{"id":1668,"date":"2012-11-24T22:41:29","date_gmt":"2012-11-24T20:41:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/?p=1668"},"modified":"2013-01-03T21:49:06","modified_gmt":"2013-01-03T19:49:06","slug":"4-things-a-preacher-should-never-do","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/4-things-a-preacher-should-never-do\/","title":{"rendered":"4 Things a Preacher Should Never Do"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>I preached my first sermon when I was 14 so that means technically I have been preaching for over 20 years! However, I didn&#8217;t start regularly preaching until I was 19, which means that I have about 16 year of preaching experience.<\/p>\n<p>In those 16 years I&#8217;ve made my share of mistakes and hopefully I&#8217;ve learned from them. Tomorrow I&#8217;ll be preaching again and I was thinking about some of the things I&#8217;ve learned not to do in my sermons.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"1670\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/4-things-a-preacher-should-never-do\/sony-dsc-107\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/11\/DSC00730.jpg\" data-orig-size=\"640,364\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;4&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;Picasa&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;NEX-3&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1309101950&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;30&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;1000&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.02&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;SONY DSC&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Caleb preaching\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/11\/DSC00730.jpg\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-1670\" alt=\"Caleb preaching\" src=\"http:\/\/69.89.31.195\/~sukofami\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/11\/DSC00730.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"364\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/11\/DSC00730.jpg 640w, https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/11\/DSC00730-300x170.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><!--more-->Below are my top 4 things that a preacher should never do while he is preaching!<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<h4><strong>Ask for more time<\/strong><\/h4>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Unfortunately I&#8217;ve heard this a lot, when a preacher actually asks the audience if he can take another 10 or 15 mins.\u00a0 Generally the audience will say &#8220;yes&#8221; even if they are thinking &#8220;when is this guy going to finish?&#8221; My rule here is <strong>-If you have to ask for more time, that means you&#8217;ve already taken too much!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Avoid this mistake by finding out how much time you have before you get up to preach and then sticking to the time you have. It also helps to be aware of your audience, if half are falling asleep and the other half have whipped our their smart phones to check the latest news then you&#8217;d better wrap that sermon up!<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<h4><strong>Use someone&#8217;s mistake as an illustration<\/strong><\/h4>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>You should stay well clear of this blunder unless you&#8217;ve specifically received approval from the person who made the mistake and even then I&#8217;d think twice about it.\u00a0 Making it &#8220;anonymous&#8221; doesn&#8217;t always help either, our people are smart and someone might figure out who we were talking about. You&#8217;d be wise to avoid it all together.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<h4><strong>Apologize for not preparing<\/strong><\/h4>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>There are two options here: If you really are not prepared to speak then <strong>DON&#8217;T SPEAK!<\/strong> However, if your preparation wasn&#8217;t done as well as you&#8217;d have liked but you still have something significant that you can share, then go ahead. The Holy Spirit can use us in our weakness.\u00a0 The problem with apologizing for what we are about to preach is that it gives the audience an excuse not to listen.<\/p>\n<p>It is also highly disrespectful. It&#8217;s like telling your people &#8220;I don&#8217;t value you enough to prepare ahead of time and even though it will be a total waste of your time I expect you to respect me by listening to me go on about nothing for the next 40 mins.&#8221;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<h4><strong>Try to &#8220;fill time&#8221;<\/strong><\/h4>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I remember once my dad told me &#8220;When you&#8217;re finished preaching you should sit down.&#8221; That&#8217;s solid advice. Too many preachers feel like they need to &#8220;fill&#8221; the time.\u00a0 As a result they ruin what could have been a great sermon if they had simply sat down when they were really finished preaching.<\/p>\n<p>Some of the best sermons I&#8217;ve heard have been in the 10-12 minute range. They hit their mark dead on and then got out of the way so that it could sink in!<\/p>\n<h4>Question: What would you add to the list? Are there other things that preachers should never do?<\/h4>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I preached my first sermon when I was 14 so that means technically I have been preaching for over 20 years!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1670,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[31],"tags":[228,54],"class_list":["post-1668","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-writing","tag-preaching","tag-sermon"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/11\/DSC00730.