Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: touch, feel, sense of touch, tactile sense, tactility, contact, using one's hands, sensation, sense, suspicion, sneaking suspicion, notion, inkling, hunch, fancy, apprehension, presentiment, premonition, foreboding, love, care, affection, fondness, tenderness, warmth, warmness, emotion, sentiment, emotional state, compassion, sympathy, empathy, fellow feeling, understanding, concern, solicitude, solicitousness, tender-heartedness, brotherly love, sensibilities, sensitivities, self-esteem, ego, pride, opinion, belief, view, impression, intuition, instinct, estimation, guess, theory, hypothesis, thought, way of thinking, point of view, atmosphere, ambience, aura, air, mood, climate, character, overtone, undertone, tenor, spirit, quality, flavour, colour, aptitude, knack, flair, bent, talent, gift, skill, art, trick, faculty, ability, propensity, inclination, sensitive, warm, warm-hearted, tender, tender-hearted, caring, soft-hearted, sympathetic, compassionate, empathetic, responsive, receptive, intuitive, thoughtful

Antonyms: bad feeling, acrimony, animosity, animus, antagonism, antipathy, aversion, bitterness, detestation, disgust, dislike, disrelish, enmity, friction, grievances, grudges, hatred, hostility, loathing, malevolence, malice

Showing 301 to 325 of 1499 results

301. When Ten Equals Two

Exodus 20:1-21

Sermon

Larry Powell

In the jungles of South America, there lives a peculiar, indolent creature known as the three-toed sloth. Actually named for one of the seven deadly sins, the sloth will spend at least eighteen hours each day sleeping. Even when awake, this lazy creature remains almost motionless. When it does move, its sluggish movements are excruciatingly slow. Being too lazy to indulge in personal grooming, its coarse hair provides a home for two species of bluegreen algae, a cockroach-like moth, and hundreds of beetles ...

302. Why Jesus Was Baptized

Matthew 3:13-17

Sermon

King Duncan

Are you nervous in the presence of celebrities? Would you feel awkward if President Bush came to your house for lunch today? Are there people around whom you are very selfconscious? There is a famous story about a woman who goes into an ice cream store. Suddenly she recognizes that Robert Redford is also buying ice cream in that store. The woman is on the verge of swooning with ecstasy, but she is determined to remain calm. She does not want to disgrace herself or invade her favorite movie star's privacy. ...

303. Ultimate Freedom

Galatians 6:11-18

Sermon

King Duncan

An American History teacher posed the following question to her class: "A distinguished foreigner was a big help to the American colonists during the Revolutionary War," she said. "Can anyone give me his name?" One young fellow felt he knew the answer. "It was God," he said. That’s a pretty good answer. "A distinguished foreigner who helped the colonists." Is there anyone in this room who is not thankful for our God-given freedom as Americans? Please do not misunderstand. I am not confusing America with ...

304. A Friend In High Places

Hebrews 7:11-28

Sermon

King Duncan

"What are a Redneck's famous last words?" asks Redneck expert Jeff Foxworthy. "Simple," he says. The Redneck's last words are, "Y'all watch this!" "Whatever the foolhardy act," says Foxworthy, "his friends always oblige. In fact, they probably put the poor guy up to no good in the first place, just for a laugh. Not that he minds. Men know that their friends," Foxworthy continues, "are going to get them into trouble. They expect it. That's why they're called friends. Have you ever heard a guy describe ...

305. Love Is Not Easy

Romans 13:8-14

Sermon

King Duncan

Have you ever noticed that it is not easy to love another human being? Especially those closest to us. In a recent television interview, First Lady Laura Bush reported that early in her marriage her mother-in-law, Barbara Bush, cautioned her not to criticize her husband George W.'s speeches. One day, the First Lady found out why. As Laura and George W. returned from a speech he'd given in Lubbock, Texas, George was pulling into the garage. The future President turned to Laura and asked how she thought the ...

306. Would You Please Listen To Me?

John 1:19-28

Sermon

King Duncan

Have you ever been frustrated because you were trying to talk to someone who simply was not listening? Would you wives hold up your hand? Television news host Hugh Downs once told how frustrating it was to him to see journalists conducting interviews without really listening to the person they were interviewing. He called those types of conversations the "yeah-well interview." As an example of a "yeah-well interview," Downs recalled an interview he heard between a journalist and a former prisoner in the ...

307. Winners And Losers

Luke 13:22-30

Sermon

King Duncan

Back in 1994, 128 runners lined up to compete in the NCAA cross-country championships in Riverside, California. Unfortunately, one of the turns on the 10,000-meter course was not well marked; only five of the 128 runners stayed on the correct path. Mike Delcavo was the first runner to notice the problem. He began waving at the other runners to follow him, but most refused. Can you blame them? One-hundred-and-twenty-three runners took the wrong path, only five took the right one. What did the 123 think of ...

