The starting point for preaching has been God and not man. This is not to say that true biblical preaching is in any way impractical. In such preaching, however, the preacher begins with an exposition of what God says, and then makes application to man's personal needs. The Bible was not written merely to satisfy man's needs and to give him answers to his everyday problems. It was written to show forth the majesty of God and trace God's purposes for the created universe, angles, earth, Israel, and the church. That one does not receive a "blessing" from some portion of Scripture when it is expounded, does not necessarily mean that the exposition was ill-chosen or worthless. To judge preaching by its personal impact alone is to view it from a selfish perspective.
- Ernest D. Pickering, The Tragedy of Compromise, pg 142