Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 3176 to 3200 of 4884 results

Mark 10:35-45

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... the "backbone" of the cross points toward God, drawing a straight line the shortest distance between two points between heaven and Earth, between Creator and creation, between the divine and the human. Jesus found prayer with his Bethany Supper comrades a perfect time to "bring his Father out to meet his friends." Both the horizontal and the vertical were present. Gethsemane Suppers A second type of nourishment was obtained by Jesus at moments we might call Gethsemane Suppers. At Gethsemane, in the garden ...

3177. Mazing Grace or Amazing Grace

Isaiah 42:1-9

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... a bad day? We cannot consciously "butter up" God or get God in a "good mood" before we are called to judgment. We cannot pick the most likely day or time to die when we may appear most favorably in God's eyes. If God is truly a God of perfect justice, then divine judgment is unswayable and unswervable by all time and circumstance. That means we are all in a lot of trouble. That is why Isaiah, and all believers, have counted on the fact that God is a God with two natures. We demand a God of justice - but ...

3178. Easter Completes

Colossians 3:1-4

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... "secular" customs surrounding Easter are truly bizarre? First, there is the Easter Bunny himself. A big male rabbit that carries nests of eggs. Yes, rabbits are extremely good at carrying out that "be fruitful and multiply" mandate. And yes, eggs are perfect, encapsulated symbols of new life to come. But rabbits don't lay eggs or make nests. Especially male rabbits. Sociologist Cindy Dell Clark has researched what she calls the "trinity" of characters in children's most important ritual systems Santa Claus ...

3179. Strength's Weakness

John 20:19-31

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... . Tennis elbow stops all "ace" servers cold. That which was once an athlete's source of power and pride becomes the weakest, most vulnerable part of his or her body. There comes a time in every athlete's life when no longer does "practice make perfect." Instead, practice only makes pain. Among Jesus' 12 disciples, Thomas was not singled out as an example of "doubt" because he possessed a watered-down commitment or a frail faith. In John 11:16, it is Thomas who loyally if bluntly declares his willingness to ...

3180. The Ride of Your Life

1 Peter 1:17-23

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... lawn and perhaps a flower bed or two? ... How many Saturday afternoons have you invested in mowing, weeding, planting and sweating over them? - Do you enjoy golfing, tennis, skiing, baseball or bowling? ... How much of your energy have you given to perfecting your sport-skills, finding the right equipment, locating just the place to play and commuting back and forth to it? - Do you count your career's success as the definition of your personal success? ... How many evenings, weekends and holidays have you ...

3181. Rock-Bottom Living

1 Peter 2:2-10

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... cost. 2. Work with your pain Where have you been, so that you know where others have been? Where have you been broken? Claim your pain without counting the cost. 3. Work with what is at hand What has God given you that is all around you? There is no perfect "Job- Charming." Find purpose in the small things without counting the cost. Caught in the Act Am I the only one? I am sitting in a restaurant, thinking back on something I did that I shouldn't have done or something I didn't do that I should have done ...

3182. B.T.D.T.

Matthew 11:25-30

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... gently re-sculpted into Christ's likeness. There is freedom in being yoked to a single focus and direction through Christ. Ever notice how those who have genuinely yoked their lives to Jesus don't seem to think they are "missing out" on anything? The perfect freedom and fulfillment that come from a life lived in Jesus' "rest" allow disciples of Christ to look down all life's other torturously twisting side roads, speed traps and dead-end routes and affirm with a shake of our heads "no thanks been there ...

3183. A Bill of Rights

Matthew 15:(10-20) 21-28

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... breaks one of God's laws is wrong" ("103 Questions Children Ask About Right From Wrong", #9 in Dandi Daley Mackall, Kids Say the Greatest Things About God [Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale House, 1995]). On the positive side, this same little text reminds us that "God is perfect and always right, so everything good matches what God is like" (#1). Simple enough, isn't it? So why do so many of us feel hopelessly trapped in a wasteland of "gray areas" where the concepts of right and wrong are labels that are ridiculed ...

