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 3401 to 3425 of 5000 results

3401. My God, My God, ... Why?

Mark 15:33-41

Drama

... moves slowly toward the people and the cross. His face, too, will be obscured by the shadows. But he will be carrying the Scriptures open in one hand and a lamp or candle to read by in the other.) JOSEPH OF ARIMATHEA: I have been looking for a long time. Like the rest of my people, I am waiting for the Messiah, hoping and praying for God’s kingdom to come. Today I have also been looking for answers - perspectives and understanding on what happened to Jesus outside of Jerusalem on Golgotha. And I came upon ...

3402. A Zealot’s Greatest Battle

Drama

... lucky day! Matthew (Continues while Barabbas speaks) Jesus gave me a new life and a new name. The old Levi made restitution for everything he took dishonestly. Barabbas (Still not hearing him) How well I do remember you, with your Roman bodyguards. But I knew if I waited long enough I would catch you without them. (Presses sica into his throat) I’ll slit your throat from ear to ear. I’ll cut out your heart and have it presented to your lofty Roman overseer. What do you have to say to that? Matthew I’m ...

3403. "The Return"

Drama

... woman. A rather ordinary-looking man enters, crosses and stops a few feet from her.) Man Beautiful evening, isn’t it? (She ignores him.) What are you doing? Woman Waiting - not that it’s any of your business. Man Been waiting long? Woman (She looks at her watch.) No, not long - about 2,000 years. Man Ah. I’ve always regarded patience as a virtue. Waiting for anything in particular? Woman Yes, very much so - my husband (She flashes her ring at him.) - a man with a sometimes jealous streak and short ...

3404. Death: Commonality Explored

Deuteronomy 34:1-12

Sermon

... serious and committed ecumenists? God forbid! One of the many lessons screaming to be learned is God is the alpha and omega; the universal church has been set among us until the end of time. Closely related to this is our inability to fix anything for very long. Even those who have spent their lives in Christian unity freely and humbly admit they do not know the final shape of Christ’s Body, once it is visibly united. Again, the Spirit blows at will. Whether one is attracted or not to the primacy of Peter ...

3405. Acceptance: The Keynote

Ruth 2:1-23

Sermon

... to Christ’s cause to be One, we need to become childlike or, in a more adult sense, teachable. Work! Ruth worked hard and this provided an example for all to see. It is hard work to toil among others in hope of gaining their acceptance. Too long, Christians have thought a subtle hint here and there would bring about unity. There are plenty of observers. Of course, there are some who appear to believe it is possible to work one’s way into the Kingdom. Saint James offers a solution: "But some one will ...

3406. BROTHERS

Drama

... waste of time! What makes you think you’re going to be any different? What makes him think you’re going to be any different! How long will you stay around this time? And what do you know about horses anyway? You’re not fit to feed pigs! What do you know ... out of line. Brother: No promises; just action this time. Prodigal: [Very firm] There won’t be any! [Drinks] You watch me, all you want; as long as you want. Maybe I can’t be different than what I am and maybe I can’t be like you - but I will be ...

3407. Another in the continuing adventures of AMAZING GRACE

Drama

... do? He’s got me now; I’ll just have to resist him until he gives up, or something. P: No! You don’t have to wait that long. You can get out right now. G: But how? P: With Bruno’s help. G: Bruno? P: Watch this. Oh, Bruno. [She walks over to him] B: ... . P: I’ve got that figured out, too, but only one of us is getting out - you. G: What about you? P: I’ve been here so long, I can stand it a while longer - but you have to promise me one thing. When there are enough women like you, you’ve all got to ...

3408. From Beast to Believer

Daniel 4:28-37, Daniel 4:19-27, Daniel 4:1-18

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... God is a loving Father, that his Son our Lord died on a cross for you, that God loves you more than you can imagine, and as long as you live on this earth will never fail or forsake you. I delight in telling you that. But I also have to tell you that ... to be proud of. His capital city of Babylon had a population of over two million. One of his three palaces was 350 yards long, with 360,000 square feet. One of his favorite wives came from a mountainous area, but there were no mountains around Babylon. So Neb ...

