Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: thirstiness, dryness, parched, craving, strong desire, longing, yearning, avidity, hunger, voracity, keenness, eagerness, lust, appetite, passion, love, crave, want, covet, desire, hunger for/after, lust for/after, hanker for/after, have one's heart set on

Antonyms: aversion, distaste, apathy, dislike, hatred, antipathy, disgust, disregard, abhorrence, acrimony, wet, animosity, animus, antagonism, bad feeling, bitterness, be averse to, detestation

Showing 2501 to 2525 of 5000 results

2501. Being A Sheep Is Not So Bad

Matthew 25:31-46

Children's Sermon

King Duncan

... a certain subject, like sharing, I would get an "S" on my report card. That meant "satisfactory," that I was doing a good job. If I was doing a bad job, I might get a "U" or a "P." Those stand for "unsatisfactory" and "poor," or very bad. I really wanted to get good grades, so I tried very hard to do all the things my teacher taught me to do. Wouldn't it be interesting if God gave us a report card? What if God graded us on the things that are important to Him, like taking care of poor ...

2502. Insincere Religion

Matthew 22:34-40

Sermon

King Duncan

... deep question. He was trying to trip Jesus up. He was trying to catch him in an error. If he could make him misspeak, then he could discredit him and thus choke his growing popularity. Sometimes people do that with questions. They don't really want an answer. They want to show themselves to be superior to the person they are questioning. There is a Jewish story about a Mr. Kleinman who found himself alone in a strange town on the Sabbath. He goes to the local synagogue. After services, a Mr. Putterman comes ...

2503. On Picking Your Battles

Matthew 18:15-20

Children's Sermon

King Duncan

... then that means there is a fire nearby. And a fire can be a very dangerous thing. So we keep smoke detectors around the house to let us know if there is a fire starting somewhere. If smoke gets around a smoke detector, it makes a loud noise. You might want to cover your ears for this, okay? (Wait until the children and congregation have covered their ears, then push the little test button on the front of the detector to set off the alarm) Wow, that's loud! That noise lets us know that there is smoke in the ...

2504. The Good Son

Matthew 21:28-32

Children's Sermon

King Duncan

... about what Jesus taught us. They don't believe that Jesus was really God's Son. They don't want to love others, or help poor people, or learn about God. Those people are sort of like halfway Christians. But Jesus doesn't want us to go halfway in our faith. He wants us to believe in Him completely. He wants us to love Him, and to love other people. He wants us to read our Bibles and live they way the Bible says to. We want to do our very best for Jesus, don't we? And if we truly love Jesus and do our ...

2505. It's All In The Blood

John 18:1-11

Sermon

King Duncan

... As they wash away the dried blood from his sores, they reflect on the first time each man met Jesus. "I first came to Jesus at night," Nicodemus may have thought. Maybe it was out of fear that his brethren in the Sanhedrin would find out. Maybe he just wanted time alone with Jesus. It was to Nicodemus that Jesus declared, "You must be born again." And it was to Nicodemus that Jesus gave this immortal message of hope: "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him ...

2506. Aging Is Mandatory; Maturity Is Optional

Mark 9:33-37

Sermon

King Duncan

... surprise. Then, from the back of the room, came a voice: "So, who gets his office?" (1) It didn't take long for their true feelings to emerge. The disciples together for a little heart-to-heart chat. When he finally had their attention, he said to them, "Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all." Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, "Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not ...

2507. A Failure To Communicate

Hebrews 1:1-4, Hebrews 2:5-18

Sermon

King Duncan

... ones that we saved to become butterflies); she is the one that I have listened to, when she grumbled, or boasted, or even sometimes when she said nothing. Because she is my rose." (3) Here is what gives our lives value--God loves us. That is what God wants to get through to us. Our lives matter. It may be true that we are but one of billions of people on this earth, but our relationship with God resembles the Little Prince's relationship with his rose. Here is the ultimate answer to all human dilemmas. We ...

2508. Bacon Grease And Abounding Grace

Luke 7:36-50

Sermon

King Duncan

... free yourself? It is a miserable, helpless feeling. You make all kinds of resolutions that you just don't seem to be able to follow through on. It's like two men under the influence of liquor who went down one night to the dock where their boat was tied. Wanting to return home, they got in and began to row. They pulled hard for hours, wondering all the time why they never reached the other side of the bay. When the gray dawn of morning broke, they saw to their dismay that they had failed to loosen the rope ...

