Psalm 119 repeatedly confronts us with the fact that devotion to God’s word brings troubles and blessings. The hard truth that devotion brings trouble is mentioned in the previous stanzas. It is stated explicitly in this stanza. Yet the tone of the psalmist is upbeat.  He was not down, distressed, or defeated.  He was not on the verge of giving up on his faith.  He was not looking for deliverance from his troubles.  There is only one prayer request in this stanza. It is not a prayer for deliverance. It is an expression of confidence in the faithfulness of God. Alexander Maclaren wrote: “This section has...

Welcome to The On Preaching Podcast, the podcast dedicated to helping you to preach faithfully, clearly, and better. The three laws of real estate are location, location, location. Similarly, the three laws of proper Bible interpretation are context, context, context. A text without a context is a pretext.  Context in biblical interpretation falls into two categories: historical context and literary context. In this episode, H.B. discusses how to read with an eye toward the literary context.  Here are the seven circles of context you should consider... The Sermon Text. Start with the unit of thought you have selected to study and...

Matthew 28:18-20 records the Great Commission of Jesus Christ: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.” The Lord has commissioned the church to make disciples. Teaching is essential to the disciple-making process.  Disciples think and live by the teaching of Christ. Who is qualified to teach others? It is those who have been taught. No one who does not have a teachable spirit should be...

Welcome to The On Preaching Podcast, the podcast dedicated to helping you to preach faithfully, clearly, and better. In order to be able to expound the Scriptures, and as an aid to your pulpit studies you will need to be familiar with the commentators: a glorious army, let me tell you, whose acquaintance will be your delight and profit. Of course, you are not such wiseacres as to think or say that you can expound Scripture without assistance from the works of divines and learned men who have laboured before you in the field of exposition. If you are of...

The headline read: “Sick of Waiting, Patient Sues Doctor.” Ken Fleckenstein arrived on time for an appointment with his podiatrist, Dr. Robert Taylor. He was forced to sit in a waiting room for 87 minutes. On his next visit, Taylor made Fleckenstein wait 51 minutes. The self-employed handyman claimed the wait cost him time, money, and customers. So he sent his podiatrist a $92 invoice. When Taylor refused to pay, Fleckenstein sued for time wasted and $1,755 in attorney’s fees. In court, Taylor admitted to double booking, sometimes triple booking patients. But he claimed emergencies took priority. The doctor also gave Fleckenstein a verbal and...

In Psalm 51:5, David confesses, “Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.” David’s testimony is our testimony. We are sinners – by nature, birth, inclination, choice, and conduct. Romans 3:10-12 says: “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.” We do not need anyone to teach us to sin. Having children proves this truth. You do not have to train a child to lie, cheat, or steal. At birth, babies are hardwired to do wrong. So is every one of us. William Beveridge wrote: I cannot pray,...

Welcome to The On Preaching Podcast, the podcast dedicated to helping you to preach faithfully, clearly, and better.  The sermon preparation is a twofold process of getting the text right and getting the truth across.  In terms of biblical exegesis (getting the text across), I commend to you the inductive Bible study process:  Observation: What does the text say?  Interpretation: What does the text mean? Application: How does the text apply? Correlation: How does the text relate? In this episode, H.B. focuses on doing observations. The tools you need for this part of your word work are a Bible, something...

The previous section of Psalm 119 ends in verse 24 with a testimony of joy: “Your testimonies are my delight; they are my counselors.” This section begins in verse 25 with a prayer of lamentation, “My soul clings to the dust; give me life according to your word!”  This sudden and extreme change of mood reminds us that one who lives by God’s word will face joy and pain, happiness and sorrow, celebration and grief. This abrupt shift further reveals that seasons of depression often follow seasons of delight. Times of weakness often follow times of strength. The experience of defeat often follows the experience of victory.  Andrew Bonner wrote: “We must be as watchful after the victory as before the battle.” It...

The Ten Commandments begin with a theological emphasis and then move to ethical issues. Exodus 20:1-17 assumes one must have a proper relationship with God to have a proper relationship with your neighbor.  Theology comes before ethics.  Religion comes before morality.  Worship comes before community.  The Ten Commandments teach us to love God before they teach us to love one another. When the Decalogue moves from loving God to loving neighbor, the first commandment is: “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.” Before the sanctity of life, sexual morality, respect for other’s property, the importance of honesty, or the curbing of jealousy, God...

Welcome to The On Preaching Podcast, the podcast dedicated to helping you to preach faithfully, clearly, and better. In this episode, we'll discuss theological disciplines for expository preaching. As a study and advocate of expository preaching, I believe that it is the most faithful way to handle the word of God. Why expository preaching? Because I believe it is the most faithful way to handle the word of God. Expository preaching is the proper response to God-breathed scripture (2 Timothy 3:16-4:2). The bottom line of this episode is that faithful exposition is theologically informed. It should be doctrinal, not merely...

Psalm 119 celebrates the sufficiency of God’s word for every season of life.  Verses 1-8 affirm the sufficiency of God’s word to bless us.  Verses 9-16 affirm the sufficiency of God’s word to cleanse us.  Verses 17-24 affirm the sufficiency of God’s word to sustain us.  This third stanza marks a transition in Psalm 119. It is the first time the psalmist acknowledges devotion to God’s word does not vaccinate you from difficult circumstances. In Matthew 7:24-27, Jesus says, “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and...

James 1:26-27 contrasts true and false religion. Verse 26 describes false religion: “If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless.” Verse 27 summarizes true religion: “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.” James 2:1-13 shows that these statements about true and false religion are not theoretical. The church practices one of the other whenever we assemble. Verse 1 states the point: “My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory.” The key term is “partiality.” The...