Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 3676 to 3700 of 4935 results

3676. The Son Makes Us Free

John 8:31-41

Sermon

Larry R. Kalajainen

On a television movie about a family of Virginia plantation owners during the Civil War, one of the sons married a woman whom his family despised because she was not of their class. She was the daughter of a poor "dirt farmer," without the privileged education, carefully cultivated social graces, or the wealth of the family who lived in the big house on the plantation. She became pregnant with their first child shortly before her husband went off to war with Jeb Stuart's calvary, and reluctantly, the ...

3677. Fasting In A Fast-food World

Joel 2:1-11

Sermon

Barbara Brokhoff

If I told you that I have a sure-fire, effortless plan whereby you can lose 25 pounds, with no exercise, and no money, would I have your attention? I thought so. You can't pick up a Woman's Day magazine, Good Housekeeping, McCalls, Red-book, Ladies' Home Journal, Cosmopolitan, Reader's Digest, or even the National Enquirer without finding at least one article on how to lose weight. It's a multi-million dollar business in America. And, if you are overweight, you probably need to lose some fat to be more ...

3678. Epiphany 6

Luke 6:17-26, Psalm 1:1-6, Jeremiah 16:1--17:18, 1 Corinthians 15:12-34

Sermon Aid

George Bass

THEOLOGICAL CLUE The numbering of the Sundays of Epiphany warns the liturgically-initiated that the climax of the season of manifestation and ministry is approaching, and that with it comes the beginning of Lent. Christmas and the Epiphany of our Lord have diminished in the thought and worship of the churches by this point in Epiphany. Theological clues continue to surface in the name - Epiphany - of the season that the Episcopal and Lutheran churches use for these Sundays. "Ordinary Time 6" and "Proper 6 ...

3679. Lent 5

John 7:45--8:11, Psalm 126:1-6, Isaiah 43:14-28, Philippians 3:1-11, Luke 20:9-19, John 12:1-11

Sermon Aid

George Bass

THEOLOGICAL CLUE The Fifth Sunday in Lent floods the mind with memories of when it was the beginning of the two-week celebration of the Passion of our Lord. Passiontide was the third period in the progression from Septuagesima Sunday to Easter, the Resurrection of our Lord. (The three "gesima" Sundays were the first period, the first four and a half weeks of Lent comprised the second part; Passiontide was the third section of Lent; Holy Week was the fourth part; and the Triduum, which originally was Good ...

3680. Advent 2

Malachi 3:1-4, Luke 3:1-20, Philippians 1:1-11

Sermon Aid

George Bass

THEOLOGICAL CLUE Luke, the Gospel for the Year, wants the entire story of Jesus, as he knows it, to be told, not only to Theophilus, but to the larger audience who will read his gospel. This Sunday's theological task is to retell the story of John the Baptist's ministry, so as to show John's role in the advent of Jesus in his baptism and the beginning of his ministry here on earth. John might be called the "connector," because he "connected" the prophecies of the Old Testament to the coming of Christ as ...

3681. Step Twelve - Responsibility

Lk 19:1-10 · Gal 6:1-10 · Is 61:1-4

Sermon

John A. Terry

Step 12: "Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to others, and to practice these principles in all our affairs." This is not a step inward in our own journey of life and faith. It is a step outward which we take after we have recognized where God has led us in this journey. It is, in religious language, the call of the missionary. It is the call to share the good news. For some it is the good news found in sobriety. But it is a step for anyone caught ...

3682. Step Nine - Discipline

Mt 5:21-26 · Eph 4:25-32 · Num 5:5-10

Sermon

John A. Terry

Step nine: "Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others." In these passages of Scripture, we have rather specific advice. Let us look first at the Old Testament, the book of Numbers. The bulk of the Law is given in Exodus and Leviticus, and then again in Deuteronomy. This morning's passage is a law of restitution, a special case law, supplemental to Leviticus 6:1-7. It deals with restitution in the situation in which there is no kinsman, that is, no ...

