Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: touch, feel, sense of touch, tactile sense, tactility, contact, using one's hands, sensation, sense, suspicion, sneaking suspicion, notion, inkling, hunch, fancy, apprehension, presentiment, premonition, foreboding, love, care, affection, fondness, tenderness, warmth, warmness, emotion, sentiment, emotional state, compassion, sympathy, empathy, fellow feeling, understanding, concern, solicitude, solicitousness, tender-heartedness, brotherly love, sensibilities, sensitivities, self-esteem, ego, pride, opinion, belief, view, impression, intuition, instinct, estimation, guess, theory, hypothesis, thought, way of thinking, point of view, atmosphere, ambience, aura, air, mood, climate, character, overtone, undertone, tenor, spirit, quality, flavour, colour, aptitude, knack, flair, bent, talent, gift, skill, art, trick, faculty, ability, propensity, inclination, sensitive, warm, warm-hearted, tender, tender-hearted, caring, soft-hearted, sympathetic, compassionate, empathetic, responsive, receptive, intuitive, thoughtful

Antonyms: bad feeling, acrimony, animosity, animus, antagonism, antipathy, aversion, bitterness, detestation, disgust, dislike, disrelish, enmity, friction, grievances, grudges, hatred, hostility, loathing, malevolence, malice

Showing 2751 to 2775 of 3082 results

2751. Ready for God’s Reign

Matthew 25:1-13

Sermon

Chris Ewing

This parable has to be one of the least liked in the whole Bible. It speaks stern words to those who are not ready for the moment of truth — and it leaves uncomfortably vague just what "being ready" might entail. To understand what Matthew interprets Jesus to mean by readiness for the final judgment, we have to read his whole gospel, and in particular the final third of this chapter, that famous scene of the sheep and the goats, which we'll be reading in another two weeks. But already today there is an ...

2752. From “Uh-oh” To “Ah-hah!” — An Axe, A Stump, And A Shoot

Isaiah 11:1-10

Sermon

Tony Everett

One hot summer day, a young pastor decided to change the oil in his automobile for the very first time in his life. He had purchased five quarts of oil, a filter wrench, and a bucket in which to drain the used oil. He carefully and gently drove the car onto the shiny, yellow ramps and eased his way underneath his vehicle. Unfortunately, lying there on his back, all he could see when he looked up was a confusing mass of hoses, wires, and unknown metal objects of various sizes and shapes. Uh-oh! "I'll never ...

2753. The Holy Way

Isaiah 35:1-10

Sermon

Tony Everett

Our text centers on God's promised action in the wilderness. Have you ever seen photographs of the wilderness areas in the land of the Bible; for example today's Israel, Palestine, Syria, Iraq, Iran? The wilderness is a rocky, dry, and barren space. In the same day, temperatures may vary from a blazing 100 degrees Fahrenheit to nearly freezing. Food and water are scarce. Wild beasts and even bandits prowl around seeking to devour unsuspecting travelers. The wilderness can be a very scary and lonely space. ...

2754. Losers, Weepers

Isaiah 49:8-16a

Sermon

Tony Everett

All of us have experienced the pain of loss in many different forms. We have lost wallets or purses; keys or address books; tools or toys. Some of us have even lost our automobiles in crowded parking lots. Have you ever watched young children participating in their first organized athletic competition? Winning brings loud cheers and high fives. Losing brings jeers and tears. Losing hurts. It can be devastating to lose even what seems to be a trivial object or a meaningless game. Losing can often shape the ...

2755. To Be Passed Over

Exodus 12:1-4 (5-10) 11-14

Sermon

Schuyler Rhodes

This ancient story comes down the centuries to us with power. The instructions are clear; the process plain. God is preparing to "pass through" the land of Egypt and this is one time when we would prefer that God pass us by altogether. The blood of the lamb is smeared on the doorpost so that God will know which ones are Egyptians and which ones are not. I was reading this passage to the children and one of them raised a sheepish hand and asked these questions: "If God is God and knows everything, wouldn't ...

2756. Preaching Peace By Jesus Christ ...

Acts 10:34-43

Sermon

Schuyler Rhodes

May the peace of Jesus Christ be with you! May the peace of Jesus Christ be with you! Yes, yes, I know. It's Easter Sunday, and I should be greeting you with the words, "Christ is risen!" And then you all respond with the ancient response, which is, "He is risen, indeed!" This is, after all, the focus of the agenda today, isn't it? Christ is indeed risen from the tomb, and we come — Easter bunnies, colored eggs, and commercialism notwithstanding — to take note of the fact that death has been conclusively ...

