Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 2476 to 2500 of 4997 results

2 Corinthians 8:7-15

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... , Great-grandpa had it in a box or a jar or a can. That day I came across a rusty old Band-Aid box. Remember the metal kind with the hinged top. It looked about a hundred years old. In a drawer I found some old, old Big Chief Tablet paper. It was old and ... and pennies. Matt, the youngest of the bunch, came running up to the house yelling: "We're still, rich. We're still rich." Those kind of memories are worth far more than any amount of treasure we could ever find. Every Sunday we talk about a treasure that is ...

2477. Rolling Thunder or Voice of God?

John 12:20-33

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... has come for your sake, not for mine. [31] Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be driven out. [32] And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself." [33] He said this to indicate the kind of death he was to die. Jesus' struggle in the Garden of Gethsemane doesn't show up in John's Gospel. Instead this is the struggle played out in front of all the disciples and the crowds. And yet, even in that struggle, Jesus is filled with hope. How could ...

2478. Eyes To See, Ears To Hear

Matthew 13:1-23

Sermon

James McCormick

... the words struck me with great power. Do you remember? “What’s it all about, Alfie? Is it just for the moment we live? What’s it all about when we sort it out, Alfie? Are we meant to take more than we give? Or are we meant to be kind and give? I’ve been needing love, Alfie. Without true love you just exist, Alfie. Until you find the love you’ve missed, you’re nothing, Alfie.” Do you hear it? It’s the gospel. It’s the gospel, right there in that secular motion picture theater. That’s the ...

2479. Everything He Says Is True

Luke 18:9-14; 1 Cor 13

Illustration

Ray Pritchard & Brett Blair

... would say, "Yep, he's a fine man." While he prayed, they probably applauded. He was the kind of guy you'd want living next door to you. A good citizen. A law-abiding man. A good, religious kind of person. If he were to come to this church today we'd love him because he ... faithful, loyal, and give us a lot of money. We'd probably make him an elder or a deacon. He's just that kind of guy. He looks really good on the outside. Everything he says about himself is absolutely true. So what's wrong? Well, for all ...

2480. WWE Raw, Jesus Style

Luke 6:17-26, Luke 6:27-36

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... t know, about church history, or about your own personal history, we all have common ancestors in the faith and personal knowledge of saints. We need to celebrate All Saint’s Day. Have you ever noticed that on every other street corner almost, there is some kind of athletic center? Have you also noticed that late at night, just when you’ve settled down with a bowl of Double Chocolate Rocky Road ice cream, the TV assaults you with gizmos and gadgets that promise to work off that dairy delight and get you ...

2481. A Small Man Who Was Given a Big Heart

Luke 19:1-10

Sermon

King Duncan

... he was regarded as human filth. Zacchaeus, whose name meant ‘the pure one’ and ‘the righteous,’ had turned his name into a sneer on the lips of his fellow Jews. He was a standing joke. The mention of his name evoked not a grin but disgust.” (4) This was the kind of man Jesus went home with. It’s almost as if Jesus liked stirring up the crowd. He was dining with the most hated man in town a man who was vile and corrupt and regarded as an enemy agent. Can you see why Jesus was so controversial ...

2482. Full Body Scans or Re-spect Spectacles

Romans 13:8-14

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... lay bare, they still are only skin deep. The light they emit cannot penetrate into our cavities, our mind, our heart, our spirit. Nor can they reveal the intentions, the desires, the hopes, the fears, the virtues or the vices we harbor within ourselves. It takes a different kind of light to get under our skin and into our soul. Living fully exposed in that light is what Paul urged the Roman Christians to do in this week’s epistle text. Jesus’ followers are to live and leg it in the light of a new day, a ...

2483. The True Nature of Happiness

Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon

Brett Blair

... of history, that this concept of happiness is a foundation built on sand. Happiness is not at all based upon what we have. True happiness is based upon who we are. Happiness is not based upon the kind of house that we live in; it depends on the kind of people who live in the house. It is not the kind of clothes that we wear, but the person wears the clothes. It is important to understand that Jesus did not give the Beatitudes, a word meaning blessed or happy, to the CROWD. The scripture very clearly states ...

