una invitacion a la predicacion biblica

7/30/2019 Una Invitacion a La Predicacion Biblica

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In vItatIon to

BIBLICAL

PreAChIng


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Ivitatio to Toloical Studis

1. InvitationtoBiblicalHebrew:ABeginningGrammar RussellT.FullerandKyoungwonChoi

2. Invitation toBiblicalPreaching:ProclaimingruthwithClarityandRelevance

DonaldR.Sunukjian

3. InvitationtoHistoricalTeology:ASurveyofChristianTought(forthcoming)

StevenA.McKinion

4. InvitationtoBiblicalInterpretation(forthcoming) AndreasKstenberger,RichardD.Patterson,andScottSwain

5. InvitationtoChurchHistory(forthcoming) JohnHannah

6. InvitationtoBiblicalGreek(forthcoming)

BuistFanningandJaySmith

7. InvitationtotheOldestament(forthcoming) DavidM.HowardJr.

8. InvitationtotheNewestament(forthcoming) MichaelWilkinsandAlanHultberg

9. InvitationtoWorldMissions (forthcoming)

TimothyC.Tennent

10. InvitationtoEvangelism(forthcoming) TimothyK.Beougher

11. InvitationtoSystematicTeology(forthcoming)

Stimulatingthemindandnourishingthesoul,eachvolumeintheInvitationtoTheologicalStudiesseriesiswrittentoprovideaprimarytextbookforcoregraduate-levelcourses.


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In vItatIon to

BIBLICAL

PreAChIngProclaiming Truth withClarity and Relevance

donald r. sunukjian

I n v I t a t Io n t o t H E oL o G I C a L S t U D I E S S E R I E S


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Invitation to Biblical Preaching: Proclaiming Truth with Clarityand Relevance

2007 by Donald R. Sunukjian

Published by Kregel Publications, a division of Kregel, Inc.,P.O. Box 2607, Grand Rapids, MI 49501.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be repro-duced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in anyform or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopy,recording, or otherwisewithout written permission of thepublisher, except for brief quotations in printed reviews.

Unlessotherwiseindicated,ScripturequotationsarefromtheHolyBible,NewInternationalVersion.Copyright1973,1978,1984byInternationalBibleSociety.UsedbypermissionofZondervanPublishingHouse.Allrightsreserved.

Scripture quotations marked nasb are from the NEWAMERICANSTANDARDBIBLE.Copyright1960,1962,1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977 by The LockmanFoundation.Usedbypermission.(www.Lockman.org)

Scripturequotationsmarkedkjv

arefromtheKingJamesVersion.

ISBN 978-0-8254-3666-6

Printed in the United States of America

07 08 09 10 11 / 5 4 3 2 1


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To

my wife, Nell,

who somehow has convinced me shed

rather hear me preach than anyone else;

my children,

Peter, David, Sarah, Mary, and Esther,

any one of whom could delight me

after a church service with,

Good sermon, Dad; and

Haddon Robinson,early mentor and continuing friend.


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Cotts

Introduction:AnInvitationtoBiblicalPreaching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Part 1: Look at What God Is Saying . . .

1. StudythePassage. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

2. OutlinetheFlow. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

3. MovefromHistorytoTimelessTruth. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

4. FormtheTake-HomeTruth. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

Part 2: Look at What God Is Saying . . . to Us!

5. AsktheRightQuestions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

6. SelectEffectiveAnswers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128

7. SharpentheTake-HomeTruth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136

8. ShapetheSermon(Part1):StructuralPatterns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142

9. ShapetheSermon(Part2):RelevancyPatterns. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161

10. ShapetheSermon(Part3):ChiasticPassages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182 11. CreatetheIntroduction(Part1):Engage,Focus,

andSettheStage. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192

12. CreatetheIntroduction(Part2):PreviewtheHunksand

AnnouncethePassage. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221

13. PreparetheConclusionandTitle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242

14. WritefortheEar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256

15. PlanforOralClarity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268

16. DeliverwithFreedom. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300

AppendixA:OutliningProcedures. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305


