1.07.2011

What I Say and What I Do

In the link above he shares the Barna statistic detailing how only 9% of evangelicals have a biblical worldview. Then he asks, "what are pastors preaching?"

The assumption, of course, is that pastor's preaching has a significant effect on what people believe!!!

Preaching is important, but it is far from central!

In short, the preaching isn't the problem.

The problem is the hidden curriculum of the church. We can preach something till we are blue in the face (eg" pick up your cross and follow me"), but if our lifestyle, our church culture, and even the very programs of the church itself, are communicating the opposite message (eg "come and receive our comfort-inducing programs and services"), our preaching will only serve as music on the deck of a sinking ship. The only thing this might actually accomplish is to lull people into forgetting that the ship is sinking! ("We aren't worshipping the idols of individualism, consumerism, and materialism, look at how biblical our preaching is!" says the man who doesn't know the name of a single person in his church nor in his neighborhood, has no meaningful ministry to anyone, and regularly attends the high dollar production the church puts on every Sunday morning.)

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