WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:10.179 We don't do it that often, and that's because, you know, it's a lot of words. 00:00:10.320 --> 00:00:15.560 It takes time, and we're meant to sort of lose ourselves in the drama of the liturgy, 00:00:15.679 --> 00:00:21.000 and so stopping to explain it can somewhat disrupt that experience. 00:00:21.120 --> 00:00:25.800 And yet, as hopefully has become clear by this point in the service, it's extremely 00:00:25.800 --> 00:00:30.880 important that we take time here and there to explain why we do what we do because it's 00:00:30.880 --> 00:00:34.600 extremely important for us to know the reasoning behind it. 00:00:35.460 --> 00:00:40.960 It's part of what enables it to be a vehicle of worship and relationship with God. 00:00:41.480 --> 00:00:47.400 At this point in our service, we take time to listen to someone preach a sermon. 00:00:48.439 --> 00:00:52.920 And, you know, as Dan implied earlier, that can sometimes take a little while. 00:00:52.920 --> 00:00:58.219 And Jesus is able to preach one-sentence sermons. 00:00:58.400 --> 00:01:00.160 I'm very clearly not Jesus. 00:01:00.359 --> 00:01:06.200 And maybe the length of my sermon shows just how far I am from His degree of righteousness. 00:01:06.420 --> 00:01:10.640 But what purpose does the sermon serve? 00:01:10.859 --> 00:01:16.020 We could save a whole lot of time and be out of here a lot sooner if we didn't take time 00:01:16.020 --> 00:01:17.680 to listen to a sermon. 00:01:18.240 --> 00:01:19.980 What makes preaching important? 00:01:19.980 --> 00:01:25.700 To answer that question, we're going to look at 2 Timothy chapter 3 verse 16 through chapter 4 00:01:25.700 --> 00:01:27.020 verse 5. 00:01:27.079 --> 00:01:27.520 Let's pray. 00:01:28.640 --> 00:01:34.439 Lord, we thank You for Your Word and we thank You for the many ways that You bless and minister 00:01:34.439 --> 00:01:36.219 to us through words. 00:01:36.920 --> 00:01:39.359 Lord, thank You for all that we're doing this morning. 00:01:39.560 --> 00:01:43.920 May it be all worship that glorifies You. 00:01:43.920 --> 00:01:49.460 As we turn our attention to Your Word and try to understand the role that Your Word plays 00:01:49.460 --> 00:01:51.400 in our lives, Lord, we pray that You would bless it. 00:01:51.879 --> 00:01:56.700 And we pray that You, as Jesus did in the gospel reading, would open the Scriptures to us. 00:01:57.099 --> 00:02:01.099 We pray that our hearts would burn within us as we attend to Your Word. 00:02:01.280 --> 00:02:04.120 We pray that we would be changed by it and that You would be glorified. 00:02:04.299 --> 00:02:05.480 We pray this in Your Son's name. 00:02:05.859 --> 00:02:06.159 Amen. 00:02:06.159 --> 00:02:06.280 Amen. 00:02:07.479 --> 00:02:10.299 So, 2 Timothy is a wonderful letter. 00:02:10.400 --> 00:02:13.020 It's quite possibly the last letter that Paul wrote. 00:02:13.659 --> 00:02:15.900 He wrote it shortly before his death. 00:02:16.379 --> 00:02:21.300 And even as he writes it, he's already contemplating his own death. 00:02:21.359 --> 00:02:23.219 You can see that in chapter 4 verse 6. 00:02:23.319 --> 00:02:23.680 He says, 00:02:23.680 --> 00:02:29.680 For I'm already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. 00:02:29.680 --> 00:02:37.280 Paul has done all that he can to prepare Timothy to take the helm for the next generation of the church. 00:02:38.099 --> 00:02:41.300 And at this point, the church is still a tiny, fragile movement. 00:02:41.420 --> 00:02:44.040 It's not clear that there will be a next generation. 00:02:44.379 --> 00:02:49.219 So, Paul has done everything he can to pass the baton to Timothy. 00:02:49.700 --> 00:02:55.659 And so, in the final chapter of this final letter from Paul to his protege Timothy, 00:02:56.140 --> 00:02:57.800 Paul issues this charge. 00:02:57.800 --> 00:03:04.240 I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, 00:03:04.439 --> 00:03:09.620 and by His appearing in His kingdom, preach the Word. 00:03:10.820 --> 00:03:13.060 Be ready in season and out of season. 00:03:14.200 --> 00:03:18.740 Reprove, rebuke, and exhort with complete patience and teaching. 00:03:19.260 --> 00:03:22.640 If Paul were writing this today, he might have phrased it this way. 00:03:22.760 --> 00:03:25.939 I cannot emphasize this enough, Timothy. 00:03:25.939 --> 00:03:31.979 If you do nothing else, preach the Word. 00:03:32.300 --> 00:03:35.099 That is your central responsibility. 00:03:36.659 --> 00:03:43.300 Preaching is absolutely essential for the life, the health, and the future of the church. 00:03:44.460 --> 00:03:45.139 But why? 00:03:45.979 --> 00:03:51.639 And from the text, we can draw out three reasons why preaching is essential. 00:03:51.639 --> 00:03:53.679 The first reason is this. 00:03:54.239 --> 00:03:57.859 Preaching is essential because of the power of God's Word. 00:03:59.159 --> 00:04:01.219 In chapter 3, verse 16, Paul says, 00:04:01.359 --> 00:04:07.119 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, 00:04:07.439 --> 00:04:09.379 and for training in righteousness. 