When Jude, the half-brother of Jesus who preferred to identify himself as the Lord’s servant (Jude 1), took up his pen to write his short letter, he did so with intentions to celebrate his common salvation with this intended recipients. Yet, for reasons that threatened the church, his letter took a decidedly critical tone, as he identified the false teachers creeping into the church. Famously, he writes,
3 Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints. 4 For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ. (Jude 3–4)
In the same spirit, we (Ethan Jago and David Schrock) take up the task of addressing plagiarism in the pulpit, a practice that has come to plague Southern Baptists today. Honestly, we would much rather spend our words on biblical exposition or devotional theology that extols the manifold excellencies of Christ. Yet, to ignore the practice of pastors knowingly “retweeting” the sermons of others threatens the souls of the hearer and the preacher alike, not to mention the reputation of Christ’s church. And thus, this article, which corresponds to the resolution we have submitted to the Resolutions Committee for the 2025 Southern Baptist Convention in Dallas, is our attempt to ring the bell, as it were, for the intrusion of deceptive speech in pulpits all across America.
Indeed, while we could (and would rather) write about the countless men who expound the Word of God that they prepared for their respective congregations, we feel—and have felt for many years—a burden to call our fellow pastors to walk in the light as they point others to the light of Christ. As two SBC pastors who have seen the negative effect of plagiarism in the pulpit, we are offering a resolution that spurs our fellow pastors to love and good deeds in the pulpits to which God has called them.
In a word, we believe that there is a war going on for the pulpits today. This includes the rise of female preachers, the corrupt thinking of Critical Theory, and the biblically-bereft preaching of many pastors—to name only a few. Yet, at a time when the watching world is looking for ways to discount faithful preachers, one of the greatest ways to mute the message of Christ is to highlight the fact that a raft of preachers are delivering sermons that they find online, buy from others, or preach from others with permission. And all of these concerns come before the introduction of AI and the artificial production of sermons.[1]
1. On AI and the pulpit, see Ezra Dunn, “Encore: A Brave New World of Preaching? Logos AI Sermon Assistant and the Ethics of Sermon Prep.”
Thus, in what follows, we want to define pulpit plagiarism, offer a biblical warning against pulpit plagiarism, and give a brief explanation for the contents of our resolution. At the end of this article, if you are convinced, as we are, that “retweeting” sermons (see the definition below) is morally bankrupt, and has no place in the church, let alone the pulpit, please pray with us that this resolution is passed and that Southern Baptists are resolved to walk in the light and to expect their pastors to do the same. Yet, before making the argument, it might help to see why this resolution is needed—but also surprisingly unwanted.
The Problem No One Wants To Talk About
For the last four years, plagiarism in the pulpit has been a sore subject in the Southern Baptist Convention. Ever since it was discovered in 2021 that the newly elected SBC President Ed Litton had preached multiple sermons containing large, unattributed sections of sermons from J.D. Greear, the response has been divided.[2] While many are comfortable laughing about the practice in private, the public response from many SBC leaders has been that of qualified permission or intentional ambiguity.
2. Will Hall, “Plagiarism Scandal Embroils SBC President Ed Litton,” Baptist Message, July 1, 2021.
Consider this: when the presidency of Ed Litton was invalidated by plagiarism and questions of his resignation were raised, Bart Barber took to Twitter to defend Litton. He wrote,
I disagree with Ed’s approach to preaching. This is not just about plagiarism. I disagree with having a panel discussion with your wife and calling it preaching. I disagree with sermon-by-committee. His approach to preaching and mine are just very different.
In all Barber, defended Litton because the presidency is not about preaching, but about “appointing committees and conducting the annual meeting in such a way as to protect the will of the messengers.” In this way, Barber made pulpit plagiarism a matter of personal preference. Then, doubling down on this subjective approach to plagiarism in the pulpit, Barber led the SBC Resolution Committee in 2022 to codify his position.
