Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: Levi, disciple, evangelist, tax collector, the 12, the twelve, apostle, sermon on the mount, jewish audience, beatitudes, lord's prayer, great commission, parables, olivet discourse, mount of olives, olivet, synoptic

Showing 2926 to 2950 of 3314 results

2926. Test the Spirits

1 John 4:1-6

Understanding Series

Thomas F. Johnson

... against the rise of false prophets before the end of the age (Matt. 7:15; 24:4–5, 11, 24), as do Paul in Acts 20:28–31, the author of 2 Peter (2:1), and John in the Revelation (16:13; 19:20; 20:10). The apostle Paul lists “distinguishing between spirits” among the gifts of the Spirit (1 Cor. 12:10; cf. 14:29), and he urges the Thessalonians not to “treat prophecies with contempt” but to “test everything” (1 Thess. 5:20–21). Apparently a false prophet had misled them concerning the ...

2927. God’s Love and Ours

1 John 4:7-21, 1 John 5:1-12

Understanding Series

Thomas F. Johnson

... �heard,” seen, “looked at,” “touched,” “appeared to us”; 1 John 1:1–3), not on wishful thinking or on projected hopes. When the writer says, we … testify, he is standing with his mentor, the beloved disciple, and with the other elders and apostles, who witnessed “the Christ event.” What they claim to have seen and the burden of their testimony is that the Father sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. Two elements are present here: (a) the relationship between Jesus and his “Abba ...

2928. Joy at Believers’ Walking in the Truth

3 John 1:1-14

Understanding Series

Thomas F. Johnson

... and paidia on the seashore after his resurrection (John 21:5). The author’s use of these terms for his community directly reflects Jesus’ use of them for his disciples. The Johannine community continues the intimacy which was experienced among the loyal eleven apostles. (See also the note on “fictive kin” relationships in 2 John 13). Additional Notes 3–4 Reference to members of a community as brothers or children certainly pre-dates Jesus’ use of the terms for his disciples, though it is his use ...

2929. Love the Lord Your God

Deuteronomy 6:1-25

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... successful in flavoring the whole of life with conscious attention to the law of God (v. 7, which is not at all “symbolic”) as a personal, familial, and social strategy for living out our commitment to loving God totally. 6:10–16 Nothing, said the Apostle Paul, can separate us from the love of God (Rom. 8:35–39). Unfortunately there is plenty that can separate God from the love of God’s people. Verses 10–19 follow the positive commands of 6:4–9 with a sharply contrasting warning against three ...

2930. Not Because of Israel's Righteousness

Deuteronomy 9:1-6

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... ’s wickedness.” Theologically, then, these verses stand along with the rest of Deuteronomy in affirming divine grace and denying human claims on God arising out of self-attributed righteousness. They present an OT theological equivalent of the arguments of the Apostle Paul in Romans 1–3. Israel had many advantages and blessings that were undeniable and based on God’s election, but when it comes to moral standing before God, to matters of relative guilt or innocence, then there is fundamentally no ...

2931. Firstfruits and Tithes

Deuteronomy 26:1-15

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... for all nations). Distortion of the law, whether toward legalism or toward antinomianism, usually creeps in when God’s people forget either the grace of God on which alone they stand or the glory of God for which alone they exist. The Apostle Paul’s efforts to establish an authentically scriptural understanding of the law in relation to God’s grace did not take place alone. Rather, it happened alongside his efforts to establish an equally scriptural understanding of the mission of Israel to the ...

2932. Tyre, Sidon—and Israel

Ezekiel 26:1-21, Ezekiel 27:1-36, Ezekiel 28:1-19, Ezekiel 28:20-26

Understanding Series

Steven Tuell

... abroad, we thought, but they can never happen here. We were wrong. True security lies, as it always has, not in our own wisdom or might but in the confidence that God’s peace enfolds us, and that nothing can wrest us from God’s hand. The apostle Paul wrote to the church at Rome, “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the ...

2933. Jesus Begins His Ministry to Israel

Matthew 4:23-25, Matthew 4:18-22

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... arrival is coupled with healing and teaching (4:23) and draws large crowds (4:25) as well as particular disciples (4:18–22). With the invitation to four fishermen, Jesus begins his reconstitution of Israel’s twelve tribes by calling twelve disciples, or apostles, who are to minister to Israel by preaching and healing in line with Jesus’ own ministry (10:1–8; cf. 9:9). Jesus’ disciples will be the recipients of his extensive teaching in Matthew (e.g., 5:1–2) and will, after Jesus’ resurrection ...

