to do more work.5

Cutting off a man's finger would bee an odd way of getting him to do more work

Merely to ask, “Is that true? Do I and my hearers believe that?” does not produce instant answers. But failing to contend with those basic questions means we will speak only to those who are already committed.

Speakng to everyone. Not just to the committed

Is this story given as an example or warning? If so, in exactly what way? Is this incident a norm or an exception? What limitations should be placed on it? For

Questions to ask of narrative

about God’s dealings with his people through additional revelation? Mystery writers often work into the first chapter of their novel incidents that appear irrelevant or perplexing. The significance of those events becomes obvious in later chapters. Because the Bible stands entire and complete, no passage should be interpreted or applied in isolation from all that God has spoken. Each text should be interpreted within the book in which it appears. But each of the books of the Bible makes up a part of the entire revelation. Sometimes what we may overlook in the beginning of the Scriptures

The Bible is a book about God. When you study a biblical text, therefore, you should ask, “What is the vision of God in this passage?” God is always there. Look for him. At different times he is the Creator, a good Father, the Redeemer, a rejected Lover, a Husband, a King, a Savior, a Warrior, a Judge, a Reaper, a vineyard Keeper, a banquet Host, a Fire,

Whats the vision of God in thiss passage

As you study, then, there are at least four questions you want to ask of a passage. First, what is the vision of God in this particular text? Second, where precisely do I find that in the passage? (The vision of God is always in the specific words and the life situation of the writer or the readers.) Third, what is the function of this vision of God? What implications for belief or behavior did the author draw from the image? Fourth, what is the significance of that picture of God for me and for others?

Four applicational questions to ask about each text we read

Not only is it important to look for the vision of God in a passage, but you will also want to look at the human factor. How should people in the biblical text have responded to this vision of God? How did they respond? Should this vision of God have made any practical difference in their lives? This human factor is the condition that men and women today have in common with the characters in the Bible.

Questions to ask bout humans

To apply a passage, therefore, you need to see what your passage reveals about God and the way people responded and lived before God. Look for those same factors in contemporary life. How does the condition of people today reflect the sins, fears, hopes, frustrations, anxieties, and confusion of women and men centuries ago? What vision of God do they need? How do they respond or not respond to that vision? In this way, you can move with integrity from the biblical text to the modern situation.16

Application = the intersection of God's revelatio and mans responses

Where do the dynamics of the biblical situation show up today? So what? What real difference does this truth about God make to me or to others? What difference should it make? What difference could it make? Why doesn’t it make a difference? Can I picture for my listeners in specific terms how this vision of God might be one they need in a particular situation? Would there ever be an occasion when someone might come to me with a problem or need and I would point them to this passage and this truth? Listeners feel that a sermon is relevant when they can say, “I can see how that would apply to my life.”

Grid of applicational questions

“What does this mean?” What has to be explained so that my listeners will understand the passage? Does the biblical writer explain his statements or define his terms? Does he assume that the original readers understood him and needed no explanation? Are there concepts, terms, or connections that modern listeners might not understand that you need to explain to them?

Explain it

“Is this true? Do I really believe it?” What needs to be proved? Is the author arguing, proving, or defending at length some concept that your hearers would probably accept—for example, that Jesus was human, or that Christians don’t have to be circumcised? Is the author arguing, proving, or defending a concept that your listeners may not readily accept, and therefore they need to understand the argument of the passage—for instance, that slaves were to be obedient to their masters? Is the author assuming the validity of an idea that your listeners may not accept right away? Do they need to be convinced that what the passage asserts is actually the case—for instance, that Jesus is the only way to God, or that demons actually exist?

Prove it

“So what? What difference does it make?” How should this concept be applied? Is the biblical writer applying his idea? Where does he develop it? Exhortations in the Scriptures grow out of the context. Some sermons resemble cut flowers: the admonition of the author is cut off from the truth that produced it. The imperatives are always connected to the indicative. The effect should be traced to its cause. Is the author presenting an idea that he doesn’t apply directly but will apply later in his letter? Where does he do that? How do you apply this truth to your listeners now? Does the biblical writer assume that the reader will see the application of an assertion? The writers of the Gospels often assume that the readers will see the implication of a parable or a miracle. In narrative literature especially, ask yourself, “Why did the author include this incident?”

Apply it

we should not underestimate the power of an idea well stated. People are more likely to think God’s thoughts after him, and to live and love and choose on the basis of those thoughts, when they are couched in memorable sentences.

Here’s a more striking statement for that idea: “You are not the person you used to be; therefore, don’t handle life as you used to handle it.” The central lesson from the parable

Excellent bottom line

As you can see, the homiletical idea is simply the biblical truth applied to life.

Homietical idea is bibica truth applied to life

State the idea so that it focuses on response. How do you want your listeners to respond? Instead of “You can rejoice in trials because they lead to maturity,” try “Rejoice when hard times come.” If you know what your listeners should do, tell them. State the idea so that your listeners sense you are talking to them about them.

Direct your bottom line to a response

Truth divorced from life is not truth in its Biblical sense, but something else and something less. . . . No man is better for knowing that God in the beginning created the heaven and the earth. The devil knows that, and so did Ahab and Judas Iscariot.

The purpose behind all doctrine is to secure moral action.

The purpose behind all doctrine

“An essay looks at ideas, but a sermon looks at people.”2 A purpose differs from the sermon idea, therefore, in the same way that a target differs from the arrow; as taking a trip differs from studying a map; as baking a pie differs from reading a recipe. Whereas the idea states the truth, the purpose defines what that truth should accomplish. Henry Ward Beecher appreciated the importance of purpose when he declared: “A sermon is not like a Chinese firecracker to be fired off for the noise it makes. It is a hunter’s gun, and at every discharge he should look to see his game fall.” That presupposes, of course, that the hunter knows what he is hunting.

