RoboPreacher

if you take cover or abandon it A sermon on Jesus' great Sermon on the Mount : Here you are, doing your best to keep your spiritual house in order .   And let me say this is no small thing! Being here this morning makes you a rare bird, indeed. Plus, it’s not like you’re here because you’ve got nothing else to do. Is it? No, we’ve all got a lot on our plates. Too much, in fact.   But, despite all the hindrances, here you are. And for all that, Christ sallies up the great mountain and delivers the most consequential sermon in all human history. And he tells you , NOT good on you. And he tells you , NOT keep at it. No, he tells you , in effect, don’t bother! Don’t bother?!? I mean, here you are, defying odds and the obstacles, and Jesus just shrugs ! He climbs the mountain, parts his lips, and pronounces his blessings. Pronounces his blessings not upon the prayer warriors but rather the prayer weary .   “Blessed are the poor in spirit,” Jesus declares. The poor in sp...

it never took me anywhere A sermon on the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount ( Matthew 5:1-20 ): One of my favorite movies, and I've talked about it before, is "Little Miss Sunshine." This movie, for me, coincided with lutheran theology. And so it occupies a place right alongside "Lutheranism 101." That said, this movie is not PG, so if you rent it and are offended, don't say I didn't try to warn you... The movie follows a more or less nuclear family. And like many families these days, every member struggles to put up with one another. For various reasons, they all grate on each-other’s nerves.   One of the funniest points of friction in the movie, is the father with, well, basically everyone … The father aspires to be a self-help guru. In fact, the movie opens on him giving one of his seminars. …The class, though, is comprised of a small handful of students, in a dimly -lit and depressing little classroom.   Despite ...

we don't need permission The Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew the 5th Chapter! Today’s Gospel continues our trek through the Sermon on the Mount. In fact today’s reading comes right after what we heard last week, the beatitudes, Jesus unlikely decoration of the unexpectedly-blessed.  That’s not all though, today’s Gospel really puts the screws to our “Incarnation Sermon Series,” it really pushes up against why all this matters. In fact, today is a bit of a pay-off in the middle of our journey through contemplating the incarnation. Today is a moment when all the pieces fit, oh so nicely, together. As much as I hate to say it, though, I must admit that all the pay-off of today only delivers itself precariously; the pay-off doesn’t come easily… You know, our homework for this sermon series, saying “I am a Child of God” daily wasn’t chosen arbitrarily.  I haven’t been asking us all to say this because it’s just some nice sentiment, it’s m...

Deuteronomy 30:15-20 Prayer: Lord, may the words of my lips and the meditations of all our hearts dwell on the gift of life, prosperity and blessings you have set before us. Amen. Intro: It’s Love the Earth Sunday: Have you made a valentine to that favorite shade tree of yours yet? What about that that favorite trail of yours? No? Well, me either. It isn’t too late, though, I suppose. It is no accident that Love the Earth Sunday is on Valentine’s Day weekend. Interfaith Power and Life, along with local partners, such as Earth Ministry, have coordinated a national Valentine’s Day celebration for the Earth this weekend. On this Valentine’s Day celebration, congregations across North America are reflecting on loving their fellow creation, the Earth. The goal of Love the Earth Sunday is to get discussion of the climate into pews this, and I have gotten the impression that this goal is being achieved swimmingly. It is worth noting, though, that bringing concerns for the e...