RoboPreacher

carried here by those who've gone A sermon on Jesus' healing of the man born blind : This battle in Ukraine is bringing us all up short . Isn’t it? The future no longer looks crystal clear . And the past offers little justification for all this human suffering . Our world has been plunged into a fog of uncertainty , anxiety , and heartache . Or, in a word, darkness . Darkness. Kind of like the man in today’s Scripture. The man who had been blind from birth . The man who, as they walked by him, the disciples didn't talk to . No , they talked about him. We always do this in the face of random misfortune, too. Don’t we? It seems to be a defense mechanism. A way we try and shield ourselves from suffering. We think if we can explain anguish, we can protect ourselves from it. Thus the disciples’ calloused question.   “Rabbi,” they blithely ask, “who sinned , this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” The disciples theorize if this man is to blame for his condition. O...

to want something better than the shape you're in A sermon on the problem with Jesus' address : In school, I was an average student. And honestly, sometimes I couldn’t even chin up to that bar. But as high school tilted toward college , my fortune began to change . While I may not have been great at rapid, standardized testing, I could collect information and relay it reasonably well.   In college, it became apparent I was suited for the kind of reasoning the academy prized. Slowly, school transformed from a series of hurdles into a set of stairs I climbed with greater and greater ease . So when it came time to apply for seminary , I aimed high .   I applied to a few schools, but one stood at the top of my list. A prestigious one. A seminary that graduating from would have been a feather in my cap. A fact I could casually reference in conversations and impress everyone around me.   But as I began to hear back from other seminaries, that distinguished one rem...

but i'm confident when i'm with you a sermon on Jesus' bread of life sermon : A few years ago, pop theologian, David Zahl, wrote the book “Seculosity.” This word is a portmanteau of secularism and religiosity . Zahl’s point with the title is that, although we live in a secular age, we are more religious than ever! Only now we have redirected our religious longings onto the secular plane. Now we try to find fulfillment , not in spirituality , but in secular endeavors. Things like careers , childrearing , politics , and even hobbies .   The result, argues Zahl, is that we are less fulfilled than ever! Transferring our yearning from the sacred to the secular has not succeeded in stemming our longing. On the contrary , it’s only stoked it!   What’s more , argues Zahl, we’ve also gutted what would otherwise be perfectly pleasant pastimes! Now, our hobbies must be side- hustles . Now, instead of marveling at the miracle of childhood, we’re fixated upon the idea that...

answer me, Son of the livin' God A sermon on Jesus healing the royal official's son : Like A Tale of Two Cities , today’s Scripture tells two analogous tales. One of the triumphant climb to faith . And the other of life falling to pieces. These two stories could not be more at odds . But, of course, like A Tale of Two Cities , they go hand in hand. They are the same story. The story of faith . The story royal official in today’s passage.   There’s some debate as to the man’s identity. Was he a royal? Or was he merely in the employ of a royal? Either way, though, it’s just a matter of how much status this man had. Because even if he was only working for the royals, it still meant he had a significant station in life.   As the old saying goes, though, it all means nothing without health . And when this man’s boy falls mortally ill , so do all the consolations of his prosperity. With nowhere to turn, the man runs to Jesus , whom he has heard is nearby. Now we tend to thin...