Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 2826 to 2850 of 4934 results

2826. Peter’s Net

Luke 5:1-11

Sermon

Richard F. Bansemer

The sermon is from the fifth chapter of St. Luke, verses 4 and 5: "... (Jesus) said to Simon, ‘Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.’ And Simon answered, ‘Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.’ " Unless someone here is extremely wealthy, and very lucky, and easily contented, each of us has wanted something in our lives, but could not have it. Usually we can have whatever we wish, if the wish is reasonable and reachable. But there are ...

2827. The Waiting Game

Sermon

James Bjorge

Rembrandt said that a picture is finished when it expresses the artist’s intention. Until that time it is incomplete. Dr. Harry Emerson Fosdick once commented, "God is not the God of unfinished business." It is another way of expressing that what God starts, he completes. God doesn’t amuse himself by blowing soap bubbles and then in a mood of great glee watching them burst. Paul has captured this idea in a profound way. He sees the creation in captivity since the fall and it is waiting for release ... for ...

2828. Using our Special Talents

Romans 12:6-8

Children's Sermon

Wesley T. Runk

Object: Cup, scissors, picture. Good morning, boys and girls. How are you on this beautiful winter morning? Winter must be a very special season for God, because He decorates His earth with snow and beautiful cloud formations in the heavens. It is wonderful how the various seasons do different things and make us feel differently. It makes me think of some good friends around my house that have special jobs. Let me show you what I mean. First of all there is my friend, Charley Cup. [Hold up cup, admiring it ...

2829. How Can You Tell When People Are Religious?

Mark 2:18-22

Sermon

Daniel G. Mueller

For seven days King David fasted. Day and night he went without food as he prayed desperately for the life of his newborn child. The baby had been born as a result of his affair with Bathsheba, an adulterous affair that had led to the murder of Bathsheba’s husband. From the moment the baby was born, it was evident the child’s life was hanging by a slim thread. So David prayed for the life of the child. He prayed with great intensity. He fasted as part of his prayers, hoping that by his petitions and by his ...

2830. Making It Last

Luke 3:1-20

Sermon

Timothy J. Smith

The excitement is mounting on this the third Sunday in Advent. That long awaited day will soon be here. Jesus will soon be reborn into our lives. We have looked forward to Christmas Day for two weeks. Children count down the days, waiting as patiently as they can for Christmas Day. But what do we do the day after Christmas? Are there ways to make Christmas last longer than one day? Once there was a little girl who loved Christmas so much that she wanted it to be Christmas every day of the year. This little ...

2831. No Price Too High

Luke 14:25-35

Sermon

King Duncan

Some years ago TIME magazine asked a group of Americans to rate one hundred famous events in history as to their significance. The results of that poll are quite amazing. Number one was Columbus' discovery of America. Three events tied for fourteenth on the list: the discovery of X-rays, the Wright brother's first plane flight, and the crucifixion of Jesus. Notice that: Jesus tied for fourteenth. That poll indicates that you and I have not done a very good job of communicating to the world the meaning of ...

2832. Like A Big Happy Family

1 Peter 3:8-22

Sermon

King Duncan

It was just after Ben Franklin's kite flying days. Some Frenchmen were experimenting with electricity. They wanted to know how fast it moves. The Abbot of a large monastery volunteered his monks for the experiment. The monks had taken a vow of obedience so they had no choice. They lined up a thousand of the monks, each holding the hand of those next to him. Then the electric current was applied to the first man in line, and according to an account of this experiment, every one of those 1,000 monks jumped ...

2833. Secrets Shared for the Journey of Life

Philippians 4:10-20

Sermon

Eric Ritz

Dr. Fred Craddock tells of growing up during the depression and how often money was not in great supply for his family. The family had to move to town to seek work. Every able family member tried to find some work to earn money. The family kept a cigar box on the kitchen table where all the funds that were earned were kept in order that his mother could pay the rent and buy the necessary food items. However, once in a while his Dad, on a Friday night, would take the money and go to town and buy his wife a ...

