Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 3001 to 3025 of 4943 results

3001. Welcoming Christ

Romans 14:1--15:13

Sermon

Frank Luchsinger

For his sixth grade year his family moved to the new community. They made careful preparations for the husky, freckle-faced redhead to fit in smoothly. They had meetings with teachers and principal, and practiced the route to the very school doors he would enter on the first day. "Right here will be lists of the classes with the teachers' names and students. Come to these doors and find your name on a list and go to that class." On the big day, all went as planned. Many students had gathered by the time he ...

3002. Moving At The Speed Of Light

Ephesians 3:1-13

Sermon

Frank Luchsinger

At the end of Matthew's gospel, Jesus instructs his disciples: "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age" (Matthew 28:16-20). Once again, the Light is on the move. How does light move? Differently, depending on its courier. One can imagine a party of ...

3003. You Can Be In Heaven Or Hell

Psalm 139:1-24

Sermon

Michael B. Brown

Heaven and hell are real. Anyone who has ever been married is aware of that because in marriage one experiences a little bit of both. On the occasion of their 50th wedding anniversary, Billy and Ruth Graham were interviewed from their home in Montreat, North Carolina. The interviewer was Joan Lunden of the television show Good Morning, America. Ms. Lunden asked Mrs. Graham: "In all your 50 years together, did you ever even once consider divorce?" Mrs. Graham replied: "Divorce, no; murder, yes." In most ...

3004. Easter 5

Jn 13:31-35 · Acts 11:1-18; 13:44-52; 14:21-27 · Rev 21:1-6 · Ps 148

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

COMMENTARY Epistle: Acts 11:1-18 ; 13:33-52; 14:21-27 Peter reports the acceptance of the Gospel by the Gentiles. To understand this pericope, one needs to read chapter 10 concerning Peter's preaching to a Roman centurion and his household in Caesarea. The news of Peter's preaching to these Gentiles and their acceptance of the Gospel apparently came to the ears of Jewish Christians in Jerusalem. When Peter explained what happened, the Jewish Christians praised God for admitting Gentiles into the Kingdom. ...

3005. Easter 6

Jn 14:15-31; Acts 15:22-29, 16:6-15; Rev 21:22--22:5

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

COMMENTARY Epistle: Acts 16:9-15 Paul responds to the Holy Spirit's call to go to Macedonia. Paul was on his second missionary journey. He was planning to preach in Asia Minor, but the Holy Spirit prevented him from doing so. One night he received a call to go to Macedonia. Since Luke joined him, Luke could now say "we." They sailed from Troas to Philippi, a Roman province. Because the city was mainly a place for retired Roman soldiers, there were few Jews and the city had no synagogue. Consequently, Paul ...

3006. It's Your Funeral

Matthew 21:28-32

Sermon

Roger G. Talbott

Today people in our society are less and less willing to completely leave things to the "experts." Patients insist that their doctors talk to them about the options for treatment and include the patient as a full partner in making the final decision. The computer software stores are full of programs that allow people to draft simple legal documents like wills and to keep financial records and fill out tax forms like an accountant. People are saying to doctors, "It's my body." They are saying to lawyers and ...

3007. Children

Sermon

Jerry Eckert

Comment: Sometimes you can prepare a story sermon which reflects a lot of your own experience. And it becomes natural for you to play yourself while making the point of the sermon. The following reflected a lot of my experiences as a young father. Fortunately, my wife did not die, as does the wife of the main character here. But I was quite a disappointment to my colleagues because of how much part I took in household matters and child care. As of this writing, I am the wife my spouse always wanted! I ...

3008. Invitation To Community

Mark 10:1-12

Sermon

William G. Carter

We have a problem today. Here we are, gathered at worship as the household of God. Through baptism we belong to a worldwide community of faith. Each time we gather, we have an opportunity to pray together and recommit ourselves to peace. Now that we are here, we have to deal with a troublesome and potentially divisive text from the Gospel of Mark. Some Pharisees put Jesus to the test by asking him what he thought about divorce. His response, in turn, has always put a peace-loving church to the test. Jesus ...

3009. Time Taken, Life Restored

Mark 5:21-43

Sermon

William G. Carter

The woman had been sick for a very long time. So long, in fact, she didn't know what to do. She didn't know where to turn. Everybody suggested a different remedy, but none of them would work. She visited many physicians, but none of them could help. She stayed sick. As time passed, she grew worse. All those medical bills were bleeding her dry. So when she heard Jesus was coming to town, she pushed her way through the crowd. She'd heard about him, of course. The last time he worked on this side of the sea ...

