Allow me to quote a bit from the manuscript Preaching That Matters that I’ve been referring to for several weeks now.
“In a nationwide study of 100 diverse congregations in the U.S., I asked pastors and their parishioners an open-ended question about the purpose of preaching. You may not be surprised to learn the strongest theme among the answers from your colleagues. The goal of their preaching is change. What may be a bit of a surprise is that their listeners agreed with that purpose. The two-word phrase used most frequently by parishioners to describe why they listen to preaching and what they expect from preaching is ‘spiritual growth.’ In fact, the open-ended surveying of these listeners in mainline, Catholic, and Evangelical churches revealed something even more startling than agreement with their pastor about the purpose of preaching. Listeners in all types of churches said the primary reason they attend church is for spiritual growth and that the component of the service most likely to contribute to their spiritual growth is the sermon or homily.”
Later, however, comes this observation!
“This on-going study shows that regardless of listeners’ age or gender, the type of church, the sermon topic, or even their pastor’s years of experience, a majority of them report (1) they understand the sermon, (2) they already agree with the sermon, and (3) they will not be changing beliefs or actions as a result of the sermon. So, although pastors intend for their preaching to bring about change and parishioners listen desiring spiritual growth, transformation results are rare. The vast majority of sermons accomplish the purpose of reinforcing listeners’ already-held beliefs.”
I will share more with you related to this book in the coming weeks.
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Sunday’s coming. Do you have your sermon ready? Is it relevant? Will it effectively motivate your congregation to walk more in step with the Master? What about that Sermon Series you’ve been thinking about?
Or, if you’re someone who plans well ahead, have you asked yourself what you will preach for your Easter Sermon, your Advent Sermon, your Christmas Sermon?
David Mains and Mainstay Ministries can help. We offer a wide variety of Sermon Starters and Full Sermons that will give you Sermon Ideas to help you prepare for regular Saturday or Sunday sermons, Mid-week Bible Sermons, and Sermons for special occasions.
We also offer assistance as you create Topical Sermons, Sermons Series, and sermons for special times of the year. We have resources available to help you with Advent Celebrations, Advent Sermons, Christmas Sermons, Easter Sunday Sermons, Patriotic Sermons, and more.
For more information on how to create better Bible Sermons and how to turn Sermon Ideas into Sermon Outlines, and then into effective, meaningful Sunday Sermons, please click here to visit David Mains’ website.
You will also find a variety of resources for pastors and congregations at the Mainstay Ministries website. Just click here.
