This new trilogy from John Piper is fantastic! But everything from John Piper is fantastic, so I wasn't surprised. This book is saturated with the Bible and with biblical argumentation. It is the 3rd and final book in the series and it focuses on preaching. Piper's view of preaching is that it isn't just application for the people, but the actual heralding of God Himself. I completely agree and found this book excellent food for the soul!

Completing Piper's trilogy on the glory of Scripture, Expository Exultation is an edifying and necessary component of any preacher's library.

This is one John Piper book that I can unequivocally endorse. While I might differ with him in other matters, I found myself saying “Amen” again and again as I read this book. The reason for this is that he recovers and articulates as well as anyone since Martyn Lloyd Jones and John Stott the glory and high calling of preaching. His central contention is that preaching, properly done is “expository exultation.” What does he mean by this?

“The title Expository Exultation is intended to communicate that this unique form of communication is both a rigorous intellectual clarification of the reality revealed through the words of Scripture and a worshipful embodiment of the value of that reality in the preacher’s exultation over the word he is clarifying. Preachers should think of worship services not as exultation in the glories of God accompanied by a sermon. They should think of musical and liturgical exultation (songs, prayers, readings, confession, ordinances, and more) accompanied and assisted by expository exultation–preaching as worship.”

Piper offers a helpful correction to the mentality that says worship is over when the music ends, where the message is kind of a letdown or a time for the mind to wander.

The remainder of the book is an unpacking of the above statement. He begins with a discussion of how fitting it is for the people of God to gather for corporate worship and then shows how preaching as expository exultation is integral to our corporate worship and rooted in the persons of the Trinity. The following two parts of this work focus on both the supernatural and natural aspects of expository exultation–the work of the Holy Spirit and the proper use of our skills to communicate with clarity and logic the reality of God and his work revealed in the biblical text.

The next part of this work was perhaps one of the most illuminating parts for me that explained why much biblical exposition falls flat. We may say what the text says, even individual words, and what it means, and how it bears on our lives. But Piper contends that we often do not clearly communicate the reality to which the text bears witness as we direct attention to the text so that people discover that reality for themselves, not by hearing us, but by seeing that this is what the text says. Good preaching shows how reality shines through the text.

He then turns in the next part to the central realities to which he believes the biblical text bears witness. They are the glory of God, Christ crucified, and the obedience of faith. Piper would contend that all three run through scripture and ought run through our exposition of it. Then in the following part, he shows how these three central realities run through even the Old Testament. He concludes by reminding the preacher of the high calling and indispensable importance of expository exultation in the life of the church. And he speaks personally to aspiring preachers:

“But he who called you is faithful. He will do it. I testify from forty years in the ministry of the word, through the best and the worst of times, God loves to help the preacher who is desperate to make the word plain for the holy happiness of his people, by the blood of Christ, for the glory of God. He will help you.”

So much preaching seems disconnected from the glories of God and the work of Christ we sing and celebrate in music, liturgy and ordinance or sacrament. Too often it seems merely to be an inspirational message to help us engage another week, or a series of marching orders. Piper articulates a vision of preaching consistent with the rest of worship–that God is the glorious hero of the scriptures we preach, that the decisive act in the story was the life, death and resurrection of the Son, and we are invited through the regeneration and empowering of his Spirit to participate through the obedience of faith in this great venture of God in his world. Those are the realities we make clear from the text of scripture and over which we exult and lead God’s people in joyous exultation both in corporate worship and lives of worship. No wonder Piper has been at it forty years and continues to preach and write with such passion!

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary review copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

First sentence: This is a book about preaching in worship.

In the introduction, John Piper writes:
"This book is an organic outgrowth of two previous books. Together they form a kind of trilogy. The first volume, A Peculiar Glory (2016), focuses on how we can know that the Bible is God’s word and is completely true. The second volume, Reading the Bible Supernaturally (2017), focuses on how to read the Bible—specifically, how to read it in the pursuit of its own ultimate goal that God be worshiped with white-hot affection by all the peoples of the world. This third volume, Expository Exultation, now asks, If the Bible is completely true and is to be read supernaturally in the pursuit of worship, what does it mean to preach this word, and how should we do it? On what basis does the congregation gather for worship, and why is preaching part of it?"
What is preaching? What is worship? Why is preaching an essential part of worship? Why is corporate worship important? And is preaching an essential part of corporate worship? What kind of preaching is best? What is expository exultation? Why is this the best way to preach? How does one go about preaching? What is involved in preparing the sermon? What is involved in the actual preaching? What should be the minister's goals? What guidelines for preaching does the Bible give us? What does a good sermon look like? A bad one?

Expository Exultation answers these questions...and more. In the hands of another author perhaps this one would not be accessible or readable. In the hands of another author perhaps this one would be a dense academic read: fine for those with years of training behind them but not for the rest of us. But Piper writes with passion AND clarity. God is a God who wants to be known. Piper is a preacher who wants God to be known. For it is only when God is known that he can be worshiped. The absolute best response to knowledge--to understanding--IS worship. The minister's job, Piper argues, is to clearly, logically, passionately show God to their congregations. The job is to connect the Bible--the words on the page--with reality. It is not their job to share their thoughts, opinions, experiences. It is their job to deal with specific texts from the Bible and clearly present God.

The primary audience is pastors or ministers. But. I think it can be read and enjoyed by all believers regardless of their profession. One reason why is that it is focused on worship, focused on the glory of God, focused on the act of glorifying God.

Favorite quotes:

"When the heart is far from God, worship is vain, empty, and nonexistent, no matter how proper the forms are. The experience of the heart is the defining, vital, indispensable essence of worship. This is worship: to act in a way that shows the heart’s valuing of the glory of God and the name of the Lord Jesus. Or, as we said in the introduction, worship means consciously knowing and treasuring and showing the supreme worth and beauty of God."

"Scripture is inspired by God in order to awaken, nurture, and bring to final consummation the white-hot worship of the bloodbought bride of Christ from every people, language, tribe, and nation. Preaching is intended by God to herald these Scriptures and advance their purpose. Therefore, preaching aims at worship—that is, it aims to bring into being and sustain a people who know and enjoy and show the glory and worth of God."

"Worship is seeing, savoring, and showing the supreme beauty and worth of the triune God. Preaching is one act of that worship. But human beings cannot see or savor or show this God as their supreme treasure apart from the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit. He is the one who reveals his glory (2 Cor. 4:6), enlightens the eyes of the heart (Eph. 1:18), opens the darkened mind (Luke 24:45), and gives a glimpse of the glory of Christ that the “natural person” cannot perceive (Matt. 16:17)."

"Preaching and Scripture have the same goal. What the Scriptures aim to do, preaching aims to do. What the Scriptures aim to reveal, preaching aims to reveal. The assumption is that Scripture is inspired by God and therefore aims to communicate what human beings need, in order for God’s purposes through Scripture to be realized. Preaching that brings out from Scripture what is really there joins God in bringing about his ultimate purposes."

"The words of God are the best means of displaying the glory of God."

Seeing preaching as worship is a great truth for all who prepare sermons. Too often preaching becomes just a talk about modern topics, instead of a way to glorify God I hope this book finds many readers!

John Piper has a knack for addressing topics that we take for granted in debt. The current topic is the role of Preaching in worship.

He does a great job explaining what preaching ought to be, but even more importantly, this book is helpful because of all of the practical examples that he runs through.

If you want to get a better grip on Christ-Exalting preaching, this is the book for you.

This book was great! Really love the idea of preaching as worship.