§01
Scripture
Start with the passage itself, its context, and connected passages—not an uncited conclusion.
Inspect the corpus →Prepare with AI.
Your sermon stays yours.
ChatLumin is a pastor-led sermon preparation workspace built on the OpenLumin library of named sources. It walks a pastor from the text to Sunday, does the research with every source named, and leaves the reading, the big idea, the application, and the words to the pastor. It does not write the manuscript and it never invents an illustration.
OpenLumin holds the library of named sources. ChatLumin is where you prepare with it. The AI is a research librarian, never a ghostwriter.
Updated October 26, 2026
How much of each stage the AI may do.
ChatLumin's sermon workflow follows these roles. If you insist on research before your first reading, it says once why the order matters, then does what you ask. You are the pastor.
| Stage | AI role | What that means |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Text selection It can suggest passages. You choose. | minimal | It can suggest passages. You choose. |
| 2. First reading and prayer Before any research, it asks whether you have read the text cold and prayed over it. | none | Before any research, it asks whether you have read the text cold and prayed over it. |
| 3. Exegetical research Original languages, setting, cross-references, and named commentators, every claim cited. | significant | Original languages, setting, cross-references, and named commentators, every claim cited. |
| 4. Structure and big idea It tests the movements you propose. It does not supply the big idea. | moderate | It tests the movements you propose. It does not supply the big idea. |
| 5. Illustration It never invents a story or a statistic. Real-life stories are yours to bring. | moderate | It never invents a story or a statistic. Real-life stories are yours to bring. |
| 6. Application Application needs someone who knows these people. That is you. | limited | Application needs someone who knows these people. That is you. |
| 7. Manuscript or notes A research librarian, not a ghostwriter. It does not write the manuscript. | minimal | A research librarian, not a ghostwriter. It does not write the manuscript. |
| 8. Review It checks your draft against Scripture, the creeds, and your tradition before you preach. | moderate | It checks your draft against Scripture, the creeds, and your tradition before you preach. |
A source trail you can inspect.
OpenLumin is designed to make the gathering work faster while keeping interpretation, teaching, and authorship with you. Every layer below is meant to be checked, not merely accepted.
§02
Original-language work
Trace important Hebrew and Greek terms back to the textual and lexical evidence that supports the explanation.
Inspect the corpus →§03
Historical and archaeological context
Use cultural, geographical, and archaeological context as evidence to test an interpretation, not as decorative trivia.
Inspect the corpus →§04
Scholarly commentary
See which named works inform the answer, compare perspectives, and inspect the source trail before you teach.
Inspect the corpus →- ✓Passage context, cross-references, and series planning options
- ✓Original-language and word-study questions
- ✓Historical, cultural, and archaeological context
- ✓Comparison of named sources and interpretations
- ✓Testing the structure and movements you propose
- ✓Checking your draft against Scripture, the creeds, and your tradition
- ×Your first reading of the text
- ×The big idea of your sermon
- ×Invented illustrations, stories, or statistics
- ×Your manuscript
- ×A replacement for your prayer, study, judgment, or voice
A tool should show its work.
- 1. Read the passage and pray. Start with the text before you ask a tool to gather context. ChatLumin will ask.
- 2. Follow the source trail. Check the named works and cited evidence that support the answer.
- 3. Weigh the interpretation. Compare sources and make the theological judgment yourself.
- 4. Write in your own voice. The pulpit already has a preacher.
Know where OpenLumin is not the right tool.
Our current corpus is strongest in public-domain Protestant commentary and open, licensed reference data. It is not a replacement for a modern scholarly library, and it does not yet provide comprehensive Catholic or Orthodox source coverage.
If you need the breadth of a paid academic library, Logosmay be the stronger tool. If you need help polishing prose you have already written, a writing assistant is the more honest fit. OpenLumin's job is to gather evidence before you make those decisions. See the transparent tool comparison for the tradeoffs.
Gather the evidence. Do the thinking.
ChatLumin is free to start. The full sermon workflow and your own skills are part of Lumin.
Start preparing in ChatLumin