Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 276 to 300 of 3852 results

Luke 17:11-19, Deuteronomy 8:1-20, Psalm 65:1-13, 1 Corinthians 9:1-27

Sermon Aid

Marion L. Soards, Thomas B. Dozeman, Kendall McCabe

... In vv. 6-10 Paul explicates the idea that God gives the ability to be generous; in turn, vv. 11-15 explain that when we believe generous, their generosity glorifies God. The obvious themes for proclamation are the divine origin of generosity, the divine character of generosity, the gracious experience of generosity—as giver and recipient—and the thanksgiving that results from generosity which glorifies God. Significance. Paul admonishes the Corinthian Christians to generosity. The reason: You reap what ...

277. The Fountain of Truth

2 Peter 1:12-21

Sermon

James Merritt

... " literally means "to untie" or "to unfold." What the verse literally says is "no prophecy of Scripture is of its own unfolding. You see, this is not referring to interpretation, but rather to origination. That is, the men that wrote the Bible did not weave their own spiritual web. This book did not originate in the mind of men, but rather it originated in the heart of God. Someone once said, "I know man did not write the Bible. A good man would not have written it because it claims to be from God, and a ...

278. My God Is Real

Psalm 14:1-7

Sermon

James Merritt

... created on the earth by the will of a being outside the grasp of scientific understanding, or it evolved on our planet spontaneously, through chemical reactions occurring in non-living matter lying on the surface of the planet. The first theory places the question of the origin of life beyond the reach of scientific inquiry. It is a statement of faith and the power of a Supreme Being not subject to the laws of science. The second theory is also an act of faith. The act of faith consists in assuming that the ...

279. Science and the Bible

John 17:17, 1 Timothy 3:16

Sermon

James Merritt

... God, which is why they also have a problem with the Bible. Let me give you an illustration. Robert Shapiro, a leading scientist, once made this statement: Some future day may yet arrive when all reasonable chemical experiments run to discover a probable origin for life have failed unequivocally. Further new geological evidence may indicate a sudden appearance of life on the earth. Finally, we may have explored the universe and found no trace of life or process leading to life elsewhere. In such a case, some ...

280. Do I Really Matter To God?

Psalm 139:1-24

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... . The transient person who slept on a park bench last night is immortal. Other than the Sacrament of Holy Communion and the Bible, your neighbor is the holiest object you will ever see. (1) When you looked in the mirror this morning, you were gazing at an original and eternal creation of Almighty God. Here is the second reason for believing that you are special in the sight of God—YOU BEAR AN AMAZING RESEMBLANCE TO GOD. You were made in the image of God. That does not mean that we are miniature gods. But ...

281. The Magna Carta of the Human Soul

Romans 12:9-21

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... . God did not labor for five days and then, on the final day of creative activity, manufacture “little gods.” God devoted the sixth and final day of creation to create a truly new, truly unique creation-‑a being made both of dust and divinity: a human being. In fact, the “original sin” is our refusal to submit to our humanity and our striving for divinity, our desire to be “like God.” I repeat: Jesus as the Second Adam did not come to make us more holy. Jesus came to make us more human, the ...

282. Unum Humanum

John 17:20-26

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... , the secular world is also finally moving towards recognizing the interconnectedness and interdependence of people and planet. There is an old joke about the man who invented television - in 1975. It worked, but it wasn't sufficiently original. The church is fast approaching the time when its original discovery - the oneness at the heart of humanity - has been forgotten and waylaid so long that when it finally does begin proclaiming the unum humanum the world will yawn with boredom. The concept will not be ...

283. Nehemiah 8:1-4a, 5-6, 8-10

Nehemiah 8:1-4a, 5-6, 8-10

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... relocated chapters 8, 9, and 10 are a result of the Chronicler's theology or a copyist's mistake. Still further examination of this puzzle suggests that the Chronicler's theological/editorial intentions for the works of Ezra and Nehemiah can be seen in its original form in the apocryphal book of 1 Esdras. Even this suggestion leads to more debate. Did 1 Esdras come before or after the sculpting of the separate Ezra and Nehemiah books? (For a thorough discussion of this puzzle, see H.G.M. Williamson, Ezra ...

284. John 20:19-31 [Genesis 2:5-24]

John 20:19-31 [Genesis 2:5-24]

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... been waiting for Eve a long time!). What excitement and joy there is in our first utterance. To understand the John reading for today we must begin in verse 15. For John, Jesus is the New Adam, the Second Adam who restores us to our original Adamic state of relationship to God. Every detail of the first post-resurrection appearance of Jesus is intended to underline continuity and culmination of the First and Second Adam. To whom does Jesus first appear? To Mary. Does Mary recognize him? Why not? Who does ...

285. Nehemiah 8:1-4a, 5-6, 8-10

Nehemiah 8:1-4a, 5-6, 8-10

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

286. John 20:19-31 [Genesis 2:5-24]

John 20:19-31 [Genesis 2:5-24]

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

287. Ephesians 1:3-14

Ephesians 1:3-14

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... 's sacrifice and by the author's joyful thanksgiving for our redemption the writer's sweeping statement encompassing all the "things on heaven and the things on earth" does seem to conclude one aspect of this blessing section. But to see verse 10 as the originally intended conclusion is most probably a mistake. The author's greatest concern in this blessing section is not to glorify a grand deity of cosmic proportions. The writer's reason for celebration is not that God is great it is that God has worked ...

288. James 1:17-27

James 1:17-27

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... it was not written for any specific congregation. James' style has most often been cited as a form of parenesis a string of admonitions or moral maxims bound together with very little narrative. However, this so-called "epistle" could just as easily had its origin as a Christian homily or sermon. It was the tone of these maxims that caused Martin Luther to cast such disparaging remarks at James' epistle. Luther felt that James' emphasis on the "works" of faith (encompassing all of 1:19-2:26), on Christian ...

