In Preaching Articles: "Church Culture"

Creating A Healthy Team Culture

By Lance Witt on Jun 26, 2023

Culture is one of things that is hard to define but easy to feel. You certainly feel it when you visit a foreign country and you bump up against different customs and ways of doing things, but you also feel it when you enter a business or a church. There is a certain style or personality of an organization that is an expression of culture. I sometimes think of culture as the organization’s “way” of doing what they do. There is a Ritz Carlton “way” of doing customer service. There is a Starbucks “way” of doing business. There is a Crossroads Church “way” of doing ministry.

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Looking For A Silver Bullet In A Microwave Culture

By Mike Breen on Jun 23, 2025

It's tempting. It's alluring. And it's the best way to kill your church.

Tags: Culture, preach, silver bullet, microwave, culture  (view more)  (view less)

Crafting A Culture Of Honor

By Lance Witt on Oct 22, 2020

In the middle of this election year, the amount of vicious attack and trash talking has reached a new high (or low). I think it is time that we as pastors take the lead in helping our congregations and communities know how to treat one another.

Scripture: Ephesians 4:32, 1 John 4:7-8, John 13:35, Romans 12:10

Tags: honor

Preaching Through Cultural Chaos

By Mark Dance on Oct 8, 2025

Mark Dance: “Pastors do not need to be pushy, but neither do we need to be pushovers.”

Tags: Preaching, preaching

Complaining Never Wins The Culture

By Trevin Wax on May 4, 2022

What if the biggest danger ahead for Christians today is something we don’t expect, but should?

Scripture: Philippians 2:6-16, 1 John 5:19, Psalm 78:17-20, Philippians 2:25, Luke 4:18, 2 Corinthians 10:4-5, Hebrews 12:2, Hebrews 11:33-34  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: gratitude, Culture, Complaining, Grumbling, culture  (view more)  (view less)

What A Rabbi Taught Me About Keeping Christ In Christmas

By SermonCentral .com on Dec 12, 2024

When people come to your church this Christmas season, they want to hear the story of Jesus. Give them what they came for.

Tags: Christmas, Culture, set apart, incarnation of Jesus, culture  (view more)  (view less)

3 Things Our Culture Is Doing To Bible Reading And Discipleship

By Mary C. Wiley on Jun 24, 2024

"We live in a microwave meals, listen-to-podcasts-in-double-time world. We want more with less; work smarter not harder. However, the move forward or get left behind mentality of today is not a good transferrable principle for discipleship. Mostly because discipleship is all about people, and people can’t be boiled down to a series of tasks. People are messy and their needs aren’t linear."

Tags: Discipleship, spiritual growth, church community, TEACH THE BIBLE, call to discipleship, training disciples, guard the truth, Study the Bible  (view more)  (view less)

Leadership And Church Size Dynamics

By Tim Keller on Jan 3, 2025

Tim Keller explores one of the most talked-about church issues: the relationship of size to church health and culture.

Scripture: Hebrews 11:9-11, Jeremiah 23:16, Colossians 2:8, Colossians 2:22, Matthew 22:29, 1 Corinthians 3:5-7, Malachi 2:1-17, Isaiah 33:6  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Church, Growth, leadership, pastor, Church Growth, size, Leadership General, Pastor, Leadership, church  (view more)  (view less)

Facing The Issue Of Low Or Infrequent Church Attendance

By Ed Stetzer on Apr 19, 2024

This article is the fourth of six in a series on preaching in light of cultural shifts and biblical illiteracy.

Scripture: Hebrews 10:24

Tags: Fellowship, Community, Preaching, Church Attendance, why go to church, community, preaching, church attendance, fellowship  (view more)  (view less)

Daring Preaching Engages The Culture: Does Yours?

By Joe Mckeever on Aug 26, 2024

Christ sends us into the world but warns us not to be shaped by it. Faithful ministry means engaging culture with wisdom, tension, and gospel-centered discernment.

Scripture: John 17:14-18, Romans 14:4, Acts 17:22-23, 1 Corinthians 9:22, Ephesians 2:14  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Christian Discipleship

Eugene Peterson On Pastors, Preaching, And Consumer Culture

By Eugene Peterson on Jul 14, 2021

"I grew up in a culture which was very entertainment-centered. Pastors were really good storytellers, and they were attractive people, glamorous."

Tags: Growth, Preaching, Growth in Christ

Advent: How To Resist The Culture And Clutter Of Christmas

By Steve Smith on Dec 12, 2023

When I practice Advent, I get the opportunity to yet again, start my life over. I am invited to step out and away from my old ways and to begin new ways of living better–living in a different rhythm; living in a deeper–more sacred way.

Tags: Advent, Silence, Christmas Advent, spiritual clutter

Timothy Keller On How To Preach To And Reach A Culture

By Brandon Kelley on Mar 23, 2022

Timothy Keller seems to have the pulse of our present culture in a way that I’ve not encountered before.

Tags: Preaching, Culture, skepticism, preaching Christ, preaching, culture  (view more)  (view less)

Get To The Point: Preaching Truth In An Age Of Tolerance

By Michael Catt on Sep 9, 2024

Michael Catt: "We endanger the call, art, and gift of preaching when we make it about style instead of substance."

Scripture: 1 Timothy 2:7

Tags: Truth, Preaching, Culture, preaching, culture  (view more)  (view less)

Bridging The Church Communication Gap

By Barry Whitlow on Jun 20, 2020

Seventy percent avoid church because our communication no longer connects. Reaching them requires bold change, cultural awareness, and clearer, relevant preaching.

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 9:22-23, Colossians 4:5-6, Matthew 28:19-20, Romans 10:14-15

Tags: Preaching, church leadership, preaching, Church Leadership