From Ancient Text to Valid Application

As a child needs nutrient-rich calories to grow healthily, so God’s people experience maturation through consistent, Spirit-empowered feedings from the Bible prepared by a capable, Spirit-filled chef. This is why Paul emphatically charged Timothy, an overseer of a local congregation, to unwaveringly and unrelentingly “preach the word” (2 Tim 4:1–2), a task that assumes not only Scripture’s right explanation but also its valid application. Unfortunately, while much scholarly attention has been paid to the former facet, less has been given to the latter. One homiletician, Abraham Kuruvilla (Privilege the Text! A Theological Hermeneutic for Preaching), has recently attempted to fill this void by articulating and demonstrating a methodology through which a preacher can, with confidence and clarity, lead the people of God from the word of God to its intended, and thus binding, application. This work explores the effectiveness of his proposed theology and hermeneutic for the identification, development, communication, and reception of biblically founded, theologically valid, and hearer-relevant application.