Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 4001 to 4025 of 4508 results

4001. Stealing from Ourselves

Illustration

King Duncan

Motivational speaker Zig Ziglar tells about a most successful jewel thief back in the Roaring Twenties by the name of Arthur Berry. Berry liked to hobnob with the rich and famous of Boston's elite, except he did his hobnobbing at night when they weren't around. He wouldn't steal from just anybody. As a matter of fact, a visit from Arthur was a status symbol among the ladies of Boston's upper class...

4002. 90% Chance of Tomorrow

Humor Illustration

King Duncan

Some folks in Iowa read in the weather forecast column of their local newspaper sometime back that "there is a 90% chance of tomorrow." I personally hope that the chances are better than that. But who knows? Let's not be foolish. Let's be prepared.

4003. The Willingness to Prepare

Illustration

King Duncan

In 1976, Indiana University's basketball team was undefeated throughout the regular season and captured the NCAA National Championship. Controversial and colorful coach Bobby Knight led them to that championship. Shortly afterwards, Coach Knight was interviewed on the television show "60 Minutes." The commentator asked him, "Why is it, Bobby, that your basketball teams at Indiana are always so suc...

4004. Second Coming and Faithfulness

Illustration

King Duncan

During his 1960 presidential campaign, John F. Kennedy often closed his speeches with the story of Colonel Davenport, the Speaker of the Connecticut House of Representatives: On May 19th, 1780 the sky of Hartford darkened ominously, and some of the representatives, glancing out the windows, feared the end was at hand. Quelling a clamor for immediate adjournment, Davenport rose and said, "The Day...

4005. A Lifetime to Prepare

Illustration

King Duncan

There is an old legend about a man who had a rather stupid servant. The master often got exasperated with his servant. One day in a fit of frustration he said to the servant, "You've got to be the stupidest man I've ever met. Look, I want you to take this staff and carry it with you. And if you ever meet a man stupider than you are, give him the staff." So the servant carried the staff. Often out ...

4006. Are You Ready to Wait?

Sermon

Albert G. Butzer III

And while they went to buy it, the bridegroom came and those who were ready went with him into the wedding banquet. — Matthew 25:10 Have you ever noticed how waiting — waiting for something or someone — can be either wonderful or dreadful? To a large degree the difference is determined by what you are waiting for. Waiting for your bride to come down the aisle of the church can be wonderful. Waiti...

4007. Your Faith is Your Fuel

Sermon

Lori Wagner

Ever have one of those days when things are hectic, you haven’t had time to think ahead to what’s needed for the day, and simply had to go forward with what you had? Maybe you forgot to finish your homework and just had to go with the minimum of what you’d done, which you knew wasn’t going to be sufficient. Maybe you forgot to do a needed report for work that was due that morning and were rushin...

4008. Proper 27

Sermon Aid

Soards, Dozeman, McCabe

OLD TESTAMENT TEXTS Joshua 24 recounts Israel's covenant renewal with God at Shechem. Psalm 78 is a wisdom psalm that teaches by recounting history. Joshua 24:1-3a, 14-25 - "Covenant Renewal at Shechem" Setting. The book of Joshua is about Israel's conquest of Canaan, and as such, it can be read as the completion of the story of salvation. The recounting of Israel's salvation history in vv. 4-...

4009. Burning the Midnight Oil

Sermon

Steve Molin

It has been several decades since Pastor John Lloyd Ogilvie wrote his book about the parables of Jesus titled, The Autobiography of God. As Ogilvie pointed out, this “autobiography” – this self-writing – is exactly what the parables of Jesus are.[1] They are the description of the kingdom of God by God’s own self.” Jesus did not write them down as an author would; he told them to small groups, to ...

4010. Spirit Soaked

Sermon

Lori Wagner

What depletes you? We live in a culture that is highly stressed. Since COVID, people suffer more from anxiety than any recent time in the past. Prices are up. Salaries have stayed the same. Houses, whether rentals or purchases, have become unaffordable for many. People are suffering from loss, grief, and anxiety from overworking, lack of financial stability, worries about the future, and most of a...

4011. To All Those Who Have, More Will Be Given

Sermon

Phyllis Faaborg Wolk

The parable told in our gospel lesson this morning is one that Jesus uses to illustrate the kingdom of heaven. It is a story about a shrewd businessman who rewards the slaves that double his money and punishes the worker who faithfully returns what the master had entrusted to him. This image of the kingdom of God may be quite different from what we would expect to read in the scriptures. When Jesu...

