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 251 to 275 of 606 results

251. Open the Eyes of My Heart, Lord

Ephesians 1:15-23

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... and bonds wallpapering a safe deposit box, or the gleam of jewelry in a vault. But such a legacy is as fleeting as life itself. A few bad investments, a taste for drugs or alcohol, a fire, hurricane, or tsunami, and all those carefully acquired things can vanish. If things were the only measure of our lives' value, that value could easily be obliterated. Today's epistle lesson addresses the church in Ephesians with a prayer of thanksgiving. But the text is far more concerned with precisely detailing what ...

252. What's Your Status Symbol?

Acts 10:23b-48

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... is your net worth; status is your stock price. In the world of language, class is about accent; status is about vocabulary. The former is hard to change; the later is liable to fluctuate from hour to hour. Class is inherited; status is acquired." (Andrew Sullivan, "Status in a Class-free Society: What We Look Up To Now," New York Times Sunday Magazine, 15 November 1998, 60. Our constantly changing, shifting icons of status differ from north to south, city to city, neighborhood to neighborhood. What boosts ...

253. The Oneness of Twoness

Romans 14:1--15:13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... , almost scientific description of lightning, which brings together the two poles of the negative and the positive: “When lightening strikes the earth we only see the vivid bolt flashing down from the clouds. This is the negative charge of electricity. The earth acquires a positive charge from the clouds above it. The positive charge leaps up from the earth and the negative charge strikes down from the heavens. They ‘kiss’ in a super-hot blaze of electrical fire.” Peppler then goes on to bring the ...

254. Patience

James 5:7-12

Sermon

King Duncan

... manuscript, which he had hidden in the lining of his coat, was taken away. He inherited the worn out rags of another inmate who had been sent to the gas chamber. Said Frankl. “Instead of the many pages of my manuscript, I found in the pocket of the newly acquired coat a single page torn out of a Hebrew prayer book, which contained the Shema, the daily Jewish prayer. That is the prayer that goes, “Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is one God. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and ...

255. Follow Me…

Matthew 4:1-11

Illustration

Samuel G. Candler

... can cast a long way, but their accuracy is awful. There may be fish on the right, but they know only how to cast the line to the left. There may be fish on the left, but they keep casting to the right. Casting, like discipleship, is an acquired habit. It rewards practice. Fishing is noticing the weather, watching the wind and the clouds. Fishing, like the gospel, dear friends, like the gospel, fishing is always practiced in context. It does no good to sit at one lake and wish I was on some other lake. It ...

256. Advent 4

Psalm 80:1-19, Isaiah 7:1-25, Romans 1:1-17, Matthew 1:18-25

Sermon Aid

Marion L. Soards, Thomas B. Dozeman, Kendall McCabe

... , "I will not ask, and I will not put the LORD to the test." The text closes in vv. 13-17 with a prophetic sign meant to confirm the reliability of the messianic promises and unmask the king's unbelief. The prophet's sign in vv. 13-17 acquires its meaning in the larger context of siege warfare. With the countryside already ransacked and the royal court eating the last of their stored food before starvation sets in, Isaiah gives a sign that affirms life in the midst of what appears to be certain death and ...

257. Epiphany 4

Psalm 15:1-5, Micah 6:1-8, 1 Corinthians 1:18--2:5, Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon Aid

Marion L. Soards, Thomas B. Dozeman, Kendall McCabe

... has brought into existence. Thus the prophet's call for Israel to do justice and to love steadfast kindness is not first and foremost a call for human actions that might atone us before God in a court. Rather, they are qualities that we acquire from God through salvation (and thus already know), and in living them out we walk with God. The setting in the cult should prevent any interpreter from asserting that Micah, as an eighth century "ethical" prophet, is against the covenantal demands or obligations of ...

258. Lent 5

John 11:1-45 · Romans 8:6-11 · Ezekiel 37:1-14 · Psalm 130

Sermon Aid

Marion L. Soards, Thomas B. Dozeman, Kendall McCabe

... decision is that it allows the movie of the exile to be reversed. No longer are these people anti-heroes who are moving away from the land and from the presence of God. Rather, with God leaving the land to journey with Israel, the people once again acquire direction and hope, because God is now able to lead them back to the promised land of rest. For the prophet Ezekiel this is no less than a resurrection story. In preaching this text it may be helpful to explore situations or persons in your community ...

