I would love it if 2008 is the year that sees a great return to excitement about expository preaching.  Sadly, there are many negative vibes around that are hindering any such revival of expository preaching.  These vibes may be experientially rooted, “church fashion” driven, repeatedly reinforced (as Haddon Robinson has said, expository preaching suffers most at the hands of its “friends”), and so on.  So what can we do?  Can we promote great biblical preaching in our generation?

Know Who You’re Promoting It To – Is there a general resistance that can be won over by effective preaching, or is there one or more resisters influencing others or the status quo?  Perhaps the “resister” is your senior pastor who is in a position of authority.  You need to think carefully about how to promote if you are under the authority of those you’d like to influence.  Prayer, submission, love, encouragement, support, good example and carefully timed “seeds” are the ingredients of a healthy plan (seeds might take the form of a book, a CD, an invitation to attend a conference together, or just a carefully prayed through gracious suggestion, etc.)

Go Ahead, Promote! – If you are not joined by all in a great celebration of expository preaching, consider carefully how you will promote it in your circles.  Criticism and complaining are not the way to go.  That’s too easy.  Come up with a God-honoring, prayer-saturated plan.  If you preach, then provide the best examples you can.  Whether you preach or not, seek to promote expository preaching – not a form, but a philosophy of preaching sorely needed in 2008!