RoboPreacher

'stead of stealing my crown A sermon on 1 Kings 18:17-39 : Each week someone stands up here to proclaim the word of the Lord. And, each week, everyone leans forward in anticipation of what’s about to be said. …For about 15 seconds. …A little googling, though, suggests the average attention span is even shorter . Eight seconds, or so! But , a little more googling, suggests that statistic isn’t altogether trustworthy! …Sorry, I got distracted .   Regardless of how long you measure the average attention span, though, the fact is the same ; attention is as coveted as it is illusive . Isn’t that what everyone is competing for in today’s scripture? The prophets of Baal compete for Baal’s attention. The prophet Elijah competes for the people’s attention. And even the Lord gets in on the game, competing for the people’s attention! And it’s no different with us . Is it? We, too, are concerned with getting the right attention from th...

who thee by faith before the world confesses thy name, o jesus A reflection for All Saints from 1 Kings 18:17-39 : …Elijah is a little problematic for today ; All Saints. Isn’t he? Elijah's certainly not humble.   His words aren’t kind, taunting the prophets of Baal. But , I’ve come to learn that’s what it means to be one of God’s saints.   Saintliness is not perfection, it’s hope . It’s trust . It’s the awareness that unless God saves sinners , and sinners only , then we are without hope. …Let me tell you how I first learned this lesson; When I was putting together the first funeral liturgy I would preside at, I got the the Commendation of the Dead where the pastor is to say: "Acknowledge, we humbly beseech you, a sheep of your own fold, a lamb of your own flock, a sinner of your own redeeming.” A sinner of your own redeeming?!? The family didn’t want to hear the pastor call their loved one a sinner , and at their funeral no le...

i'll work hard 'til the end of my shift A sermon for All Saints, from 1 Kings 18:17-39 : Hard to see what this passage has to do with a day like this : No humble remembering, but bombastic battle of whose God is best And , prophet Elijah isn’t exactly acting all the saintly , taunting opponents; bathroom BUT , we can make exceptions for prophets Had trouble making any connection b/t this passage and this day …and then I drove to Virginia’s funeral & I realized I had been commission to say some just as bombastic things & I realized the congregation was going to join me in taunting the ol’ foe The truth is, we don’t have to go to Mt. Carmel to find ourselves caught between competing theologies . Do we? We don’t even have to go to a funeral to find ourselves in the middle of a battle between The Lord and all those other false gods out there. ● In a world full of prophets insisting we MUST prove ...