Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: touch, feel, sense of touch, tactile sense, tactility, contact, using one's hands, sensation, sense, suspicion, sneaking suspicion, notion, inkling, hunch, fancy, apprehension, presentiment, premonition, foreboding, love, care, affection, fondness, tenderness, warmth, warmness, emotion, sentiment, emotional state, compassion, sympathy, empathy, fellow feeling, understanding, concern, solicitude, solicitousness, tender-heartedness, brotherly love, sensibilities, sensitivities, self-esteem, ego, pride, opinion, belief, view, impression, intuition, instinct, estimation, guess, theory, hypothesis, thought, way of thinking, point of view, atmosphere, ambience, aura, air, mood, climate, character, overtone, undertone, tenor, spirit, quality, flavour, colour, aptitude, knack, flair, bent, talent, gift, skill, art, trick, faculty, ability, propensity, inclination, sensitive, warm, warm-hearted, tender, tender-hearted, caring, soft-hearted, sympathetic, compassionate, empathetic, responsive, receptive, intuitive, thoughtful

Antonyms: bad feeling, acrimony, animosity, animus, antagonism, antipathy, aversion, bitterness, detestation, disgust, dislike, disrelish, enmity, friction, grievances, grudges, hatred, hostility, loathing, malevolence, malice

Showing 1 to 25 of 513 results

1. Last of the Sympathy

Humor Illustration

One of life's major mistakes is being the last member in the family to come down with the flu after all the sympathy has run out.

2. Sympathy — With Pathos

Psalm 22:23-31, Hebrews 4:14-16; 5:7-9

Bulletin Aid

Frank Ramirez

Call To Worship We come before you now, our crosses bearing, Our lives in disarray, but sins foreswearing. We praise you for our weakness you have borne, and now are sharing, Son, priest, and king, who walked before us, filled with caring. Collect One: You who fear the Lord, praise him! All you offspring of Jacob, glorify him; stand in awe of him, all you offspring of Israel! All: For he did not despise or abhor the affliction of the afflicted; he did not hide his face from me, but heard when I cried to ...

It was in those who had recovered from the plague that the sick and the dying found most compassion. (Plague of Athens 430 B.C.)

Thucydides

4. The Vicarious Servant

Isaiah 52:13--53:12

Sermon

Donald Macleod

... for those in need. And every need that met his eyes touches his heart. "For the Son of man also came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many," (Mark 10:45 RSV) he said to his disciples. His was sympathy with, and only as we catch his spirit will our indifference be put down. A Roman Catholic cleric agreed to leave an affluent assignment in the South to assume leadership in a popular diocese in the North where social problems of every sort abounded. Someone asked him "Why ...

5. No Tears for Me, Please

Luke 23:26-43

Sermon

John R. Brokhoff

... of Communism, said, "If I ever met a Christian, I'd become one." Nietzsche, the father of the "God is dead" philosophy, once challenged, "Show me first that you are redeemed; then I'll listen to talk about your Redeemer." Really, Jesus does not want our tears of sympathy for his passion; he wants obedience. That is far harder to do than to shed a tear. Not tears but witness is what Jesus wants from us. Our witness to others is extremely important to him, because he died to save all people, not only his own ...

6. A Cup Running Over

John 11:17-37

Sermon

James W. Robinson

... that he could thank God in advance for the miracle he was about to perform! IV. The most prominent feature of the story of the raising of Lazarus is the love of the Lord Jesus Christ. Hear it once more: "Jesus wept." There is more than "mere" sympathy in that simple verse. The tears that he shed were not merely the overflow from a surface pool of sentimentality; they spilled from a well of compassion that had its source at the very core of a caring heart. John wants us to know that. "Now Jesus loved ...

7. On Not Losing Heart

2 Corinthians 1:1-11

Eulogy

Edward Inabinet

... and our strength. As we gather in this time of worship, we can lift our hearts to God, smile through the hurt and thank Him for our loved one and his provision, and then go forward into the future with a new grip on life. We are made strong through sympathy, but more importantly we are made strong by the in-dwelling presence of the Lord Himself. With joy then, we give _____________ over to the transcendent bliss and everlasting arms of our Heavenly Father.

8. Wedding: One Husband's Counsel

Sermon Aid

John M. Braaten

... to Marital Bliss" which can ensure a strong, joyous marriage. But St. Peter in his first letter gives some sound words of wisdom. Peter, you might recall, is the only disciple who we know for sure was married. Listen to his husbandly counsel. "... Have unity of spirit, sympathy, love of [each other], a tender heart and a humble mind. Do not return evil for evil or suit]; but on the contrary bless, for to this you have been called, that you may obtain a blessing." 1 Peter 3:8-9 Peter, as a husband, knows ...

