Sermon and Worship Resources

Antonyms: keep, claim, continue, stick by, self-control, power through, achieve, defend, bear, hope, acquire, quick visit, adopt, continue along, adhere, remain, pursue, support, take up, keep up, reuse, advocate, stay, persevere, cherish, keep going, carry on

Showing 2476 to 2500 of 4962 results

2476. But…!

1 Corinthians 15:19-26

Sermon

Steven E. Albertin

... killing their six youngest children. The headline was "Still Thankful in a Sea of Sorrow: Family's Faith Unshaken By The Loss of Six Children." In the account, Willis and his wife testify to their abiding faith in Christ and the eternal hope that tempers their grief. Apparently this was confusing to the USA Today reporter, so she consulted a psychiatrist. "Different people have different ways of dealing with grief," says Dorothy Starr, a psychiatrist who had not met with the Willises. But she expected ...

2477. On Not Giving Up

Galatians 6: 7-16

Sermon

April Yamasaki

... our own discouragements and failures, on whatever challenging situation we might face, we need to take the long view. Our immediate concerns are just that — immediate concerns. But they are also part of a much larger context, a bigger picture that can give us hope beyond ourselves. The rhythm of sowing and reaping was a familiar one in the ancient world. To gain a harvest required the hard work of sowing, the careful work of weeding, the patient work of waiting, and finally the joyfully tiring work of the ...

2478. To God Be The Glory!

Isaiah 60:1-6

Sermon

Derl G. Keefer

... of his Spirit, washed in his blood. This is my story, this is my song, praising my Savior all the day long. This is my story, this is my song, praising my Savior all the day long.[5] * Through an attitude of hope — the Christian's light brightly shows the attitude of hope to a world that is sickened with the disease of hopelessness. Armies line up on one another's borders and territories. Terrorists have no boundaries. Hatred knows no friendships. Many in the world shake their heads in despair, but God ...

2479. Birthdays and Marriages

Acts 2:1-21

Sermon

Stephen P. McCutchan

... often been referred to as the birthday of the church. The book of Acts records that the disciples and followers of Jesus were gathered together in Jerusalem following the events of the cross. Most likely they were a motley, disorganized, frightened group of people. Their hopes had been raised so high by this man Jesus, then dashed to pieces by his execution as a criminal on the cross. Then some among them spoke of having experienced Jesus alive again. But even if that were so, he was not among them now to ...

2480. The Naaman Syndrome

2 Kings 4:1-14

Sermon

Stephen P. McCutchan

... themselves until people walk out in disgust. Our schools spend hours arguing over the tangential and fail at the essential. Our families are falling apart and our children are killing each other. It is instructive to notice in the story of Naaman where the first signs of hope come from. In his society, it was from the lowest of the low — a slave girl captured in battle. It was a captured slave in a class-conscious society. It was a woman in a man's society. It was not from the powerful or famous but ...

2481. Garden Gone Bad

Isaiah 5:1-7

Sermon

Chrysanne Timm

... 's protection and let it go. God will not give time or effort to it if it will not fulfill the purposes for which it has been created. Like a field that is plowed over and allowed to lay fallow, God will leave this land to grow over, hoping that in some future time, it may become useful for cultivation again someday. For the vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel, and the people of Judah are his pleasant planting; he expected justice, but saw bloodshed; righteousness, but heard a cry ...

2482. Finding Fault With God

Jeremiah 2:4--3:5

Sermon

Chrysanne Timm

... be God's instruments to renew or establish faith in a person's heart, it may well be because they have seen faith and hope and love at work in our lives, especially at times when we have endured painful times of loss or doubt. That is the proof, isn ... the image of God, for whom Jesus willingly laid down his life, then we may be allowed to journey alongside them from despair to hope. We may be given the opportunity to love them as they are and where they are and watch as God does the transformational work ...

2483. Pilate's Dilemma

John 18:28-40

Sermon

King Duncan

... Jews had a tradition that they would release one prisoner at Passover. He offered to release a notorious political prisoner named Barabbas! Still they would not be appeased. “Crucify him, crucify him,” they shouted, referring to Jesus. At this point, Pilate had Christ flogged, hoping that would appease the mob, but it did not. He had his soldiers mock Christ. They put a purple robe on him and thrust a crown of thorns on his head, and called out in derision, “King of the Jews.” That still wasn’t ...

