CONSIDERING BRIEF SERMONS
Brief sermons are in great demand. If a man could package and sell twenty-minute sermons
with “preheat and serve” instructions, he would become an instant Forbes celebrity. The “hurry
up and get this over with” philosophy has found a home in most churches today.
“If a man cannot strike oil in twenty minutes, he is drilling with a dull bit.” That might pro-
vide a chuckle, but it will not be heard from those with spiritual minds who are intent on drinking
deep from the well of living water. In some places, when it’s quittin’ time, it is like the firing of
the gun for the start of a race. Everyone is in a hurry to get to the local restaurant--beating folks
from “other churches” to the drumstick. It has almost become a sporting event. Or maybe it is a
race to get home, sit in the recline and watch your favorite football team on television. Have I
“stopped preachin’ and gone to meddlin’?”
One fellow said, “When the sermon goes overtime, I turn it off!” You can rest assured that he
never said that about his favorite sports team going into overtime. One can easily discern Sun-
day’s time of day by taking note of the activity in the pew. Proceeding past the “allotted time” is
like scraping the top off an ant hill. Overtime is no-man’s land where preachers without stout
hears fear to tread. So these preacherettes preach sermonettes to Christianettes.
Some folks try to justify this disturbing lack of interest in God, in worship and the gospel by
pointing to man’s diminutive attention span. This is insane. The application of this point is al-
ways limited to the small children or adults in a worship assembly. The truths is, the capacity of
one’s concentration is dependent upon his sense of priority and interest. One lacking in spiritual-
ity can devote rapt attention for several hours to a movie, a football game, NASCAR, a baseball
game or a basketball game. These same fellows will experience a severe shortage of mental
vigilance under the sound of gospel preaching.
Missionaries tell of people in other places of the world who walk for miles to sit for hours on
backless boards in scorching heat to feast on the riches of the gospel. It is tragic indeed when
one’s interest in spiritual things can be exhausted in a twenty or twenty-five minute sermon.
THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK: Most accidents happen accidentally.
Have a great week!
Love ya,
Jesse
with “preheat and serve” instructions, he would become an instant Forbes celebrity. The “hurry
up and get this over with” philosophy has found a home in most churches today.
“If a man cannot strike oil in twenty minutes, he is drilling with a dull bit.” That might pro-
vide a chuckle, but it will not be heard from those with spiritual minds who are intent on drinking
deep from the well of living water. In some places, when it’s quittin’ time, it is like the firing of
the gun for the start of a race. Everyone is in a hurry to get to the local restaurant--beating folks
from “other churches” to the drumstick. It has almost become a sporting event. Or maybe it is a
race to get home, sit in the recline and watch your favorite football team on television. Have I
“stopped preachin’ and gone to meddlin’?”
One fellow said, “When the sermon goes overtime, I turn it off!” You can rest assured that he
never said that about his favorite sports team going into overtime. One can easily discern Sun-
day’s time of day by taking note of the activity in the pew. Proceeding past the “allotted time” is
like scraping the top off an ant hill. Overtime is no-man’s land where preachers without stout
hears fear to tread. So these preacherettes preach sermonettes to Christianettes.
Some folks try to justify this disturbing lack of interest in God, in worship and the gospel by
pointing to man’s diminutive attention span. This is insane. The application of this point is al-
ways limited to the small children or adults in a worship assembly. The truths is, the capacity of
one’s concentration is dependent upon his sense of priority and interest. One lacking in spiritual-
ity can devote rapt attention for several hours to a movie, a football game, NASCAR, a baseball
game or a basketball game. These same fellows will experience a severe shortage of mental
vigilance under the sound of gospel preaching.
Missionaries tell of people in other places of the world who walk for miles to sit for hours on
backless boards in scorching heat to feast on the riches of the gospel. It is tragic indeed when
one’s interest in spiritual things can be exhausted in a twenty or twenty-five minute sermon.
THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK: Most accidents happen accidentally.
Have a great week!
Love ya,
Jesse
Comments
Post a Comment