By Bob Terry
There is a lot of information that could make a pastor and other church members believe that what the pastor preaches on Sunday morning is unimportant.
For example, a study by LifeWay Christian Resources found that 90 percent of new church members first attended the church they later joined because someone invited them. There is little connection between an invitation from a friend and the Sunday morning sermon.
The friendliness of a church is often cited when one talks about joining a church. About half the people who join according to one study indicated the friendliness of the congregation was a deciding factor.
Programs for children and teens is another frequently mentioned reason for choosing a church. A recent Gallup study said 64 percent of respondents who regularly attend church mentioned spiritual programs geared toward children and teens as a reason for choosing a church.
Each of these is important but to concentrate on these factors alone is to miss what practically all studies find the most important factor that appeals to churchgoers — the pastor and what he preaches.
This is not to promote the pastor as a “superstar” on which all else rises or falls. But it is to emphasize the importance of what the pastor preaches Sunday after Sunday.
Why attend church?
When adults who attend church at least monthly were asked “What is the most important reason you attend church” most of the answers related to spiritual reasons.
• 23 percent said “for spiritual guidance.”
• 20 percent said “worship keeps me grounded/inspired.”
• 15 percent said “it is my faith.”
• 15 percent said “to worship God.”
Obviously a lot of other good things happen at church ranging from fellowship to service but the primary reason people attend worship is to better relate to God.
It should not come as a surprise that when Gallup, in a poll released in April, asked churchgoers to identify major factors in why they attend their particular place of worship, 3 out of 4 identified sermons that either teach about the Bible or help people connect religion to their own lives.
Specifically, 76 percent identified “sermons that teach you more about Scripture” and 75 percent said “sermons that help you connect religion to your own life.”
Gallup’s finding is consistent with earlier LifeWay research which reported the primary reason unchurched people chose a church is the pastor and the preaching followed closely by the church’s beliefs. A Barna study reversed the two with a church’s beliefs ahead of the quality of sermons preached.
Researchers found neither churchgoers nor the unchurched sought a captivating orator. Rather they sought a pastor who helped them understand the teachings of the Bible and how to live out the implications of biblical teachings in their daily lives.
It was much more important to have positive, sound, understandable biblical teachings week in and week out than it was to have occasional brilliance from the pulpit, responders indicated.
Only 38 percent referenced a good choir or praise band as important for why they attended a particular church and less than half mentioned friendliness of members in the LifeWay study.
Research about why people leave a particular church also indicates the importance of what a pastor preaches. About half the people who leave a church do so because of life changes most studies conclude. People move. Illness strikes. Lifestyle changes.
The LifeWay study found about 20 percent of those who left “did not feel engaged or involved in meaningful church work.”
Most of the other moves away from a church related to the pastor. One of the chief indictments was the “pastor was judgmental of others.” Some mentioned negative comments from the pulpit where the pastor seemed to always be “whipping the pews” about the problems of the church. Some mentioned negative attitudes conveyed when members did not agree with the pastor.
Another major indictment was the “pastor was not a good preacher.”
This is a more subjective accusation since what is good preaching to one may not be to another. Also important is what other responsibilities the pastor had that might have prevented proper preparation. The church as well as the pastor has to prioritize preparation if the goal is good preaching.
Also important is the recognition that what is good preaching for one audience may not be good preaching for another. Just as no church is the ideal church for everyone, no pastor is the ideal pastor for every church. That is not a negative against a church or a pastor. It simply recognizes that different churches demand different gifts for leaders just as pastors have different gifts from one another.
Not being a perfect fit in one church does not mean a pastor will not be a good fit in another.
Still one must see the connection between the negative criticisms sometimes leveled against a pastor and the importance of what the pastor preaches.
Most people who come to church feel the need to worship the true and living God. God made us that way. When the pastor responds to that need with clear teaching about what the Bible says and how to connect that teaching to one’s own life the results are usually positive.
‘With great patience’
When the pastor responds with negativity or ambivalent teachings problems usually follow. That is just the way it is according to experience — which is documented by research.
In 2 Timothy 4:2 the apostle Paul urged young preacher Timothy to “preach the Word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction.”
That is still good advice, especially when the pastor must reprove or rebuke. Then it is especially important to do it “with great patience and instruction” because what the pastor says is important.
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