Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 226 to 250 of 606 results

226. Sweet-Smelling Fragrance

Ephesians 4:17--5:21

Sermon

Harold Warlick

... hospitals on Saturday nights are victims of either domestic violence or violence among friends. All of us compete with one another for honors and recognition, and if we do not get them we become angry. We compete for power, and if we do not acquire it, more anger is generated. Fathers and sons compete with one another, and daughters and mothers compete with each other. We live in a competitive democracy. We are living amid what one national newspaper has called "a new epidemic of anger." Shoppers get into ...

227. Don't Forget What You Look Like

James 1:19-27

Sermon

Harold Warlick

... . To combat his boredom he read those books. He possessed no thoughts then of either piety or religion. In his later autobiography Ignatius wrote that as he read the books over many times, he became rather fond of what he found there.5 He began to acquire a vision of himself far beyond what he had previously held. He began to see himself as capable of living a life similar to Saint Francis and Saint Dominic. This new view of himself, having come from looking into the mirror of God, goaded his mediocrity ...

228. Who Needs a Doctor?

Mark 2:13-17

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... ago Sydney Harris, the syndicated columnist, wrote a "fascinating piece about Anita Bryant that I would like to read to you this morning. As you know, Anita Bryant was a self-appointed crusader against gay rights a few years ago. Then she went through a divorce, and acquired a drug habit, and was hospitalized for a long time. And today, she's not the same person she was back then. This is what Sydney Harris wrote: He said, "Now that her world has come unstuck, and she is beginning to reglue it, I feel free ...

229. Waiting for God

Acts 1:1-11

Sermon

King Duncan

... in Newsweek several years ago. It was about children in Caribbean countries who have been left behind while their parents come to this country searching for a better life. So many Caribbean children are being left behind by emigrating parents that they have acquired their own name: “barrel children.” The name comes from barrels that are sent to them by their parents in the States. The news article told about Marsha, a teenager in Jamaica where there are tens of thousands of barrel children. A cardboard ...

230. Remember Your Baptism

Romans 6:1-14, Colossians 2:6-23

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... gift to the church, of which the child is now becoming a member. Baptism is a proclamation to the church and through the church to the world, that all men and move and have their being in God. This is not a privilege persons acquire through baptism. The church baptizes because persons already have that privilege. Children are already the recipients of God’s grace. Now get that. Children are already the recipients of God’s grace and the church baptizes them because they are. Through baptism, a Christian ...

231. Meeting And Mastering Temptation

James 1:1-18

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... says, 'God can, in one single moment, make a heart pure, but not even God himself can give a person character.' It is essential that we are subjected to testing, for character would not be the precious thing it is if it could be acquired without effort, without combat and without contradictions. 'Virtue that has not been tried,' said one great theologian, 'does not deserve the name of virtue.'" (Hughes, Ibid., p. 121). The word for temptation literally means "to put to the test" or "to go through". To ...

232. Will The Real God Please Stand?

James 1:1-18

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

233. Baptized...and Baptized

Luke 3:1-20

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... Christ's perpetual gift to his church, of which the child is becoming a part. Baptism is a proclamation to the child, and through the church to the world, that all men live, move, and have their being in God. This is not a privilege they acquire through baptism; the church baptizes them because they have that privilege. As children, they are already the recipients of God's Grace, and the church baptizes them because they are. So, the Holy Spirit works in baptism -- in the baptism of an infant -- to make ...

234. A Long Obedience In The Same Direction

Luke 22:39-46

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... of commitment and that kind of obedience. Eugene Peterson has described the religious and cultural milleu in which we live: "One aspect of world that I have been able to identify as harmful to Christians is the assumption that anything worthwhile can be acquired at once. We assume that if something can be done at all, it can be done quickly and efficiently.Our attention spans have been conditioned by thirty-second commercials. Our sense of reality has been flattened by thirty-page abridgments. It is not ...

235. Who Needs A Doctor?

Luke 5:27-32

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

236. Remember Your Baptism

Luke 3:1-20

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

237. Adopted! (New)

Ephesians 1:1-14

Sermon

King Duncan

... down at a table full of Catholic inmates. That was asking for trouble. Jimmy sat next to an inmate named Liam McCloskey and said, "Brother, I want to tell you about Jesus." The mess hall was silent as Jimmy Gibson told about his newly acquired faith. Among those who were deeply affected was Liam McCloskey. A bridge was built between these two former enemies. In 1983, the two men spoke at a reconciliation conference in Northern Ireland. Once, they were sworn enemies; today they call each other "brother." (6 ...

238. The Problem with Signs

John 6:25-59

Sermon

King Duncan

... asked her if she believed in God. She told him she did, then died at 17." What if you were Cassie's family? Could you handle that and still believe in a loving God? And what about Arthur Ashe, the late, great champion tennis player who acquired AIDS through a blood transfusion at the time he underwent heart surgery? The medical personnel in the hospital did not suspect or inspect the unit of HIV contaminated blood which went into Ashe's veins. Ashe did not realize that he was infected with the dreaded ...

239. Generic Christianity Is Not Enough

Romans 12:1-8

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... the entrance to the sanctuary. [That painting] had issued a warning: Remember, Christian soul that thou hast this life and every day of thy life God to glorify, Jesus to imitate, a soul to save, a body to mortify, sins to repent of, virtues to acquire, hell to avoid, heaven to gain, eternity to prepare for, time to profit by, neighbors to edify, the world to despise, devils to combat, passions to subdue, judgment to undergo. (1) Again, Bishop Holloway observed, “It all seems a long time ago, but that is ...