00:04:10.379 --> 00:04:15.859 Scripture is God-breathed, or as we often say, it is inspired. 00:04:15.860 --> 00:04:19.460 Right now, notice the illusion here. 00:04:20.520 --> 00:04:24.600 God breathed His Spirit first into who or what? 00:04:25.420 --> 00:04:26.980 Into Adam. 00:04:27.840 --> 00:04:33.819 He formed him out of the clay from the ground, and then He breathed His Spirit into His nostrils 00:04:33.819 --> 00:04:34.560 at creation. 00:04:34.900 --> 00:04:35.699 And what happened? 00:04:35.780 --> 00:04:37.840 The clay became flesh. 00:04:38.400 --> 00:04:38.680 Right? 00:04:38.860 --> 00:04:42.600 He came alive as a result of that. 00:04:42.600 --> 00:04:49.020 So, Paul is saying in the same way that God breathed His Spirit into Adam, He's breathed 00:04:49.020 --> 00:04:52.060 His Spirit into His Word. 00:04:52.780 --> 00:05:00.120 Which means when we take these words into ourselves, we are taking the Spirit into ourselves. 00:05:00.360 --> 00:05:05.700 God is breathing His life into us through His Word. 00:05:05.699 --> 00:05:11.319 And what we need to understand from Scripture, we see this again and again and again, is God 00:05:11.319 --> 00:05:18.120 works and God's Spirit works through the preaching of His Word. 00:05:18.339 --> 00:05:22.919 That's how the Spirit ministers to men and women. 00:05:23.560 --> 00:05:28.180 And we see actually in 1 Thessalonians chapter 1, verses 4 and 5, it says, 00:05:28.180 --> 00:05:34.560 For we know, brothers, loved by God, that He has chosen you because our gospel came to 00:05:34.560 --> 00:05:42.420 you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit, and with deep conviction. 00:05:43.060 --> 00:05:48.019 Paul is saying that when they were among the Thessalonians, they recognized that when they 00:05:48.019 --> 00:05:51.699 preached to the Thessalonians, something more was at work. 00:05:52.259 --> 00:05:54.300 He says, I know that God is at work in you. 00:05:54.300 --> 00:05:57.500 I know He's chosen you because when we were there, when we were preaching, it was evident 00:05:57.500 --> 00:05:59.800 to everybody that more was happening. 00:06:00.220 --> 00:06:04.079 We were preaching, but even as we preached, God's presence was evident. 00:06:04.300 --> 00:06:05.520 His Spirit was evident. 00:06:05.780 --> 00:06:06.960 His power was evident. 00:06:07.100 --> 00:06:07.939 We all felt it. 00:06:08.980 --> 00:06:14.939 And you know, there are times when I will preach a sermon and I think I have some idea 00:06:14.939 --> 00:06:19.840 of how it might come across to people and then down the road, somebody will mention that 00:06:19.840 --> 00:06:22.480 sermon and some way that God used it in their life. 00:06:22.480 --> 00:06:25.160 And it is almost never what I expect to hear. 00:06:25.360 --> 00:06:28.540 It's almost never the impact that I thought it would have. 00:06:28.620 --> 00:06:33.060 And it's been long enough now, 15 years of full-time preaching, that I've come to recognize 00:06:33.060 --> 00:06:38.020 that there is the sermon that I preach to people's ears and there is the sermon that 00:06:38.020 --> 00:06:39.960 the Holy Spirit preaches to people's hearts. 00:06:41.080 --> 00:06:44.360 And praise be to God that the one doesn't depend on the other. 00:06:44.360 --> 00:06:51.300 That God has an ability to preach through His Spirit, through His Word, to the hearts of 00:06:51.300 --> 00:06:56.819 people to tell them things that He knows they need to hear in ways that aren't necessarily 00:06:56.819 --> 00:07:00.879 limited by the limitations of a human vessel. 00:07:01.639 --> 00:07:04.379 So, God's Word has power. 00:07:04.520 --> 00:07:06.120 That makes preaching essential. 00:07:06.819 --> 00:07:12.980 The second reason that preaching is essential is because of the competition that exists with 00:07:12.980 --> 00:07:13.759 God's Word. 00:07:13.759 --> 00:07:15.259 He says in verse 3, 00:07:15.360 --> 00:07:19.980 For time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears, they 00:07:19.980 --> 00:07:24.900 will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from 00:07:24.900 --> 00:07:28.259 listening to the truth and wander off into myths. 00:07:29.060 --> 00:07:34.580 Paul is saying we all have a kind of pathological condition, a disease called itching ears. 00:07:34.579 --> 00:07:42.159 And the Greek lexicon says that this phrase, itching ears, is kind of a figure of speech for, as it says, 00:07:42.259 --> 00:07:47.539 that kind of curiosity which looks for interesting and spicy hits of information. 00:07:48.279 --> 00:07:49.219 I love that. 00:07:49.259 --> 00:07:50.099 It says it in the lexicon. 00:07:51.500 --> 00:07:56.699 It's a kind of curiosity which looks for interesting and spicy hits of information. 00:07:57.799 --> 00:07:58.180 Right? 