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 3276 to 3300 of 4950 results

3276. God as Woodcutter

Isaiah 11:1-16

Sermon

... need, whether we know it or not. God cuts down the dead wood so a new shoot will come up from the stump, a new branch which will bear fruit. God then acts in a new, creative way. God’s Spirit, that same Spirit which hovered over the chaos at creation and breathed life into the clay, will breathe anew on us ... "a Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord." God the woodcutter knows why an ax must fell the trees. We are trees in God’s garden that he needs to prune from time to time. In one of his ...

3277. Daily Choice

Deuteronomy 30:11-20

Sermon

... . Sometimes, after I pray the Lord’s Prayer, I say in my heart, "Give us this day our daily choice ... Lord, help me to choose life." I add that prayer because choosing life is not that easy. I believe that we choose evil spontaneously and willingly. Only God’s Spirit saves us from choosing death and curse. Moses’ command made us aware of our inner ability to choose life. Such an order leads us to despair of our own power of choice and to seek out help from God. So captive are we to death, that in our ...

3278. Expectations of a Vital Faith James K. Cobb

Exodus 1:1-22

Sermon

... against us when that love is defied. Loveless and faithless living in a world built to run on the principles of love is bound to bring disaster. Again Gideon discovered yet another answer. It was his own spirit. Where did he get the spirit that revolted against evil around him? Where did he get the spirit of resistence that made the angel call him a mighty man of valor? Surely it was because in the darkness God was with him. Have we not found the same evidence in many individual lives? That is precisely ...

3279. No Appeal

Matthew 20:1-16

Sermon

... our part?" Are we answering the call God has given us without belittling the call God has given others? What the church long ago struggled to learn and still struggles to grasp, is that God's grace is sufficient for all of us. Not trusting that the Spirit works through others of a differing opinion, and so resorting to devious means to get our own way, is clearly unacceptable to God. God's grace is always available to us. God gives grace to others, too, because God is God and generously so. There is no ...

3280. The Call to Servanthood

Isaiah 42:1-9

Sermon

... by God. Our baptism, being washed in the flooding waters, is God's choosing us to be God's own people. We all know our weaknesses, at least some of them. But the fact is, we are God's people because God has loved us. God has set the Holy Spirit upon us. God has made us God's own. In spite of our frailties, our failures, our weaknesses, God promises to love us, to take us by the hand, to strengthen us. Here this morning our God is doing precisely what has been promised. The one, who faithfully enfleshed the ...

3281. One Commandment is Enough!

Exodus 20:1-21

Sermon

... cannot insure his Presence by any action of our own. You cannot carve or whittle out a Presence for yourself. We may use statues, pictures, etc. as symbolic means of enhancing worship, but however lovely they are, or beautifully fashioned, they do not contain the spirit of the One God who is above and over all. God is alive and free and cannot be confined to limiting objects. He is always bigger than, more beautiful than, more incomparable than any object that may represent him. Keep your religious works of ...

3282. Image and Inscription

Matthew 22:15-22

Sermon

... debating, examining the greater issues of the day and finally saying to Caesar with courage and humility, "It seems good to the Holy Spirit and to us (not me but precisely us) to say and do thus-and-so." How often we fail as a community! We ... take action on a spate of ill-considered resolutions with debate limited to fifteen minutes on the floor. In the former situation, the Holy Spirit has no opportunity to speak, and in the latter, he’d better talk fast! When we are willing to take the time - the precious ...

3283. The Servant’s Credentials

Matthew 23:1-39

Sermon

... even the death of the cross, therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed upon him that name which is above every name" (Philippians 2:8f). He, the humble servant, is the greatest of the great. And by virtue of our new life in him and the activity of his spirit in our lives, we - all of us - lay and ordained, are privileged to live that humble servant life and so bring Christ to one another and to those outside the family of God. The world will pay little heed to those who say, "Don’t do as I do; do ...

3284. The Trifocal Festival

Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon

... ! II: Blessed are the stars of the Church, the heroes of the faith, God’s familiars! I:Blessed are all who hear God’s promises and place their trust in him, those who are at once both sinners and saints! II: Blessed are you, dear child of God, poor in spirit, meek and hungry for righteousness, I: For this is your day: II: The Feast of ALL God’s Saints! Hymn: "For All the Saints" is sung, the verses being sung alternately by all, men, women, choir(s), etc. Let it be a festive end to the sermon and a ...

