Long-Winded Preachers

I posted on FaceBook a video by Todd White that is nearly two hours long. It amazes me that people willingly sit to hear him that long.

I am always hearing people complaining about long-winded preachers. I had one deacon that felt seventeen minutes was good enough and if you cannot get it done in seventeen minutes you need to work on it.

Todd speaks of watching three hours of TV. We will stay for extra innings on a work night even if it means we only get fours hours of sleep.

How long did Jesus preach when He had to feed the multitude? People worked from sunup to sundown and yet they listened to Paul preach until midnight.

Neh 8:2 And Ezra the priest brought the law before the congregation both of men and women, and all that could hear with understanding, upon the first day of the seventh month.

Neh 8:3 And he read therein before the street that was before the water gate from the morning until midday, before the men and the women, and those that could understand; and the ears of all the people were attentive unto the book of the law.

The morning started at 6 AM so approximately six hours and no music. Many are glad to sing 45 minutes and only have a 20-minute devotional. If you sing 45 then the preacher should have at least 60. The music is to prepare your heart from the sermon so if it takes 45 minutes to do that you need maybe a 90-minute sermon to get the job done.

When I was a Baptist, my Pentecostal friends said the problem with the Baptists is that they leave before the Holy Spirit shows up. That is bad theology because He is always there, but He does not always have control of the service, but I got there point.

Thankfully, no Pentecostal ever complains about the length of a sermon because the Holy Spirit will never want them to leave before He is done. Every Pentecostal preacher who reads this would say, "From his mouth to God's ear" for they know that is not accurate. We have folks that would nearly agree with that Baptist deacon.

Set the crockpot for 1 PM instead of 12:30 and forget about the sporting event. You will not starve and the team will win or lose without you.

Count your blessings that the morning service is not six hours and the evening service until Midnight. Even more, be glad we are not meeting daily like the early Church. Then again, maybe we should mourn because we do not have the attention span and zeal they had. After all, they turned the world upside down and we could sure use that today! Maranatha!