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AppendixB:TheDangersofAlliteration. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 311

AppendixC:SampleSermons. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315

1. TheShortestDistanceBetweenTwoPointsIsaZigzag(Exod.13:1722). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315

2. ImpartialLove(James2:113). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 342

ScriptureIndex . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 369

Contents


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Introduction

A Ivitatio to

Biblical Paci

afterpreachingone sundaymorning,amanaskedme,Don,how

do you see yourself when youre up there preaching? Whats your self-

image?Doyouseeyourselfasanevangelist?Ateacher?Akerux?(Ithink

heknewalittleGreekandwasshowingoff.)Howdoyouseeyourself?

Idneverconsideredthatquestionbefore,butwithinasplitsecondIinstinctivelyanswered,Iseemyselfstandingwithyou,undertheWord

ofGod,saying,LookatwhatGodissayingtous.

Inmymindseye,Isawmyselfasstanding,notoverthecongregation,

butamongthem,holdingopenaBible,showingitspagestothem,saying,

ThisisGodsWordinspired,inerrant,authoritative.Ittellsuswhatwe

needtoknowwhattothink,howtoact,whatsahead.Itgivesustruth.

Isntitwonderful?ItswhatGodissayingtous!Hesalreadysaidittome;

IvealreadyreceivedthebenetfromitasIvestudiedandprepared.AndnowImsimplysharingitwithyouLookatwhatGodissayingtous!

AsIvereectedovertheyearsonthatspur-of-the-momentanswer,it

hasstruckmethatthisis,atheart,thedenitionofabiblicalpreacher

onewhosays,LookatwhatGodissaying...tous.

TheBibleisGodsvoice,spanningtheages.Theroleofthebiblical

preacheristoechothatvoiceinthisgeneration.Specically,thepreachers

taskistwofold:

topresentthetrueandexactmeaningofthebiblicaltext(Lookat

whatGodissaying...)


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inamannerthatisrelevanttothecontemporarylistener(...tous).

The True and Exact Meaning

Topresentthetrueandexactmeaningofthebiblicaltextmeansthe

sermonmustunfoldaccordingtothenaturalowofthoughtofthebiblical

author.IfIsaiahwerelisteningtoasermonfromhiswritings,heshouldbe

thinkingtohimself,Yes,thatswhatIwassaying,andthatshowittsthis

crowd.ButifIsaiahhearsthesermon,shakeshishead,andsays,What?

No!No!thepreacherisintrouble.Biblicalpreachingtakesgreatpainsto

presenttheideasandsequenceofthoughtoftheinspiredbiblicalauthor.

A true biblical preacher, for example, would not preach the story of

DavidandGoliathasrevealingsixcharacteristicsofafutureleader:

Curiousasking,What will be done for the manwhokillsthis

Philistine?

Consistentaskingothersthesamequestionafterhisbrotherre-

bukeshim. Courageousoffering to Saul, Your servant will go and ght

him.

CarefultakingoffSaulsarmorbecauseheisnotusedtoit.

CondentannouncingtoGoliath,ThisdaytheLordwillhand

youover.

ConclusivecuttingoffGoliathsheadwiththesword.

Surelytheoriginalauthordidnothavesuchalistinmindwhenhesatdowntowritehisaccount!1

Instead,thepreachersstudyof1Samuel17withinthehistoricalowof

theOldTestamentwouldobservethefollowing:

1. Suchpreachingispoorcommunicationandworsetheology.First,askingothersthesame

questionisnotbeingconsistent,itsbeingpersistent.(Butthespeakerisstuckwithhiscs.)

