Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 2576 to 2600 of 4884 results

John 17:20-26

Sermon

King Duncan

... Our minds are too small to get around the concept of eternity. There is only one thing we can say about Heaven. We will be united with Christ and with those we love. The unity we have here is but a poor reflection of a more perfect unity there. Writer and speaker Carol Kent expresses this truth in a beautiful way. She tells about a couple she met in Indianapolis, Indiana, named Pam and Bill Mutz. She was immediately impressed with the quality parenting these two were giving their three children. Carol asked ...

2577. The Cry Of Freedom

Matthew 22:15-22

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... . The Kings came from the Tribe of Judah. This is why in Jesus Christ the two offices were combined, as the Bible teaches in Zech. 6:13: "He shall sit and rule on his throne; and he shall be a priest on his throne." I want to make perfectly clear today that Matthew 22:21 is not an endorsement of two systems of ethics or two distinct lifestyles. Matthew 22:21 is Jesus' endorsement of the necessity of government to help oversee human activity and provide for order in a chaotic world. Let me remind you that ...

2578. Why We Believe In God

Hebrews 11:1-40

Sermon

Wayne Brouwer

... in the Wall." A little boy, about six years old, is wandering about, and he comes to this white wall and there's a green door in it. He opens the door, and when he goes in, he enters a country of enchantment ” a world of charm, where he's perfectly loved, and fully accepted. And he wants to stay there, but for some reason he can't. For the rest of his life he's haunted by that country. He's haunted by that place where he was most himself. And he spends his life trying to find it again ...

2579. What Goes Around Comes Around

Luke 16:19-31

Sermon

Timothy J. Smith

... Memphis, Tennessee, area. Perhaps you've seen the stories in the newspapers. Somebody slips into a house or apartment, "cases" the place and snatches up whatever he or she wants. All this takes place under the eyes of a deputy sheriff. And it's perfectly legal, thanks to Criminal Court Judge Joe B. Brown. Judge Brown raised some eyebrows by ordering several burglars to open their homes to former victims. "He [the burglar] learns what a good citizen feels like," the judge says, "worrying whether he's going ...

2580. A Message From Above And Beyond

Luke 6:17-26

Sermon

King Duncan

... we remember those "saints" who have gone on to glory. We give thanks for the contributions they made to our lives. Who are these saints? Frederick Buechner says: "I mean saints as men and women who are made not out of plaster and platitude and moral perfection but out of human flesh. I mean saints who have their rough edges and their blind spots like everyone else, but whose lives are transparent to something so extraordinary that every so often it stops us dead in our tracks." (2) Think about those words ...

2581. Facing Up To The Giant Task Of Life

1 Samuel 17:1-58

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... also while we are here on earth, has eternal rewards and benefits. One of the reasons for the success of Vince Lombardi's Green Bay Packers was the detailed and complete preparation Lombardi provided for his team. He developed and communicated the game plan perfectly and prepared for every contingency. Nothing was left to chance. So thorough was Bart Starr, team quarterback, prepared that he knew he would never face a situation he wasn't equipped to handle. If the Green Bay Packers spent that much time and ...

2582. A Mountain Too High To Climb

Isaiah 2:1-5

Sermon

King Duncan

... . And that brings us to the last thing to be said. THE FUTURE IS WONDERFUL BECAUSE THE FUTURE IS IN GOD'S HANDS. Advent is not only a preparation for the celebration of Christ's birth. It is also preparation for that day when God's perfect Kingdom will come ” when nations will "beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, not will they train for war any more." With the coming of Christ, the establishment of that Kingdom has already ...

2583. Learning From A Little Child

Isaiah 35:1-10

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... ” even if he was a little clumsy. She was able to convince the children that Barry could not do any real damage by playing the innkeeper of Bethlehem. He just opened and closed a door and spoke one short line. Barry made it perfectly through all rehearsals and the dress rehearsal. Then, on the night when mothers, fathers, friends, strangers, and the whole community sat in hushed silence, reliving the Christmas story, Barry had his chance to "redeem" himself with a flawless performance. He opened the door ...

