Category Archives: preaching Genesis

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Unusual (?) Advent Texts To Consider

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The Joy and, Yes, the Frustration of Preaching at Advent!

Blessed Christmas to you!

Last Sunday after church I spoke with one of our parishioners who is a retired pastor. We were talking about the challenges of selecting Advent Scriptures when we’ve been in a church for many years. I’m privileged to be starting my 23rd year at Calvary Bible Church in Mount Joy, PA. That’s a lot of Advent sermons!

Here are a couple of Scriptures you might add to your list of potential Advent sermons.

Last evening at our Christmas Eve service, I had the privilege of preaching Genesis 3:14-15

The Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and above all beasts of the field; on your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”

Often referred to as the first good news, these verses help us remember that our Savior comes into the world to be the serpent crusher! But, not until the serpent gets his shots in on the way to the final heel-strike of the cross.

Immediately after the Christmas Eve service ended, a neighbor/visitor who attends another great church in town said, “I’ve never heard Genesis preached during Advent!”

Then, the Advent sermon our faith-family has mentioned most was on Revelation 12:1-6,

1 And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. 2 She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth. 3 And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads seven diadems. 4 His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it. 5 She gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron, but her child was caught up to God and to his throne, 6 and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, in which she is to be nourished for 1,260 days. 

I preached it also at a recent Christmas Eve service. What a unique perspective John gives about that first Christmas morning!

Anyway, I know how difficult it is to select Advent sermons year after year. May our Lord continue to guide your Scripture selections for each Sunday, but especially during future Advent seasons should He delay His second arrival. And, as always, may He receive glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21).

Randal

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Our New Commentary on Genesis Has Arrived!

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John and I took seven years to write this! Slow, I know!! (*smile*)

What was “forthcoming” for some time is now here!

While I was away on my annual motorcycle ride to old Quebec City with seven others, Michele sent me a picture of the two boxes Kregel sent me. When I got home I had the joy of opening the author copies of my new commentary on Genesis.

It took approximately seven years to complete this project. More than once I said to the Lord, “I love Genesis, but I am so done with it!” (I’m writing now so God was gracious in understanding what I meant.)

The Kerux Commentary series matches a biblical scholar (Dr. John Soden) with a preaching specialist (me). As you’ll see, John did the lion’s share of the work. He is an excellent exegete and adept at starting the move from exegetical ideas to theological ideas that get closer to serving the church.

Each pericope begins with one page that includes an exegetical idea, theological focus, preaching idea, and preaching pointers. Then the section proper begins with Literary Structure and Themes, technical Exposition that includes translation analysis and outline points, extensive Theological Focus, and Preaching and Teaching Strategies.

In the Preaching and Teaching Strategies is a section on Exegetical and Theological Synthesis, an attempt to tie together the exegesis and theology to form a solid foundation for preaching insights. The Preaching Idea is repeated and followed by Contemporary Connections: What does it mean? Is it true? and Now What? (you might remember these as Haddon Robinson’s three functional questions; he used to say you can only do three things to an idea: explain it, prove it, or apply it; this section of the commentary does all three to the degree the preaching portion calls for them).

Finally, I provide suggested preaching outline(s), Creativity in Presentation, and Discussion Questions for preachers and teachers to consider.

Anyway, there it is in a nutshell.

What a privilege for me to be invited to participate. I thank our Lord for insights and endurance to accomplish this in the middle of an extremely busy time in my life. May our Lord receive glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21) whenever Genesis is preached/taught.

Randal