One of the challenges of preaching is getting an audience to see that they are part of the Bible’s narrative. That is, they have a role to play in the unfolding story of redemptive history. The purpose of gathering around the Word as it is preached is not to glean helpful principles for life, but to become more fully enmeshed in the story of Scripture, with all its demands and expectations of us.
The task of preaching then is like the production of a drama, in which the director narrates the story for the would-be cast members, who then begin to join the drama on stage.
Ross Bender captures this idea well. He explains, “Teaching the Bible in the congregation is like producing a drama. As learners we begin by sitting in the audience while the action unfolds on the stage. We observe God’s call to Abraham, the deliverance of the slaves from Egypt, the covenant at Sinai, the exile, the promise of the deliverer, the birth of Christ and his suffering, death and resurrection. Suddenly we discover that we are no longer in the audience but up on the stage, participants in the drama surrounded by the saints of all the ages. Or to change the image, we come out of the bleachers down on the field as players in the game. Or to change the image once again, we leave the television set where the war is portrayed on the screen, enlist in the army and go to the front to fight in the real war (Eph 6:12).”
For preachers or anyone involved in teaching the Bible to others, we should bear this emphasis in mind. We don’t teach to distill helpful principles or satisfy the curiosity of religious enthusiasts. Rather, we teach to enlist the audience in the cause of Christ.
