Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 351 to 375 of 4937 results

351. The Difference Between Getting and Giving

John 1:1-18

Drama

Arley K. Fadness

Theme: Exploring the difference between selfish getting and gracious giving Characters: Narrator Old Man Old Man’s Pastor Former Girlfriend Beggar Man In Santa Claus Suit Devout Gentleman The Lord (or voice) Tone: Humorous and thought-provoking Setting/Props: Park bench Two chairs Bible Logo or sign suggesting “Heaven” Spotlight (to represent the Lord) Special white robe Approximate time: 5-9 minutes (The scene opens in a park. The Old Man is sitting on a bench pondering something deep.) Narrator: Once ...

352. Religion - One Way to Get in God’s Way

Zechariah 7:1-14

Sermon

Another clash between religion and the worship of God. To put it another way, "The Bible is anti-religious because it is pro-God." That statement strikes at some of our most cherished traditions. Isn’t religion automatically pro-God? Both the Old and New Testaments say, "Not automatically so." The Bible takes issue not only with the pagan religions, it takes issue with the religion of God’s people when their religion puts God in second place. Christ said of some of the religious leaders who worshiped ...

353. Wedding: The Most Excellent Way

1 Corinthians 12:12-31

Sermon Aid

Joel W. Kreger

Before the altar of our Lord we come together.We stand — hand in hand — and wish to hear the words which God would say. We wish for joy and life and happiness His voice we hear proclaim, “I will show you the most excellent way.” The most excellent way is the way of love.Not a love of human urge and pleasure, But the love from God above.This is love, the love beyond all measure. An individual may speak,with words of most convincing logic, with words of arguments persuasive, with words as honey sweetly ...

354. Never Give Up

Luke 18:1-8

Sermon

King Duncan

For many years men dominated the world of humor. But today, as in most fields, women are making their mark. Here are some oneliners from various famous women. The first one is from singer Dolly Parton. "I'm not offended by all the dumb blonde jokes," says Dolly, "because I know I'm not dumb . . . and I also know that I'm not blonde." Here's one from Erma Bombeck.: "Never lend your car to anyone to whom you have given birth." "I'm not going to vacuum until Sears makes one you can ride on." That's from ...

355. Giving It Up for Lent

Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21

Sermon

David E. Leininger

Lent is not normally thought of as an occasion for levity, but ... a Catholic priest working in an inner city was walking down an alley one evening on his way home when a young man came down the alley behind him and poked a knife against his back. "Give me your money," the young man said. The priest opened his jacket and reached into an inner pocket to remove his wallet, exposing his clerical collar. "Oh, I'm sorry, Father," said the young man, "I didn't see your collar. I don't want your money." Trembling ...

356. Jesus: The Only Way To God?

Acts 4:1-22

Sermon

E. Carver McGriff

These words attributed to Peter, "There is salvation in no one else," raise a difficult issue. If one misunderstands, it could lead to the idea that the only way to know God is through Christ. This would be offensive to our many friends of other religions throughout the world. True, one can correctly infer from Peter's words that there is something unique about Jesus, something which makes the experience of a relationship with Jesus not only special, but according to those of us who lay claim to that ...

357. He Abides In Us

John 15:1-17

Sermon

Harry N. Huxhold

John Updike once more revealed his remarkably brilliant powers of description in the novel Brazil. Updike shares his uncanny ability to portray the setting and landscape that surround his characters in order to highlight their nature and their roles. However, Updike's greatest gift is the manner in which he is able to crawl inside the characters to reveal their restless and frantic struggles to discover themselves. The principal characters in Brazil are Tristao and Isabel. Their love for each other ...

358. Thanks-Giving Is Good for Everyone

Luke 17:11-19

Sermon

David G. Rogne

A.J. Cronin tells of a doctor he knew who prescribed in certain cases of neuroses what he called his "thank-you cure." When a patient came to him discouraged, pessimistic, and full of his own woes, but without any symptoms of serious ailment, he would give this advice: "For six weeks I want you to say 'Thank you' whenever anyone does you a favor, and to show you mean it emphasize the words with a smile." "But no one ever does me a favor, doctor," the patient might complain. Whereupon, borrowing from ...

