 Perry Noble is the founding and senior pastor of NewSpring Church in South Carolina. The church averages about 16,000 people during weekend services at multiple campuses throughout the state.
Noble is considered a gifted communicator and teacher, and endeavors to speak the truth as plainly as possible. It is this plain truth that has afforded him both criticism and acclaim throughout his tenure as pastor of NewSpring Church. He literally speaks the Biblical truth as bluntly as possible, and does not mind whether you agree with him or not, so long as you recognize that his information is coming directly from Scripture. He received some raised eyebrows and criticism for preaching a sermon about whether Christians should or should not drink alcohol with a can of beer on the table next to him.
He is also extremely passionate about building his sermons exclusively around Scripture, instead of the new tendency of his peers to involve popular culture into sermons. However, Noble is not afraid to use popular songs for dramatic effect, such as ACDC’s “Highway to Hell,” at a beginning of an Easter sermon, or Katy Perry’s hit single “Firework,” in a sermon in the Spring of 2011.
Moreover, Noble tries to be as accessible as possible, utilizing popular media like Twitter and Facebook often. In addition, his extremely transparent blog and website PerryNoble.com offers a no-holds-barred approach to teaching outside of a Sunday sermon. On the site, Noble addresses issues that people may have or respond to any criticism he might receive.
A popular response occurred in August 2012 when Noble twitted he was buying Ben & Jerry’s ice cream and his Twitter followers were enraged that he would support a company that supported gay rights/same sex marriage. Noble used the criticism as a ministry opportunity, referring those who might criticize him that while the Bible says that homosexuals will not inherited the Kingdom of God, it also states that the sexual immoral, idolaters, adulterers, thieves, greedy, drunkards, and slanderers will also not inherit the Kingdom of God. Noble turned a simple statement that was misinterpreted as a political statement into an opportunity to remind his followers that they were pointing out the sins of others in an effort to ignore their own sins.
It is this sort of transparency and attempt to minister in every opportunity that has many Perry Noble a major name in the Christian community. While he may not be the most profound or hard-hitting pastor out there, his goal is to bring the Kingdom of God to a broken world, and inspire pastors to be as transparent and accessible as possible and cover the hard issues regardless of the criticism that may come of it.
He believes that God has given him a vision and a passion for helping people meet Jesus, and each week he shares God’s word and its practical application in our daily lives.
Noble lives with his wife, Lucretia, and their daughter, Charisse, in Anderson, S.C.
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