Second,itshighlydebatablewhetherconsistencyisatruecharacteristicofaleader.Abusi-

nessownerintheaudiencemightargue,IfIconsistentlyranmybusinessthesamewayIdidadecadeago,withoutchangingoradapting,Idbebroke.Finally,itsalsotheologically

debatablewhethercondenceisatrueleadershipcharacteristic.CertainleadersinScripture

resolvedtoactacertainwayeventhoughtheyhadnocondenceastowhatGodwoulddo

(e.g.,DanielsthreefriendswhoinformedNebuchadnezzarthat,whetherGodrescuedthem

ornot,theywouldnotbowtohisimageofgold[Dan.3:1618]).Suchasermonsi xalliterated

csofleadershipisnotGodstruthbutratherthespeakersarticialcreation.

10 IntroduCtIon


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DavidcontinuallyreferstoGoliathasthisuncircumcisedPhilis-

tine,emphasizingthefactthatGoliathhasnocovenantrighttothe

land. GoliathisfromthecityofGath,aPhilistinecitythatshouldhave

beendefeatedbythetribeofJudahyearsearlier.InJudges1,God

pickedthetribeofJudahto set theexampleforthe othertribes:

by trustingGods covenant promises they would be ableto con-

quertheirallottedterritories.ButJudah,thechosenleader,faltered

infaith,defeatingonlythreeofthePhilistinecitiesinitsterritory.

Gathwasallowedtoremain.AndnowGath,intheformofGoliath,

hascomebacktotroubleIsrael.

ButnowayoungboyfromthetribeofJudahstepsforwardtodo

whathistribedidnotdo,becausehebelieveswhathistribedidnot

believethatGodwouldbetruetohiscovenantpromiseandthat

thelandwouldbelongtoIsraelalone.Andthusthisboybecomes

the leader his tribe was supposed to be, preguring the coming

LionofJudahwhowillruleGodspeopleforever.

Inthiswaytheexpositor,bybeingtruetothemeaningoftheoriginal

author, isableto preachthe realpointof the passage:Onlythosewho

believeGodsWordarequaliedtoleadGodspeople.

Relevant to the Contemporary Listener

Thistrueandexactmeaningmustthenbepresentedinamannerthat

isrelevanttothecontemporarylistener.Godisrevealingtruth,notsimplytoapreviousgeneration,butalsotous,rightnow,rightwherewelive.God

intendshisScripturestospanthecenturies,addressingeachgenerationin

itsimmediatecontext.

WhenthePhariseeschallengedJesusastowhyhewasallowinghisdisciples

topickgrainontheSabbath(Matt.12:12),hereplied,Haventyouread

whatDaviddidwhen...?(v.3).InJesusmind,Godwasgivingthemthean-

swertotheirquestionthroughanincidentrecordedathousandyearsearlier.

Similarly,Paul,referringtothehistoricaleventsofExodusandNumbers,

says, These things . . . were written down aswarnings for us (1Cor.

10:11).Throughaccountswritten1,500yearsearlier,Godwasspeakingto

GentilesinPaulsdayandtous,now.

IntroduCtIon 11


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Abiblicalmessageisnotsomuch,ThisiswhatGodsaid then,asit

is,ThisiswhatGodissaying now,toyou.Thepurposeofthesermon

isnottoimpartknowledgebuttoinuencebehaviornottoinformbuttotransform.Thegoalisnottomakelistenersmoreeducatedbutmore

Christlike.

Whenyoucome,forexample,toGenesis1112Abrahamsleaving

UroftheChaldeansforCanaanyouwouldnotbecontenttosimply

teachthevariousdetailsofthepassage:

UrasacommercialandreligiouscenteroftheancientSumerian

culture.

AbrahamstripuptheEuphratesRiver.

HisstayinHaranuntilthedeathofhisfather,Terah.

HisresumedjourneytoCanaan.

Histravelsdownthecentralmountainridge,buildingaltarsand

worshipingwhereverhegoes.

Attheendofallthisbiblicalinformation,thelistenerthinkstohimself,Sowhat?Themansbeendeadforfourthousandyears.WhatdoIcare?

Whyareyoutellingmethis?

