We have been thinking a lot about preaching lately, so let's go all the way. What are we to make of "boring" preaching?
First, we have to admit there are many boring preachers and many boring sermons. There often is a tendency to defend boring preaching as being "sound, just not fun," but this is a false concept. Soundness is crucial and no unsound preaching is good preaching or worth hearing, but soundness is not enough.
But preaching is not a natural ability for far too many "preachers." Put simply, a lot of people just are not "apt to teach" and ought not be preachers. Preaching requires a special skill, an ability to be interesting, to be accurate, to be comfortable, to be consistent. A good preacher must be able to think clearly and express things clearly. But a lot of really good men just aren't good at preaching. They should work to develop the skill or, if they cannot, they should stop being preachers.
Seriously. Just stop. If you cannot do something well, then God did not call you to do it. It is not God's will to bore His people into holiness. God has given the church elders (pastors and teachers) in order to teach his people, not to bore them. He also did not give your church a pastor just to have him read someone else's sermons or parrot someone else's ideas. Did you ever wonder about the dozens of books of sermon outlines you can buy? There are enough preachers buying these books to keep them being published, and those preachers are just re-preaching someone else's sermons.
When you hear preachers talk about "boring" sermons, you often hear two responses. First, some people will claim that no sermon "should be" boring if it is sound, but this is nonsense. A person can speak truth and yet be boring. Second, they will attack the audience, claiming that there really aren't any boring sermons, just "disinterested and cold" people. This is just not true.
I have preached in a number of churches and have found that they are, for the most part, filled with people who love Christ and want to hear the word. They want to know the truth. They want to love the truth. They want sermons that engage them, that keep them alert, that meet their needs. But they do not get them.
Boring preaching is a serious problem. It is a shame that a man who has a chance to address the most important issues in people's lives cannot find a way to do it effectively. It is a shame that a people who want to hear the truth and grow in their love and service are forced to hear nothing but cliches and boredom.
Preaching ought not be boring. Preaching ought to be life itself, embodied in the words of the preachers, who proclaims the Word of Life.
Boring? Never.
First, we have to admit there are many boring preachers and many boring sermons. There often is a tendency to defend boring preaching as being "sound, just not fun," but this is a false concept. Soundness is crucial and no unsound preaching is good preaching or worth hearing, but soundness is not enough.
But preaching is not a natural ability for far too many "preachers." Put simply, a lot of people just are not "apt to teach" and ought not be preachers. Preaching requires a special skill, an ability to be interesting, to be accurate, to be comfortable, to be consistent. A good preacher must be able to think clearly and express things clearly. But a lot of really good men just aren't good at preaching. They should work to develop the skill or, if they cannot, they should stop being preachers.
Seriously. Just stop. If you cannot do something well, then God did not call you to do it. It is not God's will to bore His people into holiness. God has given the church elders (pastors and teachers) in order to teach his people, not to bore them. He also did not give your church a pastor just to have him read someone else's sermons or parrot someone else's ideas. Did you ever wonder about the dozens of books of sermon outlines you can buy? There are enough preachers buying these books to keep them being published, and those preachers are just re-preaching someone else's sermons.
When you hear preachers talk about "boring" sermons, you often hear two responses. First, some people will claim that no sermon "should be" boring if it is sound, but this is nonsense. A person can speak truth and yet be boring. Second, they will attack the audience, claiming that there really aren't any boring sermons, just "disinterested and cold" people. This is just not true.
I have preached in a number of churches and have found that they are, for the most part, filled with people who love Christ and want to hear the word. They want to know the truth. They want to love the truth. They want sermons that engage them, that keep them alert, that meet their needs. But they do not get them.
Boring preaching is a serious problem. It is a shame that a man who has a chance to address the most important issues in people's lives cannot find a way to do it effectively. It is a shame that a people who want to hear the truth and grow in their love and service are forced to hear nothing but cliches and boredom.
Preaching ought not be boring. Preaching ought to be life itself, embodied in the words of the preachers, who proclaims the Word of Life.
Boring? Never.