When preaching a parable, how does one move from text to sermon? How does a sermon evolve out of a biblical parable without simply reiterating the text itself? How do we listen to the text and preach it so that parishioners receive a fresh hearing of the Gospel?

As we examine the biblical genre of parable, let's begin with some assumptions. First, preaching is a diagnostic enterprise that involves listening to the message of the text, to one's personal experience of the text, and to the congregation's need. Sermons come into existence at the point where the message of the text, the preacher's experience of the text, and the congregation's need overlap. Though not easily learned, there is perhaps no greater prerequisite to effective sermon development than the preacher's capacity to listen deeply to the Word, to self, and to congregation.

A second assumption is that in determining the meaning of any passage of scripture, both content and form (genre) must be taken into consideration. Tremper Longman, drawing from the thoughts of E.D. Hirsh, compares genre to a game: "Just as a sentence is a game, so too is genre. In games there are rules which shape the play of the game."1 In other words, just like games, genres have specific rules that must be followed. We would not use basketball rules when playing football.

Longman contends that, consciously and unconsciously, various genres trigger reader expectations.2 The interpreter (preacher) must respect these expectations (rules) if preaching is to be biblical. When interpreting apocalyptic texts, for example, we must not use the same literary rules that govern parables. To do so would dishonor the text, not just in its form but also in its content because the two are inseparable. Dr. Fred Craddock reflects the same sentiment: "Let doxologies be shared doxologically, narratives narratively, polemics polemically, poems poetically, and parables parabolically. In other words, biblical preaching ought to be biblical."3 The question, then, is determining how the form and content of the text can participate in the form and content of the sermon.4

Are we suggesting that sermonic form must always be an exact replica of the textual form? I would not go that far. I agree with Sidney Greidanus who says that our goal is not "to copy slavishly the biblical form."5 We do want, however, to respect the form and learn from it, even if the subsequent sermon does not duplicate the biblical genre.6 As Thomas Long writes: "The preacher's task ... is not to replicate the text but to regenerate the impact of some portion of that text."7

The preacher is attempting to "regenerate the impact" that the text had upon its first hearers, to re-create their experience. Sometimes this is best accomplished by using a form different from the text itself. But whatever the form of the sermon, it must not "undercut the message of the text and thus distort it."8 This means, for example, that a parable or biblical narrative preaches best when presented in a similar manner.