3184. Anywhere Goes

Romans 14:1-12

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... , instead of the vital life of its faith? when sermons focus on what we must do to belong, instead of what Christ has done to accept us? when we are more concerned with lifestyles than with broken hearts? when we are more interested in a perfect performance than in a heartfelt faith? when political preferences are deemed issues of divine election instead of civic re-election? Like paint from a can, all these attitudes seep out of our spirits, down our pews, out of the sanctuary and gradually saturate our ...

3185. Tremendous Trifles

Exodus 20:1-4, 7-9, 12-20

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... and discard friends, lovers, coworkers or family members as though they were disposable diapers. Our "tremendous trifles" are stacking up into a mountain of broken loyalties, self-centered needs and loveless relationships. All the while our children are watching, learning and perfecting our attitudes. Consider: In Seattle, two 15-year-old boys and their 14-year-old girlfriends decided to ditch school for the day. Missing their bus to the mall, these kids simply car-jacked an automobile parked at a school ...

3186. Rules for the Road

Joshua 3:7-17

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... over our inertia. All sorts of apocalyptic doom-and-gloom scenarios have been proposed for the future we face in the 2000s. I am predicting that 1998 will be even more charged with apocalyptic overtones than 2000 (Why? The Antichrist number 666 multiplied by the perfect number 3 = 1998). In fact, the closer the 2000 threshold gets, the more these doomsayers sit steadfastly still. They refuse to turn on the power of a God who has promised to be with us tomorrow no less than God was with the Israelites of ...

3187. Fifty-Fourth and Lexington

Mark 1:1-8

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... loop, the song's final line fed into its first line, starting the tune over and over again without ceasing. The man's weak, old, untrained voice never wavered from pitch, never went flat, never changed key. The simple intervals of the tune were perfectly maintained for however long he sang. As a musician, Bryars was fascinated. He began thinking of ways he could arrange and orchestrate around the constant, repeated lines the old man sang. One day, while playing the tape as background to other work, Bryars ...

3188. The Oblivious Obvious

Luke 5:1-11

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... , close-up version of our favorite sports events that we see now. All they can do is retell what has obviously just happened right in front of our own eyes _ and get paid for it. And for the most part, people still like to hear that obvious message, that perfectly evident recall of what they have just seen. Ever go to a football game and notice how many spectators in the stands have their ears plugged into the play-by-play on the radio despite the fact that all the action is going on right in front of them ...

3189. And Again I Say...Amen!

Luke 6:27-36

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... Perhaps if I can reshape your question ..." If this is at all true, then I suggest that we very badly need to recapture a way of response that expresses what I will call the child of faith in us rather than the adult of ambiguity. Let me suggest a perfectly viable succession of questions and responses we might consider. Do you believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God? Yes, I do. Do you believe that Jesus Christ rose from the dead? Yes, I do. Do you believe that the blood of Jesus cleanses us from all sin ...

3190. Never Give Up

Luke 13:1-9

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... , strode to the podium and stared fixedly at his audience of new graduates. "Never give up!" he pronounced solemnly. Churchill then turned, walked back to his chair and sat down. As the stunned students momentarily sat in silence, Churchill, with perfect timing, once again rose from his chair, returned to the podium and again announced, "Never give up!" Now, terrified they might respond improperly, the audience never uttered a squeak as their speaker once again returned to his seat. Sure enough, Churchill ...

3191. On Being a Hot-Fudge-Sunday Church

Revelation 22:12-14, 16-17, 20-21

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... eating hot fudge sundaes in January because of that warm topping just as easily as you can rationalize eating them in July for the cool ice cream. It is that hot/cold double identity that makes the hot fudge sundae the perfect postmodern dessert. Postmodern culture is in love with combining opposites. Postmodern culture is determined to change our old "either/or" mentality into "both/and" reality. For example, by using the most advanced computer technology and electronic wizardry, we can now live ...

3192. A-wake or A-live

Galatians 2:15-21

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... a woman changed the bulb last time - 1 to draft a proposal requesting the change - 1 to object to the sexually offensive language of the resolution, as in "screw in the bulb" And so on...) 3. Changing our LOVE would help! In terms of the law, Christ was perfect; in terms of light, Christ possessed the truth. It was his love for us that saved us, that sent him to the cross. Not law, not light, but love. We can preach rules; we can parade our knowledge; but without love, not much will change either in us or ...

