In the place of sound verse by verse expository preaching has come a montage of topical sermons. Topical sermons aren't bad, they just get worn out because topics are limited. Their greatest deficiency is when large portions of rich Scriptural texts are inevitably passed over, sometimes on purpose. Even moreso, many of these topical sermons have become ineffective because they have turned from merely topical to altogether superficial. It's one thing to preach on the issue of debt on a given Lord's Day (which is badly needed), yet it is another thing to talk endlessly about money and how God is going to give you a boatload of it.
In spite of all the bad topical sermons and even an overabundance of good ones, there has been a return in orthodox circles to sound verse by verse expository preaching. Expository sermons, when crafted and delivered well, have tremendous impact because they bring full exposure to the Word of God. Each section is read and preached through carefully, which reduces the amount of eisegesis (a reading into the text what is not there). This takes extensive time and effort, yet its fruit is far more plentiful.
Expository preaching also protects the pastor from false charges, and, likewise, it keeps the pastor from maliciously directing sermons towards any given person. Because the expositor is preaching through a large text (perhaps a book of Scripture), everyone knows what the next sermon will be about, so accusations to embarrass a particular sheep from the pulpit will generally reduce and/or go unfounded. In the same way, if someone has a beef against the pastor before the sermon, an effort by the pastor to attack individuals personally from the pulpit will be prevented because that is not part of the expected sermon.
Therefore, let us preach expositorily for the betterment of both the Church and its pastor.
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