2934. Through His Faithful Death, Jesus as Messiah Redefined Brings Life

Matthew 27:27-31, Matthew 27:32-44, Matthew 27:45-56, Matthew 27:57-61, Matthew 27:62-66

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... mentioned are women (nine of twenty-six names), and a few of them are described by terms implying leadership roles: Phoebe, a “deacon of the church in Cenchreae” and “benefactor” (16:1–2 [possibly the letter’s courier]); Junia, “outstanding among the apostles” (16:7); and a number of women described as Paul’s “co-workers” or those who “worked very hard in the Lord.” Teaching the Text 1. By intersecting Jesus’ identity as the Messiah with the portrait of the righteous sufferer of ...

2935. God’s Miraculous Provision: Caring for the Needy

Mark 6:30-44

Teach the Text

Grant R. Osborne

... this care and provision concern not just spiritual needs but material needs as well. God and Jesus care for the whole person. Of course, this does not mean that hard times will never befall us. Note, for example, the numerous hardships endured by the apostle Paul (2 Cor. 6:3–10; 11:21–29). Has anyone gone through a more protracted series of catastrophic experiences (including four shipwrecks!)? But God brought Paul through them and made him stronger as a result. God’s provision means that nothing can ...

2936. Jesus’s Glory and Majesty Disclosed

Mark 9:2-13

Teach the Text

Grant R. Osborne

... 1:1: Jesus is the Messiah and Son of God. The language of Psalm 2:7 (“You are my Son,” dealing with the enthronement of the messianic king) and Isaiah 42:1 (the Servant of Yahweh as the beloved) clarifies Jesus’s true significance for the three apostles. Added to this may be a reminiscence of Deuteronomy 18:15 (“You must listen to” the prophet like Moses). A new and greater Moses is here, and he is the Son of God, so his followers must “listen” and obey his words. 9:8 they no longer saw ...

2937. Jesus Claims God-Given Authority to Condemn the Leaders

Mark 12:1-12, Mark 11:27-33

Teach the Text

Grant R. Osborne

... all of us sinners) think that they can continue to get away with it. It is not logical, but that is the issue—sin is never logical. The purpose of Jesus here is to depict the deep mercy of God; he did keep sending prophets (and apostles) to call the nation back to himself. 12:6 a son, whom he loved . . . “They will respect my son.” The owner’s reasoning is valid on the surface: even if they rejected his servants, they must respect his “beloved” (agap?tos) son (“beloved” recalls the voice ...

2938. Government and Marriage

Mark 12:18-27, Mark 12:13-17

Teach the Text

Grant R. Osborne

... aspect of earthly life is submitted to the sovereign God. The earthly ruler has control over the nation, but God controls both the ruler and every aspect of his creation. Whenever a human authority demands obedience against divine mandates, we must follow the apostles and “obey God rather than human beings” (Acts 5:29; cf. 4:19). This is the one kind of “civil disobedience” that God will allow. Submission to human authority is part of our surrender to the God who superintends every earthly aspect ...

2939. Jesus Proclaims Judgment on the Temple and the Nation

Mark 13:1-31

Teach the Text

Grant R. Osborne

... .’ When he had said this, he fell asleep.”What an amazing picture of faith and a powerful example to all who witnessed it. In fact, one of those present that day, giving his approval, was Saul, who later would embrace Jesus and become the apostle Paul. There is great power in our faithful witness to Jesus, particularly in the midst of persecution. The necessity of perseverance True Story: One of the most inspirational moments in Olympic history is the story of Derek Redmond’s run in the 1992 Olympics ...

2940. The Arrest of Jesus

Mark 14:43-52

Teach the Text

Grant R. Osborne

... –52 A young man . . . fled naked, leaving his garment behind. The ignominious flight of this youth has occasioned a great deal of comment because we cannot be sure who he was. It may have been John Mark himself, or perhaps it was an anonymous follower fleeing with the apostles.6 There may be an allusion to Amos 2:16, that at the judgment on Israel “even the bravest warriors will flee naked on that day.” Nakedness was a sign of shame (Isa. 20:4; Ezek. 16:36; 23:10; Rev. 3:17; 16:15), so this exposes ...

2941. The Resurrection of Jesus and the Promise of Victory

Mark 16:1-20

Teach the Text

Grant R. Osborne

... for his involvement in the Watergate scandal. Later he used that experience to illuminate the evidence for the resurrection, pointing to the number of Watergate insiders who quickly abandoned the cover-up to save themselves. This stands in stark contrast to the apostles, who went to their deaths claiming that they had seen the resurrected Jesus. Colson concludes, “Men will give their lives for something they believe to be true—they will never give their lives for something they know to be false.”4 The ...

2942. The Baby Messiah Recognized

Luke 2:21-40

Teach the Text

R.T. France

... will be underlined by Jesus’s own words in 12:49–53. 2:35 a sword will pierce your own soul. Luke will not specifically mention Mary’s presence at the cross (for this, see John 19:25–27), but in Acts 1:14 she is with the apostles after Jesus’s resurrection, so that we may properly take Simeon’s words as looking forward especially to her experience of bereavement. Less serious instances of the pain of being the mother of the Messiah will appear in 2:48; 8:19–21. 2:36 Anna. Luke likes ...

