Pastor Fashion: Should Preachers Wear Expensive Shoes?

A new Instagram account “@PreachersNSneakers” has gone viral and shocked the Christian community by posting pictures of the shoes that celebrity pastors are wearing alongside how much they cost. 

Some of these pastors are wearing shoes that cost thousands of dollars!  

As surprising as this is, there are some important things we can all learn from this.

In this episode, we’ll talk about the recent controversy over pastor fashion, what pastors should wear, and more.

Resources Mentioned

• @PreachersNSneakers – Instagram account
• Preach and Deliver – My sermon delivery book that includes a chapter on what pastors should wear on stage.

Key Takeaways

Here’s a quick list of some of the big takeaways from this episode. Check the timestamp to see when each point is discussed.

• Some of these celebrity pastors are wearing shoes that cost $3,000 to $5,000.[2:10]

• How could someone pay so much money for shoes? You wear them on your feet. Feet are gross. That is not a good investment. [3:34]

• There are some things that pastors and the church can learn from this. [4:55]

• #1. A pastor’s clothing always communicates something. Like it or not, your clothes say speak before you do. [5:20]

• A general rule for public speaking: dress like the people you are talking to. [6:54]

• #2. Pastors are going to be judged more severely. See James 3:1 for proof. [9:15]

• We are supposed to be imitators of Christ living out the example that we see in the Bible. So if we wear extravagant clothing, people see it as hypocritical. [10:14]

• We should dress modestly, and focus on our character instead. [12:41]

• #3. Don’t be so quick to judge. [13:27]

• I have to be careful because I don’t know these pastors very well. I don’t know how much they are making, how much they actually spent, or how much they are giving. [13:50]

• Maybe there are some things in our lives that we would be ashamed of if pictures of them were posted online alongside the price tag. [14:35]

• It’s easy to judge when we don’t know the person behind the picture. [15:45]

• Being rich is not condemned in the Bible, but a lack of generosity is. [17:34]

• Is it unwise for a pastor to wear extravagant shoes? Yes. It distracts people from the message. [20:21]

• These pastors’ shoes are becoming the focal point of the conversation instead of Jesus. [20:50]

• If we are getting in the way of Jesus, that’s a problem that we need to cut out of our lives. [22:30]

• Looks are not everything, but they are something. The way we dress communicates something. [23:25]

• Ask: Is there anything in my life that could get in the way of the message? [25:40]

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