Sermon needs a clearly defined purpose

You accomplish that purpose, Paul told Timothy, through (1) teaching a doctrine, (2) refuting some error in belief or action, (3) correcting what is wrong, and (4) instructing people on the proper handling of life.

Four purposes

Educators realize that an effective statement of purpose goes beyond procedure and describes the observable behavior that should come as a result of teaching. A purpose statement not only describes our destination and the route we will follow to get there but, if possible, tells how we can know if we have arrived. If we are not clear about where we are going, we will probably land someplace else.

David Smith, a Scottish preacher, describes a sermon as “a speech concluded with a motion.”

Sermon= speech + motion

“Is there someone with whom you have a broken relationship? A spouse, a parent, a friend? As a follower of Jesus Christ, you need to take the first step today to make it right. Is there a letter you should write? Is there a phone call you should make? Is there a visit you should make or a conversation you should have? Then will you ask God for the courage to make that contact and take that step to get that matter settled?” “Your job is the will of God for you. Tomorrow when you go to your work, take out a Post-it note and write ‘God has put me here to serve him today’ and then place it on your desk or in your locker—someplace where you can see it easily. Whenever you look at that note, breathe a prayer, ‘Lord, I’m working this job for you. Help me to do it to please you.’ In that way you can remember the workday to keep it holy.” You may change the conclusion later in your preparation, but you have determined where you purpose to go. You concentrate your thought with greater efficiency if when you begin, you know what you intend to accomplish.

Write my conclusion at the beginning so that I knkw where the finish line is

people need to be reminded as much as they need to be informed.

Samuel Johnson on reminders

Stage 7 Thinking about the homiletical idea, ask yourself how this idea should be handled to accomplish your purpose.

How should this idea be handled

That happens when you want your congregation to understand a doctrine of the Bible. A truth correctly comprehended can carry its own application.

When wanting my congregation to understand a doctrine, deductive is often the bestt

One well-worn formula for sermon development says: “Tell them what you are going to tell them; tell them what you are telling them; then tell them what you have told them.” When our purpose requires that we explain a concept, that is splendid advice. In the introduction to such a sermon we state the complete idea; in the body we take the idea apart and analyze it; and in the conclusion we repeat the idea again. Certainly such a development wins through clarity anything it loses in suspense. As an example, Alexander Maclaren

Deductive sermons win through clarity was they lose in suspense

One specific way the inductive-deductive sermon can be developed is to explore a problem. Within the introduction and first point you identify a personal or ethical problem, explore its roots, and perhaps discuss inadequate solutions. At the second point you propose a biblical principle or approach to the problem, and throughout the remainder of the sermon, you explain, defend, or apply

Inductive-Deductive is best used when exploring probleems

Inductive sermons are particularly effective with indifferent or even hostile audiences. They work well with hearers who might reject your sermon idea out of hand. Through induction you can present a series of ideas that the audience will agree with until you come to your major idea, and they are forced to accept it. This has been called the “yes-yes” approach. You will get the audience to say yes to a number of things with which they agree before you present a concept with which they will disagree. When Peter addressed the throng at Pentecost—a crowd that had recently crucified Jesus—he employed an inductive approach.

Inductive approach creates tension

The mess someone is in. Develop a problem in personal terms. How does a particular individual experience it? How does he or she actually talk about what he or she is going through? All theological questions show up in life somehow, somewhere, or they aren’t worth the bother. Start your sermon in someone’s life. But look! This personal mess is really part of something larger. The individual’s situation is really a single case of something much wider. Provide examples of where the problem shows up in different ways in people’s experience. What are the consequences this larger problem creates in ourselves or in people we know? What questions does that raise? Not only that, but the mess didn’t start with us. We are talking about something fundamental to human experience. Talk about the problem as it occurred to people throughout history and particularly to someone in the Bible. That raises a deeper question: how did anyone get into this mess? Was it deliberate? Do people stumble into it? Folks don’t go down without a struggle. What solutions have they tried to clean up the mess they were in? How did people in the Bible respond? Did the solutions work or simply make matters worse? Finally, there must be good news. There is a way out of the mess! Expose the biblical principle at work in your passage. How did it work in men or women in the Bible? Then relate the principle to the individual you introduced in your introduction. Apply it to others wrestling with the same kind of pro...

Flow of an inductive sermon

The inductive sermon is closer to a conversation than to a lecture. To make it work, we have to know how people actually think and act. Listeners have to feel “that could be me.” We also have to feel our way back into the Scriptures. The difference between a religious discourse and a sermon throbbing with life is the difference between reading a book on poverty and standing in line with a mother and her three hungry kids waiting to get some food stamps. Share Paul’s fury as he wrote to the Galatians. Feel a knot in your stomach over Asaph’s faith-shaking doubts in Psalm 73. Smell the stench of Job’s sores. Experience Timothy’s anxiety in feeling overmatched and undermanned by his assignment at Ephesus. The Bible is great literature, but literature is not life. Inductive sermons work best when, from beginning to end, from current problem to biblical solution, we are talking about actual people, not about cardboard characters in tissue-paper plots. Inductive sermons have

Inductive sermons are pastors sermonss

That’s why it takes at least three or four statements and restatements of a point to make it clear to an audience.

Restatement serves at least two purposes. First, it helps you make a concept clear. Listeners, unlike readers, must get what you say when you say it. A reader who is confused by what she is reading can flip back a few pages and pick up the author’s flow of thought. But listeners have no such option. If at first they don’t understand you, then unless you say it again in other words, the listeners are lost.