Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 2826 to 2850 of 4914 results

2826. Why Christianity?

Romans 1:1-7

Sermon

Charley Reeb

I went to Florida Southern College in Lakeland, Florida. It was a wonderful experience. After seminary, I was appointed as an associate pastor at First UMC of Lakeland and had a good relationship with the college. In fact, one of my favorite professors once invited me to be a guest speaker in his class. It was a sociology class, and they were studying religion and society. He wanted a local pastor to come and speak about the church and community. I was still a little wet behind the ears, but I thought I ...

2827. Herding Cats

Matthew 9:35-10:8-23

Sermon

Lori Wagner

A popular expression in our culture expresses exasperation in the face of trying to govern other people’s behavior, particularly those with very individual preferences, goals, agendas, and initiatives, who have no interest in being governed. Throwing their hands up in frustration, leaders trying to command such individuals into a group with a common goal may exclaim: “Trying to work with this group is like herding cats!” What does the phrase mean? It reflects on the “independent” nature of cats (often in ...

2828. Click to Unfriend

Hebrews 10:16-25

Sermon

John B. Jamison

Mary Magdalene stood at the edge of the road and cried. She knew this was going to happen. Jesus had told them over and over that he would be arrested and killed. She thought she had prepared herself for it but she was not at all prepared for what had actually happened. As she stood at the edge of the road, her eyes moving back and forth from the men lowering his body from that cross to his mother standing just behind them watching it happen. She thought about all that had happened since last night. After ...

2829. You Are My Witnesses

Luke 24:36-49

Sermon

Harry N. Huxhold

The inauguration of Nelson Mandela as president of the Republic of South Africa goes down in the annals of history as a most memorable moment. Imagine historians a hundred years from now trying to recreate the excitement and the significance of what took place in Pretoria and Capetown in 1994. Three centuries of bitter and harsh white rule were brought to a close as Mandela was elected the first black president by its first all-race parliament. What dramatized that election was the fact that Mr. Mandela ...

2830. It's Not Over When The Fat Lady Sings

Exodus 17:1-7

Sermon

Consider this list: a local restaurant under construction, a high school dropout, the cross-stitch I've been working on for six years, a young person killed in an accident. All of these have one thing in common: they describe something that has gone unfinished. A building, an education, a craft, a life. There are thousands of things and thousands of people around us that go unfinished. Some people start something and stop because they can't take criticism. Others stop because they're content with what they ...

2831. Kindness In Action: Evangelism

Acts 8:26-40

Sermon

E. Carver McGriff

Let's play Sherlock Holmes for a bit and see what deductions we can make about the characters in this passage. The "eunuch" was probably either a prisoner of some earlier war, or born as a child into a poverty-stricken family, since those were the people who most usually were subjected to the mutilation he had suffered. However, we see he had risen to a position of high rank in Ethiopia. Obviously, then, he was a bright and highly-motivated man. Yet we find him referred to by vocation but not by name. ...

2832. Here They Come, Singing

Jeremiah 30:1--31:40

Sermon

John R. Brokhoff

When six nations of eastern Europe were freed from the domination of totalitarian Communism in 1989, there was wild celebration by the people in the streets. They sang, they shouted, they marched, they danced in the streets, they laughed, they hugged each other. This was the happiest time of their lives. They were freed from decades of living under uncompromising dictatorships. Now they could speak out openly about how they felt, and they could march and shout their protests to a hated regime. It was a ...

2833. Christmas 1

Isaiah 61:10–62:3, Luke 2:21-40, Galatians 3:23–4:7, Colossians 3:12-21

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

Theme: Hope for the future. Simeon and Anna viewed Jesus as the fulfillment of their people's hopes and dreams. In a similar manner we see our hopes being fulfilled in our children and youth. We can be advanced in years and still live in hope. COMMENTARY Old Testament: Isaiah 61:10--62:3 The prophet of the third portion of Isaiah (circa 530 B.C.) holds up a brilliant hope for the discouraged Israelites returning from exile to their own land. He thanks God for clothing him in the Lord's robe of ...

2834. The Righteousness Of God

2 Corinthians 5:11--6:2

Sermon

Mark J. Molldrem

"Hardships ... beatings ... imprisonment ... sleepless nights ... hunger ... in dishonor ... in ill repute ... unknown ... sorrowful ... poor." It sounds like a street person being described. Wrong! These are word snapshots of the life of the apostle Paul that picture what a follower of Christ must be ready to bear. Paul was a "street person" of sorts, pounding the pavement in the first century from Jerusalem to Damascus to Rome. His task was not survival, but salvation. Paul preached the salvation from ...