2484. The Case of the Dancing Men

Psalm 51:1-19

Sermon

King Duncan

... or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.” David knew that he could not achieve the kind of change he needed on his own. Only by the grace and love of God could he really become the kind of man his family and his nation needed the kind of man God intended him to be. A conference on comparative religions was held sometime back in Great Britain. One of the questions being debated was the uniqueness of the Christian faith. One ...

2485. Matthew 5:38-48

Matthew 5:38-42

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... highlights the shameful act of the aggressor. The second cheek slap may be delivered to the same face that the first struck, but in reality that blow lands squarely on the face of the “evildoer,” marking the malicious wrongness of his actions. The same kind of indictment can be found in Jesus’ other two directives in vv.40-41. In urging the giving up of one’s cloak as well as one’s shirt (“chiton”), Jesus’ directive contradicted Torah law that strictly prohibited taking the coat of another ...

2486. From Temple to Table

John 10:1-21

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... was so familiar because we all have home‑grown, half‑baked, “handy‑men” in our lives. Well‑meaning, yet witless, “helper‑people” who claim they can “Fix” anything, but really do not have a clue. Jesus may seem to come across as a “Tool‑Time” kind of guy at times. But although Jesus may have been raised as a stone carver and mason, he also had deep roots in agriculture. The first “hands‑on” activity for God recorded in the Bible is as a “mud‑pie” maker. In Genesis 2 ...

2487. A Lesson from Dr. Seuss

Romans 6:1-14

Sermon

King Duncan

... who’ll decide where to go.” It’s up to us, says Dr. Seuss. The world is ours and we are free to choose what kind of life we will have. He even provides a warning: “You’ll look up and down streets. Look’em over with care. About some you will ... on a date one night. Her boyfriend suggested they go to a party where there was going to be alcohol and drugs and all kinds of illicit activity. This particularly responsible young woman said, “No, I’m not going to do that. And if you’re going to do ...

2488. Sunday’s Comin’

Hebrews 10:16-25

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... her as a lady endowed with every charm ... the gift of all the gods. She was sent to earth with a little box that she had been forbidden to open, but curiosity finally got the better of her ... she lifted the lid and out from that box escaped every conceivable kind of terror. Pandora made haste to close the box up again, but it was too late. There was only one thing left... hope. That was the ancients' way of saying how important hope is. Even when all else is lost, there is still hope. What is hope? The ...

2489. A Wonderful Mother (In-Law)

Ruth 1:1-18

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... in; she, too, knew that Naomi was concerned about her. No doubt her decision to stay with Naomi was based on that; she was not willing to give that up. Who could blame her? That kind of relationship between two people was all too rare in her day, just as it is in our own. Of course, once that kind of relationship has been established, some marvelous things can result. In Ruth's case, history has been treated with one of the most beautiful statements of loyalty that has ever been uttered. What she said ...

2490. Can Teach, Can Do

Mark 1:21-28

Sermon

Robert J. Elder

... people begin to sing for joy. Clearly, Mark doesn't want us to listen for well-crafted words of teaching. He wants us to see the kind of work that Jesus does, to invite us to share in the amazement of the Capernaum congregation, and to become part of the movement that ... teaching was more than content. His life was totally congruent with his words, and people saw that. That is, indeed, a new kind of teaching, whether it is in a classroom, a worship room, a boardroom, or a family room. No matter how we choose ...

2491. A Whole City at The Door

Mark 1:29-39

Sermon

Robert J. Elder

... that the numerous transients who come through the doors of churches in our neighborhood every day are hoping they can count on that common assumption that the purpose driving a church is the desire to do good things for people who need to have good things done. What kind of church worthy of the name wouldn't do that? It's a pretty nice arrangement, if that is the purpose of the church. We need to do good things, hosts of people need good things done, the world must be perfectly organized. But today's lesson ...

2492. The Elephant in The Living Room

Mark 8:31-38

Sermon

John Smylie

... and retreated to his bedroom. He never came out and he has refused to speak with me ever since. He even refused to meet his grandchildren, blaming me. The abuse of alcohol can pervert a human being, ruining his or her ability to feel and reason with any kind of a semblance of reality. He had no answer. He had no gracious or real relationship with any member of his family, except an abusive one. His primary love was the alcohol. After my challenge to him, after he had left the room and retreated to his bed ...

