Category Archives: Christ-centered interpretation

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“Meaning of verse uncertain”: What To Do When Biblical Data Is Difficult

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The title of this post comes from footnote “a” in the Jewish Study Bible for Genesis 4:7. The note simply states, “Meaning of verse uncertain.” I have no idea why the authors decided that note was necessary.

However, if you have practiced preaching through books of the Bible or even large sections of books of the Bible, then you have hit verses or phrases within verses that were difficult to interpret.

In his excellent little book, Reading The Bible Wisely, Briggs writes, “Alongside this doctrine [of the “clarity of Scripture”] I would like to set the difficulty of Scripture, which is not, to my knowledge an equally well-known theological position, but which can certainly be maintained alongside a view of ‘clarity'” (p. 54).

So, for instance, the JSB’s translation of Genesis 4:7 reads, “Surely, if you do right, there is uplift. But if you do not do right sin crouches at the door…” (uncertain verses in italics).

What’s a preacher to do when coming face to face with uncertain meaning?

  1. Place less focus on the lexical meaning of individual words (in this case, “uplift”). Scan the range of meaning provided by scholars, but don’t agonize too long there.
  2. Place more focus on the larger context. You already know how important context is to meaning. It’s especially important when dealing with difficult biblical data. Simply read the story of Cain and Abel and you’ll discover that Cain has the opportunity to be like his younger brother if he does right. Cain could gain God’s attention like Abel did, but Cain must do the right thing. “Uplift” has to have something to do with Cain’s status before God. Briggs writes, “Scripture is clear, let us say, on the macro level. On the micro level it is persistently difficult to pin down” (p. 66).
  3. Place most emphasis on what the passage is designed to do to the Church. Emphasize how Believers respond to this preaching portion as an act of worship.
  4. Be clear about the Gospel so Believers can believe before they obey.
  5. Finally, don’t be afraid of partial interpretations. Virtually every Sunday I come away knowing I could have done more research and come to better conclusions (about some minutia). I am content with partial interpretations (without being satisfied with shoddy work!).

Before Sunday, see if your preaching portion has a place where the footnote above would fit. If so, I hope these suggestions might help you preach with Spirit-given confidence in your partial interpretations.

Preach well for the sake of God’s glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21).

Randal

P.S. If you haven’t read Briggs (Reading the Bible Wisely: An Introduction to Taking Scripture Seriously. Revised Edition.), you’ll enjoy the 100-page paperback. It’s rare that a small book delivers such large insight.

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Why the Question, Why?, Adds Theological Depth to Your Sermon

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In Luke 18:9 we read: “He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt.”

The “what” part of analysis might define self-righteousness as the feeling that we’re basically good and, therefore, acceptable to God. That’s certainly an important part of preaching Jesus’ parable.

We add theological depth to the sermon by asking why we feel that we’re basically good and, therefore, acceptable to God. During this segment of the sermon we delve into our depravity–how the human heart works.

That alone would be a good reason to move from “what” to “why.” For instance, I’ve met some non-Christians and some Christians who feel they are good because they compare themselves to others. I’ll never forget one person telling me they felt they were okay with God because they were better than Michael Jackson. I didn’t expect this from an elderly gentleman.

But there’s another reason to spend time talking about why we feel self-righteous. When we explore “why,” we create new angles from which to explain the Gospel to Christians. The bad news of the Gospel isn’t that only the “worst” people are condemned. The bad news of the Gospel tells us that “there is none righteous” period.

So, at some point in the sermon I might ask congregants: “How does faith in the Gospel move us from being self-righteous to being “one who humbles himself” (Luke 18:14)? I want them to see a connection between their faith in Christ and their ability to not be like the Pharisee in Jesus’ parable. I want them to see a connection between their faith in Christ and their ability to be like the tax collector who said, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner!”

Before Sunday, see if your preaching portion highlights sin. If so, along with explaining what the sin is, spend some time exploring why we commit that sin. You can do the same with righteousness too. What kind of attitude or action is being held up for us to emulate? Why do Christians do that? How does the Gospel create that righteousness?

