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PREACHING SKILLS
From B.C. to 11 a.m.
How to preach an Old Testament narrative with accuracy and power
Steven D. Mathewson

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It took a novel by John Steinbeck for me to admit my ineptness at preaching Old Testament narratives. In a scene from East of Eden, the banter around a kitchen table turns to the Cain-and-Abel story. A pig-tailed Chinese cook says, "No story has power, nor will it last, unless we feel in ourselves that it is true and true of us."

I thought about the sermon I preached the previous Sunday from 1 Samuel 7, the first I had preached from a narrative book in the Old Testament. Did people leave with a sense that the story was about them? I had to admit they probably didn't. A lady approached me after the service and asked for point number three. "Uh, point number three," I said, "was 'The Resulting Prosperity of God's People.' "

I had preached a sermon full of historical-cultural data in an analytical outline. But that did no justice to the purpose of Bible stories: to lure people into real-life dramas where they run smack into God's assessment of their lives.

Preaching from an Old Testament narrative is like playing the saxophone: it is easy to do poorly. Here are the insights I'm learning that help me do it better.

Stories communicate truth differently than letters or poems do, so I need to study them differently. The features of a story help me identify the author's intent.

Most plots in Old Testament narratives build on a conflict or a collision between two forces. By the end of the story, the conflict is resolved. Generally, the plots unfold like this: (1) Background, (2) Crisis, (3) Resolution, and (4) Conclusion.

Unfolding the plot frees me from having to find a theological principle behind every paragraph or detail. In the Book of Esther, for example, chapters 1 and 2 serve as background. They introduce King Xerxes' anger and compulsive behavior, Esther's secret nationality, and Mordecai's uncovering of an assassination plot. Instead of looking for a sermon theme here ("The Consequences of Anger" or "The Marks of an Attractive Woman"), I simply note these details as clues to the heart of the story.

Usually, a story's central idea comes in the interplay between the crisis and resolution. The crisis in chapters 3–4 (Haman's plot to destroy the Jews), and resolution in chapters 5:1–9:19 (Haman's destruction and the Jews' triumph), shows the story's big idea: the Jews were protected from a vicious plot to annihilate them.

I've learned to observe the pace at which a story unfolds. The time within a story, which scholars call "narrated time," is subject to gaps, delays, and acceleration. Those help me see where the writer places emphasis, creates suspense, or wants to determine my attitude.

In Genesis 22, for instance, as the narrator relates God's instructions to Abraham, four phrases slow the narrated time. With each phrase, the tension builds: "Take your son … the only son you have … the one you love … Isaac." In preaching this story, I need to emphasize, as the biblical text does, the agony in Abraham's faithfulness.

The primary place to look for meaning in the story is in the statements of the characters. In biblical narratives, there is no idle chatter. The speech is highly concentrated and shaped to convey meaning.

For example, when Joseph says, "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good," he summarizes the meaning of his entire life and the story in Genesis 49:29–50:26.

When studying an Old Testament narrative, I need to discover who is the protagonist (central character), antagonist (force arrayed against the central character), and foil (character who heightens the central character by providing a contrast or parallel).

In 1 Samuel 16, David emerges as the protagonist, while Saul functions as antagonist. Thus, in 1 Samuel 17 the conflict is "David vs. Saul," more than "David vs. Goliath." While there is a contest between David and Goliath, Goliath reveals the character of the true competitors, David and Saul. The future king and the present king of Israel respond differently, revealing their fitness to serve. To preach this story well, I must emphasize what the story emphasizes: the difference character makes.

Paying attention to names is also important. Sometimes, a name may be withheld to betray an attitude. David reflects his attitude toward Goliath by referring to him as "this uncircumcised Philistine" (1 Samuel 17:26).

After reading novels, I had to adjust to the spare writing style of Old Testament narratives. These stories are lean. They don't paint scenes or add extra details, so when details crop up, I now pay more attention to them. They usually foreshadow drama. For example, the reference to Joseph's good looks in Genesis 39:6 anticipates the sexual advance made by Potiphar's wife.

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