Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: touch, feel, sense of touch, tactile sense, tactility, contact, using one's hands, sensation, sense, suspicion, sneaking suspicion, notion, inkling, hunch, fancy, apprehension, presentiment, premonition, foreboding, love, care, affection, fondness, tenderness, warmth, warmness, emotion, sentiment, emotional state, compassion, sympathy, empathy, fellow feeling, understanding, concern, solicitude, solicitousness, tender-heartedness, brotherly love, sensibilities, sensitivities, self-esteem, ego, pride, opinion, belief, view, impression, intuition, instinct, estimation, guess, theory, hypothesis, thought, way of thinking, point of view, atmosphere, ambience, aura, air, mood, climate, character, overtone, undertone, tenor, spirit, quality, flavour, colour, aptitude, knack, flair, bent, talent, gift, skill, art, trick, faculty, ability, propensity, inclination, sensitive, warm, warm-hearted, tender, tender-hearted, caring, soft-hearted, sympathetic, compassionate, empathetic, responsive, receptive, intuitive, thoughtful

Antonyms: bad feeling, acrimony, animosity, animus, antagonism, antipathy, aversion, bitterness, detestation, disgust, dislike, disrelish, enmity, friction, grievances, grudges, hatred, hostility, loathing, malevolence, malice

Showing 3801 to 3825 of 4952 results

3801. Advent: Time to Listen

Jn 1:6-8, 19-28

Illustration

... they had heard a part of what he'd said, whispered back the part they'd heard - or what they remembered from a prior reading of Auden, triggered (in that moment) by what they thought they'd heard. While others, not quite hearing - and not quite knowing - guessed at what he was saying. And pretty soon, the whispers drowned out the poet. Which, if you ask me, is what sometimes happens in our churches, else why would there be so much interest in the word ...

3802. The Double Cross

Mark 10:35-45

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... ministrations to others. Who doesn't know what it feels like to be "double-crossed"? Who hasn't been sure that someone is on our side, that something is going our way, only to find out later when the truth is revealed that what we thought would be our just desserts becomes a pie in the face? Humanly speaking, being "double-crossed" is a wholly negative experience. In fact, traditionally, our culture has tended to reserve a bad connotation for anything bearing the "double" label. To work twice as hard is ...

3803. Celebrate Your Critical Mass

Matthew 18:15-20

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... together, you create the critical mass necessary for Christ's love to become a vital force on Earth. When Jim Wallis was traveling in South Africa in the late '80s, he reported: In South Africa in 1987, Nelson Mandela was still in prison, and the world thought for good. School children were being killed daily by government police, and the struggle seemed to be at a standstill. I met a 14-year-old boy who was, like many there, organizing in elementary and high schools. (Let's not forget the final turn of ...

3804. Was Jesus the First Buster?

Matthew 21:23-32

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... think Busters are spiritually open and aware? Consider the kinds of songs they are listening to. Buster-aged alternative-rock singer Joan Osborne, with a top-five hit and five 1996 nominations for Grammys, includes the song, "One of Us," on her recent album, "Relish." It contains these thought-provoking lyrics: If God had a name, what would it be and would you call it to his face if you were faced with him in all his glory, what would you ask if you had just one question?... What if God was one of us? Just ...

3805. Connect the Dots

Luke 4:14-21

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... accepting everyone and making no judgments" (97)? Try "not keeping score of wrongs" (Paul's phrase) for one day. Dr. Jampolsky adds: "Everything we think, say or do reacts on us like a boomerang. When we send out judgments in the form of criticism, fury or other attack thoughts, they come back to us. When we...send out only love, it comes back to us" (99). 3. Say only nice things about people. There is a lot to be said for the old maxim, "If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all." When ...

3806. Easter Dreams

Luke 24:1-12

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... new Christian down into the liquid grave to be buried with Christ and then raised him up to eternal life. Though the water was cold, the man was not eager to get out. Instead, he stood there, weeping for joy. When at last he left the baptismal box, I thought he would hurry away to change into something dry. I was mistaken." The prisoner, the newborn Christian, told them, "I want to wear these clothes as long as I can .... In fact, I wish I never had to take a shower again." They walked to the nearby tables ...

3807. Freedom in Bondedness

Galatians 5:1-15

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... of energy being focused on the whole issue of "self-esteem." Carl Rogers was among the first to popularize this view as he called for the need to "actualize the potential" of one's self through "unconditional self-regard." This psychologically based school of thought has even borrowed the short-form Torah that Paul cites in today's epistle lesson and claims that Jesus' reminder to "love your neighbor as yourself" was essentially a mandate to focus on loving yourself. It is true that there is no place in ...

3808. Enemies of Promise

Matthew 3:1-12

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... , leaving only the bones - and charred remains. 4. The Enemy of Pride: Why do so few child geniuses live up to their hype? Why do so few intellectual prodigies become Nobel/Pulitzer/Templeton prize recipients? Why is the world run by C students? My mother thought she knew the answer. She had a favorite saying that she used on us unsparingly: "Pride goeth before a fall, boys." In her mind, the Genesis story of the original sin of Pride and the origination of The Fall were adequate explanations for why some ...

3809. From the Grinch

Luke 1:26-38

Illustration

Dr. Suess

I think the Grinch said it best: And the Grinch, with his grinch-feet ice-cold in the snow, Stood puzzling and puzzling: "How could it be so?" "It came without ribbons! It came without tags!" "It came without packages, boxes or bags!" And he puzzled three hours, till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before! "Maybe Christmas," he thought, "doesn't come from a store." "Maybe Christmas. . . perhaps. . means a little bit more!"