308. Why the Church?

Matthew 16:21-28

Sermon

Donald B. Strobe

Our daughter Carole made her decision to become a minister while she was studying in England in the early 1970s. When she told some of her fellow students about her decision to enter the ministry, they were incredulous...not that a woman would decide for the ministry, but that anybody would want to be a minister. That means being part of the Church, doesn’t it? they said. Why the Church? That’s the question with which I begin this morning. Why the Church? George Arthur Buttrick in his book So We Believe, ...

309. Angels in the Wilderness

Mark 1:9-13

Sermon

Donald B. Strobe

As soon as Jesus was told that He was the Son of God at His baptism, Mark says that “The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. And he was in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan.” (1:12-13) A strange and rather inauspicious way to begin one’s ministry! And what about this “Satan” business? Dr. David Read of New York tells of the old Scottish lady who remarked about her minister: “It’s such a comfort to have a preacher who believes in a personal devil.” But I thought that our ...

310. Being A Man of God

1 Peter 2:4-12

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

Some of you have known me long enough to know that one of my favorite theologian is Charles Schultz, the artist who gave us the wonderful Peanuts cartoons. In one of my favorite cartoons, Lucy comes storming into the room and demands that Linus change TV channels and then threatens him with her fist if he doesn’t. “What makes you think you can walk right in here and take over?” asks Linus. “These five fingers,” says Lucy. “Individually they are nothing, but when I curl them together like this into a single ...

311. Proper 23

Psalm 106:1-48, Philippians 4:2-9, Matthew 22:1-14, Exodus 32:1-33:6

Sermon Aid

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

OLD TESTAMENT TEXTS Exodus 32:1-14 is the story of the golden calf. Psalm 106:6-8, 19-23 is a historical summary that recounts this event in poetic terms. Exodus 32:1-14 - "The Power of Petition: Part 1" Setting. Last week we noted how the account of Israel at Mount Sinai actually lasted for 72 chapters in the Pentateuch (Exodus 19; Numbers 10) . Exodus 19-34 is frequently separated out as a distinct unit within the account of revelation at Mount Sinai, because it presents a self-contained story in three ...

312. Stewards of Power

Esther 7:1-6, 9-10, 9:20-22

Sermon

Stan Purdum

Most days, the news carries stories that, in some way or other, involve the abuse of power. In recent years it has included financial abuses committed by top executives of major companies and abuse of Iraq detainees by U.S. prison guards, but there's almost always some sort of power abuse in the news. So here's a question for each of you: Do you think of yourself as a powerful person? Before you answer, let me be clear that I am not necessarily talking about having power on the scale of corporate CEOs or ...

313. A Man Named Useful

Philemon 1:8-25

Sermon

King Duncan

It is always interesting to get a glimpse into the world of the Bible. When we do, we realize very quickly that these were men and women were very much like ourselves, but they lived in a culture quite different from our own. For one thing, biblical people lived in a society that condoned the owning of slaves. Of course, the same thing could be said of our own society up until 150 years ago. And, as in our own nation, to be a runaway slave was a serious event. Today’s scripture centers on one such slave, a ...

314. You'll Pay for the Play

Illustration

Staff

Once there was a man who was such a golf addict that he was neglecting his job. Frequently he would call in sick as an excuse to play. One morning, after making his usual call to the office, an angel up above spotted him on the way to the golf course and decided to teach him a lesson. "If you play golf today, you will be punished," the angel whispered in his ear. Thinking it was only his conscience, which he had successfully whipped in the past, the fellow just smiled. "No," he said, "I've been doing this ...

315. How Odd of God

Acts 3:11-26

Sermon

King Duncan

There is a small poem that is often quoted in Christian Bible studies that goes like this: How odd/ Of God/ To choose/ The Jews. Jews often use the word Goyim to refer to non-Jews. And so an unknown Jew with a biting wit responded to “How odd / Of God/ To choose/ The Jews” by writing these words: “Not odd / Of God / Goyim / Annoy 'im.” I cite these little bits of creative poetry strictly in fun. Our Jewish friends are generally delightful people, and they have contributed to the advance of civilization far ...

316. The Good Samaritan

Luke 10:25-37

Sermon

David E. Leininger

This is a familiar story. One researcher found in a survey that 49% of the people interviewed said they would be able to tell the story of the good Samaritan if asked to do so, 45% said they would not be able to, and 6% were unsure whether they could tell it or not. Among those who attended religious services every week, the proportion who thought they could tell the story rose to 69%.[1] Surprise! The details are important. There is more here than a simple reminder about our ethical obligation to assist ...

