The State of Biblical Preaching

Photo by Stevan Sheets

My cousin Aaron is the pastor at LaOtto Wesleyan Church, the church I attended while growing up. He’s enrolled in some correspondence courses and was asked by a professor to solicit answers from friends and family about their thoughts on “the state of biblical preaching.”

When he sent me a message on Facebook requesting that I answer the question, I didn’t know how to respond. The topic seemed so open-ended and nearly unanswerable. Still, I wanted to help my cousin out, so I spent an hour typing out my thoughts (which are mostly questions). I’m curious to hear your thoughts on this. Below is my reply.

Aaron, here is my answer.

Determining the state of biblical preaching today is difficult for two reasons.

1. Definition

Our discussion is troublesome if our topic is not defined. What exactly is “biblical” preaching? This raises many more questions than it answers.

1. Does “biblical” preaching imply a certain methodology that uses the Bible as it’s primary source? Or is it a specific type of preaching that is defined by biblical scriptures?
2. Does “biblical” preaching include or exclude certain interpretations of the Bible? If so, are some right and some wrong?
3. Are there various forms of biblical preaching? If so, are some right and some wrong?
4. How does “biblical” preaching differ from other types of preaching? Is it the practice of placing dependence upon the bible during the sermon? Or does it mean that the Bible is the focus of the preaching? What about Christ-centered preaching?
5. Is the Bible the only source from which we should draw sermon material? If we do make such a severe line in the sand and say that only the Bible should be used as source material, then what about all other sources (e.g. divine inspirations/epiphanies, modern parables, personal experiences, extra-biblical stories, contemporary context, biblical commentaries, and any other spiritual or nonspiritual texts)? Must we exclude them entirely? What are the implications upon our ability to communicate scripture with certainty, meaning, and context with our congregants?
6. What about preaching to tribes for which there is no Bible translation? How then do we preach? Can we only preach to a group of people if a Bible in their language exists? What about the dark ages when only priests had access to the Bible in a foreign language and the people could not understand the text?
7. Furthermore, was Jesus Christ a biblical preacher? By what definition? Does that definition differ from the definition we use for ourselves today?
8. What about this bit of wisdom from St. Francis of Assisi: “Preach the Gospel at all times and when necessary use words.” – Is that not biblical?

2. Data

We both lack data and are surrounded by it.

The general public has unprecedented access to data at that touch of a finger. The available data regarding biblical text is abundant, accurate, cross-referenced, downloadable, translated, paraphrased, and rich with commentary. More than ever before, we know (or can know, if we do a little research) so much about the Bible, it’s authors, the location and times it was written, and the precise meanings of various books, passages, and even specific words.

In stark contrast, we know very little about the state of biblical preaching within the church universal because the data is hard to quantify, collect, and interpret. Most churchgoers spend their entire lives attending less than a handful of churches. Their ability to judge their church in light of all the churches of the world and give a commentary on a topic as far-reaching as “the state of biblical preaching” is not a good barometer for the church universal. Even though I travel for a living and have had interactions with hundreds of churches from various denominational backgrounds over the course of just a few years, I would hardly consider myself able or willing to look upon the church universal and pass judgement about wether or not she is practicing “biblical” preaching.

A better question to ask ourselves might be:

Considering all the biblical data we have access to, have we become more like Christ?

Better still:

Considering all the biblical data I have access to, have I become more like Christ?

Old Books Are Fun

All this talk about old books makes me think of my friend Andrew, a book buyer/seller for Bruce McKittrick Rare Books in the Philadelphia area. Katie Nelson and I were able to stop in and see Andrew and his family on our last tour out east. He showed us some of his new favorite curiosities that the shop had on the shelves. This little beauty is a book of hours printed in Paris in 1528 for the use of Salsbury (sp?). Asking Price: If you have to ask, you can’t afford it.

Katie and Andrew peering into the past