240. The Nature of the Church and Christian Discipleship

1 Peter 2:4-12

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... people, who spend our lives apprenticed to our Master, Jesus Christ. We are in a growing learning relationship, always. A disciple is a learner, but not in the academic setting of a schoolroom, rather at the work site of a craftsman. We do not acquire information about God, but skills in faith. (Think about that as you think of yourself as a disciple – an apprentice to Jesus – learning to be like, to think like, to act like Jesus.) The other word Peterson underscored was “pilgrim.” Pilgrim tells us ...

241. A Time of Transition

Joshua 5:9-12

Sermon

King Duncan

... . Many others have been extensively retrained. A recent estimate by an executive at General Motors is that GM employees need complete retraining every four years. The message in business today is you better get with the program. If you are not willing to acquire new skills, you will be left behind. Hans Finzel, in his book Change is Like a Slinky, puts it like this: “The future belongs to those who can adapt rapidly. You’ve heard it before: The information explosion has simply resulted in too much ...

242. True Riches

1 Timothy 6:3-10

Bulletin Aid

H. Burnham Kirkland

... us down so that we might achieve the goal of eternal life. We pray in the name of Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen. Prayer Of Confession God of mercy, we stand in need of your forgiveness. We are bombarded with temptations to seek to enrich ourselves and to acquire many things we don't really need. It all seems so attractive that we forget the real needs of others and allow ourselves to fall into the tempter's snares. Strengthen our desire to strive for righteousness, faith, and love so that we might be better ...

243. By Faith

Hebrews 11:1-40

Sermon

King Duncan

... evidence--rationally, dispassionately, with certainty--and say, “Yes, God is real and God loves me.” It won’t happen. Faith can’t be appropriated like that. It can’t be bought. You can’t put a million dollars in the offering plate and say, now I have acquired faith. You can try that, by the way, if you are so inclined. It would certainly boost MY faith. But it won’t settle life’s most important issues for you. You can’t even buy faith with your good works, though I hope you will keep doing ...

244. Fire Falling from Heaven

Luke 12:49-53

Sermon

R. Robert Cueni

... years we have managed to get the fire under control by reducing it to candles on the communion table. Every once in a while, however, someone catches fire for God. Some people catch the vision that there is more to the good life than just acquiring more and more. Some realize that their Christian faith calls them to do something for others, rather than just feeling good about themselves. Sometimes people decide to go to seminary rather than law school. Some decide to pursue a Master of Divinity rather than ...

245. Divine Dinner Party Decorum

Luke 14:1-14

Sermon

R. Robert Cueni

... the ability to discern and appreciate beauty, the ability to see the best in others, and a commitment to leaving the world a better place.3 Notice that Emerson does not say that success comes in having the best seat at the table, acquiring more material possessions, or in belonging to the best clubs. Emerson contends that success comes with appreciating God's world, developing loving relationships with God's people, and with working to improve God's world. Jesus would agree heartily. In fact, our scripture ...

246. Ten Friends Drive Us to the Promise

Exodus 20:1-4, 7-9, 12-20

Sermon

Arley K. Fadness

... , living in the hope of the resurrection.' "4 In the Sixth Commandment God places the sexual relationship under special protection. Its purpose is twofold: procreation and the expression of deep, loving intimacy. In the Seventh Commandment the prohibition is not to steal or acquire another's property by unjust means. The promise behind the law is that God will continue to provide for us, giving us what we need. The joy of property is giving it up or away to another's advantage. The Eighth Commandment, "You ...

247. The Model of Success

Luke 16:1-15

Sermon

Mark Trotter

... of the MethodistChurch, began preaching to the poor in England. In one generation Wesley converted them by the gospel of grace that is our heritage in the Reformation. He organized them into societies, they were called Methodist Societies, in which they acquired the personal habits and industriousness of disciplined people. In other words, he taught them what Horatio Alger taught 19th century Americans about success: be on time, work hard, and be sober. And they did. The result was that the Methodists moved ...

248. Rejoicing in Reality

Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon

Susan R. Andrews

... already blessed, we are empowered to act in certain ways. Right here in the reality check of our imperfect lives, God is blessing us and loving us. Despite our titles and our public smiles, despite our bank accounts and the length of our resumè, despite all the acquired riches of the world, we know, if we are really honest, at a deep level, that we are very poor in spirit. That our lives are filled with sadness. We know that, as much as we want to be in charge, we are utterly dependent upon the grace ...

249. What If the End Is Near?

Matthew 25:1-13

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

... . All were dressed alike. All had oil. Even as the groom was delayed, they all grew weary from their work of preparation and watching, and they all slumbered. There is one big difference between some of these women. Five used their time of preparation to acquire extra oil. They were preparing for any eventuality. Five did not If you read the scriptures carefully, you will find that God's people are almost always thoroughly prepared. Noah didn't wait until it started raining to build the ark. He did that job ...

250. Faith's Curious Dynamic

Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

... God's hand, the poles of creative tension in which we live out our faith. You see, faith too has a curious dynamic about it. The language of faith is not all about cheerfulness and certainty. It is not presented in the Bible as a sure thing once acquired. Faith seems to embrace a good deal of ambiguity. I like the definition presented by novelist Doris Betts that faith is "not synonymous with certainty ... [but] is the decision to keep your eyes open."2 This is All Saints' Sunday, and one of the things that ...

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