259. It's Thanksgiving Time!

Psalm 100:1-5

Sermon

James W. Moore

... but even more I was impressed by what he said about it. He said: "The surest way to be enriched is to share freely what you have, whether it be money, love, appreciation or devotion to a worth cause. Most people spend so much of their lives acquiring financial security that they never develop skill in giving money away. Too late they discover that giving is the greatest joy in life." He goes on to say: "We should be more generous… and to my mind the church is the most worthy recipient in meeting human ...

260. Good and Bad "Magical Thinking"

Acts 17:16-34

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... Virginia Tech after the shootings. The piano is put on public display, with its pedigree, open for any and all to sit down and plunk out a few notes, to seek out a bit of solace in its noteworthy presence. No matter how much scientific knowledge we acquire about the world we live in, physical reality is never enough. The human spirit knows there is always more to be revealed, that there is something more out there if we could only lift the veil. Paul’s speech to the Athenians gathered at the elite Court ...

261. Good and Bad “Magical Thinking”

Acts 17:22-31

Illustration

Leonard Sweet

... to Virginia Tech after the shootings. The piano is put on public display, with its pedigree, open for any and all to sit down and plunk out a few notes, to seek out a bit of solace in its noteworthy presence. No matter how much scientific knowledge we acquire about the world we live in, physical reality is never enough. The human spirit knows there is always more to be revealed, that there is something more out there if we could only lift the veil. Paul's speech to the Athenians gathered at the elite Court ...

262. The Play's Playbook for the Game of Life

1 Peter 4:12-19

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... 68 AD the “Devil” even had a name: Nero. “Once upon a time there was a little boy who was told that he would be a god when he grew up, or maybe sooner. As things turned out, it was sooner. When he was seventeen, his father died and he acquired the world, a package deal that at the time included divinity. So he murdered his little brother and his mother, turned over the busywork to some old politicians, and got on with the business of playing god. The time was A.D. 54. The place was Rome. The boy’s ...

263. If I Only Had One Wish

2 Chronicles 1:1-12

Sermon

James Merritt

... intelligence, it is also a matter of moral integrity. It is not coincidental that the words wise and wisdom are used at least one hundred and twenty-five times in Proverbs. Because, as Warren Wiersbe put it, "The aim of the book is to help us acquire and apply God's wisdom to the decisions and activities of daily life."10 The primary word used for wisdom is hokmah, which occurs forty-five times. It literally means "skill." It is used in the Bible to describe people who were skilled in working with their ...

264. Let Me Tell You about the Birds and the Bees

Proverbs 5:15-23

Sermon

James Merritt

... contract a venereal disease including 6,000 teenagers. Twenty years ago there were four types of STDs among teenagers; today there are over thirty.12 At the present rate, one in four Americans, between the ages of 15 and 55, eventually will acquire an STD. Rather than say anything else, I will let a medical doctor speak: The sexual revolution is over, said Dennis Maki, Director of University of Wisconsin's Infectious Disease Department. In a New York Daily News article, Dr. Maki said, "Having promiscuous ...

265. Is Your Conscience Clear?

1 Timothy 1:18-19

Sermon

James Merritt

... free medical treatment. He also had some teeth that needed filling, so he knew he would get proper dental care. He also wanted to spend time in prison getting "buffed out." That is, building up his body by lifting weights. But before he went in, he had to acquire a "rep", a reputation. He looked at Chief Vernon and said, "Now I will be known as the enforcer." Now listen to what Chief Vernon writes: What we see so clearly in CoolAid's case, is one of the root problems destroying our society and families; the ...

266. A Bridge over Troubled Waters

Psalm 23:2

Sermon

James Merritt

... the gift of God.” God wants us to enjoy what we work for. But we can be trying so hard to get more that we don’t enjoy what we’ve got. One of the reasons why we have such stress is because we’ve got this massive desire to acquire. We’re trying to keep up with the Joneses, and we don’t realize they’ve either just refinanced or filed for bankruptcy. “Take time to smell the roses” is not just an old saying. It really is biblical. A shepherd knows that even sheep have to take a break ...

