First, it can be done! This past Sunday I completed a six month series through the book of Numbers. The series totaled 31 sermons for 36 chapters. Phew! Great challenges and great rewards!
One thing I want to do better in these posts is highlight the kind of literature you’re dealing with. It’s my way of helping you see how meaning is made before we get to what that meaning is for the church.
So, for instance, in Numbers 9:15-23 is the spectacular story of God guiding His people with a “cloud…by day and…fire by night.” (v. 16) Meaning is made through the subjects (cloud and fire), their actions (“lifted from over the tent” in v. 17), and the response of God’s people (“camped….set out” in vv. 17-18). The cloud and pillar, of course, are also described as “At the command of the Lord…” (cf. vv. 18, 20, 23 and the key phrase, “the people of Israel kept the charge of the Lord” in v. 19).
It’s pretty clear that the Lord is instructing His people through the way He clearly leads them in their journey. And us? Well…
Our Lord will lead the way (vv. 15-16)
We will follow His leading (vv. 17-23)
Even without the cloud/fire?!? (biblical theology of God’s guidance and following Him in our journey.)
The third movement is where the fun is because everyone has asked at one time or another: “Wouldn’t it be great if God guided us now like that?” It’s comforting to know that He does.
I found it helpful to explain God’s guidance in Numbers and His guidance now like this: in Numbers the cloud and fire are like us going from A to B and we don’t know the way (if we don’t follow exactly, we’ll get lost); today we move from A to B and we know the way very well (we don’t have to follow someone and even know various ways to get to point B if we want to or have to).
Our arrival is just as sure because of God’s presence with us in the Person of Christ and His Spirit. And that should help you provide a Christological reading for your congregants. On the cross, Christ loses the presence of God so that He never leaves those who trust Him. Anyone whose heart has been warmed by the Gospel wants desperately to follow the Savior’s leading.
May our Lord receive glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21) as you preach and teach the book of Numbers.
Over the past several weeks these posts have been switching back and forth between help on preaching through Numbers (Ouch!), what I’m learning from Jonathan Edwards’s early sermons (Yes!), and what I’m learning from, Preaching That Matters (Interesting!). This week I’m combining the second and third categories. Here’s why…
Carrell writes,
“If your sermon communication content is going to be deeper, you are going to have to be deeper. Depth isn’t something you can borrow from a source you find on a website. As a spiritual leader, you must go as far below the surface as possible.” (p. 113).
I’m all in when it comes to having to become spiritual, intellectually, exegetically, and theologically deeper. It’s the middle sentence that arrested me, so let me nuance it a bit.
It’s true: you can’t borrow depth that doesn’t belong to you. Carrell states, “Speakers who live and breathe their subject matter are deeper” (p. 113). But you can gain depth through reading someone like Jonathan Edwards.
Certainly. Pick another pastor-theologian if you like or at least settle for a theologian. But have your favorites and read your favorites so that you learn to think like they think about the Scriptures and their listeners. You can’t borrow depth, but you can burrow deep into the depths of someone like Edwards on a regular basis.
“Why did he say that? What caused him to think like that?” That’s what I ask while I read him. And, over time, I begin to find myself going deeper.
I know I’ve said this before, but you realize that most pastors are reading more church growth and leadership material than they are reading deep theologians. Our deep preaching comes from deep thinking, which, for me, comes in a large part to deep reading.
And may our Lord receive glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21) as a result of our Spirit-driven efforts.
One of the toughest and most rewarding sermons in Numbers came in chapters 7:1–9:14 (“He will bring us into this land”: Which Calls For Continual Celebration!)
Except for familiarity with the concept of tithing, most people know little else of an OT perspective on giving. Preaching through Numbers is a great way to inform your congregation.
Plan on taking huge chunks of material. My breakdown was:
We bring our gifts and offerings (vv. 7:1-88)
We bring our best, separated selves (vv. 8:5-26)
And we celebrate our redemption (vv. 9:1-14)
You’ll give your folks an opportunity to worship God by participating in worship just like Israel did when the tabernacle was dedicated/consecrated.
