Today in expository preaching we talked about how to take our sermons from just a speech on a text to a sharing of the living word. We have a lot of issues, especially as OCC students, to treat the bible, our sermons, and our papers as mere articles that we dissect and critique. Where do we go wrong? What makes us view our papers and sermons as a dwelling on the living words and not just studying mere words. How do we make our work devotional, life changing, and applicable? How do we do this not just to our audience but our own deprived souls? How do we make the living words living works in our lives?
We have to connect it to our humanity. Taking it from words bound within our language to a working example of our life, our humanity. The living words of the Bible are not just stories but it is the dissemination of how we are are to be integrated into daily Christian life. It is connected to more than our language but to our hearts. our struggles, our joy, and our desolation. For our papers and sermons to be more than just a critical review of an ancient book it must be integrated into every area of humanity, every area of our life.
The presentation of living words should cause reflection on our fallen former, exertion for a pure present, and an encouragement for living a faithful future. Our papers and sermons are not just assignments but must be the integration of God in our lives.
Amen. What we study and what we preach is the Living Word of God. May our studies be reflected not only in our preaching but in our way of life.
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