{"id":4573,"date":"2019-02-28T10:27:26","date_gmt":"2019-02-28T16:27:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/nafwb.org\/?p=4573"},"modified":"2019-02-28T10:27:26","modified_gmt":"2019-02-28T16:27:26","slug":"the-reforming-power-of-expository-preaching-part-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/the-reforming-power-of-expository-preaching-part-2\/","title":{"rendered":"The Reforming Power of Expository Preaching Part 2"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Randy Sawyer<\/strong><\/p>\n

In order to understand the Reforming\u00a0Power of Expository\u00a0Preaching<\/em>, we must trace the\u00a0Reformation to the personal\u00a0experience of the monk who shook\u00a0the world from his lonely study in Wittenberg.\u00a0Born in Saxony in 1483, Martin\u00a0Luther has been called the Father of\u00a0the Protestant Reformation. He was\u00a0educated as a loyal member of the\u00a0medieval Roman Catholic Church and\u00a0became a monk and a priest.<\/p>\n

The Word Shapes Luther <\/strong><\/p>\n

Luther gave himself to the vigorous\u00a0pursuit of the monastic ideal. He devoted\u00a0himself to study, prayer and the use of\u00a0the sacraments. He especially used the\u00a0sacrament of penance, examining himself,\u00a0sorrowing for his sins, confessing\u00a0his sins to a priest and fulfilling every requirement\u00a0imposed upon him.<\/p>\n

Through his study of the scriptures\u00a0and his own spiritual struggles, Luther\u00a0was led to an evangelical breakthrough.\u00a0He began to teach the basic\u00a0principles of the Protestant Reformation:\u00a0justification by grace through faith\u00a0alone and the ultimate authority of the\u00a0Bible for Christian belief and practice.<\/p>\n

In his Preface to the Epistle of St. Paul\u00a0to the Romans,<\/em>Luther writes,<\/p>\n

“We\u00a0reach the conclusion that faith alone justifies\u00a0us and fulfills the law; and this because\u00a0faith brings us the spirit gained by\u00a0the merits of Christ. \u00a0The spirit gives us\u00a0the happiness and freedom at which\u00a0the law aims; and this shows that good\u00a0works really proceed from faith.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

In 1512, Luther accepted a professorship\u00a0at the University of Wittenberg\u00a0where he began his lectures on the\u00a0Bible: from the Psalms, Romans, Galatians\u00a0and Hebrews, and back to the\u00a0Psalms. These texts were basic in shaping the thought of the future reformer.<\/p>\n

The Word Shakes the World <\/strong><\/p>\n

Four years later in 1516, Luther became\u00a0the people’s priest in Wittenberg\u00a0with regular preaching responsibilities.\u00a0The combination of theology professor\u00a0and pastor led him to take the actions\u00a0that would make him famous.<\/p>\n

In 1517, Luther became concerned\u00a0about the abuses in the sale\u00a0of spiritual privileges. Technically\u00a0called indulgences, these privileges\u00a0offered the removal or the reduction\u00a0of satisfactions required of sinners as\u00a0a part of the sacrament of penance.<\/p>\n

In the Middles Ages the idea developed\u00a0that although God does freely forgive\u00a0sinners, it is appropriate to express\u00a0your gratitude in various ways, one of\u00a0which was financial. By the early 16th\u00a0century, however, this idea had become\u00a0corrupted; leaving people with\u00a0the impression that if they would give\u00a0money their sins could be remitted.<\/p>\n

As a pastor and theologian, Luther\u00a0strongly objected, and in response formulated\u00a0his “95 Theses,” which he\u00a0subsequently posted on the church\u00a0door at Wittenberg. Luther was a brilliant,\u00a0forceful communicator, addressing\u00a0the most important religious issues\u00a0of his day in the pulpit and with his\u00a0pen. Between 1517 and 1520, he produced several of his most powerful\u00a0Treatises which helped to rally support\u00a0for the reform movement. And he\u00a0needed the support.<\/p>\n

As early as 1518, an order was issued\u00a0for his arrest. \u00a0Although the order was not\u00a0carried out, pressure from church officials\u00a0increased. In June 1521, Luther\u00a0was excommunicated and in March ordered\u00a0to appear before the Imperial Diet\u00a0of Worms. Facing the council, Luther\u00a0was asked if he wished to recant.<\/p>\n

In reply he issued one of the greatest\u00a0statements of church history:<\/p>\n

“Unless\u00a0I am refuted and convicted by the\u00a0testimonies of the Scriptures or by\u00a0clear arguments, I am conquered by\u00a0the Holy Scriptures quoted by me, and\u00a0my conscience is bound by the Word\u00a0of God: I cannot and will not recant\u00a0anything, since it is unsafe and dangerous\u00a0to do anything against the conscience.\u00a0Here I stand. God help me.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Luther’s achievements as a pastor,\u00a0scholar, theologian and Christian were\u00a0monumental and have influenced the\u00a0church profoundly to this day. Melanchthon\u00a0provided a fitting epitaph for\u00a0Luther when he said that God had given\u00a0a violent age a violent physician.<\/p>\n

“Violent” may be a good word to describe\u00a0Luther. He was fiery and rough.\u00a0He was always out on the firing line, especially\u00a0in the pulpit His commitment to\u00a0preaching shook the world.<\/p>\n