In the first section what stands out is that all tribes participated and tons of stuff was sacrificed. I strongly suggest resisting any urge to cover the details of what was given and how much. The sermon can easily bog down here due to so much information.
The second section focuses on God’s people being clean enough to worship God. This is shown through the Lord’s instruction about the Levites. They had to be clean in order to do their job well. None of the sacrifices would mean anything without ceremonial cleanliness at this level. Atonement has to be made for them in order for ministry to occur.
The final section of the sermon sets all this celebration in the context of Passover and the Lord’s redemption of His people from Egypt. So important is this celebration that the death penalty was incurred by anyone who was clean and in town, but not present for the celebration.
Finally, anyone wanting to interpret Numbers for the Church through the lens of Christ-crucified will find ample opportunity through the Passover Lamb connection. You might also choose to highlight Christ through John’s language (“tabernacled among us” in John 1:14). We worship God by faith in the One God sent to save us. We gladly give because of what God has graciously given to us. We give as an act of worship just like they did.
And just like back then, God continues to receive glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21) as His people follow the patterns set in Numbers 7-9.
I saw this caption on what is supposed to be a funny t-shirt. I said, “supposed to be,” because it’s describing the practice of a surgeon. Yikes!
But according to Carrell’s analysis in, Preaching That Matters,
“the reluctance to eliminate content seems to be the primary preparation obstacle for most who preach wide sermons” (p. 109).
Evidently many of us struggle with cutting anything out of our sermon preparation notes. And it hurts us and our hearers.
Carrell records the different ways preachers rationale keeping everything in and delivering it all on Sundays:
“It’s such good material!”
“The more material the better!”
“The more material, the better chances there will be something for everyone!”
The problem: the more material, the greater the risk you will lose your listeners. Listeners simply get worn out trying to keep up with all that good stuff.
A few weeks ago I had the privilege of sitting down with one of our Elders who was going to preach on a Sunday morning. We met to go over his sermon notes. We talked about the best way to accomplish his goals for the sermon–the preaching portion’s goal for the worshiper. Apart from rearranging a few key segments, we spent most of our time deciding on what to leave out. We did that because cutting some things out would allow him to stay focused on what the preaching portion intended to do to the church.
Before Sunday, begin to look for some of the good, biblical information that may keep true transformation from taking place. And God will receive glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21).
After preaching through Judges, more than one parishioner asked if I would consider preaching through Ruth. Judges was so depressing, despite my best efforts to practice a form of Christ-centered interpretation each weekend. They needed a narrative that focused more on good news.
Even if you choose not to preach Judges/Ruth back-to-back, preaching through the gospel according to Ruth is an excellent short series. It does present its challenges.
First, select a theme for the series. Select a theme:
from the wording of Ruth.
that captures the good news of Ruth.
I’m extremely picky when it comes to selecting a theme and image that will be my first slide every Sunday. I’m usually not satisfied with my commentator friends’ choice of theme/title for the book. I greatly appreciate their work and benefit from it each week. But the choice of theme/title is very personal, pastoral.
I found my theme, of all places, on the lips of the townswomen who said to Naomi about Ruth’s son: “He shall be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age…”
You could just as easily word something from their statement in the previous verse 14, “Blessed be the Lord, who has not left you this day without a redeemer…”
I love the way the book ends as a contrast to how it began: loss of food and even more tragic loss of life. Upon returning to Bethlehem Ruth said, “I went away full, and the Lord has brought me back empty…” (cf. 1:21). So, the Lord really did restore her life through the birth of a special son. Cross-eyed readers will quickly see parallels to the Son born way down Ruth and Boaz’s line.
Preach well for the sake of God’s reputation in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21).
Randal
This post was originally published on January 23, 2017.
Some things just don’t look right in the Bible. Period. And when we come across those things, we do our listeners a favor–especially our relatively un-churched attendees–by pointing it out.
One of my friends at church, Craig, gave me a great example of this a few weeks ago. He was talking about how weird it is for Jesus to be called the good Shepherd, but then for Him to send His sheep out among wolves. What kind of good Shepherd would do that!?!
That’s the kind of stuff that doesn’t look right when you think about it.
