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EAGER TO PREACH THE GOSPEL IN ROME Romans 1:1-17 I. THE
UNIQUENESS OF ROMANS A. Of the thirteen letters we possess from
Paul, Romans is unique because it is the only letter that Paul wrote to a church
that he had never visited (Romans 1:13). 1. When Paul wrote Galatians, he had
already preached the Gospel there (Galatians 3:1-3; 4:13). 2. When Paul wrote to the Corinthians he
had previously spent a year and a half in Corinth teaching the word of
God (Acts 18:11). 3. Paul spent over two years in Ephesus
before writing his letter to the Ephesians (Acts 19:8-10). B. The letter to the Romans seems to be is
a kind of outline or syllabus of what Paul intended to preach and teach
face-to-face (Romans 1:13-15). 1. It would have easily taken Paul years to
flesh out Romans in his preaching and teaching. 2. What took Paul two or three verses to say in Romans could easily have taken him months to expound in person (cf. Romans 1:2-5)! II. SOME METHODS FOR PREACHING AND TEACHING A. Some churches are deemphasizing the Word
of God in favor of other things like dance, drama, worship music or other
forms of entertainment. B. Some churches (e.g. Catholic, Episcopal,
Lutheran and Methodist) follow a liturgical calendar. 1. Most lectionaries skip passages of
Scripture; usually the hard texts. The
whole council of God is therefore not preached. 2. The church calendar is a manmade
innovation. “The Reformation can be said to have started for
the Reformed churches when in January 1519 Zwingli removed his clerical garb,
abandoned the lectionary, and began to preach through the book of Matthew. In
doing this, he was merely following the pattern that he saw in the greatest of
the church fathers, including Origen, Gregory of Nazianzus, Pope Gregory the
Great, and for immediate inspiration Augustine’s sermons on John and
Chrysostom’s on Matthew. The abandonment of the lectio selecta in
favor of the lectio continua was an early mark of the Reformed
churches and according to Hughes Old, “unquestionably one of the most clear
restorations of the form of worship of the early Church” [Patristic Roots,
195]. Not only Zwingli, but
Luther, Bucer, Oecolampadius, Calvin, the Scottish Reformers, and the English
Puritans were all committed to expository, sequential preaching, though in
the latter case the pace often slowed to that of the proverbial snail” (Terry Johnson, “Liturgical Studies”; Westminster Theological Journal; Volume 60:2 [Fall 1998], p.317). C. Catechetical preaching (cf. Heidelberg
Catechism). D. Expository preaching 1. The goal of expository preaching is to
declare the meaning of a biblical text so that it shapes our thinking and
lives.
“an inerrantist
perspective demands expository preaching, and a non-inerrantist perspective
makes it unnecessary” (John MacArthur). III. THE
SCRIPTURAL BASIS FOR EXPOSITORY PREACHING AND TEACHING What is the Scriptural
basis for all expository preaching? A. Paul’s letters
were read in congregations and circulated to others churches (Colossians 4:16;
1 Thessalonians 5:27; cf. 2 Thessalonians 3:14). B. Not only were Paul’s letters to be read
in congregations, they were also explained by elders (cf. Timothy and
Titus). 1. Paul intended to follow up his letter
to the Romans with preaching (Romans 1:13-15). 2. Paul’s
inspired letters were not intended to be a substitute for his face-to-face
preaching and teaching ministry. Paul
did not feel that an inspired letter to the Romans was all the church needed. They needed preaching and teaching (cf. Romans
10:14-15). 3. When
Jesus ascended into heaven, there’s no evidence that He left any letters or
hand written Gospels. Rather, when
Jesus ascended into heaven He gave gifts to the church which included
Apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers (Ephesians 4:11; cf.
John 14-17). C. Paul’s letters were considered Scripture
and required hard work to understand (2 Peter 3:14-16).
1. Paul’s
instructions to Timothy focus upon preaching and teaching! (1 Timothy 4:13-16; 2 Timothy 1:13-14;
2:15; 4:1-2) 2. Little, if anything,
is said about “music ministry.” F. The reason we focus on preaching and
teaching is because it is the God ordained means by which the power of the
Gospel is manifested for the salvation of everyone who believes (Romans
1:16-17; 10:14). Q.160 of the Westminster Larger Catechism What is required of
those that hear the word preached? It is required of
those that hear the word preached, that they attend upon it with diligence, (Prov.
8:34) preparation, (1 Pet. 2:1–2, Luke 8:18) and prayer; (Ps. 119:18, Eph.
6:18–19) examine what they hear by the scriptures; (Acts 17:11) receive the
truth with faith, (Heb. 4:2) love, (2 Thess. 2:10) meekness, (James 1:21) and
readiness of mind, (Acts 17:11) as the word of God; (1 Thess. 2:13) meditate,
(Luke 9:44, Heb. 2:1) and confer of it; (Luke 24:14, Deut. 6:6–7) hide it in
their hearts, (Prov. 2:1, Ps. 119:11) and bring forth the fruit of it in
their lives. (Luke 8:15, James 1:25) QUESTIONS FOR SABBATH DISCUSSION
& MEDITATION Take what you
have learned this morning and make it into a prayer. Pray that God would grant you greater
diligence this year in your receiving and studying the Word of God. Why, of all Paul’s letters, is Romans unique? What are some different methods for preaching and teaching? What is the method of Pastor Aaron’s preaching and teaching? Were Paul’s
inspired letters intended to be a substitute for face-to-face preaching and
teaching? Explain. What did the Apostle Peter say about Paul’s letters? (2 Peter 3:14-16) Why does our congregation do expositional preaching and teaching? What is an epistle? Name the three Pastoral Epistles. Recommended
commentaries on Romans: Ø John Stott, The Message of Romans Ø James Boice, Romans |
