I’ve been in the ministry for over 30 years and I can’t tell you how many times someone has come out and said preaching is dead. The experts say, “Standing up in front of people and talking to them is the worst form of communication.” People are visual now and are unable – or unwilling – to pay attention.
The experts say that sermons must become events… experiences that engage all of the senses. Videos, sound, internet support, web supported audience participation—and on and on the suggestions go.
Sorry. Count me out. I’m just not buying it. Here’s why: Ask any marketing professional to name the most effective method of getting the word out. Their answer? Word of mouth… one person telling another person about something important they have discovered. Not technology—not unique and creative ads—but one person talking to another person about something that matters.
That’s why people went into the desert to hear John the Baptist. It’s why people came to hear Jesus. It’s still the reason people come today. Somebody is talking about something that matters to me. If a preacher has something to say about something that matters, people will come.
So maybe the problem isn’t preaching, but preachers.
But how can they call on Him they have not believed in? And how can they believe without hearing about Him? And how can they hear without a preacher? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: How beautiful are the feet of those who announce the gospel of good things!
Romans 10:14-15