2484. Luke 13:1-9

Luke 13:1-9

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... the end of every good action movie the big time bad guy finally gets what is coming to him. When the good guy hero dispatches the evil-doer, the audience cheers. Obviously this final judgment was well deserved and proved that the wicked will be punished — hopefully in some dramatic and dreadful way. We all like to believe in cosmic come-uppance. In this week’s gospel text some of those listening to Jesus speak ask him to comment on some “current events” of the day. The tragedies reported by those in ...

2485. On God's Side Or In God's Way?

Acts 11:1-18

Sermon

King Duncan

... with the work of God.” Some of you saw Steven Spielberg’s movie on the life of Abraham Lincoln. There is a story told on Lincoln that reminds me of General Booth’s words. In the midst of the Civil War a certain pious minister told Lincoln, “I hope the Lord is on our side.” The president responded, “I am not at all concerned about that . . . But it is my constant anxiety and prayer that I and this nation should be on the Lord’s side.” It is amazing that Abraham Lincoln should be a better ...

2486. The Best Gift of All

Titus 2:1-15

Sermon

Timothy J. Smith

... change the direction of our lives. We still acknowledge the future dimension as well. Paul claims that “while we wait for the blessed hope and the manifestation of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ,” we are transformed here and now. We wait ... us from all iniquity and purify for himself a people of his own who are zealous for good deeds.” This is the basis of our hope. All we need to do is welcome God’s grace into our lives. Grace is a gift to us, not something that we earn, but a ...

2487. Building a Solid Foundation

1 Corinthians 3:1-23

Sermon

Timothy J. Smith

... the church, it must have broken his heart. He loved the Corinthians and certainly wanted the very best for the church that he founded. Paul’s immediate goal was to restore order in the church so that the church could continue to be a beacon of hope and light in their community. Paul claims, “Like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building on it.” During the eighteen months to two years that Paul was in Corinth, he purposefully set out to lay a solid foundation, knowing ...

2488. Lost, But Not the TV Show!

Luke 15:1-7

Sermon

King Duncan

... all were the scenes of mothers and fathers weeping over lost children. Yates writes, “I can’t get out of my mind the image of one gentleman who, having lost his parents, his wife, his three children, after nearly three weeks of searching, hope against hope, found his youngest daughter, a little three-year old girl. She had been rescued and sheltered and was safe against all odds. The joy and the uncontrollable sobs of delight and gratitude were caught by a cameraman. It was deeply moving . . .” as you ...

2489. Powerless People

Judges 4:1-24

Sermon

Argile Smith

... broke when his dad replied to his announcement with one curt question, “So, when are you going to get a job?” His dad’s reply made the day bittersweet. He knew in his mind that his dad didn’t have any use for education, but in his heart Fred hoped that he would transcend his mistrust of degrees and affirm his son’s work. But he didn’t. That day hadn’t faded from his memory when he sat in his study and read Sample’s book. But reading the book helped him to gain a helpful perspective on his ...

2490. The Healing Power of Faith

Luke 17:11-19

Sermon

King Duncan

... us!” Notice, in the second place, that Jesus healed the ten men. Jesus did more than have pity. When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were healed. They were cleansed of their leprosy. This is a word of hope for us in our seasons of desperation. Christ hears our pleas as well as theirs. Christ is available to us as well as to them. And Christ still heals. There was a woman who was in despair in the final stages of a terminal illness. A kind visitor from ...

2491. Putting the World Back Together

John 20:1-9

Sermon

David O. Bales

... but she can hardly manage a shuffle. She saw Jesus die and John’s gospel offers nothing that would have us conclude that Mary hopes Jesus is alive again. Why is she coming to the tomb now? Ask her and she probably can’t even answer. She isn’ ... to bend down to look in the tomb. Many people today, if the truth of their hearts be told, are afraid that they’ll get their hopes up only to have them smashed. It’s happened to many of us — life’s leading us to believe there’s good reason to trust Christ ...