3285. The Divine-Human Nexus

Matthew 25:31-46

Sermon

... come to you today, Martin; not once, but three times." A bizarre, mystical attachment to the poor and hungry? I think not. Instead, a clear understanding that all the "least of these" are Christ’s brothers and sisters and therefore ours as well. And as the Spirit draws us to him, the Spirit frees us also and at the same time to serve them, and in serving them, to serve none other than Christ the King. If anyone is in Christ, that person is a new creation. Only so by the grace of God will we at last hear ...

3286. The Deeper Happening

Illustration

Staff

... away in the mind. They cannot - the container just isn't big enough! Triggered by the outward settings and happenings of the worship hour, things often happen within the human spirit, and many times these effects linger on long after we have forgotten what triggered them. Worship is something we do with the whole of ourselves - mind and soul and spirit and with all the undefined and undiscovered elements which make up the total of what we are. And many of the results of our Sunday tryst with God are deeper ...

3287. Beginning A Healing Ministry

Sermon

... , anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord ... (James 5:14)." In the healing service, the pastor can use the oil to make the sign of the cross on the parishioner, using the words, "I anoint you in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit." It is recommended that olive oil mixed with frankincense and myrrh be used, because this mixture does not spoil, as does pure olive oil.4 The laying-on-of-hands was practiced by Jesus as he transmitted God's healing power to those who were sick or disabled. Today ...

3288. The Necessity Of Forgiveness

Luke 7:36-50

Sermon

Harold Warlick

... began the second chapter with these words: "... strip away all malice and all guile and insincerity and envy and all slander ... for you have tasted the kindness of the Lord (1 Peter 2:1, 3)." What an incredible power forgiveness turns loose. It is an expansive spirit. A person who has done his or her best and seen others walk off with what he wanted, who has planned and missed, aspired and failed, but can still walk through life with an unenvious and forgiving heart, being happy in his own best self, is a ...

3289. The Housing Problem

Luke 11:14-28

Sermon

Harold Warlick

... and utilities you have to pay. The better the bargain, the more upkeep on the house. In short, there'll always be a housing problem. One of the clear claims of the New Testament is that the devil also goes house-hunting. In a rather direct way, the spirit of evil starts poking around our neighborhoods looking at your household and mine, seeing if it might be ripe for take over. It makes sense. If there's evil in the world, it's got to live somewhere. Jesus actually told a parable about the devil going house ...

3290. The Christian Life Farmland

Hebrews 5:11-6:12

Bulletin Aid

... of the farmer and brings reproach to the owner. Leader: Our lives are farms owned by God and under our own managemant. If we consult his desires, as revealed in his Word by his Spirit, we shall produce abundant, useful crops. Congregation: If having once known his desires and having shared his Holy Spirit, we walk away and deliberately plant weeds, we cannot be brought back to repentance because we are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace. Leader: If any believer ...

3291. Special Occasions Baptism

Mark 1:9-13

Bulletin Aid

Leader: As Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: "You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well-pleased." Congregation: We are ... and be baptized, everyone of you, in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. All: Father, may we claim this gift whole heartedly when we are baptized, and every day following. Make us ever mindful of the ...

3292. The Ministry of Refreshing

2 Timothy 1:1-2:13

Sermon

Various Authors

... a miasma that makes you wilt. But if we are fortunate to have a friend like Onesiphorus, we also know people who build us up, who recharge our batteries. Then we may find ourselves saying, "The other day I was heavy-hearted," or, "I was low in spirit," or "I was weary," or any equivalent of confessing that we were in a spiritual prison, "and you, my friend, - perhaps not by any particular thing you said or did, but just by your Christian attitude of love and understanding, by your eagerly going out of your ...

