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 3051 to 3075 of 3314 results

3051. Eternity: The New Jerusalem

Revelation 21:1-27

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... which Ezekiel surveys. The New Jerusalem is twelve thousand stadia in length, height, and width (about fifteen hundred miles), while the dimensions of the Ezekiel temple only amount to approximately one and a half miles. Since twelve is the number of God’s apostles and his tribes, and one thousand is a multiple of ten (i.e., the number of power and vastness), the dimensions of the New Jerusalem are a spatial metaphor for a numberless multitude, the entire people of God from both Testaments, believers from ...

3052. The Womb of Amazing Grace

John 4:5-42

Sermon

Robert Leslie Holmes

... follow. There is a great likelihood that someone else did some sowing ahead of us. It might have been a parent, grandparent, sibling, friend, teacher, or pastor. What matters is that God was present to authenticate what human sowers and reapers had a hand in doing. The apostle Paul says it like this, I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. The one who plants and the one who waters have a common ...

3053. Here's Mud In Your Eye

John 9:1-41

Sermon

Robert Leslie Holmes

... writes, "I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened" (Ephesians 1:17-18). It is the apostle's prayer that we will see beyond the merely physical things of this life. There are few things that will stunt our Christian growth more than an unwillingness to consider the possibility that God can and will do things that break through the boundaries of our imaginations ...

3054. When Lazarus Leaped and Laughed

John 11:1-45

Sermon

Robert Leslie Holmes

... references named for him. There is no record of him ever professing to be a Christian. Nevertheless, in one of his lighter moments he considered his certain death and wrote an imaginary epitaph for himself that seems to have been influenced by the teachings of the apostle Paul. He wrote this: The body of B. Franklin, Printer Like the Cover of an old Book Its contents torn out, And stripped of all its Lettering and Gilding, Lies here, Food for Worms. But the work shall not be wholly lost, For it will, as ...

3055. This Spirit Is Not Spooky

John 14:15-21

Sermon

Robert Leslie Holmes

... the Son, and of the Holy Spirit." We did not say the "names," but the "name." It is one name and not a plurality of names. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are one person. Perhaps the foremost indicator of the Spirit's personality comes from the apostle Paul when he writes about the Spirit's speculation: "God, who searches the heart, knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God" (Romans 8:27). On another occasion, Paul writes of the Spirit's ...

3056. The Biggest Prayer Ever Prayed Under Heaven

John 17:1-11

Sermon

Robert Leslie Holmes

... a king, both in his estate of humiliation and exaltation." This passage from John's gospel brings us face-to-face with Jesus' priestly office. In the letter to the Hebrews we read, Brothers and sisters, holy partners in a heavenly calling, consider that Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession, was faithful to the one who appointed him. (Hebrews 3:1-2) We have this hope, a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters the inner shrine behind the curtain, where Jesus, a forerunner on ...

3057. Need a Lift?

Acts 9:36-43

Sermon

Charley Reeb

... to elevate myself beyond mere existence?” Our text gives us some clues about being elevated above the stress pool of life. At a glance, this text is exactly what we want. An outer-circle disciple of Jesus named Tabitha had become ill and died unexpectedly, and the Apostle Peter arrives with a big S on his chest and rescues Tabitha by bringing her back to life. Sounds good, doesn’t it? It would be so nice to have someone like Peter who would come and rescue us from our problems. But the text reveals more ...

3058. In the Event of Power Failure

Acts 1:1-11

Sermon

Charley Reeb

... your life. Jesus promised it to us: But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you (Acts 1:8). Jesus gave us a beautiful promise, a promise that his powerful Spirit would come to dwell within those who believe in him. The apostles who originally heard this promise were so unsure of what Jesus meant and when this power would be received that Pentecost came as a surprise. Yet when they were filled with the power of the Spirit, they could not contain it. The Spirit motivated and empowered ...

