In Practical Wisdom For Pastors, Curtis Thomas puts forth several problems with topical preaching.
First, it places most of the burden on the preacher to decide what God's people need to hear.
Second, it forces the pastor to spend time continuously coming up with new topics rather than spending time with a passage itself, digging out the thoughts and the applications that God has already determined are needed
Third, the congregations usually does not know ahead of time what portion of scripture is going to be dealt with and thus don't have the privilege of getting into the Word ahead of time.
Fourth, as a general rule, topical preaching does not teach the congregation to know how to interpret and apply the Word for themselves.
All of these are excellent points, but I wanted to comment briefly on the second two points. As elders/pastors, our job is to equip the saints for ministry. If we are preaching messages that dont help them to learn how to study the scriptures for themselves we arent equipping, we are spoon feeding. Stop just handing them fish and start teaching them how to fish. People can walk away from a topical message and agree fully with the points/conclusions of the preacher, but have no idea how they got there, nor any idea how to get there themselves. By teaching expository messages you teach people how to study the scriptures. Then also as you teach through a book of the Bible it also allows the congregation to study the passage before hand and gain their own conclusions and see if they match up with yours. If they dont they can then go back and study the passage, meditate, and pray as they seek the meaning of the text.
The point: preach expository messages (one of the 9 marks of a healthy church) because they involve the congregation in the scripture learning process. It gets us away from the idea that there is one man in the church who understands scripture (the "Senior Pastor") and everyone else is confined to learning the scriptures through his teaching. Instead let the teacher that our Lord sent, The Holy Spirit, do the teaching.
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It seems like I've heard several people comment on this subject lately. It saddens me that christians (I'm one too) have to be so about us vs them. Unfortunately, the culture we want to reach views us this way as well (judgmental and divisive).
I agree that we should be about training and equipping the saints to do the work of the ministry. However, whether preaching does this or not isn't about the style being topical or exegetical.
The point is to preach the Word of God; and teach people to read the scriptures, and think for themselves. This can certainly be done when the topic (or the book you work though verse by verse) is decided upon by the leading of Holy Spirit. I'm not suggesting that pop psychology is preaching. I'm saying that the Bible can be taught responsibly in either style.
BTW, I think Thomas' points sound wiser than they are. First, if you aren't spending time in prayer about the needs and well being of your audience (in addition to preparing a teaching), I wonder if you should be preaching.
Second, the time it takes to hear the direction of the Holy Spirit isn't the issue. That direction is crucial for leaders to seek (this is exemplifed in the life of Jesus). It comes from your prayer time, and from having your finger on the pulse of the people in your care. Besides, a decision has to be made with either style. Simply stating that one is easier or more efficent doesn't mean it is always better. Again if you don't have time...
Third, I'm a Dr and a preacher. My experience is that people who read ahead (in church or school) are a very small minority.
Fourth, teaching people to study the scriptures, think well, and keep things in proper context, is not a function of style. It's about values.
So, I encourage you to continue to pursue preaching that values the Word of God and equips the saints. Bravo! But I would also suggest valuing others in the body of Christ who might have a different perspective than you do. Jesus said that outsiders will know that we are his, because we love each other the way He loved us. Not because we are more right than someone else.
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