3683. The Sermon on the Level

Luke 6:17-26

Sermon

The word that Christ our Lord would like to have us hear this All Saints’ Sunday is a firm word, gently spoken, lovingly applied. Faintly we recall that he said something similar to this before, in a sermon everyone applauds, but few apply, The Sermon on the Mount. "Blessed are the poor in spirit," we remember, and we like that. It doesn’t touch our assets. "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness," and we could use a little righteousness like ours around the nation and the church today ...

3684. The Confessions of a Younger Brother

Luke 16:19-31

Sermon

"There was a rich man, who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, full of sores, who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man’s table; moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham's bosom. The rich man also died and was buried; and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes, and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus in his bosom. And he called out, ‘Father ...

3685. Epiphany 2

Jn 2:1-12 · 1 Cor 12:1-11 · Isa 62:1-5

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

COMMENTARY Isaiah 62:1-5 The Lord marries his people. Picture the situation: The Exiles have returned from Babylon and find their capital city in ruins along with the temple. The prophet brings comfort and assurance that Yahweh will remedy the situation. The analogy of marriage is used. The Lord will re-marry his people and give them a new name as a bride gets a new name from her husband. Israel is the bride and Yahweh is the groom. Married to Yahweh, the bride-Israel will no longer be desolate or forsaken ...

3686. The Importance of Forgiving Others

Matthew 5:17-20

Sermon

Archbishop’s Easter Message, read the headlines for one newspaper on Easter Monday, 1986, followed by a sub-heading in larger print, "Runcie applauds forgiving vicar." The reporter, Clifford Longley, wrote, "The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. Robert Runcie, yesterday bestowed an Easter absolution on the perpetrators of the recent horrific incident in a west London vicarage." Longley was referring to the attack upon a Church of England clergyman, his daughter, and her boy friend that occurred in the middle ...

3687. Cross Work

Matthew 5:27-30

Sermon

George Bass

Jesus might have been loving, kind, and good, but he wasn’t very practical. As he closes out this first section of the Sermon on the Mount, it is pure Gospel we hear today that supercedes the law of last week. And Jesus shows us just how impractical the Gospel actually is. He instructs the disciples and us, to... ...offer no resistance to wicked people who might hurt or offend you; ...turn the other cheek if someone hits you on one side of the face; ...give your coat as well as your shirt to anyone who ...

3688. Steadfast and Faithful

Genesis 9:1-17

Sermon

"When the (rain)bow is in the clouds, I will look upon it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth." God said to Noah, "This is the sign of the covenant which I have established between me and all flesh that is upon the earth." (Genesis 9:16-17) God’s Covenant of mercy extends to all Creation. Noah’s flood was no ordinary flood. According to the Bible, its distinguishing feature was not that it rained for forty days and forty nights. ...

3689. I ... Oh ... U

Luke 18:9-14

Sermon

It all started with Ol’ Zeke in some prehistoric dinosaur patch, foraging for food, having things pretty much his own way, and feeling a bit superior when his ape family relatives dropped in to visit on weekends. Then we are told mythically that the Lord God said, "It is not good that the man should be alone. I will make him a helper fit for him." And by whatever early beginning story you subscribe, the end-product was very much the same. Ol’ Zeke was no longer the only dude in the dinosaur patch, and man ...

3690. Kindness That Makes You Sorry!

Joel 2:12-17

Sermon

Barbara Brokhoff

"... Now return to the Lord your God, For He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in lovingkindness, and relenting of evil." (NAS) A gentle Christian of the Society of Friends, a lady by the name of May Haviland, lived alone. One night as she entered her bedroom, she found a burglar rifling through her bureau drawers. When she turned on the light, he pointed a gun at her heart. She gently said to him: "Put that thing away. If there’s one thing I can’t stand, it’s guns. Besides, if your ...

3691. Faith isn’t Easy - But it Works!

Genesis 12:1-8

Sermon

Barbara Brokhoff

Now the Lord said to Abram, "Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who curses you, I will curse; and by you all the families of the earth shall bless themselves." So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. And ...

3692. Journey To The Cross IV: Jesus and Judas

Mark 14:43-52

Sermon

James W. Moore

Rev. James W. Moore, pastor of St Luke’s in Houston Texas tells the following story. A young lawyer called me one morning to ask a favor. He wanted me to visit one of his clients… who was at that moment behind bars. He was in jail awaiting trial for armed robbery. When the lawyer said the prisoner’s name, I recognized it immediately. There had been quite a bit of discussion and information about him in the newspapers and on television. He was from somewhere out west. He had been arrested for robbery. He ...

