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 3876 to 3900 of 4455 results

3876. Veni, Spiritus Sanctus, Veni

John 14:8-17 (25-27)

Sermon

Arley K. Fadness

On this Pentecost Sunday, as we celebrate the birthday of the church, I want to teach you a simple and yet potentially powerful prayer. It goes like this ... "Veni, Spiritus Sanctus, Veni," or as the Germans would say it, "Komm Heiliger Geist, Herre Gott." In English it is simply, "Come, Holy Spirit, come." There is no prayer in German, Greek, English, Swahilli, or Latin more powerful than this — "Veni, Spiritus Sanctus, Veni." This prayer opens us to the Holy Spirit, who comes, fills, and leads our lives ...

3877. Keeping the Main Thing the Main Thing

Luke 9:51-62

Sermon

Arley K. Fadness

They were 5,000 feet in the air in a two-seat Cessna when suddenly the pilot slumped over. It happened not so long ago near Mount Hope, Indiana, to an 81-year-old passenger who was flying to Indianapolis for lunch. When his 52-year-old friend and pilot unexpectedly died, the elder passenger realized he knew nothing about flying and a lot less about landing! In the next twenty minutes you can bet he gave his total attention to the voices on the radio and the instructions given to him. Another pilot nearby ...

3878. Responsibility Comes with Privilege

Acts 8:4-8

Sermon

Richard Gribble

Once upon a time there was a good king who ruled wisely and well over his people, who loved him very much. This king had four beautiful daughters who were all well respected by the people. One day he called them together and told them, "I am going to a far-off monastery to spend time in prayer with God. Therefore, I am leaving you in charge of the kingdom." While all the girls, one after the other, told their father not to leave, he insisted that it was necessary. Before he left on his journey, however, he ...

3879. Strengthening Your Grip On Prayer

1 Kings 8:22-23, 41-43

Sermon

Derl G. Keefer

In 1982, Chuck Swindoll wrote a book titled Strengthening Your Grip. The introduction chronicles his maturing years from his birth in 1934 through his ministry of the early 1980s. Face it, ours is simply not the same world as it was a few short decades ago. The full picture hidden in the puzzle is still unclear, but the border is in place. The scene has changed drastically ... I found myself having to face the frightening facts of reality. We cannot drift on the ship of aimless indifference very long ...

3880. Live the Lullaby

Luke 1:46-56

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

Every baby will keep every parent up all night, at least once. It’s a rule. Whether because they are teething or colicky, anxious or tummy-troubled, or just plain fussy, it’s part of a baby’s mission in life to keep its parents awake weeping and wailing. We parents are “hard-wired” to respond to an infant’s cries. What has kept us grieving all week, a grief that can’t be spoken? What has kept our hearts hurting all week, a pain that won’t go away? When an infant or child is in trouble, or hurt, or killed, ...

3881. Between a Rock and a Hard Rock Thrower

Galatians 1:11-24

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

As a kid were you ever convinced that you HAD to be adopted? I mean, really: how could you be related to your big-mouthed brother when you are so reserved and quiet? . . . Your math genius parents could never have produced your brain — a brain that can’t add up anything without using fingers and toes. . . . How can you be related when you can play almost any musical instrument and your sister is completely tone deaf? As our personalities develop, as our individual quirks and oddities, likes and dislikes, ...

3882. Waiting for Christmas

James 5:7-12

Sermon

Timothy J. Smith

Excitement is building on this the third Sunday of Advent knowing that Christmas will soon be here. Children have made their Christmas wish lists of all the wonderful things they desire. Some might have had long lists while others might have subtracted an item or two, still others might have added a few more gifts during the past weeks. We have heard people ask, “What do you want for Christmas?” Most of us, young and old alike, have no problem sharing our wish list with anyone who asks. On our mad rush to ...

3883. Powerless People

Judges 4:1-24

Sermon

Argile Smith

Some time ago, someone in Fred’s congregation asked him to read a book by a fellow named Tex Sample. As pastor of the church, Fred always appreciated the opportunity to read books recommended by his congregants. His long years of ministry had taught him that in almost every book he could find at least one good idea. Sometimes the idea would find its way into one of his sermons. At other times, the idea would be tucked away for further examination, or it would be presented over coffee to engage the people ...