2492. He's Back

John 20:19-23

Sermon

David O. Bales

... eternal life. But the focus of our Christian lives, from the first day of re-creation, is that we are now Jesus’ bearers of forgiveness and hope. We find Jesus surprising us with hope when, having experienced discouragement, we continue trying to live for him for no reason we can identify in this natural world. It’s supernatural — Jesus’ Spirit making us hopeful, loving, and forgiving. Even when we don’t see him around. Even when we don’t feel his presence. It’s just that he often wields ...

2493. O Holy Night

Luke 2:1-7

Sermon

King Duncan

... the doctor’s office more than my doctor, sold sixty-two cases of candy bars to raise money to plant a shade tree on the school playground and figured out how to attach nine patches onto my daughter’s girl scout sash with staples and a glue gun. I was hoping you could spread my list out over several Christmases, since I had to write this letter with my son’s red crayon, on the back of a receipt in the laundry room between cycles, and who knows when I’ll find any more free time in the next 18 years ...

2494. The Story of Christmas

John 1:1-18

Sermon

King Duncan

... the form of a tiny Babe. As far back as the prophet Nathan there was a growing realization that God would send a messenger, a deliverer, a Savior. The same Nathan who confronted David concerning his adultery with Bathsheba delivered a promise. It was a word of hope for David and all humankind: “When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come forth from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name ...

2495. Jesus’ Prayer: The Pause in the Battle

John 17:1-11

Sermon

David O. Bales

... In the middle of horrific fighting, however, every day the firing stopped twice in order to allow a blind beggar to tap his way on the street between the firing lines. We can imagine how welcome those few minutes were to the men on both sides. They probably hoped that the blind man walked slower to give them a few more seconds of peace. Then the reprieve ended and the slaughter again engulfed the two armies that were struggling to kill each other.[1] We meet Jesus in a similar critical moment. He’s in the ...

2496. Where Is Jesus?

John 11:17-37

Sermon

David O. Bales

... today arriving in Bethany, just over the Mount of Olives, a couple of miles east of Jerusalem. Jesus’ friend Lazarus has died, and we hear that Jesus loves him and his sisters Mary and Martha. Lazarus has died. His sisters Mary and Martha believed there was hope. Now they wonder if they were wrong. Four days since Lazarus died and where was Jesus when they sent for him? Mary and Martha greet Jesus with the same words, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died” (v. 21). Jesus responds ...

2497. Hill Climbing

Psalm 121:1-8

Sermon

King Duncan

... yet. They encourage each other along the way, and they continue to look up, straining to see the top of the mountain straining toward that moment when they can join in the worship of God. In the temple, in the act of worship, they will find hope and wisdom and joy and perspective. They will find refreshment for their souls. Why are they climbing this hill? What’s the point of this journey? To worship the Almighty, most Powerful God, the God who made the heavens and the earth. Whatever problems we may ...

2498. Expect the Unexpected

Psalm 23:1-6

Sermon

King Duncan

... the worst? Or do we step on the accelerator and barrel straight ahead? How do we face the uncertainties of life without some measure of anxiety? We are most likely to hear Psalm 23 read at funerals, where it offers a powerful message of hope in the face of death. But this psalm offers just as much hope for facing life in all its uncertainty. 1 The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, 3 he restores my soul. He guides me in ...

2499. Down in the Dungeon

Psalm 130:1-8

Sermon

King Duncan

... to his congregation as to why he could not fill the pulpit the previous Sunday. He said, “I am as a potter’s vessel when it is utterly broken, useless and laid aside. Nights of watching and days of weeping have been mine, but I hope the cloud is passing.” In a biography of this great pastor, Arnold Dallimore wrote, “What he suffered in those times of darkness we may not know . . . even his desperate calling on God brought no relief. ‘There are dungeons,’ he said, ‘beneath the castles of ...

2500. "Before" and "After"

Psalm 31:1-24

Sermon

King Duncan

... comes back to life, and broken hearts overflow with unbelievable joy. That’s what God can do. Hold on. There is always a way out with God. That’s the kind of faith the Psalmist has. After cataloguing the multitude of heartaches he has faced, he writes these words of hope. 14 But I trust in you, O LORD; I say, “You are my God.” 15 My times are in your hands; deliver me from my enemies and from those who pursue me. 16 Let your face shine on your servant; save me in your unfailing love. How many times ...

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