3010. Mending

Ephesians 4:1-16

Children's Sermon

B. Kathleen Fannin

Object: A piece of material and a threaded needle. Lesson: Prayer; love; healing. As the children gather on the steps of the chancel area in the sanctuary, I pull a piece of red-and-white striped cloth out of my pocket. "What have I brought with me today?" I ask them. "A piece of material," Deborah replies. "A piece of material," I repeat as I take one end of it in each hand. I had, prior to the start of worship, cut a tiny slit in one edge of the material to facilitate my forthcoming demonstration. "What ...

3011. Mission Ready!

Mark 6:7-13

Sermon

Charles R. Leary

Picture yourself starting a brand new project. You might want to call it mission. In a parish where most of the communicants were government workers, civilian and military, I was always hearing the word, mission. I had understood mission in a religious context. I learned that mission could have a broader meaning. Life is mission. Business is mission. Career is mission. Mission is a good word. It suggests vision that is supported by good planning. Define your mission clearly. State its purpose briefly. ...

3012. The Banquet Bowl

Mark 9:38-41

Sermon

Robert Salzgeber

Jesus is suggesting the utter disproportionate nature of God's grace in the Mark text when he says, "I assure you that anyone who gives you a drink of water because you belong to me will certainly receive his reward." In other words, Jesus is saying that we do not even have to be conscious of our discipleship in order to receive his redemptive blessing. Simply giving a disciple a drink is just cause for God to reward/bless that one with his redemptive net. Hence, Jesus says, "For whoever is not against us ...

3013. Giants In Your Way

1 Samuel 17:1-58

Sermon

Charles Curley

The hand of the Philistines was heavy upon Israel. The Philistines were an overwhelming, oppressive, intrusive presence in the land. They threatened to take away everything the people of Israel held dear. They threatened life itself, for death followed in their wake as they ravaged the land. Just when Saul and his armies were poised to drive the Philistines out of the land, Goliath appeared - a giant standing in their way. Faced with the Philistines and their giant, Goliath, Saul and his people were ...

3014. The Unclean Spirit

Mark 1:21-28

Drama

Dallas A. Brauninger

This healing story is the first pronouncement story in Cycle B. The pronouncement formula presents a situation, builds to a climax, offers a solution and gives a statement of the issue. In the early church, this format made for easier recall of the story for oral retelling. While healing on the sabbath is mentioned in this miracle, the main issue is authority. In another Cycle B miracle for Epiphany 7, healing the paralytic (Miracle 4), Jesus observes rumblings and questions among the scribes (Mark 2:6) ...

3015. The TV Audience

Sermon

Michael Rogness

Our sermon consumers are used to VCRs and Super Nintendo Ÿ strong visual images Ÿ they watch and then rewind. For our preaching, that certainly means it is a different generation of people out there listening. It has definite implications for what we say and how we say it.11 -- Jerry L. Schmalenberger I talk with many laypeople about sermons, and the comment I hear most often is: "Sermons are bo-o-o-oring!" This comment is of course not new in church history. Perhaps Eutychus thought the same thing about ...

3016. Troubled Carrie and Clear Connie

1 Peter 3:16

Children's Sermon

Wesley T. Runk

Object: 2 jars of water, one clear and one filled with particles. Good morning, boys and girls. How many of you have a conscience? (Let them answer.) Do you know what your conscience is? (Let them answer.) It's part of you that tells you what is right or what is wrong. If you do something wrong and you try to hide it or lie about it, your conscience will bother you. The Bible teaches us that we should have a clear conscience. Do you know what that means? (Let them answer.) I brought along some friends of ...

3017. Star Miracle

Matthew 2:1-12, Isaiah 60:1-22, Ephesians 3:1-13

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

Today's society is a star-saturated society, or should we say star-crazy society? Since we seem to know all about our Earth and face no more earthly frontiers, we have turned our attention to extra-terrestrial bodies. We are interested in the stars: their size, temperature, and whether life exists on them. In 1989 Time magazine had a feature article on the sun, an "ordinary" star 96 million miles from Earth, 865,000 miles in diameter, with a temperature of 27 million degrees Fahrenheit. For 3-and-a-half ...

