(upbeat music) Well, we finished the week of episodes on preaching with another question from a seasoned preacher who wishes to remain anonymous. And it's a question a lot of people, I think, wanna ask you, Pastor John, and I'm surprised we haven't gotten around to it yet. Here it is, Pastor John, can a sermon be too short or too long?

How can we know the ideal sermon length? Is there a single length for all? Should some be shorter, some be longer? If so, when, how would you talk to preachers about how long the sermon should be? No, there is no one length the sermon should be that's ideal for every situation.

Yes, some sermons should be shorter and some longer. Yes, it is possible that a sermon be too long or too short. Those are my answers. Now, let me give some factors that we should just take into consideration when we're pondering, okay, how long should I preach? Factor number one, I would say that vastly more important than length is whether the sermon is faithful to the biblical text and rich with God-glorifying, soul-transforming truth.

Far better to have a truth-laden, Christ-exalting, textually faithful, clearly spoken, deeply felt 10-minute homily than to have a totally fascinating, biblically vacuous, textually unrooted, story-laden piece of inspirational moralism that lasts for an hour. Substance is vastly more important than length. But of course, if there is soul-nourishing, Christ-exalting, mind-engaging substance, 10 minutes will ordinarily be too short.

Okay, that's factor number one. Number two, another factor is the nature of the biblical text. We are trying to communicate to our hearers how long is the text, how complex is the text. Longer texts may require longer sermons. Not always, but they might. And the more complex the text is, the more time it takes to make it clear and compelling in practical ways for people.

The logic of some texts and the vocabulary of some texts demand closer attention and therefore more time. Factor number three, take into consideration the nature of the audience. Are they unbelievers? Did they choose to be there? Or was there some kind of compulsion? Thinking like maybe some chapel setting.

How old are they? If they're believers, how mature are they? What are they used to? How well have they been taught? What have they been trained in? How tired are they? Is this late night service? They've been working all day? All of these will affect the length of the sermon.

But I would add that over time, a pastor may train his people to love the preaching of the word of God so that they will be unsatisfied with a mere 20 or 30 minute message if they are being fed rich food that holds their attention and satisfies their souls.

Number four, factor number four to take into consideration, consider your gifts as a preacher. Some people are so, some speakers are so compelling to listen to that the time goes by so quickly that you hardly even know it's gone. And we need to know ourselves and the kind of response we are getting from our people.

Can we hold their attention for 45 minutes or do we not have that gift? Factor number five, what's the situation in which the message is being given? Is it a wedding? Probably, keep it short. I mean, this is one of the hardest situations in which to preach because people frankly are looking at the bridegroom or the bride and the wedding party and their hair and their dresses and oh, good grief.

And you're supposed to be connecting them with the living God. Well, I would much rather preach a funeral than a wedding. I'll mention why maybe in a minute. But here again, know your audience. There are some weddings where the spiritual maturity is so deep that they want a rich feast about the glories of covenant married love.

At funerals, people are usually tender and hungry for truth, some strong, clear word from God about death and hope and resurrection. However, even here, the emotional nature of the day is such that a long drawn out service can be uncharitable. Preaching out of doors at the quad, at the university may call for something shorter than Sunday morning to the people of God.

Preaching at a businessman's gathering once a week over the lunch hour will probably demand a 20 or 30 minute limitation. Having three services on Sunday morning with difficulty clearing the parking lot between services is gonna affect the sermon length. And never forget the dear nursery workers. Yeah, they get the most important job according to Mark 9 37.

Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me. Good night. That's the most awesome verse in the Bible for a nursery worker. Remember them too. But I would end by simply saying that what I have found in particular, my particular cultural setting after years of experience with the same people is that both they and I would be frustrated if I didn't take the time while preaching to do the serious explanatory work of exposition as well as appropriate application.

And in my experience, this simply seldom could be done in less than 40 minutes, more often 50. And that's just where we settled in as a church and I mentioned it for consideration. And it seems to me as I look around the nation that there are many hundreds, maybe thousands of growing churches where pastors preach, rich, Christ exalting, God-centered, Bible saturated, textually rooted, intellectually challenging, emotionally moving, life altering sermons for 50 or more minutes and very few people get frustrated that they are too long.

It is a mark of immaturity in a congregation if we live by the clock in such a limiting way that we don't give time for extended lingering in the presence of God in singing and lingering in the presence of God in expository exaltation. So know yourself, know your people, know your text, know the situation and pack as much as you can into the time you have for the glory of God and the good of your people.

- Yeah, such a good episode on Preaching Length. Thank you, Pastor John, for your decades of thinking about these things. And this closes out our week of episodes on preaching, celebrating the new book by John Piper titled Expository Exaltation. Preaching is the theme of this new book which caps a 1,000-page trilogy of books which answer three really critical questions.

Question number one, can we trust the Bible? That was answered in book number one, A Peculiar Glory. And then question number two, how should I go about reading the Bible to get God's meaning? That was answered in book number two, Reading the Bible Supernaturally. And now finally, question three, what should I expect from my church and from my pastors when they proclaim this book to me?

That's answered in book number three, now out, titled Expository Exaltation, Christian Preaching as Worship. Well, speaking of sermons, Sunday marks the 18th anniversary of one of John Piper's most famous sermons ever, the Don't Waste Your Life sermon, also known as the Seashells sermon, which was delivered outdoors in Memphis at a Passion Conference gathering on May 20th, 2000, 18 years ago.

And I'm gonna ask John Piper to reflect on the occasion and the book that resulted, Don't Waste Your Life. I cannot wait for this episode, but I must. I'm your host, Tony Reike. We'll see you on Monday. (upbeat music) (upbeat music)