Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 3626 to 3650 of 5000 results

3626. Hospitality Opens the Door for Healing

Matthew 10:40-42

Illustration

Andrew R. Wolfe

Dr. Paul Tournier was a renowned Christian therapist and a spiritual writer. One day Bruce Larson, a pastor in California, asked Dr. Tournier how he counseled people. Dr. Tournier replied, "You know, I'm embarrassed, really, by all of the people who seek me out for counseling. I don't really know how to help people. I don't really do anything at all". He said simply, "What is important is that people are trying to find their way, and so I try to welcome them and I try to support them. And in that welcoming ...

3627. A Cup of Cold water

Matthew 10:40-42

Illustration

Larry Klaarn

You may have heard the story, a very old story, behind the Wall Drug Store in Wall, South Dakota. The owners, Ted and Dorothy were having trouble keeping the store afloat. Five years earlier they had moved from another state to buy the store, and now it was going under. That was not unusual in 1936. One day Ted said to Dorothy, what could we do to get some people to stop here and buy something? The only thing Dorothy thought of was to give them a cup of ice-cold water. That might be a nice treat in the ...

3628. Fortunate Gifts

Mt 10:40-42

Illustration

King Duncan

I once read about a woman whose church group bought Christmas gifts for a missionary family. After meticulously selecting the presents based on the family's needs, sizes and ages, the group gathered to pack them. That's when another member whisked in and plopped an almost-new man's coat on the table. Her husband didn't like the style. As she turned to go, she suggested that maybe one of the missionaries could use it. Several people were offended. The coat wouldn't fit anyone in the missionary family. ...

3629. The Earliest Signs of Civilization

Matthew 10:40-42

Illustration

Brett Blair

The famous anthropologist Margaret Mead was once asked this question: What was the earliest sign of civilization in any given culture? He expected the answer to be a clay pot or perhaps a fish hook or grinding stone. Her answer was "a healed femur." The femur, of course, is the leg bone above the knee. Mead explained that no healed femurs are found where the law of the jungle, survival of the fittest, reigns. A healed femur shows that someone cared. Someone had to do that injured person's hunting and ...

3630. Rewards

Matthew 10:40-42

Illustration

Thomas a Kempis

Do not be worn out by the labors which you have undertaken for My sake, and do not let tribulations ever cast you down. Instead, let My promise strengthen and comfort you under every circumstance. I am well able to reward you above all measure and degree. You shall not toil here long nor always be oppressed with griefs. A time will come when all labor and trouble will cease. Labor faithfully in My vineyard; I will be thy recompense. Life everlasting is worth all these conflict, and greater than these. Are ...

3631. The Burden Bearing Christ - Sermon Starter

Matthew 11:1-19

Illustration

Brett Blair

There is a wonderful legend concerning the quiet years of Jesus, the years prior to his visible ministry. The legend claims that Jesus the carpenter was one of the master yoke-makers in the Nazareth area. People came from miles around for a yoke, hand carved and crafted by Jesus son of Joseph. When customers arrived with their team of oxen Jesus would spend considerable time measuring the team, their height, the width, the space between them, and the size of their shoulders. Within a week, the team would ...

3632. A Contented Man

Matthew 11: 16-19, 25-30

Illustration

David E. Leininger

A story is told of a king who was suffering from a malady and was advised by his astrologer that he would be cured if the shirt of a contented man were brought to him to wear. People went out to all parts of the kingdom after such a person, and after a long search they found a man who was really happy...but he did not possess a shirt.

3633. Our Value in God's Eyes

Matthew 11: 16-19, 25-30

Illustration

A well-known speaker started off his seminar by holding up a $20 bill. In the room of two hundred, he asked, "Who would like this $20 bill?" Hands started going up. He said, "I am going to give this $20 bill to one of you but first, let me do this." He proceeded to crumple the $20 bill up. He then asked, "Who still wants it?" Still the hands were up in the air. "Well," he replied, "What if I do this?" And he dropped it on the ground and started to grind it into the floor with his shoe. He picked it up, now ...

3634. Don’t Miss Life

Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30

Illustration

David E. Leininger

Frank Lloyd Wright, the world-famous architect, told how a lecture he received at the age of nine helped set his philosophy of life. An uncle, a stolid, no-nonsense type, had taken him for a long walk across a snow-covered field. At the far side, his uncle told him to look back at their two sets of tracks. "See, my boy," he said, "how your footprints go aimlessly back and forth from those trees, to the cattle, back to the fence then over there where you were throwing sticks? But notice how my path comes ...

3635. Liberty and Civility - Sermon Starter

Galatians 5:1-15

Illustration

Brett Blair

The United States of America is nearly 250 years old today. That's a long time for a nation to remain free. But, when you look at our history in the context of world history America is just a CHILD among the nations. Egypt, China, Japan, Rome, Greece all make America's history seem so short. Consider what a brief time we've really been here as a nation: When Thomas Jefferson died, Abraham Lincoln was a young man of 17. When Lincoln was assassinated, Woodrow Wilson was a boy of 8. By the time he died Ronald ...