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3izZc-qU","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":5459,"url":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/nine-confessions-of-a-struggling-preacher\/","url_meta":{"origin":1668,"position":0},"title":"Nine Confessions of a Struggling Preacher","author":"Caleb Suko","date":"May 20, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"I've been preaching for almost 20 years and I still struggle at the task. Here are 9 struggles that I often experience in my preaching life. I never have enough time to prepare. I can't say I've ever gone to the pulpit with a new sermon and thought, \"Wow, I\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;New&quot;","block_context":{"text":"New","link":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/category\/new\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/photodune-6236060-young-student-overwhelmed-s.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/photodune-6236060-young-student-overwhelmed-s.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/photodune-6236060-young-student-overwhelmed-s.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2680,"url":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/6-reasons-preaching-is-still-valid\/","url_meta":{"origin":1668,"position":1},"title":"6 Reasons Preaching is Still Valid","author":"Caleb Suko","date":"June 5, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Recently I asked a question, \"Is traditional preaching still valid?\" Although I'm a big user of technology in ministry I also believe that traditional preaching is still valid and can never be replaced by other methods of communication. Before I give you my reasons why preaching is still valid let\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Writing&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Writing","link":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/category\/writing\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/DSC_6351.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/DSC_6351.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/DSC_6351.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":5008,"url":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/why-lazy-theologians-are-bad-gospel-preachers\/","url_meta":{"origin":1668,"position":2},"title":"Why Lazy Theologians Are Bad Gospel Preachers","author":"Caleb Suko","date":"February 9, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"A lazy theologian never makes for a good gospel preacher, at least not for long! I've heard it said before that we shouldn't waste so much time on studying theology, that theology distracts us from our main job of preaching the gospel, that we need to put down the books\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Writing&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Writing","link":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/category\/writing\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/IMG_3811-002.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/IMG_3811-002.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/IMG_3811-002.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":6197,"url":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/67-why-we-need-more-gospel-in-our-preaching-7-reasons\/","url_meta":{"origin":1668,"position":3},"title":"#67 Why We Need More Gospel in Our Preaching -7 Reasons","author":"Caleb Suko","date":"January 15, 2016","format":"audio","excerpt":"What separates the preaching of today's celebrity preachers\u00a0like Joel Osteen from some of the great preachers of history like Charles Spurgeon? A lot separates them for sure but when it comes down to it there is one core difference that places these preachers on opposite ends of the homiletical spectrum.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;The Gospel Today&quot;","block_context":{"text":"The Gospel Today","link":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/category\/podcast\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/Desktop-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/Desktop-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/Desktop-1.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2039,"url":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/10-misconceptions-about-preaching\/","url_meta":{"origin":1668,"position":4},"title":"10 Misconceptions About Preaching","author":"Caleb Suko","date":"January 9, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"I once heard someone say that preaching is sometimes like a university lecture, where the information passes from the notes of the professor to the notes of the student without passing through the brain of either. Unfortunately there are a lot of misconceptions about what preaching really is and about\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Books&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Books","link":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/category\/books\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/01\/DSC00285.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/01\/DSC00285.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/01\/DSC00285.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3800,"url":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/never-say-this-to-a-preacher-after-his-sermon\/","url_meta":{"origin":1668,"position":5},"title":"Never Say This to a Preacher After His Sermon!","author":"Caleb Suko","date":"November 12, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"I know you mean well and you probably just want to communicate your gratitude but will you do your pastor a favor and stop saying this after his sermons? Don't worry you're not the only one who says it, I hear it pretty much every Sunday. \u00a0It goes something like\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Writing&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Writing","link":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/category\/writing\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/preaching-2.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/preaching-2.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/preaching-2.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1668","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1668"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1668\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1670"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1668"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1668"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1668"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}