00:07:58.299 --> 00:08:00.000 So, think about life, right? 00:08:00.000 --> 00:08:05.439 Think about all of the podcasts and TED Talks and Twitter threads and news feeds, just chock 00:08:05.439 --> 00:08:10.740 full of spicy hits of information just for us. 00:08:11.120 --> 00:08:17.620 Life offers a never-ending stream of these things that trigger that dopamine response in 00:08:17.620 --> 00:08:20.860 us that make us want to come back for more and more and more. 00:08:21.199 --> 00:08:26.660 And, you know, we ask ourselves, why is it that I can effortlessly spend hours scrolling 00:08:26.660 --> 00:08:27.579 through social media? 00:08:27.579 --> 00:08:31.259 I don't even have to plan to do that. 00:08:31.659 --> 00:08:34.559 I don't have to decide and make myself do that. 00:08:34.620 --> 00:08:35.819 It just happens. 00:08:36.699 --> 00:08:36.919 Right? 00:08:36.960 --> 00:08:40.039 An hour goes by and I'm just doom scrolling for an hour. 00:08:40.179 --> 00:08:40.419 Right? 00:08:40.819 --> 00:08:44.340 And then, you know, so we can effortlessly do that. 00:08:44.379 --> 00:08:48.559 But the idea of sitting down and reading the Bible for 10 minutes we call a spiritual discipline. 00:08:49.439 --> 00:08:49.860 Right? 00:08:49.899 --> 00:08:51.120 Now, why the disconnect? 00:08:51.519 --> 00:08:51.699 Right? 00:08:51.700 --> 00:08:57.680 And now, for starters, Scripture requires effort to understand and apply. 00:08:58.500 --> 00:09:00.440 Very rarely do I sit down to read… 00:09:00.440 --> 00:09:04.759 You know, I've been sort of studying the Bible more or less, I mean, I guess you could say 00:09:04.759 --> 00:09:09.020 academically, professionally, as well as in my devotional life for, you know, probably 00:09:09.020 --> 00:09:10.140 close to 20 years. 00:09:10.139 --> 00:09:16.039 And rarely do I sit down and open up the Bible and read it and immediately have it apply and 00:09:16.039 --> 00:09:16.799 speak to my life. 00:09:17.899 --> 00:09:20.159 It takes an enormous amount of effort. 00:09:20.679 --> 00:09:25.080 You have to read it and reread it and reread it and reflect on it and chew on it and study 00:09:25.080 --> 00:09:30.240 it and meditate on it and go away from it and come back to it and pray it. 00:09:30.240 --> 00:09:35.639 And all of those things for it to eventually you sort of, you know, it's like, you know, 00:09:35.720 --> 00:09:39.740 eventually you sort of break through and it begins to sort of speak to your heart. 00:09:39.840 --> 00:09:42.259 But very rarely for me does that happen instantaneously. 00:09:42.899 --> 00:09:44.440 It takes a lot of effort and study. 00:09:45.080 --> 00:09:45.340 Right? 00:09:45.779 --> 00:09:49.940 And so, we would much prefer content that is effortless to consume. 00:09:50.620 --> 00:09:56.379 Why would I sit down with this text that takes so long to chew on and meditate on before 00:09:56.379 --> 00:10:02.439 it begins to speak to me when I am surrounded by content that is designed, customized by a 00:10:02.439 --> 00:10:06.399 computer algorithm to be fired like an arrow straight at my amygdala? 00:10:07.399 --> 00:10:07.860 Right? 00:10:07.899 --> 00:10:09.759 Where I don't even have to put effort. 00:10:09.840 --> 00:10:14.220 It just immediately triggers core primal emotions in me. 00:10:14.740 --> 00:10:15.059 Right? 00:10:15.059 --> 00:10:19.480 Like lust or like envy or like outrage. 00:10:19.899 --> 00:10:20.019 Right? 00:10:20.200 --> 00:10:21.539 So, those things just… 00:10:21.539 --> 00:10:23.620 It doesn't take any effort on my part. 00:10:23.679 --> 00:10:26.299 It's just, boom, it happens and I'm emotionally engaged. 00:10:27.279 --> 00:10:27.679 Right? 00:10:27.720 --> 00:10:29.659 Whereas Scripture requires an enormous amount of effort. 00:10:31.000 --> 00:10:34.500 Beyond that, there are things in Scripture that challenge us. 00:10:34.899 --> 00:10:35.120 Right? 00:10:35.139 --> 00:10:38.860 That unsettle us, that confuse us, that offend our sensibilities. 00:10:39.639 --> 00:10:43.399 We would much prefer content that suits our own passions and preferences. 00:10:44.860 --> 00:10:49.240 So, left to our own devices, pardon the pun, we will wander off. 00:10:50.240 --> 00:10:54.320 We will wander away from the truths of Scripture over time. 00:10:54.419 --> 00:10:55.480 It's only a matter of time. 00:10:55.480 --> 00:10:59.480 And so, every week we come together for worship and the Word is preached in a way that is meant 00:10:59.480 --> 00:11:02.180 to re-center us on God's Word. 00:11:02.259 --> 00:11:02.920 We're like sheep. 00:11:03.240 --> 00:11:08.720 We wander over here and the preaching pulls us back, reminds us what is ultimately true 00:11:08.720 --> 00:11:10.279 and ultimately important. 