Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 2576 to 2600 of 3852 results

2576. Relay for Life

Mt 16:24; 2 Tim 4:7

Illustration

Brett Blair

... life was lost to the potential epidemic. Their sacrifice had given an entire town the gift of life. Every year in Alaska, a 1000-mile dogsled race, the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, is run for prize money and prestige, It's running commemorates that original "race" to save lives. In Communion we commemorate another mission. The journey of Jesus from Pilate's prison to the hill on which he died to save our lives form the tyranny of death, sin, disease, hatred, loneliness, the list is endless and the race ...

2577. Who Gets the Credit?

John 3:30

Illustration

C.S. Kirkendall, Jr

... gravity in the 1600s, which revolutionized astronomical studies. But few know that if it weren't for Edmund Halley, the world might never have learned from Newton. It was Halley who challenged Newton to think through his original notions. Halley corrected Newton's mathematical errors and prepared geometrical figures to support his discoveries. Halley coaxed the hesitant Newton to write his great work, Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy. Halley edited and supervised the publication, and actually ...

2578. Blasphemy Against the Spirit

Illustration

Staff

... . The expulsion of demons was a sign of the intrusion of the Kingdom of God. Yet the scribal accusations against Jesus amount to a denial of the power and greatness of the Spirit of God. By assigning the action of Jesus to a demonic origin the scribes betray a perversion of spirit which, in defiance of the truth, chooses to call light darkness. In this historical context, blasphemy against the Holy Spirit denotes the conscious and deliberate rejection of the saving power and grace of God released through ...

2579. No Man-Made Substitutes

Illustration

William Temple

... of imagination by His beauty; the opening of the heart to His love; the surrender of will to His purpose and all of this gathered up in adoration, the most selfless emotion of which our nature is capable and therefore the chief remedy for that self-centeredness which is our original sin and the source of all actual sin.

2580. God's Opposition

Illustration

Albert Barnes

... to God, it must be divested of everything that is like human passion, and especially the passion of revenge. It is one of the most obvious rules of interpretation that we are not to apply to God passions and feelings which, among us, have their origin in evil. [God's wrath] is the opposition of the divine character against sin; and the determination of the divine mind to express that opposition in a proper way, by excluding the offender from the favors which He bestows on the righteous. We admire the ...

2581. Be Prudent or Productive?

Matthew 25:14-30

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... it doesn’t, will you let God be God? Will you trust God’s amazing grace to cover your losses? Robert G. Tuttle, Jr. tells the story (in Can We Talk? Sharing Your Faith in a Pre-Christian World (Nashville: Abingdon, 1999), 30) that “originates during the latter part of the Middle Ages about a young girl who had visions of Jesus. The Inquisition, intolerant of such experiences, sought to intimidate her and would summon her before their tribunals. On one such occasion the Chief Inquisitor challenged her ...

2582. Matthew 25:14-30

Matthew 25:14-30

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... proactive steps to grow that which they have been given. This master gives five “talents” to a first servant, two “talents” to a second, and one “talent” to a third. Unfortunately the exact monetary amount that constituted a “talent” is unclear. Originally a “talent” was a weight measurement, about thirty kilograms. The monetary value of a talent would, therefore, be determined by what was being weighed. If this is a reference to a talent of silver (the most common form of coinage) then ...

2583. Yogi-isms

Humor Illustration

... said. "What's he do?" "He's a writer." "What paper?" asked Berra. Asked if he was actually responsible for all those quotes, Yogi explained, "I really didn't say everything I said." We hear a lot of Yogi Berra, but New York's Casey Stengel was one of the original muddled quote makers: 1. "The secret of managing is to keep the guys who hate you away from the guys who are undecided." 2. "There comes a time in every man's life and I've had plenty of them." 3. And, when he led the Yankees to a 1958 ...

