Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 3126 to 3150 of 4884 results

John 8:31-36

Bulletin Aid

Frank Ramirez

... complacency, and fill us again with that Spirit that calls us dangerously to return to your word. Amen. Prayer Of Confession Lord, lead us in a re-formation of your church, as we see to cross every line that divides us — ethnic, racial, economic, national. We wish to be the perfect bride of Christ, not a comfortable social club. Convict us of our sins, then create in us a new heart. Your truth sets us free. Amen. Hymns Lift Every Voice And Sing By Gracious Powers A Mighty Fortress

3127. As The Lord Lives, I Will Not Leave You

2 Kings 2:1-18

Bulletin Aid

Frank Ramirez

Call To Worship Leader: The mighty one, God the Lord, speaks and summons the earth from the rising of the sun to its setting. People: Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God shines forth. Leader: Our God comes and does not keep silence, before him is a devouring fire, and a mighty tempest all around him. People: He calls to the heavens above and to the earth, that he may judge his people: Leader: "Gather to me my faithful ...

3128. Salvation By Grace, Salvation For All

Psalm 96:9-13, Titus 2:11-14

Bulletin Aid

Frank Ramirez

... shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy before the Lord; One: for he is coming, for he is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with his truth. Amen. (Based on Psalm 96:9-13) Prayer Of Confession Perfect Lord, you have planned our peace and wholeness in the midst of the world's adversity before the beginning of time. What can we do but accept your sweet gift? You alone are Lord. We pray that your will shall be fulfilled in our lives, and in the lives ...

3129. When Life Isn't Fair

Matthew 20:1-16

Sermon

King Duncan

... longer envy the scoundrel who makes the deathbed confession. Indeed, we pity him for taking so long to see what we have known all along. “No [one] ever repented on his deathbed of being a Christian,” said writer Hannah Moore, and it’s true. We are not perfect, but we are wise enough to see that there are certain laws‑‑moral laws, spiritual laws, if you will‑‑that govern this universe as surely as does the law of gravity. By the grace of God we do right not because we fear hell, but because in ...

3130. Which Coaching Is Better?

Matthew 21:23-32

Illustration

King Duncan

... wins a college scholarship and goes on to play ball better than ever. By the end of the story, it is clear that he is a happier, healthier person more likely to be successful with or without basketball. The Pharisees were like the demanding coach badgering, pressuring, demeaning. They wanted perfection. Jesus knew that is not the way to bring hurting people into the kingdom of God. He did it with love and acceptance. He did it by living out God's amazing, startling, absurd grace.

3131. Fuel for Our Faith

Matthew 20:25-28

Sermon

Shirley Gupton Lynn

"Whoever wishes to be great among you must be your servant." (20:26) In 2005, the journal Science reported that scientists in South Korea had successfully created eleven human embryonic stem-cell lines perfectly matched to the DNA of human patients. Some scientists are elated because this may be a step toward treating diseases like Parkinson's, cancer, and Alzheimer's. Others are appalled that this may be a step toward cloning of human beings. The question of the future, said one scientist ten ...

3132. The Only Bible

Matthew 22:1-14

Illustration

Rebecca Pippert

... people had noticed him, and they all look a bit uncomfortable, but no one said anything. Bill got closer and closer and closer to the pulpit and, when he realized there were no seats, he just squatted down, sitting right on the carpet. Although perfectly acceptable behavior at a college Christian fellowship group, this had never happened in this church before! By now the people were really uptight, and the tension in the air was thick. About this time, the minister realized that from the back of the church ...

3133. Diverted by Lesser Things

Matthew 22:1-14

Illustration

Julian M. Aldridge

... Japanese, suddenly confronts with stark realism the fact that the other prisoners and he had spent all their time and energies building a bridge for the enemy! There is, in the story, a lesson for all time. We, too, often spend our time and energies in pursuit of, or to perfect, the wrong things. This was the situation with those invited to the wedding banquet in the story Jesus told. They had an invitation to the party of a lifetime, and yet, they were diverted by lesser things.

