Why Your Church Doesn’t Hear God

“Expositional preaching presumes a belief in the authority of Scripture—that the Bible is actually God’s Word” (Mark Dever, Nine Marks of a Healthy Church).

A Call to Wake Up

Several weeks ago, I sat in a Caribou Coffee reading Nine Marks of a Healthy Church by Mark Dever. I first picked it up as a freshman at Moody Bible Institute—not for class, but because I longed for wisdom as I pursued faithful pastoral ministry.

Now, six years later, I was reading it again—same book, same truths, same God. The words I had underlined still rang true. I felt refreshed, as though the wisdom of faithful shepherds was being poured back into me. Yet, at the same time, I was burdened. The book revealed not only what a healthy church should be, but also how far many churches have drifted.

Not What It Seems

Many churches declare, “We believe the Bible is God’s Word and our ultimate authority.” That sounds about right—but does the pulpit reflect that conviction?

Too often, sermons have turned into shallow talks where God is strangely absent. Scripture has become a springboard for personal agendas. This reveals not just bad methodology, but bad theology. The Bible is treated as authoritative only insofar as it aligns with one's presuppositions. 

Most preachers do not proclaim truth; they proclaim what they believe to be truth.

Why Education Isn’t the Fix

Some think the solution is formal theological education. But education alone cannot cure unfaithful preaching. A diploma does not protect against eisegesis—that is, the act of forcing our ideas into the biblical text.

God does not call the most qualified. Rather, He calls the faithful. It is not education that qualifies a man to preach; it is the Spirit of God working through the Word. He qualifies those who are called.

The Guise of Christianity

One of the most dangerous shifts today is the replacement of Gospel-centered preaching with moralism in the guise of Christianity. Sermons on love, forgiveness, kindness, and unity are not inherently wrong in themselves—but when preached apart from Christ, they become hollow platitudes of moralism. They become what is known as moralistic therapeutic deism.

Even Gandhi believed in those values, yet he did not know Christ as his personal Lord and Savior. If someone like Gandhi could sit comfortably under your preaching, you may receive applause from him, but not from Christ.

The pulpit is not a platform for TED Talks, self-help, or cultural commentary. The pulpit exists to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Such a message is offensive in nature because it inevitably confronts our sinfulness and declares our desperate need for a Savior.

Jesus never watered down His message to keep a crowd. In John 6, many turned away when His words were too hard, and He let them go. Faithful preaching does not adjust God’s truth to fit human taste.

Every Preacher Preaches Something

The question is not if we preach, but what we preach. 

What is the standard of our preaching? Is it our decency? Our sincerity? Our charisma? No. Our standard is Christ crucified. That is the offense. That is the power. And that is the hope we preach.

Too many sermons begin with cultural agendas or personal grievances rather than God’s Word. A preacher upset by criticism may grab Matthew 7:1 (“Judge not…”) to defend himself, twisting it into a slogan for tolerance. But he misses the point entirely, because that text is about judging rightly, not avoiding judgment altogether.

Preaching becomes hollow when it begins with man-centered presuppositions rather than God’s Word. A sermon shaped by our ideas or agendas will add nothing new. Truly, it only reinforces the preacher’s own views. That is not proclamation. And, most definitely, that is not worship.

Why You Don’t Hear God

Many churches don’t hear God because they’ve already decided what they want Him to say. If we claim God’s Word is our authority, then our preaching must reflect that. When Scripture is reshaped to fit cultural agendas or preferences, it is no longer God’s Word being preached—and the church ceases to hear God.

The Word That Gives Life

From the very beginning, God’s Word has given life. By His Word, creation came into being (Genesis 1). By His Word, dry bones lived again (Ezekiel 37). And ultimately, by His Word made flesh, life and light came into the world (John 1).

Christ is the Word of God in person—the ultimate revelation of God and the only source of eternal life. To preach Scripture faithfully is to proclaim Christ and the Gospel. Preaching that is not Gospel-centered cannot lead people to Christ. Only in the Gospel of Jesus Christ does preaching become truly life-giving.

A Call Back to Faithful Preaching

Faithful expositional preaching matters. We need men who will handle the Scriptures with reverence and conviction—approaching the biblical text with a high view of its authority and seeking to uncover its meaning as the author originally intended (exegesis). It is through the hearing of the faithfully preached Word that hearts are pierced, faith is stirred, and new life begins (Romans 10:14–17). 

The church does not need more "eloquence" or “relevance”—it needs God’s Word, rightly divided and rightly proclaimed (2 Timothy 2:15).

How Beautiful

We were not called to merely preach. We were not called to entertain, to draw crowds, or to maintain a culture. We were called to proclaim Christ and Him crucified, being unashamed of the Gospel—even if it costs us popularity and attendance.

When many turned away from Jesus, He asked the Twelve if they wanted to leave as well. Peter responded, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” (John 6:68). That must be our conviction. That must be our message.

Let every sermon be saturated with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, for everything in Scripture ultimately points to Him.

“How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news… who publishes salvation… who says to Zion, ‘Your God reigns’” (Isaiah 52:7).