Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: thirstiness, dryness, parched, craving, strong desire, longing, yearning, avidity, hunger, voracity, keenness, eagerness, lust, appetite, passion, love, crave, want, covet, desire, hunger for/after, lust for/after, hanker for/after, have one's heart set on

Antonyms: aversion, distaste, apathy, dislike, hatred, antipathy, disgust, disregard, abhorrence, acrimony, wet, animosity, animus, antagonism, bad feeling, bitterness, be averse to, detestation

Showing 4001 to 4025 of 5000 results

4001. The Grace Question: “Are You a Teacher…and Yet Do Not Understand These Things?”

John 3:1-21

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... dressed. Removing the shoe, she found a wad of paper inside. Slowly, she unfolded the paper and a quarter fell out. Spreading the paper out in front of her, she found a note written on it in Richard’s 7-year-old scrawl. “I done it for love.” Love is a matter of grace. It’s always a gift. The most important things that are ours are ours because of grace. III. Not only our salvation, but the Christian life—the whole Christian life—is grace. That’s what Jesus was telling Nicodemus. You must be ...

4002. Thank You, Siri...Oops!

Luke 17:11-19

Sermon

King Duncan

... . It is our humble way of saying, “Thank you.” That is why worship is not optional for the Christian. It is what being a Christian is all about. Native American Chief Dan George in his book, My Heart Soars, describes that kind of gratitude when he tells about his love for his father. He writes, “I remember as a little boy, fishing with him up Indian River and I can still see him as the sun rose above the mountain top in the early morning . . . I can see him standing by the water’s edge with his arms ...

4003. A Lesson Learned from a Snake

Luke 19:1-10

Sermon

King Duncan

... when she accepted Christ, it occurred to her with a sudden clarity that she was an individual, worthy in her own right, who no longer had to live up to the impossible example of Kathy Anderson. “All my life I’ve wanted to be loved,” she said. “God’s love is the most complete love, and I think that’s what I was looking for.” That is why the Son of Man came into the world--to seek and save the lost--to free us from our hopelessly entangled lives. Jesus sees within each of us more potential than ...

4004. Defending the Faith

Deuteronomy 7:1-26

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... Hebrew term for “treasured possession” means a moveable asset, like jewels; cf. Exod. 19:5; Deut. 14:2; 26:18; Mal. 3:17). Though Israel is the smallest of all peoples, the only explanation for God’s choice of them is that he “loved” them (7:7–8)—an unmerited love. In verse 8 a new term appears, “redeemed you,” which in Hebrew means “set you free” or, as used in the sacrifices, refers to “a ransom that delivers by the use of a substitute.” Two other important terms show up in verse ...

4005. How Beautiful Your Feet

Song of Songs 7:1-13

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... -indulgence, lust, and self-gratification. Again, the gentleness, tenderness, willing surrender, and reciprocation in lovemaking as a shared experience by the lovers seems absent. Thus the passage provides an effective foil for the two kinds of human love, contrasting the purity and genuineness of one-to-one love of the Genesis-creation-account ideal with the one-to-many love found in the royal harem. 7:10–8:4 Review · The Shulammite Maiden Rejects the King: The maiden, for the final time, affirms her ...

4006. Hope: Return and know God

Hosea 6:1--7:16

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... act like an indecisive dove by making alliances with one nation (Egypt) after another (Assyria). God will soon stop this silly dove’s behavior by capturing it. Finally, God laments the coming destruction of his people, who have strayed from giving their love to God (7:13–16). God laments because he has done everything he can (he trained them, made them strong, and redeemed them) to get these people to maintain their covenant faithfulness to him, but they have repeatedly rebelled, spoken lies about ...

4007. The Greatest Commandment

Mark 12:28-34

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... replies the scribe (12:32). Of nineteen references to scribes in Mark, this is Jesus’s only encounter with a nonadversarial scribe. The collage of Scripture texts in 12:32–33 indicates that this scribe—and perhaps not he alone—understands love (Greek agapē) to supersede “burnt offerings and sacrifices.” As torah authorities, scribes presumed to speak the final word in religious matters. It is Jesus, however, who passes final judgment on the scribe, “You are not far from the kingdom of God ...

4008. Rules for Christian Households

Colossians 3:18-4:1

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... see this as establishing the “natural” hierarchy between husband and wife, but the phrase more likely means that the wife submits only to the degree that is countenanced in the Lord (see 1 Cor. 7:15). Paul turns to husbands with the command to love their wives. Several points are worth noting. It appears at first reading that Paul did not mention the Lord’s example when speaking to the husbands (unlike in Eph. 5:25). However, Paul’s choice of verb, agapaō (related to agapē), alerted his readers ...