Over the years I’ve benefited from James Emery White’s blog, Church & Culture. In Volume 12, No. 53 he imagined what the unchurched would tell us if we listened to them. Number 7 was, “Can we agree that there’s a lot of weird stuff attached to Christianity and the Bible? Okay, it may be true, or real, or whatever, but can we just agree that some of it is a bit…bizarre? For some strange reason, it would make me feel better to hear you acknowledge how it all looks and sounds to someone from the outside.”
Well, one reason it would make them feel better to hear us acknowledge some weirdness in holy Writ is because it’s TRUE. God has recorded some strange stuff in His Word. Another good example is the Judges’ narrative I’ll write about in weeks to come, often labeled, Jephthah’s Tragic Vow. Jephthah promises that if God gives him a strategic victory in battle, he would dedicate the first thing that comes out of his house to greet him. That first thing was only daughter! And what’s totally bizarre is that God allowed Jephthah to carry through with his promise (according to my un-inspired reading of the narrative).
There are a whole lot of well-churched folks who appreciate any time we point out such weirdness. Before Sunday, see if your preaching portion has some bizarre aspects to it. If you bring it out, your listeners will appreciate the honesty and, depending on how you proceed, the mystery that is our God. That assumes you will fight the temptation to explain everything in God’s Word, especially the things that are impossible to explain.
Preach well so God receives glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21).
Randal
P.S. I usually don’t ask for feedback because I know pastors are busy. However, I am curious to hear your thoughts on why the generation of preachers before us were very hesitant to bring out the bizarre aspects of God’s revelation. Are there any dangers to this approach to interpretation and preaching? Thanks for chiming in.
This post was originally published on August 17, 2016.
Last week I enjoyed a wonderful afternoon conducting a preaching workshop at Lancaster Bible College. I am also currently teaching some keen students at LBC/Capital Seminary and Graduate School in Lancaster, PA and Greenbelt, MD. My interaction confirmed that one Bible study exercise is critical: tracing the argument or flow of thought of the author.
I explained that this is how I spend my first hour of study every Monday morning. Before I try to figure out what a preaching portion means, I want to know how it means what it means. In other words, I spend the first hour show how the author makes meaning through the argument or flow of thought. I begin by asking the Lord, “Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law,” (Psalms 119:18) and then I dive into the text’s structure. I consider this to be the foundation for exposition.
This involves dividing the preaching portion into its smaller thought blocks, summarizing the meaning of the blocks, and writing out the logical transitions that the author uses to move from one block to the next.
(By the way, if you try this with Luke 15, you will discover that it would be impossible to end the sermon focusing on the younger brother and those prodigals which are usually encouraged to “come home.”)
It is impossible for me to overstate the importance of this first hour for understanding how meaning is made.
Below I’ve included an example of my mornings first hour.
Calvary Bible Church
May 8, 2016 AM
Judges 10:1-16
This is God’s Word.
1.
10 After Abimelech there arose to save Israel Tola the son of Puah, son of Dodo, a man of Issachar, and he lived at Shamir in the hill country of Ephraim. 2 And he judged Israel twenty-three years. Then he died and was buried at Shamir. Post-Abimelech judge #1 is Tola. In matter of fact fashion God records, “…there arose to save Israel…” It is a subtle reminder of our plight as Christians in this world.
3 After him arose Jair the Gileadite, who judged Israel twenty-two years. 4 And he had thirty sons who rode on thirty donkeys, and they had thirty cities, called Havvoth-jair to this day, which are in the land of Gilead. 5 And Jair died and was buried in Kamon. PA judge #2 is Jair. We learn some nice facts about him (“…30…30…30…”).
6 The people of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and served the Baals and the Ashtaroth, the gods of Syria, the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the Ammonites, and the gods of the Philistines. And they forsook the Lord and did not serve him. In v. 6 we learn how many false gods there are to worship! Each region had their own deity. Each deity had the ability to lure God’s people away from God. As a whole God’s people took their affections away from God and they stopped serving Him.
