Preaching 1.0

 There are two basic styles of preaching used in churches today. Topical and expository preaching.

Topical preaching uses the Bible to address issues from any walk of life. Marriage, fear, service, salvation, faith, etc. Often a topical preacher does not use a long text, but only a verse or two to set the direction of his message.

Expository preaching lets the Bible speak for itself. It uses Bible stories or people and explains, from the Bible, what they did, why they did it, and what happened to them. Very few real life illustrations are used.

Pastor Mitchell was a topical preacher, but an expository teacher. He used a sermon to speak to real life issues. He used adult Sunday School to explain doctrine or Bible truth. Sunday school to explain what we believe, and sermons to challenge us to apply what we believe in our lives today.

The Bible story never changes. Every time you read about Moses or David or Paul, the story always ends the same. Telling us what they did and why they did it is okay if you know nothing about the Bible. Some of us know these stories inside out. We need to know the "this is that" for today.

I think that topical preaching is best. I think that expository is best for teaching. But that's just me.