Why Johnny Can't Preach: Review of T. David Gordon

[@MatthewEverhard]

Hey Everyone! If you enjoy my video content, would you please consider grabbing my new book Souls: How Jesus Saves Sinners? It's right here - amzn.to/3OcuDA1

[@andyheller2691]

I pre-ordered your book when you first mentioned it and my copy finally came the other day. Starting it this weekend.

[@MrKC23]

I have this book on my shelf. Thanks for galvanising me to read it, & to read history, languages, & poetry

[@69telecasterplayer]

Excellent! I just bought it. Thanks.

[@nelsonthomasraja]

thanks for your amazing video i did not have the book but now i realy am going to purchase or get hold of it. Blessings to you from Ireland

[@ApologeticsMom]

That was a great episode! I just have a question though. How can it possibly be a bad thing that you did a how-to video on taking Bible notes? Just because this author that wrote a good book says it's a bad idea? Help me understand :-) Thanks.

[@ShepherdMinistry]

Do you recommend logos?

[@stelmasia]

thanks Matthew, that's helpful. I would love to hear your thoughts on 2 books on preaching: by Tim Keller, and by Zack Eswine. It would be great if you'd consider sharing your thoughts on them (if you have read them). Thanks! God's grace to you brother.

[@sandersdca]

I recently visited a large church where a visiting seminary professor "preached" on parent-child relationships. Not once did he open a Bible or read scripture. Rather he gave us his opinions and quoted various authors. I was aghast.

[@69telecasterplayer]

Very good points here. Hits me hard as a Pentecostal. But don't let Gordon discourage you from you fighting the culture war. We are in a deadly spiritual conflict and we desperately need our preachers addressing what is happening at this moment in our culture. If you don't do it then we have to turn to the Jordan Petersons and Ben Shapiros. As good as they are, their message is not purified with the Word of God. Please continue to speak for God as His prophetic voice for today. May God continue to bless your labors.

[@JusheisAwesome]

Would Souls be a good book for someone who is in mourning?

[@joest.eggbenedictus1896]

Part of what I see as a problem is that church populations and denominations do not necessarily "reward" or highlight the literary pastors, but instead focus on the entrepreneurial ones. The entrepreneurs and the literary preachers aren't necessarily opposed, but it seems that they do make for different skill sets. I bet you (just a guess) that the author might have researched sermons from larger churches. There are thousands of pastors at small churches who never get mentioned or large followings who can out preach almost any big time preacher.

[@LucianaPelota]

I totally disagree with Gordon's remarks about avoiding cultural criticism from the pulpit. One reason we are in this cesspool society is that pastors have focused on pietism and have not addressed cultural problems from the perspective of the Scriptures.

[@PSModernKitchens]

Page 55 & 56 on Introspection… wow! Literally changed our lives… We left at church seven months ago because of this dangerous style of preaching. “and sadly the temperament of some ministers is simply officious. scolding others is their life calling; they have the genetic disposition to be a Jewish mother.”

[@rllapte]

Pastor Matthew, I just discovered your channel early trhis week. I'm pleased and impressed with your messaging content. This video really hits home for me. About 15 years ago I moved my membership to a midsized PCA church with a truly dynamic ministry anchored by outstanding deep dive expository preaching. At that time, what I would call a gradual but inevtitable migration to a Calvinist aligned understanding of Scripture was not yet complete. Also at that time the senior pastor was about 15 years into a 21 year residency. He left to take on the challenge of growing a young church in his home state. After a misfire the session offered the position, for the second time, to the young assistant who was leading the high school/college ministry. After a period of mild growing pains this minister fully demonstrated that he had the goods to maintain the high standard of preaching and general ministry. But after five years he aslo left to join a campus ministry in an adjoining state. Our current pastor, 3 years into his tenure does not bring anything close to this level of power expository preaching. His sermons are very much like what you described in your opening. I've always made it my business to attend a church that features dynamic and faithful to Scripture preaching. But, I've never been one to leave a church because "I don't like the pastor. I'm simply one who requires the inspiration and edification provided by high octane preaching. For somtime I have been considering, exploring options. I even considered emailing you for some guidance but thankfully I discovered just last night that the long time pastor of my church has returned to my city as pastor of a start up church. I love my church and have no intenton of leaving but for now I am going to attend this new church.

