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Showing 301 to 325 of 438 results

301. Does Jesus Have a Health Plan?

James 2:1-13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

Back-to-school time is lay-down-the law time. As all the kids go back to school, Moms and Dads are busy laying down the ground rules to help make it a successful year. Little ones get instructions on crossing the street, holding hands, and eating their lunch. Middle-school kids get cautionary tales about bullying behavior, harder homework, and budgeting their time. High school students get lectures on safe driving, curfews, and the looming threat/promise of college — which means “buck down and buckle-down ...

302. “Blessed Is the One Whose Transgressions Are Forgiven”

Psalm 32:1-11

Teach the Text

C. Hassell Bullock

Big Idea: The story of saving grace begins with the confession of a repentant heart and climaxes with joyful witness in the congregation of God’s people. Understanding the Text Psalm 32 is generally classified as an individual psalm of thanksgiving, a genre that incorporates the report of a crisis and the account of deliverance as an accomplished fact.[1] The crisis (32:3–4) is nondescript and could stem from a physical, psychological, political, or spiritual trauma, or all of the above. In this psalm the ...

303. Proper 25

Deuteronomy 34:1-12, Matthew 22:34-40, Matthew 22:41-46, 1 Thessalonians 2:1-16, Psalm 90:1-17

Sermon Aid

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

OLD TESTAMENT TEXTS Deuteronomy 34:1-12 is the account of Moses' death on Mount Nebo, his burial by God, and the passing on of his leadership to Joshua. Psalm 90:1-6, 13-17 is a prayer ascribed to Moses. The lectionary does not include v. 13, but it is included here since it introduces the prayer ascribed to Moses. Deuteronomy 34:1-12 - "Standing Tiptoe on Mount Nebo" Setting. Deuteronomy 34 is the account of Moses' death. The chapter consists of careful to graps location in Moab and includes a reference ...

304. Keeping Promises

Numbers 30:1-16

Teach the Text

Joe M. Sprinkle

Big Idea: Take solemn promises and commitments seriously. Understanding the Text Following the first census in Numbers is a section dealing with vows, specifically Nazirite vows (Num. 6). Likewise, after the second census Numbers 30 deals with vows, especially women’s vows. Why would a section on vows follow Numbers 28–29, which is on offerings made on holy days? Perhaps because holy days are occasions for completing vows. Numbers 29:39 mentions that “vows” can be completed by sacrifice on holy occasions. ...

305. Righteousness Through Faith

Romans 3:21-31

Understanding Series

James R. Edwards

We return now to the opening theme of the epistle which Paul announced in 1:16–17, righteousness by faith. There it was like a first glimpse of the Himalayas seen from the plains of Nepal, shimmering on the horizon. Then the trek began in earnest as the reader was led up the rugged terrain of argumentation and proof from 1:18–3:20, in which Gentiles and Jews were confronted with a landslide of evidence against them. The inspiring first vision was long since obscured, and more than once the trekker was ...

306. Jesus, Our Rock Foundation

John 14:1-14

Sermon

Richard Gribble

When Charlie Atlas was a teenager his parents bought him a dresser mirror that he placed in his bedroom. Before this time, whenever Charlie needed to use a mirror he went to the bathroom, but there he was only able to see his head and possibly his shoulders. When he got dressed up he used his parents' full length mirror in their bedroom. Charlie was happy with his new mirror; he spent many hours in front of it. One day when he was standing in front of the mirror, Charlie decided to take off his shirt. He ...

307. Stand Against or Walk Alongside?

Philippians 2:5-11

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

Jesus never "stood against" anyone. He always "walked alongside" everyone. He journeyed with people where they were and as they went. Over and over again, Jesus crossed the street and "came to where he was" as he crosses the streets and comes to where we are today. During the course of his earthly ministry, Jesus was always on the move. Most rabbis and their disciples established "schools," centralized locations where others could come to them for information, debate, discourse. The great rabbis taught ...

308. How to Forgive

Matthew 18:21-35

Sermon

King Duncan

Old Joe was dying. For years he’d been at odds with Bill, formerly one of his best friends. Wanting to straighten things out, he sent word for Bill to come and see him. When Bill arrived, Joe told him that he was afraid to go into eternity with such bad feelings between them. Then, very reluctantly and with great effort, Joe apologized for things he had said and done. He also assured Bill that he forgave him for his offenses. Everything seemed fine until Bill turned to go. As he walked out of the room, Joe ...

