I appreciated how one preacher used Greek in a sermon. And I heard another preacher use it in what could have been a how-to-not-to demonstration. Let’s roll the tape!
✅ This Way Worked
(In case the embedded video doesn’t work, go here and start at 53:19.)
Here’s what I appreciated about the preacher’s use of Greek:
- he clearly explains for the congregation what the Greek text says
- he doesn’t use any Greek wording to do it (and so avoids the risk of alienating non-Greek readers or sounding pretentious)
- he doesn’t shake the congregation’s confidence in their own translation—he says, “I think it’s a fine translation.” They can still read their English Bibles at home without existential crises (well… at least without the existential crises caused by wondering what the Greek says)
- having done that, he goes back to (his English translation of) the Greek to show the immediacy and urgency of a particular point in the biblical text
- bravo, Reverend Doctor, bravo
❌ This Way Didn’t
By contrast, I heard a preacher whose use of Greek not only didn’t work; it backfired.
He kept repeating a single Greek word. The condition the word described was important, but saying the Greek itself was not necessary. To me it sounded like he was using the word as with an air of academic authority—like, this is a hard word but I know it from my extensive years of studying Greek, and I’ll teach it to you too. He cited the Greek word multiple times in this sermon. But every time he said it, he mispronounced it… badly.
There are many ways in which I lack as a preacher and pronouncer of Greek—ask me and I’ll tell you.
But, my preaching siblings, if we are going to “use” Greek or Hebrew in a sermon, let’s do it as responsibly and as sensitively as possible. And if we feel we must use the original word itself, let’s do it in a way that doesn’t risk elevating ourselves, doesn’t put distance between preacher and congregation, and doesn’t distract listeners who actually read some Greek.
Words on the Word 