Preach well for God’s glory in the Church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21).

Randal

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My Book, Preaching With Accuracy, Has Arrived!

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This is a post of shameless, self-promotion that may be of interest to you if you preach or teach Scripture. A few days ago a box of author’s copies of my book, Preaching With Accuracy (Kregel), arrived! I think it officially goes on sale this weekend.

The book contains my method of finding Christ-centered big ideas for biblical preaching. The method is the result of struggling to identify the big idea or main theme of a preaching portion, especially in Old and New Testament narratives. So, I observed how the major genres or types of literature in the Bible conveyed their meaning, created a working list of genre clues, and showed how to work from those clues to big ideas.

If you put into practice some form of Christ-centered preaching, you’ll benefit from the discussion in chapter 6. In that chapter I present a way to preach Christ while maintaining the integrity of the Text being preached (often the knock against Christ-centered preaching is that it eclipses the meaning of the Text being preached). My approach adds a new dimension to Canonical interpretation (how any preaching portion in Scripture means something in light of the rest of the Story).

Anyway, I wanted to let you know about the book. God has been gracious in allowing my studies and thinking to fill a gap in preaching theory and practice.

To Him be all the glory in the Church.

Randal

P.S. Special thanks to all my students in the past who have helped refine my thinking and presentation of the method.

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Preach Christ and Celebrate Communion on Non-Communion Sundays

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How often does your faith-family celebrate Communion? We take part in the Lord’s Table the first Sunday morning of every month. That means the Table is empty three and, sometimes, four Sundays each month. It’s decorated for worship, but devoid of bread and cups.

A week ago this past Saturday morning, I had the privilege of joining with our Elders and four guests to examine a young man, Jeff Kauffman, for the Gospel ministry. During the ordination council, Jeff talked about his desire for having communion more often than what they are currently doing in his church. What surprised me was what he said about what he had experienced during the years he worshiped with us.

He mentioned that, despite holding Communion only once a month, our church was hearing about Communion each Sunday. It was almost like Communion each Sunday because of my transition from the teaching time to the Cross. I had never thought about how my Christ-centered interpretation and application (faith-first) allowed us to celebrate Communion on non-Communion Sundays, despite the “empty” Table.

I guess that is one unexpected benefit of preaching Christ as the way to explain and apply all Scripture. Each non-Communion Sunday morning, our congregants see Christ crucified even though the Table is missing bread and cups. Do you ever wish your church would celebrate Communion more often? Think about how preaching Christ this Sunday can provide the next best thing. More than once I’ve said on one of those off Sundays, “If we were celebrating Communion this morning, we would…”

Preach well for the sake of God’s reputation in the Church and in the world.

Randal

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A Christ-centered Angle on Jesus’ Exorcism in Luke 11:14-23

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For many reasons, it is difficult to preach exorcism narratives. If you’re in a conservative Baptist, Presbyterian, or Bible Church-type church, Jesus’ exorcisms might make us a bit uneasy. I won’t try to explain a theology of demons and demonization. But I will offer a Christological reading.

You know the story of Jesus casting out the demon and then His power being attributed to Beelzebul. The fact that Jesus was able to cast out demons points to the power of the kingdom of God. In that power encounter, Jesus was the “strong man.” Verse 22 reads, “but when one stronger than he attacks him and overcomes him, he takes away his armor…and divides his spoil.” On the cross, however, the tables were turned. Luke 23:34 tells us “…And they cast lots to divide his garments.” Jesus is overpowered. Through that loss, of course, we, by faith, experience eternal gain, including victory over Satan and his minions. We enjoy spiritual protection through answered prayer: “Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.”

And then comes the unexpected discipleship challenge in v. 23, “…whoever does not gather with me scatters.” That’s really what Luke is after by recording the exorcism. We can’t get lost in all the details of demonology and forget the call to “gather with” Jesus. Jesus delivers us from darkness so we would join Him in gathering others into His Light. It’s scary to stop and think how many of our congregants confess to believe in Christ, yet are inactive disciple-makers.