309. Disobedience and Defeat

Judges 2:6-3:6

Understanding Series

Cheryl A. Brown

Survey of Israel’s Early History: Joshua to Judges · Here begins a new section, but not immediately a new subject. In fact, rather than carrying the story forward, the text looks back to the period immediately after the Israelites renewed their covenant with the Lord at Shechem (Josh. 24). The text picks up nearly where the book of Joshua left off. Joshua 24:28 almost word for word corresponds to Judges 2:6. The section that follows (vv. 10–19) points to the author’s special concern with Israel’s spiritual ...

310. When We No Longer Recognize Ourselves

Psalm 51:1-19

Sermon

King Duncan

Andras Tamas is the name officials gave a certain man decades ago in a Russian psychiatric hospital. He’d been drafted into the army, but the authorities had mistaken his native Hungarian language for the gibberish of a lunatic and had him committed. Then they forgot about him. For 53 years. A few years ago a psychiatrist at the hospital began to realize what had happened and helped Tamas recover the memories of who he was and where he came from. He recently returned home to Budapest as a war hero, “the ...

311. Paul Before Agrippa

Acts 25:23--26:32

Understanding Series

David J. Williams

25:23 On the morrow, Paul was brought in before a large and distinguished audience (cf. 9:15; Luke 21:12). Besides the governor and his guests of honor, there were the high ranking officers, that is, the tribunes or prefects of the cohorts stationed at Caesarea (see note on 10:1) and the leading men of the city. These may have included Jews, but the majority at least would have been Gentiles. The occasion was one of great pomp. This translates the word phantasia (cf. our “fantasy”), which points to the ...

312. God's Righteous Judgment

Romans 2:1-16

Understanding Series

James R. Edwards

The discussion of the guilt of humanity in 1:18ff. presupposes the Gentile world, that is, humanity without special revelation from God. The prominence given to homosexuality in 1:26–27 and the list of vices in 1:29–31 typify Jewish prejudice against “Gentile sinners,” as Paul once referred to them (Gal. 2:15). We noted how clearly 1:18–32 echoes the Jewish indictment of Gentiles from the Wisdom of Solomon (chs. 11–15). Gentiles could have known God from creation. “They live among his works,” says Wisdom ...

313. Job's Reply to Bildad

Job 9:1–10:22

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

How Can a Mortal Be Righteous before God?: Job’s response to Bildad’s speech moves the discussion in a new direction. Up to this point in the book Job has largely been addressing the extremity of his suffering and raising the agonizing question as to how a righteous person can be allowed to suffer so horrendously. Now, however, in response to Bildad’s suggestion that the resolution of Job’s suffering lies in his willingness to “look to God and plead with the Almighty” (8:5), Job begins to consider the ...

314. Wicked Tenants

Matthew 21:33-46

Sermon Aid

William E. Keeney

The parable is found in Mark 12:1-12 and Luke 20:9-19 as well as in Matthew. Question is raised as to whether the parable is given in its original form as told by Jesus or whether it is embellished with additional details from the experience of the church after the death and resurrection of Jesus. The issue is in part concerned with one's belief about predictive prophecy. Did Jesus have prescience about what would happen to the church after his death, or did the writers of the parable adapt it to conform ...

315. Grapes Of Wrath Or Grace?

1 Kings 21:1-29

Sermon

Barbara Brokhoff

A musician in a camp meeting where I preached wrote a country-gospel song titled, "Sin Will Take You Farther Than You Want To Go and Keep You Longer Than You Want To Stay." Nineteen words is a tad long for a song title, but it does state a succinct and compelling truth: sin will get you in serious trouble. In this lesson, Ahab is king and is married to the wicked, Baal-worshipping Jezebel, and covets the vineyard belonging to a worshipper of God named Naboth. Ahab had plenty of property of his own, but he ...

316. Life in the Sunbelt

Malachi 4:1-6

Sermon

Remember the song: "That’s what I like about the South"? There appears to be something special about the southern area of our nation. People who live there seem to love it. They say its good for your health. Industry is shifting in that direction. Flocks of snowbirds flee there from winter’s drabness in the North. People like me dream of someday owning a place in Florida. The sunbelt draws us. There is promise in thoughts of it. It must have been a southerner who wrote the old song that says, "Cheer up, my ...

