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 326 to 350 of 3108 results

326. Journey To The Cross VII (Easter): Jesus And The Women At The Tomb

Mark 16:1-20

Sermon

James W. Moore

Do you remember the Legend of the Touchstone? It’s a great story to recall on Easter Sunday morning. According to that ancient legend, if you could find the touchstone on the coast of the Black Sea and hold it in your hand, everything you touched would turn to gold. You could recognize the touchstone by its warmth. The other stones would feel cold, but when you picked up the touchstone, it would turn warm in your hand. Once a man sold everything he had and went to the coast of the Black Sea in search of ...

327. Unlimited Forgiveness

Matthew 18:21-35

Sermon

Herchel H. Sheets

I don’t know how much arithmetic Simon Peter knew. But if he did not understand the answer Jesus gave to his question about how many times a person should forgive one who has wronged him, it was not because he was deficient in mathematics, but because he was short on love. In asking the question, Peter must have known that he was speaking for a lot of other people. Injuries of one kind or another are inflicted upon every person at times, and it is not unusual for one to experience injury at the hand of the ...

328. We Do Not Have To Stay The Way We Are!

Joel 2:1-11

Sermon

Durwood L. Buchheim

"Have I been with you so long, and yet you do not know me, Philip?" (John 14:9). So Jesus responded to Philip’s question about wanting to know and sense the presence of God. It is a good question for all of us as we once again make our Lenten journey to Easter. How would you answer if asked to share your thoughts about God? What thoughts come to mind when we think about God? Do we take the time to think about God? Do we believe there is a God? Are we more confident this year than last, that there is a God ...

329. Temptation

Luke 4:1-13

Sermon

David E. Leininger

Temptation. Oscar Wilde is quoted a saying, "I can resist everything -- except temptation!" Humorist Robert Orben has observed, "Most people want to be delivered from temptation but would like to keep in touch." Another wag has asked, "Why is it that opportunity knocks only once, yet temptation bangs on the door constantly?"(1) Once there was a small boy who wanted a pair of skates. His parents, hoping to teach him the value of money, informed him that he would have to save the required amount from his ...

330. How Shall We Prepare Ourselves For Christmas

Luke 3:1-20

Sermon

King Duncan

One Sunday morning, a neatly dressed man disrupted a worship service in a suburban church. Right in the middle of the service, the man stood up in the balcony and shouted in a clear voice, "I have a word from the Lord!" Immediately alert and ready, ushers sprang like gazelles up the balcony stairs and escorted the man out the front doors of the church and into the street. Thomas Long of Princeton Seminary, commenting on this event, says, "There's a kind of irony here. Week after week, those of us who ...

331. Is Suffering Punishment for Sin?

John 9:1-12

Sermon

Donald B. Strobe

One of the most helpful books of recent years has been Rabbi Harold Kushner’s When Bad Things Happen to Good People. In the opening pages he writes, “Like most people, my wife and I had grown up with an image of God as an all-wise, all-powerful parent figure who would treat us as our earthly parents did, or even better. If we were obedient and deserving, he would reward us. If we got out of line, he would discipline us, reluctantly, but firmly. (God) would see that we got what we deserved in life.” (New ...

332. Mourning Our Fallen Tormentors

2 Samuel 1:1, 17-27

Sermon

Stan Purdum

Michael Dirda is the senior editor of The Washington Post Book World, as well as a recipient of the Pulitzer Prize for literary criticism. In 2003, he published an autobiographical account of his early years, telling about growing up in Lorain, Ohio. While there is much that he appreciated about his home, he also tells that his years there were colored somewhat darkly by his father, who was a cranky, difficult man. Apparently the man was not physically abusive, but neither was he easy to be around. Unhappy ...

333. 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 ...

334. Why Do People Suffer?

John 9:1-7

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

There is an old story about a construction worker who attempted to lower a barrel of brick by means of a rope and pulley. The bricks however, were heavier than the worker. The man went up as the brick came down. The two collided in mid-air, injuring the worker's shoulder. Upon impact, the bottom of the barrel ripped open. The brick spilled out. Now, the worker was heavier than the brick. As the man came down at high speed, he collided with the barrel coming up, causing injury to his shins. This time the ...