Ingenuinebiblicalpreaching,youwouldgoontosay,ThereasonIm

tellingyouthisisbecauseGodmaycometosomeofyouandsaythesame

thinghesaidtoAbraham,Leavewhatisknownandfamiliar,andcome

withme.Letgoofwhatiscomfortableandsecure,andfollowmewithout

knowingwhatIwillputinitsplace.

Thenyouwoulddrawpicturesofwhatthiscontemporaryleavingmightlooklikeforyourlisteners:

Leaving the familiarity of American culture for an overseas

ministry.

Leavingthecomfortoffamilyandfriendstogotocollegeinan-

otherstateortotakeajobinanothercity.

Leavingthesecurityofaguaranteedpaycheckandbenetstostart

yourownbusiness.

Leavingacircleofteenagefriendswhoareabadinuenceonyou.

Leaving the familiarity of singleness for the uncertainties of

marriage.

12 IntroduCtIon


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Topreachinamannerthatisrelevanttothecontemporarylisteneris

toimpressonthelistener,Godissayingsomethingtoday.Hedidntjust

sayitlongago.Hessayingitnow,tous,rightwherewelive.

Textual, Topical, or Expository?

Whentalkingaboutthiskindofbiblicalpreaching,theolddistinctions

oftextual,topical,andexpositoryarenothelpful.Thosedistinctionswere

basedontheamountofbiblicalmaterialbeingused,orwhereitwasbeing

drawnfromasingleverse(textual),passagesfromdifferentbiblicalbooks

(topical),orsequentialparagraphsthroughaparticularbook(expository).

Today,instead,wedenetruebiblicalpreachingby howthebiblical

materialistreatedthatis,faithfultothemeaningandowoftheorigi-

nalauthorandrelevanttothecontemporarylistener.

Anyoftheaboveapproachestextual,topical,expositorycanbea

biblicalmessage.Abiblicaltextualsermon,basedon1Timothy5:1a(Do

notrebukeanoldermanharshly,butexhorthimas ifhewereyourfa-

ther),mightlooklikethis:

I. Wearenottoharshlyrebukeanolderman

A. Harshlyrebukemeans...

B. Inourexperience,aharshrebukemightbesomethinglike:

1. Example

2. Example

3. Example

C. The reason we are not to harshly rebuke older men isbecause...

II. Instead,weshouldappealtohim,orexhorthim,asifhewereour

father

A. Thedifferencebetweenanappealandarebukeis...

B. In the examples above, an appeal might sound something

like:

1. Example

2. Example

3. Example

C. Thesignicanceofviewinghimasourfatheristhat...

IntroduCtIon 13


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Suchpreachingisthehardestandbestthingwewilleverdo.

Itsthehardest,foritwilltakethemostrigorousmentalabilityanddis -

ciplineGodhasgivenus.Wewillndourselvestemptedtodoanythingbutthehardstudyrequiredwellschedulemeetings,arrangecounsel -

ingappointments,tackleadministrativetasks,cleanourngernails,nd

asermonontheInternet,orsettleforsomesupercialapproachtoour

passageanythingtoavoidthesheerlaborrequired.

Foraman,preachingisprobablyascloseashewillevercometogiving

birth.Hellgothroughthesamelabor:Theressomethinggrowingin-

sideofme.Itsgettinglarger.Itwantstocomeout.Oh,itssohardtogetit

out...Aaaugh!...Itsdone;itsover!...Tellmethatstheprettiestbaby

youveeverseen!(Andthenextday,hehasthepostpartumblues!)

Itsthehardestthingwewilleverdo,butitsalsothebest.Itsthebest

thingwecandoforourministries.Goodpreachingdoesthefollowing:

ItenablesustoreachmorepeopleinlesstimewithGodstruth,

sinceitoccursatthelargestgatheringofthechurch.

Itallowsustosaythingshonestly,andsometimesbluntly,know-ingthatsomeone,in theanonymityofa crowd,willponderand

receiveourwords,whereasthatpersonmightangrilyrejectthem

ifsaidface-to-face.

