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 5000 results

3251. Working Together

Acts 18:1-3

Children's Sermon

Wesley T. Runk

... way it was with Paul and the people he worked for making tents. When Paul was not making tents he was teaching in the Jewish synagogue about Jesus. Many of the Jews in Corinth listened to every word that he said, including Priscilla and Aquilla. It was not too long before both Aquilla and Priscilla became Christians. It wasn't easy. Many of the Jews hated what Paul was teaching and they said so. Some of them went so far as to insult Paul and they even tried to hurt him. Paul soon found out that he could no ...

3252. Will the Real Jesus Christ Arise?

John 20:1-18

Sermon

Carl Jech

... the "Real Jesus"? Are we all just raising up our own notions of who Jesus really is or are we honestly listening to history and the Scriptures as they speak to us of this person named Jesus and his association with the title of Christ? Not long before his untimely death, the gifted theologian and bishop, Kent Knutson, introduced one of his books with these words: "This is a book about Jesus Christ. It is rather presumptuous to write such a book. Suitable books are already available. The one by John in the ...

3253. The Real Jesus is Channeling Grace

John 17:20-26

Sermon

Carl Jech

... in the middle of intense conflict between Muslims and Hindus. He defuses the situation by saying "I am a Muslim, and a Hindu, and a Christian, and a Jew." This is a wonderful attitude to take, so long as it affirms the unique identities and contributions of each tradition, so long as it is a recognition of unity amid diversity rather than of superficial homogenizing of the various faiths. As we noted on Ash Wednesday, Christians in particular may need to begin paying more serious attention to the other ...

3254. Praise God For Adversity

Isaiah 43:14-28

Sermon

Carl Hoefler

... so prosperous? Could the pagan gods be better and more powerful than the God of Israel? Babylon basked in blessings while they - the chosen people of God - had only a long history of suffering to look back on, and only the continuing judgment of God to look forward to. But despite their doubts, there was deep within the Jewish people a longing to go home. Their heritage had an irrestible hold on them. Palestine was their native land; and, for better or worse, Yahweh was their God. Into this situation came ...

3255. God's Promised Blessing

Haggai 1:1-15

Bulletin Aid

James Wilson

Call to Worship Leader: Give praise to the Lord, for God's kingdom is at hand! People: But we long for the glory of days now long since past. Leader: Seek not the past; for the glory of God's Word is abundant for this day. People: Can the wonder of tomorrow in Christ be greater than what we once knew? Leader: There is no limit to the depth and splendor of God's eternal kingdom. All: ...

3256. Windows Of Wonder

Sermon

James Angell

... is being said. Still, here are a few suggestions about homiletical windows. None is original, but I have come to believe in their value as guidelines, and make use of them over and over again. I won't identify their sources because in most instances I've long since forgotten them - or never knew in the first place. But here they are anyway, and they're free. Try to have every sermon include what Dr. Ross Snyder called "one big scene." Remain with an illustration once you begin. And whether it is a major or ...

3257. Make Way For Poets Of The Heart

Sermon

James Angell

... I spoke for a few moments with Father Louis, asking if I might some day return and have time to talk to him. Thus began a cherished friendship. The subsequent visit, about a month later, resulted in this original verse: Meeting With Thomas Merton Two long rows of September trees, like mower teeth Clipped the lawn of sky. We sat Beneath them, on folding chairs (ugly invention), To pass through our eye-fingers the miracle Of knowing each other. I would have studied the roughness and the Purpose of his leather ...

3258. The Aim Of Preaching: To Bestow The Kiss Of Life

John 20:19-23

Sermon

James Angell

... to repeat the course in much the same way, and keep the church as the compass of my existence - a place not where answers are kept in a vault, but where people practice faith, grow in wisdom, and work for justice in ways that keep us restless so long as so few have so much, and so many so little. In an essay former Time editor, Henry Grunwald, looked ahead to the end of this fabulous century, and reflected on what were, or are, the most notable developments of this particular moment of history. While two of ...

