Last year Essentials published my article, ‘Homiletical Health Check’, a survey of sermons in 20 churches from different denominations. In that article we heard the preachers speak. Now it’s time to hear the listeners. Essentials decided to conduct a follow-up survey, asking congregational members what they thought of the preaching in their churches. 47 churches were asked to participate; nine responded. Out of those nine churches 53 people filled in the survey. All the churches are evangelical, and just over one-half are Anglican. Nearly all the respondents live in urban areas, with most living along the eastern seaboard: 72% live in Melbourne, Sydney, or Brisbane.

The obvious weakness in the survey is the small data set. Nevertheless, the survey still works as a qualitative assessment of what value members of evangelical churches place on preaching. As such, there are valuable insights for people who preach regularly.

The survey asked 12 questions. We’ll briefly summarise the response to each question.

1: WHAT IS THE FOCAL POINT DURING YOUR SUNDAY GATHERING?

The focal point of most of these services is the sermon.

2: ON A SCALE OF 1 - 10, WITH 1 BEING THE LOWEST, AND 10 THE HIGHEST, HOW IMPORTANT IS PREACHING FOR YOU PERSONALLY?

91% of people surveyed answered the question between 8 and 10. And the lowest score chosen was 7. And those who chose 7 did so because they understood that the other parts of the service were also important to them.

3: WHY DID YOU CHOOSE THAT PARTICULAR RATING IN QUESTION TWO?

Those who responded to question two with a “10” all answered that preaching helps them to know the word of God better, and grow spiritually.

4: WHAT DIFFERENT TYPES OF SERMONS ARE THERE AT YOUR CHURCH?

The most common type is expositional. The next most common are evangelistic and thematic.

5: HOW FREQUENTLY IS A SERMON IN YOUR CHURCH GIVEN IN A MANNER THAT YOU CAN EITHER TAKE SOMETHING CONCRETE FROM IT, OR THE APPLICATION IS CLEAR?

The majority of respondents (46 out of 53) felt that out of every four sermons at least three had something applicable to their lives.

6: WHEN THERE IS APPLICATION HOW OFTEN IS IT EITHER: "TELL SOMEONE ABOUT JESUS", "READ YOUR BIBLE", "PRAY MORE FREQUENTLY" OR SOMETHING ALONG THOSE LINES.

60% of respondents felt there is an appropriate balance of application in the sermons. 32% felt the application was always one of those three applications.

7: HOW OFTEN DOES THE PREACHING AFFIRM OR ENCOURAGE THE CONGREGATION FOR THEIR FAITHFULNESS AS CHRISTIANS?

81% of respondents felt that the preaching regularly affirms the congregation for their faithfulness as Christians.

8: WHAT'S THE TYPICAL LENGTH OF SERMONS AT YOUR CHURCH?

About one-third of respondents hear sermons which are between 21-25 minutes long. About another one third are hearing sermons up to 40 minutes long. That means about one-third are hearing sermons between 16-20 minutes, or up to an hour in length.

9: ARE YOU SATISFIED WITH THE LENGTH OF THE SERMONS? ARE THEY: TOO SHORT, TOO LONG OR ABOUT RIGHT?

89% of respondents felt that they were satisfied with the length of the sermons at their church. This was regardless of whether the sermons were 16 minutes long, or longer than an hour.

10: WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MOST ABOUT THE PREACHING AT YOUR CHURCH?

The most consistent comment is that people appreciate preaching which is based on the Bible (36%), is clearly and engagingly delivered, and which they can apply to their lives. People also mentioned that they appreciate well researched sermons.

11: WHAT PARTS OF THE PREACHING AT YOUR CHURCH MIGHT NEED MORE ATTENTION?

The majority said ‘nothing’ (30 %). Those who did comment would like more depth to the sermons, better application, and would like more variety in delivery and style.

12: ARE THERE ANY PARTICULAR COMMENTS YOU WOULD LIKE TO MAKE IN RELATION TO THE PREACHING AT YOUR CHURCH?

Here’s a sample of the comments:

• “They are Bible-centric, relevant to the sermon series theme, well researched and delivered.”
• “We are blessed with three ministers…with various styles of preaching and all keep us on our toes as they deliver God’s message”.
• “It’s consistently very good.”
• “I look forward to it”.
• “I like longer sermons that go deeper.”
• “We are truly blessed by the standard of preaching”.

There were many other similar comments.

GENERAL OBSERVATIONS

Again, we need to bear in mind that this is a small sample. Perhaps preachers who are less confident about their preaching or were concerned about what their people might say, decided not to distribute the survey. Or, perhaps, in the busyness of church life it just was too far down the priority list. But a few things stand out.

People value good preaching. One of my (Mike’s) observations over many years is that a good sermon covers a multitude of – not sins - but perhaps deficiencies in other areas. The pastor may not be the best administrator, or a great counsellor, or even a less committed visitor of the people, but if a spiritually tasty and nutritious meal is served up on Sunday then people will thank God for the ministry.

People are receiving solid application. When I ask preachers where they struggle, the most common response is in application. On the one hand, the survey suggests that people feel the Biblical expositions they hear are well applied to their lives. On the other hand, a number also feel that application needs to be a constant focus in the sermons.

People are happy with the length of the sermon.

While ‘how long should a sermon be?’ is a hot debate amongst preachers, if this survey is anything to go by, it’s less of an issue for the people. Most have been trained to listen to a sermon of a certain length and are content with that. The key issue isn’t length but faithfulness to the Bible and good application.

People appreciate sermons that ‘go deep’ and are well-researched. If I can put this in my own words, most people can discern when a sermon has been thoroughly prepared and not just hurriedly written the night before. And they like new insights, perhaps into the text or how the Bible speaks into our contemporary situation. In short, they appreciate sermons that are intellectually stimulating.

Well done! The last lesson to take home from this survey is that many (most?) evangelical preachers are serving God’s people well in their preaching, and so honouring the God who has set them apart for this work. The people really appreciate it (even if they don’t always tell you). Let this be a stimulus to us, not to sit back on any laurels, but continue to grow as preachers to the glory of God and the edification of the saints.

Michael Raiter is the Director of the Centre for Biblical Preaching. Tim Collison is Assistant Minister St Marks’ Camberwell and Secretary of EFAC Australia