317. Ezekiel's Call

Ezekiel 1:1-28, Ezekiel 2:1-3:15, Ezekiel 3:16-27

Understanding Series

Steven Tuell

Ezekiel’s Message of Judgment – Intro to Ezek. 1–33: The first major section of the book of Ezekiel is an unstinting portrayal of God’s judgment, communicating this message in seven parts. First, in chapters 1–3, God calls the prophet and gives him the message he is to bear through a shattering vision of the Lord’s Glory. Second, in chapters 4–7, a series of sign-acts and oracles of judgment convey the inevitability of Jerusalem’s destruction. Third, in Ezekiel’s second vision of the Glory (chs. 8–11), ...

318. Signs and Oracles of Judgment

Ezekiel 4:1-5:17, Ezekiel 6:1-14, Ezekiel 7:1-27

Understanding Series

Steven Tuell

The material between Ezekiel’s call (chs. 1–3) and his vision of Jerusalem’s destruction (chs. 8–11) falls into two parts. Chapters 4 and 5 present a series of four sign-acts depicting Jerusalem’s siege and fall (4:1–3, 4–8, 9–17; 5:1–17). Chapters 6 and 7 are oracles of judgment directed against the mountains of Israel (ch. 6) and the people, particularly the leaders, of Jerusalem (ch. 7). However, these two sections are neatly interwoven. In the fourth sign-act, the Lord calls down destruction upon ...

319. The Christian Shema: Loving God and Neighbor

Mark 12:28-34

Teach the Text

Grant R. Osborne

Big Idea: Jesus provides a Christian form of the Jewish Shema (Deut. 6:4–9), labeled by some the “Jesus Creed,”1 which sums up the Ten Commandments: the relationship of the Christian with God (the vertical aspect of life) and with others (the horizontal aspect). Understanding the Text The four sections in 12:27–44 form a conclusion to Jesus’s public interaction with the leaders. The next time he sees them will be at his arrest in the garden (14:43–52). The first two sections are part of the controversies ...

320. Fix It, Daddy

John 11:17-45

Sermon

King Duncan

In his book Father Care, Charles Paul Conn tells about his two-year-old daughter Vanessa who was given a helium-filled balloon at Sunday School. It was bright blue and seemed almost alive as it danced and floated on the end of her string as she ran through the halls of the church pulling it along behind her. But the inevitable happened. The balloon bumped into the sharp edge of a metal railing and popped. With a single, loud “bang,” it burst and fell to her feet. She looked down and saw what had been her ...

321. Food Sacrificed to Idols

1 Corinthians 8:1-13

Understanding Series

Marion L. Soards

Contrasting Knowledge and Love At this point in the letter to Corinth Paul enters into the discussion of an issue that will engage him, in one way or another, through 11:1. While the concrete concern that calls for his attention is the issue of “food sacrificed to idols,” at a theological level his focus is Christian rights and responsibilities, especially regarding “knowledge” and “freedom” in lifestyle practices. Interpreters trace the course of Paul’s reflections in slightly different ways, for at one ...

322. Be Holy

1 Peter 1:13-2:3

Understanding Series

Norman Hillyer

The Believers’ Response in Conduct 1:13 Do the readers now appreciate the magnificence of God’s far-reaching salvation plan in which they have been caught up? Then their response has to be a wholehearted commitment to their new life in Christ. They are to prepare their minds for action, that is, they must put away any distractions which would hinder their growth in grace and their being available to carry forward God’s work of salvation in whatever way he may indicate. The Greek is literally “gird up the ...

323. Paul, The Great Missionary

Sermon

Jerry Eckert

Comment: Hostages had been part of everyday news for all of the decade of the 1980s. It seemed appropriate to look back into the scriptures to see if there were any materials that might have meaning in that kind of historical context. While Paul was not a hostage in the classic sense, he was under house arrest a number of times, thus separated from his family and friends, and from his task as ambassador for Christ. I decided to drop the hostage notion and just concentrate on the way things were for the ...

324. Paul, The Great Missionary

Philippians 1:1-11

Drama

Jerry Eckert

Notes: Hostage issues always appear to be before us. It seemed appropriate to look back into the scriptures to see if there were any materials that might have meaning in that kind of historical context. While Paul was not a hostage in the classic sense, he was under house arrest a number of times, thus separated from his family and friends, and from his task as ambassador for Christ. I decided to drop the hostage notion and just concentrate on the way things were for the story line. Storytelling can do ...

325. Celebrating Eucharistic Time

Mark 14:12-26

Sermon

Charles R. Leary

Time is an asset and a liability. Call your attorney, physician, or clergy, and the first thing they do is block out a space on their calendar for you. Go to church or a meeting and you see people looking at their watches or waiting for the hourly chime. You take time off to be with the family or to golf and, before you know it, it’s time to do the next thing. Time keeps rolling like the waters in a stream. Time is an asset and a liability. We have the choice of taking it for granted letting it pass ...

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