Itbuilds our credibility forour otherpastoral(e.g., counseling)

andleadership(e.g.,churchboard)activities.

Itisusuallytheinitialpointofcontactthatencouragesvisitorsto

return.

Itbringsexcitementandanticipationtothewholechurch.

Biblicalpreachingisthebestthingwecandoforourministries,and

itsthebestthingwecandoforourownpersonallives.Todrinkdeeply

oftheWordofGod,tosaturateourselveswithitstruths,tohaveourlives

changedbyitstransformingpower,andthentostandbeforeGodspeo-

ple,proclaimingwithjoyandcondence,LookatwhatGodissayingto

us!whocouldbecalledtoanythinggreater?

IntroduCtIon 15


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Part One

LookatWhat

GodIssayInG...


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1

1

Study t Passa

thefirststepinpreparingabiblicalmessageistostudythepassage.

Thislargestepbreaksdownintoseveralstages:

Readthesurroundingcontextforanoverview.

Flagthethingsyoudontfullyunderstand.

Useyourskillsandresourcesintheoriginallanguages.

Consultgoodcommentaries.

Read the Surrounding Context for an Overview

First,readyourspecicpassageanditssurroundingcontextinseveral

differenttranslationsinordertogettheauthorsbroadowofthought.

Determinehowyourunittsintohisunfoldingsequenceofideas.

Forexample,supposeyouregoingtopreachonJames1:58:

Ifanyofyoulackswisdom,heshouldaskGod,whogivesgen-

erouslytoallwithoutndingfault,anditwillbegiventohim.

Butwhenheasks,hemustbelieveandnotdoubt,becausehewho

doubtsislikeawaveofthesea,blownandtossedbythewind.

That man should not think he will receive anything from the

Lord;heisadouble-mindedman,unstableinallhedoes.

IfyoufailtonotetheowofthoughtinJames1,youmightbetempted

topreachthingsverydifferentthanwhatJameshadinmind.Youmight

ndyourselfapplyingJames1:58toavarietyofsituations:


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20 InvItatIontoBIBLICaLPreaChInG

Ateenagerwantingtoknowwhatcollegeheshouldattend

Ayoungwomanneedingtodecidewhichsuitortoencourage

Amotherwantingwisdomondealingwithaproblemchild Awidowneedingdirectiononhowtohandlehernances

Ahusbandweighingajobchange

Or,youmightpreachJames1:19Everyoneshouldbequicktolis-

ten,slowtospeakandslowtobecomeangryasAdviceforParentsof

TeenagersorGuidelinesforLayCounselorsorHowtoBeaManof

Discernment.

Butasyoureadtheentirechapterseveraltimesthroughindifferent

translations, you realize that throughout the chapter James is talking

aboutwhatyoushoulddowheneveryoufacetrialsofmanykinds(v.2).

Hisowofthoughtisasfollows:

Youshouldfacetrialswithjoyandperseverethroughthem,know-

ingtheyreproducingmaturityandChristlikecompletenessinyou

(vv.24). Ifyoulackwisdomregardingthepurposeof thetrialorhowto

perseverethroughit,askGod,andhellgiveittoyou.Butyou

mustrmlybelieveinhissovereigntyandloveinordertoreceiveit

(vv.58).

Bothpoorandrichoughttobeabletodiscernthepurposesand

benetsthatcomethroughtheirtrials(vv.911).

If yousuccessfullypersevere through the trial, youll receive the

crownoflife(v.12). Butifyourespondsinfullytothetrial,dontblameGodforpush-

ingyoutoofar.Yoursinfulfailurewasduetosomeevilinyou,not

becauseGodwastemptingyou(vv.1315).

Godneverpushesustowardsin.Onthecontrary,hiseveryaction

isonlyandalwaysforourgoodfromhisinitialchoicetogiveus

birthtohisnalwelcomingofusinheavenasthehighestofallhis

creation(vv.1618).

