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Showing 326 to 350 of 4964 results

326. THE WATCHERS

Luke 2:21-40

Sermon

Theodore L. Yewey

... seen with my own eyes the glory that God has prepared for all people." (See Luke 2:28-32 for source of this paraphrase.) The watcher Simeon had been faithful in his watching. And now his watching had been fulfilled. And because of what he beheld, there was new hope before him. There was another watcher also present that day in the Temple. Her name was Anna. Hers had not been an easy life. She had been widowed only a few years after her marriage. And this day as she had made her way to the Temple to pray ...

327. The Eyes of Your Heart

Ephesians 1:15-23

Sermon

Richard W. Ferris

... we can see with our eyes, we sometimes want to give up. When we feel only through our body, the pain is sometimes too great for us. When we think only with our minds, the thoughts can be defeating. But when we look with our hearts, there is always hope. In our hearts we can see that "maybe in a year the horse will talk." 2. The riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints. What person has not dreamed at one time or another about some long-lost wealthy relative dying and leaving them a fortune? We've ...

328. When Religion Becomes a Laughing Matter

Genesis 18:1-15

Sermon

John E. Harnish

... creation—from the first movement of the Spirit over the waters of the deep, the first burst of light, the first baby's cry and God's word that it is all good. Listen for the sounds of joy which overcome the shouts of fear. Listen for the echoes of hope which can be heard even in the face of discouragement and doubt and despair. Listen for the laughter of the Savior ringing from an empty tomb who says: "My joy will be in you and your joy will be full." Listen—faith really is a laughing matter, after all ...

329. A Crib, A Cross, And A Cave

Matthew 28:1-10

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... we could get in and see that the Tomb is empty. The Tomb is empty because nothing can hold the Son of God, not even death. The tomb is empty to remind us that the fear of death is an empty fear. The Tomb is empty because the seed of hope, Christ Jesus, bore the fruit God had planned and designed. Jesus conquered even death and offers us resurrection and eternal life with Him. That's what the Crib, The Cross and The Cave all have in common. They are empty so that the promises of the Savior would be fulfilled ...

330. Light a Candle

Matthew 5:14

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... and the neighbor kid would come over and watch him. The kid wouldn't say anything. He would just watch him build. The pastor tried to strike up a conversation, but the little kid did not have anything to say. After a couple of days, the pastor said, “Do you hope you'll be a builder one day when you grow up?" The little kid said, “Nope." The pastor said, “Then why are you watching me build every day?" He says, “Well, I just want to see what a pastor does when he smashes his finger instead of the nail ...

331. Remember: Live Worthy of the Calling

Ephesians 4:1-16

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... you have been called, [2] with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, [3] making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. [4] There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, [5] one Lord, one faith, one baptism, [6] one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all. [7] But each of us was given grace according to the measure of Christ's gift. [8] Therefore it is said, "When he ...

332. At Cross Purposes

Mark 8:31-38

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... to the appeal. Within minutes after the service ended, the two teenagers were at the old man's side. "That was a nice story," politely stated one of them, "but I don't think it was very realistic for a father to give up his only son's life in hopes that the other boy would become a Christian." "Well, you've got a point there," the old man replied glancing down at his worn bible. A big smile broadened his narrow face. He once again looked up at the boys and said, "It sure isn't very realistic, is it ...

333. The God of All Comfort

2 Corinthians 1:1-11

Understanding Series

James M. Scott

... it clear that the actual intervention of God in the situation is meant. Some psalms link comfort, preservation from death, and the granting of new life in communion with God (cf. Pss. 71:20; 86:13; 94:17). The psalmists characterize themselves as those who place their “trust” and “hope” in Yahweh (cf. Pss. 71:1, 5, 14; 86:2; 94:22). The praise of those who have been comforted by God proclaims his “comfort” (cf. Pss. 71:22–24; 86:12). 1:5 Throughout the letter (e.g., 1:8; 3:9, 10; 4:7, 15, 17 ...

334. What Must Be Taught to Various Groups

Titus 2:1-15

Understanding Series

Gordon D. Fee

... does it mean for them to be ashamed? Does Paul intend a kind of judgment; that is, they will be disgraced because they can find nothing in Titus’ conduct to reproach? Or, perhaps more likely (cf. 2 Thess. 3:14), does he intend something of an offer of hope, that is, shamed into repentance, since he has nothing bad to say about us? In either case, the word bad (“evil”) is used invariably of evil deeds. So Paul’s point is not that the opponent should not be able to point out evil in Titus’ doctrine ...

