Last week, I shared from an article titled “9 Benefits of Expository Preaching” based upon the book Faithful Preaching by Tony Merida. According to Wikipedia, “expository preaching is a form of preaching that details the meaning of a particular text or passage of Scripture. It explains what the Bible means by what it says. Exegesis is technical and grammatical exposition, a careful drawing out of the exact meaning of a passage in its original context.” The counterpart to expository preaching is topical preaching which concentrates on a specific topic and references texts covering the topic. In our recent past, I have preached expository messages through the Gospel of Mark and the Torah (the first five books of the Bible). Other times, I have preached expository messages on a single verse or a set of verses. In the article, Tony suggests nine benefits for expository preaching. The first five benefits were addressed last week.
The second four benefits are:
6. sixth, exposition provides a wealth of material for preaching, instead of topics that seem important, the Bible provides more subjects than we ever dreamed, a holistic approach produces holistic Christians.
7. Seventh, exposition grows the preacher, by studying the text week by week, verse by verse, chapter by chapter, we develop as a disciple and we will continue to fill our souls with spiritual nourishment.
8. Eighth, exposition ensures the highest level of biblical knowledge for the congregation. By regularly expounding the Word of God, the congregation is taught the Scriptures. Expository preaching produces expository students. Topical preaching is like a band aid, a quick fix and not transforming.
9. Ninth, exposition teaches people how to study the Bible on their own. By moving systematically through passages and books we learn how to engage the text. We learn the importance of context, words, and biblical genres.
Tony concludes by saying “The benefits of exposition are numerous. No other approach to preaching seems to provide such advantages. Why would we want to do anything else?”
– Bro. David