In 2021, J.D. Greear, then-president of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) and pastor of The Summit Church, became indirectly involved in a plagiarism controversy after his successor, Ed Litton, was found to have preached a sermon on Romans 1 that closely resembled one Greear had previously delivered. For a deeper look into what happened, here’s a link that explains the details and a video.

Preparing sermons is a process, but unfortunately, for some, it has become marked by shortcuts and unethical practices that lack both prayer and heartfelt preparation. One way I personally approach sermon prep is by using Logos Bible Software on my IPad. I like to use the “Draw on Screen” feature, which allows me to highlight and underline key parts of the passage—verbs, places, people, and repeated words. This helps me engage deeply with the text, getting it into both my mind and heart, and gives me a clearer sense of what’s really happening in the passage.

Because I’ve needed to improve the clarity of my grammar, I’ve been using Grammarly for the past four years. It’s helped me catch mistakes and improve the quality of my first drafts. Then I discovered ChatGPT. Since then, I’ve been using it not only to check grammar but also to find primary sources and insights from authors who have spoken on topics relevant to my studies. However, I’ve sometimes found myself questioning the ethics of using these tools—especially as I prepare to minister God’s Word to His people.

What Ed Litton did was unethical—taking someone else’s sermon and repeating it nearly word-for-word is simply wrong. Similarly, Michael Todd has also been accused of plagiarism after preaching a sermon that resembled one by Robert Morris of Gateway Church. Adding to the concern, Robert Morris was recently charged with five felony counts of lewd or indecent acts with a child, which further complicates the situation surrounding the use of his material.

In my opinion, these examples clearly fall into the category of unethical and sinful behavior. They are deceptive and morally incompatible with authentic, pastoral ministry. The use of tools like ChatGPT can easily lead down a similar path if not used with discernment. Even Logos, which has integrated AI into its platform, offers features—like automatically generated sermon outlines—that, while convenient, can encourage laziness and raise ethical concerns when relied on too heavily.

I use ChatGPT, but I do so carefully—always remembering that it’s a good servant but a terrible master. It’s helpful for fixing grammar, finding quotes, primary sources, and statistics that can support a preacher’s research. But using it to generate full sermons or create outlines crosses a line, in my opinion. 

A friend of mine joked about that today, and while we laughed, it reminded me of the situations with Ed Litton and Michael Todd. It made me think about the people who gather each week, genuinely hoping to hear God’s Word faithfully preached. It’s troubling to imagine how empty they might feel after hearing a sermon that’s cheap, generic, and lacking any real depth or personal engagement with the text—no wrestling, no prayer, just performance. That thought really stuck with me.

Thankfully, I’ve continued doing what I’ve always done—I study using Logos Bible Software, write out my own thoughts, and work through the text with the resources I have. To help with grammar and clarity, I use AI to catch the issues I might miss. It’s been a great tool for consolidating my library and pointing me to primary sources, and it’s helped my ministry. But I also see how easily it could turn a preacher into someone who’s just passing along information—detached, lazy, and lacking depth.

Good sermons come from weak men who wrestle with the text and seek God’s help. Without that process—and if you’re only leaning on something like ChatGPT—you fall short of being authentic and real in your preaching.