3259. ASAPH: The Fish Who Taught Courage

Jonah 1:1-17

Sermon

Wesley T. Runk

... and it seemed like the whole world was being turned upside down. "The wind up above must really be strong," thought Asaph. He watched as long as he could while the wind scooped out great gobs of water and lifted them high in the air and then let them come ... that the Great Fish must have thought that the message was for him so he quickly added, "The message is for a wicked people who live a long way from here but I am afraid to take it to them for fear of what they will do to me when they hear what God is ...

3260. The Ultimate Question

Isaiah 42:1-9

Sermon

Louis H. Valbracht

... Three Europeans were touring one of our modern industrial plants. One of them stopped to chat with a worker who was running a machine along the assembly line, a machine which turned out slightly curved pieces of metal about five inches long. The conversation went like this. The European asked: "How long have you been working at this machine?" "Six years." "Just what is it that you are making?" "U273." "Yes, I know, but what is the name of it?" "Name? It doesn't have any name - just U273." "Well, then, what ...

3261. The Good Samaritan

Luke 10:25-37

Drama

Robert A. Lehmann

... adjusted his thoughts. Solo 2: He approached it in another way. Solo 3: His reply would be by a familiar vehicle of his. Solo 4: His reply would be by a parable. Jesus: Once there was a man, a Jew, who was traveling from Jerusalem to Jericho. Solo 2: A long way on a hot day, Solo 4: The sun was beating down, Solo 3: The dusty, hard ground underneath his feet, Solo 1: No breeze to cool the sweating brow, Solo 2: No relief for the parched lips, Solo 3: Rocky crags surrounded the road. Solo 1: The road was ...

3262. A Father Looks at His Son - Joseph and Jesus

Luke 2:21-40

Drama

Thomas Blowers

... son would take over where he left off. But such was not to be. Such was not to be and I guess I really knew it for a long time, ever since Jesus was twelve, ever since as a family we had gone to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover. When time came for us to leave ... you know I must be in my Father's house?" Anyway, from that moment on I knew Jesus was not planning to be a carpenter. Well, I've long since made peace with that. Sooner or later a boy's got to stand on his own two feet and a man's got to be what ...

3263. Why I Believe In The Resurrection

John 20:1-9

Sermon

Brett Blair

... was converted by John Wesley and subsequently renounced his slave trading and wrote this great hymn: Amazing Grace how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost, but now I’m found, was blind but now I see. Your great grandparents sang that song, and long after you and I are gone, people will still be singing that song. Why? It’s the real thing and it has stood the test of time. I don’t know if you watched the Academy Awards last Sunday night but for the first time in years I watched ...

3264. Is It Well With Your Family? (Mother's Day)

2 Kings 4:8-26

Sermon

Brett Blair

... hospitality that Elisha, moved with gratitude, calls her into his room. And, as she stands in the doorway Elisha says what every barren woman longs to hear: You will hold a son in your arms. You can almost detect the pain of her heart as she responds: Don' ... the society. If the women of a land give in to temptation and let their morals and character slip then it will not be long after that the rest of the land goes with her. William Ross Wallace echoed this truth when he said, “The hand that rocks the ...

3265. Independence Day - The Mission of the Mighty

John 8:31-41

Sermon

... : “The foundation of the republic is morality, and it is foolish to suppose that we can have morality without a religious impetus.” But there is one thing more about freedom that our forefathers knew -- that freedom is never safe in the world as long as one person is under tyranny. The Declaration of Independence was not written for 13 American colonies. Read it! It was written for the world! The American experiment was no selfish enterprise. It was an example for the whole family of humankind. If we ...

3266. Come From Anywhere

Matthew 15:21-28

Sermon

... it another way: Christ sends his signals out That all the world may see, And by his signals says, "Whoever will may come to me." Faith is the lighted path By which the willing pilgrims come, And by this path at last These eager ones are lighted home. Long centuries ago a Canaanite woman, whose name we do not know, demonstrated dramatically that the path of faith is the open way to God. And Jesus made it clear that day that by this path anyone may come from anywhere. Let me illustrate the truth of this. It ...

3267. On Having "The Right Stuff"

Luke 14:25-35

Sermon

Wallace H. Kirby

... rocking the boat are insufficient. Taking no real chances in faith or shirking the task of making the human community a bit better leads to what the French call "ennui." Life lived by the rule of safety soon curves back in upon itself, and it will not be long before today’s cautious youth will discover this. When Jesus said, "If any one comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple," maybe he was ...

