Some Thoughts on Plagiarism & Preaching

What is plagiarism?

Plagiarism, at its core, means to use someone's idea without credit. According to Merriam-Webster, to plagiarize means "to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one's own : use (another's production) without crediting the source."[1]

What is the history of plagiarism?

The English word "plagiarize" likely dates back to the 1600s.[2] However, the term comes from French, Greek, and Latin influences dating centuries before.[3]

Ideas which are considered common knowledge (such as the sky being blue) generally do not need to be cited. However, direct quotations and paraphrasing of statements do need to be cited.[4] If they are not cited, then plagiarism has taken place.

The concept and definition of plagiarism has evolved over time. Laura Egan explains,

"Historically, imitation and reproduction were seen as a form of
flattery. Musically, repeating motifs from another composer’s work was seen as a nod of respect for the composer’s indebtedness to
other composers. William Shakespeare lifted ideas for his plays from others as others did from his plays (Thomas 2000). Concepts of
reputation and honor were more highly valued than ownership. That is, an author would prefer to have someone else copy their work
than to have work falsely attributed to them (Thomas, 2000).

The rise of the term plagiarism corresponds with the invention of the printing press in the 16th century, which enabled authors to
duplicate and distribute their work, and the rise of the merchant class, which increased the number of people profiting from work
outside of subsidence (Vint, 2008; Hansen, 2003). These also relate to the economic concept of private property, that is, only if one
owns something can one profit from it, and if one can profit from it, one has an incentive to invest in it. Intellectual property is therefore an expansion of the idea of private property and the concept that one has the right to profit from one’s intellectual as well as physical labor."[5] 

Thus, works that were produced began to be viewed as private property which needed to be protected. This historical development, in turn, led to the development of copyright laws in the 1700s in England and the United States.[6] Even though the specifics of plagiarism have evolved over the centuries, significant ethical, biblical, and theological issues are at stake. (This will be explored more below).

What happens in various professions when people plagiarize?

Here are the consequences of plagiarism in just a few different contexts:

• Journalism: Plagiarism is unethical and can lead to job loss. It could be difficult to stay in the industry afterwards. Some may even face legal consequences.

• Law: Plagiarism is unethical and unprofessional.

• Students: Plagiarism is unethical and can lead to bad grades, failing classes, or even expulsion.

• Academics: Plagiarism is unethical and can lead to loss of reputation, job, and legal ramifications.

• Musicians: Plagiarism is unethical and can lead to loss of reputation, financial penalties, and legal ramifications.

• Authors: Plagiarism is unethical and can lead to loss of reputation, pulling a book off the market, the loss of future opportunities, and legal ramifications.

• Churches: When plagiarism in sermons is discovered, many churches consider it unethical and there are repercussions for the pastor. However, other churches don’t see it as problem and excuse it.

When plagiarism in sermons is discovered, many churches consider it unethical and there are repercussions for the pastor. However, other churches don’t see it as problem and excuse it.

Why am I addressing this issue?

Put simply, I am addressing this issue because plagiarism appears to be rampant in the church, even among preachers. Some preachers recommend plagiarism in preaching.

As can be seen in the news over the past few years, various pastors have been accused of plagiarism in their preaching. The most recent case was about a week ago as reported by Mark A. Kellner from The Roys Report in the article titled, "ARC megachurch pastor accused of sermon-stealing, newspaper says."[7]

Kellner writes, "The pastor of a growing Virginia megachurch that’s part of the scandal-plagued Association of Related Churches (ARC) has been accused of plagiarizing dozens of sermons over the years, recycling passages without credit."[8]

He continues, "Josh Whitlow, pastor of Heights Church in Glen Allen, Virginia, allegedly plagiarized messages or sermon portions from evangelical pastors Andy Stanley, Robert Morgan and Chris Hodges. But according to a Dec. 27 investigative report in the Richmond, Virginia, Times-Dispatch newspaper, Whitlow’s church is fine with that."[9]

Then, Kellner relays perhaps the most disturbing part yet, "Hodges, who is described as a mentor to Whitlow, was founding pastor of Church of the Highlands in Birmingham, Alabama, one of the largest churches in America and the ARC flagship church . . . Whitlow, the newspaper said in a front-page piece, would sometimes repeat Hodges’s illustrations almost verbatim, with slight alterations to personalize the story . . . Whitlow’s borrowing from Hodges was sanctioned."[10] In other words, Chris Hodges allowed and encouraged other pastors to plagiarize his material.

