Sermon and Worship Resources

Antonyms: keep, claim, continue, stick by, self-control, power through, achieve, defend, bear, hope, acquire, quick visit, adopt, continue along, adhere, remain, pursue, support, take up, keep up, reuse, advocate, stay, persevere, cherish, keep going, carry on

Showing 3951 to 3975 of 4934 results

3951. Show Us the Father

John 14:8-17, 25-27

Sermon

Dave Zuchelli

Philip put forth what seemed like a really good request. “Show us the Father.” He added, “That will be enough for us” (John 14:8). Yes, that would be great. If we can just see the Father, we’ll be cool. We’ll have all the inspiration we need to keep plugging away. We’ll be set for life. We’ll be good. This reminds me of the old Steve Martin movie, “The Jerk.” There’s a scene in which Navin (Steve Martin) is breaking up with his wife, Marie (Bernadette Peters). She tells him to leave, so he begins to walk ...

3952. Mandatum

1 Corinthians 11:23-26

Sermon

Dr. Ronald Love

Today is Maundy Thursday and the end of Lent that began on Ash Wednesday forty days ago. These forty days were intended to be a time of self-reflection and spiritual renewal as one prepares himself or herself for Good Friday and Easter Sunday. In the early church, on Ash Wednesday, if you recall from my sermon on that day, those Christians who committed grave faults were forced to wear sackcloth and be sprinkled with ashes. They were turned out of the Christian community the same as when Adam and Eve were ...

3953. The Sawdust Trail

Colossians 3:1-4

Sermon

Dr. Ronald Love

Presbyterian minister Reverend Benjamin Weir, in his book Hostage Bound, Hostage Free, reveals what it was like to be held hostage. He was captured on the streets of Beirut by a group of Shiite Muslim extremists, in May, 1984. Weir was imprisoned for sixteen months. During those torturous months he was often chained and held in solitary confinement. Weir’s devout faith and trust in God sustained him during those perilous times. One routine in particular sustained Weir’s reliance on Jesus. Weir realized ...

3954. Is This The Season To Seek Salvation

Jeremiah 8:4--9:26

Sermon

James McLemore

The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved (Jeremiah 8:20). Friends and Family, Family and Friends, the Lord sent me to ask you this question: "Is this the season to seek salvation?" A single mother had to ask this question concerning her teenage daughter. At age eleven, her daughter began to ask questions about God. She told her mother she wanted to go to church. But her mother wasn't religious and did not see any reason why her teenage daughter should be so religious. So she kept her ...

3955. You Can Be Like Children

Mark 10:1-12

Sermon

Michael B. Brown

A friend who is a surgeon stopped by a clothing store in a local mall. He had just returned from a hunting trip and was still attired in cap, plaid jacket and muddy boots. Looking through the showroom for a Christmas gift for this wife, he noticed that each available clerk was obviously ignoring him. None asked if they could help. None even acknowledged his presence. Soon he left, went home, showered, dressed and went to another store where he bought his wife an expensive coat. Then he told her to return ...

3956. Life Beside The Falls

Ezekiel 47:1-12

Sermon

David O. Bales

The first storm of autumn clamped down with unseasonable cold -- lows at night in the teens -- which turned the shores of the falls in the middle of town to parallel strips of white lace. Despite the frozen ground the season's last football game would be played, swirls of snow sometimes making the players invisible from the stands. The teams warmed up on the field, stretching and shouting numbers to the rhythm of their exercises. The band members tuned their instruments, the public address announcer ...

3957. Why Do People Suffer?

Mark 15:33-41

Sermon

David O. Bales

Susan Ingraham was late for worship, but no one could tell she was hurrying -- regular, sharp gait, everything about her seemed shiny and healthy. At 34 Miss Ingraham was startlingly beautiful, especially to twelve year old Chrissy Dillenburger. Chrissy was captivated by her since the day Susan came to worship wearing a plain black dress, black shoes, perfect lipstick and a gold brooch. First thing in the car going home Chrissy said, "Did you see Miss Ingraham? That dress -- and the lipstick was just right ...

3958. Grapes Of Wrath Or Grace?

1 Kings 21:1-29

Sermon

Barbara Brokhoff

A musician in a camp meeting where I preached wrote a country-gospel song titled, "Sin Will Take You Farther Than You Want To Go and Keep You Longer Than You Want To Stay." Nineteen words is a tad long for a song title, but it does state a succinct and compelling truth: sin will get you in serious trouble. In this lesson, Ahab is king and is married to the wicked, Baal-worshipping Jezebel, and covets the vineyard belonging to a worshipper of God named Naboth. Ahab had plenty of property of his own, but he ...

