This past week, my friend Jeremy and I attended a local conference in Olympia put on by the Institute for Expository Preaching led by Steven Lawson. I was able to meet many local pastors with the hopes that some may be interested in joining us in training pastors globally in how to study and preach God’s Word expositionally.

Dr. Lawson worked through the first three chapters of the book of Romans to lay the “black velvet” behind the “diamonds” of the Gospel from Rom. 3:21 and following. His impassioned style with solid exegesis of the Word inspired all present, myself included.

To give you a taste of Lawson’s preaching, I’ve included a youtube video that has spread to over a million where you can hear Lawson preaching and someone else has added video graphics.

Lawson spent much time answering questions from the group present. Some of the gems I took away were about his distinction between teaching (informs/instructs the mind) and preaching (starts with teaching, but goes beyond this to ignite the heart and invite the will). As he was talking about the Gospel, he clarified why the deity of Jesus Christ is so essential to the Gospel. He used an acronym: WWANE.

• W – Works – Jesus performs works only God can perform. Created everything out of nothing. He forgives sin. Sends Spirit. Authority to save/condemn.
• W – Worship – Jesus receives worship only God may receive. John 20:28 – Thomas worships Jesus and He receives it. Rev. 5 – all heaven worships Lamb, only God receives this worship.
• A – Attributes – Jesus possesses attributes only God possesses. Sovereign. Holy. Sinless. Omniscient. Truth. Omnipotent. Wrath.
• N – Names – Jesus is called names only God is called. God – Rom. 9:5, Jn.20:21, Lord, I AM, etc.
• E – Equality – Jesus is assigned equality with Father and Spirit. Matt. 28:19, etc.

In response to a question about how to improve in preaching, Lawson said you much preach more. He said you should preach at least 200 times in varied contexts (Sun AM, Wed eve, adult Bible class, youth group, men’s fellowship, etc.) before you “get your voice.” I was challenged and inspired that I need to search out more opportunities to preach. Although I preach nearly every time I go to Africa, it is fairly rare I get to preach in America. I’m excited I get to preach at some local churches and youth groups and summer camp over the next few months, but I must keep seeking more chances to exercise and develop this gift.

In a discussion about justification, Lawson shared three metaphors in Bible for justification:

1. Legal courtroom – guilty sinners before holy judge. Beside him is his advocate, Jesus Christ. Plea is made that our faith is in Christ. Based on Christ’s righteousness, Father declares us righteous through faith in Christ. Rom.8:33.
2. Banking / Financial – We stand before the great Bookkeeper. Our account is bankrupt. No spiritual capital, and owe an insurmountable debt. Jesus next to us has all riches of his righteousness. Bookkeeper takes assets of Christ and deposits them into our account. Phil.3:7-10. All our assets are in fact debts/liabilities, and only Christ’s righteousness is counted to our account.
3. Clothing – we stand before God naked. We are lepers in his sight. Loathsome. Shame. Exposed. No hiding. Christ next to us, and b/c of our faith in Him, He clothes us from head to foot with His righteousness and every sin is covered. Matt.22 – King has feast and invites many. One who comes in improperly dressed is offensive to King and cast away. W/o Christ we are filthy.