Category Archive: Bob Hiller

What Sort of Father Do We Have?

By Bob Hiller –

Imagine with me, if you will, a father having dinner with his children. At the table, the father waxes eloquent about what it means to be a member of his family. He describes with great passion the sort of people his children ought to be. He talks a great deal about how much he has done for his children, how much he has sacrificed for his family, how much he desires to see his family thrive. His is a love that the children strongly desire, his family is an ideal they long to be a part of. They appreciate the hard work he has done. They know it is an honor to be in this family. Of course they know. Their father tells them constantly.

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Poison Oak and Vocation

By Bob Hiller –

Hey, you know what’s terrible? Getting poison oak all over your skin. This last weekend, my dear wife and I found a great deal of this devil’s weed in a group of trees behind our house. We have dogs who like to run through the yard and jump through the plants and kids who play in the yard hunting those dogs, so we don’t want poison oak to take over. We decided to pull it out. We wore extra layers and gloves, and we took every precaution we could have. We took showers with the right kind of soaps and washed multiple times. We did everything the right way. Now we are covered in pink skin, scabs, and calamine lotion. Although, my dear bride has it far worse than I do. Please, say a prayer for her healing!

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Don’t Make Jesus Your Lord

By Bob Hiller –

*The following is from this past Wednesday’s Lenten sermon on the Second Article of the Creed.

A number of years ago, I was having breakfast with some pastor friends of mine. They were discussing a theological controversy that they were dealing with in their church. Now, they weren’t Lutheran, which was obvious because we have no controversies in our church. But they had been arguing over what we mean when we say that Jesus is “Lord.” It was called the “lordship salvation” controversy. Basically, they were contending that there are two categories of Christians: those who were saved but still lived in sin because they hadn’t fully dedicated themselves to Jesus and those who were sold out, who had made Jesus their Lord. They asked the question, “Jesus is the savior of your soul, but have you made Him the Lord of your life?”

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Know What You Are Talking About

By Bob Hiller –

The madness has arrived! As you read this, sixty-four of the nation’s best college basketball teams are playing in the most exciting tournament the American sports calendar has to offer. One of the best parts of the NCAA College basketball tournament is filling out a bracket with friends and co-workers and betting on who will pick the most winners. Though we are not gambling on it, a bunch of folks from my congregation have a pool going. Upon writing this blog, I am in the midst of filling out my bracket to win bragging rights for the year. There is just one problem: I haven’t got a single clue about any of these teams!

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When Debate Replaces Highlights

By Bob Hiller –

One of the things I tend to geek out on is sports broadcasting. Like most sports fans my age, I grew up watching game highlights on Sportscenter. I became a fan, not just of the players on the highlight reel but also of the broadcasters who delivered the highlights. So, I was enthralled this week while listening to an interview Jim Miller, the author of Those Guys Have All the Fun: Inside the World of ESPN. Miller spoke with Dan Patrick about the current state of sports broadcasting and what has changed with stations like ESPN. Patrick pointed one of my pet peeves with ESPN and sports broadcasting in general. He suggested that “Debate has replaced the highlight.” Building on Patrick’s assertion, Miller said sports debate shows were growing in popularity because “Young male viewers loved seeing these guys [the sportscasters/debators] go at it…the most outlandish things, even if they weren’t supported by fact, you know, were provocative.”

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Christ Our Example

By Bob Hiller –

This past week, I was caught off guard by a conversation with one of the dear saints in my congregation. In normal pastoral fashion, I was asking him how our church could pray for him. In a typical response, he asked that I pray for his unbearable arthritis pain. It was just your typical pastoral conversation. But then my friend said something that took me by surprise. After asking for prayers he said, “But you know, I just think about Jesus suffering on the cross, bearing the sins of the whole world for those six hours, and the pain he endured for me. If my Lord can do that for me, I’m sure I can deal with this pain if it is His will.”