In the wake of what became known as “SermonGate,” multiple resolutions (like ours) were submitted to the Resolutions Committee. Yet, instead of providing clarity and biblical conviction about the practice, the committee, led by Bart Barber, made this statement: “While the Committee affirms the thesis that preaching is a sacred trust from God for which preachers are accountable to Him, we do not believe that the Convention has yet reached any informed consensus on the many specific burdens placed upon pastors within the text of this proposed resolution [on pulpit plagiarism].”
So it seems that the practice of pastor’s preaching the Word of God with the words of others is a topic that few want to condemn publicly. And why? Perhaps we don’t know what God expects of his preachers? But we doubt that is the reason. For anyone who has read the Pastoral Epistles knows exactly what God expects. Rather, the lack of “informed consensus” appears to reveal a deeper problem—namely, the prevalence of plagiarism in the pulpit.
For in fact, going back to 2002, Christianity Today defended the practice and justified its use. [3] Since then, many arguments have been made against preaching the words of others. Yet, the rumors continue to swirl. Just this month, we heard of another “convention speaker” whose sermons had a remarkable similarity to Kevin DeYoung’s. And what should one do with that rumor if one is a member of that pastor’s church? Should he simply ignore it? Or, would due diligence lead that member to begin sleuthing the Internet to (dis)prove it?
3. David Schrock, Brothers, We Are Not Plagiarists (Cape Coral, FL: Founders Press, 2022), 18–20.
It would be great to say categorically—“The churches of the SBC roundly denounce plagiarism.” Yet, that is not what we have said. Instead, our leaders have modeled sermon-swapping and then defended the practice with studied ignorance.
Nashville, we have a problem!
And it is a problem that is only going to multiply. Due to the increasing development of technology, men can find and download sermons in seconds. Multiple websites cater to pastors seeking pre-made, and even pre-packaged, sermons and sermon series that include graphics, outlines, and discipleship materials. One such platform is called Ministry Pass, which offers “done-for-you” resources as the “secret” that pastors can use “for a good ministry/life balance.”[4] In their video, here’s how they sell it.
4. Ministry Pass, “Secrets Pastors Use for a Good Ministry Life Balance,” Ministry Pass, accessed May 22, 2025.
Incorporate done-for-you-videos into your order of service and save time in sermon preparation by using sermon outlines and ideas. Basically, use done-for-you resources as much as possible to save and maximize your time and effort.
While resource platforms like Ministry Pass claim to “free pastors for more important ministry,” they are redefining what lies at the heart of pastoral ministry: preaching. Indeed, preaching God’s Word is not a “peripheral” task for busy pastors or multi-directional shepherds. Rather, it is the primary responsibility of the pastoral call, and therefore, we must determine what passes as acceptable preaching according to God’s Word.
Defining Plagiarism in the Pulpit
In 2022, in response to the way SBC leaders ignored and justified Ed Litton’s plagiarism, I (David) wrote Brothers, We Are Not Plagiarists. And in the first chapter, I took time to define what plagiarism in the pulpit is, for this is where much of the debate lies. As anyone who has preached knows, every good sermon is reliant on the work of others. Yet, quoting a sentence or citing a illustration is fundamentally different from preaching the work of another or using their personal stories as one’s own. In my book, I get into all of that, but for now let me offer a quick definition of “retweet plagiarism” that explains why retweeting another’s sermon—with or without permission—is morally bankrupt.
In their helpful taxonomy of plagiarism, the good folks at Turnitin, an online resource for teachers spotting plagiarism, list ten types of plagiarism. These ten types range from the copy-and-paste form of plagiarism to the “re-tweet”—an allusion to the practice of passing along someone’s words on Twitter with the click of a button. In this taxonomy, they suggest that a re-tweet is a paper (or sermon) that “includes proper citation, but relies too closely on the text’s original wording and/or structure.”[5] In such an instance, the author acknowledges the source of the information, but he is still guilty of plagiarism because a single footnote in a paper is insufficient for properly citing the copious amount of information borrowed from the original source. The same applies to a sermon.