9. How the Lord has Covered the Daughter of Zion

Lamentations 2:1-22

Understanding Series

Tremper Longman III

... . (Ps. 35:19) The poet of Lamentations here depicts all those whose journey takes them by the destroyed Jerusalem as rejoicing in its devastation. This verse is especially sad when read in the light of 1:12, where the poet looked for sympathy from those who pass by. But rather than sympathy, they give contempt. They see the destruction and they clap their hands in approval (Ezek. 25:6). They scoff, or perhaps hiss (see also 1 Kgs. 9:8; Jer. 19:8; Zeph. 2:15) at the ruined city. Shaking one’s head connotes ...

10. I am the Man Who Has Seen Affliction

Lamentations 3:1-66

One Volume

Tremper Longman III

... path stands for life’s journey. From the perspective of the man, God’s actions seem cruel. Other passages recognize Jerusalem’s sin as a cause of this action, but the present context does not mention it, since the purpose of the poet is to build up sympathy for the suffering nation. The bear and the lion often appear together as harbingers (sometimes metaphorically and sometimes in reality) of destruction and death (1 Sam. 17:34, 34–37; 2 Sam. 17:8, 10; Isa. 11:7; Hos. 13:8; Amos 5:19). The passages ...

11. Getting Rid of Grudges

Luke 23:34

Sermon

James Merritt

... sneered and said: "I was never aware that we had quarreled." Well, it's much worse than that. At the garden of Eden man declared war on God, and until we wave the white flag of surrender and receive his forgiveness, we can never be right with Him. II. The Sympathy That Is Expressed If anyone ever had a right to be bitter it was Jesus. He was crucified for something he did not do (sin) by the very ones who did it (sinners). Do you ever feel unappreciated? Do you ever feel like nobody cares about what you do ...

12. Daniel’s Training in Babylon

Daniel 1:1-21

Understanding Series

William Nelson

... 1 and chapter 10 contain competing traditions. As the story develops, we see divine providence at work. In spite of the fact that Daniel was brought low by being taken to Babylon, God promotes him. The text notes that God had caused the official to show favor and sympathy to Daniel (1:9). In this Daniel is parallel to Joseph, who was taken to Egypt as a slave but whom God gave favor with his owner (Gen. 39:1–4). Solomon’s prayer of dedication for the temple also comes to mind. It includes a request for ...

13. The Compassionate Healings

Mark 5:21-43

Sermon

Ron Lavin

... life. We are surprised by death which comes like a thief in the night. We are shocked by Jesus' tardiness and by his response. We expect that Jesus would have said what we say when a death comes. "I'm so sorry to hear about your daughter. You have my sympathy. If there is anything I can do, don't hesitate to call me." Instead Jesus raised the stakes (and the eyebrows of the people in the crowd too, I suspect) by flying right in the face of the servants who had seen the girl die. Jesus said, "Don't be ...

14. The Divine-Human Nexus

Matthew 25:31-46

Sermon

... even benign neglect toward the needs of others. What the whole counsel of God tells us is that human beings are to love one another "not because (Jesus) tells them to with threats and promises - not from a regard for themselves, however subconscious - but with a spontaneous sympathy that regards only the other person’s good." Such a spontaneous sympathy is clearly not a part of the natural person, the homo incurvatus in sei, the man curved in on himself, the woman curved in on herself. Such a spontaneous ...

15. The Way Life Ought To Be

Philippians 2:1-11

Sermon

King Duncan

... of Christ as their mind. Thus he begins with Christ. THEN HE PAINTS A POSITIVE PICTURE OF THE KIND OF CHURCH HE HOPES THEY WILL BECOME. "So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any incentive of love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfishness or conceit, but in humility count others better than yourselves. Let each of you look not to his own interests, but ...

16. Complete Joy

Philippians 2:1-11

Sermon

Jeff Wedge

... claim on us to do what he wishes. If there is any sharing in the Spirit, any fellowship with others, any generosity in our time of need, any participation in our grief, then Paul has a claim on us to do what he wishes. If there is any compassion and sympathy, if there is any affection, love, deep feeling, pity, or mercy, then Paul has a claim on us to do what he wishes. And that is the critical point - what Paul wishes us to do. He states it simply: He wants the people who heard his words to make his ...