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Just a Fan

By Bob Hiller –

A number of years ago, I was having coffee with some of my Reformed friends in the town where I was serving. One of the pastors at the table (a man for whom I have a great deal of respect) began to discuss a book he’d been reading called “Not a Fan,” which compared church members to sports fans sitting the stands watching a game. Simply put, the premise of the book was that we don’t want “fans” who show up in the church on Sunday morning to admire Jesus and cheer for him; we want “followers” who want to get their skin in the game. The book, I assume (not having read it), then challenges believers to greater levels of commitment and sacrifice. The aim is to transform Christians from “fans” into “followers.”

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Good News in a Breaking News World

By Bob Hiller –

I doubt Eugene Peterson tweets. But, thank God, somebody has set up a Twitter account to share his genius with us every day! The other day, the Peterson tweeter sent out this thought provoking gem: “It is not difficult in such a world to get a person interested in…the gospel; it is terrifically difficult to sustain the interest.” Now every preacher of Christ’s Good News knows how true this is. It is not uncommon for pastors who emphasize grace to hear from a very well intentioned parishioner, “You know, preacher, we get that Jesus died to forgive our sins. But what now? Don’t you have something for us to do?” Peterson is right, it doesn’t take long for boredom with the gospel to set in.

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Caught Up in the Moment

By Bob Hiller –

There I was, sitting next to my bride, in front of a beautiful, big screen in a friend’s backyard, watching with a sort of vindictive joy as the Patriots were getting creamed in the Super Bowl last Sunday. Then it came…that insufferable fourth quarter. You saw it, didn’t you? Tom Brady led his team back from nineteen points down to tie the game and led his team to a victory in overtime. Depending on who you talk to, it was either the greatest comeback in Super Bowl history or the greatest choke job. Either way, it was a pretty entertaining fourth quarter, even if the dark side won the day.

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Learning from Belichick

By Bob Hiller –

Our country is divided over pretty much everything these days. In such times, it is helpful to remember that nothing unites quite like a common enemy. That is why I am thankful that the New England Patriots are back in the Super Bowl. Our collective disdain for ol’ Grumpy Bill and that disgustingly talented quarterback just might be what this nation needs to bring us together. Just think of the collective joy we would feel watching Matt Ryan march down the field with only seconds left on the clock to score a winning touchdown and rip the hearts out of the New England sideline. It just makes you want to hug your enemy, doesn’t it?

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Certain of the Call

By Bob Hiller –

How does one know that they are saved? Where can the Christian turn for any ground of certainty before God on Judgment Day? As a pastor, these questions are often found in the fear-filled voices of guilt-ridden Christians in my study. Lead a Bible study on Romans 9-11 sometime and watch fear fill the eyes as folks realize God is actually, actually, sovereign over salvation. If He loved Jacob and hated Esau, what hope do I have that my love for stew isn’t going to be the end of me? Bring up the fate of Judas in a class and see if anyone who has any semblance of their role in the death of Christ is feeling comfortable about their standing before God. Passages like these, coupled with an awareness of our sin and God’s Law, tend to shake the confidence of God’s people. So, is there certainty for our faith? Where can we turn?

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Putting Christmas on the Bench

By Bob Hiller –

Last week, the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Memphis Grizzlies played back-to-back games. On Tuesday, Cleveland lit Memphis up 103-86 in Cleveland. The next night, in Memphis, the Grizzlies got back at the Cavs winning 93-85. Now, one might think that a simple change of venue wouldn’t matter that much. If the same teams play back-to-back nights, you might expect the same results. Well, herein lies the rub. The exact same teams didn’t play back-to-back nights. In fact, Cleveland’s three best players, LeBron James, Kyrie Irving, and Kevin Love, didn’t travel with the team. They stayed home. For whatever reason, Cleveland coach Tyronn Lue wanted to rest his best for the trip.