00:11:11.420 --> 00:11:15.340 So, that's the second reason why preaching is essential because there's a lot of competition 00:11:15.340 --> 00:11:17.080 with God's Word. 00:11:17.180 --> 00:11:22.139 The third reason why preaching is essential is because of the person of God's Word. 00:11:22.139 --> 00:11:27.799 In this passage, Paul uses the phrase, preach the Word. 00:11:28.759 --> 00:11:34.179 But throughout the New Testament, Paul uses several phrases interchangeably to summarize 00:11:34.179 --> 00:11:35.879 his preaching ministry. 00:11:36.019 --> 00:11:39.000 He talks about preaching the Word like he does in this passage. 00:11:39.220 --> 00:11:40.879 He talks about preaching the gospel. 00:11:40.879 --> 00:11:43.799 And he also talks about preaching Christ. 00:11:44.919 --> 00:11:46.019 And you say, well, which is it? 00:11:46.059 --> 00:11:47.100 Were those three different sermons? 00:11:48.340 --> 00:11:50.679 No, for Paul, it's all the same thing. 00:11:51.360 --> 00:11:54.860 To preach the Word is to preach the gospel is to preach Christ. 00:11:55.399 --> 00:11:59.240 Preaching the Word means preaching the gospel, which means preaching Christ. 00:11:59.240 --> 00:12:05.980 And you say, well, does that mean that every sermon is ultimately a sermon about Jesus? 00:12:06.159 --> 00:12:07.680 And the answer would be yes. 00:12:08.200 --> 00:12:13.019 If you're in a Christian church, the purpose of every sermon is ultimately to point to Christ 00:12:13.019 --> 00:12:14.960 and the good news of the gospel. 00:12:15.060 --> 00:12:16.100 Now, where do we get that from? 00:12:16.279 --> 00:12:21.820 Well, in Luke 24, which was our gospel reading for today, the resurrected Jesus appears to two 00:12:21.820 --> 00:12:23.220 disciples on the road to Emmaus. 00:12:23.440 --> 00:12:24.799 They don't recognize Him at first. 00:12:25.080 --> 00:12:26.680 They're very confused about what's happened. 00:12:26.679 --> 00:12:30.539 They don't understand why Jesus had to die on the cross, nor do they know that He has risen. 00:12:30.819 --> 00:12:34.699 And they're still thinking, based on their reading of Scripture, that Jesus must have been a great 00:12:34.699 --> 00:12:37.719 prophet, just another prophet, but a really, really great one. 00:12:38.199 --> 00:12:42.379 And it says that Jesus sits down and explains everything to them. 00:12:42.500 --> 00:12:42.859 How? 00:12:43.279 --> 00:12:48.719 It says in verse 27, beginning with Moses and all the prophets, the Pentateuch, first five books of the 00:12:48.719 --> 00:12:50.339 Bible, and then all of the prophets. 00:12:50.439 --> 00:12:51.839 This is all the Old Testament Scriptures. 00:12:52.199 --> 00:12:56.579 Beginning with Moses and all the prophets, He interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the 00:12:56.580 --> 00:12:57.840 things concerning Himself. 00:12:59.160 --> 00:13:04.259 So, every passage of Scripture ultimately points to Jesus Christ. 00:13:05.220 --> 00:13:05.620 Right? 00:13:05.680 --> 00:13:10.759 So, you read in Genesis the story of Adam, and you recognize that, in fact, Jesus is, in the New Testament, 00:13:10.900 --> 00:13:11.620 the new Adam. 00:13:12.200 --> 00:13:12.460 Right? 00:13:12.480 --> 00:13:18.100 That's what Paul refers to Him as, the new Adam, the true Adam, the better Adam, who didn't fall into 00:13:18.100 --> 00:13:19.600 temptation but remained faithful. 00:13:20.139 --> 00:13:22.000 It shows us what human beings are supposed to be. 00:13:22.879 --> 00:13:24.920 Jesus is the true and better Abraham. 00:13:24.919 --> 00:13:32.879 The story of Abraham really reaches its fulfillment in Jesus because, like Abraham, Jesus left everything 00:13:32.879 --> 00:13:36.379 in order to form a new people and to bless the nations of the earth. 00:13:37.059 --> 00:13:37.159 Right? 00:13:37.240 --> 00:13:42.759 Jesus is the true and better Moses who stands in the gap between God and His people and mediates 00:13:42.759 --> 00:13:43.860 a new covenant. 00:13:44.360 --> 00:13:50.579 Jesus is the true and better David who defeats the true Goliaths of sin and death and sits on the throne 00:13:50.580 --> 00:13:50.660 of heaven. 00:13:50.660 --> 00:13:56.600 You go through the entire story of the Old Testament, and all of it, as Sally Lloyd-Jones says in her 00:13:56.600 --> 00:13:59.980 Jesus Storybook Bible, every story whispers His name. 00:14:01.160 --> 00:14:02.860 Every story whispers His name. 00:14:03.879 --> 00:14:10.340 You know, after hearing a sermon, Pastor Dan sometimes likes to ask the question, 00:14:10.780 --> 00:14:17.080 could that same sermon have been preached in a synagogue or a mosque or at a TED conference? 00:14:17.080 --> 00:14:19.879 And I love that question. 00:14:19.980 --> 00:14:21.000 It always convicts me. 00:14:21.080 --> 00:14:24.379 And whenever I'm writing sermons, I always have Dan's voice in my head saying, 00:14:24.740 --> 00:14:29.600 could this sermon be preached equally well in a mosque, synagogue, or at a TED conference? 00:14:30.940 --> 00:14:34.000 And if the answer is yes, chances are it's not a Christian sermon. 00:14:35.240 --> 00:14:35.580 Right? 