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 2926 to 2950 of 3926 results

2926. Prayer-Conditioning Your Life

Luke 2:29-32

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... soul too” (v.35). Division and dissension will devastate Jesus’ own family, even as it will be present within the world. This is what is behind the story in Luke 4 of Jesus’ return to his hometown, where his family not only refuses to support his ministry but does not protect him when Nazareth tries to do an honors killing. As a final note of affirmation for this family centered scenario, Luke records the presence of Anna — yet another person of well-documented righteousness. Her genealogy is given ...

2927. Luke 2: 22-40, Luke 4:21-30

Luke 2:21-40

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

2928. Romans 10:8b-13

Romans 9:30--10:21

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... into one community of faith a community without discrimination or distinction. As Paul continues to erase the lines between Jew and Gentile, he draws upon established Hebrew scripture to make his case. In Romans 10:11 he cites Isaiah 28:16 to give scriptural support for his claim for deliverance at the end-time of judgment. Finally, Paul alludes to Joel 2:32, once again emphasizing the universal nature of the salvation that is offered to all who confess with their lips and believe in their hearts. The ...

2929. Give It Up

Romans 9:30--10:21

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

2930. The Healing Fountain of Tears

Revelation 7:9-17

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... as T-bones. It was in response to the Katrina catastrophe that Tide detergent first started a program called “Loads of Hope.” An eighteen-wheeler “semi” was out-fitted with thirty-two energy efficient washers and dryers. With its accompaniment of support vans, Tide’s “Loads of Hope” express was able to handle up to three hundred loads of laundry each day. Katrina refugees were offered a place where their laundry could be washed, dried and folded. For free. Who said it first — “Cleanliness ...

2931. On God's Side Or In God's Way?

Acts 11:1-18

Sermon

King Duncan

... parents’ eye in 1956 let me give you a little background. On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, an African American woman, was arrested for refusing to surrender her bus seat to a white person in Montgomery, Alabama. So, the African-American community and their supporters struck back by boycotting the Montgomery bus system. For eleven months Civil Rights workers operated a voluntary car pool to get people to and from their jobs. One of the leaders of that boycott was a young Baptist pastor by the name of Dr ...

2932. Jailhouse Rock

Acts 16:16-40

Sermon

King Duncan

... . Then they have a tendency to get quite testy. When the slave girl’s owners realized that they could no longer make money off of her, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to face the authorities. A mob gathered supporting the owners. At this sign of unrest, the not-so-courageous town magistrates ordered Paul and Silas to be stripped and beaten with rods. After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully ...

2933. Two Sinners

Luke 7:36-50

Sermon

King Duncan

... Simon’s sin is forgiven and that should trouble us. Some of us come from comfortable situations where we have been loved, and from the beginning have been taught right from wrong. That is not true of everybody. Most of us have had a strong support system. We have had role models. We have had a Christian family and Christian friends and Christian teachers who have helped mold our behavior. Do we not realize that many people have not been as fortunate as we are? Remember Ann Richards, the colorful Texas ...

2934. Waiting for Christmas

James 5:7-12

Sermon

Timothy J. Smith

... witnessed the cheer the program brought to children in need. As she talked with her mother she resolved to continue with the annual Christmas program. Rae called every local merchant she could think of and explained the problem seeking their financial support. She wrote letters to friends and neighbors asking for donations. Within 24 hours she had collected 500 toys and gifts from area merchants. She was overwhelmed — overjoyed at the outpouring from the community. The Christmas program turned out to be a ...

2935. The Total Gift

Romans 1:1-17

Sermon

Timothy J. Smith

... us to follow him. Jesus demands we become intentional in our interactions with other people. We are to pay attention to people often forgotten or overlooked in our communities and world, just as Jesus did. If we volunteer at homeless shelters or donate money to support local charities, we show that we care about all people just as Jesus taught us. It’s easier to simply view Jesus as a cute little baby who makes no demands on our lives. Karen recalls the year her parents retired and moved to Florida ...

2936. The Light Has Come

Ephesians 3:1-13

Sermon

Timothy J. Smith

... reached. These were the very people the church needed to reach. Research reveals that people age 18 to 45 order pizza at least once a week. The children who enjoyed the free movie and pizza on Friday nights began attending Sunday school classes; a support group was formed for single mothers, who also began attending worship. That church had been experiencing a decline in membership and attendance for years but now was beginning to grow.[2] What are some creative ways that we can reach out “with boldness ...

2937. Divided We Fall

1 Corinthians 1:10-17

Sermon

Timothy J. Smith

... united body of Christ. What are the red horsehair couches that are preventing us from rallying together to do the work of the church in our community? What is holding us back? There are people who are hurting who need to know Christ and the love and support of the church — people that we should be reaching. May we continue to stand united in our mission and purpose as the church of Jesus Christ. We celebrate the gifts of each person who is part of our church family. To advance the mission of the church ...

2938. Praise and Blame

1 Corinthians 4:1-21

Sermon

Timothy J. Smith

... are you passionate about? The Corinthian congregation was in the midst of a conflict that if not soon resolved could destroy the church. The situation was serious. In that congregation some people who were critical of the apostle Paul while others were supportive of him. Some might even have blamed Paul for their present difficulties. In the midst of disagreements we should remember that Paul’s goal was always to build up the church and never tear it down. Paul experienced opposition firsthand. It seemed ...

2939. Spirit-Direct

Acts 10:23b-48

Sermon

Timothy J. Smith

... 1] We are reminded of the importance of our baptism and also our responsibility. When a child is baptized the congregation pledges to do all they can to help raise the child in the Christian faith. When adults are baptized the congregation also pledges their support. This morning we celebrate the Baptism of our Lord Jesus Christ. We remember how he was baptized by John the Baptist in the Jordan River. Jesus’ baptism was the starting point of his ministry, as it is for all Christians. Jesus would call his ...