3409. An Unhappy Homecoming

Luke 4:14-30

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... the Bible, including the resurrection. If the people of Europe and America will not receive the Gospel, God will send it elsewhere. There is no guarantee that God will give us another chance if we reject the claims of the Gospel. When the risen Christ met Simon Peter long ago at the shore of the Sea of Galilee, he asked him a deeply personal question. He asked, "Simon, do you love me more than anything else?" The Christ question for each of us is not whether or not you understand theology or can you teach a ...

3410. "Gone Fishing!"

Luke 5:1-11

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... all over that plug, like an NFL linebacker demolishing a quarterback. I jerked hard and then hung on for dear life. I don’t know how long I fought that fish. Once or twice I thought it was going to pull me into the water. When I finally got him to the edge ... Sea of Galilee. That beautiful body of water and is still full of fish today. It is really a fresh-water lake, 13 miles long and 8 miles wide. Because it is 680 feet below sea level, it has almost a tropical climate. Nowadays the area around the sea ...

3411. Do You Believe In Easter?

Luke 24:1-12

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... day Dr. Phillips called Edith into his office and said, "Edith, I’ve got bad news for you. Your tests have come back positive. You have an aggressive form of cancer, and you may not have long to live." Edith replied, "Why Dr. Phillips, you need not look so sad. I have had a full life. Now you are telling me that before long I’m going to see my Lord Jesus face to face. I will be reunited with my dear husband, my parents, and so many old friends." After several months of chemotherapy, it was clear that ...

3412. A Fool’s Tools

Matthew 25:14-30

Sermon

... them or pawn them off to someone else. They are ours alone ... to develop and use responsibly ... to ignore ... or to misuse. When tools are ignored, they deteriorate. The petroleum industry, your local dry cleaner, pest controllers, and even your doctor can help you compile a long list of somethings coming in all shapes and sizes that are eager to get at the tools you ignore. And there are a number of reasons why tools may be ignored. It is quite possible that an individual doesn’t know he has the tool ...

3413. The Wizard of Yoj

Psalm 100:1-5

Sermon

Edward L. Palmer

... of them, as the accented words, brought joy. In the Land of Yoj we were seeing what can happen to a people who put their accents in the wrong places. There is no joy. There’s really no singing. Joy is one of our shortest, simplest words - three letters long and a universe wide. Researchers are now reporting that they’ve found one facial expression that means the same thing throughout the world - the smile is universally understood, crossing the barriers of language and time. Children know its meaning ...

3414. Faith, Love, and Fakers at Ephesus

Acts 18:18-28

Sermon Aid

CSS

... about it? 2. We believe in "one baptism." What is essential for baptism to be valid? Think about your own baptism. How can you be sure that it "took?" 3. Paul became a tourist attraction at Ephesus. This had its good side because visitors came long distances to hear him preach and teach, but also a bad side when he was exploited by imitators and by opportunists who sold souvenirs. How do we draw a line between healthy promotion of our church (and our preacher) and ruthless exploitation like that practiced ...

3415. "I appeal to Caesar!"

Acts 24:1-27, Acts 25:1-12

Sermon Aid

CSS

... to talk seriously to the couple about "justice and self-control and future judgment." Paul must later have described this conversation to Luke, commenting that Felix became upset by it and sent Paul away. Like many people who are willing to hear sin condemned, as long as it is somebody else’s sin, Felix became pricked in conscience and troubled when it appeared that Paul was referring to him. He was like David of old, when Samuel confronted him with a tale of sinful behavior and then said, "You are the ...

3416. The Global Effect of a Galilean Peasant

Luke 23:26-43

Illustration

Larry R. Kalajainen

... corrupt government has many people on the brink of starvation, there are small groups of Christians who gather in rural mud-brick churches, sometimes without even a roof, and there each Sunday, they sing the praises of a king whose name is Jesus. Through the long years of repression in the Soviet Union and its satellites, and in China where for so many years public worship was forbidden, we now discover in this era when the walls of repression are falling that the church was not only alive but growing, and ...

3417. Which Way?

Matthew 16:21-28

Sermon

... "where they can’t hurt anybody else." We strongarm them. (God knows, they strongarmed first, so they’re just getting what they’ve all got coming to them!) Cruciform existence doesn’t work with criminals. What these fellows need is stiff, swift punishment, a long spell in the slammer, and, where possible, a lethal shot to get them off our hands (and off the tax rolls). We might add while we’re at it, "Thank you, Lord, that we are not like criminals, breaking laws, assaulting people, causing grief ...

