\nThere are lots of famous preachers, whom I greatly respect, who insist the\nonly appropriate biblical preaching is verse-by-verse exposition. But many\nof these preachers do what I call “topical preaching in disguise.” While\npreaching through a book of the Bible, they often preach what is really a\ntopical sermon.<\/p>\n\n
\nOne of my favorite expositional preachers is Donald Grey Barnhouse, the pulpit\ngiant who preached at Philadelphia’s Tenth Presbyterian Church. How could\nBarnhouse preach 140 expository sermons from Romans? In the preface to his\nten volumes on Romans, Barnhouse describes his style as “expositions which\ntake as their point of departure the book of Romans and range through the\nwhole of the Bible. . . .” These “points of departure” lead to topical studies\non important subjects such as the Trinity, unanswered prayer, and God’s purpose\nin human suffering.<\/p>\n\n
\nWeren’t Jesus’ sermons primarily topical? What about Paul’s sermons, or Peter’s?\nWhy do some expository preachers boast about never preaching a topical sermon?<\/p>\n\n
\nThose of us who preach topical sermons from time to time would be the first\nto admit those topical sermons must be based on the Scriptures. I wish everyone\nwould admit that such a sermon is true biblical preaching and not some stepchild.<\/p>\n\n
\n(It’s interesting that those who endorse expositional preaching alone usually\nare enthusiastic students of systematic theology, which is nothing less than\nthe topical arrangement of biblical truth.)<\/p>\n\n
\nSince every sermon I preach has a topic, and every sermon is based on a text\nof Scripture, I have chosen the term “topo-sitional preaching” to characterize\nmy approach. Verse-by-verse exposition is the bread and butter of preaching;\nI just finished preaching 42 sermons on the Gospel of Mark. But I don’t feel\nguilty if I sense the need to preach a topical series on the attributes of\nGod or on spiritual gifts. I just make it clear I am basing my preaching\non the Word of God.\n<\/p>\n
Timothy Z. Witmer\nCrossroads Community Church\nUpper Darby, Pennsylvania<\/p>\n\n
1996 by Christianity Today\/LEADERSHIP journal<\/p>\n