3810. New Beginnings

John 1:1-18

Sermon

King Duncan

... It is truly sad that so much of this potential is neglected. By the way, parents should not give up on a child who seems lacking in potential. Albert Einstein couldn’t speak fluently even when he was nine years old. His parents actually thought he might be mentally challenged. Children develop differently and children are gifted in different ways. You and I came into this world having enormous mental and physical potential, much of which is never realized. There is something more our text is saying to us ...

3811. Acts 1:15-17, 21-26

Acts 1:15-17, 21-26

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... ." Note that Jesus does not ask that they be protected from harm, adversity, or hard times. Jesus knows the power of prayer, and he knows the discordant tendencies of the disciples. The "evil one" he seeks to keep at a distance might also be understood as those thoughts and energies and forces in this world that work against us, making us less than God would have us be. As Jesus' prayer continues in verses 16-18, he asks that the disciples remain in this world but not of it, that they will avoid the worldly ...

3812. John 3:1-17

John 3:1-17

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... reflects the Hebraic notion that words and deeds are one and the same. The Hebrew word for "word" (dabar) is the same as the term for "thing." Words are things. Ideas, conceived in the heart and then formulated by the mind, have a life all their own. Every hateful, hurtful thought has the power to actually harm. The action of the seraphim then has far-reaching ramifications. As Isaiah's lips are purified by the burning coal, his heart and his mind are also made pure. The prophet's ...

3813. Ephesians 4:25-5:2

Ephesians 4:25-5:2

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... the commandments (he advises thieves to give up stealing and aid those in need). But it is not only actions but Etudes that Paul wants Christians to adjust. Verses 29-32 stipulate the criteria which must prevail as Christians consider their words, thoughts and deeds. Building up" the body of Christ which "gives grace" to all its members is the ambition of the Christian life. Paul insists that Christians take their baptism seriously. As a people "marked with a sea," believed are to act discernibly different ...

3814. Philippians 4:49

Philippians 4:49

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... used as evidence of the fragmentary nature of the Philippians correspondence. While the evidence is inconclusive, some scholars suggest that the entire book is made up of bits and pieces of Pauline communiques that tradition had saved. Rather than lose all these thoughts, the church simply wove them together or inserted them into a longer letter. Keeping in mind this possibility, it is interesting to note that the word "rejoice" used in verse 4 can also be understood and translated as "farewell." So while ...

3815. Hebrews 13:1-8

Hebrews 13:1-8

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... their financial security. But since wealth is not an end itself, one is not being asked to risk anything of ultimate value. As verse 6 sings, Christian dependence is to be on Christ, not on material things. Verse 7 might very well be continuing this thought, as well as urging respect for Christian leaders. The Greek term translated as "the outcome" is ekbasis. But it can be understood variously as "a way out," "escape," "result," or "the end." Thus some have suggested that "the outcome of their way of life ...

3816. 2 Thessalonians 2:13-3:5

2 Thessalonians 2:13 – 3:5

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... would refer to the Thessalonians as the "first fruits" when they were in no way the first converts, even within Macedonia itself. A less specific temporal connotation is possible by asserting that "from the beginning," God intended the gift of salvation. Paul continues his thought in verse 13 by referring to the "truth" that enables this salvation. This, of course, is the same truth denied by the wicked in verse 10 - the truth of the gospel. In verse 14 Paul emphasizes that it was God who actually called ...

3817. Exodus 17:1-7

Exodus 17:1-7

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... been responsible for Exodus 17:1a - which provides such a vivid description of the Israelites' wanderings. The "L" source is thought to be very old, originating from the people's truly nomadic period of life. Unlike the so-called "J" or ... master than of a free band of explorers trying to carve out a destiny in a new land. There is also no evidence that the people thought to turn their own voices to Yahweh in prayer. They address Moses alone, viewing him as the one who can help them in their time of need. ...

3818. John 13:31-35

John 13:31-35

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... the course of the events about to unfold, is foundless and foolish. All in all, it is a fairly disheartening, even frightening message Jesus imparts to his remaining disciples. It is at this moment that Jesus offers the disciples a "new commandment" what might be thought of as a guiding principle to keep them in line and on track as Jesus leaves them. At first glance, the command to "love one another" (especially as Jesus elaborates that this love should be "as I have loved you") seems to offer a comforting ...

3819. Genesis 9:8-17

Genesis 9:8-17

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... some special promise God has made to them - it is a reminder to God that the earth is to remain safe from divine retribution. Indeed, since the word "bow" is always used by the Priestly writer to refer to a weapon, this bow in the clouds can be thought of as being pulled toward God, holding his anger at bay and bending it away from the earth, even as it bends light around the sky. The covenant the Lord makes in these verses is an unconditional covenant, requiring nothing of the second parties the earth and ...

3820. Acts 1:15-17, 21-26

Acts 1:15-17, 21-26

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

3821. John 3:1-17

John 3:1-17

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

3822. Ephesians 4:25-5:2

Ephesians 4:25-5:2

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

3823. Philippians 4:49

Philippians 4:49

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

3824. Hebrews 13:1-8

Hebrews 13:1-8

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

3825. Ephesians 1:3-14

Ephesians 1:3-14

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... a recurring theme of this letter. In verse 10 the inference is universal as God plans to "gather up all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth." The writer next invokes the language of "inheritance," suggesting a special status that had previously been thought the domain of the Jews only. A bit later this point is articulated even more blatantly: Both Jews and Gentiles share equally in the blessing and grace that God extends to all creation (2:11-22). No thing and no one lie outside this new ...

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