17. Mark 10:35-45

Mark 10:35-45

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... as the "Son of God" should be reason enough for the community to "hold fast to our confession." But the writer goes on to sound a note of hope particularly sweet to frail humanity. As the great high priest, Jesus has an unequaled capacity for sympathy because of his own experience as a human being. All human weakness - the noun here can mean either physical weakness, illness or general weakness of the flesh or spirit - is personally understood by this oxymoronic human/divine, son of man/son of God. Verse 14 ...

18. Seeing God In The Ordinary: Friends

John 11:1-45

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... is wonderful! But as life would have it, the ridicule that should have been his has been transferred to someone else, Susie. She tried to help, but they told her to get out. "You've done enough, you klutz!" As the day progressed, the sympathy got better and better and the ridicule got worse. Finally, at the end of the day, they are waiting for the bus, and once again Susie was shunned by the other children. The boy walked over to Susie and whispered, "Susie, you did that on purpose, didn't you?" Susie ...

19. Poem: In Memoriam

Eulogy

Alfred Lord Tennyson

... . LXIII Yet pity for a horse o’er-driven, And love in which my hound has part, Can hang no weight upon my heart In its assumptions up to heaven; And I am so much more than these, As thou, perchance, art more than I, And yet I spare them sympathy, And I would set their pains at ease. So mayst thou watch me where I weep, As, unto vaster motions bound, The circuits of thine orbit round A higher height, a deeper deep. LXIV Dost thou look back on what hath been, As some divinely gifted man, Whose life in ...

20. Jesus Christ Superior to Aaron

Hebrews 4:14-5:10

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... from the Psalter, both in the form of an address by the Father to the Son, establish that Jesus has his priestly office by divine appointment. Psalm 110:4 introduces the theme to which the author will return in 6:20–7:28. Jesus also meets the requirement of sympathy with those he represents (5:7–10). It is true that he did not sin and needed no sacrifice for his own sins (5:3), but he was tempted more severely than any other person, and only the one who has resisted to the end knows the full weight ...

21. Hear No Evil

Luke 1:46-55 (53); 4:18-16; 19:1ff; 16:14-15 et al

Illustration

Richard A. Jensen

... care of matters quite efficiently and goes back to the demands of the banquet. Not a tear is shed. The head of the estate in these pre-war years in England is a man who has great sympathy for the German cause. Many meetings are held at his estate as he seeks to enlighten others in the cause of his sympathy. Much pro-Nazi discussion takes place around the ornately crafted tables of the estate. The butler is right there in the midst of all this. He hears the discussions but it seems to make no impression upon ...

22. Second Thoughts

Luke 10:25-37

Sermon

Robert Beringer

... a message of love, simply walked by the wounded person in the ditch. Apparently, he was one of those religious persons who are so heavenly minded, they are no earthly good! But as I have lived longer and experienced more of life, I have come to have a real sympathy for the Levite, the third of the travelers on the road to Jericho that day. Now he too passed by the person in need, but somehow I feel certain he did so only after a terrible struggle with what I am going to call his "second thoughts." In those ...

23. Sermons

Sermon

John R. Bodo

... relax and to renew their strength for the work they had to do in the countryside and, eventually, in Jerusalem. In spite of the Master's gentle rebuke to Martha recorded in the tenth chapter of Luke's Gospel, we remember her with sympathy, indeed with a feeling of deep kinship, because Martha is one of us: responsible, busy, frequently overwhelmed. Christians are, for the most part, extremely responsible people. In a nation where at any time millions are in full, headlong flight from responsibility, this is ...

24. Those Who Mourn

Sermon

John A. Terry

... blest are the sorrowful; they shall find consolation." (NEB) "Blessed is the one whose heart is broken for the world's suffering and for his own sin, for out of his sorrow he will find the joy of God!" (Barclay) "Happy are those who have a god-like sympathy toward their fellow man. They shall have the assurance that God cares for them." (Guth, The Pulpit 12/54) "Happy are they who bear their share of the world's pain: in the long run, they will know more happiness than those who avoid it." (The Pulpit 12 ...

25. The Merciful

Sermon

John A. Terry

... voluntary poverty in which "all the believers were together and held all things in common" (Acts 2:44). Mercy is not simply feeling sorry for someone. "I am sorry your cat is sick." It is more than an emotional wave of pity. It is a profound sympathy, being with others in their pain. There is a story about Queen Victoria of England. She was a close friend of Principal and Mrs. Tulloch of St. Andrews. Prince Albert died and Queen Victoria was left alone. Just about the same time, Principal Tulloch died and ...

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