Preaching The Text

On this episode of Preaching the Text, John Hoyum and Steve Paulson examine the passion reading for Good Friday. Here we read John's account of the death of Christ and stress the need to emphasize not only Christ's atonement of our sins, but also the promise of forgiveness delivered at Easter.

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On this episode of Preaching the Text, John Hoyum and Steve Paulson discuss the institution of the Lord's Supper as told by Matthew. Here, we learn that Christ institutes a meal not for friends, but for sinners and betrayers. Christ delivers his body and blood to those who have sin for the forgiveness of sin. The one who is worthy to recieve is the sinner believing the words of Christ, "given and shed for you."

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In this episode of Preaching the Text, John Hoyum and Steven Paulson discuss the Palm Sunday gospel reading from John 12. This is the processional gospel usually read at the beginning of the service. We learn how to preach this text – and how to teach our listeners to welcome their Lord and demand his word of promise and forgiveness.

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In this episode of Preaching the Text, John Hoyum and Steve Paulson examine the story of the raising of Lazarus. A particular mystery of this text is that Jesus waits for Lazarus to die even though he's heard of his sickness. We find that Jesus intends to perform a bigger miracle: to give life to the dead with the power of his word. This word belongs in the pulpit, where preachers give the promise of the resurrection itself.

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Hymn Sing Happy Hour

On this episode of Preaching the Text, Steve Paulson and John Hoyum discuss the story of Jesus healing a man born blind. This healing elicits suspicion and disbelief from many of the Pharisees who question Jesus' authority to do such things. We conclude by showing how preachers can give the gospel to those who are spiritually both blind and deaf, because it is the gospel that gives sight and hearing.

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Hymn Sing Happy Hour

In this episode of Preaching the Text, John Hoyum and Steve Paulson study the story of the woman at the well. This conversation involves a long dispute between the Samaritans and the Jews about the proper location of worship. Jesus reveals that true worship of God will take place neither in Samaria nor in Jerusalem only, but that true worship is in Spirit and truth. We also learn how the disciples fail to understand the true nature of worship in Christ's kingdom – which is not sacrifice to God, but the gifts of God given to us.

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Hymn Sing Happy Hour

In this episode of Preaching the Text, John Hoyum and Steve Paulson discuss the story of Nicodemus and his visit to Jesus in the middle of the night. This passage not only contains Christ's teaching about the new birth of baptism, but also the famous John 3:16 verse. Nicodemus identifies Jesus as a teacher, but doesn't quite get that he's more than a teacher – but Israel's messiah. Jesus teaches him about the gospel, but on this particular occasion, Jesus doesn't actually give him the gospel.

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In this episode of Preaching the Text, John Hoyum and Steve Paulson explore the temptation of Christ in the wilderness right after his baptism. The contrast is between the Father's word of favor announced at Christ's baptism and the devil's word of temptation. While the Father gives a gospel word of favor, the devil gives a law word of temptation and sin. Christ the savior trusts in the Father, not the devil, and therefore gives Christians the promise of deliverance from temptation by the power of sin, death, and the devil.

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In this episode of Preaching the Text, Steven Paulson and John Hoyum examine the story of Christ's transfiguration before three of his apostles on the mount of Transfiguration. In this text, like the baptism of Christ, we learn of both the Trinity and the two natures of Christ, divine and human. Christ is both God and man, having taken flesh for our sake. The Father's declaration of favor over his son is a word different from the law – but in a strange mystery comes to Christians as well in the word given in baptism.

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Continuing with the Sermon on the Mount, this episode of Preaching the Text examines Jesus' teaching of the law. Christ doesn't change the law of Moses or introduce a new law, but teaches the law to his hearers that had been in force since the beginning.

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Craft of Preaching