2834. Simeon's Song

Luke 2:21-40

Sermon

Mark Trotter

We heard Simeon sing his song this morning not only in the gospel lesson, but in the anthem, in the beautiful and dramatic piece from Randall Thompson's, The Nativity According to St. Luke, interpreted wonderfully this morning by Ronald Banks. It is appropriately heard as a song, because Luke divides the story of the birth of Jesus into several acts, each act with dialogue, and a song, the way an opera has arias. One scene even has angels singing. We are familiar with most of these scenes. The Annunciation ...

2835. Someone Is Trying to Get Through

Acts 10:34-43

Sermon

James L. Killen

Someone is trying to get through to you. Someone with an important message for you is trying to get in touch with you. It would be greatly to your advantage to make contact with the one who is trying to get through to you. That is what Epiphany is all about. This is the season of Epiphany in the church year. "Epiphany" is a Greek word that means the showing forth of God, or God's self-revelation. Epiphany means that God is trying to get through to us to make God's self known to us, to help us experience ...

2836. Doing Well and Doing Good

Romans 13:8-14

Sermon

Jeff Wedge

There is a cliché thrown around the business world that states that people should do well by doing good. This translates into a rationale for doing works of charity and for being generous to employees, customers, and communities. The reason for these good deeds is to engender good feeling and, in the long run, to make more money, in other words, to do well. By being good to employees, costs for recruitment and training and replacement will be greatly reduced. By being good to customers, there will be ...

2837. This Is Not the Race I Entered

Mark 8:27-38

Sermon

Mark Trotter

The scripture lesson for this morning comes from the Gospel of Mark, right in the mid-point of the story. It is the hinge on which the plot turns. Mark has a wonderful symmetry to his gospel. The turning point comes in the exact middle of the narrative. There are sixteen chapters in the Gospel of Mark, and this scene comes in the eighth chapter. Behind us in the first seven chapters are the halcyon days in Galilee, those three years in which he gathered his disciples and taught them. Ahead of us now are ...

2838. Thanks Be to God

Deuteronomy 26:1-15

Sermon

Richard Gribble

Once upon a time there was a woodcutter who spent the majority of every day in the woods. He knew every trail and basically every inch of the forest. One day the woodcutter was preparing to fell a tree when he heard a cooing sound not far away. He followed the sound and found two white doves that were caught in a wooden trap. He felt sorry for the birds and thus opened the trap door and allowed them to fly to freedom. He then returned to his job of felling the tree and forgot all about the birds. As the ...

2839. To Be a Christian

Acts 11:19-30

Sermon

James McCormick

In the earliest days of the Christian movement, the followers of Jesus were not called Christians. They were called “followers of the way”. Jesus had said, “I am the way”, so they were followers of “the way”. The book of Acts tells us that the disciples were called Christians for the first time in Antioch. We use that term, “Christian” a lot. But what does it mean? That’s what this sermon is about. First, let’s talk about what it does not mean. It does not mean simply that you have been baptized and you ...

2840. Murder in the First Degree

Matthew 5: 21-26

Sermon

James Merritt

We are in the middle of a series of messages I've entitled "The Only Way to Live." It is based on the greatest sermon ever preached in history – the Sermon on the Mount. Up to this point in the sermon, Jesus has been very general in his comments but now he gets very specific. He addresses six critical areas where what goes on in the inside of a person is far more important than what occurs on the outside of a person. He is going to be dealing with murder, adultery, divorce, honesty, revenge, and loving ...

2841. Baptism: The Common Call To Holiness

Mark 1:4-11

Sermon

Richard Gribble

Once upon a time long ago a young man decided to become a saint. He left his home, family, and possessions and journeyed into the hot sands of the desert where he eventually found a dark cave. He thought, "I can find God here. I will be alone and nothing will disturb me." He prayed day and night in the cave, but God sent him many temptations. He imagined all the good things in life and wanted them desperately, but he was determined to give up everything and be with God alone. After many months, the ...