The Word Saturates His Preaching<\/strong><\/p>\n

It is difficult to imagine that courageous\u00a0Luther ever being afraid, but\u00a0apparently his first experience at\u00a0preaching terrified him: “Oh, how I\u00a0trembled when I was ascending the\u00a0pulpit for the first time,” he said.<\/p>\n

Commissioned to preach in Wittenberg\u00a0Church, Luther preached three\u00a0times on Sunday and then at least\u00a0once a day throughout the week. He\u00a0even preached at home when he was\u00a0too ill to ascend a pulpit.<\/p>\n

Luther’s preaching was characterized\u00a0by a sense of urgency. In fact, he\u00a0regarded preaching as the central part\u00a0of public worship and even placed the\u00a0preaching of the Word above the reading\u00a0of it. Luther believed the congregation\u00a0ought never to come together\u00a0without the preaching or expounding\u00a0of the Word. During his youth, he had\u00a0never heard the Bible explained, and\u00a0thus he was driven to expository or expositional\u00a0preaching.<\/p>\n

Luther’s expository sermons varied\u00a0from greatly detailed studies to generalized\u00a0essays, but seldom did he strain\u00a0the meaning of a passage or indulge in\u00a0allegory. He regarded the context of a\u00a0passage as important to the meaning\u00a0of a text and sought always to discover\u00a0the original intent of the biblical author.<\/p>\n

To Luther, the highest eloquence was\u00a0to speak simply. He spoke all of his sermons\u00a0in the language of the common\u00a0people. In fact, much of his language\u00a0was so common that the school men regarded\u00a0it as crude, perhaps even vulgar.<\/p>\n

He once commented:<\/p>\n

“When I\u00a0preach I sink myself deeply down; I regard\u00a0neither doctors nor masters of\u00a0which there are in the church about\u00a0forty. But I have an eye for the multitude\u00a0of young people, children and\u00a0servants, of which there are more than\u00a0two thousand. I preach to them.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Luther considered preparation to\u00a0be of utmost importance, to be done\u00a0as carefully as a mother would prepare\u00a0food for her baby.<\/p>\n

Concerning his preparation system,\u00a0he wrote:<\/p>\n

“When he (the preacher)\u00a0preaches on any article, he must first\u00a0distinguish it, then define, describe,\u00a0and show what it is; thirdly, he must\u00a0produce sentences from the Scriptures\u00a0to prove and strengthen it; fourthly, he\u00a0must explain it by example; fifthly, he\u00a0must adorn it with similitudes; and lastly,\u00a0he must admonish and arouse the\u00a0indolent, correct the disobedient, and\u00a0reprove the authors of false doctrine.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Though Luther sometimes broke\u00a0his own homiletical rules, he was always\u00a0thoroughly prepared and communicated\u00a0the deep convictions of\u00a0his soul to the thousands who came\u00a0to hear him.<\/p>\n

Dargan singles out three characteristics\u00a0which distinguished Luther’s sermons\u00a0from those of his predecessors:\u00a01) they were marked by right interpretation\u00a0and application of scripture; 2)\u00a0they preached Christ alone as Savior;\u00a03) they proclaimed union with Him by\u00a0faith as the only way of salvation.<\/p>\n

Above all, Luther passionately believed\u00a0the preaching of the Word to be\u00a0the greatest power for Reformation.\u00a0Concerning his role in the reform\u00a0movement he wrote: “l simply taught,\u00a0preached, and wrote God’s Word:\u00a0otherwise I did nothing . . . . The Word\u00a0of God did it all.\u201d<\/p>\n

As with Wyclif and\u00a0Huss, the Word of God was supreme\u00a0in Luther’s heart and ministry. He held\u00a0firmly to the Reforming Power of Expository\u00a0Preaching.<\/em><\/p>\n

Article adapted from Contact\u00a0<\/em>magazine, August 2001.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Randy Sawyer In order to understand the Reforming\u00a0Power of Expository\u00a0Preaching, we must trace the\u00a0Reformation to the personal\u00a0experience of the monk who shook\u00a0the world from his lonely study in Wittenberg.\u00a0Born in Saxony in 1483, Martin\u00a0Luther has been called the Father of\u00a0the Protestant Reformation. He was\u00a0educated as a loyal member of the\u00a0medieval Roman Catholic Church and\u00a0became a monk and a priest. The Word Shapes Luther Luther gave himself to the vigorous\u00a0pursuit of the monastic ideal. He devoted\u00a0himself to study, prayer and the use of\u00a0the sacraments. He especially used the\u00a0sacrament of penance, examining himself,\u00a0sorrowing for his sins, confessing\u00a0his sins to a priest and fulfilling every requirement\u00a0imposed upon him. Through his study of the scriptures\u00a0and his own spiritual struggles, Luther\u00a0was led to an evangelical breakthrough.\u00a0He began to teach the basic\u00a0principles of the Protestant Reformation:\u00a0justification by grace through faith\u00a0alone and the ultimate authority of the\u00a0Bible for Christian belief and practice. In his Preface to the Epistle of St. Paul\u00a0to the Romans,Luther writes, “We\u00a0reach the conclusion that faith alone justifies\u00a0us and fulfills the law; and this because\u00a0faith brings us the spirit gained by\u00a0the merits of Christ. \u00a0The spirit gives us\u00a0the happiness and freedom at which\u00a0the law aims; and this shows that good\u00a0works really proceed from […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4573","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-pastors"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4573","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4573"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4573\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4574,"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4573\/revisions\/4574"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4573"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4573"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4573"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}