2584. God Sent You

Humor Illustration

A 9 year old child quizzed her mother as to her origin, and was given the traditional answer, "God sent you." "And how did you get here, Mother? Did God send you too?" "Yes, dear." "And grandma?" "Yes, dear." "And great-grandma?" "Yes, dear." "Do you mean to say, Mother, that there have been no normal births in this family for over a hundred years?"

2585. Christmas Signs

Humor Illustration

Christmas Signs: From a toy store: "Ho, ho, ho spoken here." In a bridal boutique: "Marry Christmas." Outside a church: "The original Christmas Club." In front of a department store: "Big pre-Christmas sale. Come in and mangle with the crowd." In a Texas jewelry store: "Diamond tiaras: $70,000. Three for $200,000. A reducing salon: "24 Shaping Days until Christmas." In a stationery store: "For the man who has everything: A calendar to remind him when payments are due."

2586. A Woman's Guide to Men's Gifts

Humor Illustration

... a label maker. Rule #14: It's hard to beat a really good wheelbarrow or an aluminum extension ladder. Never buy a real man a step ladder. It must be an extension ladder. No one knows why. Rule #15: Rope. Men love rope. It takes us back to our cowboy origins, or at least The Boy Scouts. Nothing says love like a hundred feet of 3/8" manila rope. No one knows why.

2587. The Most Amazing Organization

Humor Illustration

... and behavior alteration. We run hospitals, feeding stations, crisis pregnancy centers, universities, publishing houses, and nursing homes. We care for our clients from birth to death. We are into life insurance and fire insurance. We perform spiritual heart transplants. Our original Organizer owns all the real estate on earth plus an assortment of galaxies and constellations. He knows everything and lives everywhere. Our product is free for the asking. (There's not enough money to buy it.) Our CEO was born ...

2588. Scientific Jargon

Humor Illustration

... studying and hard work, I have finally learned scientific jargon. The following list of phrases and their definitions will help you to understand that mysterious language of science and medicine. IT HAS LONG BEEN KNOWN. . . I didn't look up the original reference. A DEFINITE TREND IS EVIDENT . . . These data are practically meaningless. WHILE IT HAS NOT BEEN POSSIBLE TO PROVIDE DEFINITE ANSWERS TO THE QUESTIONS. . . An unsuccessful experiment, but I still hope to get it published. THREE OF THE SAMPLES WERE ...

2589. What Does It Taste Like?

Humor Illustration

... and pulled out an apple and began eating it. "Doctor . . . CRUNCH, MUNCH . . . My question is a simple question . . . CRUNCH, MUNCH . . . Now, I ain't never read them books you read . . . CRUNCH, MUNCH . . . and I can't recite the Scriptures in the original Greek . . . CRUNCH, MUNCH . . ." He finished the apple. "All I wanna know is: This apple I just ate was it bitter or sweet?" The theologian paused for a moment and answered in exemplary scholarly fashion: "I cannot possibly answer that question, for I ...

2590. Luke 1:26-38

Luke 1:26-38

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... marriage ceremony and be living together, why does Mary ask the angel “How can this be?” Luke’s text uses her question to re-assert Mary’s physical virginity and to give Gabriel an angelic opportunity to explain Jesus’ divine origin. The “overshadowing” this angel describes sounds both like the Old Testament “cloud” of the divine presence (Exodus 4-0:35) and the New Testament “cloud” that blankets those present at the Transfiguration (Luke 9:34). The Holy Spirit’s association with ...

2591. The Unwanted Christmas Gift: The Gift That Keeps on Giving

Luke 1:26-38

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

2592. It’s a New Year: Take 7 Steps Forward

John 1:43-51

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... the line between what was considered “pure” and what was considered “impure.” Jesus hung out with lepers, prostitutes, well-known sinners, Gentiles, and even tax collectors. These were quagmires of impurity and impropriety in the eyes of the Pharisees, who were the original “puddle-jumpers.” Pharisees were the avoid-the-dirt-at-all-costs people. Jesus leads his disciples hip-boot high into puddles and ponds of human waste-edness. There is no way to “muck out” a stable without stepping in it ...