3134. This Little Light of Mine

John 1:1-18

Sermon

King Duncan

... at the mall. The mother spied an expensive fur coat. “This year,” she said, “I think that I will buy my own present instead of making you and dad shop for me.” Her daughter nodded in agreement. “And I think this fur coat would be perfect,” the mother concluded. The daughter began to protest. “But mom,” she said, “some poor helpless creature has to suffer so that you can have this fur coat.” “Don’t worry honey,” her mother said. “Your father won’t get the bill for a couple of ...

3135. Mary, Did You Know?

Luke 1:26-38

Sermon

King Duncan

... choir and he wrote a poem that began like this, “Mary, did you know that your baby boy would one day walk on water? Mary, did you know that your baby boy would save our sons and daughters?” A few years later guitarist Buddy Greene added a perfectly matching tune and a wonderful song was born. “Mary, did you know that your baby boy has walked where angels trod? Mary, did you know when you kiss your little baby, you kiss the face of God!” Each of the little couplets touches the heart in a wonderful ...

3136. Joy to the World!

Luke 2:1-7

Sermon

King Duncan

... . He has been in pain. Know that, as you bow before the manger. One of the annual Christmas television specials that brightens up the season is the Charlie Brown Christmas. In this special Charlie Brown directs a Christmas play and hunts for the perfect tree, and Linus expounds on the true meaning of Christmas. When the special was first shown, the folks at CBS were concerned that the use of actual Bible quotes in the special would turn off viewers. Imagine that religion intruding into a Christmas special ...

3137. Don’t Fear the Wait

Mark 13:1-8

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... know we are Christians by our love, by our love. Yes, they'll know we are Christians by our love." A popular tale demonstrates the proper Christian vocation of example: One day a young missionary spotted a woodcutter hard at work in the forest. "What a perfect opportunity," thought the missionary, when he learned that the woodcutter had never heard of the Lord, "for me to make a convert for Jesus." All day the man chopped wood, carried it to his wagon, and then walked back to chop another load. After a good ...

3138. Accepting the Unconventional in Life

Mark 2:13-22

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... a worse tear is made. And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and the wine will be lost, and so are the skins; but one puts new wine into fresh wineskins" (Mark 2:21-22). Jesus' words perfectly describe how his message and mission have broken the conventions of his day. The new wine is the innovative teaching he brings, but this fresh way of thinking was poured upon a staid set of conventions, laws, and traditions that were unable to hold Jesus' words. Christ ...

3139. Beware: Hypocrites on Premises

Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21

Sermon

David T. Ball

... 1 What will we discover as we proceed on our Lenten inner journey? Treasures such as a profound appreciation for the very gift of life, and a deeper sense of God's tender, yet powerful love for each one of us, but probably not our own personal perfection. My own best moments of spiritual openness to God don't last long, which usually reveals how reluctant I am to place God rather than my own selfish interests at the center of my life. The great Indian spiritual and political leader, Mahatma Gandhi, was well ...

3140. It’s Good to Know Who Is Calling

1 Samuel 3:1-10 (11-20)

Sermon

Schuyler Rhodes

... a bird like most. She spent her life in the cage poking at a mirror and whistling while my mom played classical music. She was quite tame, and we all loved playing with her. One special skill that she acquired, however, was whistling. In fact, she was able to perfectly copy the whistle that my dad used to call our pet dog. It was amazing. You really couldn't tell whether it was my dad or the bird whistling. Neither could the dog. Often, two or three times a day, you could hear that shrill dog whistle come ...

3141. False Prophets

Deuteronomy 18:14-22

Sermon

Schuyler Rhodes

... , we will continue our journey toward faithfulness. We hold our faith closely. It matters to us how things get said and done. But friends, if we get distracted, if we allow fear generated by false prophets to dictate our actions, they will have won. For we know that the perfect love of God we seek to share and grow casts out all fear (1 John 4:18). Be aware of those who may be trying to speak for God without having checked with God first, but don't be afraid. Notice the teachings and the actions of others ...

3142. A Double Share of the Spirit

2 Kings 2:1-12

Sermon

Schuyler Rhodes

... watched him pastor churches and people throughout my childhood. Dad never tired of uttering a long series of truisms he had collected during a half-century in ministry, most of which have proven themselves in my own years in the pulpit. For me, Dad was a giant. Hardly perfect, but fully wonderful, and now that he's gone, I often think that if I could ask for one more thing from him, it would be for a double measure of his spirit. I would stand with Elisha, who was bidding his master and mentor farewell. And ...

