Amens

[Guest Guest]

To use an example, somewhere around 90% of the sermons I have seen/heard/heard about in the last few years have dealt with the same subject: love, marriage, relationships, and family.

I think the most common subject has more to do with the preacher than anything else. I can say for certain that the sermons I have heard tend to cover a MUCH wider area than that. I dislike sermons that are more about "show" or "feel good" than any else, but since I am in a good church with a good pastor I don't need to deal with that. :lol

I think we are at a point where if a pastor/teacher actually started putting the Word of God first in his communication with his congregation he would either be fired or people would vote with their feet and leave.

Maybe at Joel Osteens Church( the local big name health and wealth "preacher") but hopefully NOT at a good IFB church. I hope that is not a problem at your church, because if it is you might want to consider looking somewhere else. I have no problem with stories etc., in a sermon as long as like the parables Jesus told, they serve to carry important biblical truth not just to amuse or "make people think positive". But I did several years ago have to leave one church in part because of slipping standards, and in part because of WAY to many pointless stories told almost completely for the laughs. It was beginning to feel more like stand up comedy than a sermon.

[Jerry]

Wow, Madeline, seems you are letting your bad experiences colour everything else. My preacher preaches his sermons, and they are full of the Bible - they teach, edify, and feed the brethren in our church. We are not entertained, we are strengthened, challenged, reproved, exhorted in our walks with the Lord. Just because you had some bad experiences doesn't mean there are some good sound preachers and preaching out there.

[HappyChristian]

Madeline, I've got to say you are painting with a pretty broad brush! Yes, there is a lot of entertaining going on in many pulpits today - but not in all of them!! As others have said, our preacher doesn't preach to entertain!! Far from it. And people have walked out, because they didn't want to hear the Word of God.

He preaches on whatever the Holy Spirit tells him to - whether it is family relationships (and I guarantee you that when he preaches on this, no-one is entertained!), living holy lives, etc. My pastor pulls no punches in his sermons, and he apologizes to no-one for it. He is preaching the Word of God as God would have him do.

Now since you can tell anyone what the Bible says about how we should treat our families/spouses/friends in about five minutes, and in doing so would only be telling them what they know in their hearts anyway, this ought to demonstrate what I mean about sermons being designed to entertain.

The problem with this statement is that we can tell anyone what the Bible says about anything. By virtue of what you have said, then, anything the preacher says is designed to entertain. Huh! Sorry, but when my toes are getting stomped by the Holy Spirit via my pastor's sermons, that ain't entertainment!

[chev1958]

Well, I've been told our small church would grow much faster if we had "programs" and a more "uplifting" worship service. One family won't join because I'm too "rigid" and "conservative" on closed communion, music, and the KJV. Another recent visitor told me I offended him but he won't tell me why; the topic of my sermon was "The Reality of Hell," so I'm guessing he didn't feel as strongly about hell as I preached on.

I'm sorry, Madeline, that your pastor entertains rather than teaches you. Some pastors get in a rut of giving just "milk," instead of throwing some "meat" out as well. You may have spiritually outgrown your pastor's messages. If you're not being fed, then I recommend you look for a church that does feed you. Believe me, preparing an entertaining sermon would be a whole lot simpler and a whole lot more fun than what I'm doing now.

Mitch

[dwayner79]

I think Madeline said her pastor was different, so lets be gentle.

For fear of being to soft, we can also be too rigid. There is a healthy balance in scripture.

We are so far :Green

[HappyChristian]

I think Madeline said her pastor was different, so lets be gentle.

For fear of being to soft, we can also be too rigid. There is a healthy balance in scripture.

We are so far :Green

:lol:

[chev1958]

For fear of being to soft, we can also be too rigid.

I know you ain't aiming that barb at me :Bleh

[Madeline]

Madeline' date=' I've got to say you are painting with a pretty broad brush! Yes, there is a lot of entertaining going on in many pulpits today - but not in [b']all of them!! As others have said, our preacher doesn't preach to entertain!! Far from it. And people have walked out, because they didn't want to hear the Word of God.

He preaches on whatever the Holy Spirit tells him to - whether it is family relationships (and I guarantee you that when he preaches on this, no-one is entertained!), living holy lives, etc. My pastor pulls no punches in his sermons, and he apologizes to no-one for it. He is preaching the Word of God as God would have him do.

I did not state that there's a lot of entertainment going on in "ALL" pulpits? There's a whole lot of "OUR" church, and "OUR" Pastor (MY pastor preaches on this...MY pastor pulls no punches, HE preaches this, etc., etc,. etc.). Of course...you're the one responsible for choosing your church and your Pastor, and if you listen to the prompting of the Holy Ghost then you should be able to discern whether you're in the right church. However, there are a plethora of churches out there that compromise the undiluted Word of God for entertainment purposes and designed to appeal to those whose ears are tickled. I have been to over 30 churches in different parts of this country, and the vast majority are designed to please those with worldy interests rather than spiritual.

The problem with this statement is that we can tell anyone what the Bible says about anything. By virtue of what you have said' date=' then, anything the preacher says is designed to entertain. Huh! Sorry, but when my toes are getting stomped by the Holy Spirit via my pastor's sermons, that ain't entertainment![/quote']

The bible doesn't tells us everything about anything. Therefore, you cannot tell anyone what the bible says about "ANYTHING." If your toes are being "stomped" by the Holy Ghost by YOUR pastor, then the more power to you. IMO, the churches I have visited in the past, and the sermons spoken from the pulpits, sadly, weren't designed for members to be pricked in their hearts.



:puzzled: I never once stated that MY pastor entertains me rather than teaches. And not once have I witnessed my Pastor entertaining his congregation, but rather he feeds them the spiritual sustenance they need to grow an mature in Christ. I'm sticking with my church.



There seems to be some confusion, but not on my part. I wasn't discussing MY church, but rather the sermons I have heard in the past in other churches I have visited. You can agree or disagree with my take, but they are taken from my experiences. Btw, my Pastor is probably no different than your pastor or the pastors of the members on this forum. My Pastor will more than likely have you leaving his church Sunday afternoon with your tail between your legs with his sermon - if you're sinning. Nuff said!

Love,
Madeline

[chev1958]

Sorry, Madeline, I guess I didn't see the comments you made about your pastor amid all the comments about entertaining sermonizers. I'll pay closer attention next time.

Mitch