Lesson 5: Other Valuable Resources
Sermons
One last valuable resource are the sermons of godly, expert preachers who have spent many hours exploring passages of Scripture. So why not check out what they have uncovered?
Here are three ground rules for using sermons as you study Scripture:
Search on a trusted website for sermons on specific passages.
There are a vast number of dangerous speakers out there who teach false doctrine. So turn to a trusted website, like Desiring God, The Gospel Coalition, Ligonier Ministries, Truth For Life, and other similar sites. Sermon Audio is another worthwhile site, since it has over a million sermons, and each preacher is evangelical. But the theological beliefs of each ministry span a greater spectrum than on the websites above, so use extra discernment.
Make sure the speaker preaches expositionally.
There are worthwhile audio resources where a speaker expounds on a subject, not on a Bible verse. And there are sound sermons out there that focus on a topic, rather than one single Scripture text. But for the purpose of digging deeper into a passage of Scripture, you will be most helped by a sermon where the preacher does the same.
Wait to listen to a sermon on a specific passage until you have done the first step of Bible study and looked at the Contextual Horizon.
Don’t short-circuit the Spirit’s work in your heart through what he has inspired by avoiding the hard spadework of Scripture study. I’m not saying that you should never listen to a sermon just for the joy of it! Rather, I’m saying that if you are studying a specific passage, don’t skip to sermons before engaging with the text yourself.
Also, it is best to use commentaries and other written resources first as well. That’s because an expositional preacher is using commentaries and lexicons and dictionaries, just like you are. Therefore, his work can be described as third-level, just like yours. Resources written by scholars, on the other hand, are second-level works, and you should rely on them primarily.
Top Resource
Seven Top Expositional PreachersThis article describes the preaching ministry of seven great expositors; many of their sermons are searchable online.