3293. Responding to Christ's Birth

Matthew 2:1-12

Sermon

... words, or with false deeds. Most Christians react to Christ's birth by displaying a life full of good deeds. "By this my Father is glorified," said Jesus, "that you bear much fruit." (John 15:8) Not to bear good fruit is to be distant from the spirit of the living Christ. Good deeds are indeed the gold of Christian life. Nor can Christians be fed for their journey without prayer. Prayer is that resource which helps us to practice the presence of Christ in every relationship of our lives. Rufus M. Jones, in ...

3294. Submission

Matthew 3:13-17

Sermon

... well as into the universal church. It reminds us that we have been grafted as a member of the Body of Christ - marked and identified as a Christian disciple. It will not let us erase from our memory that we have been born anew in the water and in the Spirit. Let us not forget that baptism is as much a rite of passage for the church as it is for the person being baptized. When a new person joins the Body of Christ, neither the member nor the church will ever be the same again. During baptism, the church ...

3295. Beyond the Ordinary

Matthew 5:38-42

Sermon

Joe Pennel

... go the second mile, and give to any who borrow. In my judgment, these are not laws to be obeyed. Here, a certain spirit is being commended. These regulations are not to be slavishly carried out. But, this does not give us license to evade the demand ... the possibility that when we are controlled by what love demands, we will be different from other people. When we are controlled by the spirit that lies behind turning the other cheek and going the second mile, we are not like the rest of the world. The society ...

3296. Searching for Peace

Matthew 10:1-42

Sermon

... taught that one did not need to simply recite the books of Moses and the prophets. Rather people were expected to act "in the spirit" of love and to have faith like Abraham that could move mountains. Faith in Christ is not the same as faith in dogma. ... the poem by Banks: I live for those who love me, Whose hearts are kind and true; For the Heaven that smiles above me, And awaits my spirit too; For all human ties that bind me, For the task by God assigned me, For the bright hopes yet to find me, And the good ...

3297. Christmas 1

Psalm 111:1-10, Isaiah 63:7--64:12, Galatians 3:26--4:7, Matthew 2:13-18, Matthew 2:19-23

Sermon Aid

... woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. Paul reminds us that the birth of Christ assures us that we have been freed from the bondage we have been in and are empowered through the Holy Spirit to join Jesus in addressing God as he did, "Abba! Father!" Because he has set us free from all that has enslaved us, he has claimed us as his children and made us inheritors of the kingdom through Jesus Christ. Jesus and the kingdom are the gifts that ...

3298. Epiphany 4

Micah 6:1-8, 1 Corinthians 1:18--2:5, Matthew 5:1-12, Psalm 1:1-6

Sermon Aid

... it tells why the people of God are happy; they have heard and obeyed the Word of the Lord their God. Those who stay close to God, place their faith in him, and continually allow God to nurture their relationship with him through his Word and Spirit, are "like trees planted by streams of water." On the other hand, the psalm warns, the wicked are like "chaff which the wind blows away;" they are doomed before the judgment seat of God. God will bless the righteous, but the wicked are already condemned. The ...

3299. Lent 3

Psalm 142:1-7, Isaiah 42:10-17, Isaiah 42:18-25, Ephesians 4:17--5:21, John 9:1-12, John 9:13-34, John 9:35-41

Sermon Aid

... the sun began to rise, they were led, one by one, down three steps into the water and they were asked the three-part question, "Do you believe in God, the Father Almighty, ... and in Jesus Christ, his Son, our Lord, ... and in the Holy Spirit?" Three times each person replied, "I believe," and each time the candidate was immersed in the water - "drowned" - at the cross-font. The newly baptized people came up out of the water just as the light of the new day was dawning, silently announcing the resurrection ...

3300. Proper 7 & Pentecost 5

Jeremiah 20:7-18, Psalm 69:1-36, Psalm 91:1-16, Genesis 28:10-22

Sermon Aid

... one person has felt as did Jeremiah, when he said, "I have become a laughingstock all the day; everyone mocks me." But not God, nor Jesus Christ. 3. Zeal for the word of the Lord consumes true disciples of the Lord. With Luther, we are compelled by the Spirit to declare, "My tongue is the pen of a ready writer" - because we just have to tell the story, regardless of the consequences. 4. All will be well for God's witnesses. He has promised to deliver us from "the hand of evildoers" - and he will. Praise the ...

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