Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 2526 to 2550 of 4935 results

2526. The Kingdom And The Seed

Mark 4:4-20; 30-32

Sermon

Ron Lavin

Most of us have planted a garden or lived on or near a farm. In my case, I grew up in Chicago where they have to put cows in zoos because so many city people are shielded from agricultural life and would never otherwise get to see one. But for eleven years I served as the pastor of a church in the agriculturally-oriented community of Davenport, Iowa. Davenport is located in Scott County which is Mississippi River land. It is reported to be some of the richest soil in the world. I learned a lot about ...

2527. Counting the Cost

Luke 14:25-35

Sermon

T. A. Kantonen

The Lenten season, to which Ash Wednesday opens the door, is a time for heart-searching. "The Son of God goes forth to war a kingly crown to gain," and we are asked, "Who follows in his train?" Our Lord’s path to his kingly glory passes through Gethsemane and Calvary, and if we are to be his followers, we too must "climb the steep ascent of heaven through peril, toil and pain." We must count the cost and be willing to pay the price of true discipleship. The portion of scripture before us is a direct ...

2528. Who Will Take Away This Burden Of Guilt?

Hebrews 10:1-18

Sermon

King Duncan

Paul Harvey tells about a roadside sign that stands on I-95 as you approach De Land, Florida. The yellow diamondshaped sign warns travelers: NARCOTICS INSPECTION AHEAD. There is no inspection, but drivers who see the sign panic and make an immediate illegal U-turn. They are stopped and searched. The American Civil Liberties Union is objecting. (1) A farmer was trying out his new car. As he approached his farm, he decided to see how fast it would go. He raced by the side road that led to his house and drove ...

2529. Getting The Proper Nourishment

Jeremiah 16:1--17:18

Sermon

King Duncan

Since we are talking about getting the proper nourishment, today, I thought I would share with you eight dieting tips that I picked up recently. Tip 1: If no one sees you eat it, it has no calories. Tip 2: If you drink a diet soda with a candy bar, they will cancel each other out. Tip 3: Calories don't count if you eat with someone and you both eat the same amount. Tip 4: Food taken for medicinal purposes does not count. This includes toast, hot chocolate, and Sara Lee chocolate cake. Tip 5: If you fatten ...

2530. A Time of Grief

Luke 7:11-17

Sermon

King Duncan

You may know the story of a young minister who was asked by a funeral director to hold a graveside service for a homeless man who had died while traveling through the area. The service was to be held at a new cemetery way back in the country. This man would be the first person laid to rest there. As he was not familiar with the back woods area, the young minister soon became quite lost and finally arrived over an hour late. He saw the backhoe by the grave and noticed that the crew was eating lunch under a ...

2531. Bloody Lintels — Broken Bread

Exodus 12:1-14

Sermon

Arley K. Fadness

Two Russian surgeons and an anesthetist took turns lying on an operating table beside a critically-ill patient, according to the then government newspaper, Izvestia, and saved the patient's life with direct transfusions of their own blood. Fresh blood was needed because the patient's own blood had ceased to coagulate. In such a case, conserved blood, would not be effective. The three women practitioners each gave what they could -- a half pint of blood. A television show depicts a traveler lost in the ...

2532. Too Good Not to Be True

Luke 24:36-49

Sermon

King Duncan

A company once hired a recent immigrant and put him to work in the mail room. To the foreman’s shock, the guy was a whiz. He stood in front of the sorting racks and shuffled the letters into slots with amazing speed. The foreman had never seen anything like it. At the end of the day, the foreman shook the new man’s hand, thanked him and said, “I’ve never seen anyone who could sort mail as fast as you.” The new immigrant smiled and said, “You think I’m good now you wait until I can read English.” (1) Well, ...

2533. A Living Hope (If It Hadn’t Been for Easter)

1 Peter 1:3-9

Sermon

David O. Bales

A church member read the New Testament and concluded, "Amazing things were going on back then. People converted not just their faith but their lives and values. They were healed, dropped prejudices, crossed ethnic boundaries, and ... and, people were beaten, tried, and killed for their faith." Then she looked at our modern American church and saw little similarity between the early Christian church and our current one. This experience indicates that perhaps it's safer for church members not to read the New ...