2835. Lent 2

Philippians 3:12-4:1, Jeremiah 26:1-24, Genesis 15:1-18, Luke 13:31-35, Psalm 27:1-14, Psalm 42:1-11

Sermon Aid

George Bass

THEOLOGICAL CLUE The Second Sunday in Lent reminds the people of God, who gather for worship this day, that they are following Jesus to Jerusalem, according to the Roman Catholic ORDO, or, in the other lectionaries, are given a preview of what is going to happen in the Holy City. Almost any Gospel for the Day that is selected from St. Luke, which would fit into the liturgical/theological scheme of Lent, will have some sort of orientation to Jerusalem; Luke's whole gospel makes it absolutely clear that ...

2836. Proper 4

Luke 7:1-10, Psalm 117:1-2, 1 Kings 8:22-61, Galatians 1:1-10

Sermon Aid

George Bass

THEOLOGICAL CLUE The Roman Catholic Church alone has a specific theological clue for this Sunday in the feast of Corpus Christi, which always occurs the Sunday after Trinity Sunday - no exceptions. The church year framework really does supply a couple of clues for observing this Sunday in the other churches, however, one implicit and the other more or less explicit. Every Sunday is a "little Easter," and this is true for the entire year including the Sundays of Pentecost. It would be proper each Sunday of ...

2837. Proper 10

Colossians 1:15-23, Colossians 1:1-14, 2 Kings 2:1-18, Deuteronomy 30:11-20, Psalm 69:1-36, Psalm 25:1-22, Luke 10:25-37

Sermon Aid

George Bass

THEOLOGICAL CLUE Churches in the Northern Hemisphere will be acutely aware of the fact that the Eighth Sunday after Pentecost will occur in late summer. Many pastors will be deeply concerned about attendance and stewardship in their congregations if they themselves are not on vacation. At the same time, it is only a month to Labor Day, the beginning of school, Rally Day, and all of those other activities which return life, including "church life," to normal, once more. In all of this, the kerygmatic " ...

2838. Mother's Day Gifts

Ephesians 6:10-20

Sermon

R. E. Lybrand

How hard it is to find a capable wife! She is worth far more than jewels! Her husband puts his confidence in her, and he will never be poor. As long as she lives, she does him good and never harm. She keeps herself busy making wool and linen cloth. She brings home food from out-of-the-way places, as merchant ships do. She gets up before daylight to prepare food for her family and to tell her servant girls what to do. She looks at land and buys it, and with money she has earned she plants a vineyard. She is ...

2839. Discerning the Way of God

1 Corinthians 2:6-16

Sermon

Hubert Beck

How do we know what God wants us to do? It must be assumed that anybody claiming in any way to be godly must ask oneself that question regularly. One need not be Christian to ask the question, for it is a larger question than what kind of activity can be called Christian. It has to do with what is right and what is wrong, what is good and what is evil, and many people outside Christendom are concerned about the same kinds of questions. It is a bigger question than the everyday kinds of questions about ...

2840. Miracle On Main Street by Dr. George A. Buttrick

John 1:1-18

Sermon

Leonard Mann

There’s always mystery on Main Street, and one day the miracle occurred. You look into the mirror. You don’t say, "Who am I?" No, a Voice asks, "Who are you?" You don’t say, "I needn’t be here." No, the Voice says, "It is inevitable that you are here." Try it, and see. You are meant to be here. Then trouble begins. Who meant your life? "My parents," you say. Oh no, parents don’t create life: they only transmit life. We shouldn’t speak about "my children." They are not ours: they are God’s, every one of ...

2841. Called Into Covenant

Genesis 9:1-17

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

Did you see the glorious color picture of the rainbow in last Monday's Commercial Appeal? It had to do with Davis Love's victory in last week's Professional Golf Association Championship. Just as he marched triumphantly onto the 18th green, a glorious rainbow arched across the sky. Though the PGA could not have known I would be preaching on the rainbow covenant today, the Lord did. It was mighty nice of them both to provide an advertisement in living color of my sermon focus for the weekend. Genesis, ...

