Dear Partner in Preaching, November is a hard month to preach. Part of that is where we are in the cycle of the church calendar, as November draws us toward Christ the King and the lectionary readings anticipate Christ’s second advent even as we prepare to celebrate his first advent at Christmas. And the other part is Matthew, who offers more warnings about hellfire and gnashing teeth than the rest of the evangelists combined. And so this Sunday and those that follow will treat us to exhortations to wait, to make the most of our gifts, and to do good…or else. And while all these parables present their own distinct challenges, I have to...

Dear Partner in Preaching, Let’s just admit it: this is an ugly parable. No amount of generalizing about God’s hospitality or vulnerability or invitation is going to do away with that. In fact, I think that straying into generalities is a huge mistake, as it glosses over the serious nature and inherent danger in passages like this. So I would urge you either to preach this parable in its distinct and unattractive particularity or to choose one of the other three far more attractive and certainly more edifying passages appointed for this day. If you choose to work with Matthew, however, consider these three things. First, in this...