2493. The Heart of the Matter Is the Heart!

Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23

Sermon

Robert Leslie Holmes

... . The new pastor took up his charge with a zeal for doing everything well. He was not long in his new post, however, before he had a sense that many of his new congregants were not especially happy with him. Concerned, he sought the counsel of a kindly lay leader he believed he could trust. "I'm not sure why," the new pastor confessed, "but I have a feeling not everyone is happy with me." "Pastor," the layman replied, "it is how you conduct the communion service." "What am I doing wrong?" the pastor asked ...

2494. The Great Inescapable Question of Eternity

Mark 8:27-38

Sermon

Robert Leslie Holmes

... death, his impenitent, irate ranting acknowledges that Jesus is the very Lord he has chosen heretofore to disregard! The thief on the other side of Jesus has not necessarily walked with or watched Jesus before, but he is seeing Jesus now as one under the worst kind of scorn and pain that Rome's evil forces can inflict. This thief's cry from the cross affirms in a very different tone the same thing as he rebukes his thieving counterpart. "Don't you fear God," he said, "since you are under the same sentence ...

2495. Becoming Like Jesus

1 John 3:1-7

Sermon

Nancy Kraft

... poor dog. I was telling him, "Sit and go" over and over again. "Sit, Bruno. It's okay, Bruno. Okay." I think that's the same kind of confusion we may have about God's forgiveness in our lives. God is saying we're okay. And we think that means go. Go ... far from the tree because it's true. There's no way we can get around the fact that the strongest influence anyone has on the kind of person we become comes from our parents. We aren't only the children of our mothers and fathers. We're also children of God. We ...

2496. Love That Surpasses Knowledge

Ephesians 3:14-21

Sermon

Thomas Lentz

... is the love of Christ." We know and understand the love that comes as a reward for being good, for being faithful, for being kind, for giving gifts, and for acting with appropriate behavior. But this is not the love that is embedded in the foundation of creation. ... her. One day, Bishop Coleman Myers came out of the church as this woman was screaming. He looked down at her and said in a kind and soft voice, "Why don't you come in and tell him?" He took her into the chancel of the cathedral and left her alone ...

2497. A Higher Calling

Ephesians 4:1-16

Sermon

Thomas Lentz

... in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace" (Ephesians 4:2-3). This is not the kind of behavior that comes naturally, is it? We are not born patient. We scream when we want something and grab for things around us. We ... nature, her secret is patience." Today I may not be as humble as I should be, but I can do better tomorrow. I may not be as kind and gentle as I should be, but I have time to improve. There are some people I just can't stand, but I'm going to pretend ...

2498. The Home Court Advantage

Romans 12:9-21

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... the people of faith, before the Reformation. Not when politicians proclaimed all their actions as “Christian” to cover their tracks. Today the culture doesn’t even try to pretend its policies and policies have any Christian roots. We do not have that kind of “home court” advantage anymore. All Christian games are now “away games,” with the crowds cheering for anybody but the Christians. You might even call it an ABC world where ABC stands for Anybody But Christianity. But whatever court we are ...

2499. Reconciliation Day

Matthew 18:15-20

Sermon

King Duncan

... how proud he now was of this young man beside him who was willing to testify in this manner, to other drivers, in such a painful and costly, but powerful way. The reconciliation between this father and this teenage driver was born out of their mutual desire to see some kind of “saving possibility” arise out of the death of a precious loved one. (8) I don’t know about you, but when I hear of an act like this, I have to believe God is at work. All of us are tempted to strike back at the offensive driver ...

2500. Make a 119 Call

Romans 14:1--15:13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... heroes, men and women and children, on and since that day. One of the first things the media picked up on ten years ago today was that the date September 11 could be expressed as 911. 911 is the number we teach our kids to call if there is any kind of an emergency. On 11 September 2001 the entire country was a 911 call. For days and weeks and months and years afterwards we felt like we were stuck in a 911 emergency call. It’s time to dial another number. Followers of Jesus were known as the people who ...

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