2509. A Life Without Apology

2 Timothy 1:1-2:13

Sermon

King Duncan

... have a lot of tension and you get a headache," says another, "do what it says on the aspirin bottle: "˜TAKE TWO ASPIRIN' and "KEEP AWAY FROM CHILDREN." Some of you will identify with Rita Rudner's line: "I think about having children, because time is running out. I want to have children while my parents are still young enough to take care of them." One mother listened as her seven-year-old son explained what he'd learned in school one day. He asked his four-year-old brother, "Did you know you're made up of ...

2510. He Was Afflicted

Matthew 2:1-12

Children's Sermon

King Duncan

... The star continued to guide the wise men and it led them to Jesus. They were filled with joy and worshipped the baby and gave him gifts. When they went home, they went another way because they were warned in a dream that King Herod had lied to them. He wanted to kill the baby. When Herod realized the wise men weren't coming back he was furious! He ordered all little boys two years and younger to be killed. He was a really evil King! Joseph, Jesus' earthly father, was warned in a dream to take Jesus and his ...

2511. Running For Joy

Hebrews 12:1-13

Sermon

King Duncan

... Regardless of the trials and tribulations we experience here, we have a home not made with human hands. We run the race with the knowledge that there is a prize. Nineteen hundred years ago, an unknown writer wrote a letter describing the early Christian community. I want to read a portion of his letter because his words are a challenge to us today: "Christians," he wrote, "cannot be distinguished from the rest of the human race by country or language or customs. They do not live in cities of their own; they ...

2512. If Your Eye Offends You

Mark 9:42-50

Sermon

King Duncan

... , don't you dare open the door, don't you dare let him in, 'cause it won't be long until he'll want to drive." We modern, sophisticated, liberated people need to hear that word. Soren Kierkegaard, the great theologian, said that most people believe that ... inner man or the inner woman. We are left, then, with a decision that only we can make. What is it that you want out of life? Do you want a satisfying, health-filled life of harmony with nature, with your fellow man, and with God? There is only one path that ...

2513. When The World Goes Crazy!

Genesis 6:1-8:22

Sermon

King Duncan

... mean you wanna play football? Figure skating's not good enough for you, son? 5. Your Mother and I are going away for the weekend. You might want to consider throwing a party. 4. Well, I don't know what's wrong with your car. Probably one of those doo-hickey thingies--ya know-- ... s go to the mall. 2. Whaddya wanna go and get a job for? I make plenty of money for you to spend. 1. What do I want for my birthday? Aahh--don't worry about that. It's no big deal. Okay, they might say it. But they don't mean it. (1) ...

2514. Why Shepherds?

Luke 2:8-20

Sermon

King Duncan

... society. They were sheep herders. Country hicks. Uneducated. Unrefined. Rednecks, if you will. Why them? Maybe God just wanted to make our Christmas pageants more memorable. What would Christmas pageants be without shepherds in bathrobes? You may ... strength seep away, hospice dwellers who know this is their last Christmas on this earth. I don’t want to bring you down on this Christmas day. Not that at all. In fact, I want to lift you up, to God’s view of Christmas. Christmas is good news, most of all, ...

2515. Rebellion in the Vineyard

Matthew 21:33-46

Sermon

King Duncan

... he picked up a box of matches bearing the name and address of his hotel. Then he went sight-seeing. Afterwards he got into a taxi and did as the friend suggested, he took the box of matches out of his pocket to show the driver where he wanted to go. There were a few awkward moments before the driver understood. Finally his face lit up. Quickly they sped away. Half an hour later, the taxi came to a screeching halt. The driver turned and beamed at his passenger, pointing out the window. There was only one ...

2516. Maturity in Stewardship

2 Corinthians 9:6-15, 2 Corinthians 8:1-15

Sermon

Edward Inabinet

... of them failed. And there you were, right by my side." She agreed, "Yes." He said, "And then we had ten kids. All of them wanted to go to college. Not one of them got a scholarship. And there you were, right by my side." And she said, "Yes." He said, " ... Should every person make all that he can and buy all that he can? Is it right for us to have all that we want? Does the Bible really teach that the reward we get for being a faithful Christian is increasing material prosperity?" All these questions take on ...