3693. Lost in Wonder, Love, and Praise

Romans 11:33-36

Sermon

Raymond Gibson

What happens when an irresistable force meets an immovable object? Which came first, the chicken or the egg? How far is up? How many angels can dance on the head of a pin? Impossible questions. Questions that have no answers. Questions about which philosophers philosophize and theologians theologize and simple folk wonder, all to no avail. Questions that boggle the mind and strain the brain and lead to endless argument. Useless questions - maybe. Why maybe? Why should there be any doubt? Why concern ...

3694. Manasseh

2 Kings 21:1-18

Sermon

Warren Thomas Smith

Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty-five years in Jerusalem ... And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord. Here is a small hinge of truth upon which a tremendous door swings open to a profound question. Why is it that a merciful God one who is perfect goodness, absolute love, incarnate justice permits an evil man to live a long, successful life? At the same time, why do righteous individuals sometimes survive a few wretched years amid poverty and misery ...

3695. The Guy With The Donkey

Matthew 21:1-11

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

There is an old story about a pastor who was having problems and decided to leave the ministry. But he ran into trouble finding another job. Finally, in desperation, he took a job at the local zoo. The gorilla had died, and since it had been the children's favorite animal, the zoo officials decided to put someone in a gorilla costume until a real replacement could be found. To the minister's surprise, he liked the job. He got lots of attention and could eat all he wanted. There was no stress--no deadlines ...

3696. Love of God, Self, and Neighbor

Matthew 22:34-40

Sermon

Jerry L. Schmalemberger

The religious people of Jesus’ day got together to try to trap Jesus with their questions. They asked him about paying taxes. They asked him about rising from death. We read today that they asked him what was the greatest commandment. The Jewish rabbis liked to distill the meaning of religion into little phrases like the ones we put on our Burma Shave signs. They had 632 laws and rules for the practice of their religion. They tried to break it down into a couple of inclusive commandments. "Teacher," he ...

3697. The Level Ground Beneath The Cross

Romans 3:21-31, Romans 3:9-20

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

I like the story that is told about an old Baptist minister who preached every Sunday on baptism by immersion. His folks agreed with his doctrine, but they were tired of hearing the same subject every week. The deacons undertook to solve the problem through diplomatic means. They complimented the pastor on his pulpit skills and suggested to him that he was such a natural preacher that they wanted to try an experiment. They wanted to hand him a piece of paper with a scripture lesson on it just before he ...

3698. How Could A Love So Right Go Wrong?

Genesis 24:1-67, Genesis 27:41--28:9

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

My sermon topic for today sounds like a question: “How could a love so right go so wrong?” It sounds like a country song, like this one, “I’m miserable without you, it’s almost like having you here.” Then there is my favorite, “If the juke box took tear drops, I could dance all night long.” That one makes me cry every time. How could a love so right go so wrong? The Old Testament story of Isaac and Rebekah starts out so beautifully, but it has a tragic ending. Isaac was a 40-year-old bachelor who implored ...

3699. Using our Special Talents

Romans 12:6-8

Children's Sermon

Wesley T. Runk

Object: Cup, scissors, picture. Good morning, boys and girls. How are you on this beautiful winter morning? Winter must be a very special season for God, because He decorates His earth with snow and beautiful cloud formations in the heavens. It is wonderful how the various seasons do different things and make us feel differently. It makes me think of some good friends around my house that have special jobs. Let me show you what I mean. First of all there is my friend, Charley Cup. [Hold up cup, admiring it ...

3700. We Know Jonah

Jonah 3:1-10

Sermon

Frederick C. Edwards

In the spring and summer of 1992, the world was shocked by reports of atrocities and pictures of concentration camps populated by emaciated captives in the strife-torn lands that had been Yugoslavia. No longer held together by a totalitarian regime, ancient feuds and animosities flared into violence and then full-scale war. Heinous acts were committed by Serbian government forces against people of other ethnic and religious groups, under the euphemistic term, ethnic cleansing. People were uprooted from ...

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