2584. When God Speaks

Genesis 12:1-8

Sermon

King Duncan

... . He listened and he believed. Even more importantly, he set out to do what God had called him to do. How about you? Is God speaking to you about some area in your own life ” some relationship, some responsibility? We are not accountable for knowing God's will perfectly. We will always see through a glass darkly, as Paul put it. The question we are accountable to answer is, are we acting on what we do know about God's will? Are we packing our bags to make a new journey to the land to which God beckons ...

2585. What's The Matter? Are You Blind?

John 9:1-12

Sermon

King Duncan

... YORK TIMES MAGAZINE concerning a group of more than 100 women who reside in Long Beach, California. These women, Cambodian refugees who witnessed the horror of the Pol Pot Regime, are certifiably blind even though doctors say their eyes function perfectly well. These sightless women suffer from psychosomatic or hysterical blindness. They are really blind, but their blindness stems from their minds. Psychosomatic disorders are nothing new. We know that the state of our mind can affect our speech, our hearing ...

2586. The Cross We Do Not Want To See

Mark 15:21-32

Sermon

King Duncan

... they say, Take an umbrella, it's raining' ” or Hurry back' ” or even Watch out, you'll break your neck.' There are hundreds of ways of wording it ” you just have to listen for it, my dear." Fairy brightens up and says, "My dentist said I had perfect occlusion. Do you think he was telling me he loved me?" Mrs. Savage replies, "What else? . . . ." "Oh, thank you," says Fairy. "I've been missing so much. Oh! My dentist loves me." (4) You think about that the next time your dentist is drilling away on you ...

2587. Focusing On The Possibilities

Matthew 14:13-21

Sermon

King Duncan

... in a state of high excitement. The professor asked George if he had come to class late on exam day. He admitted that he had. The professor explained that the exam had only consisted of the eight problems on the exam paper, which he had solved perfectly. The two problems on the board had been put up there for fun. They were classic mathematic problems that no mathematician had ever been able to solve. Even Einstein had been unable to crack them. The professor had explained at the beginning of class that ...

2588. Get Out Of That Boat!

Matthew 14:22-36

Sermon

King Duncan

... subtle. In his book The Common Table, John Cowan tells about a young priest friend of his who took over temporary responsibility for the most affluent Episcopal church in the state of Minnesota. He was puzzled by church meetings. On the surface all was well: a perfectly fine group of well-to-do people doing their best to do what was best. But he had the feeling something was going on that he couldn't understand. Unable to bear the ambiguity any longer, he asked an older priest who had been associated with ...

2589. When You Need Help

Matthew 15:21-28

Sermon

King Duncan

... lessons that joy can never know. We discovered that there is a comradeship in pain." Unlike the Canaanite woman, Ronald Meredith did not see his son healed. But he has not quit trusting. He now looks forward to that great day when God's plan for us will be perfected. He believes that one day he will look at Ronnie and say, "Hi, Son," and for the first time Ronnie will respond, "Hi, Dad." They will need a lot of time to talk, for Ronnie has never been able to speak a word. (7) The Canaanite woman saw Jesus ...

2590. Dressed For The Wedding

Matthew 22:1-14

Sermon

King Duncan

... is, we are surprised when somebody mentions it. Notice that the poor man in this story is speechless when the father of the groom confronts him. This man thought the rules didn't apply to him. In fact, he assumed there weren't any rules. He thought it was perfectly all right for him to do his own thing. He had no idea that what he did even mattered to the father of the groom. So when he was confronted, he was totally speechless. This was a theme of some of Jesus' other parables, you'll remember. There will ...

2591. Living With The Birth Pangs

1 Thessalonians 4:13--5:11

Sermon

King Duncan

... take the book of the Revelation literally that Christ is coming to reign for a thousand years at the end of time, doesn't it logically follow that this may be the year? Six thousand years since creation and a final thousand years of Christ's reign would make a perfect ending to history. The world was created in six days and as we all know, a thousand years is as a day in God's eyes. So this year should be it. Unless, of course, you take Jesus seriously when he said that even he did not know when that ...

2592. Teamwork

Nehemiah 1:1-11

Sermon

Rev. Dr. Ward Williams

... a transplant, he had a good chance for a complete recovery. Because of the likelihood of finding a compatible donor was about one in sixty thousand, McFall decided to solicit the help of his relatives. A first cousin was tested and proved to be a perfect match. The cousin, however, refused to go through with the bone marrow transplant even though there was no real danger to himself. McFall went to court and sued his cousin to compel his cooperation, but the court rules against him. Even though the court ...

