Sermon and Worship Resources

Antonyms: keep, claim, continue, stick by, self-control, power through, achieve, defend, bear, hope, acquire, quick visit, adopt, continue along, adhere, remain, pursue, support, take up, keep up, reuse, advocate, stay, persevere, cherish, keep going, carry on

Showing 2626 to 2650 of 4963 results

2626. Other Voices

John 10:11-18

Illustration

John M. Braaten

... water from a brook. After an exchange of greetings, one of the shepherds turned toward the sheep and called out, "Manah. Manah. Manah." (Manah means "follow me" in Arabic.) Immediately his sheep separated themselves from the rest and followed him. Then one of the two remaining shepherds called out, "Manah. Manah." and his sheep left the common flock to follow him. The traveler then said to the third shepherd, "I would like to try that. Let me put on your cloak and turban and see if I can get the rest ...

2627. Are You Pentecostal?

Acts 2:1-21

Sermon

Brett Blair

... the church supposed to use the word Pentecost only as a noun or can it be used as an adjective? And so I ask you: Are you Pentecostal? In spite of the fact that the church doesn't know what the adjective means, the church insists that the word remain in our vocabulary as an adjective. The church is unwilling for the word simply to be a noun, to represent a date, a place, an event in the history of the church, refuses for it to be simply a memory, an item, something back there somewhere. The church insists ...

2628. Nicodemus

John 3:1-21

Sermon

Brett Blair

... [the church door]—I ask myself are you going cause you have to or are you going cause you’re called to? Did Nicodemus ever come to a saving faith in Christ? Tradition says that he did, but we do not know for sure. It is certainly possible that he remained on the fringe. Millions do. But I like to think that once a person has truly looked into the eyes of Jesus nothing can ever really be the same. One of the best photographs from the WWII era is a photo of King George the VI inspecting a bombed out ...

2629. All Things Well

Mark 7:24-30, Mark 7:31-37

Drama

Robert F. Crowley

... meeting. A casual greeting, And then the man is leading Others to Him. Entreating, Those who are needing Someone who can be feeding Them the kingdom news. He only laid on hands, And stuck his fingers in the deaf man's ears, And years Of isolation and pain Did not remain. The reign Of God is here. Jesus is walking near. Do not fear. It is clear. He wants to help us. He cares for all. He'll tear down the wall That surrounds us all. He's found our hurt and healed it. He revealed it, Repealed the pain, the ...

2630. Planting People

2 Samuel 7:1-17

Bulletin Aid

Dallas A. Brauninger

... promises to humankind encourage and sustain us. We are grateful. Amen. Prayer of Confession When we move on in our lives, we sometimes think, dear God, that we have left you behind as we have left behind everything else. Everything in our lives has changed and yet you remain constant. Let us not become so busy, so tired, or so preoccupied that we fail to make a place for you in our lives. Strengthen our resolve to go ahead with what we have in mind because you still are with us. Through the Spirit of God ...

2631. Spirit of Wisdom

Ephesians 4:17--5:21

Bulletin Aid

Dallas A. Brauninger

... Confession Dear God, we have already wasted more time than we want to admit. We pray not only for ourselves but particularly for the younger ones among us that they might gain early wisdom to realize that decisions made now will determine the physical, mental, and spiritual quality of their remaining life. Guide us all as wisdom, O God. Amen. Hymns "Come, Holy Spirit, Heavenly Dove" "Spirit Of The Living God" "Be Thou My Vision" "Christ Be My Leader"

2632. Cosmic Powers

Ephesians 6:10-20

Bulletin Aid

Dallas A. Brauninger

... , we can move beyond the drought, earthquake, and tornado. Leader: With the whole armor of God, we can overcome death of the soul. Collect The qualities of truth, peace, righteousness, faith, and salvation are your words, O God. Never out-of-date, let them remain our words, strengthening and fortifying us for living in these days. For the sake of Christ. Amen. Prayer of Confession Remind us amidst discouragement, O God, that your power is stronger than the evil presence in our world. Remind us, O God, even ...

2633. The Advent Hope

Romans 14:1--15:13

Sermon

T. A. Kantonen

... string with her hand, and her head is bent toward it, earnestly waiting to catch the note of that one string. All the strings on which we play the melody of life are indeed destined to break - health, peace, security, finally life itself. There remains only one string - Jesus Christ our hope, Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today, and forever. The gospel proclaims the fulfillment of the Messianic hope, for in Christ the Kingdom of God has already come, but it also points to its full consummation in the ...