7 So the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he sold them into the hand of the Philistines and into the hand of the Ammonites, 8 and they crushed and oppressed the people of Israel that year. For eighteen years they oppressed all the people of Israel who were beyond the Jordan in the land of the Amorites, which is in Gilead. 9 And the Ammonites crossed the Jordan to fight also against Judah and against Benjamin and against the house of Ephraim, so that Israel was severely distressed. In vv. 7-9 we read of the repeated experience of God’s people. Throughout the book of Judges we’ve seen this happen: God’s people commit idolatry, in anger God sells them into the hands of fierce enemies who oppress them, and “Israel was severely distressed.” It teaches us the devastating effect of worshiping false gods.
10 And the people of Israel cried out to the Lord, saying, “We have sinned against you, because we have forsaken our God and have served the Baals.” 11 And the Lord said to the people of Israel, “Did I not save you from the Egyptians and from the Amorites, from the Ammonites and from the Philistines? 12 The Sidonians also, and the Amalekites and the Maonites oppressed you, and you cried out to me, and I saved you out of their hand. 13 Yet you have forsaken me and served other gods; therefore I will save you no more. 14 Go and cry out to the gods whom you have chosen; let them save you in the time of your distress.” We’ve also seen God’s people yell out to their real God to save them again and again. Like before, they make a clean confession: “We have sinned against you…” Let’s make sure we understand this confession. Why do they say they have sinned against the Lord? Where does this understanding come from? Look back at the OT…
But this time our God seems to have lost His patience! Look at vv. 11-14. He sounds very irritated with them! “Did I not save you from….I saved you….I will save you no more. God and cry out to the gods whom you have chosen; let them save you in the time of your distress.” Wow! We have sayings like: “You made your bed, now go lie in it.” If God sticks to His guns, then His people are doomed. The false gods have enslaved them; they cannot save them.
Has the Lord’s patience run out?!
15 And the people of Israel said to the Lord, “We have sinned; do to us whatever seems good to you. Only please deliver us this day.” 16 So they put away the foreign gods from among them and served the Lord, and he became impatient over the misery of Israel. In v. 15 God’s people repeat their confession: “We have sinned…” Then they add, “do to us whatever seems good to you. Only please deliver us this day.” God’s people would rather face the judgment of God than face more oppression from their enemies.
Then, in v. 16 there is an act of genuine repentance: “So they put away the foreign gods…and served the Lord…” Repentance is a critical part of the Christian life…
Then, we learn that the Lord “became impatient over the misery of Israel.” A moment ago I mentioned that it seemed the Lord was becoming impatient with His people. Now we learn that the Lord has had enough of His people suffering at the hand of their enemies. This impatience, however, strikes the Lord after genuine repentance has taken place. If the Lord acts on His impatience over Israel’s misery, that can mean only good things for Israel!
Gospel:
Response:
This helps me see how the author presents theology for the Church. Since theology is conveyed through this narrative, I do not want to break the narrative flow in creating this sermon. Consider making this action in the first hour of study your foundation for Sunday’s exposition.
Preach well.
Randal
This post was originally published on May 2, 2016.
Christian Happiness, a sermon based on Isaiah 3:10, may be Edwards’s earliest sermon on record. The verse reads,
“Say unto the righteous, it shall be well with them: for they shall eat the fruit of their doings.” (emphasis added)
The sermon begins with,
“Reasonable beings, while they act as such, naturally choose those things which they are convinced are best for them, and will certainly do those things which they know they had better do than leave undone.” (p. 296, The Works of Jonathan Edwards, Vol. 10)
In typical Edwards fashion, he methodically unloads his logic on his listeners (two propositions of “doctrine,” five inferences of “use,” and two exhortations). Surely, every listeners is convinced that it’s in their best interest to be righteous!
But what caught my attention was the fourth inference:
“Hence learn the great goodness of God in joining so great happiness to our duty.” (p. 303)
How did Edwards think of this? What got him to this inference? And is it important for you and me that we figure this out?
Edwards thinks that there can be no happiness in this life if that happiness does not include doing the things righteous people do.
