Is Your Preacher A Motivational Preacher?

There are so many preachers in the world today who proclaim that Christ is their Savior. Thus, one ask the question, “Why can’t all preachers just get along?” Oh, how God wishes that we could all get along. However, God knows exactly why we do not get along . . . Would you like to know the reason? Well, how much do you know about motivational preachers (speakers)? Most of the preachers who call themselves Christians carry the same Bible each week into the pulpit (translations aside). Yet, there are many of these preachers who will look at the Bible and then set it down next to his right hand, never to open it again that day. This preacher has now used the holy Scriptures as a prop. He is telling everyone that sees, that he is going to use the word of God today and bring forth great wisdom from within its pages. And, as the sermon begins, he quotes one verse as the foundation of his sermon. Then after he has quoted that one verse or set of verses, he never mentions another verse during that sermon. Now in their defense, I will say that many will refer to the Bible, but they do the Word of God a great injustice. They will say, “That is what the Bible says,” as he attempts to paraphrase God’s Words while telling no one where it is found. Then, he will quickly leave his paraphrasing behind and forget about God’s Word as be begins to tell a story or some wisdom that he heard from his next door neighbor or friend at the local supermarket. Thus, he has chosen to leave the Scriptures behind, meaning to leave it sit next to him as he mainly incorporates man’s wisdom into the sermon. Sadly, one must ask, “What happened to the Bible? Where is the book, chapter and verse for all that he says?” Hence, we have discovered his true identity. He is a motivational speaker. He is the preacher who refuses to use Scriptures constantly and throughout his sermon on the chance that it may offend those ears out in his audience. He gives them exactly what they want to hear and the audience praises him for it. Well, the Bible speaks of these types of preachers who leaves the Bible and lets it do nothing more but sit and collect dust. Thus Paul writes, “I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed. For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ.” (Gal. 1:6-10). Thus, anyone who brings in the wisdom of man and replaces the Word of God, cannot call himself a disciple of the Lord. I once heard a sermon from a denomination that a man had given me on CD. He claimed that it was a very good sermon and that I would gain much wisdom from listening to it. Well, I had agreed to listen to it, in my spare time. Within the first minute of the sermon, the preacher began to speak about the marriage and how wonderful it was and how he had been married for more than 35 years. Then he proceeded to quote Genesis 1:27 in which it states, “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.” I thought that was a good place for a sermon to start on the subject of marriage. However, he only quoted 2 other verses over the period of an hour long sermon and these two verses had nothing to do whatsoever with marriage, which was very sad. I mean, here is the word of God, with all its wisdom, ready to give great advice on marriage and the role of the husband, the wife, the family and all this man did was begin to talk about the statistics that psychologist have found. Well I am sorry, but in my life, the best psychologist is my God. Friends, let us all open our Bibles and read and study what the will of God contains. Preachers, let us not replace the wisdom of God with the wisdom of man. Have we no shame? Have we forgotten that it was God who gave us all wisdom? Hence, we do not need to be a motivational speaker. Let’s simply proclaim all the council of God and let God’s Word do the motivating in our lives. Robert Notgrass