335. At the Banquet...In Your Pajamas

Matthew 22:1-14

Sermon

King Duncan

The Rev. John Thomas tells about a week he once spent at a Benedictine monastery with a group of other seminary students. At noon each day he and the other students joined the Benedictine monks, along with a number of people from the local community, to celebrate the Eucharist. One day Rev. Thomas watched a couple of retirement age make their way to receive the bread and the cup. The man wore a sweatshirt that said, “I can only be nice to one person a day, and today is not your day. Tomorrow doesn’t look ...

336. Hill Climbing

Psalm 121:1-8

Sermon

King Duncan

Life can sometimes seem like an uphill climb, can’t it? Comedian Red Buttons once did a routine in which he told of a bare dinner table. He was a teen and his family was poor. Around the table stood his family dressed in overcoats because they couldn’t afford heat. There was his mother dividing the half-loaf of stale bread among a dozen kids, who swept up and ate the crumbs. “Then,” adds Red Buttons, “then came the Depression!” Buttons was exaggerating, of course. But it does seem sometimes that, when ...

337. Lost

Luke 15:1-7, Luke 15:8-10, Luke 15:11-32

Sermon

Lori Wagner

[Possible props may include a coin, a sheep, or you may want to end with a witness to one who has gone through a “wrong turn” and has “re-turned” to God.] When I was young, there wasn’t a day that went by that the loudspeaker in the department store or the mall wouldn’t inevitably blare out the name of some lost child, tearfully waiting at customer service for his or her mother to find and rescue him or her. The blaring loudspeaker was every parent’s relief. If it was their child, their frantic searching ...

338. For the Love Of God is Forgiving

Luke 7:36-50

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

The headlines, news reports and newspaper stories all make it very clear that there is something out of kilter in our world. Whether you agree with its content or not, the crime bill is the biggest of its kind. It's because dealing with crime is on everyone's mind. Who'll be the next victim of a drive by shooting or a drug problem. Who'll be the next victim of gang violence or a drunk driver. While the Peace Talks are going on in the Middle East between Israel and Jordan and the Palestinians, the fighting ...

339. A New Beginning

2 Corinthians 5:16-21

Sermon

Mark Ellingsen

Is it really possible to make a fresh start? Can you really have a new beginning in relationships or on the job? Are new beginnings really possible? Normally the answer to these questions is “no.” Bad marriages and bad parent-child relationships do not usually get better. And once institutions get established they resist change. We are pretty dull, monotonous people! Part of the reason that change is so difficult is because we have histories that shape us and our character. We are the sum total of what we ...

340. The Art Of Transition

Luke 9:51-62

Sermon

Dean Feldmeyer

Another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” Jesus said to him, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.” (Luke 9:61-62) Someone once said that people do not voluntarily change until their level of discomfort is greater than their level of fear. I have a good friend, a fellow baby-boomer, who was required by the company he worked for to move to a different part of the state. The move meant a promotion and a sizable ...

341. Going Ahead Anyway

Matthew 2:1-12, Matthew 2:13-18

Sermon

William B. Kincaid, III

Did you notice that bad things did not stop happening through the holidays? And is any warning necessary that bad things will happen in every season of this year? Surely there is better news than that, but we ought to be honest about the bad news. Not even the holidays generate enough good will to stop people from blowing up airplanes and destroying people's reputations and abusing children and selling drugs to teenagers and gunning down their neighbors. In fact, the holidays often elevate stress levels. ...

342. Sweet Vine

John 15:1-17

Sermon

Lori Wagner

The season is nearing for planting. Those of you who plant gardens or farms know that it’s vitally important to plant well, tend well, and prune well for the best yield and the best crops. Grapes can be especially finicky to manage. There are many vineyards. But only a selection of grapes yield the best wines. Why? For those of you who aren’t growers…. let’s come at this another way. In today’s world, our young people are killing their peers at an alarming rate. While many are quick to blame parents, ...

