Tag: Preaching

Ministry

Explaining and Teaching During Services (Removing Roadblocks to Experience)

Chris

Have you ever wondered what seekers feel when they come to your church? One of the most common reasons people give as to why they will not attend a service is because they don’t know what to do or feel like they will not know what is going on.

As preachers and worship leaders, we can help make it easier for people to overcome that hurdle. Sometimes all it takes is an explanation for 30 seconds or less. Doing so opens the door for acquiring the small bit of knowledge to launch a seeker into a participant.

Years ago I learned a very important lesson about preaching: Don’t assume the people listening know what you are talking about.

Whether we consider our time as the post-church era or recognize how many people have little to no history within the Church or knowledge about the Bible, to understand the knowledge divide between the pulpit/platform and the pew is essential.

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Christian Living, Church Life, Ministry

Calling Off “The Preacher Hunt”

Chris

You have probably found yourself in one of those conversations. The internet is all abuzz because someone figured out that a certain preacher is mixing his theologies. He said something questionable. It’s time to burn all of his books and denounce any pastor or church that has them in its library.

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Maybe you know those kind of people. They scour the internet for everything they can find to discredit a well-known preacher of the Gospel with a mega-church and book deals. To have that many people in their church, so many followers on Facebook or Twitter, they must be watering down the Gospel. “Let’s expose them and tear down their empires,” is the war cry of these people.

I’m hesitant to call them Christians. Sure, they sound like they are sold-out, radical, gung-ho for God and the purity of His Church. But if they were to take some time and read their Scriptures instead of countless articles on the internet, they might be surprised how unbiblical and unChristian they are acting. They are hunting preachers instead of sharing Christ.

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Ministry

Can’t Wait for Sunday?

Chris

I recently attended a conference with fellow pastors, and part of the day involved group discussions around tables. During these discussions I started talking about elements of our current preaching series that were pertinent to the discussion. At times I had trouble keeping the previous sermon separate from the one to follow the next day, and eventually said, “I can’t wait to preach tomorrow.” Several lay leaders were encouraged by my . . . enthusiasm. One or two of the pastors at the table just looked at me blankly.

What about you? Are you excited to preach your next sermon? What about the coming installment of your weekly Bible study? If you’ve lost the fire in your bones to speak, you may be in serious trouble, or on the verge of it.

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