Quotes on What Expository Preaching Is

Of course if by an ‘expository’ sermon is meant a verse-by-verse explanation of a lengthy passage of scripture, then indeed it is only one possible way of preaching, but this would be a misuse of the word. Properly speaking, ‘exposition’ has a much broader meaning. It refers to the content of the sermon (biblical truth) rather than its style (running commentary). To expound Scripture is to bring out of the text what is there and expose it to view. John Stott, Between Two Worlds (125-126)


Expository preaching is defined not by a style nor by a particular methodology, but by the end result of explaining and applying the meaning of the text. Expository preaching is any kind of preaching that shows people the meaning of a Biblical text and leads them to apply it to their lives. Hershael W. York and Bert Decker, Preaching with Bold Assurance (33)


1. The message finds its sole source in Scripture.

2. The message is extracted from Scripture through careful exegesis. 

3. The message preparation correctly interprets Scripture in its normal sense and its context. 

4. The message clearly explains the original God-intended meaning of Scripture. 

5. The message applies the Scriptural meaning for today. Richard Mayhue, Rediscovering Expository Preaching (12-13)


Expository preaching attempts to present and apply the truths of a specific biblical passage. Bryan Chapell, Christ-Centered Preaching (30)


Exposition, then, may be defined as the process of laying open a Biblical text in such a way that its original meaning is brought to bear on the lives of contemporary listeners. Jerry Vines and Jim Shaddix, Power in the Pulpit (28)


Expository preaching is the communication of a Biblical concept, derived from and transmitted through a historical, grammatical, and literary study of a passage in its context, which the Holy Spirit first applies to the personality and experience of the preacher, then through the preacher, applies to the hearers. Haddon Robinson, Biblical Preaching (21)


Expository preaching grounds the message in the text so that all the sermon’s points are points in the text, and it majors in the text’s major ideas. It aligns the interpretation of the text with the doctrinal truths of the rest of the Bible (being sensitive to Systematic Theology). And it always situates the passage within the Bible's narrative, showing how Christ is the final fulfillment of the text's theme (being sensitive to biblical theology). Timothy Keller, Preaching (32)


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