Additional Benefits of Expository Teaching

This article was first published in French at TPSG.

From early on in my Christian life, I have been a proponent of Bible exposition. This has been true largely for theological reasons: our churches need to teach the full counsel of God, and in order to do so, preachers and Bible teachers need to take their hearers/students through the Scriptures verse by verse (or literary unit by literary unit). I’m convinced that doing so, rather than teaching topically, allows us to understand each text in context and get the most out of Scripture for ourselves and for our hearers. 

 

Over the years, I have read a number of books and articles listing the benefits of expository preaching. Along with these, I have also discovered additional pedagogical benefits to this form of teaching:

1.     It’s easier to follow. 

Our listeners can read along in the text and grasp the logical flow of the argument of the text. And if they get distracted (as we all often do), they can easily find their place again because the teacher is attached to the passage. 

2.     It’s easier for non-native speakers to follow.

They can read the passage in their own language as they listen along. This is especially helpful when we consider the great numbers of immigrants from all over the world in many of our urban churches. I have seen such benefits firsthand, as I worship at a church composed largely of immigrants for whom French is a second or third language.

3.     It’s easier for non-believers and new believers to follow.

Those unfamiliar with Scripture may be embarrassed to try to look up multiple passages or verses in a topical sermon. But finding one book of the Bible and staying there is feasible, especially with a little orientation from the speaker. When the lesson is then derived from that text clearly and simply, it gives credibility to both the teacher and the Scripture. When we jump around from text to text, our hearers may get lost. But if we consecrate the bulk of our time to explaining, illustrating, and applying the text in question, they are more like to be able to keep up with our train of thought.

4.     It’s easier for children and teens to follow. 

Our kids are learning from their pastors and teachers how to handle God’s Word. Our hope is that as we teach them to draw principles for their lives from the main message from a passage, they will apply the same method in their own study of Scripture.

5.     It’s easier to retain the main argument made by the speaker. 

Following a sermon our Bible study, our hope as teachers is that our hearers will remember the main idea of the passage. Whether they discuss it over lunch or in a moment of personal devotion the following day, simply rereading the passage and recalling the message given should allow the hearers to recall the essence of the sermon more easily.