335. Oracles of Restoration

Ezekiel 34:1-31, Ezekiel 35:1-15, Ezekiel 36:1-38, Ezekiel 37:1-14, Ezekiel 37:15-28

Understanding Series

Steven Tuell

... sections. The first, chapters 34–37, is a series of seven oracles dealing with the restoration of Israel. The second section describes the rise and fall of Gog of Magog, Israel’s last great enemy (chs. 38–39). Finally, chapters 40–48 express a message of hope for Israel’s present and future, grounded in the presence of the Lord. These chapters present Ezekiel’s third great vision of the Glory of the Lord (see chs. 1–3 and 8–11) entering the perfect temple of the prophet’s vision just as it ...

336. The Warrior Messiah Conquers the Two Beasts and Their Followers

Revelation 19:1-21

Teach the Text

J. Scott Duvall

... and conquer evil, we can simultaneously pray for the conversion of unbelievers and seek to love them into the kingdom of God. Illustrating the Text Christ’s return is the center of our hope. Quote: The Long Journey Home, by Os Guinness. If we are not careful, our hope for the Lord’s return can be dulled by diversion. Guinness comments: Modern society itself is one grand diversion—the Republic of Entertainment. With our shops, shows, sports, games, tourism, recreation, cosmetics, plastic surgery ...

337. “No One Can Redeem the Life of Another or Give to God a Ransom for Them”

Psalm 49:1-20

Teach the Text

C. Hassell Bullock

... the category of Job’s desires rather than his knowledge.1I am inclined, however, to believe that the opening verb “I know” governs the rest of the text (Job 19:25–27). Although Job looks enviously at a tree and laments that it has a much stronger hope of living again than does a person (Job 14:7–17), Job’s experience in the dialogue is dynamic, not static, and thus his understanding undergoes change and development. What may be a desire in Job 14:7–17 has become a confident confession in 19:25 ...

338. “Truly My Soul Finds Rest in God”

Psalm 62:1-12

Teach the Text

C. Hassell Bullock

... God alone as compared to wealth and status (62:5–12) a. Trust and refrain (62:5–6): Truly my soul finds rest in God; my hope comes from him. Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken. b. God as “my mighty rock ... the previous verse. Wealth is not wrong in itself but becomes wrong when one sets one’s heart on it; only God can give security and hope (1 Tim. 6:17 may allude to this verse). 62:11–12 One thing . . . two things.This is a poetic way to say “a few ...

339. Love

1 Corinthians 13:1-13

Understanding Series

Marion L. Soards

... of thought. He refers to being a child (Gk. nēpios; lit. “infant” or “toddler”), a negative status in the way he states it and in the NT world. In the minds of most ancients, children were little unbridled bits of chaos, whose only hope was to grow into adulthood. Thus, Paul says he put … behind (Gk. katargeō; lit. “to have finished with”—here, perfect = “to have been finished with” or “to be completely done”) the things of that undesirable time. In ch. 3 Paul had confronted the ...

340. Faces of Failure: Judas Iscariot

Matthew 26-27 (selections)

Sermon

Don Tuttle

... If he had only held on a little longer, waited out the next few days, hung on until Sunday morning, he would have found the hope he’d lost. “[He] didn’t need to take his own life,” writes King Duncan. “He didn’t even need to spend the rest of ... so much remains the same, remember Judas’s story and don’t give up. Don’t turn away from Christ and the faith, for hope in him is never in vain. It has been confirmed by his resurrection, by the transformation of his disciples, by the emergence of the ...

341. Shockwaves of Joy

Matthew 28:1-10

Sermon

King Duncan

... behind an empty cross and an empty tomb as a reminder that hatred and sorrow and even death had no power over him. (7) And as his followers, hatred and sorrow and death no longer have any power over us. And now we can say “Hallelujah!” to the hope of resurrection and eternal life through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Only when you are sitting beside a tomb do you really understand the value of life. Only when you have stared hatred in the face do you really understand the value of love. And only when you have ...

342. Moving Heaven and Earth

Acts 16:16-34

Sermon

King Duncan

... for a time, but you will never, never imprison our hearts and our minds.” (1) Can you imagine a prisoner of war looking into the eyes of his guard and declaring that even behind bars he was free? The prisoners’ faith in God gave them hope, and hope in God is the ultimate freedom from the circumstances of our lives. By the way, after coming home from Vietnam, Col. Certain became an Air Force Chaplain. After retiring from the military, he served as an Episcopal priest at several churches across the United ...