00:14:35.620 --> 00:14:40.320 The purpose of preaching is not simply to give you more information or to tell you to do better 00:14:40.320 --> 00:14:41.980 or to give you a few life hacks. 00:14:41.980 --> 00:14:46.560 The purpose of preaching is to bring us into the presence of Christ. 00:14:47.879 --> 00:14:49.740 It's to facilitate a relationship. 00:14:50.779 --> 00:14:56.340 It's to create an opportunity for us to confess and repent of our sin, to experience the love 00:14:56.340 --> 00:15:01.240 and the forgiveness of Jesus, to strengthen our confidence not ultimately in ourselves, 00:15:01.500 --> 00:15:03.620 but in Christ to be our salvation. 00:15:04.320 --> 00:15:04.480 Right? 00:15:04.580 --> 00:15:09.539 To strengthen our confidence that He is able to do what we cannot do, but He does it on our 00:15:09.539 --> 00:15:10.039 behalf. 00:15:10.039 --> 00:15:13.679 So, these are the reasons why preaching matters so much. 00:15:13.759 --> 00:15:18.099 The power of God's Word, the competition that exists with God's Word, and ultimately the 00:15:18.099 --> 00:15:19.099 person of God's Word. 00:15:19.199 --> 00:15:22.459 All of that is happening as we preach. 00:15:22.539 --> 00:15:27.259 And so, I just want to look at a few implications, first for preachers and then for listeners. 00:15:28.779 --> 00:15:29.959 Implications for preachers. 00:15:30.740 --> 00:15:36.000 You're going to hear a lot of different kinds of messages depending on which church you go 00:15:36.000 --> 00:15:36.319 to. 00:15:36.320 --> 00:15:40.780 Go to church over here and you might hear a 10-minute reflection on the size of the universe. 00:15:41.540 --> 00:15:45.800 If you go to church over here, you might hear an hour-plus-long theology philosophy lecture. 00:15:46.640 --> 00:15:50.400 If you go to church over here, you might get seven habits to help you manage stress better. 00:15:51.120 --> 00:15:55.100 If you go to church over here, you might hear a political rant and get confused and think 00:15:55.100 --> 00:15:56.080 that you're at a political rally. 00:15:56.080 --> 00:16:02.060 Based on everything that we've said so far, in this church, we believe that the task of 00:16:02.060 --> 00:16:04.560 a preacher is not to present their own ideas. 00:16:05.500 --> 00:16:10.100 The task of a preacher is not to present their own opinions or viewpoints on what the world 00:16:10.100 --> 00:16:11.639 is or how it should work. 00:16:11.639 --> 00:16:18.939 The job of a preacher is not to impose their meaning onto the text, right? 00:16:19.439 --> 00:16:20.720 Eisegesis, right? 00:16:20.899 --> 00:16:25.799 Reading your own interpretation into the text or what we would call impositional preaching, 00:16:26.419 --> 00:16:26.620 right? 00:16:26.779 --> 00:16:32.100 Taking a text out of context and preaching the message that you want to preach instead of 00:16:32.100 --> 00:16:33.539 the message that God wants to preach. 00:16:33.539 --> 00:16:40.980 We believe that it is the job of the preacher to carefully open and explain God's Word as 00:16:40.980 --> 00:16:45.740 written in context, unfolding it and applying it to people's lives. 00:16:46.319 --> 00:16:53.599 It is to carefully open and explain God's Word as written in context, unfolding it and applying 00:16:53.599 --> 00:16:54.620 it to people's lives. 00:16:54.839 --> 00:16:58.099 And the term for this kind of preaching is expository preaching. 00:16:58.100 --> 00:17:04.960 And the key to what makes expository preaching expository preaching is that the main points 00:17:04.960 --> 00:17:10.160 and themes of the sermon come from the text and not from the preacher, right? 00:17:10.180 --> 00:17:16.140 So in this talk, for instance, I could get up and I could give you several reasons. 00:17:16.259 --> 00:17:18.799 I could list off several reasons why I think preaching is important. 00:17:19.200 --> 00:17:21.140 And that might make for a decent talk. 00:17:21.460 --> 00:17:23.360 It would certainly be easier to prepare. 00:17:24.059 --> 00:17:28.039 But instead, what we're doing this morning is we're opening Scripture and we're 00:17:28.039 --> 00:17:34.279 looking at Paul's letter to Timothy and we are expositing the reasons Scripture gives 00:17:34.279 --> 00:17:36.119 us for why preaching is important. 00:17:36.579 --> 00:17:39.000 And it's very important that we understand the difference. 00:17:39.440 --> 00:17:42.980 In the first example, that message would have no authority. 00:17:43.639 --> 00:17:45.420 You would just be hearing Tommy's opinion. 00:17:46.279 --> 00:17:51.319 But in the second example, if we are demonstrating from the text why preaching is important and 00:17:51.319 --> 00:17:55.940 the reasons why, it has God's authority behind it, right? 00:17:55.940 --> 00:17:57.180 The first has no authority. 00:17:57.640 --> 00:17:59.680 The second has God's authority. 00:18:00.180 --> 00:18:03.299 All preaching authority is delegated authority. 00:18:03.460 --> 00:18:05.180 Preachers don't have authority in ourselves. 