3193. Who Are You?

Hebrews 12:18-29

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... under way. The text from Hebrews this week suggests that we will not even escape being shaken up in heaven. The promise of the gospel is this: As long as we cling to our quake-proof sanctuary, the mercy and love of the resurrected Christ, we will be perfectly safe. But the tremors will be felt. In the event of physical earthquakes, most of us have some idea what we should do in order to maximize our safety and chances for survival. Californians have long been drilled in what to do and where to go. Few homes ...

3194. Home Improvement

Jeremiah 23:1-6

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... and choir members, should never feel as if their "home" is booby-trapped - where one misstep may bring a rainfall of ridicule down on their heads. Within our homes, there must be the highest level of commitment. Not a commitment to excellence or superiority or perfection - but a commitment to each other. One day, a little boy was trying to lift a heavy stone, but he couldn't budge it. His father, passing by, stopped to watch his efforts, and finally, he said to his son, "Are you using all your strength ...

3195. A Theology of Linguistic Linguini

Ephesians 1:1-14

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... knocking yourself down a notch. Adoration means you’re on your knees and on your face. You say: but Catholics, Anglicans, and some Episcopalians still kneel during prayer, or while taking communion. I say yes, that’s true. But it is a perfectly-postured, straight-backed, kneel — and of course, on a nicely upholstered or even needlepoint “kneeler.” Our prostrating has become more of a posturing than an adoring. Our kneeling is more an action with attitude than an act of homage and humility. Muslims ...

3196. 1 John 4:7-12

1 John 4:7-12

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... skillful pruning there is nothing beyond the strength of their love. Philip demonstrates the extensive reach of our ability to love when we are abiding in Christ, led by the Spirit, and directed by God. Luke's story of Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch perfectly illustrates how the "true Israel" bears its fruit. The pericope begins with Philip unhesitatingly responding to the voice of the Spirit, even when it calls him onto a deserted highway in the middle of a barren land. Yet Philip's "pruning" has just ...

3197. Mark 6:30-44

Mark 6:30-44

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... requires that he take quick action. But David's own moral turpitude is only deepened by Uriah's steadfast piety. By refusing to enjoy the comforts of his home and the love of his wife while his battalion remains in the field, Uriah perfectly demonstrates the selfless dedication to a code of honor which David has so badly betrayed. Twice David tempts Uriah to sleep with his wife; twice Uriah resists temptation (once even while he is drunk). In desperation David completely abandons any remaining ethical ...

3198. James 1:17-27

James 1:17-27

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... news of salvation. God does not set people up with "tests" or otherwise try to tempt believers into wrongdoing. Verse 17 restates James' earlier point in verse 5 that wisdom and all other good gifts do come from God. Although somewhat mangled to fit more perfectly into his line of reasoning, verse 17 is actually James' reworking of a pagan proverb which claimed in essence, "Don't look a gift horse in the mouth." The God James defines in verse 17 is utterly trustworthy. This God has distributed only goodness ...

3199. Mark 10:46-52

Mark 10:46-52

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... follows Jesus "on his way." Mark thus closes his section on discipleship with a profoundly positive image - those who truly see Christ feel overwhelmingly called to follow his pathways and purposes. They become imitators of Christ as they seek to become perfected disciples. Bartimaeus' journey was not easy. He began to follow Jesus just when, from a human point of view, things began to degenerate. Jesus now enters Jerusalem to play his part in the final scene of confrontation, prosecution and execution ...

3200. Luke 21:25-36

Luke 21:25-36

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... not yet. In verses 27-28 Jesus describes the final fulfillment of the Kingdom. While awaiting its consummation, the Kingdom of God cuts across time - it is present in part without being fully arrived, kingdom come and kingdom coming. The Son of Man is therefore the perfect title for Jesus, since he is the one who participates in the Kingdom as it is present now and who ushers it in fully on the day of judgment. Verse 31 continues to emphasize Jesus' dual concept of the Kingdom. The Kingdom is near even as ...

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