In a recent Christianity today article titled, Flipping the 40-Minute Sermon, the author's

argument goes like this, attention spans have shriveled and what we think of as a cermonic

monologue should be split up and pastors should actually do their main teaching online in

Bitesites segments throughout the week and use the gathered church on Sundays as a place

to foster personal interaction and fellowship.

After John, what do you think of Flipping the 40-Minute Sermon of making the Sermon

less significant or insignificant on Sundays?

Well, interesting that you should ask that because Bob Glenn, my friend, out of Redeemer

Bible Church, sent me a notice about this article, so I read it and he wanted to know what

I thought and I had just in fact listened to a great 40-minute message from Bob on

Jose, so I can see why he was he was concerned about this.

I wrote him, I said, oh Bob, this suggestion rolls around every 20 years or so, oh poor

sermon on life support, the Sermon's days are numbered, let's all get participatory.

I get weary, frankly, of these kinds of suggestions for for for Sermons, but here's the main problem.

The author of that article I think is committing a category confusion.

She was comparing the Sermon to the lecture method of teaching in a college class compared

to what happens in a more socratic or participatory method, and I agree with that.

I think that's exactly right.

When I teach in college or in seminary, I don't want to mainly lecture.

I want to teach by forcing students to ask questions to think for themselves, but here's

the catch, the Sermon in the context of worship is not a lecture, worship is not a classroom.

The category for thinking about it is not pedagogical, it's not educative.

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