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 226 to 250 of 4951 results

226. The Season Of The Holy Spirit

John 6:25-59

Bulletin Aid

Wayne H. Keller

Theme: Jesus Continues the Bread of Life Theme; Jesus Responds to the Grumblers. Jesus talks about life; his detractors talk about Jesus. Liturgical Color: Green ADORATION Pastoral Invitation Before worship and before people enter the sanctuary, have several people, of all ages, lying in the chancel, "asleep." At the beginning of worship, have them "wake up" slowly, greet each other in slow motion, and then, with much enthusiasm, move out into the sanctuary to welcome the people to worship. Invite the ...

227. The Season Of The Holy Spirit

John 6:25-59

Sermon Aid

Wayne H. Keller

Theme: Jesus Again Continues the Bread of Life Theme; This Time People Argue Among Themselves. Note: The idea for this celebration of the sacrament of the Lord's Supper comes from a sermon by Henry E. Kolbe, a United Methodist clergyman (now deceased). The sermon was printed in The Pulpit magazine (July-August, 1966). I used this idea previously in Lectionary Worship Workbook, Cycle B, published in 1990 by CSS Publishing Company. I invite you to consider using it, with appropriate variations, once a year. ...

228. The Season Of The Holy Spirit

Mark 9:33-37

Bulletin Aid

Wayne H. Keller

THE COMMUNITY GATHERS TO CELEBRATE Pastoral Invitation In the name of the risen Christ, hello. Welcome to God's world, and everything in-between. For what purpose have you come today? (Thirty seconds of silence.) Invite people to respond. If no one responds, express for the people that they probably come for a variety of reasons, some positive, some not so positive, some healthy, some not so healthy. For whatever reason, we are here. We are here today to discover the meaning of true greatness. Welcome! ...

229. The Season Of The Holy Spirit

Mark 10:1-12

Bulletin Aid

Wayne H. Keller

CELEBRATING GOD'S PRESENCE AND POWER Pastoral and Congregational Invitation Welcome to the twentieth Sunday in Pentecost. Do you remember, from our Easter celebrations, that worship is a celebration of God, an ovation to God, and not a spectator sport? Who remembers? We celebrants are a congregation, not an audience. We are the actors in this celebration. We are here, not to wait for something to happen, but to create together what happens. God alone is the audience, though never a passive audience. God ...

230. The Season Of The Holy Spirit

Mark 10:17-31

Bulletin Aid

Wayne H. Keller

Theme: The Rich Young Man, His and the Disciples' Surprise. When we read the story, do we put ourselves in his place; or rather, do we complain that we are a part of the world's poor? THE COMMUNITY GATHERS TO CELEBRATE Pastoral and Congregational Invitation (Pastor and Ministers) P: Is everybody happy? Joyful? Victorious? Hilarious? If not, why not? We live on the A.D. side of the resurrection, not the B.C. side. Therefore, we know that the battle is won. Christ has defeated sin, death, the grave. We may ...

231. The Season Of The Holy Spirit

Mark 12:35-40

Bulletin Aid

Wayne H. Keller

THE COMMUNITY GATHERS TO CELEBRATE Pastoral and Congregational Invitation Welcome to the twenty-fifth Sunday in Pentecost. (Slowly and deliberately) Shush. Quiet. Listen. In this worship, and during this week, will you hear God in the pulse of your heart beat? In the breathing of your co-workers? In the silence of the spoken message? In the words of the scripture? In the morning headlines? In the most recent athletic event? In the latest senseless killing? In the playfulness of children -- whatever age? In ...

232. The Season Of The Holy Spirit

Mark 3:20-30

Bulletin Aid

Wayne H. Keller

CELEBRATION THROUGH PRAISE Pastoral Invitation (Pastor and ministers) Today, the third Sunday in Pentecost, we rejoice with the Christ who has conquered Beelze, and every other "Bub" of this world. And because he has conquered all the other "Bubs," we are here. Despite the hostility of the religious leaders, despite the confusion of his family, he is Lord, then, and now, and always. So, rejoice in the name of the Risen One. And all the people shouted ... (your favorite praise word). (If the people mumble, ...

233. The Season of the Holy Spirit

Luke 24:36-49

Sermon Aid

Wayne B. Keller

Liturgical Color: White Gospel: Luke 24:44-53 Mark 16:15-20 Theme: Luke 24:44-53: Jesus' reminder to, and departure from, the disciples. Mark 16:15-20: Jesus' directives to, and departure from, the disciples. Pastoral Invitation to the Celebration Try this: Welcome to Ascension Day - probably a day of mystery for most of us. Begin with where the people are by asking them to share their first image when they hear "Ascension Day." Give them time to respond. Maybe they will offer only silence or confusion or ...

