Following on from my earlier Blog on 15 May “Resurrection Stories: Profoundly Exciting or Deeply Disturbing?” the following sermon was preached at Prestbury Methodist Church on 6 June 2010, 2nd Sunday of Pentecost.
SCRIPTURE: (Year C) 1 Kings 17:8-24; Galatians 1:11-24; Luke 7:11-17
I was driving home a couple of weeks ago listening to the radio and was told about fabulous prizes available at one of the casinos. “But hurry; you have to play to win.”
Then a minute later I was being told that I simply have to participate in the UK lottery. It had been rolled over so many times that it stood at a quarter of a billion Rand, or something pretty exciting. “You can’t afford not to play,” the voice told me.
The problem is that they are onto a winner here. Someone always wins, at the casino, and wins big; someone always (eventually) wins th
e lotto and it makes a big story. So they can tell you all about their millionaire winners and it makes you think, “That could be me!” After all, that’s exactly what they tell us: “You, too, can win.” But, of course, every advert for a lottery or a casino, or even just an SMS competition to win free tickets somewhere, tell us “You have to play to win.” Now while that is true, it’s not exactly the whole truth. What they really mean is, “You have to play so that we can win!”
Wondering Preacher 