2842. The Big Picture

Romans 11:36, Ephesians 1:5, Colossians 3:18-21

Sermon

James Merritt

I have three different family portraits hanging in my home representing three different stages of my life and the life of my family. Most of us have at least one professional portrait hanging on the wall. They are very expensive and because of the cost in money and time, those portraits represent great expectations. I remember every time we would have a family portrait made, I always went into it wanting everything to be literally picture perfect. You know the routine - matching outfits, hair in place, and ...

2843. Live and Let Die

Galatians 2:20

Sermon

James Merritt

How do you live the Christian life? Well, believe it or not, the answer is You don't! Over one billion people have become Christians in the last 2,000 years. But only one person has ever lived the Christian life, and that is Jesus Christ. I am going to make an amazing statement, but I believe it is true. The average Christian knows far more about how to become one than how to be one. The average Christian will say, "I'm trying to live the Christian life the best way I know how." When a Christian makes that ...

2844. The Spiritual Gateway

Sermon

Stan Purdum

Picture this: You are on your way to the airport to catch a flight to a wedding where you are in the wedding party only to become stuck in traffic. When you finally get to the airport, you have only minutes left to check in. Unfortunately, there's a long line at the airline desk and you know there is no hope of getting to the front of the line in time. Do you: A. give up and say, "Oh well, they'll just have to go on without me"? B. march up to the front of the line, push people out of the way and say, "Get ...

2845. Nice Guys Finish First

Proverbs 1:20-33

Sermon

Stan Purdum

One day, a Sunday school teacher asked her class of children about their favorite Bible verses. One boy volunteered that his favorite was John 11:35, "Jesus wept," because it was short and easy to remember. A girl said her favorite was John 3:16, because she'd been told it was a summary of the gospel message and had memorized it for Bible school the previous summer. One boy said he liked the story of David and Goliath, especially the part about David killing Goliath with a stone from his slingshot. Next ...

2846. All Is New in Christ

John 11:4-6, Philippians 3:4-11

Sermon

Richard Gribble

Running as fast as his feet would carry him, Androclus raced into the forest. He hoped he could survive there, finding roots and berries to eat and avoiding all wild animals. He had few other choices; people were always looking for runaway slaves. He wondered, however, how it would be to live in terror of being discovered. Every pine cone that fell onto the mossy surface of the forest made him jump and look around to see if soldiers were in pursuit. He needed shelter. Rain was in the air and it would soon ...

2847. The Rewards of Waiting

Isaiah 25:1-12

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

In October of next year, my mother and father will be celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary. Isn’t that something? 60 years of marriage. Planning and preparation are already underway; we’re all excited about this milestone event. But no one is more excited about the event than my mother. In fact, I believe that my mother is living for this celebration. She has not been well during this past year, and her health is failing. And I believe that a part of that which is keeping my mother alive is her ...

2848. Dying to Live

John 12:20-36

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

Two men went up in a hot-air balloon one May morning. Suddenly they were enveloped by clouds and lost track of where they were. They drifted for what seemed like hours. Finally the cloud parted, and they spotted a man below them on the ground. “Where are we?” one of the passengers hollered down. The man on the ground looked around, looked up at the balloon, looked around some more and then yelled back, “You’re in a balloon.” The two balloonists looked at one another and then one of them yelled down again ...

2849. The Eyes of Faith

2 Corinthians 4:3-6

Sermon

Scott Suskovic

When you come face to face with some huge obstacle, some daunting problem, something frightening in which the odds are stacked against you, what is your first step? Do you go around it? We learned that as a kid walking home, didn't we? If there were a big, mean dog on the route, we would walk blocks around it to get home safely. How about now? Do you still walk around those big, mean dogs? Some people go over them. That is, you know the problem is there but you just scratch the surface, gloss over the ...

2850. The Narrow Door

Luke 13:22-30

Sermon

King Duncan

Some of you remember George Foreman. Foreman is a two-time former heavyweight boxing champion of the world. He is also an Olympic gold medalist, ordained Baptist minister, author and entrepreneur. Foreman is a colorful character who is probably better known today for his George Foreman Grill. When he won his second heavyweight world championship, at age 45, he became the oldest man in the world to win the heavyweight title. It’s quite a remarkable story. In his book, God in My Corner, he tells about that ...

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