289. Mark 12:28-34

Mark 12:28-34

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... both a thinking and a feeling organ. "Soul" in Hebrew is less than "spirit," more than "self", including as it does the human will, needs and desires. Mark's use of "strength" (Greek ischus) instead of "might" is also more literally muscle-bound than the original Hebrew for might (and the Septuagint's Greek dumanis) has less reference to raw muscle and more to an inner source of fortitude. The second half of Jesus' answer to the scribe's question comes from Leviticus 19:18. When coupled with the mandates of ...

290. God's Christmas Tree

1 Peter 2:24

Sermon

James Merritt

... verses in all of the New Testament - I Peter 2:24 where we read, "Who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed." (I Peter 2:24, NKJV) Remember, the original term for the Christmas tree was the German word "Christ Baum". It literally means "Christ's tree." We are told in the Bible that the cross was also Christ's tree. For all intents and purposes, the cross was God's Christmas tree to the world. It was ...

291. The Clone Zone: The Bible and Cloning

Genesis 1:26-28

Sermon

James Merritt

... mother's egg and your father's sperm. Each one of these cells is genetically identical to that very first cell. That means that we scraped a cell from, say, the inner lining of your cheek, its DNA would be the same DNA that years ago in that original zygote contained the entire plan for creating you and every part of you. Now in all of this is a great mystery that doctors and scientists have asked for many years: What can the zygote as it multiplies, produce every different kind of cell in the body—kidney ...

292. Israel: The World’s Invincible Nation

Jeremiah 23:2, 7-8

Sermon

James Merritt

... ), and the deadness of Sarah's womb." But they did believe God and God honored their faith, gave them a son, and as they say, the rest is history—a nation was born. May I just add a thought. Just as every Jewish person owes his origin to a miracle birth, every Christian owes his origin to a miracle birth—the virgin birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. So today there are 13 million Jews (Hebrews) who inhabit the earth all because of the miraculous birth of a baby boy to a 100 year old father and a 90 year old ...

293. Five Differences between a Franchise Faith and an Authentic Faith

Mark 9:38-41

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... to gestures as simple as giving a cup of cold water. Instead of closing ranks, Jesus opened the door to others, to all who would work in Christ’s name. Instead of being a funnel, Jesus told his disciples to be a fountain. One more thing about fountains: one word originality. Fountains have an original source; funnels are derivative and unoriginal and merely redirect from one location to another. Followship can look different on the outside as long as at its heart there is a genuine love of Christ, our ...

294. Caring for Others: The Christian Vocation in the World

Ephesians 1:15-23

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... do as Bobby and Mrs. Hildebrand did: We must live the Christian life and by example encourage others to do the same. Biblical scholars argue several points about the letter to the Ephesians, most especially its Pauline authenticity and the place of its origin. Many exegetes believe, due to the language used and theology of Ephesians, the letter was not penned by Paul, but rather one of his disciples. Experts also point to the rather impersonal nature of the letter, something that seems odd since Paul used ...

295. Plenty Of Room

Matthew 3:13-17

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... were made to belong to God. And when we are Baptized, the waters of our Baptism tell us Whose We Are. B. In the original Toy Story, there is a perfect example. Woody is the favorite toy of a little boy named Andy. But Andy's birthday rolls around ... Who We Are and Whose We Are and How Eternal Those Claims Are. Conclusion You have been created by a loving God. You are a designer original. There are no plain label or generic brands in God's eyes. You is a unique creation. You have been created in the Image of ...

296. Kingdoms in Conflict

Matthew 21:33-46

Sermon

Wayne Brouwer

... There is a scene in Tolkien's The Fellowship of the Ring, where a partnership is forged among those who would accompany Frodo on his journey to destroy the ring of power. The movie version makes for a very gripping visual illustration, and the original literary text is equally as moving. What comes through is a sense of selflessness as the bond that unites these creatures. Furthermore, each subsumes his will to the greater cause, and trusts an unseen and transcendent good for an outcome that will bless all ...

297. Dressed for the Banquet

Matthew 22:1-14

Sermon

Chris Ewing

298. Headed in the Right Direction

Romans 15:4-13

Sermon

John N. Brittain

... quotes Isaiah by name, again weaving two themes together: "The root of Jesse shall come, the one who rises to rule the Gentiles...." Jesse, David's father, reminds us that Jesus came from the house and lineage of David. The word "rises," regardless of its original meaning in Isaiah, now can be understood as a reference to Christ's resurrection, his arising from the dead (it is the same Greek word), which calls the Gentiles to faith in the God who raised him. And this paean of scripture references ends with ...

299. With Our Own Eyes

2 Peter 1:16-21

Sermon

John N. Brittain

... that did not produce returns a hundredfold. (I do not mean to imply that this church was one of them; I don't know.) What does one do with such a message? One could go back and closely examine each of the texts quoted in its original context and see how much it supports the conclusions. For example, all you have to do is open the Bible to discover that in the quotation from Mark 10 a little phrase is omitted: "with persecutions." Jesus said one would receive a hundredfold return "with persecutions." How ...

300. In the Balance

Romans 5:12-19

Sermon

David O. Bales

... re heavier on the concepts of heredity and environment, but the Bible's view of group solidarity says that our being in the original tribe of Adam predisposes us to who we are and what we do. Some individuals and even congregations get it into their minds ... air so it can't get down and hurt anyone else. Jesus is God's "much more" than sin. If people are going to worry about "original sin," a phrase that's not in the Bible, we must look more seriously at God's habitual grace. The grace of our Lord Jesus breaks ...

Showing results