Therefore,dontbecomeangrywithGodorblamehimifyoure-

spondsinfullyinatrial.Instead,bequicktolistentothewisdom

youaskedforandtothewordoftruthwithinyou.Beslowto

speakdonotaccuseGodorothersofcausingyoutosin.And


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Asanotherexample,supposeyourepreparingamessageon1Corinthi-

ans4:15:

Sothen,menoughttoregardusasservantsofChristandasthose

entrustedwiththesecretthingsofGod.Nowitisrequiredthat

thosewhohavebeengivenatrustmustprovefaithful.Icarevery

littleifIamjudgedbyyouorbyanyhumancourt;indeed,Ido

notevenjudgemyself.Myconscienceisclear,butthatdoesnot

makemeinnocent.ItistheLordwhojudgesme.Thereforejudge

nothingbeforetheappointedtime;waittilltheLordcomes.He

willbringtolightwhatishiddenindarknessandwillexposethe

motivesofmenshearts.Atthattimeeachwillreceivehispraise

fromGod.

Fromreadingtheprecedingcontext(chap.3),youobservethatPaulis

rebukingtheCorinthiansfortheirunworthyandunfoundedinfatuations

withcertainministers.Then,inthepassageyouregoingtopreachon

(4:15),hetellsthemhowministersshouldberegardedinstead.Withthissurroundingcontextinmind,younowprobetheverses,not-

ingthingsyoudontfullyunderstand,thingsyouwillneedtogetahandle

onthroughyourstudybeforeyoucanpreachthepassageaccurately.You

mightagthefollowing:

What are the secret things of God? Why would God have se-

crets? Othertranslationstalk about themysteries of God.Has

Godwrittenwhodunits?Whatarethesemysteries,orsecrets,andwhywouldGodhavethem?

The niv describes ministers as ones who are entrusted with

something;thenasbcallsthemstewards.Whatdoesitmeanto

beentrusted?Wehavebeengivenatrust,butwhatisit?What

wasastewardinthatculture?Wasitthesameasinourculture

forexample,anairplanehostessoradispenserofwineonaship?

Orwasitsomethingdifferent?

There seemsto beaslight adversarial relationshipbetweenPaul

andhisreaders.Whyisthat?Whatintheirprevioushistorymight

havecausedthat?

Paulsayshecaresverylittleabouttheiropinionofhim.What


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doesthisdotoourcontemporaryemphasisonsmallgroupac-

countability?ItseemslikePaulconsidershimselfunaccountable.

Paulsayshedoesntevenjudgehimself.Arentwesupposedtoex-amineourlivestoseeifwerelivingworthyoftheLord?Doesnt

Paulhimselfsayafewchapterslaterthatamanoughttoexamine

himselfbeforeheparticipatesintheLordsSupper(1Cor.11:28)?

Ishebeinginconsistent?

If,asPaulsays,myconscienceisclear,butthatdoesnotmakeme

innocent,thenwhathopedoIeverhaveofpleasingtheLord?

Arewereallytojudgenothing?Dontotherversesassumesome

judgmentordiscernmentonourpartthatproperlyleadsustore-

bukeasinningbrother?

Whenistheappointedtime?

When we get to heaven, is God going to display our entire lives

throughsomecosmicvideo,revealingeverysecretsinandhidden

thoughtforall of heavento see?Ifnot(andwehopenot!),then

whatdoesitmeanthathewillbringtolightwhatishiddenin

darknessandwillexposethemotivesofmenshearts?

Thegoalofyoursubsequentstudyistogetclearanswerstotheseques-

tions,sothatwhenyouspeak,yourmessagewillcondentlyandaccu-

ratelypresentwhatGodissaying.

Use Your Skills and Resources in the Original Languages

Once you have the larger ow of thought and have agged specicthingsyoudontfullyunderstand,yourereadytobeginanin-depthstudy

ofyourpassage,hopefullystartingwiththelanguagesinwhichtheorigi-

nalauthorswrote.