267. Acres of Diamonds

Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52

Illustration

... search of diamonds. But the former farmer never finds his fortune, and he dies as a poverty-stricken, heart-broken man. But it just so happens that the fellow who purchased the farm from the fortune seeker was one day crossing a stream on his newly acquired property when he found a big, beautiful rock. The fellow placed this strange rock on the fireplace mantel. Several weeks later a visitor noticed the rock and just about fell over. He recognized that this wasn't just an ordinary rock; it was a diamond. In ...

268. Getting It Straight

1 Corinthians 6:12-20

Sermon

Donald Charles Lacy

... successfully retrieved, we are to remember we were bought with a price. In the United States of America we are blessed with opportunities beyond the imaginations of millions living in other countries. Often they see our standard of living as something to acquire. In our inadequacy we tend to allow them to measure us in material success. How wrong this is! Perhaps this is where solid media emphasizing Christian unity and inter-religious dialogue come into play. Don't misunderstand me, some really good things ...

269. Looking to the Unseen

2 Corinthians 4:18

Sermon

Maurice A. Fetty

... Preparation for success in business or profession is uppermost while the development of an adequate philosophy of life tends to be ignored. Consider the practical level in marriage and family. Many couples, newly married, expend extraordinary amounts of energy to acquire material success and physical comfort. But at the same time they frequently neglect each other on the spiritual, emotional, personal level. Many a marriage has long since become empty and boring because husbands and wives, in pursuit of the ...

270. Like a Child

Hebrews 4:1—5:10

Sermon

Lee Ann Dunlap

... you need." "Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." Let's stop trying to manipulate God's favor and instead trust in God's generosity. Let's stop laboring to acquire for ourselves what God has promised to provide in due time. "Let us hold firmly to the faith we profess." Let us pray with the confidence of children.

271. The Unshakable Foundation

Hebrews 7:23-28

Sermon

Lee Ann Dunlap

... and destined for another marriage. The house on the beach is the property of yet another couple searching for their dream. John's story plays like a modern tragic romance — two people seeking to find their dream in each other and in the things they yearn to acquire, and losing it all in the contest with fate. Flannery O'Connell could hardly write it better. But John's story is true-life — perhaps not unfamiliar to you or someone you know. The house and the man are real, and they stand as a reminder to ...

272. Practicing God’s Presence

Hebrews 10:11-25

Sermon

Lee Ann Dunlap

... us from God in the past: the emotional garbage others have laid on us and the sin garbage we have created ourselves. All of it has been swept away by Christ's life and death and resurrection! So if we no longer are required to invest our lives in acquiring our own salvation, what is left for us to do? Worship! What's left for us to do? Abide in God’s presence. Make passionate love with God in each and every daily task, and passionately love and encourage each and every person who crosses our path along ...

273. It’s Good to Know Who Is Calling

1 Samuel 3:1-10 (11-20)

Sermon

Schuyler Rhodes

... a parakeet. The bird's name was "Beauty." Beauty was a bird like most. She spent her life in the cage poking at a mirror and whistling while my mom played classical music. She was quite tame, and we all loved playing with her. One special skill that she acquired, however, was whistling. In fact, she was able to perfectly copy the whistle that my dad used to call our pet dog. It was amazing. You really couldn't tell whether it was my dad or the bird whistling. Neither could the dog. Often, two or three times ...

274. The Job Description of a Leader

2 Samuel 23:1-7

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... in the world, every one of its members must begin to act and think like leaders. Leadership is not for the few and the special, the exception rather than the expected. Whether this mysterious thing called "leadership" comes naturally or is an acquired talent, every Christian must come to terms with it. A biblical style of leadership and language of leadership must become endemic in the church. In the Old Testament and Gospel lessons for this week both David and Jesus illustrate the mysterious qualities ...

275. New Beginnings

John 1:1-18

Sermon

King Duncan

... country. This means that every normal baby’s brain is capable of learning millions of potential languages.” (4) Think about that a few moments and you will realize what an amazing thing that is. Given the proper environment, the human creature is capable of acquiring an amazing amount of information and skills in a short time. It is truly sad that so much of this potential is neglected. By the way, parents should not give up on a child who seems lacking in potential. Albert Einstein couldn’t speak ...

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