AI Sermon Prep

Your AI will invent Scripture. Give it the real text.

Ask any assistant for a verse on patience and it will hand you something that sounds like Scripture. Sometimes it is. Sometimes it's a real verse with the wrong reference, or a fluent sentence found nowhere in the Bible. Connect it to SoapBox and it looks things up instead of guessing — and shows you the citation.

Free. No account, no card, no API key.

Does AI make up Bible verses? Yes — routinely. Language models produce three kinds of Scripture error: verses that don't exist, real verses cited to the wrong reference, and popular sayings passed off as biblical. The model states all three with equal confidence, so you can't spot them without opening the text yourself. The fix is retrieval, not a better prompt: connect your assistant to a tool that looks verses up in an actual Bible. SoapBox runs a free Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that does exactly this — it takes about two minutes to connect, and the Scripture tools need no account or API key.

Actual responses

What it catches

Real output from the live server — not mockups. More on why this happens: AI "hallucinated" a Bible verse →

"Is 'God helps those who help themselves' in the Bible?"
Not Scripture Returns verified: false and names the actual source — Aesop, popularized by Benjamin Franklin. The single most-quoted "verse" that isn't one.
"Check this quote — 'I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me,' Philippians 4:19."
Wrong reference The quote is genuine, the citation isn't. Corrects it to Philippians 4:13, marks attribution_correct: false, and shows what 4:19 actually says so you can see the difference.
"How would a confessional Lutheran read this? 'God has done His part at the cross. Now the rest is up to you…'"
Divergent · 0.15 Identifies decision theology, cites the Formula of Concord on rejecting human cooperation in conversion, and distinguishes objective from subjective justification. It catches drift, not just error.
"And this one? 'Your faith is not the ladder you built to reach God; it is the gift He placed in your empty hands.'"
Aligned · 0.95 Confirms monergism and baptismal regeneration against the Formula of Concord and the Catechisms — then flags one ambiguity worth tightening. A confessional reader, not a grade.

What you can ask for

Nineteen tools. Ten need no key at all.

Verify a quoteChecks whether a quote is really Scripture and whether the reference is right. Returns the canonical text, a confidence score, and an attribution check.Free
Look up a verseThe text of any KJV verse by book, chapter and verse.Free
Strong's lexiconGreek and Hebrew entries — lemma, transliteration, gloss, full definition — for word studies in the flow of a normal question.Free
Ask ORAA Scripture study aid that answers Bible questions and cites the passages it drew on.Free
Search sermonsSearches real sermon transcripts by meaning, not keyword. Returns church, speaker, passage, and the timestamp of the moment.Free
Doctrinal alignmentReads a statement against a tradition's confessional standards — Lutheran, Reformed, Catholic, Orthodox, Pentecostal — and names the loci at stake. Analytical, not persuasive.Free
Liturgical calendarSeason, liturgical color, RCL year, and major feasts for any date.Free
Find churchesCongregations by location and tradition, with distance and denomination.Free
Browse the catalogFaith content published by churches — sermons, plans, bundles — with titles and prices.Free
Read it aloudTurns a verse, prayer, or devotional into audio in 50+ languages.API key

Everything marked Free works the moment you connect. A key is needed only where a request costs real money to serve — audio generation — or where money and consent are involved: purchases, prayer requests, and giving. Full API reference →

Setup

Connecting it takes about two minutes

  1. Open your connector settings

    In Claude — on the web or in the desktop app — go to Settings → Connectors and choose Add custom connector. Other MCP-capable assistants have an equivalent screen, usually under Connectors, Integrations, or Tools.

  2. Paste the server address

    Name it SoapBox Faith, and leave the authentication field empty — the Scripture study tools don't use one.

    https://foyekanoxpnkydoibaas.supabase.co/functions/v1/faith-mcp
  3. Ask it something

    Save, start a new chat, and try the fake-proverb question above. If it worked, you'll see the assistant call a SoapBox tool before answering — and the answer will carry its citations.

Straight answers

What it doesn't do

Better you know now than on a Saturday night.

  • Verse text is KJV only. Modern translations are under copyright; we serve the public-domain text. Use this for verification, reference checking, and lexicon work — then quote from whichever translation your congregation uses.
  • The lectionary gives season, color, year and feast — not the daily readings. Those tables are licensed. Keep your usual source for the pericopes.
  • Sermon search covers only pastors who opted in. A growing library, not the whole internet. Nothing is shared without the preacher's consent — including yours.
  • ORA is a study aid, not a pastor. It's built to help you study, and to point toward a real pastor or professional for anything belonging in a counseling room.
  • Confessional citations are worth spot-checking. Doctrinal analysis cites documents and paragraphs; the documents are right, but verify paragraph numbers before you quote one from the pulpit.

Questions

Frequently asked

Does AI make up Bible verses?

Yes, frequently. Language models generate fluent text that resembles Scripture, producing three kinds of error: verses that don't exist, real verses attributed to the wrong reference, and popular sayings presented as biblical. The model states all of these with the same confidence, so you can't tell them apart without checking. Connecting your assistant to a Scripture lookup tool fixes this by making it retrieve the verse rather than recall it.

Can pastors use AI for sermon preparation?

Yes, provided the AI is grounded in real sources rather than generating from memory. Practical uses: verifying every reference in a draft, Greek and Hebrew word studies with Strong's, checking a paragraph against your tradition's confessions, finding how other preachers handled a passage, and confirming the liturgical season. AI handles the checking and research; the pastor does the preaching. It's a study tool, not a substitute for exegesis, prayer, or knowing your congregation.

How do I stop ChatGPT or Claude from misquoting Scripture?

Give the assistant a tool that looks verses up in an actual Bible text. SoapBox publishes a free Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that any MCP-capable assistant connects to in about two minutes. Once connected, it verifies quotes against the King James text and returns the canonical reference, a confidence score, and whether your claimed attribution was correct. No account, no API key.

Is it really free?

Yes. Verifying quotes, KJV lookups, Strong's, doctrinal alignment, the liturgical calendar, sermon search, and ORA Bible Q&A are free and need no account, credit card, or API key. A key is required only for text-to-speech audio, which has a real per-request cost, and for tools involving purchases, prayer requests, or giving.

Which Bible translation does it use?

Verse text is the King James Version, which is in the public domain. Modern translations — ESV, NIV, NRSV — are under copyright and can't be served freely. In practice you use the tool for verification, reference checking, and lexicon work, then quote from your own Bible.

What is an MCP server?

MCP stands for Model Context Protocol, an open standard that lets AI assistants connect to outside tools and data. An MCP server exposes those tools. Instead of relying on what a model memorized in training, the assistant calls the server and works from what comes back. SoapBox operates a public MCP server for faith content, exposing 19 tools — 10 of which need no authentication.

Do you see what I type into my assistant?

Only the specific request your assistant sends to a SoapBox tool — a verse reference, a quote to check, a paragraph you asked to assess. Your conversation stays with your assistant. The free Scripture tools don't require an account, so there's nothing to attach a request to.

I'm a pastor — can my own sermons be searchable here?

Yes, by explicit opt-in, and you keep control. Churches on SoapBox choose whether their sermons are discoverable by AI agents; nothing is shared by default. Churches that sell content through the catalog keep 70% of net revenue. Share your teaching →

Try it with the question that proves the point

Connect the server, then ask your assistant whether "God helps those who help themselves" is in the Bible. You'll know within one answer whether this is useful to you.

https://foyekanoxpnkydoibaas.supabase.co/functions/v1/faith-mcp

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