3418. For Freedom!

Matthew 18:21-35

Sermon

... with. Fortunately, God is better than we have a right to hope. He could, in fact, keep tight hooks into us, but he does not. We could have been placed here conditionally, that is, permitted to continue only as long as we use the gifts we’re given to accomplish what God wants accomplished, only as long as we use all things for their intended purpose. Additionally, we could have been placed here on the condition that we will have to repay God for his goodness. Such a burden would destroy the strongest of us ...

3419. Looking At Our Chrismons: A Star

Matthew 2:1-12

Children's Sermon

Thomas A. Pilgrim

... in the fields, they heard the singing of the angels. They went up to Bethlehem and found the baby. Then later, we are told, wise men came from the east. They were kingly teachers. They had followed the light of the star a long way. They followed that light all the way to Bethlehem. We do not know how long the journey took. It was several days at least. They followed the star until it came to rest over the place where Jesus was lying in the manger. The light of the star pointed to the place where he was. In ...

3420. Changing Styles

Romans 12:1-8

Children's Sermon

Wesley T. Runk

... Oh, that's fine. First of all, we are going to use the boys because we are going to model neckties. [Select a bow tie, a wide tie, a very thin one and maybe even a short string tie. Have them look fairly ridiculous by arranging them too long or short.] My, oh, my, you boys do look good. Now let's try the girls with some beautiful hats. [Repeat the experiment using bonnets and wide brims, pillbox hats, with and without veils, etc.] What beautiful ladies! Perhaps the boys and girls would each like to select ...

3421. For He Shall Save His People

Matthew 1:18-25

Sermon

Staff

... an area that we need to wrestle with. We do the same thing on a national level. I am all for the United Nation, as long as we don’t make this a God substitute. With international gangsters on the prowl we have to have a strong army both nationally and ... all sing, only where the word woman occurs we simply fill in our own name. It is alright to be an independent person, as long as we understand that there is a slippery side to that lifestyle. Independence can be a cover-up for not trusting people, and failing ...

3422. Returning: Real or Ruse?

Hosea 5:1-15

Sermon

Barbara Brokhoff

... they see me, saying, ‘Come, let us return to the Lord; for he has torn, that he may heal us; he has stricken, and he will bind us up.’ " A woman was filling out an employment application. When she came to the line marked "age," she hesitated a long time. Finally, the personnel manager leaned across his desk and whispered to her, "The longer you wait, the worse it gets!" That’s true of repentance and returning to God, too. The longer you put it off, the harder it is to do it. Hosea, in the context and ...

3423. God Can’t Keep a Good Secret!

Ezekiel 37:1-14

Sermon

Barbara Brokhoff

... as to the outcome. In this text, the time is about 587 B.C. - nearly 600 years before Christ - and God is already dropping clues to the Resurrection of his Son. The vision in the valley teaches us that - Death Is a Fact! You don’t have to live very long to realize that literal, physical death is a fact of life. About fifty million people die each year. That figures out to 136,000 each day, 6,000 each hour, 95 each minute, and 2 each second. About twenty-five people have died while you were reading these ...

3424. "A" Lamb to "the" Lamb

Exodus 12:1-30

Sermon

Barbara Brokhoff

... Jewish home, the Passover night was never forgotten. Every year they observed the time when the death-angel had passed over and spared them. They recalled that a lamb had to die for them, just as God’s Lamb had to die for us. There was no safety as long as the lamb ran around the house alive. It had to die. Blood was spilt. Peter said, "We are redeemed, not with silver and gold, but with the precious blood of a Lamb without blemish and without spot." God’s Lamb and his atoning blood goes far beyond all ...

3425. Christians Die Well

Acts 7:54--8:1a

Sermon

Barbara Brokhoff

... tree fell down! It was a marvelous feat, and he surprised even himself. The second man said, "You picked a tree that was already leaning. I’ll pick one that is strong and straight, and I’ll pray God that the wind will come and blow it down." He prayed long and hard, and a terrible wind came from the north, and of all the trees in the forest, it was only the one he selected that fell to the ground. He could hardly believe his own faith. The third man picked a tree, straight and strong and powerful, and ...

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