How can expository preaching help to develop a strong Christian ethic in the congregation?  In a culture that has deteriorated rapidly for the last three decades, one need not look very far for examples of unethical or immoral conduct.  From the formerly honorable White House to the Salt Lake Olympic Committee to the divorced homes in America, the ideals and values which framed the formation of this country seem to have been abandoned.  Sadly, in the church today, many members practice that which they used to preach against: addiction to alcohol and drugs, abortion, lying, cheating, stealing, adultery, and divorce.  Most churches are simply ignored in the community; they have lost their power and their witness.  At one point, the church was so pure that two members who persisted in a lie died before the fearful eyes of the other believers (Acts 5:1-11). How can it be that the once pure church of Jesus Christ has become so much like the world outside its walls? What is it that has created the lack of Christian ethics in the majority of churches?

I submit the answer is found in the pulpits of America’s churches.  It is here that the man of God is to preach the Word of God to the people of God. 

The Apostle Paul explains that “…faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Rom. 10:17, NKJV).  What will change the hearts of believers and build them up in the faith is the preaching of the Word of God.  If the faith of believers is failing in this country, then the Bible states very clearly it is because they are not hearing the Word of God.  While I have great respect for the men of God who pastor a church, I also know that it is the responsibility of the pastor through his teaching ministry to build up the body of Christ.  It seems that many pastors have become either reckless in their preparation to preach, envious mimics of other “famous” preachers, or enamoured with secular means and messages.  As a result, much of what passes for preaching today is the opinion of man rather than the Word of God.  If the Christian ethic is to change, then the preaching in the pulpits must clearly and passionately proclaim the message of the Bible to the congregation.

What is the Christian ethic for the church today?  The message of the Bible has not changed in thousands of years:

As obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, "Be holy, for I am holy." (1 Pet. 1:14-16, NKJV)

Holiness in our character and conduct is the guiding ethic for the Christian today as it was yesterday and will be tomorrow.  The Apostle Paul agrees that the Christian has been called with a holy calling in Christ Jesus our LORD (2 Tim. 1:9).  Holiness is a call to live in the light of God’s truth, obeying the command of God through His word (Psalm 119:4; 1 John 1:7; 2:3-6).  A reflection of our holiness, even our love for God, is found in our obedience to His commands (1 John 5:3).  As Paul explains, we are to put off the old self which is corrupted by sin and put on the new self which is created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness (Eph. 4:22-24).  Interestingly, Paul emphasizes this is something that must be taught.  It is not natural for people to pursue holiness thus creating the need for the pastor to proclaim clearly and consistently the Word of God.

Where is the Christian ethic found today?  The Bible provides the answer in the writings of the Apostle Paul:

All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 Tim 3:16-17, NKJV)

As this passage teaches, all Scripture is not only God-breathed but profitable.  Like a well-fertilized garden that produces an abundance of fruits and vegetables, the Word of God will benefit the one who hears it taught clearly and consistently.  All Scripture is useful in completely and thoroughly equipping the believer for everything that God has in mind for him to do.  So there is nothing the believer needs to learn in the way of ethics or morality that they will fail to find in the Scriptures.  The pastor who keeps Scripture in clear view through his preaching and teaching will benefit himself and his congregation (1 Tim. 4:16).

Paul also points out that Scripture addresses both beliefs and behavior.  Because right behavior generally follows right beliefs, both must be addressed through the pulpit ministry and any other teaching venues in the church. 

Scripture addresses beliefs through “doctrine” and “reproof” (2 Tim. 3:16, NKJV). The teaching of “doctrine” is the proclamation of beliefs found in God’s word.  What we believe about God, Heaven, Hell, Jesus Christ, the nature of man, the meaning of the cross and the resurrection are all critical for the believer.  Certainly there is much false teaching in these major doctrinal areas.  In America, the influx of immigrants from atheistic and polytheistic cultures has had a dramatic, negative impact on the spiritual knowledge and vitality of people in this country.  People have learned to pick and choose the parts of religion that they like and to discard the rest.  Experience shows that error begets error.  Paul teaches that the Bible is to be used as “reproof” to counter the false doctrines that people bring into the church.  Therefore, Scripture profits the congregation through doctrine (teaching right beliefs) and reproof (addressing wrong beliefs).  This lays a firm foundation for ethical conduct by putting the right beliefs about God in the minds of the believers.