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Preaching the Perfect Example Text: Martha and Mary

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In Luke 10:39-40 Luke tells us that “Mary…sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving.” This might be the perfect example of a preaching portion that functions as both a good and bad example to follow. (You probably can think of others in Scripture that function in a similar way). It’s pretty simple. We say to our folks: “Follow Mary’s example and avoid Martha’s example.

The key, of course, is communicating what was wrong with Martha. She’s described as “distracted with much serving” in v. 40. Undistracted serving isn’t a problem. We need lots of that in the faith-family. Then, Martha crosses the line even further when, according to Ryken, she “stopped serving and started scolding” Jesus. Martha actually instructs Jesus! Can you imagine?! It’s a great time to ask our folks to monitor their attitude while they’re serving. How do they feel about others who might not be serving quite so much?

It’s easier to communicate what was right with Mary. O how we need God to develop more and more congregants who listen to the Word of God with a view toward adjusting their lives accordingly!

The Martha’s in our churches need an adjustment. Their adjustment is one way they worship during and as a result of the teaching of this narrative. I can hear my prof, the late Howard Hendricks say to the Mary’s in our churches: “May your tribe increase.” This Text is a great way to balance worshiping and serving. Because, if you’re only learning and never serving, then you’re not really learning at the feet of Jesus.

Faith in Christ creates Mary’s, not Martha’s. So, even though the narrative means something through good and bad examples, we do not dismiss our folks by saying: “Go and be like Mary, not like Martha.” Instead we spend a moment explaining how the Christ-crucified creates Mary’s posture and adjusts Martha’s posture.

Preach well for the glory of God.

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Preaching Jesus’ Gospel: The Parable of the Compassionate Samaritan

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Luke 10:25-37 records Jesus’ discussion with a lawyer who tried to test Him. Good luck with that, right?

Back in October of 2013 I mentioned the need to explain why Jesus always seemed to preach a works-based salvation. The parable of the compassionate Samaritan (I had to call it that in light of my previous post) requires such theological effort on our part. The lawyer asks, Jesus, “what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” Most of us would have answered, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved.” Most of us wouldn’t have answered the way Jesus did: “Do [the law] and you will live” (Luke 10:28). So, when Jesus ends the session with, “You go, and do likewise,” (v. 37) He’s giving us some theological work to do.

That may require a major point or move in the sermon not contained in Luke 10. We say something like, “In order for anyone to be able to perform like the compassionate Samaritan in a way that will be accepted by a Holy God (that last part’s the key), they must first experience the compassion of God-in-Christ-through the Spirit. Whenever a person sees Christ dying for them, their hearts are warmed and they have the desire and capacity for such compassion displayed by the Samaritan.” Or something like that. The point is that that point or move is a necessary element of a sermon. Otherwise, Jesus’ teaching will sound like salvation by works.

I suggest that this point or move in the sermon should occur before you spend time helping people flesh out what it might look like in their world to display such compassion for their neighbors. Remember, the section of the sermon where you give them five ways to be a good Samaritan isn’t moralistic self-help when delivered in the context of the Gospel.

You can probably think of other angles on this too.

Preach well for the glory of God.

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Preaching the Theology of Simeon and Anna’s Example

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For several reasons, I am happy to be done with Luke’s birth narratives! Christmas preaching continues to be one of my toughest assignments. When I began our current series through Luke’s Gospel (February 2013), the plan was to skip the early narratives and save them for Advent. This morning I struggled through Luke 2:22-38, my final Christmas Text.

These verses contain five, law-abiding citizens: Joseph, Mary, Jesus (although Jesus has no choice in the matter; His parents make sure He gets off to the right start), Simeon, and Anna. There is little doubt in my mind these characters present the best Israel has to offer. They are examples for us to follow. The verses contain a mixture of righteous actions and descriptions. Simeon, for instance, is “righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him” (cf. Luke 2:25). Anna never leaves the church, “worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day” (cf. Luke 2:37).