Understandably, this specificity makes the discussion about plagiarism more technical. But it also acknowledges the fact that even when permission and attribution are given, if the second sermon is a clone of the first, the issue of plagiarism remains. The takeaway from re-tweet plagiarism is this: When we are talking about plagiarism in the pulpit, that label fits whether attribution is given to the original source or not. Whenever a pastor is making extensive use of someone else’s work for his own sermon—with or without attribution—the term plagiarism still applies.[6]
5. “The Plagiarism Spectrum: Instructor Insights into the 10 Types of Plagiarism,” 4.
6. Schrock, Brothers, We Are Not Plagiarists, 16–17.
Fast forward to the resolution that we have submitted this year, and “retweet plagiarism” is what we are addressing. For the problem of plagiarism in the pulpit is not simply one of attribution. Rather, preaching the work of others is a violation of the pastoral office. For, even if one purchases and receives the license to use someone else’s sermon, it might not be “illegal” but it is immoral (read: sin) for the pastor who has promised to preach the Word of Truth.
Indeed, when a pastor stands behind the pulpit to preach God’s Word to God’s people and delivers someone else’s content, it is not merely unethical; it is spiritually deceptive. The men and women attending the church believe they are being shepherded by their own pastor’s care and convictions that arise from his study of God’s Word. But, in reality, they are receiving a sermon prepared for a different congregation—or no congregation at all!
Despite all the arguments for why tired pastors need permission to preach the microwave meals of others, this practice fails to feed the flock with fresh food. And more, as I (David) lay out in Brothers, We Are Not Plagiarists, it results in a bevy of sinful compromises.[7] Here are five:
7. Schrock, Brothers, We Are Not Plagiarists, 20–30.
1. Plagiarism Invites Teaching without Knowledge (1 Tim. 1:3–7)
2. Plagiarism Promotes Impersonal Communication (1 Tim. 1:12–17)
3. Plagiarism Threatens the Pastoral Office (1 Tim. 3:1–7; cf. Titus 1:5–9)
4. Plagiarism Changes the Nature of Gospel Ministry (2 Tim. 2:1–2; James 3:1)
5. Plagiarism Entices False Shepherds and Rewards Laziness (1 Tim. 6:5; 2 Tim. 2:1–7; 4:5)
All in all, such a practice dishonors the Word of God and invites the judgment of God’s Word. As Paul states in 2 Corinthians 4:1–2 (LSB): “Therefore, since we have this ministry, as we received mercy, we do not lose heart, but we have renounced the hidden things of shame, not walking in craftiness or adulterating the word of God, but by the manifestation of truth commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God.”
The word “adulterating” (dolountes) describes falsity through deception or distortion. To simplify it, it means tampering. What Paul describes here is what pastors and congregations must understand today: God’s preacher do not manipulate or distort the Word of God to suit his own purposes as the peddlers of God’s Word do (2 Cor. 2:17).
By evident contrast, Paul identifies the way pastors must handle Scripture. God’s servant of the Word must be open, honest, and full of integrity. And this is the problem with retweeting sermons. When a pastor preaches someone else’s sermon, or uses a personal illustration written by someone else, they do what Paul renounces. And this is why, if we long to see the pulpit honored and respected in our churches, we must repudiate plagiarism in the pulpit.
God Expects More From His Shepherds
But maybe this conviction about plagiarism is just the personal preference of two pastors. How can an entire convention, with so many different types of churches and pastors, make a statement about how preachers craft (or copy) their sermons? What about liberty of conscience? What about autonomy of the local church?
To answer that question, let’s look at Scripture. And what we discover when we open the Good Book is that it does not whisper about deceptive practices in preaching.