[@MatthewEverhard]

Thanks for the kind words about my channel! I am your low-budget Reformed content guy! Lol. It's hard to find good preaching, but the Bride of Christ, the church is well worth loving!

[@youngrevival9715]

One of our preachers calls it miscellaneous thought on a religious subject

[@PrentissYeates]

I think that your points is very well made- but I think that the prime problem is biblical illiteracy among the congregation. Secondly, many a pastor doesn’t present the text as the very word of God. There is no awe, no thankfulness, the Pastor that leads his congregation to wrap themselves in the text will bless his congregation dearly.

[@Lessonswithlandon100]

Shout out! Grew up in Grove City! Thanks for all you do.

[@garycampbell9270]

Dear Pastor Matt, Thank you for another engaging and thought-provoking video. I was intrigued by the suggestion that pastors read more poetry. While it's true that we have much to learn through poetry (it being the most densely succinct form of expression) there is one inherent problem: poetic cadence. People are most often introduced to poetry through poems that rhyme. Hence, the reader is concentrating more on adjusting to the cadence of the rhyme than on comprehending the poem's meaning. The KJV Bible's creators intentionally chose to present the scriptures in very flowing and lyrical language. Consequently, a Biblical cadence has developed, that hides, rather than illuminates, the text, when read aloud. I believe that pastors should strive to read the text in a conversational manner. After all, the Bible is not meant as mere entertainment, but as food for the heart and mind. It speaks well enough on it's own. Thank God....

[@joeg9208]

Thank you pastor! As a non pastor, I found this convicting as well, why Johnny can’t listen/pay attention perhaps. Would be great if you could create or recommend a list of reading that would be helpful, poetry, literature, history etc. keep up the great ministry here and will definitely get your upcoming book.

[@mikenixon2401]

My observation over nearly six decades is that sermons have, in nine out of ten cases, become what I call feel good messages with the obvious intention being to grow numbers and get congregants to return next week and pay a financial tithe or offering. Those that genuinely preach the challenge of God's good news in Christ and call for a change of lifestyle are very limited. Genuine believers, I have found have mostly left the institutional church for the noted resons. That said, we live in a time that genuine believers must rise up and proclaim the politically incorrect word of God for the confession of sin, forgiveness by Christ's sacrifice and baptism of God's Holy Spirit with a lifestyle that stands out among a respective community. This is for the spiritual salvation of all that will accept it and good for society as a whole. At some point our everlasting lives or deaths will depend on it.

[@genebaker6964]

I fully understand where Gordan and you are coming from. I’ve been a church goer for 35 odd years and rarely could even recall what the sermon was about before I left the church front door. Preachers (I attended several churches over the years) will highlight in the bulletin 1 or 2 verses but it always seemed the sermon, if it was referred to at all, was out of context. Finally, 5 years ago I found a church where the preacher used expository. I learned more about God’s word in 5 years than the previous 30 years.

[@jkdbuck7670]

Sad thing is, at my old church when we were between pastors, we had an interim pastor and he couldn't explain a verse. He's get up, read a verse, then go on a 45 minute loud rant about how things were better when he was young...the church was better, the preachers were better, the people were better all back when he was a kid. 1. People in the pews thought it was great preaching. Which is sad. 2. When I left the services, I couldn't explain the passage because the preacher didn't explain it.

[@MichaelSmith-yy8fw]

Why Johnny Can't Teach would be an excellent book. MikeInMinnesota

[@petkocholakov7829]

I’ve read the bigger chunk of the book, but disagree with the section on culture wars. Not pointing out the sinfulness of our current culture and to be reluctant to apply the text to our day is not a good sermon to have. Saying that we are incapable of influencing and shaping our countries with the Gospel and God’s law would have been news to Calvin, the reformers and the puritans.