343. Confusion Over a Questioned Book

Daniel 7:1-14

Sermon

George Paul Mocko

Were you confused by that passage read from the Book of Daniel? Don't feel bad. You are in good company. Daniel has been confusing people ever since it was written. It confused those rabbis who in the year 90 met in the coastal town of Jamnia to cast their votes on which of the historical writings were to be designated "sacred scripture." Daniel made it into the Bible by a majority vote, but many of those rabbis felt it should not have. It confused early Christians, many of whom were as unsure of its value ...

344. A Farewell Gift

John 14:15-31

Sermon

John M. Braaten

I have never liked saying "goodbye," it always elicits feelings of finality. So I say other things like, "See you!" or "Hope to see you sometime." Most of the time I like quick goodbyes. However, when a loved one leaves there are no formalities. We embrace, sometimes through tears. It is not uncommon to cast out cliches, often with a bit of humor, to lighten the atmosphere. But in the end the word "goodbye" is bound to be spoken. It's a comforting thought really, because it is a shortened form of "God be ...

345. Where Does That Leave Us?

Mark 13:1-31, Mark 13:32-37

Sermon

Thomas Peterson

Where does this Scripture leave us? Jesus compares the fig tree with the Day of Judgment. The fig tree’s leaves, sun s darkening, the moon giving no light, and the stars falling -- all are signs of the final day of the Lord. Then it is that the Son of man comes in clouds with great power and glory, and he sends out angels to gather in the elect. Many denominations spend a great deal of energy trying to figure out, “Is it the time yet?” Intense diligence goes into collating Scripture with wars and natural ...

346. The Tinsel Time Machine

Drama

Edward Long

Production Notes A minimum of characters are needed. No elaborate costuming, make-up, or stage setting are involved. The play can be performed in chancel or on stage. "Extras" may be readily incorporated at the last minute (wearing winter coats) into the "carolers" in the England segment. It can be performed books in hand, or some or all of the cast may wish to memorize their lines. Only three rehearsals are needed for an effective presentation. The action is simple. The actors and actresses are urged to ...

347. I Hate To Rain On Your Parade, But

Matthew 21:1-11

Sermon

Johnny Dean

What a beautiful scene we see depicted in the story of Jesus’ triumphal entry into the Holy City, Jerusalem! It’s a lovely story, a magnificent story, a story so well-told that we preachers have a tough time coming up with a sermon about it. After the story is read, there really isn’t much else left to say. Plot, movement, atmosphere, emotion – they’re all here in the biblical account. Here is high drama at it’s best. But once you’ve said all of this, you have to add that Palm Sunday is a terrifying day. ...

348. Monday Morning Faith

Matthew 21:23-27, Matthew 21:28-32

Sermon

Johnny Dean

If we’re honest about it, we have to admit that just about the only place where we feel comfortable making bold statements about our religion and our allegiance to God is in church on Sunday mornings. In our hymns we sing, "All to Jesus I surrender All to Him I freely give." In our confession of faith, we say, "I believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God, and I accept him as Lord of my life." And when we pray the Lord’s Prayer, we pray, "Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it ...

349. Repentance

Matthew 3:1-12

Sermon

One of the towering marks of this age is the absence of guilt. Not many people would deny that startling fact. Some are pleased that guilt has been dethroned; others see it as a bad sign. The absence of guilt is one of the reasons that it is difficult to talk about repentance. If there is no feeling of guilt, the need for repentance is greatly minimized, if not extinct. A few years ago, I was involved in experimental worship. I tried many innovative ways to enable worship to be more experiential and less ...

350. The Impartiality of God

Acts 10:23b-48

Sermon

Hubert Beck

There are more saviors in the world than the mind can comprehend. Bookstores have shelf after shelf of books that promise to save us from anything we can name - anxieties, fears, personal difficulties, or whatever else may be causing us distress. A whole range of people - some of them reliable counselors but all too many of them little more than hucksters - offer themselves to the troubled (for a fee, of course), usually with implicit or explicit promises of remedies for whatever problems one may have ...

Showing results