RoboPreacher

my broken dreams A sermon on the burden and (empty) promises of kings Ain’t that always the way? You ask for a little help, but all you get in return is a lot more work. And there doesn’t seem to be anywhere to turn , either. Does there? Sorry to say, all too often, the promise of a new helper just turns out to be the letdown of yet another taskmaster, only this time twice warmed over … In today’s Scripture, the Israelites go to the king in waiting, Rehoboam . But, before they crown him king, they want a few concessions . Rehoboam’s father , King Solomon, had made life hard .   And so, before the people anoint his son king, they want to make sure they can get a break . But, instead of considering the request, Rehoboam takes it as a challenge ! Instead of granting reprieve , Rehoboam promises that when he’s king, he’ll increase the workload. And what’s more , he promises he’ll be an even more ruthless enforcer , too. Is it any wonder the people balk ?!? And you have to wond...

no more amnesty A sermon on information about kingdom consolidation : I suppose the only thing to say about today’s Scripture is, what am I going to do with it?!?! I don’t know if you noticed , but there’s not really anything happening in this passage! There’s no action! Nothing of significance is taking place, not really! Oh sure, David is crowned king of all of Israel. And yes, there’s the no holds barred rejoicing as they take the ark to Jerusalem. But that’s not really all that spicy ! It’d be like saying there’s a war brewing in the Holy Land. It’d be like noting that we’re really going to belt it out when we get to sing, “Praise to the Lord, the Almighty.” Sure, there’s information in those two sentences, but there isn’t much drama to them! Is there? On their own, they’re just facts. And that’s fine and all, but the trouble is, I’ve got to preach an entire sermon here! What am I supposed to do with today’s passage?!? It’s not hard to summarize the gist . After all the twi...

when they got you in that condition A sermon on Moses' sermon on the edge of the Promise land Seeing as today’s Scripture is the Ten Commandments, I think it’s only fitting to begin with a confession . And so, without further ado, here you go: I have a conflicted relationship with rules…   You know, you could act a little more surprised!   Alright. I know that’s not the most revealing confession. But it is a bewildering one, at least for me it is! For instance, as an eldest and a midwesterner to boot, I’m a natural -born rule- follower . HOWEVER, there also exists within me this deep -seated aversion to rules. And given how knee- jerk and visceral my reaction can be, there might be something pathological to my complicated relationship. If I had to play armchair psychologist, I’d speculate that my messy history with rules stems from growing up in an alcoholic home. In an alcoholic home, everything depends on the alcoholic’s mood. If they’re having a good day, it’ll b...