359. Gifts of Lent, Ash Wednesday: A Man Gives His Donkey

Matthew 21:1-11

Drama

Donald Neidigk

Dramatic Monologue Come in! Come in! Do come in! Far be it from me that I should deny a visitor the hospitality of my little home. After all, it isn't really my home. I'm just a tenant. It belongs to the Lord, as does everything else you see around here, although I admit it isn't much. If I have an extra mat for a bed, or loaf of bread, or skin of wine, and you have need of it, consider it a gift from God to you. Now why is it you dropped by? Oh, yes! You want me to tell you about the time I let that ...

360. With a Firm Foundation, Application Is Second Nature

Matthew 7:15-23, Matthew 7:24-29

Sermon

Mark Ellingsen

Practice makes perfect. If you do these things for Jesus, the Lord will bless you. Much Prosperity Gospel preaching advocates these themes. It's a word that America wants to hear. Even Reverend Rick Warren of the California megachurch, Saddleback Church, has said that: I must apply its [the Word of God's] principles. Receiving, reading, researching, remembering, and reflecting on the Word are all useless if we fail to put them into practice. We must become "doers of the word."1 Let's get Jesus' "take" on ...

361. Giving to the Needy

Matthew 6:1-4

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

6:1 The three most prominent religious obligations of Jewish piety were almsgiving, prayer, and fasting. The first eighteen verses of chapter 6 deal with these acts of religious devotion. In each case there is a wrong way and a right way. The followers of Jesus are to avoid all ostentatious display and to quietly fulfill the obligations in an unobtrusive manner. In carrying out religious duties they are not to make a public display in order to attract attention to themselves. That approach would deprive ...

362. Never, Never, Never, NEVER GIVE UP!

2 Corinthians 4:5-12

Sermon

David E. Leininger

"Never give up. Never give up. Never, never, never, never give up!" Of course, you know who gave that advice ... Winston Churchill. It was Churchill's dogged determination during World War II that saved his nation from Nazi destruction. In a speech following the retreat from Flanders before the House of Commons on June 4, 1940, he thundered, ... we shall not flag or fail. We shall go on to the end, we shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seasand oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and ...

363. Loving The Jesus Way

1 Corinthians 13:1-13

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

A tramp, one day, knocked at the door of a Catholic Rectory. "Father," he said to the priest, "I've been floating around for a long time, and I was wondering if I could join your church and settle down?" "Why, yes," said the priest, "I'd be happy for you to do that, but first let's find out what you know about faith." With Christmas coming, he decided to ask the tramp a simple and seasonal question. "Where was Jesus born?", asked the priest. Without even hesitating, the tramp said, "In Pittsburg." "No," ...

364. What Can I Give You

Illustration

Michael P. Green

The following appeared in Home Living, May 1980: My child, what can I give you? I should like to give you everything so that you lack for nothing, not even one single desire, but I know that for want of many things I have come to be satisfied with what I have and to think of others and their needs. I should like to give you a life full of fun and games, but I know that because of many “chores” and responsibilities of my youth, I have learned to be responsible. I should like to protect you from all the ...

365. God's Way Of Doing Things

Ruth 3:1-18, 4:13-22

Sermon

John P. Rossing

I know a couple who have on their wall a framed piece of needlework that someone gave them for a wedding gift. It has their names and their wedding date, and it says, "God gave us each other." I think many Christian couples believe that they were brought together by God's providence. People often feel the same way about their vocations, believing they have been led into a particular life's work by God. As a church, we trust that our plans and decisions are guided by God's spirit. But why would we think ...

366. Clear The Way!

Luke 3:1-20

Drama

Pamela Urfer

Cast: John the Baptist Usher First Church Official Second Church Official Length: 6 minutes There are three stools placed at the front of the sanctuary. JOHN the BAPTIST, wearing clothing made of camel's hair or animal skins with a leather belt around his waist, his hair wild and unruly, comes into the sanctuary through the back door. His first speech should be memorized and his script could be waiting for him on his stool. The USHER must also memorize his few lines. JOHN: (In a loud voice) Prepare the way ...

367. Five Ways to be "Holy" During Holy Week

Matthew 21:1-11

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

“Everyone else is doing it.” Do you remember those words? Do you remember begging your Mom or Dad for permission to do something they would ordinarily not permit by insisting, “But Ma, everyone else is getting to do it!” The typical parental response to such childish logic usually went something along the lines of, “Well, if everyone else jumped off a bridge would you do it too?” (Of course now that grown men and women actually PAY to go bungee jumping off of bridges, that argument might not have as much ...

