Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 2576 to 2600 of 5000 results

2576. The Greatest Scar Story

John 20:19-31

Illustration

Christi O. Brown

I can think of no better modern-day illustration of the sacrifice Jesus made for us than a recent story I heard about a woman who is a fit 30-something-year-old. Yet she has a brace on each knee and scars on both, but the scars are not from surgery. Here's what happened. Several years ago ...

2577. Celebrate the Small Stuff

Mark 4:30-34

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... The leafy largesse of the mustard plant makes it capable of offering shelter: “the birds of the air can make nests in its shade” (v.32). This declaration would surely bring to the mind of Mark’s readers the scriptural references to the huge trees used to illustrate national strength and stability. But in Ezekiel 17:23 it is a mighty cedar, planted by God, which offers up a shady place for birds to nest (“hypo ten skian”), not a mere mustard shrub. Not only is the great growth from such a tiny seed ...

2578. Mark 4:26-34

Mark 4:26-29

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

2579. Walls, Walls, Everywhere Walls

Ephesians 2:11-22

Sermon

King Duncan

... as pets. The girls were thrilled (there is nothing cuter than a little lamb). His neighbor was thrilled because his daughters were happy, and since he now had sheep of his own to protect, he started controlling his dogs. (7) Wallace Hamilton told that story as an illustration of Christmas. When God wanted to make peace with the world he sent us the Lamb of God. But it speaks also to the heart of the Gospel message. Christ came to tear down the wall of hostility. Never has the world needed the peace that ...

2580. This Fellow Welcomes Sinners

Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32

Sermon

Frank Ramirez

... we may find ourselves as the father, the older brother, and the younger brother. Or we may even find ourselves absent, though quite alive. Keep in mind, of course, that this is a story. It's a sacred story, it was told by Jesus, but he was telling it to illustrate a point. One of the reasons for storytelling by the teachers in first-century Judea was that we take the story home with us, that we think about it, chew on it, retell it in our own way, see something new, ask questions, and find our own answers ...

2581. The Great Divide

Luke 16:19-31

Sermon

... nected, and we should do all in our power to stay that way and not step over the other and pretend they don't exist or don't matter. For there are consequences when we aren't connected. Not just at the end of our days as this parable illustrates, but now, right here there can be severe consequences when we distance ourselves from our brothers and sisters. Still, by opening our eyes, and coming face-to-face with those we might have avoided in the past, we can change at least ourselves. A few weeks ago, our ...

2582. Saint Who?

Luke 6:27-36, Luke 19:1-10

Sermon

Scott Bryte

He gets shorter every time we tell the story. Sunday school children sing about the "wee little man." Illustrated Bibles and everything from stained-glass windows to coloring books depict a tiny elf of a man, perched bird-like in a tree. "Poor little Zacchaeus." Or maybe "rich little Zacchaeus." Either way we've got a short story about a short man who had to climb a tree to ...

2583. Silly Goose

Colossians 3:12-17

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... way it is in churches, isn't it? Oh, David, you silly goose. Right. Speaking of geese and church, the Danish philosopher and theologian, Søren Kierkegaard, grew up in the countryside surrounded by farms that reared geese (among other animals), and he occasionally used geese to illustrate some point. Among his papers is a story he wrote titled "Tame Geese" in which he asks us to imagine that these geese could talk and think and do the kinds of things that we do. The geese went to church every week and were ...

2584. The Truth, The Whole Truth, And Nothing But The Truth

Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... to her millions of fans for presenting the book as factual, whereupon she lambasted the author on her show. Don't mess with Oprah! Of course, A Million Little Pieces is far from the first autobiography to fudge the facts. No surprise. But the incident also illustrates the sad state of "truth" these days. An awful lot of "truth" is nothing but spin, and one gets the impression that if something is declared loud enough and long enough, people begin to accept it as "true." That, of course, was the"big lie ...

2585. The Legacy of Jesus

John 14:8-17 (25-27)

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... alcohol and sex and an endless list of things that do not really satisfy. No, the kind of peace that scripture talks about (and over 400 times, as a matter of fact) carries with it the connotation of unity, completeness, rest, and ease. Perhaps the best way to illustrate that kind of peace is to try to describe the scene in our car the day after our daughter was born. It was a trip my wife and I will never forget. We were surrounded by a series of tornados, millions of dollars in damage, and seventy people ...

2586. It's All In the Perspective

Psalm 8:1-9

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... God in three persons, blessed Trinity," as the hymnwriter has it.[3] It is all in the perspective. On this day, pulpits around the world will try to explain the mystery of the Trinity - how can one God be "three persons"? Some will use the illustration of H2O - depending on the circumstances we find those same elements as either water or ice or steam - same composition of two parts hydrogen and one part oxygen, but three different ways of experiencing those elements. Or I might say to Christie, I am husband ...

2587. Remember Jesus Christ…

2 Timothy 2:8-13

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... Christ, raised from the dead and renew your commitment to be a follower of the risen one. Today, remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead and relay the message of life to those who know only a deathlike existence. Today, remember Jesus Christ. 1. A. Leonard Griffith quoted in Bible Illustrator for Windows, diskette (Hiawatha, Iowa: Parsons Technology, 1994). 2. Adapted from Charles R. Swindoll, Growing Deep: Exploring the Roots of Our Faith (Portland: Multnomah Press, 1986), p. 149.

2588. The Locust Years

Joel 2:23-32

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... eaten everything. But now, by repentance and faith, all was about to be restored. John Newton returned to England and entered a ministry that was to last 44 years. They say he was a good preacher - very plain spoken, understandable, and with a wealth of illustrative material from his years at sea. But God had given John Newton one very special talent, and one that blesses the church even today. Among other memorable hymns, Newton wrote, Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound That saved a wretch like me; I once ...