3059. I Wonder Why My Prayers Go Unanswered?

Luke 11:1-13

Sermon

Charley Reeb

... Scripture we see instances of followers of God who cried out and did not seem to have their prayers answered. The two biggest examples were Jesus and Paul. Remember, Jesus pled for God to “take this cup from me,” but to no avail. And the Apostle Paul begged God to take away “the thorn in his side,” but God never did. Obviously, their prayers were not answered to their satisfaction. We can receive comfort from the fact that even Jesus and Paul went through times of fervent praying for God to ...

3060. I Wonder about Life after Death

John 14:1-3

Sermon

Charley Reeb

... to a whole new journey with God. On this journey we will be provided with comfort and rest along the way. In addition to the passage in John, we find profound passages about life after death in the letters of Paul. If we had lived during the time of the apostle Paul and we asked him what he believed about life after death, I believe his answer would be what we find in 2nd Corinthians 5:1-2: For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made ...

3061. Elephants in the Room: Addiction

Romans 7:15-22

Sermon

Charley Reeb

... and social problems facing the United States *Source: SAMHSA (U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) Addiction is quite a monster! Paul Knew the Monster! You may be surprised to know that the Bible addresses the problem of addiction. In fact, the Apostle Paul admitted to having addictive tendencies. See if the following words don’t sound like someone who struggles with addiction: “I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate…I ...

3062. The Parable of the Sower

Matthew 13:1-23

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

... : Gk. ho ponēros is used for the one who is the absolute antithesis to God, that is, the devil. This distinctive New Testament usage reflects the moral understanding of ponēros as that which stands over against God, his law, the preaching of Jesus, and the message of the apostles (TDNT, vol. 6, p. 558).

3063. Being a True Disciple

John 8:31-36

Sermon

David G. Rogne

... the first step in Christian development, it is the only step. It reduces Christianity to the lowest common denominator. To their defense such people call on the great reformer, Martin Luther, who discovered and taught that we are saved by faith. Indeed, before him the apostle Paul indicated that we are saved by God's grace through faith and not from anything we can do to earn it (Ephesians 2:8). A few years ago an evangelistic organization announced their plan to proclaim the gospel to every person in the ...

3064. John the Baptist Prepares the Way

Mark 1:1-8

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

... with John is well attested in the NT. All four Gospels describe the beginning of Jesus’ ministry by referring to John (cf. Matt. 3:1–17; Luke 3:1–22; John 1:6–35); and the accounts of the early church in the Acts of the Apostles likewise trace Jesus’ ministry from John’s work (Acts 1:21–22; 10:36–38). Elsewhere in Mark there is the reported rumor that after John’s execution Jesus was viewed by some (especially Herod Antipas, the ruler of Galilee) as perhaps a reappearance of the martyred ...

3065. The Faith of a Syrophoenician Woman

Mark 7:24-30

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

... the possibility of a later “feeding” of others like the woman and was used by Mark to mean that the restriction of Jesus’ own ministry to Israel both was proper and did not preclude a later mission to the Gentiles. In this phrase, we may see a reflection of the Apostle Paul’s emphasis that it was God’s will for salvation to be preached first to the Jews and then to all the world (e.g., Rom. 1:16; 2:9–11; cf. Acts 3:26; 13:26–48). In seeing this passage properly in its Markan context, we should ...

3066. The Transfiguration

Mark 9:2-13

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

... :37) and at the place of final prayer in Gethsemane (14:33). Peter figures prominently throughout Mark (as in the other Gospels) and is singled out in the announcement of the resurrection (16:7). Early Christian tradition portrays Peter as a leader even among the apostles. With James and John he is a chief figure in the Jerusalem church, the “mother church” of the Christian movement in the first century (e.g., Gal. 1:18–19; 2:9). (On the particular place of Peter in earliest Christianity, see Peter in ...

3067. Divorce

Mark 10:1-12

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

... the Markan form of Jesus’ saying makes divorcing one’s wife to acquire another an offense against one’s wife. For other parallels to the divorce saying, see also Matt 5:32 and Luke 16:18. It is interesting to note how this saying of Jesus is used by the Apostle Paul in 1 Cor. 7:10–11 to answer certain inquiries from the church about Christians ending their marriages.