368. “On the Way” to Jerusalem

Mark 9:33-37, Mark 9:38-41

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

As Jesus and the disciples are “on the way” from Caesarea Philippi to Jerusalem—a distance of two hundred miles as the crow flies—Mark includes four brief narratives on humility and suffering, each of which illustrates and reinforces Jesus’s call to self-denial and cross bearing (8:31–38). Passing through Galilee for the final time, “Jesus did not want anyone to know where they were” (9:30). The anonymous journey may have been advised by the continued opposition of Antipas and the Jewish authorities, but ...

369. Living as Children of Light

Ephesians 4:17--5:21

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

4:17–32 · Therefore walk in newness: Efforts to walk in unity succeed to the degree to which they reflect the indwelling influence of Christ. Confident that he communicates the very counsel of the Lord, Paul negatively urges his Gentile readers to conduct their lives no longer as their fellow unconverted Gentiles do (4:17). This does not imply that Paul recommends a “Jewish” lifestyle; by “Gentile” here he means “pagan,” “Christless.” That is, he warns against living life apart from Christ, according to ...

370. Which Way?

Matthew 16:21-28

Sermon

There is something contradictory and unexpected - inexplicable, in fact - about the way that leads to life. Given the two choices Jesus offers in this text, we on our own would not, not in a million years, make the right choice. Given the options of redemptive suffering on the one hand and, on the other, strongarming the enemy for Jesus’ sake, we’d choose the latter every time. Simon Peter chose plan B even after Jesus gave him all the clues he needed to reject it. It should not surprise us that humanity, ...

371. Barnabas Found the Way

Acts 4:35-5:16

Sermon

John E. Harnish

Ah, nicknames. Sometimes they can be funny…like Pookey, Peanut or Pee-diddle. Sometimes they can be a problem. I am forever explaining why people call me Jack when my real name is John, while relatives who still can't tell me apart from my twin keep calling me "Twin" or Jim. And, of course, his name is really James. Sometimes nicknames can be very special. In our family, we still call our son David "DD" because that's what he first called himself. And one of my cherished memories is of my grandfather, the ...

372. “The Lord Watches over the Way of the Righteous”

Psalm 1:1-6

Teach the Text

C. Hassell Bullock

Big Idea: We begin the spiritual story of Israel, and ours as well, with the psalmist’s search for and delight in God’s Word. Understanding the Text Psalm 1 is often viewed as a wisdom psalm because it puts forth the merits of the moral life as two “ways,” the “way of the righteous” and the “way of the wicked” (1:6), which is characteristic of wisdom thought. For the psalmist the matter was very simple: one must choose between the two ways. When the final edition of the book of Psalms was forming, Psalm 1 ...

373. What a Way to Start a Church!

Acts 2:1-21

Sermon

William J. Carl, III

What a way to start a church! It's certainly not the typical format for new church development. Where is the planning committee, the fund-raising, the arm twisting, the real estate deal acquiring the land, the faithful few who volunteer from other churches to give the whole thing its initial push? Not everyone has the personality to start a church from scratch, but Paul did. "I planted, Apollos watered," says Paul (1 Corinthians 3:6). Some preachers are just good at planting churches and getting them ...

374. Don't Give Up - He Hears!

Luke 18:1-8

Sermon

King Duncan

Some of you will remember when Clyde Beatty was the most famous lion tamer in the world. While Beatty was performing with THE GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH he also operated a small circus that played during the off-season. This circus was stationed in Fort Lauderdale, Florida and because of the very favorable climate from December through March, performed in the open air, without a big top. One day there was a heavy downpour and Beatty was forced to call off the show. Only one person had come to the box office to ...

375. Holy Living

John 6:51-65

Sermon

Donald Macleod

Years ago, Harry Emerson Fosdick, then at the height of his influence as minister of the Riverside Church, New York City, was making a tour of Palestine and other countries of the Near and Middle East. He was invited to give an address at the American University of Beirut, Lebanon, where the student body comprised citizens of many countries and representatives from sixteen different religions. What could one say that would be relevant or of interest to so mixed and varied a group? This is how Fosdick began ...

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