Opus 2026-123: The Thousand Paragraphs

One of the reasons that church attendance has declined is that preachers and teachers have abandoned studying the word and instead go to what I call the Thousand Paragraphs.  I first thought in these terms when looking for a church to get involved in after our move to Texas.  I visited a small church in town and was generally impressed.  The worship was a healthy mix of traditional hymns and more contemporary songs.  There was a good spirit.  People were friendly. The sermon was adequate.  But…

I got the impression during the sermon that if I returned the next week I would hear the same sermon.  The words would be different.  The text would be different.  In spite of that it would be the same “turn or burn” message.  I had the feeling that the pastor had a thousand paragraphs, memorized and readily available, and he could call them up in any order.  They would fit together and seem coherent.  They would fit almost any passage of scripture that he chose, not because they were the result of study and prayer but because they were so flexible.

I have heard a lot of that type of preaching.  Often it takes the form of reading a long passage and then going to your thousand paragraphs, never to return.  In a sense the gospel is presented.  An invitation is given and because the goal is evangelism it is considered a success.

I did not return to the church.  It wasn’t because of the preaching.  I have given up on that.  It was the strong Calvinistic theology presented.  I can take it when it is not pushed but when it gets too heavy it is better for me to leave.

I wish them well. It may be that the thousand paragraphs will be enough.

homo unius libri