Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: thirstiness, dryness, parched, craving, strong desire, longing, yearning, avidity, hunger, voracity, keenness, eagerness, lust, appetite, passion, love, crave, want, covet, desire, hunger for/after, lust for/after, hanker for/after, have one's heart set on

Antonyms: aversion, distaste, apathy, dislike, hatred, antipathy, disgust, disregard, abhorrence, acrimony, wet, animosity, animus, antagonism, bad feeling, bitterness, be averse to, detestation

Showing 3251 to 3275 of 4961 results

3251. A Trip to God's Woodshed

Hebrews 12: 5-11

Sermon

James Merritt

I heard about a young boy that went off to one of these extremely expensive universities. The bills were coming in monthly to these parents, and they were struggling to keep their head above water. One day his mother received a letter from him that read like this: Dear Mom: I'm writing to inform you that I have flunked all of my courses. I had an accident and totally wrecked my car. I owe the clothing store in town $2000, and I have been suspended for the next semester because of misconduct. I am coming ...

3252. Why Every Christian Should Be an Optimist

Psalm 121:1-8

Sermon

James Merritt

Are you an optimist, or are you a pessimist? I heard about an optimist that was talking to a pessimist, and he said, "Isn't this a beautiful sunny day?" The pessimist replied, "It may be, but if this heat spell doesn't stop very soon, all the grass is going to burn up." Two days later the optimist said to the pessimist, "Isn't this rain wonderful?" The pessimist replied, "Well, if it doesn't stop soon, my garden is going to wash away." The next day the optimist invited the pessimist to go duck hunting. The ...

3253. Leaping from Recognition Point

2 Samuel 11:26—12:13a

Sermon

Stan Purdum

There is a small community in north-central Ohio named Clyde. Back in 1919, a man named Sherwood Anderson, who had grown up in Clyde, published a book of short stories called Winesburg, Ohio. But rather than being proud that one of their hometown boys had made good, a lot of the residents resented Anderson. It didn't take them long to figure out that the fictional Winesburg that served as the setting for his stories was a thinly disguised Clyde, and in the foibles and flaws of his characters, several of ...

3254. A Puzzling Parable with a Sharp Point

Luke 16:1-13

Sermon

Ron Lavin

A young boy used to describe foods like spinach by saying, "I hate it." His wise mother responded, "Don't say you hate it. Just say, ‘I'm not very fond of it.' " She also taught her son that when he really liked some food to say, "I'm really fond of this." The boy said, he was "really fond" of cookies, candy, and cake. His mother told him, "Too many cookies, too much candy, and cake can be bad for you. You can be very fond of the wrong things." Something like that is going on underneath the story of the ...

3255. Come and See

John 1:43-51

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

I ran across a story about a young woman who wanted to go to college, but her heart sank when she read the question on the application blank that asked, "Are you a leader?" Being both honest and conscientious, she wrote, "No," and returned the application, expecting the worst. To her surprise, she received this letter from the college: "Dear Applicant: A study of the application forms reveals that this year our college will have 1,452 new leaders. We are accepting you because we feel it is imperative that ...

3256. The Uniquely Christian Commandment

John 13:1-17, 31b-35

Sermon

David E. Leininger

Maundy Thursday is a strange term. One night when daughter, Erin (the one to whom this volume is dedicated), was little, my wife was trying to tell her about Maundy Thursday. Erin said, "Monday Thursday." "No," said Christie, "Maundy Thursday." "Right," responded Erin, "Monday Thursday." Christie gave up. The designation "Maundy Thursday" comes from an ancient Latin anthem traditionally sung at the commemoration of the Last Supper, "Mandatum Novum Do Vobis," which means, "I give you a new commandment," ...

3257. Christian Maturity

1 Corinthians 3:1-23

Teach the Text

Preben Vang

Big Idea: Mature Christians recognize that Jesus Christ must remain the church’s only foundation. The existence of church cliques testifies to infantile behavior, and God will expose those practicing it. Understanding the Text Although Paul has made it clear that those who rely on human wisdom and rhetorical inspiration are doomed to become nothing (2:6), he is not opposed to effective communication. Paul’s use of metaphor and simile to drive home his point aligns well with ancient rhetorical conventions,[ ...