2593. Silent Night

Luke 2:1-14 (15-20)

Illustration

James Kegel

... response. Some sang revival songs and some sang hymns. Then a rich baritone struck up "Silent Night, Holy Night," and he was joined by others. Carload after carload joined in singing that beautiful Christmas carol. Then something marvelous happened. Other voices, German voices, began to sing the song in the original "Stille Nacht, Heilige Nacht." The German voices and American voices blended together in praise of Christ who came to bring all people together in peace.

2594. Looking for Rainbows

Genesis 9:1-17

Sermon

King Duncan

... in her behalf. If so, she would not be the first to do that. Do you know where the expression “knock on wood” comes from? Maybe you have knocked on wood for luck at some time in your life. I read recently that the “knock on wood” superstition originated from an ancient practice that has nothing to do with luck at all. According to this ancient practice a person would touch wood whenever he or she experienced an act of good fortune. The reason he or she would touch wood was in gratitude to Christ who ...

2595. A Table Like No Others

1 Corinthians 11:17-34

Sermon

King Duncan

... . by some kind of love, so please, we hope we haven’t offended you or your community. But we were received at the table tonight and were deeply moved.” Shortly after this confession, another couple came up to him, identifying themselves as Moustafa and Munir, originally from Lebanon. They said, “So you know what our life has been like . . . You know about the pain and bloodshed . . . We are, of course, Muslim.” Then they told how their children rose to go to the communion table, and they were drawn ...

2596. Were You There?

John 19:17-27

Sermon

King Duncan

... Lord?” It’s a question that has been asked through the ages. And every generation has provided its own answer. You and I must answer it as well. Were we there? Were we there when they crucified our Lord? We know the cast of the original Good Friday drama. They are listed in John’s telling of the passion narrative. Judas Iscariot was there. He definitely was instrumental in crucifying Jesus. John tells us that Judas came to the garden where Jesus went to pray, guiding a detachment of soldiers and some ...

2597. When the Service was Interrupted

Mark 1:21-28

Sermon

King Duncan

... tells us this man was “possessed by an impure spirit.” We don’t know what Mark meant by this. Most modern people dismiss the idea of demons and unclean spirits. We assume this is pre-scientific language for mental illness, but who knows? Whatever the origin of his problem, obviously the man was deeply distressed. He cried out, “What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are the Holy One of God!” It’s interesting. The impure spirits recognized who ...

2598. Mark 1:40-45

Mark 1:40-45

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... to its genuineness. The argument is that later copyists would have been concerned more with presenting Jesus in the best possible light, being “compassionate,” not changing a favorable portrayal into something more problematic, “anger,” to explain. If Jesus was originally described as “angered” at the presence of this leper before him, even that response can be given a compassionate reading. The sight of human misery and suffering moved God to anger in the Old Testament (see Judges 10:16). It ...

2599. Mark 16:1-8

Mark 16:1-20

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

Although nearly all biblical scholars agree that Mark’s original manuscript concludes at 1:8, and that the so-called “longer ending” is a later addition to this gospel, it is still difficult to deal with the abrupt and apparently incomplete nature of this text. Matthew, Luke, and John add oodles of details to the Easter morning event, with as ...

2600. Be Hatched or Go Bad

Mark 16:1-8

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... delusion, rolling away of sin and guilt and shame. All we have to do is throw a few eggs against the wall, and show up in Galilee to meet our Savior. Hallelujah. Christ is risen! COMMENTARY Although nearly all biblical scholars agree that Mark’s original manuscript concludes at 1:8, and that the so-called “longer ending” is a later addition to this gospel, it is still difficult to deal with the abrupt and apparently incomplete nature of this text. Matthew, Luke, and John add oodles of details to the ...

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