Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 3776 to 3800 of 4972 results

3776. If Only We Would Be Open To The Spirit ...

Joel 2:18-27

Sermon

Wallace H. Kirby

... ! in messianic times (Isaiah 32:15; Ezekiel 39:29) Jesus gathered his disciples in an upper room on the night before his death and made them witnesses to his last will and testament. He said, in essence, that part of the legacy he was leaving them was the Spirit. Five times around that table he reiterated the promise of the Spirit who would guide, inspire, and comfort them. Forty days later those disciples experienced that guidance, that inspiration, that comfort. "That’s the Spirit!" they might have said ...

3777. Listening is not Enough

James 1:19-27

Children's Sermon

... . Is there anyone here who thinks he is too fat and needs a little help in getting rid of it? [Take all the volunteers that you can get; the skinnier the better.] That is terrific. I am going to see that you all lose an ounce or two before you leave. Before losing weight, I am going to let this group of very fat people do some exercising that is really a lot of fun. The other group of people is going to sit and listen to every word, but they must just sit there and do nothing. Use your ears ...

3778. Prayer

Matthew 3:13-17

Bulletin Aid

... commissioned Given a work to do, But I more often think of Baptism As a ritual of belonging to the church, Than as a sending out to do ministry. God picked me! What have I done about it? Lord, forgive me for ignoring your call For refusing my commission For leaving your work to the "professionals," And recall me to my Baptismal vows My promise to be your child your person, In Jesus' name. And with the Spirit's power. Amen

3779. Prayer

Matthew 21:1-11

Bulletin Aid

... cars with their lights on Accompanying a last journey. Is Palm Sunday a PARADE Or a procession? A celebration Or a mourning Or - Somehow - Both? Lord, forgive me for seeing only the surface The palms and psalms The "Hosannas" And help me to remember that Jesus entered in triumph To leave in ignominy - To rise in glory! And help me to walk my own "parade" In his steps And for his sake. Amen

3780. Prayer

Luke 24:44-53

Bulletin Aid

The real "Last Words" - Preach - Make disciples - Baptize - Teach Instructions - Commands, really For the disciples And for me. But how seriously do I take them? Preaching I leave to the professionals Baptism (Except, maybe, in a real emergency) The same Making disciples Convincing Converting - I don't do that either! And even teaching (Except maybe in Sunday School - If I can't get out of it -) More of the same! So far I'm batting zero! Jesus left ...

3781. Prayer

Matthew 28:16-20

Bulletin Aid

... Son God the Holy Spirit, But that's so confusing! Three in One One God in three Persons. How do I explain it? How do I make sense of it? - Or do I have to? Can I just relate to God In the way that meets my needs now, And leave the mystery The description To the theologians? What difference does it make to me, If God is one Or God is three? Lord, forgive my confusion Over doctrine and descriptions, And help me to live in relationship In faith Faith in you Faith in my Savior, And faith in the ...

3782. The Holy Trinity

Deuteronomy 4:32-40

Sermon

... 12) And that is important to know. Such a recollection is a source of vital encouragement and great strength. People need to know what has happened to them in the past. They need to recall the resources which sustained their ancestors. However, at some point they must leave the past and turn their eyes toward the future. "Go on or go under" is a law of nature that has never been repealed. Recognizing the importance of not being a slave to the past, however, does not diminish the critical need for us to know ...

3783. Proper 9

Exodus 1:1-22

Sermon

... appears, the translation in the Revised Standard Version, "and the Egyptians were in dread of the people of Israel," is a little too gentle to be totally accurate. The Egyptians could easily have exterminated the Hebrews or, at the least, forced them to leave the country. Unger's commentary on the Old Testament, Vol. 1, translates verse twelve as "felt a loathing for." Egyptians couldn't forget the Hebrews were Semites and they were different. These stubborn people retained many of their old ways. They went ...