From Exodus to Ephesians, the Bible ties leadership to truth-telling and heralding God’s Word to moral uprightness. Paul gives the command to “accurately handle the word of truth” (2 Tim. 2:15 LSB), which implies that the man who delivers the message is able to do so based upon his personal study. The calling to preach is a sacred trust and not just a speaking gig. The pulpit is not a platform to entertain or to show off your rhetorical skills; it is a place to proclaim God’s truth with God’s power to God’s people. And in this place, we need qualified preachers, not quasi-gifted speakers.
As Martyn Lloyd Jones once warned, “What we preach is to be the result of our own thought. We do not merely transmit ideas. The preacher is not meant to be a mere channel through which water flows; he is to be more like a well.”[8]
8. D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Preaching and Preachers (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1971), 177.
Furthering Lloyd-Jones word picture, the pastor is not a spiritual courier delivering someone else’s research and writing. He is to draw out truth from his own well and to pour out living water from his own (often misshapen) bucket.[9] And the only way that he can do this—and the only way a congregation can know that he does this—is to show himself approved by his own personal study of Scripture.
9. This paragraph illustrates the way preachers can and should advance the ideas, images, or concepts of others. In Brothers, We Are Not Plagiarists, a whole chapter covers this practice.
Pastors who plagiarize sermons steal water from another man’s well, repackage it as their own, and sell it to an unsuspecting congregation. Not only does this destroy the gift God has given to the young (or old) preacher, but it sets up the congregation for cynicism and criticism when the truth is revealed. Truly, a well-polished sermon series is not worth the cost of your own personal SermonGate.
For these reasons and more, we have written this resolution. We love Christ’s Church and we long for the churches in the Southern Baptist Convention to be models of pastoral integrity. Thus, this resolution is not reactionary, but restorative. It is a call back to what we all know to be right, and if it is passed—and embraced!— it will preserve and protect pulpits all across the Convention.
A Call to Action at the 2025 SBC
As you read our resolution (“On the Integrity of the Pulpit,” at the end of this article), notice the five actions that it includes.
- To denounce plagiarism in preaching, teaching, and writing.
- To reject sermon selling and “peddling the Word of God” for profit.
- To discourage AI dependence that undermines personal study and spiritual formation.
- To call for accountability in churches and institutions.
- To exhort pastors to prepare with integrity, preach faithfulness, and source transparently.
To be clear, we are not suggesting a preaching police force. That is not what resolutions do. Rather, we are calling pastors to repent where it is needed and to lead with renewed integrity. If anything, we are seeking to reset a preaching culture where churches expect their pastors to feed them with their own work, and where pastors would think of doing nothing less.
With concern for churches in the present and future, we fear that if our resolution does not catalyze a repudiation of pulpit plagiarism, it will only get worse. And someday, when AI is ru(i)nning everything, we will wonder why we have so pulpit parrots, instead of pastoral prophets. And if that day comes, and integrity has not been restored to SBC pulpits, it will be our own fault, and it will be due to our own unwillingness to address this matter publicly.
Brother-pastors, we are not plagiarists. The pulpit is not ours to remake to our own ease. Instead, the sacred desk is a precious trust that calls for protection and purity. And so, let us get back to our study and labor for fresh bread, so there will be no famine in the land. And by God’s grace, let us resolve to remove the pernicious practice of plagiarism in our convention. It has crept into the Southern Baptist Convention—and it needs to be driven out.