2534. Bridge Builders

Luke 7:1-10

Sermon

Cynthia Cowen

As the three cousins ran through the woods, jumping over fallen trees, zigzagging through knee-high ferns, and pushing branches out of their way, a chorus of laughter rose in the still air. "Don't be so pokey, Michael," teased his older cousin. "Watch out for that rock on the left," Sam warned the boys. A yelp went up as Jeremy stumbled. "Come on, come on. We're almost there," Sam hollered. "I can hear the river now and there's the bridge to Uncle David's camp." The boys lined up along the edge of the ...

2535. The Sign of Immanuel

Isaiah 7:1-25

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

Coping with the Pressure from Syria and Ephraim: The heart of 6:1–9:7 is story and prophecy focusing on a crisis in Jerusalem about 733 B.C., soon after Isaiah’s commission. Ahaz is now king. Jotham may have died before his father and only ever been co-regent. Northern Israel (see Additional Notes on 1:3) and Aram (Syria) had been forced to become part of the Assyrian empire, and they had now combined forces to try to compel Judah to join them in their efforts to gain independence from Assyria. They failed ...

2536. Much Bad News, Some Good

Jeremiah 16:1--17:18

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

These two chapters are a mixture. God privately instructs Jeremiah not to socialize; God speaks publicly about keeping the Sabbath. The people of God will be exiled; but there will be a restoration. A prophet turns to God in his frustration; Gentiles turn en masse to God in conversion. There are mini essays; there are proverblike sayings. However, the theme remains unchanged: sin is pervasive and judgment will be certain and terrible. God gives Jeremiah three commands about his social life (16:1–13). The ...

2537. The Vinedresser and the Plundered Vine of Israel

Psalm 80:1-19

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

The occasion underlying this corporate prayer psalm appears to be one of extreme national distress: passers-by ravage as they please, burning and destroying (vv. 12–13, 16). The people experience sorrow and strife (vv. 5–6). The question “How long?” implies that this tragedy has persisted for some time. As with most psalms, historical details are omitted so the psalm can be used for any similar national emergency (see the Additional Note). This psalm, besides exhibiting the normal structure of the prayer ...

2538. Lost in Plain Sight

John 1:29-34, John 1:35-42

Sermon

Dean Feldmeyer

What are you looking for? What are you looking for? A seemingly innocent question, asked to elicit information. But when Jesus asks it, it becomes so much more. It becomes not just a question, but the question, the existential question that defines, to a large extent, exactly who we are. What are you looking for? Percy Harrison Fawcett was looking for El Dorado. Not the city of gold, the city of myth and legend. He wasn’t looking for that, per se, but he believed, as did many of his colleagues in the Royal ...

2539. By D Grace of God

Luke 6:27-38

Sermon

King Duncan

I have a pop quiz for you this morning. How much money would you say Americans lost to Internet scams and online crime in 2020? Would you believe $4.2 billion? That’s billion—with a “b”! And that’s just in one year’s time. Internet scams are an increasing problem all over the world. (1) If I were to ask for a quick show of hands, how many of you have gotten an email or message on social media that you suspected was a scam? It’s a pretty common occurrence. I read an excellent story on the blog Now I Know! ...

2540. Fertilize Your Faith

Luke 13:1-9

Sermon

Lori Wagner

Everyone knows that apathy, not anger, is the opposite of love, though frustrated anger can lead to apathy. Complacency, not passion, is the opposite of discipleship, though frustrated passion can lead to complacency. Complacency is the bane of today’s denominational Church.The western, American,denominational church is undergoing, as my colleague Len Sweet puts it, a “reproduction problem.”[1] It is failing to reproduce disciples of Christ who “bear the fruit” of the gospel in the “fields” of God’s global ...

2541. Afraid at the Thank God Ledge

1 Kings 3:5-12

Sermon

King Duncan & Angela Akers

Have you ever been in a situation so challenging that you didn’t know what to do? Few things will make us feel more alone than facing down a challenge that is greater than our resources. If I’m describing almost every sleepless night you’ve ever had, then today’s Bible passage is for you. I read an interview with a young man named Alex Honnold, who is famous in the sports world for his free solo climbing adventures. Free solo climbers don’t use any ropes or harnesses or other equipment in their climbing. ...

2542.

Psalm 80:1-19

Teach the Text

Craig C. Broyles

The Vinedresser and the Plundered Vine of Israel The occasion underlying this corporate prayer psalm appears to be one of extreme national distress: passers-by ravage as they please, burning and destroying (vv. 12–13, 16). The people experience sorrow and strife (vv. 5–6). The question “How long?” implies that this tragedy has persisted for some time. As with most psalms, historical details are omitted so the psalm can be used for any similar national emergency (see the Additional Note). This psalm, ...

