Church can be like the Opera!
When people attend church, they may respond to the preacher like a novice at the opera. They have never been told what a sermon is supposed to do. Commonly the listener reacts to the emotional highs. He enjoys the human interest stories, jots down a catchy sentence or two, and judges the sermon a success if the preacher quits on time. Important matters, such as the subject of the sermon, may escape him completely.
-- Haddon Robinson, Biblical Preaching, p.32