2517. Forgiveness: Human and Divine

Matthew 6:12-15

Sermon

Edward Inabinet

... , deliberate and steady desire and effort to do wrong. It is that high-handed sin the Bible talks about in the Old Testament. God talks about people committing high-handed sin, deliberate and mean-spirited, with a hard-hearted attitude that proclaims, "I''m going to do what I want when I want it, and nobody can stop me." Then there''s that fifth word for sin which means a debt or a duty which we owe to God or to others. Sin again at its very root is our puny self trying to take the place of God, pushing God ...

2518. Are We Able?

Mark 10:35-45

Sermon

Donald B. Strobe

... own suffering and death, and jump way forward in time to focus on His coming glory. Then, they imagine, they will be rewarded by Him for having stuck by Him through the tough times. They talk to Jesus like politicians expecting rewards of patronage. They want cabinet positions in the new administration.. “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand, and one at your left, in glory.” On the king’s right-hand was the prime-minister. Today, we might say “Secretary of State.” On the left, the Chancellor of ...

2519. Palm Sunday (Prologue)

Matthew 21:1-11

Sermon

Donald B. Strobe

... thirsty, the outcast, the naked, the sick, the imprisoned, and the estranged. Then he was arrested, refused to take the sword to defend Himself, and they began to recall His earlier words which they had taken symbolically about taking up a cross and following. Who wants a literal cross? And so the crowds began to thin out. Ernest Campbell once preached a sermon with the intriguing title, “When the Sugar Comes Off the Pill.” A lot of folks thought he was going to talk about a different kind of pill...but ...

2520. Please, Don't Let me Jabez Anyone Else (Part 5)

1 Chronicles 4:1-23

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... to the hills. From whence does my help come? My help comes from the Lord God who made the heavens and the earth." So he took his eyes off his problems and put his eyes on God. Resentment and resignation would only lead him to deeper despair. He wanted a new and more fulfilling direction for his life. Then we examined the phrase, "and enlarge my territory." Jabez realized that he was created for more than he was experiencing at this stage in his life. Jabez had holy ambition. He had a vision of who he could ...

2521. Bread for Everyone (I am the bread of life)

John 6:1-15, John 6:25-59

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... that Jesus walked on water. Guess how the people responded to these amazing events? When Jesus began to talk about Bread with a capital B, they asked of Jesus, "Can you give us a sign?" Here Jesus had fed 5,000 people and walked across water and they wanted a sign! Talk about being locked into the temporal dimension of life and not being able to see the large picture. That is why this story can be set squarely in the midst of our modern world. Not one thing has changed! We modern people love the spectacular ...

2522. The Tenth Commandment: How Zacchaeus Got His Groove Back

Exodus 20:1-21

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... as many problems as they solve. Our souls are hungry for meaning--for the sense that we have figured out how to live so that our lives matter--so that the world will be at least a little different for our having passed through it." This is what Zacchaeus wanted, but he did not have it until he responded to the invitation of Jesus for a new life. Here is the story of a man who was robbing his own people. And to make matters worse, it was legal. His desire for power--position--prestige were not met until ...

2523. The Servant Who Delivered the Mail

Philippians 2:1-11

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... ordinary routines are of much value when compared to the Hollywood and Fifth Avenue types. I believe one of the great paradoxes is that life is full of dramatic moments, yet it is also comprised of many ordinary, commonplace experiences. I think Jesus and Paul would want us in the midst of our common, ordinary routines to be open to the sense of the miraculous, but they would never put down the ordinary. The tenth Chapter of Matthew''s Gospel opens up with Jesus sending the disciples into all the land. They ...

2524. Tackling Troubles Triumphantly

James 1:1-18

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... who love him." James himself moved from being a doubting, disbelieving younger half-brother of Jesus to a prominent church leader because of his willingness to tackle the problems the church at Jerusalem experienced while trying to "grow up" into the people of faith God wanted them to be. And by tackling the church’s problems, James himself also grew up in the Lord. A story is told of two brothers who were watching a circus parade but from different perspectives. One looked at the parade through a hole in ...

2525. Tackling the Tough Tasks

James 2:1-13

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... price tag by a $5,000 item and $1,000 price tag next to a $50 item. Then they watched the next morning with a kind of sinister delight as shoppers became ever more confused. The God of the universe created the world exactly as God wanted it to be, putting the highest value on items like faith, honor, character, compassion, commitment, sacrifice, servanthood and eternal life. During the night the thief came in and switched the price tags. God said the things that are worthy in life are the things which our ...

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