00:18:05.580 --> 00:18:11.820 We only have authority to the extent that we are preaching in God's authority, right? 00:18:11.860 --> 00:18:16.299 And because of this, those who preach actually bear a massive responsibility. 00:18:16.299 --> 00:18:22.419 I mean, as Paul says in verse 1, when we preach, we do so in the presence of God, in the presence 00:18:22.419 --> 00:18:23.700 of Christ who is judge. 00:18:23.839 --> 00:18:27.480 It's almost as though he's saying to Timothy, God is looking over your shoulder. 00:18:29.039 --> 00:18:30.779 God knows the sermon that you're going to preach. 00:18:30.859 --> 00:18:31.700 He sees your manuscript. 00:18:32.720 --> 00:18:33.700 He's watching you. 00:18:34.259 --> 00:18:40.319 This is why James says in 3.1 that God judges those who preach and teach more harshly. 00:18:41.359 --> 00:18:43.299 Few should aspire to do it as a result. 00:18:43.299 --> 00:18:48.919 So, twisting or distorting God's Word, imposing our own meaning on the text, that is a grievous 00:18:48.919 --> 00:18:54.460 sin because this is how God intends to breathe spiritual life into His people. 00:18:54.859 --> 00:19:01.279 And anyone who does that and thereby suffocates God's people is guilty of a grievous sin. 00:19:02.639 --> 00:19:08.099 So, an expository sermon starts with a lot of study and reading and rereading and rereading 00:19:08.099 --> 00:19:14.000 the text, typically in a number of translations, reading all of the surrounding context several 00:19:14.000 --> 00:19:19.379 times through, studying it in the original language, which is usually either Greek or 00:19:19.379 --> 00:19:24.579 Hebrew, reading various commentaries that run the spectrum from more application-oriented 00:19:24.579 --> 00:19:25.359 to more academic. 00:19:26.519 --> 00:19:31.799 And so, for all of these reasons, it typically takes me somewhere between 15 and 20 hours a 00:19:31.799 --> 00:19:35.939 week to go from knowing what I'm preaching on, and typically that's something that I've already 00:19:35.940 --> 00:19:39.900 been reflecting on for a number of weeks to actually having a fully written manuscript, 00:19:40.100 --> 00:19:42.279 which for me is typically about a 2,000-word manuscript. 00:19:42.640 --> 00:19:47.320 But it typically takes me about 15 to 20 hours to do that, and some people hear that and they 00:19:47.320 --> 00:19:52.900 think, well, you know, isn't there, you know, isn't that a lot of time to spend on a sermon 00:19:52.900 --> 00:19:56.720 and aren't there so many other much more important things that you could be doing with your time? 00:19:57.220 --> 00:20:01.140 But I think, if I'm reading this correctly, I think that preaching is one of the most important 00:20:01.140 --> 00:20:05.340 ways that I can serve our community, if everything that we're saying is true. 00:20:06.000 --> 00:20:09.920 I think it's one of the most important ways that I can minister to and serve our community. 00:20:10.780 --> 00:20:14.259 So, that's some implications for preachers, but what about listeners? 00:20:15.180 --> 00:20:17.740 Last thing I want to talk about is just a few implications for listeners. 00:20:18.420 --> 00:20:22.880 You know, we often talk and hear people talking about whether this or that person is a good 00:20:22.880 --> 00:20:27.040 preacher or a bad preacher, but how often do we stop and ask ourselves, am I a good listener? 00:20:27.039 --> 00:20:27.480 Right? 00:20:30.039 --> 00:20:36.299 We're all first and foremost listeners, and the best preachers, the best preachers are first 00:20:36.299 --> 00:20:37.379 and foremost listeners. 00:20:38.539 --> 00:20:39.639 Am I a good listener? 00:20:40.299 --> 00:20:41.500 How can we listen well? 00:20:42.659 --> 00:20:43.819 Four things really quickly. 00:20:43.940 --> 00:20:47.700 Number one, come expecting to hear God's Word. 00:20:48.940 --> 00:20:50.879 Come expecting to hear God's Word. 00:20:50.879 --> 00:20:53.000 If what we are looking at this morning is true, 00:20:53.000 --> 00:21:03.140 if the preacher is faithfully expositing Scripture, it means that God can and will speak through 00:21:03.140 --> 00:21:04.539 the preaching of His Word. 00:21:05.619 --> 00:21:10.119 John Calvin writes this, and you may be shocked to hear Calvin say this. 00:21:10.180 --> 00:21:11.319 He writes it at his institutes. 00:21:11.359 --> 00:21:12.259 I think it's in book four. 00:21:12.400 --> 00:21:12.819 He says, 00:21:12.819 --> 00:21:18.880 God has chosen so to anoint the lips and tongues of His servants that when they speak, 00:21:19.220 --> 00:21:21.660 the voice of Jesus yet resounds in them. 00:21:23.000 --> 00:21:24.819 He said it. 00:21:26.380 --> 00:21:30.460 God has chosen so to anoint the lips and tongues of His servants that when they speak, 00:21:30.539 --> 00:21:33.480 the voice of Jesus yet resounds in them. 00:21:33.480 --> 00:21:43.279 Do I come to church expecting to hear the voice of Jesus through the clay pot of whoever's up front? 