2589. Good Gossip

James 3:1-12

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... movement and mindset of the whole Christbody community. The words of one can affect the witness of all. To keep the powerful tongue in check requires “a bridle,” a term that both recalls 1:26 and connects this directive to James’ next illustration of the “bit” in 3:3. In 3:3-5a James uses two metaphors. Both were familiar to his listeners and familiar within the world of popular Jewish and Hellenistic writings. Sophocles, Aristotle, Philo, Plutarch, the Jewish Wisdom literature, and an abundance ...

2590. James 3:1-12

James 3:1-12

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

2591. Easter Day

Psalm 118:1-2, Isaiah 65:17-25, Luke 24:1-12, John 20:1-9, Acts 10:34-43, 1 Corinthians 15:19-26

Bulletin Aid

Julia Ross Strope

... are to be responsible landscapers. Christ moves among humankind loving, teaching, and making whole. In our living, in our dying, and in our rising again, Holy Spirit is with us! Hallelujah! Offertory Statement The earth is God’s! We are God’s! We illustrate God’s Presence as we care for this place and minister to people in need here and throughout the global village. Doxology "Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow" Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Praise God, all creatures here below. Praise ...

2592. The Golf Shot That Destroyed an Airforce

Mark 9:42-50

Sermon

King Duncan

... Lord,” by Jeffrey Brodeur, Associated Press, 1998. http://www.holwick.com/sermons/Job-book/job1_1.html. 3. Tales of Stupidity, Strangeness, and Mythconceptions . . . (Kansas City: Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC, 2007), p. 172. 4. Daily Encounter, http://www.actsweb.org/. Cited by MONDAY FODDER, http://family-safe-mail.com/. 5. Timeless Illustrations for Preaching and Teaching (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 2004), p. 448.

2593. What Does the Bible Really Say about Divorce?

Mark 10:1-12

Sermon

King Duncan

... for the best of people. Divorce happens. It doesn’t make God happy, but neither does it change God’s love for the persons involved. And it shouldn’t change our attitude toward them either. 1. Gayle Urban in Edward K. Rowell, 1001 Quotes, Illustrations, and Humorous Stories (Grand Rapids: Baker Publishing Group, 2008), p. 345. 2. Larry Davies, Sowing Seeds of Faith in a World Gone Bonkers (Amelia Court House, VA: ABM Enterprises, Inc., 1996), pp. 169-170. 3. Rev. Dr. William S. Shillady, http://www ...

2594. Mark 10:17-31

Mark 10:17-31

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... his own disciples, those who have already left everything to follow him. Even though these disciples are “on the way” with Jesus, they are still “amazed” or “perplexed” (“thambein”) by his truth. Jesus continues by using one of his most memorable verbal illustrations to enforce his message, proclaiming that it is “easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven” (v.25). This humorous hyperbole burns a ridiculous image into ...

2595. L4G Live For God

Mark 10:17-31

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

2596. Proper 19

Psalm 14:1-7, Jeremiah 4:11-12, 22-28, Luke 15:1-10, 1 Timothy 1:12-17

Bulletin Aid

Julia Ross Strope

... and ingenious that come to us. Thank you, too, for setting precedence for “sabbath.” As we take respite, here, from our daily activities, our psyches rest and are nourished. Move among us with bright clarity; illuminate our thoughts and illustrate our experiences. Amen. Call To Confession In today’s Hebrew scriptures, the theme is judgment. Human behaviors do have consequences within ourselves and for our communities. “God will get you” is the prophet’s challenge. However you visualize your ...

2597. Liturgy of the Palms

Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29, Luke 19:28-44

Bulletin Aid

Julia Ross Strope

... in nature and in our own psyches. Leader: A Divine Message comes to us in the ancient story of Jesus of Nazareth: God is One who blesses everyone who seeks. People: We are seeking to live in ways that satisfy, in ways that illustrate neighborliness and justice. Here we receive encouragement and strength to embody the goodness of Jesus. Prayer Of Thanksgiving Holy One — “Find a donkey,” Jesus said. “Book a room; set the table....” We have seen what can happen when Jesus speaks. We also feel ...

2598. Liturgy of the Passion

Luke 22:14-23:56

Bulletin Aid

Julia Ross Strope

2599. Two Sticker Books and a Cabbage Patch Doll

Matthew 6:25-34

Sermon

King Duncan

... lives in the arms of our Creator and acknowledging regardless of our circumstances whether we live in the midst of abundance or in the parched land of misery that God is our life, God is our hope, God is the Source of every good thing. There’s a wonderful illustration of this kind of awareness found in Dr. Spencer Johnson’s little book The Present. The Present is about a little boy and an old man an old man who appeared to be so happy and content that one day the boy walked up to the porch swing where ...

2600. Made for Joy

Philippians 4:2-9

Sermon

King Duncan

... , 2001), p. 249. 5. Bob Thomas, Bud & Lou: The Abbott & Costello Story. Cited by David Bruce, The Funniest People in Comedy (Kindle edition). 6. From a sermon by the Reverend David Rogne. 7. Rev. Dr. Benjamin Reaves, http://www.csec.org/csec/sermon/reaves_4807.htm. 8. Tony Evans’ Book Of Illustrations (Chicago: Moody Publishers, 2009). 9. Tarbell’s KJV & NRSV Lesson Commentary (Colorado Springs: Cook Communications Ministries, 2003).

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