3018. Advent 4

Psalm 80:1-19, Micah 5:1-4, Hebrews 10:1-18, Luke 1:39-45

Sermon Aid

George Bass

THEOLOGICAL CLUE Thirty-five years ago, a liturgical scholar, Edward T. Horn, III, said: "The Fourth and last Sunday in Advent has been an 'orphan' for centuries so far as its true nature is concerned. In contemporary America it is often called 'Christmas Sunday,' an intrusion from nonliturgical Protestantism of Puritan background which, having divorced all religious observances from Christmas, sought to salve its conscience by transferring these observances to the previous Sunday." He concludes: "As a ...

3019. Straight Talk, Due Process and Grace

Matthew 18:15-20

Sermon

William J. Carl

It never ceases to amaze me how periodically someone joins the church thinking with great naivete that he or she has now left the imperfect, money-grubbing, power-hungry secular world and entered some holy, monastic community where everyone is good and kind and loving and no one ever gossips or spreads rumors or disagrees on any subject. When this happens, I usually watch to see how long it takes before this person’s whole idyllic image of the church comes tumbling down like the proverbial deck of cards. ...

3020. On the Art Of Listening To Sermons

Matthew 13:1-23

Sermon

Larry Goodpaster

I cannot imagine a more difficult place to preach than the setting of this parable-sermon. Although they were not out to get him, this surely must have been one of the toughest audiences Jesus had to face, outside of the religious establishment who were not receptive to much of anything he had to say anyway. The assembling of these people is handled in a rather matter-of-fact way by Matthew in his telling of the story. He says simply that they came to the beach where Jesus had gone to relax for a few ...

3021. A Name To Be Remembered

Exodus 3:1-22

Sermon

Walter Kimbrough

Everyone born into the world has a name. Some names are easy to pronounce while others represent varying degrees of difficulty. On some occasions we find the need to change our names due to marriage or religion. Then, there are those who do not particularly like their name, but the fact remains that everybody has a name. A name to be remembered. Some years ago, the students at the University of California began to protest, insisting that “nobody knows my name.” Classes with 500 to 1,000 students tend to ...

3022. Mourning Turned To Joy

Jeremiah 30:1--31:40

Sermon

Ron Lavin

The 14th canticle from the Lutheran Book of Worship poetically summarizes Jeremiah 31:6-14: Listen! you nations of the world:listen to the Word of the Lord.Announce it from coast to coast;declare it to distant islands. The Lord who scattered Israel willgather his people again;and he will keep watch over them as ashepherd watches his flock. With shouts of joy they will come,their faces radiantly happy,for the Lord is so gen 'rous to them;He showers his people with gifts. Young women will dance for joy,and ...

3023. The Best Offense Is A Good Defense

Zephaniah 3:1-20

Sermon

Richard Hasler

Reading the title you may jump to the conclusion that I do not know football. To be sure, the saying usually goes: “The best defense is a good offense.” But consider the plight of Joe Paterno when he became head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions in 1967. He realized that he did not have a squad of outstanding athletes, particularly defensive players. To Paterno, defense was the key to winning football games. What was he to do? In his own words: “I had to find a way of playing great defense without ...

3024. The Illusion Of Neutrality

Deuteronomy 30:11-20

Sermon

Robert Beringer

Charlie Moran, the old National League baseball umpire, always regarded himself and his decisions highly. He liked to make it clear to the ballplayers who was boss behind the plate. One day, in a very close play at home, the runner and the catcher eagerly awaited Charlie's decision. The umpire hesitated, and the catcher shouted, "Well, is he safe or is he out?" Moran pulled himself up to his full height, cleared his throat, and said to the catcher, "Mister, until I calls it, it ain't nothin' at all!" Of ...

3025. Bartolome’ de Las Casas Protector Of The Indians

Drama

Thomas A. Renquist

Reader 1: In 1992, North, Central and South Americans celebrated the 500th anniversary of Columbus’ “discovery” of America. Of course, we have been reminded that it can’t really be called a “discovery” when there were people already living here who knew this land existed all the time! So what’s a better word? “Exploration?” Perhaps most fitting is the word “conquest.” After 1492, as the Spaniards established their American empire, 20,000,000 native Americans were killed. In some areas, like Cuba, all of ...

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