343. Invictus

Romans 5:1-11

Sermon

Dr. Ronald Love

... And let us be honest, if it is my problem, it is the biggest problem. We can always find someone who is seemingly worse off, but that does not diminish the size of my suffering. It is real, because it is me. Suffering produces endurance, character, and hope. In order for us to realize that Paul is not being flippant, that he is not being simplistic, we must first look at the meaning of the word grace, in which he began this passage. Paul wrote that through “Jesus we obtained access to grace.” The Greek ...

344. Light in the Darkness

John 1:1-18

Sermon

Will Willimon

... and the dark streets of a little town called Bethlehem. And if we follow the story all the way through, it ends in a garbage dump on the outskirts of the City of Jerusalem and the whole world in darkness....and the silent stars go by. With all of our hopes and fears we sometimes forget that the world into which Jesus was born on that night so long ago was no utopia. It was a tough time and place to be born. The Bible sets his birth story against a context of poverty, unjust taxation, and the maniacal rule ...

345. Advent 1

Isaiah 63:7--64:12, 1 Corinthians 1:1-9, Psalm 80:1-19, Mark 13:32-37, Mark 13:1-31

Sermon Aid

William E. Keeney

... signs as occasion for threat and fear. The use of the parable can point beyond the birth to the end of Jesus' life and on to the hope and longing for the fulfillment of history and the kingdom of God. Each of us is given signs in our life of the need to respond to ... read the signs of health and progress, but also of decay and decline. C. The Signs of the Spirit. Some signs point to hope and glory while others are signs of warning. Which will we heed? 4. The Power of Endurance. (v. 31) A. The Enduring Word. ...

346. Advent 3

John 1:1-18, John 1:19-28, Isaiah 61:1-11, Isaiah 65:17-25, 1 Thessalonians 5:12-28

Sermon Aid

E. Carver McGriff

... . George Buttrick pointed out that "fields are not plowed by praying over them." I see prayer as a consciousness of the presence of God. I hope I don't shock anyone if I say that Sunday morning prayers in church don't do much for me. I was taught that a ... a spirit to be cumbered with your old nonsense. This day is all that is good and fair. It is too dear with its high hopes and invitations to waste a moment on yesterday. On a recent visit to Ireland, I spoke with a physician in that country who had recently ...

347. Lent 5

John 11:1-16, Ezekiel 37:1-14, Romans 8:1-17, John 11:17-37, John 11:38-44

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

... and they were truly alive. This is a graphic illustration of the power of the Word. This is the same principle witnessed in the Genesis creation accounts: God created life through his spoken World. When the Word of God is spoken, the Spirit of God gives fresh hope to the downtrodden and life to the dead. The Spirit raises up the living-dead. There are levels of death, just as there are levels of life. At the point in the vision, when the prophet prophesies to the bones and they come together with flesh and ...

348. When Something Is About To Happen

Mark 13:32-37

Sermon

Thomas Long

... formed by the expectation that something is about to happen, and this something has to do with God's coming in power to the world. Every time Christians recite the old phrase in the creed, "He will come to judge the quick and the dead," we disclose our hope that frail human justice, the kind one can get with a good lawyer and a full checkbook, is not all the justice life holds. Come, Lord Jesus. Every time some congregation creates a clothing closet or a food pantry for those in need, they do so not because ...

349. Proper 8

Mark 5:21-43

Drama

Dallas A. Brauninger

... lection.) Twelve years is a long time to be suffering from hemorrhage both in terms of the physical drain and the exhaustion of your spirit. How have you endured? Woman: Twelve years is a long time for depletion of the body, the purse, and the spirit. The cycle of hope and struggle has repeated itself many times in my life. In a way, my struggle has sharpened my focus on what is most important. Over the long run, my urge to live as a whole person beyond malady has given me the energy and the courage to seek ...

350. Christmas Eve

Lk 2:1-20 · Isa 9:2-7 · Tit 2:11-14 · Ps 96

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

... their duties with utmost fidelity. It is expected that Christ will change everything at his expected imminent return. What matters is that the grace of God has appeared for the salvation of all people (v. 11). Therefore, believers are to await their blessed hope by assuming a life of godliness and goodness. Gospel: Luke 2:1-20 Luke's poetic account of our Lord's Nativity never fails to capture our attention and fill our souls with rapture. The juxtaposition of the heavenly and miraculous (angelic choirs ...

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