Deuel, David C. Suggestions for Expositional Preaching of Old Testament Narrative.

The Master's Seminary Journal, Spring 1991, 45-63. The author, Dr. David C. Deuel, was the associate professor of Old Testament at the Masters Seminary in Sun Valley, CA when this article was initially written. He is no longer listed as a faculty member on the seminarys website. A cursory web search shows that he has written other articles related to the Old Testament. The target audience is preachers and pastors, as he places a challenge to expository preachers to reconsider how they preach through the Old Testament, and more specifically, how they handle narrative genre in their preaching. Dr. Deuel believes that the preacher should consider the entire story or narrative as a whole, and not use specific characters or events as the foundation for his sermon. For example, using the story of Joseph, he suggests that the entire story from Josephs dream to his brothers bowing before him in Egypt should be used in a particular sermon. Preaching specific events, like Joseph being forgotten in jail limits the storys effectiveness and minimizes its deeper theological meaning. Gods sovereignty is the point, not necessarily Josephs perseverance or personal integrity. Because it was published in a seminary journal, I understand this work to be scholarly in nature, thus appealing to theology students, other professors, and preachers. It is academic in nature and assumes some knowledge of Biblical interpretation and genres. Dr. Deuels focus, then, is on literary interpretation, and more specifically narrative genre. As previously stated, Dr. Deuel believes that a narrative (story) in Scripture should be considered and preached in its entirety. Since literary interpretation considers an extended passage of Scripture, this article fits most comfortably on this level. A solid strength in this article, with which I identify, is Dr. Deuels concern for expository preaching in and through the Old Testament. In my limited experience as a Baptist

Pastor, I have found that the Old Testament is often overlooked or at least neglected in preaching. Old Testament stories and events may be quoted to support a principle, but rarely is an Old Testament text used as the basis for an expository sermon. Dr. Deuel challenges the reader to not just use the Old Testament for illustration purposes, but to use it as he (the preacher) preaches the whole counsel of God. There is valid instruction in the Old Testament such as the creation, the covenants, and the law of God which may or may not be reflected in the New Testament. . Old Testament narratives, as Gods story, have significance and meaning for Gods people today. Dr. Deuel reminds the preacher to consider the genre he has chosen when preparing his sermon. Hes says that different genre should be treated differently as we prepare our messages for corporate worship. For example, poetry as found in the Psalms would be handled differently than the narrative genre found in Genesis and Deuteronomy. I have concern as to how realistic it is for a preacher to consider an entire narrative in one sermon. The Joseph Story, for example, begins in Chapter Thirty-seven and continues through Chapter Fifty. Thats a very large section of Scripture for a pastor to use during one sermon message! My sermons are expositional in nature and cover one verse to several in the span of forty minutes. I would have to do a lot of summarizing in order to preach the entire sermon in one Sunday morning setting. It would be more realistic to handle the preaching of a specific narrative in a sermon series and then preach a final message on the overall message of the text. Additionally, Dr. Deuels concern is for the preacher to proclaim Gods truth and message based on the entire narrative. This is a valid point; however, this does not mean that the particular scenes within the narrative cannot stand alone as a message from God. Nor does it mean that the characters attitude and response to a given situation has no value. If Gods Word

is inspired and inerrant, then everything is useful for preaching and teaching, including subsections of a given Biblical narrative. In conclusion, I understand Dr. Deuels purpose and intention, and he makes valid points. It has reminded me and challenged me to consider the genre of a text God has called me to preach from. His heart for the proper preaching of the Old Testament today is also clear. I do agree that there is a wealth of wisdom and knowledge for Gods people in the Old Testament. I also hear the call to consider the theme and story-line of the entire narrative while preparing a sermon or message. Nevertheless, I am not convinced that this is a realistic practice. Perhaps with further explanation or if he had provided a sample model, I would have better understood what this would look like, practically speaking.