3784. Angry Hands

Psalm 26:1-12

Sermon

... broad road, the Christian is walking the narrow path down the middle of that crowd, going the opposite direction. I don't know if you have ever tried to walk against the flow of the crowd in a busy mall or athletic arena. If the people are trying to leave, and for some reason you are endeavoring to enter, it is practically impossible. Our walk in this world against the flow could try your patience. The world wants you and me to be angry. When we look around us, we discover that there are a lot of things to ...

3785. The Passion of Our Lord

2 Corinthians 5:21

Sermon

... First, nails are driven through His wrists; the Roman guards are careful not to pull His arms too tightly to allow room for flexibility and movement. Then a nail is driven through the arch of His feet, one foot placed on top of the other; the guards leave His knees moderately flexed. Now Our Lord's body is nailed to the cross, flesh pressed against wood, a figure of suffering silhouetted against the sky. A small titulus, or marker, is nailed in place; it reads: "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews." And now ...

3786. In Turning to God

John 18:1-11

Bulletin Aid

... in the Garden, all of the disciples fast asleep, Judas comes with the soldiers to lead Our Lord away. Reaching over to Him, Judas kisses Our Lord on the cheek. And the soldiers bind Him, and tie Him. Jesus is betrayed with a kiss. But as Our Lord is leaving, He looks at Judas with a look of incredible sadness. And Judas hides his face with shame. And no one can doubt that Judas is overwhelmed with sorrow, - for what had he done! what had he done! And running to the high priests, he greets Annas and Caiaphas ...

3787. Parable of Conversion and Conversation

Romans 14:1--15:13

Illustration

... from one condition to another and may hold also the meaning which changes human life to Godly living. Christians are engaged in the business of God which brings about conversion. Conversation may be of such a light nature and of unimportant speech as to leave no impact. Nevertheless the words are related. The conversation of a Christian, no matter how light its subject matter, can well reflect the love of God and of fellowman. And that conversation ought also to reveal nothing which is detrimental to man's ...

3788. 9 Steps to Third World Living

Luke 14:1-14

Illustration

First, take out the furniture: leave a few old blankets, a kitchen table, maybe a wooden chair. You've never had a bed, remember? Second, throw out your clothes. Each person in the family may keep the oldest suit or dress, a shirt or blouse. The head of the family has the only pair of shoes. ...

3789. Life Turned Upside Down

Luke 14:1-14

Illustration

... had been the director of the Los Alamos Project, a research team that produced the atomic bomb, and he had also served as the head of the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton. Yet, in looking back, he saw his achievements as meaningless. When asked about them, he replied, "They leave on the tongue only the taste of ashes."

3790. How to Stay Humble in a Haughty World

Luke 14:1-14

Sermon

Brett Blair

... this man nor the hunchbacked woman asked to be healed. The point here is not the healing; the point is that people must take precedent over rules. Just then the momentum shifts, dinner is served, and it is time to grab a seat. You would think Jesus would leave well enough alone. But noticing the mad scramble to grab the seats closest to the host, the places of honor, he gives two pieces of advice. The first is given to the guest. When you are invited to a wedding, he says, and it comes time for dinner ...

3791. Dear Mrs. Day

Luke 15:1-7

Sermon

Thomas C. Short

... and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. And the Pharisees and the scribes murmured, saying, "This man receives sinners and eats with them." So he told them this parable: "What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost, until he finds it? And when he has found it he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them ...

3792. Slavery and Freedom

John 8:31-41

Sermon

... could be ejected from the home at any time without any warning. On the other hand, a son was a permanent family member, and nothing could change that. A father could not unmake a son. Once a son, always a son, but a slave could be told to leave at any time. Herein lay the secret of their freedom. They could be enslaved by sin, but the son of God had come to claim them as the sons and daughters of God, and as sons and daughters they belonged to God from everlasting to everlasting. Their relationship was ...