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The Haymaker’s Top Five Humbug Hymns

By Bob Hiller –

Here’s a little piece I wrote a few years back hoping to start some fun Christmas conversation. I hope you enjoy it! I know my mom wasn’t a huge fan…

This is the most wonderful time of the year for my ears. I am becoming quite a Christmas-music snob in my age. I liked Christmas music before it was cool (Can a hipster listen to Christmas music?). This is especially true when it comes to Christmas hymns. Advent and Christmas hymns are some of the most beautiful, haunting, and theologically rigorous hymns we sing all year. But the opposite seems to be the case as well: this is the time of year when some of our weakest, most heterodox, and downright strange hymns get loads of undeserved attention. It is rather frustrating that these hymns tend to be quite popular! But as with that abysmal “Do They Know Its Christmas?” by Band Aid (ugh…), no matter how hard I try, I just can’t seem to get away from these hymns. Like the Grinch, I want to descend into WhoVille, bag these songs up, and remove them from the musical catalogue.  But you will very likely sing them in your church this season, despite their dangerous teachings. After all, orthodoxy is no match for nostalgia. 

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Rugby Catechesis

By Bob Hiller –

This past week, we entered a new phase of 21st century family life in the Hiller household: organized youth sports. My middle boy joined the local under-8 rugby squad. I know there are all kinds of problems with youth organized sports. I have to tell you, taking my son to rugby was pure joy. I loved watching him run around while getting barked at by the coach. I loved the look of satisfaction on his face when he figured out how to succeed at his drills. I loved how much fun he had with his friends. I loved him asking when he could do it again. “Thursday night, buddy.” “Yes!” he beamed. At least for now, youth rugby is fun.

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Joy for the World!

By Bob Hiller –

There is a strange and almost unnoticed verse in the beginning of Mark (1:13) I have grown to take great delight in. After Jesus is in the wilderness, overcoming the temptation from the devil, it says, “And he was with the wild animals, and the angels were ministering to him.” Now, what in the world does that have to do with anything? Jesus sitting with the wild animals? I mean, I get the angels ministering to Him, but what’s with the animals? What does Jesus have to do with them? What do they have to do with Jesus?

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The Beatitudes for the Holidays

 By Bob Hiller –

Well, friends, on this blessed day after Thanksgiving, I hope this blog finds you waking up from a day full of food, drink, laughter, and rest. I hope today you are not shopping like a crazy person, but continuing in some blessed rest with friends and family. Thanksgiving is truly a wonderful day to enjoy the marvelous gifts of God’s creation which He has given “out of divine, fatherly goodness and mercy with no merit or worthiness” in us. I hope yesterday was a day for you to enjoy that divine, fatherly goodness and mercy.

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Airbrushing Beth Moore

By Bob Hiller –

The other day, I was scrolling down the old Facebook page, bypassing angry political comments and hilarious Biden memes, when an ad for an upcoming Beth Moore Women’s Study caught my eye. Such things are not foreign to my feed, as I look through a good deal of Bible study material and Facebook stalks my every internet move. At first, I didn’t think much of the ad. At second glance, something about the ad seemed strange to me. As Beth Moore stared back at me with her smart and pretty face, I noticed something strange about her photo. Beth Moore’s picture was airbrushed.

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After the Election: A Pastor’s Concern

By Bob Hiller –

Like you all, I’ve been sort of reeling in the wake of Tuesday’s election results. If I am being completely honest with you (and why would I have reason to be anything else), I truly don’t know how to feel about the president-elect. But like many of you, my blood pressure has risen and fallen at remarkable rates as I’ve scrolled through my social media feeds. I have a lot of personal and political concerns about our country and would have had them regardless of who got elected. In today’s blog, I don’t think I can contribute much to the conversation by way of political analysis or social criticism. Anything that I have to say on that front has likely been said already by people far more capable and intelligent than myself. However, as I read through my feed and reflect on my own personal actions and attitudes this past week, I do have a pastoral concern that is weighing on me.

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