2634. Easter People

Colossians 3:1-17

Sermon

T. A. Kantonen

... Christ in God." The same almighty God who raised Christ from the dead works in and through you. The Christian church came into being because the miracle of Christ’s resurrection was duplicated in the lives of his disciples. It did not remain an isolated solitary event. The risen Christ raised his people to share his triumph. He transformed a band of frightened trembling cowards into heroic witnesses and living examples of his resurrection power. This duplication of Easter has been from the beginning and ...

2635. The Holy Trinity

John 16:5-16

Sermon

T. A. Kantonen

... and three persons, we could say in today’s language: The Trinity is the revelation of God, given in Christ, and continuing to operate in the Holy Spirit. God is one, not in the sense of barren arithmetic but in a higher and richer threefold sense in which God remains the one true God even though he reveals himself to us in Christ and continues to communicate himself to us in the Holy Spirit. God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, the Son of God is our Lord and Redeemer, and the Holy Spirit ...

2636. The Priesthood of All Believers

1 Peter 2:4-12

Sermon

T. A. Kantonen

... This truth was brought home to me in a conversation with a pastor in East Germany shortly after the close of World War II. We discussed the Pentecost proclamation which Dibelius, the courageous bishop of Berlin, had just issued, urging the church to remain firm in the face of Communist persecution. I took for granted that maintaining such a stand was the most important task confronting the German Christians living under Russian occupation. But the German pastor said, "While that is important, it is not our ...

2637. True Freedom

John 8:31-41

Sermon

T. A. Kantonen

... we celebrate the signing of the Declaration of Independence, we need a new and sincere declaration of dependence on the God of our fathers, without whom we shall not long enjoy the liberty of which we boast. A foreign student was asked whether she would remain in America after she completed her study program. This was her reply: "You Americans meet when and where you please. You speak as freely as you like, either in criticism or praise of persons and ideas. You have newspapers that give you full accounts ...

2638. The Gospel for Labor Day

Matthew 20:1-16

Sermon

T. A. Kantonen

... ’s Spirit. As Leslie Weatherhead points out in his interpretation of this parable, we cannot build an industrial or political program on the ideals of God’s kingdom "in a world in which pagan men work out pagan purposes for pagan ends." if we insist on remaining heathen in our everyday life, the kingdom of God will not work. Systems as well as souls must be changed if we are to be Christians both in our work and our worship. Rudyard Kipling was not a theologian but he captured something of the spirit ...

2639. When Jesus Speaks Your Name

John 20:10-18

Sermon

Gregory J. Johanson

... moment of recognition come. It was the power of his one word coming to her that set her free - "Mary!" 3) Finally, even after she found Christ, she was not totally free. Her new life had been given a new orientation - yet plenty of the old remained. We see this in her response to Christ. She exclaimed, "Rabboni" - "Teacher." She uses, understandably enough, an old, familiar Hebrew category to try to comprehend a novel event in the history of the world. She is trying to place new wine in old wineskins. So ...

2640. The Flow of Life

Ecclesiastes 3:1-22

Sermon

Gregory J. Johanson

... and there sluggish, here clear and there turbid; cold in winter and warm in summer. The same may be said of men. Every man bears within himself the germs of every human quality, displaying all in turn; and a man can often seem unlike himself - yet he still remains the same man.1 That seems to be the way it is with all of us. Things are generally in motion, whether we recognize it or not. It often surprises me to discover that specific people change and grow. I know that people change, of course. After all ...

2641. In Praise of Feeling Guilty

Psalm 51:1-19

Sermon

Gregory J. Johanson

... is predetermined by the environment and thus involuntary. Free will was denied - and token economies and behavior mod and programmed learning blossomed everywhere. In many situations the effectiveness of these approches is astounding, and it is at our own peril if we remain unaware of the truths contained in these discoveries. Don’t kid yourself - they work! Temporarily, at least. That we believe it, in part at least, is shown by our concern for our "sick society" and its effect on persons - and our ...

2642. You Missed the Mark, Peter

Mark 8:27-30, Mark 8:31--9:1

Bulletin Aid

Dallas A. Brauninger

Call to Worship You got it right, Peter, when you answered Jesus saying, "You are the Messiah," but you blundered, Peter, by scolding Jesus. Collect Strengthen us to face what we must face, O God, knowing that you will remain by our side. Bring to us those who will call us to the reality of what will happen and to the honesty of consequences. In the name of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Prayer of Confession How often, O God, we start out right, then become self-protective when we hear ...