3793. A Criminal, A Cross, and the Christ

Luke 23:26-43

Sermon

Thomas C. Short

... expecting the request, Jesus said to him, "Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise." (Luke 23:43) Etaus was at peace, and he knew he was dying next to the king of kings. He knew that life was entering him even as life was leaving him. Now on his deathbed, he felt more alive than he had ever felt before. Somehow, things would be alright. The end was better than the beginning. Those who were in power had condemned him to death, but the one who was all powerful had given him life. His only ...

3794. Parable of Stringed Music and Soul Whispers

Malachi 3:6-18

Illustration

... In softer words than lips may say. Of souls that hide behind the scenes And whisper only when we pray. We travel through the life that's here, Conversing on a hundred things. And deep beneath the busy days The soul of what we are takes wings. We leave unspoken finest thoughts Of love, and friendship, wisdom's way And hasten on in endless work Denying what we are within -- a soul that prays. But music offered on the strings Somehow causes us to pause And meditate upon the power That moves us with a holy ...

3795. A Word About the Right Time

Haggai 2:1-9

Sermon

... out for the self, get the proper education, be sure the salary is one thousand dollars for every year of your life, delay marriage; and once married, delay children, and then at the right moment ... Why build a church when your own home leaves much to be desired? Delay makes sense. We have our own version of delay. It is persuasive, reasonable, thoughtful, and religious. Our version is, "You have to love yourself well enough before you can hope to love others." What sounds persuasive, reasonable, thoughtful ...

3796. Was I Baptized Right?

John 3:1-21

Sermon

Kendall K. McCabe

... need for security. Such anxious longing for security promotes jealousy in love, unscrupulousness in business, and the arms race in international relations. It can become paranoiac, needing to divide the world into "us" and "them." "Better dead than red," and "America: love it or leave it" are two of the more simple-minded slogans produced by this need to see the world as the white hats against the black hats, as being all right or all wrong. I am not saying this is a phenomenon particular to one group ...

3797. The Third Sunday in Lent

John 4:1-26

Sermon

Kendall McCabe

... , the glistening green of the cactus, the buffalo roaming, and the deer and the antelope playing, to have an authentic wilderness experience. Thanks to the presence of what we call "sin" in our lives, we can all have our own wilderness experience and never leave home. The suicide at Christmas time, in the high-rise efficiency apartment in the middle of the city's caroling consumers, found a wilderness in the bleak midwinter. The teenagers who can't get jobs and who find society will pay more if they hustle ...

3798. Good Friday

John 18:1-19:42

Sermon

Kendall McCabe

... be asking why do we do this twice in one week. It was only this past Sunday we heard the whole passion narrative according to Matthew, and now today we come to hear John tell it all over again! But it isn't the same story, is it? I'll leave it to you to go home and separate out the details between the two. The point is that just as we each hear the story speak to us in relation to the needs we bring today, so the Gospel writers recorded it in terms of what was important to them ...

3799. The Third Sunday of Easter

Luke 24:13-35

Sermon

Kendall McCabe

... when she would bring out her companion in all her voyages and adventures. That companion was a small stuffed kitten known as "Laif." He had been a gift from her brother when he had left with his regiment for India, and Laif had been strictly warned by Jamie not to leave her side and to protect her as fiercely as he himself would. Laif had been faithful. He was there for her to hold when she was lonely, to talk to when she had secrets to confide, to wrestle and run with in the sun in her happy moments. Laif ...

3800. Christ's Passion Portraits

Isaiah 50:1-11

Sermon

Paul Hegele

... wink at corruption and yawn at the arms race and glance away from the gaunt faces of hunger staring out from the T.V. news. We, too eagerly, admire people who are "laid back" - which simply means they're keeping a comfortable distance from life - and when we leave each other we, too mindlessly, toss the phrase "take it easy." Once we cared enough to say, "Goodbye," which was short for "God bless." Now the blessing we need is zeal. The passion portrait of Christ can be the flint-faced man of integrity or the ...

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