2943. The First Disciples

Luke 5:1-11

Teach the Text

R.T. France

... that Luke uses in 5:6–7 show that Simon was not alone (cf. “all his companions” [5:9]). Indeed, even two men would hardly be enough to manage a boat of the type mentioned above. But all the emphasis falls on Simon, not only as the leading apostle but also as the one whose experience and response on this occasion are a model for discipleship. he sat down and taught the people from the boat. For sitting as the accepted posture for teaching, see 4:20. The use of a boat as a “mobile pulpit” facing ...

2944. Feasting and Fasting

Luke 5:33-39, Luke 5:27-32

Teach the Text

R.T. France

... tax collector” Zacchaeus (19:1–10). Interpretive Insights 5:27 by the name of Levi. The story is clearly the same as that of “Matthew” in Matthew 9:9–13. The fact that Mark and Luke tell this story like that of the calling of the other apostles (Mark 1:16–20) and yet do not mention Levi in their lists of the Twelve suggests that “Matthew” (whom they do list among the Twelve) and “Levi” were two names for the same man. 5:28 left everything and followed him. The same was said of ...

2945. “Who Is This?”

Luke 9:10-17, Luke 9:1-9

Teach the Text

R.T. France

... being a symbolic number. Theological Insights When Jesus called his first disciples, he commissioned them to “fish for people” (5:10). When the Twelve were designated, we were told nothing of their “job description,” except insofar as it was encapsulated in the term “apostle,” referring to someone sent out (6:13–16; repeated here in 9:10). Now the nature of that “sending out” (9:2) becomes more explicit, and it will be further clarified as a second wave of emissaries is sent out in 10:1 ...

2946. Discipleship and Mission

Luke 10:1-24, Luke 9:57-62

Teach the Text

R.T. France

... In 10:17 they will report back on their own independent mission. 10:3 Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. The immediate answer to their prayer for more workers (10:2) is that they themselves will fulfill that role. They are “sent out” (apostles = “sent ones”) just like the Twelve in 9:2 and, like them, will be exposed to danger and rejection. 10:4 do not greet anyone on the road. Their lack of normal traveling equipment (as in 9:3) expresses their vulnerability and dependence on ...

2947. On the Mount of Olives

Luke 22:47-53, Luke 22:39-46, Luke 22:7-38

Teach the Text

R.T. France

... to keep explaining patiently, and sends his Spirit to help us interpret his Word. More than anyone, Jesus understands the agony of choosing the right thing, even when it could cost everything. Church History: Polycarp, the bishop of Smyrna and disciple of John the Apostle, became an early Christian martyr. He was called before a Roman proconsul in a stadium and ordered to deny Christ publicly or be executed. He responded, “Eighty and six years have I served Him, and He never did me any injury: how then ...

2948. The Risen Jesus Revealed

Luke 24:13-35

Teach the Text

R.T. France

... 20; Mark 16:7; John 21) falls outside Luke’s deliberately selective scheme. Historical and Cultural Background Luke has already indicated (23:49; 24:9; cf. 24:33) that the circle of Jesus’s followers in Jerusalem extended well beyond the twelve (now eleven) apostles from the Galilee period and the group of women who were at the tomb. Here we meet two Judean residents who were fully accepted as part of the group (note the phrases “our women” [24:22] and “our companions” [24:24]), which Luke will ...

2949. The Faithfulness of God and the Covenantal Curses on Israel

Romans 3:1-8

Teach the Text

C. Marvin Pate

... a Jew with the law as the stipulation of the covenant and circumcision as the sign of the covenant as opposed to being a Gentile makes perfect sense. But Paul’s response to such a protest is surprising, for the reader rather would have expected the apostle to answer, “There is no advantage in being a Jew!” Instead, Paul answers that there most definitely is an advantage to being a Jew and not a Gentile: Jews are privy to the oracles (logia) of God. The “oracles of God,” as Douglas Moo observes ...

2950. The New-Covenant Blessings: Peace and Hope

Romans 5:1-11

Teach the Text

C. Marvin Pate

... sake will restore the lost glory of Adam to the believer. It is interesting that Paul juxtaposes suffering and the new covenant in 2 Corinthians: the former in 4:7–5:21, the latter in 3:1–4:6. Indeed, suffering for Jesus proved that Paul was a true apostle of the new covenant, even as it identifies the true Christian (see Rom. 8:16–17). All of this is to say that suffering for Jesus’ sake is proof positive that a person is a member of the new covenant and awaits the full realization of the glory of ...

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