00:21:45.059 --> 00:21:48.079 Paul commends the Thessalonians for having this posture. 00:21:48.079 --> 00:21:49.819 He says in chapter 2 verse 13, 00:21:50.460 --> 00:21:56.419 And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the Word of God which you heard from us, 00:21:56.619 --> 00:22:03.359 you accepted it not as the Word of men, but as what it really is, the Word of God, 00:22:03.679 --> 00:22:05.379 which is at work in you believers. 00:22:06.859 --> 00:22:11.819 Thank God, Thessalonians, that when you heard us preach, you didn't just accept this as the words of men, 00:22:11.819 --> 00:22:16.099 but you recognized the Word of God in it, and you responded accordingly. 00:22:16.519 --> 00:22:17.819 So, come expecting to hear God's Word. 00:22:17.899 --> 00:22:24.179 Number two, verify, this goes hand in hand, verify that the sermon is based on God's Word. 00:22:24.799 --> 00:22:25.000 Right? 00:22:25.019 --> 00:22:26.240 That's really, really important. 00:22:26.579 --> 00:22:30.460 I love the description of the Bereans in Acts chapter 17. 00:22:30.639 --> 00:22:33.659 Your job is not just to sit there and whatever the preacher says, you say, 00:22:33.720 --> 00:22:34.700 Oh, this is God's Word. 00:22:34.700 --> 00:22:39.420 Your job is to check because, praise be to God, you have a copy for yourself. 00:22:39.620 --> 00:22:41.340 We're all looking at the same text. 00:22:42.220 --> 00:22:43.519 In Acts chapter 17, it says, 00:22:43.660 --> 00:22:48.700 They received the Word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so. 00:22:49.900 --> 00:22:52.500 So, I would encourage you to bring your Bible to church. 00:22:53.319 --> 00:22:54.559 You say, well, I have it on my phone. 00:22:54.620 --> 00:22:55.539 Yeah, you can use your phone. 00:22:55.600 --> 00:22:59.200 That's fine, but I can't do that because the minute I pull out my phone to look at the Bible, 00:22:59.400 --> 00:23:00.500 I'm on to other things. 00:23:00.980 --> 00:23:03.000 I just, my brain, I don't have the self-discipline. 00:23:03.000 --> 00:23:05.819 So, this is what works for me. 00:23:06.140 --> 00:23:08.400 And so, I would encourage you, bring your Bible to church. 00:23:09.019 --> 00:23:11.700 When we tell you what the passage is going to be, open it to that. 00:23:12.079 --> 00:23:12.880 Put it on your lap. 00:23:13.339 --> 00:23:14.059 Keep it open. 00:23:14.359 --> 00:23:20.359 And as the sermon is being preached, make sure that what's being said lines up with what's in the text. 00:23:21.000 --> 00:23:21.380 Right? 00:23:22.019 --> 00:23:26.640 If the sermon you're hearing is based on the text and there's some connection being made, 00:23:27.019 --> 00:23:28.700 then let it sink into your heart. 00:23:28.759 --> 00:23:31.160 If it's not based on the text, then don't. 00:23:31.160 --> 00:23:34.980 But make sure the sermon being preached is based on God's Word. 00:23:35.040 --> 00:23:35.720 I love this. 00:23:35.960 --> 00:23:41.880 One of my late, great heroes, John Stott, there's this story, famous story of him when they had guest preachers. 00:23:42.720 --> 00:23:48.259 He would, at the beginning of the sermon, he would open the Bible and he would put it on his lap and he would wait to hear. 00:23:48.440 --> 00:23:54.380 And if the preacher, in the first few minutes, it was clear that the preacher was not really basing their message on the Scriptures, 00:23:54.380 --> 00:23:57.340 he would just quietly close his Bible and he'd put it off to the side. 00:23:57.520 --> 00:23:59.700 And it was like, oh, okay, we're not going to hear a sermon today. 00:23:59.720 --> 00:24:01.680 We're going to hear a nice talk from so-and-so. 00:24:02.120 --> 00:24:02.380 Right? 00:24:02.560 --> 00:24:04.420 So, make sure it's coming from the text. 00:24:04.580 --> 00:24:08.740 Number three, come prepared to be challenged by God's Word. 00:24:09.940 --> 00:24:15.200 If we really are hearing from the God of the universe through some clay pot up front, 00:24:15.200 --> 00:24:20.940 how arrogant would we have to be to assume that he should simply agree with all of our views and preferences? 00:24:22.080 --> 00:24:22.519 Right? 00:24:22.700 --> 00:24:29.080 Come prepared to be challenged, which means come with humility and openness. 00:24:29.819 --> 00:24:32.580 Come with a willingness to admit that God knows better than we do. 00:24:33.380 --> 00:24:39.580 We should be open to hearing something that provokes us to re-examine our views or to repent of sin in some way. 00:24:39.579 --> 00:24:39.659 Okay? 00:24:40.740 --> 00:24:46.460 Good preaching not only comforts the afflicted, but it is meant to challenge the complacent. 