joncoombs.com

Tag: Sermons

  • AI, Ministry, and the Shape of Discipleship

    AI, Ministry, and the Shape of Discipleship

    There’s something particularly human about opening the Bible and seeking to make sense of it for others. For pastors, that moment of sermon preparation isn’t just about information or knowledge transfer, it’s about formation, for the preacher and the people who hear it. Now, however, we need to deal with AI. It’s fast. It’s helpful. And, it’s kind of fun too! 

    But, it also raises deeper questions about our pastoral and ministerial calling, especially when it comes to the slow and patient work of preaching and shepherding others in the way of Jesus. 

    Recently, I’ve listened to two podcast episodes (here and here) from the team at the Expositors Collective (who I’d recommend you follow) and been reflecting on AI, sermon preparation, and its wider use in church ministry. 

    Tools or Crutches

    Tools abound for pastors and ministry leaders of churches. Whether it’s Bible software, commentaries, whiteboards, Canva, or various books and study guides, there’s plenty out there. AI fits into this category. A tool. It can structure meetings, summarise transcripts, brainstorm sermon series, and tidy up emails. It’s like a digital intern who doesn’t need smoke-o. 

    But there is a tipping point. And for some that might be further down the track than others. Nevertheless, the tipping point is when the tool becomes a crutch, something that ends up doing the deep work that is part of the calling of gospel ministry–the exegesis, illustration, sermon outlining, the writing, even. This tipping point comes when we trade formation for efficiency. And it is a poor trade. We may well save time, but what we risk is the personal formation of our soul and a disservice to our people.

    Sermons are lived, they are to be ‘in’ us, they are to be lifted up in prayer, and spoken through the Spirit by a person, not a prompt. 

    Presence Over Productivity

    Of course, AI promises productivity. And it’s a performance trap for us too. In some areas, like admin, research, and note-making, it’s certainly very helpful. But ministry isn’t measured by these things, nor is it measured by performance and efficiency. It’s measured in faithfulness, presence, and love for others. Those in the church who are dealing with challenge, hardship, grief, health concerns, financial difficulty, or a dark night of the soul don’t need a TED Talk crafted message, they need a pastor who has sat with the text, prayed through the text, and then communicates through the work of the Spirit. 

    And don’t get me wrong, I’m not some Luddite with anti-tech sensibilities. I’m engaging with AI tools in many areas of life, including church ministry. But we’ve got to remind ourselves that our calling is to shepherd not to massage content in ChatGPT. 

    I suppose, the danger isn’t really AI itself, it’s what it might slowly be doing to our hearts as we build faster content but remain less formed and wise in the process. 

    Discernment In Discipleship

    My point is that we’re not here to create fear or hype about AI. Every generation is already using it to some degree, and those digital natives among us are well beyond this being ‘new’. Our job is more about wisdom and discernment than it is to give some moral judgement on these technologies. It’s to help people realise that following Jesus may not be the road of shortcuts and speed.

    We need to help our churches, our people, see the difference between information and wisdom. To be able to sit in the deep with God, and let him do the work within us over a long period of time. Outsourcing formation won’t get us very far, but embracing slow discipleship, the unhurried way of Jesus will. 

    So, yes, we use these tools. But we realise that this is what they are. The question of challenge is whether I am shaping this tool or is it shaping me?

  • 100 Sermons In

     

    I preached my 100th sermon the other day.

    I don’t consider myself a great preacher but there’s something about working at preaching that I find satisfaction in.


    SP11

    I have a spreadsheet which lists every sermon I’ve ever given. It tells me what number I’m up to, the date of delivery, what passage of scripture it’s from, what corny title I’ve given it, and where it was delivered. Due to my missions role there are a few double ups, having given the same sermon in different places.

    Some today argue that preaching is a waste of time. That sermons aren’t worth what we think they are. That there is a better way of communicating God’s truth, perhaps in small groups or through one-on-ones or in some form of creative dialogue. These ways of delivering God’s truth are great and there’s no denying there are different ways people receive the Word and understand it. It’s all a matter of communication theory I suppose.

    Yet, I still believe that Scripture not only gives us the words to communicate but also shows us the way God seeks his Word to go forth.

    The proclamation of scripture is an important aspect to the teaching and receiving of His Word. From the beginning to the end of scripture God speaks and uses preaching as a means of proclamation. These sermons and words are delivered by the person God has gifted in teaching or prophesy, such as, Moses or Ezra or the Prophets or Jesus or Paul or other apostles, just to name a few.

    Coming under His Word each week at a gathering of believers is important for my soul. I look forward to the opportunity to continue preaching His Word to anyone, anywhere.

  • Newton on Celebrity Preaching

    Perhaps a good word for those of us who follow and podcast the great preachers in this world…

    “A stated and regular attendance encourages the minister, affords a good example to the congregation; and a hearer is more likely to meet with what is directly suited to his own case, from a minister who knows him, and expects to see him, than he can be from one who is a stranger. Especially, I would not wish you to be absent for the sake of gratifying your curiosity, to hear some new preacher, who you have perhaps been told is a very extraordinary man; for in your way such occasions might possibly offer almost every week. What I have observed of many, who run about unseasonably after new preachers, has reminded me of Prov. 27:8: “As a bird that wandereth from her nest, so is the man that wandereth from his place.” Such unsettled hearers seldom thrive: they usually grow wise in their own conceits, have their heads filled with notions, acquire a dry, critical, and censorious spirit; and are more intent upon disputing who is the best preacher, than upon obtaining benefit to themselves from what they hear. If you could find a man, indeed, who had a power in himself of dispensing a blessing to your soul, you might follow him from place to place; but as the blessing is in the Lord’s hands, you will be more likely to receive it by waiting where his providence has placed you, and where he has met with you before.”

    From John Newton’s On Hearing Sermons.