2543. “The Words of the Lord Are Flawless, Like Silver Purified in a Crucible”

Psalm 12:1-8

Teach the Text

C. Hassell Bullock

Big Idea: In a society where lies and falsehood constitute the “ethical norm,” God’s flawless words reset the standard and are of a seamless piece with God’s character. Understanding the Text Psalm 12 has features of an individual lament (12:1–2), the cause of the lament clearly being the depletion of the righteous and the occupation of society by liars and deceivers. Psalm 12 fills out the picture of the scenario outlined in Psalm 11: “When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do?” ...

2544. It's OK To Stir Up God

Luke 11:1-13

Sermon

Richard Patt

Sometimes you and I have to stoke up enough nerve to ask someone for a favor. We find it tough to ask for something -- for anything. I'm not thinking about asking someone for a large sum of money either. It can be as simple as asking for a ride when our own car is temporarily out of commission, or asking someone at a dinner table to pass us the potatoes. We are inclined to hesitate when it comes to asking favors of others, even small ones. This is probably the case for at least two reasons. First, we tend ...

2545. A New Kingdom Coming

Luke 9:57-62

Sermon

Maurice A. Fetty

A lot of people don't believe it -- but there's a new kingdom coming. Often, like a phoenix bird, it arises out of the ashes of the old. As a young sapling is germinated by forest fire, so the new kingdom is sprouted in the desolation of despair. Like tundra flowers and crab grass the new kingdom has irresistible life impulses and grows anywhere. There is a new kingdom coming. You may wonder where it is -- this new kingdom. You may look for advance press releases, television bulletins, screaming headlines ...

2546. The Results Of Resurrection

John 20:19-23

Sermon

Don M. Aycock

Suppose you had just said goodbye to someone you love. If so, you would know the feeling of remorse encapsulating Jesus' disciples after his death. Those disciples were left in a state of total chaos. All along Jesus had tried to make them see that his presence among them was only temporary. He had given them clues about his destiny with such words as You will seek me and you will not find me; where I am you cannot come, and The light is with you for a little longer. Even with these words, however, those ...

2547. With All The Saints

Isaiah 25:1-12

Sermon

John A. Stroman

Isaiah 25 is a remarkable passage for All Saints' Sunday. It begins with an outburst of praise for what God has done and for what God will do. An unidentified city -- strong, oppressive and hostile -- will be destroyed and never rebuilt. Amid the destruction God protects and cares for the poor and the needy. Once this evil city and its ruthless inhabitants have been destroyed and vanish, another city will rise on Mount Zion where God will invite all people to a magnificent feast. God will wipe away all ...

2548. The Waiting Place

Isaiah 63:7--64:12

Sermon

William L. Self

While we were keeping our eighteen-month-old grandson for the weekend so his parents could catch up on their sleep, my wife Carolyn and I were talking about this sermon. I had the idea, but it lacked something. Carolyn had taken Benjamin upstairs for his nap. About fifteen minutes later, she came bursting into my study and said, "I've got it! Read this," and she thrust into my hand Oh, the Places You'll Go! by Dr. Seuss. As she was reading this book to Benjamin, she came upon these words: The Waiting Place ...

2549. Invest In The Future

Jeremiah 32:1-44

Sermon

Thomas G. Rogers

Cynthia stood before a church group in a neighboring town. She had been invited to share the story of her faith in her successful struggle against death. She stood before the group with a candle in one hand and a pocket lighter in the other. She began, "Three years ago I went to the hospital for a series of tests and I was told that I had malignant cancer. I was also told that, although it was possible for me to take chemotherapy treatments, the chance of them offering any help at all was very slim. My ...

2550. Meeting Jesus At The Well

John 4:1-26

Sermon

John N. Brittain

The familiar story of Jesus' encounter with the Samaritan woman at Jacob's well is loaded with meaning. It is a pattern for considering our meetings with Jesus at various times in our lives. The story begins with Jesus asking this woman to perform a simple task, well within her ability: to get him a drink from the well. She did, after all, have the equipment. But she didn't want to do it and was able to provide some good reasons why she shouldn't. Every day of our lives, Jesus Christ asks us to do specific ...

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