3143. God’s Surprises

Acts 10:44-48

Sermon

Ron Lavin

... losing my husband was still too raw. And this grocery store held so many sweet memories. With a heart filled with grief, I only wanted to buy my few items and leave. Shopping for one took time, a little more than it took for two. I searched for the perfect small steak, feeling lonely and forsaken, even by God. Suddenly a woman came up beside me. She was blonde, slim, and lovely in a soft green pantsuit. I watched as she picked up a large pack of T-bones, dropped them in her basket, hesitated, and then put ...

3144. Final Instructions

Acts 1:1-11

Sermon

Ron Lavin

... When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory" (Matthew 25:31). In other words, at the end of the world Jesus will be seen by all as the ultimate Lord. The kingdom in perfection is a term about the future. But Jesus also taught that the kingdom came when he first appeared. Jesus taught that the kingdom came when he began his ministry. In Mark 1:14-15 we read, "Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of ...

3145. Pastoring

Matthew 23:1-39

Illustration

King Duncan

You will find proud people in every profession and in every faith. I was amused to read about Frank B. Vardeman a Presbyterian pastor in Tampa, Florida, who was using the word "pastoring" in something he was writing. He was using Word Perfect on his computer, and when he hit his computer's spellcheck key, it said the word "pastoring" was unknown. The checker suggested the following alternatives: (a) pasturing as in pasturing cattle (b) pestering, and posturing. After a gut laugh, says Vardeman, he realized ...

3146. Keeper of the Springs

Proverbs 31:10-31

Sermon

Peter Marshall

... woman, and men, too, who would rather be morally right that socially correct. Let us not fool ourselves–without Christianity, without Christian education, without the principles of Christ inculcated into young life, we are simply rearing pagans. Physically, they will be perfect. Intellectually, they will be brilliant. But spiritually, they will be pagan. Let us not fool ourselves. The school is making no attempt to teach the principles of Christ. The Church alone cannot do it. They can never be taught to ...

3147. An Exquisite Attitude of Gratitude

Ephesians 1:15-23

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... hurrying to work, Bell played his heart out on his multi-million dollar 1713 Stradivarius violin. Bell began with “Chaconne,” from Bach’s Partita No. 2 in D Minor. Bell calls this a “spiritually powerful piece, emotionally powerful, structurally perfect.” By the way, “Chaconne” is also considered one of the most difficult violin solos ever written. Can you guess what happened? Did busy commuters suddenly stop in their tracks, mesmerized by this master violinist, and drift towards the magical ...

3148. Merry Christmas or Happy Kitschmas?

1 Corinthians 1:1-9

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... of Being that was turned into a mediocre movie. In this novel Kundera defined “kitsch” as the absolute denial of the negative or imperfect. That is, if everything is all sweetness and light, if the painting pictures perfection, if there is no indecency allowed, it is “kitsch.” Barbie is “kitsch.” Barney is “kitsch.” Thomas Kincaid is “kitsch.” The “Brady Bunch” was “kitsch.” “Ozzie and Harriet” were “kitsch.” Norman Rockwell’s Saturday Evening Post illustrations were ...

3149. Ignoring Advent

Mark 13:24-37

Illustration

Matthew T. Phillips

... worthwhile, so jump to the fun stuff. Advent only makes sense if you want something else to hold on to. If you need to believe that as wonderful as the sun, the moon, and the stars may be, when they fall away it will be because a new, brighter, more perfect light has come and we no longer need those things. Advent is a special time when we anticipate our favorite stories about Jesus' birth, but if we do it right, it's also a time when we look at ourselves and our world and decide that we shouldn't be ...

3150. Who Is God?

Illustration

William J. O'Malley

... okay, he doesn't intrude on my life. God is the Good Shepherd who pats our woolly heads and makes everything right again. God is a judge whose sole purpose is to condemn and forgive; we do not encounter him until we die. God is an infinitely distant and holy perfection. He is the reason behind things, but he is too pure to muddy himself in human life and its concerns. God is the pal at my elbow who goes along with anything I chose to do. False gods. Who is God? The Bible is very clear. God is a righteous ...

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