I've heard of other pastors (in addition to Chris Hodges) recommending this practice of taking other preacher's stories, portions of sermons, and even full sermons. The preachers then present these stories and sermons to their churches as if they are their own sermons.

Why? As the line of thinking goes, younger preachers don't know how to preach yet, so they need to "borrow" from more experienced preachers without attributing them. I've heard others frame it as being generous; in other words, they are not hoarding their sermons and content, but they are sharing it with others. However, I am not buying this. We can be generous and share our content to help pastors study, but pastors still don't need to plagiarize.

Though I am an academic (and plagiarism standards are high for academics), I am not merely a pedantic academic that is concerned with seeing academic precision and citation in the pulpit. I understand that preaching is speech, and speech is different from writing (and academic writing at that!). I also don't want pastors to feel like they have to cite every statement they make, and I don't want pastors to be fearful of preaching a sermon and making a citation mistake. However, I am compelled to address this issue out of concern.

4 Concerns with Plagiarism in the Church

I am deeply concerned with integrity, dishonesty, misplaced focus, and sound teaching of the Scriptures in churches. Let me explain.

First, I am deeply concerned with integrity. I am concerned that this act of taking others stories and sermons creates a false public persona that does not match the private person. In the worst examples, it seems as if the preacher has simply become a performer. Who we are unavoidably influences what we teach. Our character not only affects our teaching, but it is reproduced in the lives of those we influence. Performers may amass a crowd and seem to have worldly success, but performers will not push back the kingdom of darkness and shepherd God's people into Christlikeness. God has a lot to say in Scripture about the Pharisees doing things for performance. Conversely, he also has a lot to say about what is done in secret. Maybe we should reflect on why, in the contemporary church, we allow the ends to justify the means.

Performers may amass a crowd and seem to have worldly success, but performers will not push back the kingdom of darkness and shepherd God's people into Christlikeness.

Second, I am deeply concerned with dishonesty. I've heard of cases where preachers use another preacher's stories verbatim (or perhaps verbatim with changing a few details). As a listener and church member, if I discovered a story that was repeated from another preacher (as if it happened to him), then I would feel as if the preacher lied to me. It seems highly unlikely that the same exact situation happened to two people, and they used the same exact words to describe it. Immediately I would begin to wonder: Did the exact same situation happen to him? If a similar event happened, then why can't he explain his story in his own words? If I discovered unattributed quotes, unattributed paraphrases, or large portions of sermons being taken from someone else, then I would wonder why can't the preacher tell us that he's using someone else's content? If the preacher thinks someone else said it better, then why not quote it and credit the person who said it? If he doesn't want to recommend the person who said it, then why can't he at least say, "One preacher said . . . " or something like that? Is the preacher doing the hard work himself to study for sermons? Or is he cutting corners and copying content from other people and presenting it to the church as if it is his own? If so, why? Telling another person's story as if it happened to oneself and preaching someone else's sermon as if it is one's own is dishonest and unnecessary. Have we begun to value effectiveness, performance, and numbers more than authenticity and honesty? Yikes.