2940. He Ascended Into Heaven

Luke 24:44-53

Sermon

David O. Bales

... , but plenty of medical workers have experiences that point to a physical world that’s quite open to the spiritual realm. Dr. Lori Wiener serves in the National Cancer Institute of Maryland. She’s a social worker and coordinator of the Pediatric HIV Psychosocial Support Program. She’s dealt with many children who claim they’ve been visited and comforted by children who’ve died of AIDS. Wiener tells of one child who was having lunch with her mother and looked up, waved, and said, “Bye-bye, Allen ...

2941. A Man of God

Matthew 1:18-25

Sermon

King Duncan

... as his daughter cried. He and his wife had raised their children in church. They took Christian commitment seriously. This was the last thing they had expected from their child. But Raymond couldn’t be angry with his daughter. She needed his love and support. So he listened and comforted her and prayed that everything would be all right. The next morning, Raymond and his wife wrote a long letter full of love and encouragement and sent it off to their daughter. Secretly they prayed that somehow God would ...

2942. Really!

Luke 20:27-40

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... sense of God’s ongoing movement in the world. The Sadducees judged everyone and everything according to past events written in the Torah. Status quo was the Sadducees’s mantra. Not surprisingly the whole order of the Sadducees, Temple-oriented, wealth-supported background completely evaporated after the Temple was destroyed in 70 CE. Instead of being fixated on the past, “resurrection disciples” are open to God’s ongoing participation and presence in the world. In 1 John 3:2 the evangelist notes ...

2943. Suffered under (Saint) Pontius Pilate

John 18:28-40

Sermon

David O. Bales

... to polish his Aramaic. He and Jesus use the same Greek words, but whoa! the space between them. Pilate would understand better if he knew some Old Testament background for “truth.” In the Old Testament “truth” meant something dependable, secure, firm, supportive, reliable. So when Jesus talks about those who belong to the truth it means those for whom Jesus is the source of their life and those who grant him their allegiance. Not quite what Pilate concluded. Yes, Jesus rules people as king ...

2944. God’s Story Time

Jeremiah 23:1-8

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... . This righteous king will bring “justice and righteousness and ultimately will “save” Judah and Israel. The division between Judah and Israel at the time of Jeremiah’s writing was huge. It was like modern day Israel and Iran. Or like Syrian supporters of President Assaad and the rest of the rebellious populous. The gulf between Judah and Israel at the time of Jeremiah’s writing was politically and religiously huge. Yet Jeremiah felt compelled to speak about the salvation that God would finally ...

2945. Only Time Will Tell

James 5:7-12

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... we put at stake, that no one else sees or notices at the moment, which make the most impact over the course of time. Every one of these unheralded, un-recorded actions, add a dab of mortar, a swoosh of cement, to the supportive structure of those sacrificial behaviors upon which humanity struggles to stand taller than themselves. E. Stanley Jones was a Methodist minister/missionary who served in India for fifty five years during the early twentieth century. A preacher, evangelist, and best-selling author ...

2946. The New Census

Ephesians 1:1-14

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... by other students from North Carolina Agriculture and Technical College. When news of what was happening in Greensboro spread throughout the nation, young people and not-so-young people traveled to Greensboro to stand with them and be counted. Some Greensboro churches supported them. Their quiet act of sitting down at a lunch counter and demanding to be counted in a new census challenged a system of social and legal injustice in the most eloquent and powerful way possible. The four young men didn’t ...

2947. In the Shadow of His Brother

John 1:35-42

Sermon

King Duncan

... because some of you have come to this church out of similar backgrounds backgrounds where you experienced more legalism than love, more judgment than grace. Gratefully you say, you could never go back. And yet you are here. And you are faithful and you are supportive and it just may be that some of what you learned back then is bearing positive fruit today. Let’s not be too critical of those who follow a different path, regardless of where we are in our Christian life. John the Baptist had his faults ...

2948. Named, Claimed, and Framed

Acts 2:14-41

Sermon

Tony Everett

... bit less enthusiasm? Christ’s resurrection is a reality. Yet it’s impossible to maintain the emotional and spiritual highs of Easter morning. The excitement has disappeared. Now what? It’s tough being a follower of Jesus without uplifting music in the midst of a supportive community filled with optimistic hope. Life goes on. It was even more difficult to be a follower of Jesus in those first days after the resurrection. In our text for today and for the next two Sundays we will see how the Holy Spirit ...

2949. Lesson from a Chipmunk

Acts 1:1-11

Sermon

Tony Everett

... , the chipmunk stayed close to the sure and certain sights and sounds of love. The sounds of promise soon became a visible reality as the frightened animal scampered from tire to tire, always staying close to the chatter of encouragement and the visibility of supportive relationships. Here is the core of today’s text. Here the risen Christ gives the overwhelmed apostles a promise and a purpose, a gift and a mission. Here in his parting words, Jesus promises them that the Holy Spirit will soon give them ...

2950. Hitting the Boss Key

Matthew 4:1-11

Sermon

King Duncan

... , the jealousy, the hatred. All of it immediately came into her life. She told Greg Lauri, “I didn’t realize how weak I really was.” (4) Guys, we are all weak. That is one reason to immerse ourselves in the Scriptures. It is so we can have support in the time of testing. In the second place, we need to stay as close as possible to Christian friends. We are always more vulnerable to temptation when we are alone. Notice that the woman on the Survivor program said she was “without a Bible, with no ...

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