[@garyjames-ij4fr]

If the student’s aren’t qualified, why do they keep graduating them. Make no mistake it is the seminaries fault. Part of their job is to maintain the excellence. That is if you believe seminaries should exist which I do not.

[@No_auto_toon]

Why is it necessary for their to be one main point in every sermon? Is this Biblically derived or just so that people remember the sermon?

[@MatthewEverhard]

You can have many points, but the various points should have a central theme. For example a bad sermon structure would be 1) Baptism 2) Nebuchadnezzar 3) Regulative principle of worship. Obviously this does not build well and has no center of gravity. But you could have something like 1) Baptism in water 2) Baptism in the name 3) Baptism in the Spirit etc. This would have a central theme that holds it together well.

[@danbrown586]

It's been a few years since I read Why Johnny Can't Preach, so I may be misremembering here a bit, but I believe a big part of the reason for Gordon's emphasis on studying poetry is that it fits with his emphasis on reading a text as a text. When you read history, you're likely to read for content (i.e., to learn the facts of what happened), and the same is largely true with reading fiction. You're less likely to notice matters of the text as the text--word choice, sentence structure, and other such matters just don't tend to attract attention as they do in studying poetry. I don't really "do" poetry, but it's probably about the closest you're going to get to "reading a text as a text."

[@jasoncramer8698]

Thank you Pastor Everhard. Great review of a great book. A book on "Why Johnny Can't Teach" would have the echoes of this book. As teachers (in all capacities-High School to Collegiate-) seem to be in the same cultural bind as you stated.

[@tenad10]

Thank you pastor Matt

[@wolfman7284]

Good points about attention spans... yet people binge multiple episodes of shows over hours (or sports for hours on end) and seem to be fine. I think it's priorities. .

[@KTSAdventures]

Unfortunately this has been my experience in churches I have attended We call them, amongst friends, sermonette’s for Christianetts. Simple flow…launch off a verse, tell 3 stories about ppl or things, don’t refer to the launching text again, summarize a vague point and have an alter call and eat. Sad, but my experience. No one is getting fed. Again, the truth destroys. No one wants to hear it, so…it’s not said so one can remain employed or remain out of conflict. Thank you for sharing Matt. Seems yo me if after 3 years of Christ teaching in person to thousands and thousands of people, and only 120 we’re waiting for the Holy Spirit, numbers mean very little. Not quantity but delivery of the truth and the results are God’s and not a reflection on your success. In general, ppl, the majority should not like you just as they hated Christ. That make sense? Feel like I beat a Shetland pony to death who isn’t even in the room.

[@squrpion]

Off topic: nice work on your lighting! You got the practical lightning in the background, and a rim light coming from the top right-great stuff! Love your content, and I think you're improving your footage wonderfully.

[@MatthewEverhard]

It has everything to do with the natural lighting in my office. You can't see it but there is a very large window over my left shoulder, but darkness on the right side by the books. The variance has to do with the weather! It's never the same here in PA!

[@squrpion]

​@@MatthewEverhard Nice, here I was thinking it was all calculated 😂

[@billblanchette3604]

Very good presentation, I'm convicted. I lament not having more literary and language background. In CPE, our final 2 units had us summarizing our verbatims with a poem. I was so out of my depth at the thought of this, yet we all rose to the challenge and I surprised myself and it turned into a real blessing. Thank you brother Matthew...

[@ceciliafuentes3299]

I don't go to church. I use to go, but each church had something going on that I just didn't wan to be part of, or felt I could just ignore. The pastors, preachers had issues, which I get, they are human, but having an affair or doing questionable things was not okay with me. Listening to a sermon from someone with questionable behavior 🤔. I am looking for a new church. I am praying to find the house of God, to learn, listen, and be part of. I was born Catholic, attended a Roman Catholic church, a Baptist church, a Non-Denominational church, which was interesting, and we will just say that, but not for me. I learn on line, I pray alone, and keep God close to me. I do talk about him alot, but only in how amazing he is with me, I am not a pastor or preacher, I can't teach, but I can show how great God is, by being my best self.

