The Whole Counsel of God: Why and How to Preach the Entire Bible
Overview
Expository preaching has been on the rise over the last five decades, with more and more pastors preaching through entire books of the Bible systematically. But few, if any, preachers have a long-term plan to teach through every book of the Bible over a lifetime of ministry. Since the whole Bible is God’s Word to his people, all of Scripture is important in order to grow as Christians.
Written to make a case for the necessity of a long-term plan for preaching through the entire Bible instead of just through individual books, this is not just a book on how to preach, but also how to plan and prepare long-range preaching programs through the whole counsel of God.
- Explores the importantance of the entire Bible as a tool to grow as Christians
- Examines the necessity of a long-term plan for preaching through the entire Bible
- Presents a guide to planning and preparing long-range preaching programs
Part 1: The Importance of Preaching the Whole Bible
- What the Bible Says about the Bible (and about Preaching)
- The Canon of Scripture
- Failing to Preach the Whole Bible
Part 2: How to Preach the Whole Bible
- Understanding the Whole Bible Theologically
- Preaching the Whole Bible Theologically
- Big Picture Planning
- Choosing Books and Planning Preaching Series
- Putting Preachable Texts into the Calendar
Part 3: Practical and Pastoral Considerations
- Maximizing Impact
- Practical Implications and Realities
- Personal Implications for the Preacher
- Congregational Care
Top Highlights
“Our hope is that through such comprehensive preaching, God’s saints might be better equipped for their roles than Jephthah was—that is, that they might know the mind and purposes of God, and so be equipped for every good work (2 Tim. 3:17).” (Page 22)
“First, we wish to encourage preachers to make it their goal to preach the entire Bible because we are convinced that all of it is the word of God for us.” (Page 22)
“The reality is that few church members rise above their leaders. What Christians see pastors do is often what they do themselves.” (Page 27)
“it also helps restrain us from majoring on the minors or making mountains out of molehills.” (Page 97)
- Title: The Whole Counsel of God: Why and How to Preach the Entire Bible
- Authors: Tim Patrick and Andrew Reid,
- Publisher: Crossway
- Publication Date: 2020
- Pages: 256
- Resource Type: Topical
- Topic: Preaching Resources
Tim Patrick (PhD, Macquarie University) is principal of the Bible College of South Australia, an affiliated college of the Australian College of Theology, where he lecturers in theology and practical ministry. Before moving into theological education and ministry formation, Tim served in local church ministry for ten years. He worked with a number of congregations and led a number of revitalization projects.
Andrew Reid (ThD, Ridley College) is the inaugural principal of the Evangelical Theological College of Asia in Singapore. He previously served as the lead pastor of several churches in Australia and as lecturer in Old Testament, hermeneutics, and Hebrew at Ridley College Melbourne. He was one of the founding council members of the Gospel Coalition Australia and served as the editorial director of the ministry, training, and leadership channel of TGCA’s website.