3884. Down in the Dungeon

Psalm 130:1-8

Sermon

King Duncan

Two men were walking along the edge of a steep cliff one night when one slipped and fell over. His companion crept to the edge. “Are you all right?” he shouted. “Yes,” came the answer from below. “Are you hurt?” the second man shouted back down. “No,” came the reply. “Well,” shouted the surprised man from above, “how far did you fall?” “I don’t know,” came the voice from below. “I haven’t hit the bottom yet.” Some of you will recognize the name Charles Haddon Spurgeon. He was, perhaps, the finest preacher ...

3885. Great Balls of Fire!

John 20:19-23

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

Happy Natal Day, church! As a kid did you ever terrorize a sibling by scuffing your feet on the carpet and walking towards your “prey” with an index finger pointing at them? The threat, of course, was “static electricity.” If you touched you brother or sister, it meant a small but smarting little zap. A small shock — big fun! A local grocery store (actually, the local Orcas Island Supermarket where we live) recently bit the bullet and spent big money on some major renovations. Among the improvements was ...

3886. Ignite: Fire and Water

Acts 10:23b-48

Sermon

James Merritt

You have fired up the grill, got some big juicy steaks on there, you are just about ready to take them off, some grease from the fat falls on those hot coals, flames spit up and catches your finger on fire. Sitting right next to the grill is a glass of ice cold water that you have been drinking on a hot summer day. So, finger on fire, glass of ice-cold water – what do you do with your finger? Exactly! You would immerse it into that water! Normally, water extinguishes fire, but in this case baptismal water ...

3887. Come One, Come All

Luke 5:27-32

Sermon

James Merritt

It is the most exclusive club in the world. There is only one qualification that will get you into this club. Amazingly, it is not money. Carlos Slim Helù is the richest person in the world. His net worth is $70.6 billion dollars. Bill Gates is the richest person in America and his net worth is $60.4 billion, but neither man can buy his way into this club. It is not fame. The two most famous people in the world, the most recognizable faces are Muhammad Ali and Tiger Woods. Neither one could get into this ...

3888. Everything Counts

Luke 16:1-15

Sermon

James Merritt

When the man heard the phone ring, his stomach began to turn. Something told him this was the call he had been dreading, “Sir, I’m calling from the bank to let you know we are foreclosing on your home. You are going to be evicted in one week.” The man began to beg, “You can’t do this. I haven’t been able to find work since I was laid off and I have nowhere to take my wife and children.” But the banker replied, “Sir, I am sorry there is nothing I can do.” For a moment the man sat there stunned, but he then ...

3889. She Looked Great, But...

Mark 7:1-23

Sermon

One of the truisms of life is that you can’t judge a book by its cover. Things are not always what they seem. I read a delightful story, allegedly true, about a zoo in Spain that decided to conduct an emergency drill. The drill simulated how to handle it if a gorilla escaped from its enclosure. To make the drill more realistic, a zookeeper dressed up as a gorilla and took off loping through the zoo. Unfortunately, not everyone on staff was notified about the drill. Upon seeing a “gorilla” fleeing from its ...

3890. She Looked Great, But...

Mark 7:1-23

Sermon

King Duncan

3891. No Longer Strangers

Ephesians 2:11-22

Sermon

King Duncan

I want to draw your attention to the 19th verse of today’s lesson from Ephesians. We read, “Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household . . .” “No longer foreigners and strangers.” Reflect on those words for just a moment. I have heard it said that a child is born untrusting. Perhaps that is why life begins with a cry. The infant is apart from its mother for the first time. It has become a separate human being. But also ...

3892. When Is Enough...Enough?

Mark 10:17-31

Sermon

King Duncan

Comedienne Joan Rivers who died last year once said something with which many people would agree. “People say that money isn’t the key to happiness,” said Joan Rivers, “but I always figured if you have enough money, you can have a key made.” “I always figured if you have enough money . . .” says Joan Rivers. How much is enough money? That is a good question. A Hollywood film editor once said, “I had this date the other night with a woman who wanted to walk along the beach. I’m wearing a twelve?hundred ...