Third, I am deeply concerned with misplaced focus. Only the Lord knows what the deeper motive is for taking someone else's quote or sermon, and preaching it as if it was his own. But whatever that motive is, it seems to be a misplaced focus. Is plagiarism happening because of a desire to appear smart?[11] Is it happening because of desire to grow the church by using a "proven" megachurch pastor's sermon? Is it a desire to be funny? Is it a desire to be cool? Is it a desire for fame? Is it a desire for efficiency? Is it a desire for success? Is it to avoid the difficult work of study and prayer? Whatever the motive, it seems to be misplaced. (Perhaps, it is also revealing an insecurity or character issue which needs to be explored.) A shepherd should be feeding his people from the Scriptures with a "meal" prepared for them which has been bathed in study and prayer. (We all depend on resources from others. It’s good to employ quotes and credit the source, however, if a preacher is taking large portions of another sermon then I would wonder if the preacher needs more training, practice, or confidence in God. If a plagiarizing preacher finds that too difficult, then perhaps the preacher is not called to preach and teach.)

Fourth, I am deeply concerned with sound teaching of the Scriptures. There really shouldn't be a reason to plagiarize if pastors spend sufficient time prayerfully studying the text for themselves first. This helps the pastor become a person who is directly engaging with the text and with God, and the pastor can make specific applications to the people in his own church. After sufficient study, then they can examine resources to check their work and glean insights from others. The best insights can be quoted and attributed.

Why is plagiarism wrong in preaching?

1. Plagiarism is unbiblical (e.g., lying, not living above reproach, etc.). Scripture speaks to this in various ways (especially see: Exo. 20:16; Lev. 19:11; Prov. 12:22; Eph. 4:25; Col. 3:9; 1 Tim. 3:2; Tit. 1:6-7).

2. Plagiarism is unethical.

3. Plagiarism is unnecessary.

4. Plagiarism diminishes the unique shepherd that God has called and the unique people that are under his care.

5. Plagiarism is not modeled in Scripture. The apostles preached Scripture and Jesus's ideas. But still, they preached their own sermons. Paul says, "Preach the word," not other teachers' sermons (2 Tim. 4:2).

6. Plagiarism seems to violate the need for the gift of teaching. If a pastor has a gift of teaching, then why is the pastor preaching other preacher's sermons? If a pastor does not have a gift of teaching, then why is he teaching? (Rom. 12:7, 1 Cor. 12:28, and Eph. 4:11)

7. Plagiarism is considered wrong in our culture. Should the church not have a higher standard than the world?

Here are a few good resources for more deep thinking on this subject:

• https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/what-is-plagiarism

• https://jdgreear.com/what-counts-as-plagiarism-in-a-sermon/

• https://biblehub.com/q/does_the_bible_mention_preaching_plagiarism.htm#:~:text=While%20the%20word%20%E2%80%9Cplagiarism%E2%80%9D%20does,handles%20the%20word%20of%20truth.%E2%80%9D

• https://www.gotquestions.org/Bible-plagiarism.html

• https://albertmohler.com/2006/12/07/plagiarism-in-the-pulpit-stealing-the-material-we-preach-2/

End Notes:

[1] Merriam-Webster, s.v. "plagiarize," accessed January 3, 2026, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/plagiarizing.

[2] Ibid.

[3] Laura Egan, "Plagiarism: History, Culture, and Prevention," University of North Dakota: Librarian Publications, October 30, 2024, accessed January 3, 2026, https://commons.und.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1022&context=cfl-lp.

[4] Ibid.

[5] Ibid.

[6] Ibid.

[7] Mark A. Kellner, "ARC Megachurch Pastor Accused of Sermon-Stealing, Newspaper Says," The Roys Report, December 28, 2025, accessed January 3, 2026, https://julieroys.com/arc-megachurch-pastor-whitlow-accused-sermon-stealing/.

[8] Ibid.

[9] Ibid.

[10] Ibid.

[11] Carey Nieuwhof, "Why You Should Stop Ripping Off Other Preachers (The Led Zeppelin Scenario)," Carey Nieuwhof, https://careynieuwhof.com/why-you-should-stop-ripping-off-other-preachers-the-led-zeppelin-scenario/.