Sermon Brainwave from Working Preacher

What if the parable of the talents isn’t about hard work at all?

Karoline Lewis, Cody Sanders, and Matt Skinner dig into Matthew 25:14-30 for the 25th Sunday after Pentecost. They unpack why one talent equaled fifteen years of a laborer’s wages. They also explore the fear of the servant who buried his share. The hosts invite preachers to see the parable as a call to risk and joy in God’s kingdom. They connect it to Zephaniah’s warning against people who “settle like dregs.” Then they turn to Psalm 90, Deborah in Judges 4, and a powerful benediction from 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11.

What does the parable of the ten bridesmaids teach us about living eschatologically?

Matt Skinner, Karoline Lewis, and Cody Sanders dig into Matthew 25:1-13 for the 24th Sunday after Pentecost. They notice that all ten bridesmaids look alike except for one detail: the extra oil. They explore why Jesus says the kingdom of heaven “will be like” this. They also ask what keeping awake means when lives and well-being are at stake.

Amos 5 warns that the day of the Lord brings darkness, not light. Instead, Amos calls for justice to roll down like waters. Joshua 24 presses the question of which Lord we choose to serve. Psalm 70 invites preachers to listen for the lament of others. Paul’s word in 1 Thessalonians 4 shows what grief inflected with hope looks like.

Preaching Matthew 5:1-12 on All Saints Sunday? Matt Skinner, Karoline Lewis, and Cody Sanders explore the Beatitudes as apocalyptic promises, not a checklist for Christian living.

They unpack the great reversal at the heart of Jesus’ blessings. They also dig into Revelation 7:9-17, Psalm 34, and 1 John 3:1-3 for November 1, 2026. Discover why the Lamb still stands as if slain. Learn how remembering the dead becomes an act of hope and resistance. Plus, see how Psalm 34 can shape your communion liturgy.

Preaching Matthew 23:1-12 this Sunday? Karoline Lewis, Cody Sanders, and Matt Skinner dig into one of the hardest chapters in the New Testament.

They show how to handle Jesus’ sharp words about the scribes and Pharisees with care. They also name the self-aggrandizing religiosity that still shows up in our own churches. Cody imagines a community where the greatest among you will be your servant. The hosts also explore Micah 3:5-12, Joshua 3:7-17, Psalm 43, and 1 Thessalonians 2:9-13. This episode covers November 1, 2026, the 23rd Sunday after Pentecost.

Love your neighbor as yourself sits at the heart of Jesus’ answer about the greatest commandment in Matthew 22:34-46.

Cody Sanders, Karoline Lewis, and Matt Skinner help preachers get ready for the 22nd Sunday after Pentecost. They ask why the struggle lives between knowing and doing. They show how Leviticus 19 roots neighbor love in God’s own holiness. The hosts reflect on Moses’ intimate friendship with God in Deuteronomy 34. They linger with the tree planted by streams of water in Psalm 1. Then they unpack Paul’s tender “gospel of God” in 1 Thessalonians 2:1-8.

What did Jesus really mean by "render unto Caesar"?

Matt Skinner and Cody Sanders dig into Matthew 22:15-22 for the 21st Sunday after Pentecost, October 18, 2026. They unpack the trap, the coin, and what Jesus means by giving back to God. Jesus refuses a false choice and asks whose image is on the coin. The hosts explore the coinage of God's kingdom: mercy, justice, and righteousness. They also turn to Isaiah 45 and Cyrus, God's anointed. Exodus 33 reveals a migrant God who journeys with the people. Psalm 96 calls all creation to worship. Finally, the hosts launch a five-week series in 1 Thessalonians and its rich vision of hope.

The parable of the wedding banquet in Matthew 22:1-14 is one of the toughest texts preachers face.

Karoline Lewis, Matt Skinner, and Cody Sanders explore it for the 20th Sunday after Pentecost, October 11, 2026. They examine Jesus' anger at religious leaders and the wide-open invitation to both good and bad. They also explain why preachers don't need to tie a parable up neatly. Next, they explore Isaiah 25's feast, the golden calf in Exodus 32, Psalm 23, and Philippians 4.

Karoline Lewis, Matt Skinner, and Cody Sanders dig into the texts for October 4, 2026, the 19th Sunday after Pentecost. The hosts weigh new titles for the parable of the wicked tenants and warn against anti-Jewish readings. They explore Isaiah's vineyard song and Psalm 80, a rare lament in the lectionary. They also hear the Ten Commandments as a gift of freedom, not a list of rules. Paul's call to count everything as loss in Philippians 3 rounds out the conversation.

Find episodes, commentaries, and links at workingpreacher.org/brainwave.

Matt Skinner, Karoline Lewis, and Cody Sanders unpack Matthew 21:23-32, where Jesus confronts the chief priests and elders in Jerusalem. They explore what Jesus's "non-answer" about his own authority reveals about power, hypocrisy, and who really enters the kingdom.

The team also digs into Ezekiel 18 as trauma literature, Exodus 17's cry for water in the wilderness, and the radical humility of Philippians 2. Together, these texts ask a haunting question: Is the Lord among us or not? This conversation offers preachers fresh angles on authority, repentance, and unity as resistance for the 18th Sunday after Pentecost. Listen in for insightful exegesis and practical preaching insight.

The parable of the workers in the vineyard raises an uncomfortable question: what if God's grace isn't fair?

On this episode of Sermon Brainwave, Karoline Lewis, Cody Sanders, and Matt Skinner dig into Matthew 20:1-16 and explore why this story about a generous landowner makes us so angry. They unpack fairness, retributive justice, and what it means to see as God sees. The conversation also covers Jonah's fury at God's mercy, Exodus 16 and the daily bread that sustains a hungry people, Psalm 145's unsearchable greatness, and the opening chapter of Philippians. Preachers will find fresh angles on prophetic preaching, grace that offends our sense of power, and the four-week journey into Philippians that begins this week.