Steve Evans of Bridge Chapel Christian Church in Liverpool is saying that offering sermons in podcast form has increased attendance at Bridge Chapel’s regular services. This was interesting to me because it flies in the face of my conviction that we should be careful about podcasting sermons. To get a better sense of my perspective on the issue, see my earlier articles on podcasting:
Outreach Magazine Articles NY Times Article on Godcasting Videoblogging Article Godcasts Growing In Popularity Podcasting and Video
My perspective in the past several months has moved a lot more towards a positive outlook on podcasting, largely due to some of what Mark Batterson has written on the subject.
I still believe that a podcasting church should be careful to teach those who participate in their gatherings, that the gathering of the church is not primarily something to be watched or listened to. Instead, it is something in which all are called to participate (1 Corinthians 14:26).
As more churches get involved in podcasting (which is obviously a certainty despite my hesitation!), it will be important I think, to quantify the results as much as possible. I first learned about this article from Blogging Church, but it’s also being talked about at Church Marketing Sucks. The question and commentary from James Higgenbotham in the comments at Church Marketing Sucks is a very important one it seems to me and suggests the type of quantification that I’m thinking about here.
I believe that the internet provides today's church with a historic opportunity .... to tell the old, old story of Jesus and His love in ways which could only have been imagined in times past. The objective of this website is to explore the various ways in which today's technology can be used to spread the gospel around the world.
