When I went to seminary, we were taught that the best, most authentic, relevant way to preach was to create an expository sermon. For the uninitiated that’s a sermon that starts with a scripture passage, “expose” it by digging in to teach what the passage says, what the author meant, and then apply it to today. I suppose that once upon a time, this was perhaps an excellent way to prepare a sermon – one that was “true to the text” and to the meaning of the scripture.

I’ve always had one problem with this sermon preparation method, and I’ve developed a second problem with it over the past couple of decades. My first problem is that I can’t find a single example of this kind of preaching in scripture. Neither Jesus nor Paul started with scripture and built from there. Instead, they began where the audience was and applied scripture from there. (One could legitimately conclude that there is a lot more eisegesis going on in New Testament preaching than exegesis.)

But my second problem with starting with scripture is more about our culture than it is about historical sermon preparation or even delivery methods. Up until a couple of decades ago, most Americans treated the Bible with some level of reverence. Even if someone wasn’t a Christian, the Bible was viewed as an important book, and in most cases, a holy book on some level.

Unfortunately, that’s not the world we live in anymore. Today the Bible is mostly treated as a Christian book – perhaps more specifically, the church’s book. It’s neither universally referenced or reverenced. It’s largely viewed as just an old, historical, religious text that has little or no bearing on the lives or thoughts of the average person. To many of those outside the church, it’s no more holy than the Quran, the Vespas, the Bhagavad Gita, or the Book of Shadows. (To see this exemplified, take a peek at the movie The Book of Eli starring Denzel Washington.)

With that in mind, when a sermon begins with scripture, you have immediately thrown up a wall between you and those who discount the relevance of the Bible. To many today, since the Bible has no authority, you’re trying to base and build truth on what they consider an outdated, outmoded, and irrelevant foundation.

The solution is to delay introducing scripture to the message and to start with a cultural itch. Many of us were taught to start our presentations with some cute story or even a startling stat and then move into scripture and exposition. Instead, begin with culture’s questions as your hook. You could start with a hurt they’re dealing with; a question they aren’t finding an adequate answer to; the emptiness they can’t fill; or some itch … some discomfort … they can’t scratch. In some real ways, you’re expositing the culture rather than the scriptures – here’s an issue; here’s how it’s impacting society; here’s how it’s impacting you.

At that point, it’s tempting to launch into a scriptural solution, but if you do, the walls will go shooting up. Instead, I recommend looking at some of the ways culture is addressing the problem – and let’s be honest, culture is offering solutions. Don’t fall into the trap of only citing solutions that are obviously not working. In fact, you may not want to show culture’s failures at all. Interestingly, most of the successful cultural solutions to life’s dilemmas can be found reflected in scripture, or more accurately, have their roots in scripture. Besides, if you diss culture’s solutions, you’re inviting defensiveness in your listeners … remember, Paul did not tell the Athenians their idols were evil, he just used their solution as a launching off place (see Acts 17). In any event, over the years, I’ve found this practice to be a powerful foundation onto which we can lay scripture. You can use the “Isn’t it interesting …?” gambit. Here’s what that looks like:

1. Here’s an issue culture is wrestling with …
2. Here’s how it’s impacting society …
3. Here’s how it’s impacting you …
4. Culture has tried to address it in these ways …
5. Here’s a cultural solution that’s working …
6. Isn’t it interesting that this solution is reflected in words Jesus (or Paul or Peter or Moses or …)
7. Introduction of scripture reading, light exposition, heavy application, and invitation to some behavioral change

[See Tell ’em What to Do for more]

The reason this practice works so well is that it skirts around the objection of scriptural authority based on divine inspiration and instead establishes its authority based on logic and experience. In addition, because the preaching isn’t judging culture negatively, the hearer doesn’t build any unnecessary walls against the gospel … and in the end, getting the audience to experience the gospel in a way they can hear it clearly and apply it fearlessly is kinda exactly the point.