Preaching Today

John Piper's sermon presents a precious perspective on the 'plight' and significance of Christian singleness today. As a (currently) single pastor myself, I can relate with and vouch for much of this sermon's content, experientially and biblically.

If singleness is a gift why have marriage? Also, if singleness is a gift why do people want to get married? Doesn't God place that desire to marry into your heart? I wonder why people think that singles aren't serving God. I have been serving in the Children's Ministry for 16 yrs. Plus I have been on 3 short term mission trips. It's not a matter of serving, it's the desire that God places in you.

mark almlie

October 17, 2011  10:24am

I have never heard a whole sermon on singleness from the pulpit before--many on marriage. Single adults are now the slight majority in America...we should probably direct some of our preaching to the majority in our churches, right? Piper puts to bed the feeling of many singles--that they are second class citizens in the kingdom of God--this was an excellent, motivating, and as usual God saturated sermon.

Dutchy

October 15, 2011  3:14am

This married pastor completely ignores the unfulfilled desire for intimacy that singles have to cope with. He as an (I assume) happily married person can get (almost) all the intimacy he wants, but singles have to do without. I think for many single people that's much more of a problem than not being able to have physical children. That's sorely missing from this sermon and that's not something you can just "write off".

I think EDK is misunderstanding this message. The thrust of the sermon is that a single person is not inferior to the married particularly if his singleness is used in expanding the kingdom of Christ. I am particularly blessed with the sermon having seen how much spiritual children I was able to get for the Lord while single over and above what I've had when married. As a pastor, I have won many to the Lord from the pulpit. The intimacy of my 'children' before I got married out of the pulpit far outweighs the ones I had from the pulpit. It is also a challenge to all who are married not to rest on their oars as the expansion of the kingdom will not be calculated on the number of biological children they have but the spiritual children that come through them.