Paul also states that all Scripture is profitable “for correction, for instruction in righteousness” (2 Tim. 3:16, NKJV).  All believers need instruction in holy living.  Titus 2:11-15 explains how we should be taught to turn away from wickedness and lust so that we can live righteously before God and men.  But the pastor must “Speak these things, exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no one despise you” (Titus 2:15, NKJV).  Because of the sin nature that remains in the believer, we must have instruction.  Yet that same sin nature is a weakness in each believer that can cause him or her to stray from what is pure, good, and decent. Without the clear teaching of Scripture, the Bible warns that people will become ungodly (1 Tim. 1:3-7; 2 Tim. 2:14-19; Titus 1:10-14).  Scripture, however, is completely sufficient for “correction” when the believer’s behavior is less than holy.  The pastor will exhort his congregation from the Word of God to teach holy living and convict those engaged in unholy living. All Scripture is profitable for beliefs and behavior, theory and practice, promotion of the good and halting the evil. 

What is the best way to teach Christian ethics? If Scripture is the source of those ethics, then the best method for teaching them is that which clearly exposes the meaning of Scripture with relevant application to the believer.  Expository preaching is just such a method.  As Bryan Chapell explains, “Expository preaching attempts to present and apply the truths of a specific biblical passage” ¹ .  The expository message is one that first exposes the meaning of a text through the techniques of exposition and then applies that meaning to the needs of the congregation.  In this way, it is both a process and a result. The primary focus of the message is on what the Word of God actually says. 

Today we find people from many diverse backgrounds and spiritual perspectives.  It is a relativistic culture where each person has his own “truth.”  The preacher today stands before people with one of two options: proclaim just another opinion in a quagmire of conflicting rhetoric or proclaim the Word of God.  Chapell (1994) points out:

Expository preaching that explains precisely what the Word of God says about the issues of our day, the concerns of our lives, and the destinies of our souls provides an alternative.  Such preaching offers a voice of authority not of human origin, and promises answers not subject to cultural vagaries. ²

Expository preaching, by virtue of its source and method, produces a message that has recognizable authority.  With the source of a message rooted in God’s word, and the method specifically designed to expose and elevate the meaning of Scripture, expository preaching rises above the rhetoric and opinions with a clear ring of “Thus saith the LORD” (Exo. 4:22, KJV). One of God’s most awesome promises about His Word should be a daily encouragement to the preacher: “So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it” (Isa. 55:11, NKJV).  Rather than the preacher, or the preaching itself, it is God’s Word that will prosper and accomplish the purposes of God.  People’s lives will be changed and strengthened forever when they are taught the Word of God.   They will develop strong ethical, moral, spiritual, and relational foundations in their thinking and practice because the Word of God is the source and structure of the message.  They will learn a biblical worldview through which to understand and deal with the events in their lives.  And believers will enjoy the blessing of God as they learn to put off corrupt, evil practices and walk in the light of God’s Word (Psa. 1:1-3; Col. 3:16; 1 John 1:7).

For this reason, the preacher must preach the Word of God using an expository approach as his main tactic.  The Apostle Paul gives a stern warning about this to young Timothy and to all preachers today:

I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. (2 Tim. 4:1-2, NKJV)

It is always the appropriate time to preach the Word of God, in and out of season.  People always need to hear the Word of God which is infused with spiritual power, activated by the Holy Spirit with the express purpose of building up the believer in the kingdom of God (Heb. 4:12-13).  There will come a time when people will not want to hear what God has to say (2 Tim. 4:3-5).  Some may argue that our country has already reached that point.  The lack of Christian ethics, even the lack of concern for ethical behavior, lends credence to that argument.  Yet Scripture makes it clear that the preacher’s responsibility is to preach the Word of God anyway.  He must discharge his ministry of exhorting, persuading, and convicting people in his congregation with the truth of God’s word.  Expository preaching will thus develop Christians, through the gospel of Jesus Christ, and Christian ethics, through the clear, consistent proclamation of Scripture.