2842. Simon of Cyrene - Reluctant Reliever or Submissive Servant?

Mark 15:21-32

Sermon

Carl E. Zahrte

Was I there? Yes, and I’m so glad that I was. Yes, I was there on that day when they crucified my Lord. My name is Simon of Cyrene, and what happened on that day marked a new beginning in my life. Oh, I wasn’t very happy about it at first, that’s for sure. The way things happened, I resented it deeply when I was compelled to pick up the cross-beam and carry it for Jesus. After all, I had just arrived at the holy city and was about to enter Jerusalem. Then, all of a sudden, everything seemed to go wrong. At ...

2843. Resurrection: From Chaos to Order

Genesis 1:1-2:3

Sermon

Leonard H. Budd

The fire was beginning to die. With a simple wave of his hand the Ancient One sent the young boy racing back into the scrubby land to fetch sticks for burning. Overhead the moon lit his path as he ran from one thicket to another, pulling together the loose twigs and picking up a stray dry root. Quickly he returned, throwing the meager kindling on the dying fire. In the shore span of minutes since his hunt began the Ancient One had fallen asleep, his head dipping down to his chest. With the crackling of the ...

2844. Advent 4

2 Samuel 7:1-17, Romans 16:1-27, Luke 1:26-38

Bulletin Aid

Paul A. Laughlin

First Lesson: 2 Samuel 7:8-16 Theme: Human dynasties, divine destinies Exegetical Note In this passage, God’s promise, extended to David through Nathan, that the great king’s dynasty would be divinely established in perpetuity underscores the recurring biblical notion that God does choose certain human agents - individuals, bloodlines, and even nations - for special relationships and responsibilities, destinies and duties. Call to Worship Leader: May the God of Israel bless this house of worship! People: ...

2845. Broken Bread, Shared Cup

Sermon

Leonard H. Budd

The word is from the third chapter of Mark’s Gospel, the 16, 17, and 18th verses: "So he appointed the Twelve: to Simon he gave the name Peter; then came the sons of Zebedee, James and his brother John, to whom he gave the name Sons of Thunder; then Andrew and Philip and Bartholomew and Matthew and Thomas and James the son of Alphaeus and Thaddaeus ..." Thaddaeus. That is my name. And I want you to hear me for while my name to you is but an ancient word upon the dusty scrolls of distant time, I would talk ...

2846. Glorious Light

2 Corinthians 4:1-18

Sermon

William F. Dunkle

Light is most clearly visible in darkness. The contrast is sharper, more defined. But Saint Paul observes that what eyes see, minds do not always perceive. There seems to be a breakdown between optics and brain. Often minds are blind. Unbelieving minds do not see the light of God’s glory in the face of Christ, Saint Paul observes with great sorrow. He says, "The god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ." Our fealties ...

2847. OUR LORD RISEN

Sermon

E. Jerry Walker

For those who grieve, time is a burden. It moves through emptiness with excruciating slowness, its spiritual malaise aggravated by fleeting memories of joys that never again will be. From sundown Friday when she watched as they placed her Lord in the stone vault until sundown Saturday, the world had stood still for Mary of Magdala. These were the holy hours of the Sabbath when the faithful praised God for the goodness of life, but for Mary they were an eternity of sorrow. The widow Mary of Jerusalem and ...

2848. A Secret Is Finally Revealed

Ephesians 1:1-14

Sermon

Harold Warlick

Picture an attractive mother, a handsome husband, and three lucky children. The little children are fortunate because they have been adopted by the mother and father. The mother can not naturally bear children. She had a bodily imperfection when she was born which resulted in her having had a colostomy, the process where you wear a bag with a tube to empty your wastes from your body. It was a most difficult and, obviously, painful condition with which to live. Consequently over the years the parents ...

2849. Wisdom Sold Separately

Drama

Dave Marsh

Director's Notes: The book of James says that if we ask God for wisdom, He will gladly give it. He will supply us with all the wisdom we need. The question is: Whether we know God or not, where do we go to find true wisdom? Universities, books, newspapers, the Bible, friends, the Internet, etc? God will speak to us in prayer and meditation through His Spirit (which whispers to our spirit), through other believers, through circumstances, and, obviously through the Bible. This drama focuses on our vain ...

2850. A Great High Priest

Hebrews 4:12-16

Sermon

King Duncan

It is not unusual for persons visualizing Christ to see him as being like themselves. The extreme of this is probably Van Gogh's painting which he called PIETA. It is a painting of Jesus and his mother. The unique characteristic of the picture is that Jesus has red hair. Obviously it is highly doubtful that Jesus had red hair. Very few people living in that part of the world do, but Van Gogh had red hair and that is how he saw Jesus. There is that natural tendency to paint Christ in our own image. Yet for ...

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