Sermon Process

The first draft of this coming Sunday's sermon on the binding of Isaac is done. This is my pathology - maybe I think subconsciously that I might get hit by a truck and someone would need my sermon to read at Sunday's service (not likely, right?) so I start writing early. For a first draft, it's not bad. Some good storytelling, some good lit-crit, some "what do we do with this" but it's clearly got some more work to be done.

This one is a little earlier than usual, though, since the topic is one that I've been thinking about for a couple of months, since I knew I'd be preaching on it. The word study, looking at the Hebrew and the various English translations, has been intriguing. The midrashes and commentaries are all over the map. Abraham was having a bad dream. Abraham knew God wasn't going to let him go through with it, Abraham knew God was going to let him go through with it but would revive or resurrect the boy, Abraham knew the covenant of future generations could not be broken and trusted despite the outrageousness of God's demand...no one is utterly lock-tight convincing.

As this is the final sermon in the Father Abraham series, I want it to be good...but it may end up simply being a meditation on the hard journeys God sets us on, and how we must give up control (and the things we love best) and trust in Him.

Some preachers are adept at staying up late on Saturday night and pouring the words out on paper, inspired by the Spirit (or not). Someday I may get to that place, but I guess my level of trust isn't high enough yet. I'll post yesterday's sermon on Hagar and Sarah tomorrow, after I revise the written version I carried with me Sunday morning to match what I actually ended up preaching. It happens like that sometimes.