317. The Gold Lampstand and the Two Olive Trees

Zechariah 4:1-14

Understanding Series

Pamela J. Scalise

Vision Report: Golden Oil: 4:1 An interval during which Zechariah was not alert ends when the angel who talked with him returned and wakened him. After his experience in the divine council Zechariah had not been asleep, but the angel/messenger had to rouse him forcibly, as a man is wakened from his sleep. 4:2–5 In this fifth vision, Zechariah saw a solid gold lampstand with a bowl at the top. Excavations have discovered pottery versions of this sort of lamp stand in which a tubular base supports a ...

318. Did Jesus Say What I Think He Said?

Mark 7:24-37 · James 2:1-9 · Isaiah 35:5-6 · Psalm 146

Sermon

Thomas C. Willadsen

This morning’s gospel lesson may be the most troubling passage in the gospels because Jesus said a lot of provocative things to the religious authorities. The crowds were delighted with the clever ways he always seemed to best them in battles of wits. This morning’s gospel passage is different — very different. Jesus and his disciples needed a break. Just before today’s passage begins, Jesus had a controversy with some Pharisees. It appears that the Pharisees had traveled from Jerusalem to Gennesaret ...

319. The Sin of Judging

Matthew 13:36-43, Matthew 13:24-30

Sermon

Dennis Kastens

Another parable he (Jesus) put before them, saying, "The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field; but while men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also. And the servants of the householder came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then has it weeds?’ He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ The servants said to him, ‘Then do you ...

320. The Miracle of Re-Birth

John 3:1-21

Sermon

In this sermon the text is honored, the problem addressed, the treatment in depth, the structure taut, the words not excessive, the gospel lucid - all for the sake of the hearer. A sermon is something made as well as something said. What gets said is inextricably bound up with the way it is made (said). For a message to be heard as intended, it must be said so that it will not be heard in any other way. This sermon exemplifies that principle. The gift of God’s grace has always been, and continues to be, a ...

321. Preparing For The Second Part Of Life

James 1:1-18

Sermon

King Duncan

It was a familiar scene as the pastor shook hands with persons leaving worship. At the end of the line was a man who occasionally attended worship. As the man came to shake his pastor's hand he said, "Reverend, Reverend, what you said today in your sermon was exactly what I needed to hear. Thank you very, very much. It was so helpful to me. It revolutionized my life. Thank you, thank you." To be honest the pastor was surprised yet pleased that his words made such a profound difference in this man's life. " ...

322. Family Matters

Luke 2:41-52

Sermon

King Duncan

Pastor Tom Rietveld tells about a wedding he performed several years ago. There was a very precocious little seven-year-old boy who was the ring bearer. At the wedding rehearsal, the soloist asked Pastor Tom when she should begin singing. He told her, “After the vows.” She wanted a more specific answer, so she asked: “What are the vows? I’ll need a cue.” And at that point, the little boy turned to the soloist with an exasperated look, and said: “The vowels are A-E-I-O-U. There is no Q!” (1) We never know ...

323. Sermon on the Mount: Allegiance and Trust

Matthew 6:19-24, Matthew 6:25-34

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

Big Idea: Jesus calls his disciples to undivided and primary allegiance to God and the kingdom, which will lead to trust in God for their needs. Understanding the Text This section of the Sermon on the Mount focuses on human allegiances and trusting God for daily needs. The Lord’s Prayer in the previous section has already highlighted these themes: allegiance to God and God’s kingdom (6:9–10) and requests for daily needs (6:11). Matthew 6:16–24 then deals with issues of allegiance, followed by attention to ...

324. Zophar's Second Speech to Job

Job 20:1-29

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

Rejection of Discipline 20:1–3 Zophar, in his second (and final!) speech, makes little attempt to respond to the words Job has just spoken. After an initial angry reaction to what he perceives as Job’s attempts to “discipline” (NIV rebuke, at the beginning of v. 3) an already established group of sages, he launches into a traditional wisdom discourse on the fate of the wicked. His obvious assumption is that Job is firmly entrenched in this category and has little, if any, chance of avoiding a similar fate ...

325. Jesus and Beelzebub

Matthew 12:22-37

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

Opposition Mounts: In chapter 12 Matthew relates a number of incidents that reveal the basis for Pharisaic opposition to Jesus and his ministry. Jesus vindicates his disciples’ plucking grain on the Sabbath (vv. 1–8), restores a paralyzed hand on the Sabbath (vv. 9–14), moves away when he hears of a plot against him (vv. 15–21), refutes the Pharisees’ claim that he drives out demons by the power of Beelzebub (vv. 22–32), calls his antagonists “snakes” who will be held accountable on the day of judgment (vv ...

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