3636. Only in America

Galatians 5:1-15

Illustration

Only in America can a pizza get to your house faster than an ambulance. Only in America do drugstores make the sick walk all the way to the back of the store to get their prescriptions, while healthy people can buy cigarettes at the front. Only in America do people order double cheeseburgers, large fries and a DIET coke. Only in America do we leave cars worth thousands of dollars in the driveway and put our junk in the garage. Hello. Only in America do we use voice mail to screen calls and have call- ...

3637. The Cost of Freedom

Galatians 5:1-15

Illustration

Brett Blair

On July 3, 1776, the day before the signing of the Declaration of Independence, George Washington wrote a letter to his wife, anticipating the hardships which would soon occur. Here in part are his words: In a few days, you will see a Declaration setting forth the causes which have impelled us to this mighty revolution and the reasons which will justify it in the sight of God. I am fully aware of the toil and blood and treasure what it will cost to maintain this declaration and support and defend these ...

3638. The Sower and the Seed - Sermon Starter

Matthew 13:1-23

Illustration

Brett Blair

The Kingdom of God was the main emphasis of Jesus' ministry and this is accepted by most. But defining precisely what the Kingdom was is a bit more difficult. Indeed, even Jesus himself was often illusive about it. He did not speak in absolutes; rather, he spoke in parables. Such is our scripture text for this morning. Jesus compared the Kingdom to a sower going out and spreading seed. Some of it falls upon hard ground and is unable to take root. Some of it falls on shallow ground, and although it ...

3639. Sowing the Seed

Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23

Illustration

David E. Leininger

One of William Barclay's friends tells this story. In the church where he worshiped there was a lonely old man, old Thomas. He had outlived all his friends and hardly anyone knew him. When Thomas died, this friend had the feeling that there would be no one to go to the funeral so he decided to go, so that there might be someone to follow the old man to his last resting-place. There was no one else, and it was a miserable wet day. The funeral reached the cemetery, and at the gate there was a soldier waiting ...

3640. The Life Is in the Seed

Matthew 13:1-23

Illustration

Leonard Sweet

Doug Murren, in Churches That Heal (1999), retells that old Native American tale of an opossum watching a seed grow. One day an opossum visited his good friend, a raccoon, at his home near the river. The opossum marveled at his friend's lush garden and asked if he could grow one like it. The raccoon assured the opossum he could do so, although he cautioned him, "It is hard work." The opossum eagerly vowed to do the hard work necessary, then asked for and received some seeds. He rushed home with his ...

3641. A Kudzu Kind of Kingdom

Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23

Illustration

Bill Bouknight

At times we wonder if our prayers get above the ceiling, if we have any Christian influence, if the church makes any real difference in the community, if faith is anything more than wishful thinking. A herd of buffalo was grazing on the range where the deer and the antelope play. Suddenly, a cowboy came riding up, jumped off his horse, got right up in the face of a buffalo and said, "You are the sorriest excuse for a buffalo I ever saw. Your eyes are bloodshot, your fur is dirty and matted, and you stink ...

3642. A Wise Old Bird

Matthew 13:1-23

Illustration

Brett Blair

There is a story about an old man who always had witty and wise answers for people who asked him anything. Once, a smart-alecky came to him with his hands covering something he was holding. He told the sage that he had a small, newly hatched bird in his hands. He challenged the old man to tell him whether the bird was alive or dead. He, of course, planned to prove the old man wrong, because if he said the bird was dead, he would simply open his hands to expose a perfectly healthy baby bird. But if he said ...

3643. Interest vs. Commitment

Mt 13:1-23

Illustration

King Duncan

In his book, The One Minute Manager, Ken Blanchard says, "There's a difference between interest and commitment. When you are interested in doing something, you do it only when it is convenient. When you are committed to something, you accept no excuses." Good soil represents the company of the committed " people who are determined to serve Christ to the best of their abilities, people who are willing to make whatever sacrifices are necessary to see Christ's kingdom come, people who by their work and their ...

3644. Buried Potatoes

Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23

Illustration

Billy D. Strayhorn

There was a grandfather whose grandson was helping him dig potatoes. After about an hour of hard work, the boy looked up at his grandpa and asked, "Why did you bury all these things in here?"

3645. Fertile Soil

Matthew 13:1-23

Illustration

Brett Blair

But there is a fourth kind of soil. There is the seed that falls upon the good earth and takes root and grows to maturity. This crop, we are told, is a harvest that will bear fruit a hundred fold. Jesus mentions this last because itis the thrust of the story. True, there are failures, but the good news is that there is also victory. Now, here is the hard part. Our efforts in life are not always measurable. Sometimes, you may not see the final product. You may not see the actual harvest. Sometimes all we ...

