When it comes to picking a church, 83 percent of adults said the preaching played a big role in where they chose to stay.
It was the highest-ranked factor in a recent Pew Research study, beating out “feeling welcomed by leaders” at 79 percent, “style of services” at 74 percent and “location” at 70 percent.
It’s a statistic Doug Wilson isn’t sure how to feel about.
“It’s really no surprise that an overwhelming majority of church attenders choose their place of worship based on the quality of the preaching and teaching,” said Wilson, dean of the School of Christian Studies at the University of Mobile (UM).
But, he said, “two opposing factors account for this trend, I think.” One is encouraging — the other, not so much, he said.
‘Called to equip’
“On the one hand, pastors with a high view of Scripture understand that they are called to equip the saints for the work of ministry. An effective communicator is essential for a spiritually healthy church, and mature believers expect a healthy diet of Bible teaching from their pastors,” Wilson said.
But on the other hand, he said, is the trend toward entertainment and performance.
“Popular speakers amass huge followings through positive-thinking messages and slick marketing, individuals who lack theological depth and convey moralistic therapeutic deism,” he said.
A split view
Robert Smith Jr., the Charles T. Carter Baptist Chair of Divinity Christian Preaching at Samford University’s Beeson Divinity School in Birmingham, said he shared Wilson’s split view.
Some of the people represented in this number “want someone who can command their attention by giving an authoritative word from Scripture that is relevant and challenges them to move past where they are and into what God wants them to be,” he said.
But others, he said, “want the opposite — they want a snappy sermon or a Happy Meal or a light snack. They don’t want to be challenged or convicted. They want a word from Scripture that’s dressed up, warmed up and presented to them in a way that will tickle their ears.”
So how many people in that 83 percent fall one way, and how many fall the other way? It’s hard to know, but Jay Robertson, assistant professor in Christian studies at UM, said he was optimistic that the stat might have some positive implications, especially for younger Christians.
“According to a recent Barna survey, practicing Christian millennials — persons 18–33 — maintain a high view of Scripture,” Robertson said.
Renewed interest
And in the recent Pew Research study, the numbers for the preaching factor are even higher for the younger respondents than the respondent pool as a whole — 87 percent of young adults said the sermon was important in their church choice.
“This high percentage of Americans searching for a church home who say the quality of the preaching is important is very significant,” Robertson said. “In the not too distant past, many people seemed to be irritated by doctrine and allergic to theology. A renewed interest in theology is reflected in Christian millennials desiring to be part of a church community that boldly proclaims the whole counsel of God through a Christocentric gospel lens.”
Mike Jackson, director of the office of LeaderCare & church health for the Alabama Baptist State Board of Missions (SBOM), said the results of the study have definite implications for how churches and pastors go about their lives.
“I do think this data will assist churches that are looking to fill a vacant pastoral position to place a stronger emphasis on the preaching skills of a potential candidate,” he said.
He said this could also encourage pastors to focus more on preparation for better preaching experiences and highlight the need for more training opportunities to enhance a pastor’s preaching skill set.
“I do feel there is a desire for those attending church today to find quality in the worship experience, which includes a strong pulpit ministry of solid biblical preaching and proclamation,” Jackson said.
But that’s not the only result from the study that he found significant.
“The other stat regarding feeling welcomed by church leadership is also very telling,” he said. “People are looking for a connection with their leadership. Leaders who have an outgoing personality will excel in this area. For those who are more introverted, it will require being intentional to work to make others feel welcome.”
But this is an area that a pastor might excel in, even if preaching isn’t his best skill, Jackson said, so it might not be entirely positive for a church to look primarily at strong preaching skills.
“There are lots of great pastors whose strength might not be the preaching ministry, but his other gifts — pastoring the people and administering the church,” he said.
Keith Hibbs, director of SBOM’s office of worship leadership and church music, said he sees all the top-ranked factors as being important.
“Cross-generationally, I would think the importance of the preaching and the quality of the entire worship experience would be highly rated as a factor in the selection of a church home,” he said. “I would also think that relationships made in the process would be a strong factor.”
For more information, visit pewresearch.org.
“Although not delineated in the survey it would be good to know the generational breakdown of the data. Millennials, according to James White in ‘The Rise of the Nones,’ choose churches during a visit in the first 90 seconds based on ‘curb appeal.’ This includes friendliness of the parishioners, appearance of the facilities and signage. Their assessment includes authenticity on platform and excellence in the way the worship service is planned and implemented.” —Keith Hibbs, director of SBOM’s office of worship leadership and church music
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