Getting the Word Out: a congregational study of how age, background and christian commitment affect responses to preaching

Has expository preaching had its day? Do all sermons now have to be enhanced with multimedia to be effective in communicating the Gospel? In ‘Getting The Word Out’, Roger Standing seeks to discover the answers to these questions for a London congregation. Having explored the challenge of being a communicator in a fast-changing cultural context, a biblical and theological framework is established for the investigation. A mixed programme of topical and expository preaching is used as the basis of the research, with multimedia as a variable between the two styles. A large and diverse group of participants is recruited for the two-months of the project to specifically enable scrutiny of how age, background and Christian commitment affect listeners’ responses to sermons on subjects as varied as the end times, environmentalism and the Spice Girls. Using the research tools and insights of congregational studies, the results are full of interesting, and at times unexpected, observations. Those who aspire to be effective in preaching the gospel across the range of ages, backgrounds and levels of faith commitment in their congregations will find much to consider and inform their journey.