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Appendix A: “On the Integrity of the Pulpit: A Resolution on Honesty, Plagiarism, and Faithful Preaching”
Submitted to the 2025 Southern Baptist Convention on May 13, 2025
By: Dr. Ethan Jago (Pastor of 5 Bridges Church) and Dr. David Schrock (Pastor of Occoquan Bible Church)
WHEREAS, The Holy Scriptures affirm that truthfulness, integrity, and honesty are essential qualities for God’s people (Exodus 20:16; Psalm 15:2; Zechariah 8:16–17; Ephesians 4:15, 25), and especially those who shepherd God’s people (Titus 1:7–9; 1 Timothy 3:2–7); and
WHEREAS, Various institutions have different standards and procedures for identifying and responding to plagiarism and SBC churches may have differing views on what constitutes faithful preaching, the Bible has explicit instructions for what constitutes a faithful preacher and what churches committed to Scripture should expect from those who teach them the Word of God; and
WHEREAS, The Apostle Paul instructs believers to handle the Word of God with sincerity and accuracy (2 Corinthians 4:2; 2 Timothy 2:15), upholding the sacred duty of pastors to rightly divide and faithfully proclaim the Word of Truth; and
WHEREAS, Plagiarism, which is the act of taking another person’s work, ideas, or words and presenting them as one’s own without proper attribution, is a form of dishonesty that violates the biblical ethics of truthfulness and integrity (Exodus 20:15–16; Proverbs 12:22; Colossians 3:9); and
WHEREAS, The pastoral office is a divine calling requiring moral and ethical uprightness, and any form of dishonesty, including plagiarism, undermines the trust of the congregation and brings reproach upon the church (1 Peter 5:2–3; James 3:1); and
WHEREAS, The Southern Baptist Convention, as stated in The Baptist Faith and Message 2000, calls pastors to be men of godly character who are “qualified by the Holy Spirit and scripturally called” to the ministry, which necessitates integrity in the preparation and proclamation of biblical truth; and
WHEREAS, The use of plagiarized material in sermons, teaching, and written works compromises the authenticity of pastoral leadership, misrepresents the labor of others, and erodes the moral authority of those entrusted with shepherding the flock of God; and
WHEREAS, Artificial intelligence (AI) has complicated the question of plagiarism in all spheres of life, it has not eliminated the responsibility of God’s servants to rightly handle God’s Word and model integrity with respect to the spoken and written word; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the messengers to the 2025 Southern Baptist Convention, meeting in Dallas, Texas, affirm the biblical and moral imperative for pastors and church leaders to uphold the highest standards of integrity in the preparation and delivery of sermons, teachings, and written materials; and be it further
RESOLVED, That we firmly denounce the practice of plagiarism within the pastoral office as a violation of both biblical teaching and ethical responsibility; and be it further
RESOLVED, That we urge pastors to never tell the personal stories or illustrations of others as their personal experiences; and be it further
RESOLVED, That we ask pastors who sell or give their sermons to others for the purpose of re-preaching the same sermon would stop peddling the word of God; and be it further
RESOLVED, That we ask pastors who buy or acquire the sermons from others in order to preach them as their own, would begin to acknowledge the source of their sermons; and be it further
RESOLVED, that we exhort pastors not to rely on artificial intelligence platforms in the development of their sermons or in shaping their preaching content, but rather to use AI only as a secondary tool for research, never as a substitute for the pastor’s personal study and preparation to faithfully deliver God’s Word to God’s people; and be it further
RESOLVED, That we call upon churches to hold their pastors and leaders accountable to the highest ethical standards, extending both grace and correction where necessary, while maintaining a firm commitment to biblical integrity in all aspects of church leadership; and be it further
RESOLVED, That we encourage all pastors, teachers, and leaders within the Southern Baptist Convention to engage in diligent study, proper attribution of sources, and faithful handling of God’s Word, setting an example of integrity for the church and the world; and be it further
RESOLVED, That we encourage seminaries, training institutions, and denominational entities to emphasize academic and pastoral integrity, equipping ministers with a strong ethical framework regarding the proper use of sources and the importance of original, Spirit-led proclamation; and be it further
RESOLVED, That we encourage aspiring pastors to commit themselves to the faithful study of God’s Word so that they may be properly prepared for the day when a local church calls them to shepherd the flock that is among them; and be it finally
RESOLVED, That we, as Southern Baptists, commit ourselves to promoting a culture of honesty, transparency, and faithfulness to the calling of God so that the gospel may be proclaimed with purity and power and without any stumbling block caused by the practice of pulpit plagiarism, so that the name of Christ may be glorified in all we say and do (Colossians 3:17).