3258. The Lord's Supper

Mark 14:12-26

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

14:12–21 These verses tell of Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem to celebrate Passover with his disciples and of Jesus’ foreknowledge of Judas’ treachery. The overall purpose of the narrative is to dramatize that the one who betrayed Jesus was actually a disciple who shared Jesus’ company and ate with him. Mark probably saw in this account an allusion to Psalm 41:9–10 (which is cited specifically in John 13:18). The fact that the disciples were not given a name or an address in order to comply with Jesus’ ...

3259. The Jews and the Law

Romans 2:17-29

Understanding Series

James R. Edwards

Psalm 51 records the confession of David when the storm of guilt from his adultery with Bathsheba and murder of Uriah broke upon him. Psalm 51 is, in fact, descriptive of the human condition, “I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.… Surely I was sinful at birth” (vv. 3, 5). It may be possible to maintain confidence in one’s virtue if one limits or controls the field of comparison. It is common, for instance, in comparative studies of various kinds, to compare the strengths of one system ...

3260. Giving Thanks Before Thanksgiving

Luke 17:11-19

Sermon

Brett Blair

Greg Anderson, in Living Life on Purpose tells a story about a man whose wife had left him. He was completely depressed. He had lost faith in himself, in other people, in God--he found no joy in living. One rainy morning this man went to a small neighborhood restaurant for breakfast. Although several people were at the diner, no one was speaking to anyone else. Our miserable friend hunched over the counter, stirring his coffee with a spoon. In one of the small booths along the window was a young mother ...

3261. Nothing Great Happens Without It

Luke 14: 25-35

Sermon

James Merritt

There's is an old fable about an Emperor who many years ago gathered together the wisest people in his kingdom and said, "I want you to assemble all of the great knowledge of our civilizations so that it will be available for future generations." They worked many years before returning with ten bound volumes. The Emperor glanced at the stack of books frowned and said, "Too long." The sages scurried back to work and did not return until they had edited the ten volumes down to one. However, when they handed ...

3262. Francis of Assisi

1 Corinthians 1:18--2:5

Drama

Michael L. Sherer

"The message of Christ’s death on the cross is nonsense ..." 1 Corinthians 1:18-25 Characters: Lector Announcer Antagonist Protagonist (Participants enter and take their places in the chancel. As they come forward, the congregation sings the hymn "Take My Life and Let It Be Consecrated." When the hymn is completed, the drama begins.) LECTOR: The message about Christ’s death on the cross is nonsense to those who are being lost; but for us who are being saved, it is God’s power. For the scripture says, "I ...

3263. Nobody's Perfect--Except Jesus

Hebrews 4:15-16

Sermon

James Merritt

One of America's favorite pastimes is making excuses. We all love to make them, and some people are especially creative in cooking up excuses when they are in the kitchen of trouble. The following are some true excuses offered to police officers in relation to automobile accidents. I think you will find them interesting: "An invisible car came out of nowhere, struck my car, and then disappeared." "I pulled away from the side of the road, glanced at my mother-in-law, and headed over the embankment." "The ...

3264. A Clear and Present Danger

Nehemiah 5:1-19

Sermon

James Merritt

There are always two sources of conflict any leader or any organization faces - external and internal. Believe it or not, by far and away the most dangerous type of conflict is internal. We have already seen how the enemy tries to attack from the outside and one of his primary weapons is criticism, but when he attacks from the inside, he uses an even more powerful weapon – selfishness. In the first four chapters of Nehemiah we saw how the enemy tried several things to stop the rebuilding of the wall. First ...

3265. The Scariest Sound in the World

Matthew 25:1-13

Sermon

Johnny Dean

There’s been a lot of controversy in the past couple of weeks about the decision made by several local counties to move the celebration of Halloween from the traditional date, October 31, which fell this year on Sunday, to Saturday, October 30. The outrage evident in some of the letters published on the editorial page of the Roanoke Times would lead a person to think that some sort of sacrilege had been committed, some grave violation (pardon the pun) of time-honored tradition. And some have pointed the ...

3266. Caiaphas and Pilate

Drama

Jon Joyce

Setting The balcony of the Herodian Palace at Jerusalem overlooking the city. A coffee table or cocktail table covered with a linen cloth holds a silver dish of fresh fruit - grapes, olives, your choice. There is a small bowl of fresh flowers in the center of the table. Stage right of the table there is a chair befitting the position of Pontius Pilate; it may be an overstuffed chair, a chancel chair as found in some liturgical churches, or another highbacked chair covered with gold or violet cloth. Stage ...