3893. When the Dragon Wins

Luke 21:5-38

Sermon

R. Robert Cueni

Cindy and Don, a daughter and father, were dining in a restaurant in Nairobi, Kenya. Cindy, a recent college graduate, had committed a year to teaching in a developing country before settling down to make the "big bucks" as a public school teacher in the United States. She had been in Kenya long enough to begin acclimating to some of the cultural differences. Don, on the other hand, was in the first day of a two-week visit. He was still overwhelmed by his surroundings. To him the flood of new experiences ...

3894. When the New Comes, the Old Passes

Sermon

R. Robert Cueni

On the church's calendar, this is the last week of the year. It is called Christ the King. The day points to the culmination of history. On that last day, every knee shall bow. Death will be defeated. God will raise up God's people and the whole world will rejoice in the coming of God's reign. The gospel reading for the day, Luke 23:33-43, tells of a conversation Jesus had with two convicted criminals as all three were hanging on crosses. The conversation is rich in nuance and meaning. The Lord asks that ...

3895. Discipleship: Backward or Forward to God

Luke 9:51-62

Sermon

Maurice A. Fetty

Leave the dead to bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God. — Luke 9:60 It was Thomas Wolfe who made the saying famous: "You can't go home again." He said these words that have been repeated and quoted thousands of times since. It has some affinity with another saying, "You cannot step into the same river twice." Life, like a river, is an ever-flowing and ever-changing reality. One philosopher altered the familiar saying to "you cannot step into the same river once," meaning ...

3896. Jehoshaphat King of Judah

2 Chronicles 17:1-19

Understanding Series

Louis C. Jonker

Jehoshaphat: Judged by the length of text that he dedicates to King Jehoshaphat of Judah (17:1–21:1), the Chronicler certainly considered this king of great importance for his historiographical reconstruction. Not only is this one of the longest royal accounts in Chronicles (together with those of Hezekiah and Josiah), but it also contains the most substantial portion of the Chronicler’s own material. Apart from 18:1–34 and 20:31–21:1, which make use of source materials in 1 Kings 22:1–35 and 22:41–50, ...

3897. Overseers and Deacons

1 Timothy 3:1-16

Understanding Series

Gordon D. Fee

Qualifications for Overseers To this point, Paul has addressed some concerns related to the community at worship and corrected some abuses generated by the activities of the erring elders. Now he turns to the elders themselves and sets forth some qualifications for “office.” He begins, in verses 1–7, with a group called episkopoi (“overseers”); then moves in verses 8–13 to a group called diakonoi (“servants,” “deacons”), with a note also about some “women” in verse 11. It is altogether likely that both “ ...

3898. Boaz Marries Ruth

Ruth 4:1-12

Understanding Series

Michael S. Moore

Boaz’s Transaction: 4:1 Boaz does not go directly to Elimelech’s kinsman’s house, nor does he summon him to his own. Instead, he goes to the town gate. When the kinsman-redeemer he had mentioned came along (lit. “wandered by,” ’abar), Boaz says, Come over here, my friend, and sit down. The narrator portrays this all-important meeting like the chance meeting of Ruth and Boaz in 2:3, but events only seem to happen by chance in Ruth. Boaz’s patient anticipation at Bethlehem’s gate contrasts sharply with the ...

3899. Judgment Against Israel

Hosea 5:1-15

Understanding Series

Elizabeth Achtemeier

God’s Absence (5:1-7): In this oracle, Hosea describes the deeds of his three addressees in the exact reverse of their order in verse 1a–c. First, he tells of the murderous ways of the royal house, verses 1e–2a. Then he discusses the captivity of the Israelites to a spirit of harlotry, verses 3c–5. Finally, he turns to the cult where the priests officiate, verses 6–7b. And after each description, the punishment for such ways is stated, verses 2b, 5b–c, and 7c–d. The oracle holds together in a unified form ...

3900. Israel’s Sin

Hosea 11:12--12:14

Understanding Series

Elizabeth Achtemeier

Deceit, Grace, and Judgment: Originally, this passage was probably not one unit. Verses 11:12 and 12:1 both appear to be isolated accusations with no following announcement of judgment. And it could be argued that 12:2–6, 12:7–9, and 12:10–14 all form complete units in themselves. However, as the passage now stands, whether as the result of Hosea’s arrangement or of a redactor/disciple’s, it is a unified whole centered around the thought of the deceit of Israel (so too Wolff, Hosea). Punctuating the ...

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