Preaching

Leaving Christ Out of His Story

Are morals overrated? Is it a waste of time and energy to lead a morally pure lifestyle? Should youth pastors exhort their students to obey their parents, to tell the truth, and to read their Bibles? Or are Christians somehow beyond those rules now? These types of questions are inevitably asked of those who speak out against moralistic preaching. But these questions betray an underlying misunderstanding of the dangers of moralism.

Expository preaching has been succinctly defined as preaching in which the point of the text is the point of the sermon. In this sense, all preaching should be expository, whether it handles a topic, a verse, or an extended passage of Scripture. If a preacher uses God’s words to make his (the preacher’s) point, then how does God get a word in edgewise?

Reviewed by Doug Smith.

Lawson, Stephen J. The Expository Genius of John Calvin. Lake Mary, FL: Reformation Trust Publishing, 2007. Hardcover, 142 pages. $15.00.

(Review copy courtesy of Reformation Trust.)

^{Note: Dr. Sam Horn is host of The Word for Life radio program.}

by Dr. Sam Horn

^{Note: Dr. Sam Horn is host of The Word for Life radio program.}

by Dr. Sam Horn

Reviewed by Matt Christensen

Dever, Mark, et al. Preaching the Cross. Wheaton, Ill: Crossway Books, 2007. 176 pages, Hardcover. $19.99 USD.

(Review copies courtesy of Crossway Books)

Reviewed by Robert Talley

Wright, John W. Telling God’s Story: Narrative Preaching for Christian Formation. Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2007. Paperback, 264 pages. $18.00

(Review copy courtesy of InterVarsity Press)

by Andy Efting

Kaiser, Walter C., Jr. The Majesty of God in the Old Testament: A Guide for Preaching and Teaching. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2007. 174 pages. $16.99

(Review copy courtesy of Baker Academic)

Some Thoughts on Pulpit Plagiarism

by Doug Smith

Is it wrong to preach another pastor’s sermon? This issue is certainly not new, but there has been a good bit of discussion in the last few months concerning possible answers to this question, some of which is quite disturbing.

John Cheeseman. The Priority of Preaching. Edinburgh: The Banner of Truth Trust, 2006. 27 pp. $2.00/paperback.

(Review copy courtesy of Banner of Truth)