On Subscription Sermon Series (Part 4)

OK, I thought I was done with this topic--I've written three previous posts on this.  But then I received another email from our friends at ________ advertising their subscription sermon series.  Just when I think they've hit bottom, well, they prove me wrong.  Now they are selling "award winning" sermons preached at some of the largest churches in America.  Is that a fact?

Rather than tackle the question of plagiarism and sloth (I've already covered that ground), this time I will focus upon the sermon topics they are pitching.  Pretty bad . . .

The latest email begins with the prompt "this Sunday will be a time when pastors will be preparing people's hearts for THANKSGIVING."  Oh, is that so?  As a minister of word and sacrament, my job is to preach Christ crucified, not get people ready to celebrate a national holiday--although, at Christ Reformed we do hold a worship service on Thanksgiving in which we devote the bulk of our time to actually giving thanks.

Next comes the sales pitch.  "If you would like to subscribe today we would like to send you the thanksgiving sermon, `WHERE ARE THE NINE' free."  In light of the earlier sermon we discussed (Click here: Riddleblog - The Latest Post - On Subscription Sermon Series (Part 1), I'll bet this one is a doozy!

Here's the "set" of sermons they are selling.  It includes the following titles:

(1) Two Great Women  (Mother's Day)
(2) Bogus Resolutions  (New Years)
(3) How God's Plans Interfere With Our Plans (Christmas)
(4) Where Do We Find Comfort?  (Friend's Day)
(5) The Proofs of The Resurrection (Easter)
(6) The Excitement of Easter  (Easter)
(7) Funeral Service #1
(8) Funeral Service #2
(9) Grandparent's Day
(10) Heaven  (Funeral)
(11) Mother's Day 2001
(12) Excellent Role Models  (Youth or Father's Day)
(13) Kodak Moments In The Life Of Christ  (Christmas)
(14) What We Should Be Thankful For  (Thanksgiving)
(15) Where Are The Nine?  (Thanksgiving)
(16) What We Can Learn From The Past  (New Years)

Since I've never preached a sermon on Grandparent's Day--sorry, but I don't follow the Hallmark calendar--I have no idea what this would entail.  I am curious, "will the Mother's Day sermon from 2001 work in 2008?"  I'll bet the sermon on comfort (Friend's Day) has nothing to do with guilt-grace-gratitude, and while evidence for the resurrection sounds good, I'm not sure "excitement" is a term I'd use for Easter.  Kodak Moments for Christmas?  Role models for Father's Day? 

As an expository preacher who works from a biblical text, I'm not a fan of topical sermons--especially when they are based on the Hallmark calendar.

Here's the final pitch: "All sixteen of these sermons are award winning sermons that have been preached in many of the largest churches in the United States." 

I'm a bit of a cynic.  So, my question is, "who determines whether a sermon receives an award?"  Furthermore, given the claim that these sermons are supposedly used in many of the largest churches in America, this begs the question as to whether the pastors of these churches are using this subscription sermon series and passing someone else's material off as their own.  But could it be that this particular subscription series is based upon sermons taken from these large churches and then sold as part of their package deal?

Either way, this is real trouble.  Preachers are preaching sermons they did not write, and these topical sermons (if they are like our previous example) fall far short of  the public placarding of Christ, called for by the apostle Paul (Galatians 3:1).

Comments

[Wayne McFetridge]

Kim,

What's really great about you posting this is that now your blog ranks in top ten on google for "sermon subscriptions"

http://www.google.com.au/search?q=sermon+subscriptions

[jason]

You should write the Company back thats trying to sell you this "product" and say you'll be glad to sell them the most valuable sermon manuscript you know of. In Fact this manuscript covers all of their topics (?) and more. Not only that it comes in its own black leather case...the Bible!

[PB]

Reminds me of the annual contest held by the Times of London for the prize winning sermon - correct me on the details but I'm sure I remember something along these lines.

[Nancy A. Almodovar]

The use of "canned" sermons was the straw that broke my husband's and my back...so to speak. We'd begun attending a "Reformed" church about 4 years ago when God graciously showed us that the evangelical church we were attending was fraudulent in what it preached, only to end up in a church where the pastor bought sermons from Rick W. and a few others who are modalists. When confronted we were instead placed on trial at church. My husband, who was an elder, then resigned and we left the church. Americans have become lazy and american christians have followed that path as well forgetting that we are to be like the Bereans. Pastor's would rather market than preach. So...no wonder those who claim to be christians would rather purchase sermons than have to dig into the Word of God...that takes time, energy and committment.

