also appropriate principles and applications for today.35 1. Processing the biblical text36—A man cannot hope to preach effectively without first having worked diligently and thoroughly through the biblical text. This is the only way the expositor can acquire God’s message. Two preachers from different eras comment on this essential feature: A man cannot hope to preach the Word of God accurately until he has first engaged in a careful, exhaustive exegesis of his text. Herein lies the problem,