2643. Hold Fast

1 Thessalonians 5:12-28

Bulletin Aid

Dallas A. Brauninger

... , O God, we hear again our responsibility in receiving the Christ Child. We affirm wanting to do our part to make ready for the holy birth. Amen. Prayer of Confession In our hearts, O God, we know what is right. In these days of many distractions, we would remain focused on what is just, moral, and honest. Help us to screen our words and actions through the teachings of Jesus. Guide our lives as we try to stay faithful to the good. For the sake of our Savior. Amen. Hymns "Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence ...

2644. Christ, Our Eternal High Priest

Hebrews 7:11-28

Bulletin Aid

James Wilson

... worship! People: Christ is our high priest who stands for us before the throne of God. Leader: And, unlike all other high priests, Christ is without sin and is eternal. People: And the gift of God's love for us is also perfect and eternal. Leader: Then let our faith remain pure and strong as we come to praise God. All: Blessed be the name of the Lord! Collect O God, in the gift of Christ and the resurrection You have given us a message of eternity, and You have called us to fear no more and follow You. O ...

2645. The Three Poison Pills of Position, Prestige, and Power

Mark 10:35-45

Sermon

Brett Blair

... Simon Peter bought the boat, and on one warm afternoon when the crowds pressed in, Jesus himself climbed aboard that small fishing boats that he might preach good news to the multitudes. The third tree also was deprived of its dream. It wanted to remain standing tall and pointing toward God. Instead, it was cut down and shaped into a horrible instrument of torture, a cross. But it was on that very cross that Jesus was crucified, transforming a symbol of cruelty into a powerful reminder of God's eternal ...

2646. Lord, I Want To See

Mark 10:46-52

Sermon

Brett Blair

... the knowledge of her impending death. The day that she chooses to live over is her twelfth birthday. Her mother is pre-occupied with preparations for the celebration. Her father returns home from work exhausted. Only Emily is aware of the few precious moments now remaining. She pleads: Momma, just look at me once as though you really saw me." But her mother pays no attention. Emily can only relive the day; she cannot change anything. She goes to her father and tries to talk to him, but he is busy reading ...

2647. Ready or Not - Here I Come

Mark 13:32-37

Sermon

John R. Brokhoff

... work shall not eat." When Jesus returns suddenly and unexpectedly, what will he find you doing? Will he find you with your guard down? Will he find you pilfering a money drawer? They say that the volcano which engulfed Pompeii came so suddenly that today they find the remains of people in the very act of doing their chores: baking, sewing, sweeping. When Jesus comes, will he find you taking a nap? Will he find you in sin like the husband who was on a trip to Bermuda with another woman and died from a heart ...

2648. You Don't Need Jesus

John 1:19-28

Sermon

John R. Brokhoff

... , and love. Because of Christ man has freedom at last -- freedom from self, Satan, and sin. The way is open to a full, free life in Christ. Now, brother, that's what you call "good news"! All of this witnessing by John the Baptist is wonderful. But the question remains why there is still so much sin in the world, more than ever it seems. We ask why, if what we said is true, there is so much guilt in the world. People are generally not happy and they live in misery caused by sin. What the world needs ...

2649. The Long Lonliness

Romans 13:8-14

Sermon

Maurice A. Fetty

... where do they all come from? "There is nothing more alone in the universe than man," says anthropologist and humanist Loren Eiseley. "He has entered into the strange world of history, of social and intellectual change, while his brothers of the field and forest remain subject to the invisible laws of biological evolution ... Man, by contrast, is alone with the knowledge of his history until the day of his death" (The Star Thrower, p. 37). So it is, Eiseley would suggest, that we have been thrust out of the ...

2650. A Voice to be Heard

John 1:19-28

Sermon

Maurice A. Fetty

... and drug enforcement program has been inconsequential in stemming the flow of drugs or curbing their use. Legalize drugs and we may experience a huge drop in burglaries, maimings, muggings, vandalisms, and murders. Many of us cringe at such ideas because we know we have remained silent when we should have spoken out. Oh, John, you God-fearing, fire-spitting ascetic. You make us shudder. We are afraid to listen to you, yet we are afraid not to. You judge us like T.S. Eliot, "As the hollow men/The stuffed ...

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