Sermon and Worship Resources

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Luke 13:10-17

Sermon

Brett Blair

I want to encourage you to do something. If you have never read Victor Hugo’s memorable novel the “Hunchback of Notre Dame,” pick up a copy and read it. Hugo uses an interesting literary technique in the story. The reader is allowed to see the basic decency and humanity of Quasimodo, the hunchback, while the crowd sees him only as a monstrous freak. The story, in its essence, is part tragedy, and ...

2. A Devastating Storm, An Incredible Promise

Matthew 18:15-20

Sermon

Brett Blair

Announcing itself with shrieking, 130-mph winds, Hurricane Harvey slammed into the Gulf Coast, dumping more than 40 inches of rain over a four-day period, submerging entire neighborhoods up to their roofs. In the days before expected landfall, the Governor or Texas warned that the monster system would be “a very major disaster,” and the forecasts drew fearful comparisons to Hurricane Katrina, one ...

3. A Great Light (Sermon for Candlelight Service)

Matthew 4:12-17

Sermon

Brett Blair

The Christmas story begins in darkness. There was the darkness of oppression, for God's people were a conquered people. They were a beaten and a defeated people. There was the darkness of persecution. Indeed, it was a despised universal taxation that brought the participants in the story together on that fateful night. There was the darkness of disillusionment. There was an ever-increasing number ...

4. A Happy Ending

Luke 24:50-53

Sermon

Brett Blair

He ascended into heaven and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty.” This is what we recite weekly in the Apostles’ Creed. But what do we really know about the Ascension. In the church we spend surprisingly little time on the events of Jesus life following the resurrection, particularly the Ascension. The ascension was that time when Jesus visibly departed from his disciples and cam...

5. A Haven For Troubled Hearts

John 14:1-4

Sermon

Brett Blair

Eric Clapton, arguably the greatest living rock guitarist, wrote a heart wrenching song about the death of his four-year-old son (March 20, 1991). He fell from a 53rd-story window. Clapton took nine months off and when he returned his music had changed. The hardship had made his music softer, more powerful, and more reflective. You have perhaps heard the song he wrote about his son's death. It is ...

6. A Mountain Of Meaning

Matthew 17:1-9

Sermon

Brett Blair

A brilliant magician was performing on an ocean liner. But every time he did a trick, the Captain's parrot would yell, "It's a trick. He's a phony. That's not magic." Then one evening during a storm, the ship sank while the magician was performing. The parrot and the magician ended up in the same lifeboat. For several days they just glared at each other, neither saying a word to the other. Finally...

7. A Salute to Mothers

Romans 16:1-27

Sermon

Brett Blair

I must candidly confess that when I was in seminary the 16th chapter of Paul's letter to the Romans didn't do much for me. It struck me as being boring nothing more than a long presentation of people's names, most of whom I could not pronounce; I usually skimmed over that part so I could get to what I considered to be the real Gospel. Over the years I have greatly changed my attitude about this pa...

8. A Shepherd To Lead Us

John 10:1-21

Sermon

Brett Blair

Leadership. We all want good leadership. Good shepherds to lead us in and out of green pasture. We vote hoping to elect it, we apply for jobs hoping to work for it, and we go to school hoping to be educated by it. But we do not always find it. The trust we place in our leaders can be broken. So what are we to do? John 10 holds the answer. Look at the picture Jesus gives us here in John 10: This w...

9. Acts of God?

Luke 13:1-9

Sermon

Brett Blair

Once or twice in our sojourn upon this earth something happens which shapes the course of our lives. Many on the East Coast have experienced such an event. Consider for a moment what has been set in motion from Sandy: *13 foot surge of seawater. 3 feet above the 200 year old record. *90 mph winds *The battery tunnel connecting Manhattan and Brooklyn flooded. *74 foot crane in the middle of Manhat...

10. All The More Reason To Give Thanks

Psalm 100:1-5

Sermon

Brett Blair

It is interesting to note that it wasn’t until we were at war, the Civil War to be exact, that our Thanksgiving holiday was officially recognized by Congress. It had started in the small Plymouth Colony in 1621 when the English Pilgrims feasted with members of the Wampanoag (Wam·pa·no·ag) Indians who brought gifts of food as a gesture of goodwill. The custom grew in various colonies as a means of ...

11. And When You Pray

Matthew 6:5-15

Sermon

Brett Blair

Jesus taught his disciples, saying: And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that others may see them. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. (Mat...

12. Are You Pentecostal?

Acts 2:1-21

Sermon

Brett Blair

The well known author and preacher Fred Craddock tells a rather funny story about a lecture he was giving: A few years ago, when he was on the west coast speaking at a seminary, just before the first lecture, one of the students stood up and said, "Before you speak, I need to know if you are Pentecostal." The room grew silent. Craddock said he looked around for the Dean of the seminary! He was now...

13. Astonishing!

Mark 1:21-28

Sermon

Brett Blair

For centuries people believed that Aristotle was right when he said that the heavier an object, the faster it would fall to earth. Aristotle was regarded as the greatest thinker of all time, and surely he would not be wrong. Anyone, of course, could have taken two objects, one heavy and one light, and dropped them from a great height to see whether or not the heavier object landed first. But no on...