[Zrim]

"I'm a bit of a cynic."

I feel you, man, I feel you. Welcome to the Contrarians Club, we have plenty of tee shirts and...I was going to say lapel pins, but you haven't sent me my ILJO pin yet!

Zrim

[Chris]

What about a sermon for Halloween about someone who wears a pastor's costume but really subscribes to a sermon series?

[carolyn]

Why preach at all? How about a drama and testimony time? Or a video?

Sermons are just not "cutting edge" :)

[DSY]

I notice that one of adds for one of these services helpfully advises me as a pastor that I'll have time time for other duties like vision casting and visitation, etc. Why let your primary responsibility get the way team building, leadership, and creating culture? Where do I sign up?
DSY

[Robin]

As a reader of Tolkien, I think I recall "Where Are The Nine" refers to the nine agents of the Dark Lord, Sauron -- the infamous "Nazgul."

Nazgul + Thanksgiving? Eeeww, that'd be different!

[Chris Sherman]

It's not just the sermon peddlers, or the "pastors" who subscribe to them, but the fact that so many in the pews are accepting it that strikes me as bizarre.

Maybe these "pastors" need to face the reality that just maybe they were not called to be pastors.

Why even bother having a preacher, why not just stick a TV up in the pulpit? Or remodel the pews so everyone could have their own monitor in the back of the seat in front of them and you could change the channel if the sermon gets too uncomfortable.

[Chris Sherman]

I wonder if these sermons come with a "rate this sermon" handout?

This sermon (on a scale of 1 to 10):
[ ] made me feel warm and fuzzy all over
[ ] inspired me to give more money
[ ] created a sense of awe for my pastor since I never knew he had it in him.
[ ] inspired me to be baptized again.
[ ] inspired me to accept Jesus as my Saviour again.
[ ] inspired me to quit drinking and smoking again.
[ ] inspired me to begin walking the victorious Christian life again.

[one for the road]

It's not too late to enter this sermon competition, Pastor Riddlebarger. Who knows, maybe you could be award winning. :)

www.calvin09.ch/media/pdf/interaktiv/Predigtwettbewerb_E.pdf

["lee n. field"]

>[ ] inspired me to be baptized again.
>[ ] inspired me to accept Jesus as my Saviour again.
>[ ] inspired me to begin walking the victorious Christian life again.

Try this one: "[]made a decision for assurance of salvation."

Whatever that means -- the phrase came up from somebody speaking in church a few weeks ago. Evangelicalese jargon run wild.

[timinator]

What no Spurgeon or Edwards? I thought this was the best sermons? I guess they mean the emerging church like Warren, Schuler and Lucado.

They are missing the whole point of preparing a sermon. It takes hours of reading the Bible and a few reference books at times. If you are Credo then you might look at the creeds or Psalter as well.

But under no condition would you just pay for a sermon and call yourself a pastor.

Elders and deacons are what pastor’s need, so as the pastor is preparing the message form the Bible, the elders and deacons are taking care of the needs of the church. Foursquare churches do not follow this model, they expect their pastors to be supermen and do it all. I have seen what it does to a pastor; shorten your life it could.

[Ivan]

Kim,
Good comments regarding the error of intentionally scheduling that the Hallmark holidays will determine the preaching calendar!

We preach Advent Season, Christmas Eve service, Palm Sunday, Easter.

Anybody want to offer any other ways they observe a true Christian Holiday in their worship services?

Thanks everyone!

[Theophilus]

Kim,
You seem to have missed the point that the answer to the question "is it okay to preach someone else's sermons," is pure moral subjectivism.
If it is "okay" to preach someone else's sermons then it is okay to preach someone else's sermons.
Conversely, if it is not okay, it is not okay.
"Is it okay to commit adultery? Yes, if you do it for the right reasons."
"Is it okay to 'love God with all your heart? Yes, if you do it for the right reasons."
One might argue that you have fallen into the same trap by continuing to post on this topic after you'd "sworn off" (you did it for the right reason).