234. Spirit Full Or Foul?

Deuteronomy 4:32-40

Sermon

Justin Tull

The sermon today asks the questions as to whether we are aware of God’s saving acts and if we acknowledge only him as God. In short, we are asking if God truly helps us. Several years ago, at my sister’s wedding, the officiating minister told a story. It was about an Episcopal minister from Africa. The minister’s eight-year-old son did not understand his father’s actions just before his sermons. He asked his father: “Why do you always kneel when everyone stands to sing the hymn of preparation?” The father ...

235. Worship in the Pioneer Spirit

Illustration

Gathering here today, we have come without dread of enemies or fear for our lives; we have come in some great measure of security and of comfort. It was not always so. Less than half a century ago in central Europe the Nazi storm troopers could invade any sanctuary on any Sunday and carry off to prison or to death whomever they would, and this they often did. Yet the people came. Eighteen hundred years ago the Christian Faith was outlawed; the Christians were hunted like animals almost; it was a crime for ...

236. Healthy Are the Poor In Spirit

Matthew 5:1-12

Illustration

Some years ago a panel of doctors was appointed by the Federal government to meet together and draw up eight laws off public health that could be printed in pamphlet form and distributed to the public. After twelve days off exhaustive meetings, the doctors were unable to come to a consensus. It seems that their areas off concern were so diverse: one was a cancer specialist, one a cardiologist, one a psychiatrist, and they all approached the problem from their own discipline. The chest expert was concerned ...

237. Catching The Thanksgiving Spirit

Deuteronomy 8:1-20

Sermon

King Duncan

For some people, Thanksgiving is just another occassion for feasting and football. As someone has said, "If God had meant for us to fast on Thanksgiving, he would never have created 30-pound turkeys." I believe it was Erma Bombeck who said that the most remarkable thing about her mother is that for thirty years she served the family nothing but leftovers. The original meal has never been found. Some of us will feel that way after Thanksgiving. Robert Orben reports on the practice of raising your own ...

238. The Spirit of the Church

Jn 2:13-22

Illustration

King Duncan

Some of you are familiar with the writing of Madeleine L'Engle. She has inspired many people with her work. She reports that one Sunday she visited a unique Episcopal church in New York. A man stood up in that church and said, "I hope this is appropriate to ask. I was an abused child. I'm terrified of being an abusive father. I need help and prayer. " Madeleine L'Engle knew then this was a church she could stay in. "Because people are willing to be vulnerable," she says, "this church is very different. ...

239. Graciousness of Spirit: Everyone Is a Winner

John 12:1-11

Illustration

On March 16, 2007, for the first time in its 23 year history, there was a three way tie on the game show, Jeopardy. Mathematicians calculate the odds of this occurrence to be one in 25 million. What a mathematical calculation can not take into account is the graciousness and generosity of someone like Scott Weiss. In the ‘Final Jeopardy' round, the second place player and the third place player both had $8,000. Scott had a little over $12,000 going into this last question. The players made their bids ...

240. Why Isn't the Holy Spirit Included?

John 3:1-21

Illustration

Staff

A woman wrote to Reader's Digest. She wanted to tell about an experience that she had when she took a young girl from India to church with her. It was the eleven-year-old girl's first exposure to a Christian worship service. The young lady's parents were traveling on business and left her in the care of their American friends. The little Hindu girl decided on her own to go with the family to church one Sunday. After the service was over, they went out to lunch. The little girl had some questions. She ...

241. Fruit of the Spirit: On the Fifth Day

Illustration

At the Sudan Interior Mission Kijabe Medical Center, SIM medical missionaries Bob and Marion Bowers once treated a young man with a paralyzing snake bite and saw him live long enough to accept Christ as his Savior. In many Third World countries, snake bites are common and fatal. For four days, the young man remained unconscious. Under normal circumstances he would have died the day of the snake bite. But on the fifth day he miraculously woke up. That afternoon a group of students from Moffat Bible College ...

242. Jesus Drives out and Evil Spirit

Mark 1:21-28

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

The first act of Jesus’s public ministry in Mark is an exorcism (1:21–28), in which the More Powerful One (1:7) exercises the divine authority he received at baptism to free a man from demon possession and to prevail over the dominion of Satan (see 3:27). Although Jesus was raised in Nazareth, he chose Capernaum, propitiously situated on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee on the Via Maris, the main trade route leading from the Mediterranean to Damascus, as his base of operations. The population of ...