2757. Martyrdom Chic

Acts 7:55-60

Sermon

Schuyler Rhodes

This story about Stephen is a hard one to preach about these days. Lately, the idea of martyrdom has fallen under a bit of a cloud, don't you think? What do you think of when you hear about martyrs? In my experience, a martyr is either reduced to a psychological complex foisted off on someone who does too much for others, or it's a poor child with a dynamite vest ready to doom himself or herself and plenty of others for the sake of the cause, and the cash benefits paid to the family, after the fact. There' ...

2758. Forward March

Joshua 3:1-17

Sermon

Timothy J. Smith

It was truly a day of new beginnings as the people prepared to make the long-anticipated entry into the promised land. After the Israelites had spent forty years journeying through the desert, they had finally arrived at this pivotal point in time. To say that there were problems or even setbacks along the way would be an understatement. The people complained about not having enough food and water. Along the way there were some who desired to return to the land of slavery — where life was not great but at ...

2759. A Vision of Hope

Ezekiel 34:11-16, 20-24

Sermon

Timothy J. Smith

Difficult times not only try a person's soul but frequently force a person to step up to a new challenge. Perhaps this has been your experience: You are at a crossroad unsure of which direction to head, so you venture out blazing a new path. Later, when you look back you realize that particular experience was a turning point in your life. There may even be times when something unexpected happens that thrusts you in some new uncharted course. The people living in Ezekiel's day were living in exile, taken ...

2760. In the Balance

Romans 5:12-19

Sermon

David O. Bales

"He started it." You've probably heard that from the backseat or from a distant bedroom. "He started it." If you have a daughter, the variation is, "She started it." Children become more sophisticated as they grow up, but the jostling and blaming continue. Blaming one another is a human trait; that's why it's recorded in the Bible's story of Adam. In Hebrew, the name, Adam, means "humanity" and the name, Eve, means "life." In Genesis, chapter 3, after Adam eats the fruit, he blames Eve and then goes on to ...

2761. Just a Crazy Story

Philippians 2:1-11

Sermon

Larry Lange

Zack had seen the movie. You know, the one with Jim Carrey and Jennifer Aniston — Bruce Almighty. Zack thought it was a pretty cheesy movie ... so predictable ... God helps the guy get the girl. But Zack was thinking, who wants a girl who wants commitment and kids? And who really wants a job? Zack didn't want a job; all he wanted was money. Even oil company executives probably had to do something to make money other than raising prices every time some Middle Eastern king had a toothache. Zack didn't want ...

2762. Living The Faith For Dummies

Luke 10:25-37

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

Did you hear about the would be bank robber who held up a bank while wearing a ski mask. He took the money then demanded car keys from one of the customers. I say he was a would be bank robber because he was apprehended when he came back into the bank, without the ski mask and asked the woman, which key unlocked the door. (1) Or how about the poor guy who went into a pizzeria, ordered a slice, went to pay for it, then robbed the place while the cash register was open. The only problem was, he left his ...

2763. Tears, Perfume and Forgiveness

Luke 7:36-50

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

There was a certain young woman who was nervous about meeting her boyfriend's parents for the first time. As she checked out her appearance one last time, she noticed that her shoes looked dingy. So she gave them a fast swipe with the paper towel she had used to blot the bacon she had for breakfast. Arriving at the impressive home of her potential in-laws, she was greeted by the parents and their much-beloved, but rotten-tempered, poodle, Cleo. Well, the dog got a whiff of the bacon grease on the young ...

2764. 2 Timothy 3:14-4:5

2 Timothy 3:10--4:8

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

Several years ago an episode of “Antiques Roadshow” featured an usual family heirloom. A book was brought in to the experts for appraisal. The “biblio-expert” was amazed. He claimed the volume was the single thickest book he had ever encountered. Although the volume was only about 10” x 8”, the number of pages bound between its boards brought the book’s height to almost eighteen inches. This weird and wonderful old volume was a dictionary — a book devoted to defining all the words all other books would be ...

2765. Eyes To See, Ears To Hear

Matthew 13:1-23

Sermon

James McCormick

Years ago, when I first began the Christian journey, like most people, I understood faith as “belief”. I believe that there is a God, therefore I have faith. Very soon I came to understand that that is not enough. In fact, belief alone can be irrelevant. For example, I may believe that there is intelligent life somewhere out there in space. But, so what? That has nothing to do with how I live my life every day. It’s irrelevant. Just so, many people believe that there is a God, but that belief does not ...

