"Him we proclaim, admonishing everyone and and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ."
Colossians 1:28
The Bible is transformational. God did not inspire the Scriptures only to fill our minds with correct information. Certainly, the Bible is "God's revelation of Himself to man . . . a perfect treasure," and it has "God for its author" and "truth, without any mixture of error" for its matter (The Baptist Faith & Message). Yet, the purpose of the Bible is to make us "wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus," and so it is "profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work" (2 Tim 3:15-17). The Bible exists for your transformation, not merely as a source of information.
Preaching cannot be any different. Authentic Christian preaching originates from Scripture and serves as a means by which God accomplishes His saving purposes. Preaching is the special, but typical, way that God calls the lost and edifies the saved. In light of these realities, the following principles guide the preaching ministry at Bethany Baptist Church:
Expository: the biblical text itself--not human speculation--drives the content and goal of each sermon. Each sermon is rich in biblical substance, and strives to plainly teach the meaning of a particular passage.
Engaging: scriptural truth must not be proclaimed in an abstract, disconnected, or coldly intellectual manner. Boring preaching is unbiblical! Preaching at Bethany is intellectual and doctrinal, but it is also a person-to-person encounter in which hearers are admonished and taught with a view toward their spiritual maturity--their completion in Christ.
Applicable: The Bible was neither delivered in a vacuum nor dropped out of the sky--it was inspired in the midst of real life situations and given to address the human condition in a fallen world. The Bible is inherently relevant, and so faithfully preaching its message assumes and requires relevance to the challenges and struggles of everyday living.
Solid Truth. Sincere Hearts. Strategic Ministries.
Our Vision for Preaching