14. Back To Basics: The Three R's of Baptism

Mark 1:1-8, Mark 1:9-13

Sermon

Brett Blair

Baptism is a powerful force in the life of a Christian for two reasons. It is something we share in common. Christians all over the world can say that they were baptized in Christ. You met a Catholic in Ireland. He was baptized. You met a Pentecostal in Nigeria. She was baptized. The second reason Baptism is a powerful force is that baptism takes us back to the basics. Now let me set these two ide...

15. Backsliding

John 6:60-71

Sermon

Brett Blair

There was once a term frequently used in the church. In the old days it was used often. You rarely ever hear it today. Indeed, in my 12 years in the ministry I have never preached a sermon on the topic until now. Despite the infrequency with which it is mentioned, the concept, I think, is still valid. It is backsliding. The term backsliding, I discovered in my research, was popularized in the 1600...

16. Be At Peace With One Another

Mark 9:38-50

Sermon

Brett Blair

One person armed with the Gospel of peace can change the world. Telemachus did. Who was Telemachus? He was a monk who lived in the 5th century. And his story is a story of courage. He felt God saying to him, "Go to Rome." He was in a cloistered monastery but he put his possessions in a sack and set out for Rome. When he arrived in the city, people were thronging in the streets. He asked why all th...

17. Be Careful How You Live

Ephesians 5:15-20

Sermon

Brett Blair

There are two birds that fly over our nation’s deserts: One is the hummingbird and the other is the vulture. The vultures find the rotting meat of the desert, because that is what they look for. They thrive on that diet. But hummingbirds ignore the smelly flesh of dead animals. Instead, they look for the colorful blossoms of desert plants. The vultures live on what was. They live on the past. They...

18. Beware of Angels

Luke 2:8-20, Luke 2:1-7

Sermon

Brett Blair

I wonder what I would have heard had I been there that night. It is a question that annually haunts me. Would I have heard the choirs of angels singing or simply the sounds of barnyard animals shifting around. Would I have seen the star in the sky that night or simply two poor and very frightened kids. Would I have felt the hushed silence of the divine presence, or simply the chill of a cold east ...

19. Building According To Code

Matthew 7:24-29

Sermon

Brett Blair

It is significant that Jesus ended the Sermon on the Mount with the parable of the Wise and Foolish Builders. Throughout the long day Jesus had been preaching to the vast multitude. They listened to him with amazement and awe. But Jesus warned them that that was not enough. It is never enough simply to listen to the words of Jesus, even though we may listen with reverent approval. If His words are...

20. Building Barns, Postponing Life

Luke 12:13-21

Sermon

Brett Blair

Comedian Jack Benny, from TV’s Golden age, had a skit which illustrated how we place money ahead of everything. He is walking down the street when suddenly he is approached by an armed robber, "Your money or your life!" There is a long pause. Jack does nothing. The robber impatiently queried, "Well?" Jack replied, "Don't rush me, I'm thinking it over." This morning I would like us to think a few ...

21. Calming Of The Tempest

Mark 4:35-41

Sermon

Brett Blair

Victor Hugo, who is famous for his novel the Hunchback of Notre Dame, also wrote a story called "Ninety-Three." It tells of a ship caught in a dangerous storm on the high seas. At the height of the storm, the frightened sailors heard a terrible crashing noise below the deck. They knew at once that this new noise came from a cannon, part of the ship's cargo, that had broken loose. It was moving bac...

22. Christian Liberty

Luke 6:17-26

Sermon

Brett Blair

Jesus died penniless. Roman soldiers cast lots to divide among themselves Jesus' only possessions--the clothes on his back. And he looked at his disciples and said, blessed are you who are poor. Jesus died hungry. There is no record that Jesus had anything to eat the day of his death. What we call The Last Supper on Thursday evening may very well have been Jesus' last meal. He died on the cross Fr...

23. Confronting Hypocrisy with Humility

Matthew 23:1-12

Sermon

Brett Blair

Politicians in Washington play the gotcha game to perfection. To make matters worse the news media feeds on it. Not only do they feed on it, they feed it, hoping for a national scandal to make themselves appear relevant. These various political events are a fitting context for our scriptural text about hypocrisy. Listen to what Jesus says about these politicians (in his day they were called Phari...

24. Confronting Hypocrisy With Humility (I)

Matthew 23:1-39

Sermon

Brett Blair

With Election Day upon us, I thought this text about hypocrisy was appropriate. I am reminded of a story about Theodore Roosevelt. During one of his political campaigns, a delegation called on him at his home in Oyster Bay, Long Island. The President met them with his coat off and his sleeves rolled up. "Ah, gentlemen," he said, "come down to the barn and we will talk while I do some work." At t...

25. Creeds or Deeds

Mark 7:1-23

Sermon

Brett Blair

Rev. David Chadwell posed a rather interesting question: Which would you prefer for a next-door neighbor: a person of excellent habits or a person with a good heart? Which would you prefer for a good friend: a person of excellent habits, or a person with a good heart? Which would you prefer for a husband or a wife: a person of excellent habits, or a person with a good heart? Which would you prefer...

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