3959. How Long Should We Stay?

Matthew 17:1-9

Sermon

William B. Kincaid, III

Mountains were very important to Matthew. When Jesus was tempted to worship the devil in exchange for all the kingdoms of the world, it happened on a mountain. It was good enough for Luke to have Jesus preaching on a nice level place, but when Jesus preaches essentially the same sermon in Matthew he does so on a mountain. That's why we call it the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus went to the mountain to pray. And today we have this story of the transfiguration, which happened on a mountain. What is it about ...

3960. Easter 6

Acts 8:9-25, 1 Peter 3:8-22, Acts 17:16-34, John 14:15-31

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

Theme: Making God known. In the First Lesson, Acts 17:22-31, Paul witnesses to the cultured pagans on the Areopagus. Referring to a statue to an unknown god, he declares that unknown God is revealed in Christ. In the Second Lesson, 1 Peter 3:15-22, Peter encourages the beleaguered Christians to make Christ known through their words and actions. In the Gospel, Christ promises that he will make himself known to the disciples through the Holy Spirit. COMMENTARY Epistle: Acts 17:22-31 Peter alters his approach ...

3961. Pleased To Reconcile

Luke 23:26-43

Sermon

Larry R. Kalajainen

Did you ever secretly wish that we had kings and queens here in America? I think that must be a secret wish of many of us, if the tabloid newspapers and magazines which are always on sale at the supermarket checkout counters are any indication. Between the romantic antics of Hollywood and the goings-on of the British royal family, the tabloids do a rushing business. (I won't embarrass any of us by asking how many secretly enjoy reading those tabloids as we're standing in line.) There's hardly a week goes ...

3962. A Name To Be Remembered

Exodus 3:1-22

Sermon

Walter Kimbrough

Everyone born into the world has a name. Some names are easy to pronounce while others represent varying degrees of difficulty. On some occasions we find the need to change our names due to marriage or religion. Then, there are those who do not particularly like their name, but the fact remains that everybody has a name. A name to be remembered. Some years ago, the students at the University of California began to protest, insisting that “nobody knows my name.” Classes with 500 to 1,000 students tend to ...

3963. Transformed For The Great Awakening

Sermon

Ron Lavin

Moses experienced the presence of the living God. Therein he was transformed. His face shone. He smiled broadly. Light shone round about him. Everyone noticed the difference. There was a radiance about Moses after he had talked with God. In Hebrew this radiance is called she kinah or Divine Presence. The question raised by our text is the question of radiance. Are we going to let our lights so shine before others that they will be led to faith? The question is not, "How much light do you have?" but "Will ...

3964. The Best Offense Is A Good Defense

Zephaniah 3:1-20

Sermon

Richard Hasler

Reading the title you may jump to the conclusion that I do not know football. To be sure, the saying usually goes: “The best defense is a good offense.” But consider the plight of Joe Paterno when he became head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions in 1967. He realized that he did not have a squad of outstanding athletes, particularly defensive players. To Paterno, defense was the key to winning football games. What was he to do? In his own words: “I had to find a way of playing great defense without ...

3965. Altered Expectations

Matthew 1:18-25

Sermon

We’ve talked a little these past weeks about family Christmas traditions, how different families have different rituals or things they just do every year because that’s what they’ve always done. Well, churches have Christmas traditions, too, don’t they? One of Snow Creek’s Christmas traditions, for example, is the annual Christmas program. The church I grew up in had a Christmas program every year, too. They called it a Christmas PAGEANT, and the centerpiece of the Christmas pageant was a reenactment of ...

3966. The Household Leader

Deuteronomy 6:1-25

Sermon

R. E. Lybrand

(Moses said), "And these words which I command you this day shall be upon your heart; and you shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise." Perhaps you have heard this old story, but I feel it bears repeating on this Father's Day. A crowd of men was standing outside the pearly gates of Heaven waiting to be admitted. They were instructed by Saint Peter to get into two different lines. ...

3967. Killing A King

Luke 19:28-44

Sermon

"I was treated like a king!" is a common saying when one received the best possible treatment. This is to say that a king deserves and gets the very best. A red carpet is laid out for the king to walk on, lest he dirty his feet. Only the best food is served. His clothes are made of the finest material with top class and style. A king wears genuine jewels, no artificial diamonds or costume jewelry, for a king deserves only the best. A king is given honor, respect, loyalty, obedience, and love. All of this ...