So, we certainly must follow their example. Otherwise we’re lumped in with those who oppose Jesus, the Sign (cf. Luke 2:34). But we also must link their character with their faith. They are those who will rise because of their faith in God’s promised Messiah. Simeon says, “…this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel…so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed” (cf. Luke 2:34, 35). The four characters in this section, minus Jesus, have responded to God’s revelation. Their hearts revealed love for God and a desire to serve Him. And now, with Jesus in sight and on hand, they enter a new chapter of their lives.

Apparently, Simeon, Anna, and Joseph will not have the privilege of following Jesus in life (scholars believe Joseph died early). We have the privilege of following Him and, in so doing, we’re elevated by Jesus (I.e., “rising of many…”). Jesus’ message reveals humble hearts that acknowledge His rule and accept His grace. Our lives are transformed accordingly. We grow to emulate these fine, righteous characters. This is Luke’s way of helping us be sure our faith is not only well-placed, but also well-executed.

Enjoy a blessed Christmas.

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How To Stop Preaching Moralistic Sermons: Unintended (?) Advice from N. T. Wright

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Chapter 7 of Wright’s book, Simply Christian, begins: “Christianity is about something that happened. Something that happened to Jesus of Nazareth. Something that happened through Jesus of Nazareth. In other words, Christianity is not about a new moral teaching….This is not to deny that Jesus, and some of his first followers, gave some wonderfully bracing and intelligent moral teaching. it is merely to insist that we find teaching like that within a larger framework: the story of things that happened through which the world was changed” (p. 91).

However, as I listen to sermons, it appears that we’re teaching congregants that Christianity is primarily a new moral teaching. That is largely due to the fact that we consistently separate the instruction from the Story. I recently heard a sermon on anger that made no connection to what happened to Jesus. That’s why there was also no connection to what happened to Believers through Jesus. You’ve heard them; you’ve probably preached them–the five ways to manage anger-type sermons. According to Wright, such a sermon cuts out the crux of Christianity. I stop preaching moralistic sermons when I place the teaching of my preaching portion in history.  So, back to the sermon I heard: Because something happened to Jesus and through Jesus, Believers can be angry and not sin.

Then, would you give five ways to manage anger? Just wondering…

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A Fresh Angle On Sermon Application

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My friend, Dr. Abraham Kuruvilla, has written an excellent book, Privilege the Text! A Theological Hermeneutic For Preaching (Moody). In his attempt to interact with the subject of Christ-centered preaching, Abe presents a fresh angle on application. He advocates what he calls, Christiconic interpretation, utilizing the Greek word, eikon, in Romans 8:29. “God’s goal for his children is, ultimately, to conform them into the image…of his son, the Lord Jesus Christ, the only one who perfectly exemplified ‘faith-full’ obedience. He alone fulfilled divine demand. Thus every pericope [every portion of Scripture you select to preach] points to a facet of the image of Christ; to that facet God’s people are to conform, in the power of the Holy Spirit” (p. 269).

I found the discussion helpful because it gives me a way to tie sermon application to the larger picture of God’s goal for every Christian. It also helps me realize that the divine demand in every preaching portion is calling me to one slice of the life of Christ. Without this angle, it’s possible that we will only talk in terms of morality. Abe’s angle on application helps keep application distinctly Christian.

For instance, the wisdom and humility of Christ is displayed in Luke 9:49-50 “John answered, ‘Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he does not follow with us.’ But Jesus said to him, ‘Do not stop him, for the one who is not against you is for you.'” When I encouraged us to adopt the humility that does not attack other Christians and other ministries, I was urging us to take on part of the image of Christ. He was secure in His relationship with God and wise enough to have such perspective and balance. God wants the same for His children.

What part of the image of Christ did your preaching portion call you and your people to yesterday?