Home 4 Dangerous Preaching Myths

4 Dangerous Preaching Myths

Brian Orme

What you think about your preaching while preparing your message might be just as
important as the words you say when you deliver it.
What you think about your preaching while preparing your message might be just as
important as the words you say when you deliver it.
Your preaching preparation might be influenced by many things: criticism, praise, the current
needs or trials of your people, the depth of the textbut theres one thing that shouldnt
influence us: myths.
Were all prone to wrong thinking at one time or another. Wrong thought patterns creep in
from our insecurities, our environment or even our adversary. Thats why it is so important to
continually renew our minds on the truth of the Scripture.
These four myths, if believed, can change the direction of your preaching and impact your
effectiveness for the kingdom.
Dont fall for these dangerous beliefsstay alert, guard your mind, and preach in the
freedom and grace God has already given you.

1. More study time equals better sermon delivery.

This myth seems like a logical truth: Spend more time studying commentaries, reading
sermons and notes from the greats, and churn out a better, more compelling message in
proportion to the time spent. Theres only one problemits not true.
More prep time can be a factor, for sure, but its not a universal truth. In fact, the law of
diminishing returns often kicks in at some point in our prep, and more study time can actually
hurt your message. The best sermon prep is still wrapped up in experiencing the presence of
Godnot books and more study time.
Ecclesiastes 12:12: But beyond this, my son, be warned: The writing of many books is
endless, and excessive devotion to books is wearying to the body.

2. One bad sermon equals less attendance next week.

I think this is the fear of many preachersthat one monumental, incredibly poor, disastrous
sermon will lead to the churchs demise. This is a false assumption based more on fear than
on fact.
People are generally forgiving of a bad sermon. The likelihood of your attendance dropping
by 10 to 25 percent because you preached a wonky sermon is minimal at best. A wellmeaning preacher who loves Jesus and works hard to prepare his sermon, but still bombs, is
just not that big of a deal.
Drops in attendance happen over time typically due to many factors, not just a bad sermon.
Of course, if you preach something opposed to the gospel or sound doctrinenow, that might
equal a dropbut one sermon that didnt connect to your audience is not a felony offense.
Its better to focus on what God thinks about your sermon, anyway.
I Corinthians 3:6-7: I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it
grow. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who
makes things grow.

3. Open feedback will hurt your preaching.

Many preachers refuse to receive feedback or criticism because they think it will hurt their
preaching or because they feel like they might be scratching itching ears.
Open feedback can be tough, but some of the best preachers have learned to listen, receive,
filter and grow from it. If you dont have anyone whos willing to give you honest feedback
on your sermons, then your preaching is likely not as good as it could be.
Dont get me wrong, feedback and criticism are not fun, but neither is growth until you see
the fruits on the other end. The secret to making feedback work is finding wise counsel (other
than your spouse) for regular, constructive input.
Proverbs 15:22: Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.

4. Deeper teaching equals an academic or heady

theological message.
Theres a lot of buzz about deeper teaching in the church today. The fact is, the definitions
that church members and church leaders use to explain deeper teaching are typically not the
same.
Church leaders often equate deeper teaching with theological depth and academic delivery,
while many church members define deeper teaching in terms of how the sermon impacts or
convicts them personally.
So, whos right? On this one, its the audience.

The depth of your sermon is not dependent on your academic sources, but on your ability to
penetrate, convict and point out truth in clear and simple terms. We could argue about the
simplicity of the preaching of Jesus versus the complexities of Pauls epistles, but the bottom
line is that deeper teaching should move us to deeper obedience.
Academic sermons arent badtheyre just not always deep. Deep sermons require an
uncanny precision for building a clear biblical context while moving the listener to a
provocative response. Paul summed up his preaching into two powerful points that change
everything: Christ crucified.
I Corinthians 2:2: For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ
and him crucified.
Thats deep.
These are the top four preaching myths Ive discovered both in my own sermon prep and in
my conversations with other church leaders.
Id love to hear your feedbackwhat myths would you add to the list?