4009. Request for Prayer and the Second Prayer

2 Thessalonians 3:1-5

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... are already doing. Paul’s confidence is in the Lord (see 2 Cor. 2:3; 7:16; Gal. 5:10; Philem. 21), who enables them as they face grave danger. Paul’s second prayer for them (see 2:16–17) says: “May the Lord direct your hearts into God’s love and Christ’s perseverance” (3:5; echoing 1 Chron. 29:18; Prov. 21:1). The idea is to lead or direct someone’s steps or way (1 Thess. 3:11) in divine moral guidance. These were ...

4010. Oh Say, Can You See by the Dawn’s Early Light?

John 20:1-18

Sermon

Robert Leslie Holmes

... first Easter: Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him." (vv. 1-2) A newspaper report tells of the growing phenomenon of vandals disturbing gravestones in local cemeteries in some American cities. Last Easter, news ...

4011. Come and See

John 1:29-42

Sermon

James L. Killen

... , 39). But don't just hear the comfortable things that Jesus said. That will not lead us into a relationship with the real Jesus. Listen to the other things he said as well. "No one can serve two masters.... You cannot serve God and wealth" (Matthew 6:24) and "Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you..." (Matthew 5:44). If we sit at his feet long enough, we may eventually be able to hear him say to us as he said to his disciples: "I do not call you servants any longer, because the servant does ...

4012. The Life You've Always Wanted

Acts 5:27-32

Sermon

Charley Reeb

... of our comfort zones, take a risk, make a sacrifice, and move to the heartbeat of the gospel. In short, we need to let go of our fears and live dangerously in the hands of God. No, it won’t always be easy. For as we open our- selves and love others, we risk getting hurt. When we take a stand for Christ, we risk not being popular. When we step out in faith with our gifts, we risk failure. But the greater the risk, the greater the reward. The bigger the challenge, the more exciting the adventure. The more ...

4013. In the Event of Power Failure

Acts 1:1-11

Sermon

Charley Reeb

... to face life powerless. I am here to sustain you. I am here to guide you. I am here to empower you.” The old Celtic Christians talked about a “thin place.” By that, they meant a sacred space where the wall separating you from God is so thin that the love and power of God flows through and envelops you. When was the last time you were at the “thin place”? When was the last time you gave Christ ten minutes of silence? When was the last time you placed your ear to that thin wall and listened for the ...

4014. Pop Verses: Lamentations 3:22-23

Lamentations 3:22-23

Sermon

Charley Reeb

... helps those who ask him for help. That’s sounds simple doesn’t it? But let me tell you one of the biggest things we forget. God loves us and cares for us and wants what is best for us. God wants to help us but God is not going to barge into our lives. ... also know folks who prayed for healing and were truly healed. I don’t why that is. But I do know this: God answers prayer and his love never fails us. God may not show up the way you expect him to, but God will show up. And I also know this. The day we ...

4015. To Drown Hell and Burn Heaven

Matthew 20:1-16

Sermon

Kristin Borsgard Wee

... the end of the line begin to cheer and those at the front start to grumble, and you didn't do a thing to deserve this remarkable turn of events. God is not fair. God actually seems to enjoy reversing the systems we set up to explain why God should love some of us more than others. Because God is not fair, there is a chance we will get more than we deserve, and not because of who we are, but because of who God is. There is an image from literature that has stuck in my mind for years. The ...

4016. God's Wrath Against Mankind

Romans 1:18-32

Understanding Series

James R. Edwards

... message of wrath is less welcome, it is no less necessary for salvation. Necessary as wrath may be, it is not God’s first word or his last. The first word is grace, that the gospel is powerful to save (1:16–17). Only the one who first knows the love and acceptance of God can hear the grim truth about oneself. It is the physician who holds some hope of a cure who can reveal to a patient the severity of the diagnosis. There are many ways to think of the ignoble side of human nature. Drama and literature ...

4017. Deceived Deceivers, and the Feasting Followers of the Lord

Psalm 36:1-12

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

... ). The sections of the psalm (vv. 1–4, 5–9, 10–12), however, are interlocked by key terms. The issue of the heart and the wicked ties together the opening (v. 1) and closing sections (vv. 10–11), while Yahweh’s righteousness and love tie together the second and third (vv. 5–6, 10). Most importantly, however, an awareness of the liturgy of temple entrance (as outlined in the Introduction) helps us to make sense of the psalm as an integrated unity. When attempting to reconstruct the circumstances ...