243. The Healing of a Boy With an Evil Spirit

Mark 9:14-32

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

9:14–29 Perhaps the first thing to ask about this story is why it is placed here in Mark’s narrative. The answer to this question lies in the observation made earlier that virtually the whole of 8:27–10:52 is concerned with the two themes of the coming suffering of Jesus and the nature of discipleship. This is why the disciples are so prominent in the story; they are arguing with scribes in 9:14–15, are pictured as unable to cope with the demon-possessed boy in 9:18, and are instructed as to the cause of ...

244. The Spirit of Giving

Illustration

Editor James S. Hewett

A true story: Two weeks before Christmas a nine-year-old girl was walking with her friend down the street, sliding on the ice. The two of them were talking about what they hoped to get for Christmas. They stopped to talk to an old man named Harry, who was on his knees pulling weeds from around a large oak tree. He wore a frayed, woolen jacket and a pair of worn garden gloves. His fingers were sticking out the ends, blue from the cold. As Harry responded to the girls, he told them he was getting the yard in ...

245. The Critical Spirit

Illustration

Editor James S. Hewett

A salesman, visiting his barber for a haircut, mentioned that he was about to take a trip to Rome. The barber, who came from Italy, said, "Rome is a terribly overrated city. What airline are you taking and what hotel are you staying at?" When the salesman told him, the barber criticized the airline for being undependable and the hotel for having horrible service. He told him "You'd be better off to stay home." But the salesman insisted: “Tm expecting to close a big deal, and then I' m going to see the pope ...

246. Fruit of the Spirit

Illustration

Donald Grey Barnhouse

Love is the key. Joy is love singing. Peace is love resting. Long-suffering is love enduring. Kindness is love's touch. Goodness is love's character. Faithfulness is love's habit. Gentleness is love's self-forgetfulness. Self-control is love holding the reins.

247. Jonathan Goforth—The Spirit of Caleb

Illustration

Editor James S. Hewett

Some years back there was a missionary with the same kind of persevering passion as we find in Caleb in the Book of Joshua. His name was Jonathan Goforth of China. At an advanced age his mission was turned over to the United Church of Canada. He was now separated from his life's labor in China. His wife was weak with illness, and he was accompanied by two lady missionaries who were now semi-invalids and a young man who did not know the languages. Closed doors and nothing but difficulties surrounded him. ...

248. Pentecost

John 20:19-23, Acts 2:1-13, Acts 2:14-41, Genesis 11:1-9, John 14:5-14, Romans 8:1-17

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... . 3. Witness (v. 16). Are you sure you are God's child? Are you positive you are saved? If you die tonight, will you go to heaven? Some church members say they are not sure. How can we be sure? Paul says that our possession of the Holy Spirit witnesses to the fact that we are God's children. And if God's children, we are saved and we are destined to go to heaven. PREACHING POSSIBILITIES Preaching On Pentecost Sunday Pentecost is a Greek word, pentekostos, meaning "50." It falls on the 50th day after Easter ...

249. Pentecost

Jn 14:8-17, 25-27; 20:19-23 · Acts 2:1-21 · 1 Cor 3-7, 12-13 · Gen 11:1-9

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... judgment. It can cleanse - burn out evil. It can empower - produce energy. It can spread - it lives by lighting other fires. If the person next to you does not catch on fire for God, your fire is out! Lesson 2: 1 Corinthians 12:3-7, 12-13 1. A Spirit-made Christian (12:3b-13). Need: How does one become a Christian? Must we have an ecstatic emotional experience? Do we decide to accept Christ? Do we have a choice to be or not to be a Christian? Is accepting Jesus as Lord and Savior a human accomplishment ...

250. Pentecost

John 20:19-23, Acts 2:1-21, 1 Corinthians 12:3-13, Psalm 104

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... Gospel: John 20:19-23 1. All on one day. "The first day of the week" (v. 19). Did as many things happen on one day in the entire history of God's people? On Easter day, Jesus rose from the dead, issued the Great Commission, breathed the Spirit on the disciples, and gave them authority to forgive. It could be called the busiest day in the life of Jesus. 2. Peace (vv. 19, 21). Twice Jesus speaks peace to the disciples. The repetition emphasizes the importance of peace. It is a peace that passes understanding ...

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