3268. Christ Has Set Us Free

John 8:31-41

Sermon

... to the children that Babylon was not their real home? Then Cyrus of Persia conquered Babylon and allowed the captives to return home to resettle and rebuild. Yet before long, Alexander the Great stormed out of the west and converted Judea into a colony of Greece. That condition prevailed for 150 years. Who could forget that long stretch of embarrassment? Finally a revolution. A strain of heroes arose, the Maccabees, who threw out the Greeks and gave back freedom to the Jews, independence that lasted 100 ...

3269. Christ the King A King Worth Having

John 12:12-19

Sermon

... would ever forget - or forgive." (12-19-77, p. 42) Bokassa’s throne was shaped in the form of a giant eagle with a wingspan of 13½ feet. Its 800 feathers were covered with gold. His coronation robe was of ermine and velvet and had a train 39 feet long and was decorated with 785,000 pearls. It cost $175,000. His crown, his scepter, and his wife’s tiara came to five million dollars. For the feast, he had 240 tons of food flown in. He had his guests hauled around in sixty spanking new Mercedes Benz. Just ...

3270. The Witness and the Witnesses

John 15:18--16:4

Sermon

... Agatha and her brothers, reaffirming her promise, "Do you understand, I shall always, always be here?" And she was until the youngest went away to college and no one needed her any longer. That sounds much like the promise made by another - the Man, Jesus Christ - long ago, doesn’t it? - "Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Pentecost is the festival of that promise made - and kept - by Jesus Christ to his disciples and to his church. Disciples Are Witnesses Before he died, Jesus turned ...

3271. The Call of the Cross

Luke 9:18-27

Sermon

... ; his second act was that of the wilting American failure. What is notable is that the failed Fitzgerald has, over the long haul, become an even greater success than the successful Fitzgerald." ... And Epstein continues: he made of his failures an elegant thing ... : We want no condescending saviors to come to us with their pity from some judgment hall. That has been pawned off on us too long. I’m here as an example to show you that you can bring yourselves up by your own bootstraps. You can be your own ...

3272. The Beginning of the End

Luke 9:57-62

Sermon

... In order to calm the anxieties of the inhabitants, a breach was made in the wall. The emperor was satisfied; he was entering the city on horseback; the inhabitants were reassured; he was not doing so by one of its gates." Jesus would enter, as the prophet had predicted long before, Say to the daughter of Zion: Look, your king comes to you; he is humble, he rides on a donkey and on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden. (Jerusalem Bible) He knew what was before him - and how it would come off - but still he ...

3273. Booby Trap

Luke 10:25-37

Sermon

... of mercy and neighborliness, that we will learn the lesson that Jesus sought to impress upon the lawyer. A few months ago, Robert T. Smith did a feature story on an eighty-two-year-old man, Al Couillard, who "has never had any particular public recognition in his long life (Minneapolis Tribune, 9/25/81). Until now. He’s never flown in an airplane. Until now. He’s never been to Washington, D.C., and he’s never met a president of the United States. Until now." All he has done is be a good neighbor to ...

3274. Lord, Teach Us to Pray

Luke 11:1-13

Sermon

... pray regularly to God, pouring out our gratitude for life and all of its gifts, beseeching him to forgive our sins, to give us the strength to resist temptation, and to support us in body and spirit as long as we live. And even when we pray freely, we often model our prayers after the model prayer that he taught long ago. But for most of us, this sort of disciplined prayer is like the tide that comes and goes; we pray - in obedience - in an "on again - off again" - and a "now-and-then" manner. With the ...

3275. The Nearest Hand

Luke 10:25-37

Sermon

Carveth Mitchell

... our Christian faith that God reveals himself to us in three ways: as Creator, Redeemer and Sanctifier. To sanctify means to "make holy" - to lead us to become instruments of God, through whom he does his work, to be his willing hands. Antonio Stradivari lived a long time ago. (1644-1737) Even now people both inside and outside the music world are familiar with the name and the. fame (and the enormous cost!) of Stradivari’s violins. He is reported to have said, When any master holds twixt chin and hand a ...

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