3267. Jesus Goes To School

Luke 2:41-52

Sermon

King Duncan

A young woman named Donna who got good grades in high school was in her first year of college. She had done poorly on one of her courses. In an attempt to prepare her parents she wrote her mother, "If you see an unfamiliar letter on my report card, remember it's just my first initial. Signed, Donna." As the time neared for grades to be sent home, Donna began to worry. Her worst fears were confirmed one evening when her mother called her. Donna said, "Hi, Mom." Her mother replied coldly, "Hello, Frank." ...

3268. Thanks For All You've Done

Colossians 1:15-23, Colossians 1:1-14

Sermon

King Duncan

The story is told of a professor of philosophy at a major university in this country who was a deeply committed atheist. His primary goal for one required class was to spend the entire semester attempting to prove that God couldn't exist. His students were always afraid to argue with him because of his impeccable logic. For twenty years, he had taught this class and no one had ever had the courage to go against him. Sure, some had argued in class at times, but no one had ever "really gone against him." ...

3269. On Keeping Quiet about Easter

Mark 16:1-20

Sermon

Donald B. Strobe

Is there anything more frustrating than to be reading an interesting article in the newspaper, only to find that the article is “continued on page 7, section C”.... and then turn to page 7, Section C., only to find that someone has either torn off that page or cut an article from the other side and thereby wiped out the conclusion of the story? That’s sort of the way it is with the Gospel of St. Mark. I. SCHOLARS HAVE KNOWN FOR A LONG TIME THAT MARK’S GOSPEL IS CUT SHORT AT THE END OF VERSE 8. They know ...

3270. Walk By Faith Not By Sight

Philippians 1:1-11

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

This sermon covers Philippians 1: 1-6 and II Corinthians 5 1-7. Barbara Brockhoft tells us that a few years ago in DeKalb County down in Georgia, a school had a mock drill as a part of the Civil Defense program. In the test drill there was a fourth grade boy who was chosen to be "hit". He was listed as one of the casualties. In the mock test he was struck down by glass, debris and rubble. An ambulance was to be called to the elementary school where the test was conducted, and at the call of the ambulance, ...

3271. The Subject Is Salvation

Genesis 6:9-22; 7:24; 8:14-19

Sermon

James L. Killen

A pastor was talking one day with some men whom he knew were not actively involved in any religion. He was surprised to learn that all of the men believed in God. But when they gave their reasons for believing, they all told stories of some narrow escape in which they assumed that God had miraculously interceded to save them or someone they knew from disaster. One told about a narrow escape in a traffic accident, another told of a day when, if he had not been late leaving for work, he might have been ...

3272. Two Worlds

Matthew 5:13-16

Sermon

James McCormick

I was a young pastor attending a seminar. The featured speaker opened his mouth to speak, and these were his first words: “You and I are living today in a world God did not make. He allowed it, but He did not make it.” That took place many years ago, but I still remember those words vividly. And, I remember the surprise I felt upon hearing them. It had never occurred to me that there was anything God had not made. I now see very clearly that he was right: “You and I are living today in a world that God did ...

3273. God's Christmas Tree

1 Peter 2:24

Sermon

James Merritt

How many of you have real Christmas trees in your house? I am talking about real deal Christmas trees - the kind that you have to water, that have needles that fall on the floor, make you sneeze and give you raspy throats. How many of you have artificial trees, fake trees, or counterfeit trees? You may be interested to know that this year, about 24.5 million real trees will be sold during this Christmas season and about 10 million fake trees. Christmas trees are a big business (as you can imagine) in this ...

3274. More Time

Luke 13:1-9

Sermon

Donald Charles Lacy

Who can speak of "justice" in any long-standing and helpful way? It is a subject that fits many who write commentaries but we discover in most cases they are woefully inadequate. You and I, lay and clergy, deal with it almost daily and much of the time when we would rather not do so. It is a theme seemingly as old as history itself. Indeed, when did we not speak and write about it? The Old Testament (Hebrew Scripture) has numerous references to our topic. In that classic verse of Micah, he reminds us "to ...

3275. A Frightening Friday

John 18:1-19:42

Sermon

Donald Charles Lacy

So much happening in so little time! We are left gasping for breath. We stagger under the weight of the mighty arm of historical occurrence. You and I praise God because we know the rest of the story. Those present did not know how things would turn out. They must have been like awestruck children nearing exasperation. Those of us who have read and perhaps studied the great writers amazingly discover that Saint John tops them all. Shakespeare was truly brilliant but there is a peculiar demeanor about our ...

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