00:24:47.559 --> 00:24:52.259 It's meant to stir us up, to provoke a response in us. 00:24:53.559 --> 00:24:59.240 And then number four, the fourth thing, come in person to hear God's Word. 00:25:00.939 --> 00:25:05.539 There are millions of sermons available online, and praise God for that. 00:25:05.539 --> 00:25:12.180 I probably listen to, I don't know, four to six sermons a week from various preachers that I love, 00:25:12.240 --> 00:25:15.759 and I'm so grateful to have access to so many amazing preachers. 00:25:16.420 --> 00:25:20.500 And I do that not only to try to hone my craft, but also just to hear good preaching, 00:25:20.759 --> 00:25:22.920 and I think that we can be really nourished by that. 00:25:23.019 --> 00:25:25.299 So, I'm thankful that we're able to do that. 00:25:26.059 --> 00:25:29.779 But nothing can take the place of gathering with your church family 00:25:29.779 --> 00:25:36.299 and hearing a sermon that is delivered not just to people out there in general, but to you. 00:25:36.899 --> 00:25:43.200 Chances are by someone who knows you and who has some idea of what you're going through in your life. 00:25:44.200 --> 00:25:47.079 And as we will emphasize in this teaching Eucharist, 00:25:47.160 --> 00:25:50.319 the sermon is just one piece of a larger context of worship, 00:25:50.319 --> 00:25:53.779 and all of it holds together with a kind of integrity. 00:25:53.779 --> 00:26:00.200 You know, earlier in the service, we hear God's law, and we confess our inadequacy to meet it. 00:26:00.899 --> 00:26:05.720 If the preacher does their job during the sermon, you will hear the gospel proclaimed. 00:26:05.879 --> 00:26:12.019 You will hear Christ proclaimed as the one who fulfills the law on our behalf and dies for our sin. 00:26:12.740 --> 00:26:17.000 And then every sermon is meant to ultimately prepare us to come to the table, 00:26:17.259 --> 00:26:19.839 to receive Christ through the Eucharist. 00:26:19.839 --> 00:26:23.240 You know, some of you grew up in churches that had weekly altar calls. 00:26:23.740 --> 00:26:25.939 And people have asked, why don't we ever have an altar call? 00:26:26.039 --> 00:26:29.639 So, people who really are feeling it and they're stirred up by the Spirit, 00:26:29.699 --> 00:26:33.099 and they want to come, and they want to declare their faith, and they want to receive Christ, 00:26:33.459 --> 00:26:35.500 and, you know, we come on down front, right? 00:26:35.559 --> 00:26:37.359 And I always say, we do have an altar call. 00:26:38.359 --> 00:26:40.539 It's called the Eucharist, right? 00:26:40.579 --> 00:26:45.139 Where you have an opportunity to come forward in faith and receive Christ as an act of faith. 00:26:45.140 --> 00:26:51.340 Every sermon has one main application in addition to any other application you might hear, 00:26:51.720 --> 00:26:56.100 and that's if you believe what you're hearing, come and receive Christ in the meal. 00:26:56.280 --> 00:27:02.060 So, we like to talk about Anglicans encountering Christ in stereo every week, right? 00:27:02.360 --> 00:27:04.759 Christ is proclaimed through the preaching of the Word, 00:27:04.920 --> 00:27:08.700 and then Christ is proclaimed through the celebration of the Eucharist. 00:27:08.740 --> 00:27:12.380 And in both, we have an opportunity to receive Christ into ourselves. 00:27:12.380 --> 00:27:18.860 Speaking of which, in a moment, Dan's going to explain a little bit more about this, 00:27:18.920 --> 00:27:23.160 but we're going to have an opportunity to respond to the preaching of God's Word 00:27:23.160 --> 00:27:28.180 by affirming our faith using the words of the Nicene Creed, 00:27:28.400 --> 00:27:31.040 which is actually where it is in the liturgy, 00:27:31.200 --> 00:27:34.280 so that if the preacher fails to do their job, 00:27:34.840 --> 00:27:38.620 and you hear nice thoughts, opinions, and stories about this or that, 00:27:38.619 --> 00:27:41.659 but it's not based in the Scripture. 00:27:42.759 --> 00:27:45.399 Worst of all, it's maybe erroneous in some way. 00:27:45.719 --> 00:27:49.259 The congregation has an opportunity to correct that poor preacher 00:27:49.259 --> 00:27:52.139 by standing up and affirming what we do believe 00:27:52.139 --> 00:27:55.899 using the words of the Nicene or Apostles Creed. 00:27:56.000 --> 00:27:58.039 So, I'm going to invite Dan to come up, 00:27:58.099 --> 00:27:59.579 and I'm just going to close this in prayer, 00:27:59.719 --> 00:28:00.759 and then we'll move to the Creed. 00:28:01.099 --> 00:28:02.759 Lord, we thank You for Your Word, 00:28:02.759 --> 00:28:05.879 and may You not be limited by clay pots. 00:28:06.640 --> 00:28:09.599 May You continue to speak through Your Holy Spirit 00:28:09.599 --> 00:28:13.559 and deliver Your power into Your people, 00:28:13.680 --> 00:28:15.879 that we would be nourished and fed by You, 00:28:15.960 --> 00:28:17.519 that we would grow through You, 00:28:17.640 --> 00:28:19.779 that we would be filled with Word, 00:28:20.099 --> 00:28:22.240 filled with Spirit, Lord, 00:28:22.420 --> 00:28:23.980 empowered to do Your work in the world. 00:28:24.079 --> 00:28:25.359 We pray this in Your Son's holy name. 00:28:25.640 --> 00:28:25.859 Amen.