It’s no secret that I spend time listening to other preachers and reading their blogs. I do this for my own spiritual growth but to also see what is happening in ministry in other churches. When we began Three Point, it was with a desire and vision to dig deeper into God’s Word (the Bible), to spend time in His presence (prayer), and to commit to fellowship with other believers.
Well, I found an article on a site that referenced a new study by Gallup that said, “the hottest thing at church today is not the worship and not the pastor. It’s not the smoke and lights and it’s not the hip and relevant youth programs. It’s not even the organic, fair trade coffee at the cafe. The hottest thing at church today is the preaching. Not only is it the preaching, but a very specific form of it—preaching based on the Bible. As Christianity Today says, ‘Despite a new wave of contemporary church buzzwords like relational, relevant, and intentional, people who show up on Sundays are looking for the same thing that has long anchored most services: preaching centered on the Bible.’” Wow. In most church growth articles, the goal was to have as many people as possible profess faith in Jesus Christ. To do this, most churches adopt formats that are attractive to unbelievers. This means changing the services to make them seeker-friendly, changing the music to make it more contemporary, and even changing the gospel to make it less offensive. Of course, it also demands changing the preaching to make it more palatable rather than preaching the Bible itself. More uplifting and positive instead of “confess and repent.”
However, it should come as no surprise that God’s people want God’s Word. For a Christ follower, there is nothing he or she needs more than God’s Word. Within every true believer will be a deep hunger that needs to be fed by spiritual food—food that is found only in the Word of God. For many today, there is a spiritual starvation. Is it any wonder that our society is so split on issues that the Bible clearly speaks to?
Here’s the thing: Eventually Gallup or Barna or someone else will come up with a new poll that will display new results. Even when Bible-based preaching is the very last thing people want, I believe it is the very first thing they need. However the winds of change blow, we will remain Three Point BIBLE Church and let the Word of God be what drives our church and mission.
I would love to hear your thoughts.