Preach the Word

I have no idea how many pastoral anniversary services I have witnessed, but it has been quite a many. Most of the sermons have been from Paul's letter to Timothy, and his command to preach the word (2 Timothy 4:2). Rightly so, pastors have applied this command by Paul to the evangelist Timothy to the work of the local church pastor.

We who have been reared in traditional African American Baptist churches know that premium placed on preaching. Yet the premium has been placed on a certain style of preaching rather than the substance of preaching. As a kid and young man, I loved to hear a certain style of preaching---witty turns of phrases, humorous, and a good tune and a whoop. As a got older, I noticed that many pastors who used that style failed to preach a sermon with a sound argument and exegesis. What does it mean to preach the word?

I believe that in order for African American pastors to obey this command efficiently and effectively means that they need to preach expository sermons. The expository sermon takes its points from the biblical text. Every word is examined; every phrases is analyzed and contextualized. Applications are drawn straight from the text. In brief, every word of God is proclaimed. This is the type of preaching that glorifies God and edifies the saints.

For African American pastors to make the shift to preaching expository sermons will entail a culture shift. By this, I mean that pastors will preach longer sermons with more detail applied to explaining the text. It demands the attention of the listener, but the rewards are inexorable. The saints will actually learn the word of God with clear and pointed applications.

I have heard pastors who have three points to their sermons, and they deem themselves expository preachers. I have noticed that their points are actually applications, and not necessarily points of the passage of Scripture. Just yesterday I heard a sermon on-demand, and the sermon was called "An Open Letter to Mr. Obama." First, there is nothing in the Bible about Barack Obama; therefore, the sermon title had nothing to do with a biblical passage. The passage was from 1 Samuel 16, which narrates the initial anointing of David. The first point of the sermon was that the "anointing is more important than the appointing." The only thing remotely related about this point to the passage is that Samuel anointed David. In this passage David's anointing as the next king of Israel had everything to do with his appointment to the same.

A sample expository outline of this passage would be:
1. The Lord Summons Samuel to Anoint a New King (1 Sam 16:1-3)
2. The Lord Corrects Samuel's Assessment of the Anointed (4-7)
3. The Lord Chooses his Anointed (8-13)

Possible applications:
1. It is the Lord who directs the paths of his people
2. Often we mistake what the Lord will do, or we mistake the kind of people he chooses to do certain tasks. The Lord is compassionate upon whoever he chooses
3. The Lord is sovereign in his grace; he chooses whom he chooses, especially in the realm of salvation.
4. David's anointing anticaptes the coming of the Anointed One, Jesus Christ.

This is the type of preaching needed in African American Baptist churches. I pray for African American Baptist pastors to avail themselves to preaching expository sermons to glory of God, the edification of the saints, and the salvation of sinners.