Johnny Can’t Preach

Johnny is in a bad place. He’s a preacher. And he can’t preach. Is there any hope for the many Johnnys in today’s church? Is it possible to improve and make his preaching meaningful for the sake of the congregation and the edification of the church?

Gordon’s thesis, as he simply states it is, “that many ordained people simply can’t preach (102).” By “can’t preach” he does not mean that they are incapable, or unable to preach. Instead, he is arguing that the hypothetical “Johnny” cannot preach because he has not delved deeply into understanding how to read and write literature. Johnny is not illiterate, he is simply not equipped well for either of these tasks, reading or writing, that are the foundational building blocks for effective and affective preaching. According to Gordon, preaching that merely conveys commentary knowledge, doctrinal facts, or social statistics is not, in fact, preaching.

Gordon provides cultural commentary as well as homiletical guardrails in this book for preachers. His illustrations are helpful and he draws from various genres of literature and periods of church history to strengthen his arguments and provide tangible examples for expositors from the Sonnets of Shakespeare to the Presidential addresses of Ronald Reagan.

The two primary reasons given by Gordon to answer why Johnny can’t preach, is that Johnny also can’t read and Johnny can’t write. Gordon notes that there is a vast difference between reading information and reading texts (373). He cautions against reading, especially biblical texts only for the most overt content; he says that many pastors are essentially only asking what something says without ever pausing to consider how it is said (403).

When it comes to writing, Johnny still has much room for improvement. Gordon assesses the current state of theological academia in less-than-glowing terms, “the entering seminarian today has the faculties of a sixth-to eighth-grader sixty years ago (639-640).” He partially places the blame for this regression on the lack of educational rigor and preparation in the years leading up to seminary, yet argues that even a few years of more rigorous training, the seminarian may yet be lacking in his writing skills due to how little is thoughtfully composed in the 21st century.

Following his discussion on the two foundational aspects of communication that Johnny has not mastered, Gordon delves into the content of preaching. He uses helpful terms from other homileticians and professors, such as Bryan Chapell and his “Fallen Condition Focus”, and Christo-centric hermeneutic. The content of a faithful sermon should seek to bring out these elements, avoid cultural and textual pitfalls, and bring about a kind of expository preaching that will feed the sheep and strengthen the church wherever they are gathered.

I doubt that many, if any, conservative evangelical Christians would disagree that there is a problem in many pulpits that are a product of theological minimalism, social media bombardment, and insufficient preparation. Gordon asks the prescient question that, “…if the church is not effectual in convincing, converting, and comforting sinners, is it because preaching will not accomplish this, or because the preaching is poorly done? I believe the preaching in many churches is so poorly done that it is not, effectively, preaching (276-277).” While this is a great question to ask, it can quickly turn into a form of unhealthy criticism of faithful pastors.

Correlation does not always equal causation, which is a helpful caution whenever one seeks to address a problem as directly as Gordon does in this book. Gordon does state that he wrote this book primarily for preachers, however I do think that should laypersons read this book, some might struggle with becoming overly critical of their pastors because of the cultural inadequacy in training readers, writers, and deep thinking in general.

Preaching can accomplish the things Gordon believes it to accomplish, but the most powerful aspect of preaching is the work of the Holy Spirit. What Gordon excellently addresses in this book is the work of the preacher in preparation and stewardship of his pulpit.

One of the most helpful aspects of this book is the reorienting of pulpit ministry away from bite-sized, tweetable, cultural commentaries, and toward a hearty, Christ-centered exposition of texts that are divinely inspired and authoritative. Gordon proposes one of the fixes to the former problem, “What would make a difference would be Christian proclamation that is consequential, that is concerned less with current events than with the history-encompassing events of creation, fall, and redemption (554).” Gordon’s writing style is conversational, engaging, and clear. He does not hesitate to be pithy, yet purposeful, and his concision achieves his intended purpose, to make the case that most pastors cannot preach well and make hearing and application difficult for the congregation.

Gordon does occasionally seem to present himself as a curmudgeon of sorts. He rails against modern technology, but I do not think that his complaints and concerns are wholly unfounded. “Our inability to read texts is a direct result of the presence of electronic media (442).” Ironically, I read this book on a Kindle; however, I do understand his point. Digital media has often accelerated the frenetic pace which we read, accented our ability to be distracted, and made it much more difficult to put in the time and effort necessary to cultivate the habits and disciplines that produce a well-rounded expositor.

In the introduction, I called this book Gordon’s plea for faithful and helpful preaching. I believe that it is important that these categories not be conflated. A sheep may have their food fed to them in varying ways, but they will find sustenance either way. Similarly, even when delivery is less than helpful, it is possible to considered faithful. I think that pastors and preachers would quickly be able to understand what Gordon is emphasizing and why he is more forceful at certain points, than one might generally be in explaining homiletics to a lay person. However, I agree with most of his concerns for evangelical Christian pulpits and hope that preachers will continue to evaluate themselves for the sake of their flocks.

In his first chapter Gordon provides “tests” or evaluating questions for preachers that aid in what Robert Lewis Dabney, a 19th century American theologian, described as “Cardinal Requisites of Preaching” (167). These requisites, Gordon notes that these categories are able to be objectively and empirically examined, defined, and evaluated.

Gordon brings a helpful analysis of the problems found within many churches today and places the blame for spiritually lethargic churches upon the pulpits, not the pews. I often identified with Johnny. I was made aware of areas where I personally need to grow as an expositor and homiletician.

I think Gordon’s book is convicting, and motivating. It provides parameters and categories with which to evaluate one’s own preaching and the sermons of others. It was convicting in shining a light on areas of homiletics that had become overcome by cobwebs and shuttered in corners of libraries from bygone instruction. These are the places where I know that I must grow in my own preaching and pray that others will adhere to Gordon’s cautions, warnings, and exhortations. And it was motivating in the sense that Gordon does not believe that sermons are doomed to failure and that pulpits must forever exist within an arena of modern monotony and useless homily.

Instead of providing analysis without a solution, Gordon often aims directly at the heart of the reader with precision and clarity. An obvious aim of this book is for assistance in producing faithful and tactful preachers and sermons to build up the body of Christ. Of course, this is in vain if not grounded in the power of the Word of God and guided by the presence of the Holy Spirit. It would have strengthened Gordon’s point if he had spent a bit more time focusing on that aspect; because if spiritual maturity and health is lacking, Johnny might be able to read and write, but he will still not be able to preach. Still, as a master craftsman must have appropriate tools for the trade, this book can be a greatly beneficial tool for preachers, readily accessible for both the novice and veteran.