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For such a large chunk of Scripture, the Old Testament narrative books remain little-known to many Christians. Many pastors don’t know where to begin in teaching it; fewer still can preach it in light of the gospel of Jesus Christ. But years of experience watching congregations come alive to these books helped Steve Mathewson write The Art of Preaching Old Testament Narrative. I asked Mathewson, the senior pastor of Libertyville Evangelical Free Church in Libertyville, Illinois, to help scan the lay of the land with various approaches to preaching Old Testament narratives. Read much more on biblical narrative at The Gospel Coalition’s new site on Preaching Christ in the Old Testament.

What is the greatest challenge for preachers and teachers when it comes to preaching the gospel from Old Testament narratives?

The greatest challenge, I believe, is to interpret the narrative correctly before wrestling with its connection to the gospel. Narratives are challenging because they work so differently than texts from Proverbs,  Ephesians, or Revelation. Preachers need to be patient to discover the author’s intent before thinking through the way the narrative ties into the story of redemption. This means careful attention to plot development, characterization, dialogue (which often carries the freight of meaning), and setting—both the historical-cultural and literary setting.

How would you break down and evaluate the various ways preachers handle Old Testament narratives?

I see three basic approaches. At one end of the spectrum is a MORALISTIC approach. Some will label this as “anthropocentric,” “human-centered,” or “exemplary.” This approach basically looks to the characters of Old Testament narrative as good or bad examples. So, the sermon ends up challenging listeners to honor God by being like David or not being like David. At the other end of the spectrum is the STRICT CHRIST-CENTERED approach. This may be described by some as “redemptive-historical” or “Christo-centric” or “Christological.” It focuses on how an Old Testament narrative prefigures or points to the incarnate Christ. It uses typology or analogy or contrast or promise-fulfillment to move from the particular story to Christ. A mediating approach is a THEOLOGICAL approach. This approach identifies the theological message of a particular narrative, locates this theology in redemptive history, and feels free to offer an “ethical thrust”  which is grounded in the gospel. When handled this way, this mediating approach, I would argue, is Christ-centered and gospel-centered.

Interestingly, this mediating position is the one that Sidney Greidanus suggested after studying a pre-WWII controversy in the Dutch Reformed Churches in Holland over exemplary versus redemptive-historical preaching. Yes, this was an “in house” controversy with some Reformed pastors arguing for exemplary preaching! Greidanus argued for a mediating position in Sola Scriptura (essentially his doctoral dissertation) and The Modern Preacher and the Ancient Text. However, he has since moved to a more strict Christ-centered approach with the publication of Preaching Christ from the Old Testament.

How would you caution a preacher eager to teach Christ and the gospel from the Old Testament narrative books?

My caution, to use the words of Bryan Chapell, is that “A sermon remains expository and Christ-centered not because it leapfrogs to Golgotha but because it locates the intent of a passage within the scope of God’s redemptive work” (Christ-Centered Preaching, 2nd ed.,  p. 304). Chapell puts it another way: “Preachers should not pretend that every text specifically mentions Jesus if one has the right decoder ring. Rather, they should demonstrate how every text reflects aspects or needs of his grace that are made plain in the fullness of time” (Christ-Centered Preaching, 2nd ed., p. 284).

Is there a book of the Bible you’d suggest as the best entry point for a preacher who wants to teach narratives expositioally?

The book of Ruth is a good choice. Whether a pastor handles it in one sermon or four sermons, the book’s theology and purpose contains some definite connections to Christ. The book is all about how God redeems and restores through ordinary people who show loyal love (Hebrew, hesed)  to the people God places around them. The genealogy at the end of the book, coupled with the mention of Ruth in Jesus’ dysfunctional family tree in Matthew 1:1-17 offer some obvious connections. Another good choice would be the book of Judges. Preachers may view this is a dark,  difficult book. But the stories scream out that God’s people need a Deliverer unlike those in the narrative of Judges.

Can you point to helpful commentaries, books, workshops, and even sermons that train pastors to preach Christ and the gospel from the Old Testament narratives?

As far as helpful resources, I encourage everyone to read chapters 10 and 11 in the second edition of Bryan Chapell’s Christ-Centered Preaching. While these chapters do not zero in specifically on preaching Old Testament narrative texts, they explain what redemptive preaching is and is not. Perhaps Sidney Greidanus’s Sola Scriptura: Problems and Principles in Preaching Historical Texts will be too dense for some preachers. But it is worth working through its two-hundred pages to watch the Dutch Reformed churches in Holland immediately prior to WWII grapple with how to preach Old Testament narratives. I find Greidanus’s synthesis and conclusions more compelling in this volume than the position he adopts in Preaching Christ from the Old Testament. But read this later volume, too, especially to see how Luther and Calvin differed in their approach. Luther held to a strict Christ-centered view, while Calvin advocated a theological approach. Greidanus has also authored Preaching Christ From Genesis, which can provide some good leads, even though I think he is a bit too reluctant to steer clear of including an “ethical thrust” or exhortation on how these narratives instruct us to live. Edmund Clowney’s Preaching Christ in All of Scripture contains some fine sermon manuscripts, five of which are from Old Testament narrative texts. Like Greidanus, he takes a more strict Christ-centered approach.

Is there enough evidence for us to believe the Gospels?

In an age of faith deconstruction and skepticism about the Bible’s authority, it’s common to hear claims that the Gospels are unreliable propaganda. And if the Gospels are shown to be historically unreliable, the whole foundation of Christianity begins to crumble.
But the Gospels are historically reliable. And the evidence for this is vast.
To learn about the evidence for the historical reliability of the four Gospels, click below to access a FREE eBook of Can We Trust the Gospels? written by New Testament scholar Peter J. Williams.

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