Ourabilitiesintheoriginallanguagesdiffer,buttotheextentthatyou

areable,workyourwaythroughthepassageinGreekorHebrew,noting

vocabulary,wordorder,structuralconnectors,andorganizationaldesigns

(e.g.,chiasmus,inclusio,parallelism).1Usewhatevercomputerprograms

orlanguageaidsmighthelpyou.

MovingslowlythroughthematerialinHebreworGreekpaysoffin

1. Seepages70n.5,131n.5,14041,16163,18291,and247forexplanationsandexamplesof

theseorganizationaldesigns.

Study the Passage 23


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manyways.First,bygoingslowlyandsaturatingyourselfinthetext,you

buildthereorpassionyouwilleventuallywantwhenyoupreach.You

begintofeelthepoweroftheWord.Itstartstoseepintoyoursoul.2

Second,lookinguptheoriginalvocabulary inthe lexiconsgivesyou

nuancesofmeaningthatcannotbebroughtoutinthesinglewordor

phraseoftheEnglishtranslation.

Third,theoriginallanguagescontainaidstointerpretationthatmay

notbeapparentintheEnglish,suchaswordordertoindicateemphasis,

orsyntacticalobservationstorevealtheorganizationofthought(e.g.,if

participlesaresubordinatetoanimperativeintheGreek,theyindicate

thetime,manner,means,cause,condition,concession,purpose,orresult

thatattachestothecommandbeinggiven).

Fourth,theoriginallanguagessometimesrevealanambiguitythatthe

Englishtranslatorshaveinterpretivelyresolved(e.g.,whetherthegenitive

isobjectiveorsubjective).Whiletheirresolutionmightbehelpfuland

accurate,itmightalsoreectadoctrinalbiasoratleastaninterpretative

viewpointthatshouldbeheldtentativelyuntilfurtherstudyisdone.

Finally,havingtheoriginallanguagesinmindwillprepareyoutoreadthecommentariesmoreintelligentlyandprotably.Yourfamiliaritywith

theoriginalwordsorphraseswillenableyoutoimmediatelyunderstand

thepointsthecommentatorsaremakingandprepareyouforhowthey

playoffeachotherintheirvariousviewpoints.

Thethreestagessofarreadingthesurroundingcontext,aggingwhat

youdontunderstand,andgoingthroughitintheoriginallanguages

mighttakeonetotwohours,dependingonthelengthofyourchosen

passage.Thenextstagewillprobablyaddfourtosixhourstothis.

Consult Good Commentaries

Goodcommentariesgenerallyarefoundamongthoseproducedinthe

lastfewdecades.Olderworks,perhapsinthepublicdomainandtherefore

inexpensively available,have limitedvalue.Thoughperhaps written by

godlymenorwomen,manyaremerelyrandomdevotionalobservations

2. ThatmaybewhyGodcommandedthekingtowriteforhimselfonascrollacopyofthis

law(Deut.17:18).Thekingwasntjusttoreadsomeoneelsescopy;hehadtopersonallyand

slowlywriteoneoutinlonghandforhimselfaprocessthatwoulddeeplyembedthecontent

inhissoul.


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withoutagraspoftheauthorstruemeaningorowofthought.Others,

thoughwrittenbycompetentscholars,aredatedandlackthebenetof

recentcultural,archeological,andgrammaticalstudies.Wereallindebtedtoscholarswhohavespenttheirlivesunderstand-

ingthebiblicallanguagesandcultures.Aswereadandcomparetheirin-

sights,thebiblicalauthorsowofthoughtbeginstotakedeniteshape,

andourownunderstandingofthepassagecrystallizesfurther.

Goodcommentariestendtofallinoneofthreecategories.Therst

categoryiswhatwemightcallanexpositional,orsynthesis,commentary.