3068. The Resurrection

Mark 16:1-20

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

... preaching of the disciples as they go out in the world. Although the accounts of the resurrection appearances in the other Gospels do not mention such things, the traditions of the early church certainly emphasize miraculous signs as a part of the preaching activity of the apostles and others (cf. Acts 2:43; 4:30; 5:12; Heb. 2:4). So the writer of these verses was familiar with this basic tradition and with specific miracles to which he seems to allude (cf. v. 17, they will speak in new tongues, with Acts ...

3069. Introduction

Luke 1:1-4

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... that the eyewitnesses of Jesus’ life and ministry have “handed down” the apostolic gospel tradition from which he will attempt to compose his own account. Those who from the first were eyewitnesses refers to the original disciples who became Jesus’ apostles and were eyewitnesses of his life and ministry. This is illustrated in Acts 1:21–22, where Judas’ replacement must have been an eyewitness from the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, commencing with the baptism of John. Luke, however, may also ...

3070. The Baptism and Genealogy of Jesus

Luke 3:21-38

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... relation to or dependence upon the Baptist. Luke simply tells us that Jesus was baptized (perhaps by John, perhaps not), and then (later), while he prayed, the heavens opened and the Spirit descended. Luke possibly sees a parallel here with the apostles who pray and shortly thereafter receive the Spirit (see Acts 1:14; 2:1–4). Jesus was baptized too: Some evidence suggests that early Christians found Jesus’ baptism somewhat embarrassing, either because it implied that Jesus, like his fellow Israelites ...

3071. Jesus Drives Out an Evil Spirit

Luke 4:31-37

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... the exorcism itself (see note below). The rabbis believed that they, too, had the power to cast out demons (see Ellis, p. 99). They usually attempted to do this by invoking the name of an OT worthy (e.g., the name of Solomon was a favorite). Similarly the apostles performed exorcisms and healings in the name of Jesus (see Acts 3:6; 4:10; 9:34; 16:18; see 19:13–17, where non-Christians unsuccessfully attempt an exorcism by invoking the names of Paul and Jesus). When the people ask, “What is this teaching ...

3072. Peter's Confession of Christ

Luke 9:18-27

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... Luke so that the evangelist may provide a closer link between Jesus’ passion pronouncement in vv. 21–22 and his teaching in vv. 23–26 on the suffering involved in being his follower. (It is also omitted because Luke wishes to present Peter and the other apostles in the best light possible.) Following Jesus means taking up one’s cross and being willing to lose one’s life for Jesus. Jesus is the Messiah, a Messiah who must suffer and die, and a Messiah whose followers must also be willing to suffer ...

3073. Jesus Sends Out the Seventy-two

Luke 10:1-24

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... probably an offer to accept the peace and well-being that the Messiah Jesus has to offer. If a person is a man of peace (lit. “son of peace”), that is, a son or daughter of the messianic kingdom (Ellis, p. 156), that one will receive the message of the apostles gladly and will enjoy its blessing. But if he is not a son of peace, the offer of peace is to be withdrawn. The messengers are to stay in the house where they are received, and they are to eat and drink whatever is offered. They are not to move ...

3074. The Parable of the Good Samaritan

Luke 10:25-37

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... the Levite the Prophets or some other part of the OT or Jewish practice; the Samaritan is not Jesus; the oil and wine do not represent the Holy Spirit and/or gifts of the Holy Spirit; the inn is not the church; the innkeeper is neither the Apostle Paul nor the Holy Spirit; and the two silver coins refer neither to the sacraments of baptism and the Lord’s Supper nor to anything else. For a discussion of the allegorical abuses of this parable see Robert H. Stein, The Method and Message of Jesus’ Teaching ...

3075. Jesus Appears to the Disciples

Luke 24:36-49

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... truths from Scripture. A dramatic illustration of this new hermeneutical insight is mirrored in Peter’s Pentecost sermon in Acts 2:14–39, where Peter cites a variety of Scriptures and applies them to the experience of Christ and the earliest Christians. But what are the apostles of Christ to know? The Risen One goes on to explain in v. 46 that the following is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day. But where in the OT are such things written? Fitzmyer (p. 1581) remarks ...

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