I have opinions — lots of them. Some of them may even be worth considering. Most Sundays I'm sorely tempted to share my opinions with those who come to listen. Yet I've found that people don't attend sermons to hear opinions. They come to hear from God.

The best way to help people hear what God is saying is to focus on a text in Scripture. This sermon does just that. This sermon is expository in the most important sense of the word: it exposes the Word of God to the listener. It helps us hear from God.

Strengths

1. Faithfully develops a text in its context.
The sermon begins with the context of the John 14:1-31 passage, crossing back into chapter John 13:30-38 to get a fuller sense of the human situation. The preacher describes the dark night of Jesus' soul as the Lord lays bare his heart before his Father. The preacher describes the departure of Judas into the night and then Jesus' prophetic description of Peter's betrayal. Chapter John 13:30-38 presents a lonely Christ surrounded by unreliable disciples.

All this sets the table for Jesus' more encouraging words in chapter John 14:1-31. The preacher moves through the text line by line, beginning with the promise of " many rooms " and moving through to Jesus' claim for exclusivity ( " no one comes to the Father except through me " ). Each statement is examined, illustrated, and applied.

The danger here is the sermon risks flying apart. There are several themes under consideration, from the nature of heaven to the bankruptcy of pluralism. Each issue could well support a sermon on its own. Covering so much territory could lead to a shallow sermon, wider than it is deep.

It is well that the preacher took that risk in this case, because the text is in the driver's seat. He gives the listener a full sense of the biblical event in its context. There is no prooftexting here. The sermon reflects the larger sense of how God is working in the lives of the people, then and now.

2. Overcomes the distance between text and today.
Of course, biblical fidelity does not always create a sermon people want to listen to. The preacher who is true to the past often has difficulty connecting with the present. This problem is not evident in this case. This sermon effectively solves the classic homiletical problem of text and today, primarily by emphasizing the humanity in the passage.

The sermon does a wonderful job in presenting the emotional life of the disciples as they listened to Jesus. Peter struggles with feelings of failure. Thomas is terribly confused. The preacher describes characters that we can relate to. Without compromising the message of the text, the sermon comes off sounding like something that could have taken place last week. The distance between the ancient text and the contemporary situation is effectively eliminated.

3. Imaginative (speculative?) exegesis
This sermon makes some creative connections. Some might see this as speculative. I prefer to see it as a healthy use of the imagination.

For example, the text says Jesus goes to prepare a place for us in heaven. " What's to prepare? " the preacher asks. " Mints on the pillows? Are the angels still doing drywall? " The sermon offers two possibilities, one of which is clearly beyond the scope of ordinary exegesis. The preacher describes heaven as under development. With each new arrival the shape and nature of heaven grows.

" He increases the infinite joy of heaven with each soul that is saved. There is singing in the presence of the angels over one, so, every time, the beauty of heaven is in some way enhanced over all these years. "

I'm fairly certain I didn't read this in Strong's Systematic Theology. Yet I'm not ready to call for a heresy trial. The preacher admits to speculation on this point. Frankly, the text doesn't give us much direction on what it might mean for Jesus to be preparing our room for us. It may just be one of those anthropomorphic expressions that we can't push too far. In any case, I'm unwilling to criticize this preacher for encouraging an imaginative approach to understanding mysteries.

Area for Improvement

Focuses on secondary intention. Now I'm nitpicking. One of my seminary professors used to demand we ask one question of every text we preach: " Why is this in the Bible? " The question required us to investigate God's ultimate intention for each text. The question in this case is whether the primary intention of John 14 is to comfort the listener with the promise of heaven (vv.John 14:1-3), or to affirm the deity and exclusivity of Christ (vv. John 14:4-11).

Clearly, the latter gives rise to the former, but where ought the emphasis be? The preacher opts for the listener as preachers often (ought to?) do. The emphasis here is on the believer's ultimate homecoming. As a preacher myself, I'm warm toward that tendency, yet in thinking about the nature of the text, I wonder whether there ought not be greater focus on Jesus himself. The sermon speaks to Christology, but not in the depth that the text might encourage. As I said, it's a nit.

The sermon opened the Scripture to me and helped me appreciate its impact. I came alive to the implications. I was encouraged by the Truth. In sum, the preacher helped me hear from God. I ask no more than this.

Kenton C. Anderson is dean and associate professor of applied theology at ACTS Seminaries (Northwest) in Langley, British Columbia. He is author of several books, including Choosing to Preach (Zondervan).