3646. Understanding Life

Matthew 13:1-23

Illustration

Brett Blair

Jesus also tells us how people respond to the Kingdom of God. There are four ways: There are those who understand it and the kingdom grows and produces fruit; they are good soil. There are those who receive it and the kingdom begins to grow but it is then choked by the worries of life; they are the soil covered by thorns. There are those who hear it with joy and the kingdom begins again to grow but trouble and persecution kill the growth; they are the shallow soil on the rocky places. There are those who ...

3647. The Attack Never Came

Mt 13:1-23

Illustration

King Duncan

Let me tell you a story told by James Billington, Librarian of Congress and a student of Russian history. Billington happened to be in Moscow in August of 1991. It was a tense and dangerous time, with the old Soviet regime giving way to a new social order. Boris Yeltzin and a small group of defenders occupied the Russian White House and successfully managed to face off an enormous number of tanks and troops poised to attack, and to restore the old guard in the Soviet Union. Surprisingly, a key role in this ...

3648. Willing to Pay the Price

Illustration

King Duncan

In 1998, sixteen-year-old Alden Tucker read a news story about Michael Peñon, a fifteen-year-old boy of multiracial heritage who had contracted leukemia. Michael's only hope for recovery was a bone-marrow transplant; unfortunately, his exotic ethnic heritage African-American, Hispanic, and Korean drastically reduced his chances of finding a matching donor. Alden Tucker, who is also of the same ethnic mix as Michael, immediately volunteered to serve as a donor. Because bone marrow donation is an invasive ...

3649. God Remains!

Matthew 13:1-23

Illustration

Greg Rickel

Vincent Van Gogh painted once an old deteriorating, half demolished church surrounded by a peasant's cemetery. Van Gogh rarely talked about his meaning in a painting but this was one of the rare instances when he did. He comments on the ruins of that church, and says he wanted to show how the peasant farmers were laid to rest in the very soil they dug and tilled. He describes them as "sprouting up and withering away like grass and the little flowers growing there in the soil of that graveyard," Then he ...

3650. Pulling Weeds - Sermon Starter

Mt 13:24-30, 36-43

Illustration

King Duncan

Last week we talked about planting seeds. This week we're talking about pulling weeds. The two go together. Every gardener knows that planting seeds is the easy part of having a successful garden. It is much more time consuming to weed that same garden. And it's hard work. As someone has said: "When weeding, the best way to make sure you are removing a weed and not a valuable plant is to pull on it. If it comes out of the ground easily, it is a valuable plant." There is a corollary to that truth: "To ...

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Antonyms: deficient, imperfect

Showing 3626 to 3650 of 5000 results

3626. Hospitality Opens the Door for Healing

Matthew 10:40-42

Illustration

Andrew R. Wolfe

3627. A Cup of Cold water

Matthew 10:40-42

Illustration

Larry Klaarn

3628. Fortunate Gifts

Mt 10:40-42

Illustration

King Duncan

3629. The Earliest Signs of Civilization

Matthew 10:40-42

Illustration

Brett Blair

3630. Rewards

Matthew 10:40-42

Illustration

Thomas a Kempis

3631. The Burden Bearing Christ - Sermon Starter

Matthew 11:1-19

Illustration

Brett Blair

3632. A Contented Man

Matthew 11: 16-19, 25-30

Illustration

David E. Leininger

3633. Our Value in God's Eyes

Matthew 11: 16-19, 25-30

Illustration

3634. Don’t Miss Life

Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30

Illustration

David E. Leininger

3635. Liberty and Civility - Sermon Starter

Galatians 5:1-15

Illustration

Brett Blair

3636. Only in America

Galatians 5:1-15

Illustration

3637. The Cost of Freedom

Galatians 5:1-15

Illustration

Brett Blair

3638. The Sower and the Seed - Sermon Starter

Matthew 13:1-23

Illustration

Brett Blair

3639. Sowing the Seed

Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23

Illustration

David E. Leininger

3640. The Life Is in the Seed

Matthew 13:1-23

Illustration

Leonard Sweet

3641. A Kudzu Kind of Kingdom

Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23

Illustration

Bill Bouknight

3642. A Wise Old Bird

Matthew 13:1-23

Illustration

Brett Blair

3643. Interest vs. Commitment

Mt 13:1-23

Illustration

King Duncan

3644. Buried Potatoes

Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23

Illustration

Billy D. Strayhorn

There was a grandfather whose grandson was helping him dig potatoes. After about an hour of hard work, the boy looked up at his grandpa and asked, "Why did you bury all these things in here?"

3645. Fertile Soil

Matthew 13:1-23

Illustration

Brett Blair

3646. Understanding Life

Matthew 13:1-23

Illustration

Brett Blair

3647. The Attack Never Came

Mt 13:1-23

Illustration

King Duncan

3648. Willing to Pay the Price

Illustration

King Duncan

3649. God Remains!

Matthew 13:1-23

Illustration

Greg Rickel

3650. Pulling Weeds - Sermon Starter

Mt 13:24-30, 36-43

Illustration

King Duncan

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