Thistypeofcommentary,oftenaninexpensivepaperback,iswrittenfor

theintelligentEnglishreader.Itsgoalistopresenttheowofthoughtof

thebiblicalwriter,withsomeattentiontoindividualwordsandphrases.

Thiskindofcommentaryisoftenagoodplacetostart,sinceitwillquickly

giveyouthelargeunitsofthoughtandthelinesofargumentofthetext.

The second category iswhat we might call an exegetical, or critical,

commentary. Usually in more expensive hardback, this type of com-

mentaryisthemostdetailedandscholarly.Itfocusesonwords,phrases,

andintricateissuesofgrammarandsyntaxandpresentslongdiscussionsofcultureandbackground.Ithasthebestchanceofresolvingthestudy

questionsyouaggedearlier.

Thethirdcategoryisthesermonic,orhomiletic,commentary,which

isusuallyaseriesofsermonsthatwererstpreachedtoalocalcongrega-

tionandthenputintoprintforawideraudience.Thevalueofthistypeof

commentaryisthatitmightsparkapplications,titles,specialphrasings,

orevenacreativeapproachtothemessage.

Studythoroughlyinthersttwocategoriesbeforeyoureadthethird.Ifyoustartwithsermoniccommentaries,youmaybetemptedtopre -

maturelyconclude,Thatllpreach!withoutrstdeterminingwhether

theprintedsermonaccuratelyreectsthemeaningofthebiblicalauthor.

Instead,startwiththecommentariesthathavenohomileticalaxtogrind.

Becomeemotionallyweddedtotheconceptsandowofthebiblicalau-

thor,andthenyoullbemoreproperlyselectiveinhowyoubenetfrom

someoneelsessermon.

Awisepreacherwillbudgetmoneytobuythesebooks.Justastheme-

chanichastoinvestinthelatesttoolstodiagnosecomplexengines,soyou

musthavethebestandlatestbookstokeepupwithadvancesinbiblical

knowledgeandtostimulateyourmind.

Study the Passage 25


26/26


Stayabreastwithwhatsbeingpublished.Twoexcellentresourcesare

theJournaloftheEvangelicalTeologicalSociety3andBibliothecaSacra.4

Thesetwojournalsnotonlyhaveconsistentlyhelpfularticlesonbiblicalpassagesandtopics,butalsovaluablebookreviewsofthelatestcommen-

taries.Publishedquarterly,theiryearlycostisaboutthepriceofanice

restaurantmeal.

Otherresourcesforcommentaryrecommendationsmightbeabooklist

putoutbytheprofessorsofaseminary,orapublishedworkbyarespected

scholarevaluatingrecentworks,orabookexclusivelyfocusedonhowto

buildanevangelicaltheologicallibrary. 5

ToreallystayonthecuttingedgeofNewTestamentandOldTestament

studies, subscribe to Old estament Abstracts and New estament

Abstracts.6Modestlypriced,theseabstractssummarizealmosteveryre-

centarticlepertainingtobiblicalstudiesthathaveappearedinhundreds

ofjournalsaroundtheworldandareanexcellentwaytostaycurrentwith

emergingscholarship.

Yourrstandmostessentialstepis tothoroughlystudythepassage.

Spendthehoursreading,takingnotes,andlearningallyoucan,sothatyoucansaysubstantively,accurately,andcondently,LookatwhatGod

issaying.

3. Journal of the EvangelicalTeological Society, 200 Russell Woods Drive, Lynchburg, VA

24502-3574.

4. BibliothecaSacra,3909SwissAvenue,Dallas,TX75204.

5. Forhelpfulguidance,seeJohnGlynn,CommentaryandReferenceSurvey:AComprehensive

GuidetoBiblicalandTeologicalResources(GrandRapids:Kregel,2007).

6. OldestamentAbstractsandNewestamentAbstracts,publishedthreetimesayearbythe

CatholicUniversityofAmerica,433CaldwellHall,Washington,DC20064.

una invitacion a la predicacion biblica

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