4018. The Lord Compassionate and Slow to Anger

Psalm 103:1-22

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

... Exod. 34:6; cf. also verse 7 of our psalm and Exod. 33:13). It is cited frequently in the OT, several times in liturgical contexts (Pss. 86:15; 145:8; Neh. 9:17). This confession forms the basis for the use of the key word pair—love and compassion—in our psalm, but it also introduces the subject of God’s anger toward sins, iniquities (v. 10), and transgressions (v. 12), the same three terms used in Exodus 34:7. While celebrating God’s mercy, the psalm does not ignore the reality of his wrath, though ...

4019. Praise to God for a Living Hope

1 Peter 1:1-12

Understanding Series

Norman Hillyer

... relationship with the Lord (1 Cor. 2:9). As such, it is a witness to others (Luke 15:4–10) of divine care and loving activity in the believer’s life. 1:9 That joy, Peter declares, is based on the assurance that you are receiving the goal, the end ... “the testing of your faith,” while Peter here speaks of the “sterling quality of your faith.” “The genuineness of your love” (2 Cor. 8:8) is an exact parallel. Faith in rabbinic writings usually means loyalty to the Mosaic law, as also ...

4020. The Most Generous Gift

Luke 1:26-38

Sermon

King Duncan

... decays and dies but these alone are eternal. Christmas is a time for generosity. I hope that the gift of God’s Son is also a reminder to us that the greatest gifts are not material. It is never the size of the gift that matters, but the love behind the gift. Sometimes, simply the act of showing someone that they matter is sufficient. There is a story by an unknown author that says it beautifully. It is titled, “A Baby’s Hug.” Perhaps you’ve seen it on the Internet. After a busy morning of activity ...

4021. Sheep Without a Shepherd

Mark 6:30-34

Sermon

King Duncan

... moment (one which, sadly, a lot of victims do not have). Her mother’s anger had been the means of her protection. She felt loved and safe. She felt important because her mother had taken this kind of action. In this case Laura’s mother was serving as a ... if we will allow Him to. A favorite hymn says it this way, “Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it, Prone to leave the God I love; Here’s my heart, O take and seal it, Seal it for Thy courts above.” (9) Are you feeling a little lost today? Maybe you feel ...

4022. Could the Pharisees Have Been Irish?

Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23

Sermon

King Duncan

... in no way like Jesus. Truly they have God on their lips, but not in their hearts. I know it sounds judgmental, but that does not keep it from being true: many people who call themselves Christians do not follow Jesus at all. Do we seek after his love, his compassion, his commitment to a better life for all people? Or are we satisfied with looking like a Christian, keeping the traditions of our faith? Tradition can be a wonderful thing. It only becomes destructive when we use it as a means of looking like a ...

4023. What Really Counts

Mark 9:38-43

Sermon

King Duncan

... sensitive as Christ was sensitive to the needs of persons who are hurting? Jesus calls us to expand our understanding of his grace and his love. Christ is Lord of all the world. Wherever people offer one another a cup of cold water, he is there. They may not even ... by the work you did today?” (5) We don’t have to earn our tomorrows, thank God. They are the gift of a loving and gracious Heavenly Father. He gave those tomorrows to us even when we were unworthy, simply and solely as an act of kindness. Now ...

4024. How Angry Are You?

Luke 4:21-30

Sermon

Susan R. Andrews

... “befriending” can turn our anger into a catalyst for change and growth and new life in all areas of our lives. It is only this intentional discipline — this reason — that can transform our destructive anger into righteous anger and into a worthy partner with love for pursuing the way and the word of God. Friends, today Jesus prompts us to recognize both the promise and the peril of anger. All of us are called, as disciples of Jesus Christ, to acknowledge and befriend our own anger so that embracing ...

4025. The Greatest Sin

Luke 13:6-9

Sermon

King Duncan

... dying patient, that person was invariably more content, happier, and at peace. Dr. Kubler-Ross interviewed her to find out why. The woman said that she had known a lot of fear and tragedy in her life, as well as good times when others helped her know of God’s love. She’d been up and she’d been down the mountain. The worst time was when her three-year-old son was ill with pneumonia. She brought him to the public health clinic and he died in her arms while she waited her turn. All of this could have ...

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