3968. Good News for the Multitudes

Luke 14:25-35

Sermon

Thomas C. Short

Now great multitudes accompanied him; and he turned and said to them, "If any one comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me, cannot be my disciple. For which of yon, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid afoundation, and is not able to finish ...

3969. Why I Can’t Sleep in Church

Ezekiel 33:1-20

Sermon

"If he had taken warning, he would have saved his life." (v. 5) Prayer: You are here with us, O Lord, and we sense your presence. Speak a helpful word to us today, and give us something to take home, to think about, and to put into action. Amen There are many reasons why people sleep in church. Some are better reasons than others, but here are some. You be the judge. People sleep in church because: a. They are tired after working all week. b. They stayed up too late the night before. c. They know more than ...

3970. Lent 5

Jn 8:1-11; 12:1-8 · Lk 20:9-19 · Isa 43:16-21 · Php 3:8-14

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

COMMENTARY Isaiah 43:16-21 Yahweh promises to do a new thing for his people in exile. The "new thing" (v. 19) Yahweh promises is a new exodus from bondage in Babylon. The "former things" (v. 18) refer to the exodus from Egypt. As in the first exodus, Yahweh will make a way through the wilderness and provide water as the people cross six hundred miles of desert from Babylon to Jerusalem. A third exodus is the sacrifice of Christ who redeemed us from the bondage of sin and who now provides food and water in ...

3971. To Touch The Untouchable

Luke 5:12-16

Sermon

Let us pray: Gracious and eternal God, we pause now to hear your word as we worship together in this holy season of Lent. Today we continue to explore the powers of prayer, faith and healing which you have granted to us. In these times together O God, we pray that you would open our hearts and our minds so that we may have faith and understanding. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen. You may have heard the expression, "He has an Atlas complex." This usually refers to an individual who seems to have an exaggerated ...

3972. Proper 5 & Pentecost 3

Matthew 9:9-13, Romans 4:1-25, Hosea 6:1--7:16, Genesis 22:1-19, Psalm 13:1-6, Psalm 50:1-23, Hosea 5:1-15

Sermon Aid

THEOLOGICAL CLUE The broad, eschatological framework of the church year provides the only clue to the theme for worship and preaching on the Third Sunday after Pentecost. God's promise to bless all those who keep his commandments continues to be announced by the biblical elements assigned to the propers of this Sunday. The Gospel for the Day illustrates, as part of its theme, one example of complete and total adherence to the commands of Christ; when Jesus said, "Follow me," to Matthew, he meant it - so ...

3973. Proper 17 & Pentecost 15

Matthew 16:21-28, Romans 12:1-8, Exodus 19:1-25, Jeremiah 14:1--15:21, Jeremiah 20:7-18, Psalm 114:1-8, Psalm 63:1-11

Sermon Aid

THEOLOGICAL CLUE Had the plan of the Joint Liturgical Group in Great Britain, which set an agenda for reforming the church year, been followed in the American churches, the Advent prayers might have come at a very propitious time in the life of the churches, the beginning of September. The Joint Liturgical Group had suggested extending the Sundays before Christmas back far enough that the holy history of the faith might be read annually. While there is something to be said for such a plan, something would ...

3974. On Being Able to Be Sorry

Luke 15:11-32

Sermon

Allan J. Weenink

In the book, Love Story, Jennifer and Oliver have their first serious fight as newlyweds. Jennifer runs from the apartment and disappears. She has tried to build a bridge of reconciliation between her husband and his father ... and Oliver in anger tells her to get out of his life. Suddenly, Oliver realizes he has hurt her deeply, but she is gone! Frantically he rushes to the old familiar places searching for her. All the while she becomes more beloved to him in the emptiness of estrangement. Searching ...

3975. What On Earth Is God Doing? - 1940

Psalm 76:1-12

Sermon

Kent Moorehead

Confronted with such a catastrophe as the contemporary world situation presents, with evil so wildly rampant, destruction and death so widespread and violent, and the threat of the triumph of ruthlessness so imminent, one question keeps coming up to pester and plague religious faith with an incorrigible persistency: With everything seeming to go to pieces, what on earth is God doing? Where is he? Doesn’t he care? Is he unaware, or unseeing, or impotent to do anything about such a ghastly calamity? Of ...

Showing results