2766. Full Body Scans or Re-spect Spectacles

Romans 13:8-14

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

How many of you have had the experience of being stripped naked before a room full of strangers? Anyone here this morning ever been strip-searched? You have if you’re a frequent flier. You have if you’ve recently flown through any of the sixty-plus airports that now use “full body scans” as part of their security procedures. Just as the “shoe bomber” made it a requirement for all of us to pad around barefoot on grungy airport floors, the “underwear bomber” has led to the use of these virtual strip-down ...

2767. Romans 15:4-13

Romans 14:1--15:13

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

America has always been a “start over” place. Even a “do-over” place for failures and rejects who have found their way into this land of new opportunity and new possibility. The great oxymoron of Christmas is that just as the dead of winter descends, we celebrate a new birth, a new beginning, a new reason and relationship never before experienced in human history. Christmas is the ultimate “do-over.” Christmas is God’s “reboot” button for humanity. And it arrives when we least expect it. As the ...

2768. Matthew 2:13-23

Matthew 2:13-18

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

Whenever you are arguing a point, it adds power to your position if you can cite other sources that support your view. This is Matthew’s method as he presents his case for the birth of Jesus the Messiah. Matthew’s first chapter was devoted to the “who” revealing the “who” of Jesus and providing the child’s human genealogy and the truth about his divine conception by the Holy Spirit. Matthew’s second chapter is devoted to the “where” tracing the “where” of this new Messiah’s early earthly life. At every ...

2769. Act Quickly - Catch It Early

Matthew 5:21-26

Sermon

King Duncan

Some of you may be familiar with the Darwin Awards. People are nominated for the Darwin Awards when they do something really stupid that costs them their lives. The reason that they are called the Darwin Awards is that by offing themselves in such an absurd way, it is suggested that these misguided folks have inadvertently improved the gene pool for rest of humanity. It’s a cynical view of life, but it has led to a collection of stories that are both true and bizarre. For example, there is the story of a ...

2770. Like

Romans 5:12-21

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

Happy Lent! Oops! No such thing. Of course not. Lent is a solemn season, full of serious stuff. We run special educational courses during Lent. Baptismal candidates are on their “cram course” during Lent. Practicing Christians are supposed to be more intentionally focused on one’s prayer life during Lent. We “give up” things for Lent — chocolates, meat, sweets, smoking, bad TV shows. Forty days is long enough to learn something new, miss something old, and change some habits. Unfortunately, it is not so ...

2771. A Lesson from Dr. Seuss

Romans 6:1-14

Sermon

King Duncan

“Congratulations, today’s your day. You’re off to great places. You’re off and away. You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose.” Those rhythmic words of advice come from the delightful little book by Dr. Seuss titled Oh, the Places You’ll Go! (1) “You’re on your own,” he continues. “And you know what you know. And YOU are the one who’ll decide where to go.” It’s up to us, says Dr. Seuss. The world is ours and we are free to choose what kind ...

2772. A “No Surprises” Easter

John 20:1-18

Sermon

David E. Leininger

Why do so many millions gather for worship on Easter morning? No doubt there are millions of answers to that question, but I suspect that one of the appeals of an Easter day is that the story is so consistent and has been from the beginning. The last thing we would expect as we listen to the gospel lesson for the day would be ... Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. With great fear and ...

2773. Time’s A-Wasting

Mark 1:14-20

Sermon

Robert J. Elder

Just when everything seems as normal as can be ... in fact, just when we almost break into wide yawns from the dull normalcy of it all, that's when something outside our control can break in with a word or experience that changes everything — perhaps forever. Do you remember when the earthquake hit the San Francisco Bay area in 1989, causing the famous collapse of the double-decker Bay Bridge? Its rumbling effect was felt far beyond the Bay area, insisting itself into the consciousness of everyone ...

2774. The Elephant in The Living Room

Mark 8:31-38

Sermon

John Smylie

There are times when we do everything we can to avoid the obvious. Some realities that we face are so difficult that we will make every effort to deny their presence. Once again, Peter, a bold and wonderful character full of humanity, so much like us, is the fall guy for this gospel text. He is the one who gives voice to the disciples' concerns about Jesus teaching that, "the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after ...

2775. We Wish to See Jesus

John 12:20-33

Sermon

John Smylie

"Sir, we wish to see Jesus" (v. 21). This was the request of the Greeks who had come to worship at a festival in Jerusalem. These were Gentiles, non-Jews, who likely showed up at the Jewish Passover and other festivals because they intuitively felt that the God of Israel was the true God. Their own philosophies and religious systems must not have been satisfying to them for it seems they knew that there was more to be found. It appears they felt that Israel desired to discover answers to their deepest ...

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