RoboPreacher

to reach the hill in time A sermon on Jeremiah's prophecy to the exiles : Plans play a big part of our lives—especially this time of the year. And it’s no great secret why. A well-made and executed plan can go a long way— especially this time of the year. But , as we all know, even the best -laid plans aren’t foolproof. Not that that stops us from losing sleep when some scheme of our’s doesn’t pan out. That is, at heart, what exile is. Exile isn’t so foreign a concept. Exile is the painful experience of living with some circumstance you can’t change. No matter how much you might want to or how hard you have tried to. And the truth is, life is full of these kinds of experiences—especially this time of the year. …Today’s passage is a prophecy to folks in literal exile. To be an exile was to be forcibly deported. Part of Babylon’s campaign of control , you see, was to send away the prominent citizenry of the countries they conquered. The idea was that the people left behi...

where it went Jeremiah 33:14-18 : So, how was Thanksgiving? Was I right? Was it im -perfect? Were there any full-blown disasters ? …Well, if there were, and you want to talk about it, let’s schedule a visit. But the truth is, it’s a pretty safe bet to predict the holidays won’t be perfect. After all, nothing is. And the high-wire balancing act of the holidays is rife with opportunities for things to go wrong .   So no , predicting the holidays won’t be perfect is hardly prophetic. At least, not like anything Jeremiah was called to predict… To be honest, though , much of Jeremiah’s prophesies would hardly count as predictive, either! First, Jeremiah was called to speak against the people’s rampant and flagrant infidelity . And second, he was called to predict that superpower, Babylon , would come in and conquer Jerusalem. But between those two things, there’s not a lot of prediction , per se.   Saying God chooses peop...

after the flame baptism you're fearless An alternate sermon for Advent 1 from Daniel 3 Today begins Advent already. Did you know that? Are you ready for it??? And it’s pretty bad when you aren’t even ready to get ready … But, as the rest of the world is gearing up for another packed holiday season; we in the church are getting ready for the end of the world… No stories of chestnuts roasting over an open fire. No, instead a piece of scripture about an overheated furnace and three martyrs… …Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego had did what Jeremiah told exiles to do. Remember? Settle in.   And they did, they got jobs. Took out mortgages. Got married. Had kids. And, by all accounts, they had done pretty well for themselves. They landed jobs at the foreign government. The climbed the ladder to positions of relative authority, even… But, for all their efforts, all it took was one rash decision by their pagan king, to bring it all crashing down. King Nebuc...

he shall bring salvation to israel A sermon for the First Sunday of Advent, from the third chapter Daniel's scroll Today begins Advent . Before you got here today did you know that? Are you ready for Advent??? Of course, we’re not ready… For one thing, it’s too warm outside. It’s too green to really get you in the spirit of Advent.   But the real reason we’re not ready for Advent is, there’s just plain t oo much to do.   We just got through Thanksgiving and Black-Friday, didn’t we? And now, it’s going to take every second we have to be ready for Christmas! We don’t have time for Advent, it doesn’t fit! No, we’re not ready for it, are we? And that’s how it was for Shadrach, Mesach and Abednego, too. You know… They had done what Jeremiah told exiles to do. Remember? Settle in.   They did that! They got jobs. Took out mortgages. Got married. Had kids. And, by all accounts, they had done pretty well for themselves!   They landed go...

don't let me explode The Holy Gospel According to St. Mark : The radio-evangelist couldn’t keep her awake anymore. For a while listening to him spout on and on about fire and brimstone, about being ready, about heaven and earth passing away and all that, had entertained her.  Now his voice was just a drone, and it was more likely to put her to sleep than to keep her awake.  So she changed the radio-station again. Nothing was on, though, except jazz and classical music. That wouldn’t do. She rolled down the window. The wind blew in, and the cold air shocked her awake. For at least a little longer. “Stay awake,” she said to herself — for probably the millionth time. She blinked, but then had to fight to pull her eyelids up after letting them shut. ‘This is crazy,’ she thought. It didn’t take long for her to find an exit with signs for gas-stations and hotels. She took the exit, pulled into a hotel parking lot and checked her purse. She didn’t have much m...