[@Yesica1993]

"I don't go to church." Then you're being disobedient to God and need to repent and find a church.

[@michaelmannucci8585]

When is the last time you partook of the Lord's supper (which Jesus commanded)?

[@nicholasgeorge7825]

Church goes with you, sister Fuentes.

[@ceciliafuentes3299]

@@Yesica1993 I completely agree

[@ceciliafuentes3299]

@@michaelmannucci8585 It jas been a ver long time, many years

[@dnzswithwombats]

I listen to many sermons each week. When people are speaking in God's name, I want to learn. If it contradicts God's word, I still learn from listening by comparing it to what God already says. Often, a text is used as a spring-board only and the soliloquay is a preacher loving the sound of their own voice. Occasionally, there is a gem, though, worth sifting through to have.

[@chrisjohnson9542]

Matt. I love you brother and I love your honesty and willingness to see your own flaws and grow. I do however think that what you said concerning making a KZbin video about how to journal is not the same thing as a how to sermon. If that was what your Sunday sermons from the pulpit to feed your people looked like then I think that would definitely be an issue but a KZbin video is different. I also think that it is good to engage what's going on in culture and clarify it with scripture from time to time. But there's also a slippery slope where preachers can start talking about it too much and their pulpit basically becomes a political one mainly and that's definitely no good. I always enjoy those good old 3 point sermons that really are simple yet rich and deep. Those are the ones that I remember for years and years.

[@AlexanderLongacre182]

Wish you went more into the culture war point because I came from a church that would not address anything from the culture that was attacking our kids, pastors would not touch anything even if the text would indirectly address the sin, that half of the middle schoolers started embracing homosexuality, transgender identity, woke ideology, liberal ideology, feminism etc. I’m trying to understand, and I maybe greatly misunderstand you, but it seems like we are being told the one thing i despise: be heavenly minded so you’re no earthly good. if Christ truly has authority over everything, would it not follow that all things must be addressed and confronted with the Word of God? Or is the gospel preached just so we can ignore the material world and get to heaven one day? I pray that I’m horribly mistaken, correct me if I am wrong.

[@quadsquad4mk]

I'm no expert, but from what I understand it is a churches duty to draw lines in the sand clearly for its congregants. The shepherd guides the flock. I think the point is directed more towards pastors not becoming culture warriors, which I personally believe is fair. However, if you still disagree with that, don't let one guys theology on preaching cause a rift between you and God. It's all much bigger than that. Hoped that help, God bless. :]

[@AlexanderLongacre182]

@@quadsquad4mk fair enough, brother. Thank you for taking time out of your day to respond, you make a good point... I have to consider and think through this more carefully. Perhaps even order the book as well. Do you think the warning is against using the pulpit like Rush Limbaugh with a smattering of bible verses using the pulpit to preach God's Word which the text or principle found in the text applies to a cultural evil, can be addressed in passing?

[@quadsquad4mk]

@@AlexanderLongacre182 Thats exactly what I would say, and that's got to be an incredibly hard line to walk I would imagine.

[@MichaelSmith-yy8fw]

Please give examples of proper sermons. MikeInMinnesota

[@nicholasgeorge7825]

Why writer can't avoid silly book title: coming soon!

[@joycejarrard6958]

The title is a riff off of a popular book from back in the 60's or 70's, which was titled "Why Johnny Can't Read." It was a big deal at the time. "Why Johnny Still Can't Read' was published in 1986. Therefore, to someone over 60, this title makes perfect sense.

[@nicholasgeorge7825]

@@joycejarrard6958 Ok boomer. It's fine for rock and roll. It's silly for the holy Christian faith. "let the elders be grave."

[@benjamincervantes2729]

@@nicholasgeorge7825 bro. It’s just a book.

[@nicholasgeorge7825]

@@benjamincervantes2729 So is the Bible. You commenters here show why Johnny can't preach. Johnny is frivolous.