2593. The Forgiven

Hebrews 10:1-18

Sermon

King Duncan

... a second chance. A year later, a sober and responsible Thomas Lewis moved back into his home. The Lewis' marriage was restored. A few years later, Robert attended a conference where he learned the importance of honoring one's parents, even if they weren't perfect. The conference leader had suggested writing a tribute to one's parents, one that highlighted the good things the parents had done. Robert couldn't get the idea out of his head. He finally sat down and began writing a tribute to his own parents ...

2594. Have You Seen God's Heart?

Revelation 1:4-8

Sermon

King Duncan

... of this country, and most communities had a waving acquaintance with an engineer. But how did one obscure railroad man gain nationwide fame? Casey Jones was the genuine article, a railroad engineer with the Illinois Central. His sterling reputation on the railroad was perfectly complemented by his sterling reputation in the community. But on April 30, 1900, Casey's name would go down in history. On Casey's evening run, he came upon a passenger train that had not pulled fully across the tracks. There was no ...

2595. Bridges Over The River Kwai

John 20:19-23

Sermon

King Duncan

... away wrath." No, he wouldn't mail the letter. Maybe the man was right. English was not his native tongue. Maybe he did need further study in it. Possibly this man had done him a favor by making him realize he did need to work harder on perfecting his English. Kudar tore up the letter and wrote another. This time he apologized for the previous letter, explained his situation, and thanked the man for pointing out his need for further study. Two days later he received a phone call inviting him to New York for ...

2596. What It Means To Be A Family

John 13:31-38

Sermon

King Duncan

... . Love is the path Christ took to win back persons like you and me. Love is the key to unlocking the door of the coldest heart. When Bill Fero's aunt approached him in 1977 about housing a family of Vietnamese refugees, she thought she'd arranged the perfect situation. Bill was a bachelor who lived alone in a spacious farmhouse, so he had plenty of room. He also had firsthand knowledge of Vietnam, as a veteran of the Vietnam War. And Bill's Aunt Rose thought he might enjoy having some help around the farm ...

2597. You Might Be A Redneck If . . .

Acts 2:1-13

Sermon

King Duncan

... they are speaking eloquently in foreign languages! They are speaking in the equivalent of German and French and Arabic and Ethiopian and they are speaking so fluently, that people hearing thempeople who came from all over the known worldunderstand them perfectly in their own tongue. Can you imagine Jed Clampett of the BEVERLY HILLBILLIES suddenly bursting forth in fluent Greek? Can you imagine Gomer Pyle suddenly speaking fluent German? Or HEEHAW'S Junior Sample saying, "Bonjour, Monsieur," as if French ...

2598. Future Tense

Luke 12:54-59

Sermon

King Duncan

... out of their price range. Finally, in tears, Edith prayed that she and Francis would be obedient to living in God's will, even if it meant leaving Switzerland. That very afternoon, a real estate agent took Edith to a large house in another canton. It looked like the perfect place, but it was for sale, not rent. There was no way Edith and Francis could afford it. Yet something told Edith that this was God's will for them. She began to pray for a definite sign that this house was to be theirs. The next day, a ...

2599. Becoming One of the Beautiful People

Luke 14:1-14

Sermon

King Duncan

... you will be honored in front of all the other guests. For everyone who tries to honor himself shall be humbled; and he who humbles himself shall be honored." (NIV) So, it's all right, Jesus says, to want to be one of the beautiful people. It's perfectly natural to want to sit in a honored seat. However, he says, most of us follow the wrong strategy. We puff ourselves up and we think that makes us more beautiful. We couldn't be more wrong. There is nothing more beautiful than genuine humility nothing more ...

2600. We've Been Bragging About You!

2 Thessalonians 1:1-12

Sermon

King Duncan

... : THE LOVE THEY HAVE FOR ONE ANOTHER. "We ought always to thank God for you," he writes, "and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love every one of you has for each other is increasing." The church at Thessalonica was not a perfect church, but it was a loving church, and love can make up for a host of sins. I read something beautiful recently about the oldtime comedy team, Laurel and Hardy. Toward the end of his life, Oliver Hardy suffered a stroke that left him unable to speak ...

Showing results