RoboPreacher

of your wasted time The holy Gospel according to St. Luke (13:1-9, 31-35) ! The only thing worse than having a tough time, is knowing you’re having a tough time. Worst of all, though, is having a tough time, knowing it, BUT not knowing how to get out of it.   Productivity-gurus call this a “ vicious cycle.” The way trouble feeds on itself to create more trouble.   It’s a nifty little phrase, “ vicious cycle.” And it’s nice to have words to describe what you’re going through when you find yourself caught in one. But , it’s a bit of cold comfort. Isn’t it? After all, it doesn’t do much good to know how deep of a hole you’re in and how powerless you are to get out of it.   If, heaven forbid, should you ever find yourself in such a cycle, you would want more than someone saying, “Golly, it sounds like you’re in a vicious cycle.” Wouldn’t you? No, you’d want to identify the source of your trouble and cut it out of your life—a lot like the owner of the vineyard in today...

we don't know who we are instead The holy gospel according to St. Luke (10:25-42) ! It’s no easy thing to preach a parable this well known .   After all, you all already know the punchline . Don’t you? You know the answer to the question at the end of Jesus’ parable. And you know the right thing to do , too.   …Doesn’t it bother you, though, that on the lips of Jesus, this parable ends, not with an answer , but a question ? In 1518, Luther defended his burgeoning theological insights at a chapter meeting of his Augustinian order. In his presentation, now known as the Heidelberg Disputation, Luther said everything hinges on one distinction . The distinction between way we think God ought to work and the way God actually works.   And , by the way, there’s only one way God actually works in our lives. But the list of ways we think God ought to behave are endless . They’re religious and secular. Ethical and intellectual. Just take a look at the lawyer and Martha. ...

how do i look now The holy Gospel according St. Luke the 9th chapter! (v. 28-45) Every year, just before Lent, we have the Transfiguration . The account of Jesus clothed in all his glory . Often this is presented as the vision that sustains the disciples. Sustains them through the journey to the cross ALL the way to the exaltation of the resurrection. The “life-application” being that it’s no different for us . The mountaintop experiences of faith can sustain us through the tough times, too. It’s easy to see why this sort of sermon has so much traction . It has the ring of truth to it. Doesn’t it? This is how it goes in real life. If you want to accomplish anything, you’ve got to set your sights on the finish line through every obstacle that might get in the way. This narrative isn’t just repeated back to us in sermons , either. It’s the stuff of self-help, Hollywood, sports, and the like.   Of course, the really good ones subvert this trope. Self-help that eschews obje...

from the outsider's screen The holy Gospel according to St. Luke the 7th chapter ! We all have some thing in our life that isn't working for us anymore. Maybe it’s a coping mechanism, a reaction , or a way of thinking . Whatever it is, at one time or another, it helped us get along in life. Now though, it’s just getting in the way. Despite that, we keep trying to make whatever it is work… What is it for you ? AND, what would it take to get you to finally give it up? That’s the struggle at the heart of all the tension in today’s scripture. A delegation of Jewish elders approaches Jesus, asking him to heal the servant of a centurion in town. Usually, they wouldn’t ask, they say, but this man is a worthy of it. However, when the centurion realizes that Jesus plans to drop in, he sends another envoy to call the whole thing off ! The centurion says he’s NOT worthy. Worthy. Not worthy. Which is it? To the eyes of the world , the centurion is most certainly worthy. Lif...