He states as Gospel fact:
“…the thing required of us shall not only be easy but a pleasure and delight, even in the very doing of it. How much the goodness of God shines forth even in his commands!” (p. 304)
Imagine a God–Edwards refers to Him as “a master of extraordinary goodness”–who only desires our happiness and out of His goodness commands “us to do those things that will make us so” (p. 304)!
Well, not only do we imagine our God like that, we praise Him because He is like that. And we evaluate whether our attitude towards doing the will of God–“a pleasure and delight”–reflects that reality.
May that kind of deep thinking be a part of our weekly preparation and result in God receiving glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21).
You’re looking at a custom made stone containing the first two actions of God that begin the famous Aaronic Blessing of Numbers 6:22-27. The Blessing is extremely popular and has spawned tons of merchandise.
As you make your way through the book of Numbers you arrive at the end of chapter 6. This famous Blessing is sandwiched between laws of the Nazirite and the twelve days of sacrificing that dedicated the altar in the Tabernacle.
One of the keys of preaching the theology of Numbers is noting the placement of strategic teaching like this one: God’s blessing is experienced within the context of holiness and the forgiveness of our sins.
When you preach the Blessing, remember that there is a big difference between the ESV’s pronouncement: “The Lord bless you and keep you…” and the NLT’s prayer/wish: “May the Lord bless you and keep you…” Within the context I described in the above paragraph, yes, it can be a pronouncement. But the Hebrew form of the blessing and it’s meaning in this context reflects Aaron, the priests, and the Lord’s desire or wish for His people.
You might lead your listeners through the Blessing by noting…
the source of God’s blessing. It’s easy for American Christians with all our individualism to miss the fact that Aaron and his sons pronounce this Blessing on God’s people. This will provide an easy link to our Savior in the third section of the sermon.
the content of the Blessing. I can’t think of anything that should put a smile on our faces and thanksgiving on our lips than what the Lord wants to do to everyone one of His own! The poetry is beautiful and builds with each line.
our reception of the blessing. Here’s where you can urge congregants to consider how they know they can experience this blessing that God wants to give them. It’s a good time to be Christ-focused, but also a good time to remind them of their need to respond in faith and obedience.
[Note: I assign this text as an assignment in my Advance Homiletics classes and v. 27 often gets neglected. The act of pronouncing the blessing is equal to putting God’s name on His people. Explaining this are sermon minutes well spent!]
Surely, our Lord receives glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (cf. Ephesians 3:21) as we preach this great passage in Numbers!
Randal
P.S. If you are interested in the intersection of hermeneutics and homiletics you might take a moment to consider why this Aaronic Blessing is much easier to preach then some other sections in Numbers.
One of the reasons why I’m enjoying/profiting from Carrell’s book, Preaching That Matters, is because of the massive amount of research and case studies she used as the basis for her book.
For instance, believe it or not, the top concern of preaching pastors relates to their content; delivery was second. She writes,
“In The Great American Sermon Survey when clergy were asked to describe their greatest preaching challenge, the most frequently identified struggles were content related…” (p. 106).
Two areas surfaced: (1) “the need for ‘fresh ideas for familiar content,'” and (2) “‘relevancy, when it is not apparent in the text'” (p. 106).
My experience preaching through several books of the Old Testament has helped me in both those areas.
First, preaching through OT books like Numbers–my current series–virtually guarantees that you will have fresh ideas for familiar content. The OT writers have a way of presenting well-known theology in ways that are often unfamiliar, or not-as-familiar-as-the-NT. I especially appreciate the way in which theology is conveyed through OT narratives.
Second, preaching through OT books forces you to become more skillful at the science and art of applying life to the Bible. My ability to interpret–including apply–Scripture has increased due to being forced week after week to deal with difficult Texts.
I realize you may not agree with this, but in my experience preaching through Numbers or First and Second Chronicles is far more difficult than preaching through Romans. Each series had its challenges, but the OT series win the prize.
So, the only way I know how to overcome the struggle of identifying not-easily-identified relevancy is to practice it every week in the crucible of the Monday to Saturday world of the pastorate.
I’ve found that the OT contains many “fresh ideas” and that careful study reveals its profound relevancy…
Which ends up with God receiving glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21),