4012. Is It Too Late? ... Continued

Sermon

George Johnson

Today we continue the sermon started last week. Our text is the familiar story of the talents in Matthew 25. We are concentrating on the care of the earth and its environment as an example of a talent - a responsibility - that God has given us. God has entrusted to us this property to care for. We are asking what it means to be a responsible steward of creation? And what are the consequences if we...

4013. Is It Too Late?

Sermon

George Johnson

To get his point across, a pastor once announced to his congregation: "Friends, I have some discouraging news. The building we have just completed is no longer ours to occupy. The bank is foreclosing our loan. We are being sued. It looks like we will lose everything. Beginning next month, we will not be allowed to worship in this building." The ears of the congregation perked up. "The problem," th...

4014. Gifts of Talent

Children's Sermon

Brett Blair

Exegetical Aim: Talents and gifts are from God and are to be used in service to the church. Props: A item which represents a skill or talent; e.g., a guitar or paint brush. Lesson: Good Morning. I have a question to ask you this morning. What if God gave me something and told me to use it and I took it and hid it? (response) Why would I be in trouble? (response) Cause I didn’t do what God told me ...

4015. A Risky Lifestyle

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

The worst nightmare of every mother happened to a Memphis woman just over a year ago. A woman named Anita was stopped for a traffic light at the corner of Highland and Southern. Suddenly a stranger opened the passenger door of her car, grabbed her 2-month- old baby, and ran. Anita's instincts took over. She slammed that car into park, jumped out, and ran after the man. A terrified mother can move ...

4016. The Parable of the Talents

Sermon

Brett Blair

Jesus once told a story of a wealthy landowner who was preparing for a long journey. He called his three servants and divided his money between them, each according to their ability. To one servant he gave five talents, meaning a sum of money, to a second two, and to a third one. Why is life like that? I don't know. We are all equal in the eyes of God. We are all guaranteed equal rights under the ...

4017. Matthew 25:14-30

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

The first lesson every politician learns is to address the issue that is most important to the people. Without a doubt — and on a global scale — that issue is easily identifiable. Retreading a slogan popular in the early nineties that James Carville gave to Bill Clinton, “It’s the economy, stupid!” What is everyone’s focus in this dawn of the second decade of the twenty-first century is not new. I...

4018. Eschatological Discourse: Being Faithful and Merciful

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

Big Idea: Jesus tells two more parables that demonstrate how his followers should be ready for his return: they should pursue covenant faithfulness and show mercy to the most vulnerable, who are hungry, poor, sick, and imprisoned. Understanding the Text Chapter 24 concludes and chapter 25 begins with a call to be prepared, since there will be no precursor signs for Jesus’ reappearing (24:36–51)....

4019. The Parable of the Talents

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

Parables of Judgment: Chapter 24 closed with a parable warning what will happen to servants who are unfaithful while the master is away. The same general theme continues throughout chapter 25. Like the foolish young women of verses 1–13, they will be excluded from the marriage feast; like the worthless servant who buries his talent, they will be thrown outside into the darkness (vv. 14–30); and li...

4020. Sympathizing With The One Talent Man

Sermon

King Duncan

A number of years ago many church youth groups across the country became enchanted with the idea of kissing frogs. Now, parents, don't be alarmed. This wasn't anything like rock star Ozzie Osborne's stunt of biting heads off of bats. In fact, kissing frogs was one of the healthiest ideas to come along in a long time. The idea, of course, was based on the ancient fairy tale of a handsome prince wh...

4021. Treasured Relics

Sermon

King Duncan

If you were asked to buy the tackiest gift imaginable, what would you buy? Martin Marty was once invited to a postnuptial party. He was asked to bring "a gift in the worst possible taste." The purpose was to embarrass the newly married couple. They would open their gifts standing in front of their family and friends and "ooh and aah" as they opened each tacky item. Marty found a five and dime sto...

4022. Ultimate Thanksgiving

Sermon

King Duncan

When Helen Hayes cooked her first turkey for Thanksgiving, she called her husband and son together and said, "Now I know this is the first turkey I've ever cooked. It if isn't right, I don't want anybody to say a word. We'll just get up from the table without comment, put on our hats and coats, and go down to the hotel for Thanksgiving dinner." She then went into the kitchen to get the turkey. Whe...

4023. In Praise Of Doers

Sermon

King Duncan

Earl Fitz is a doer. According to a recent article in CHRISTIANITY TODAY, Fitz is 81 years young and he has been the mayor of Iowa Falls, Iowa four times. But that's the easy part. In Earl's midfifties he left his teaching job and began a new career, selling Bibles. Earl bought 10,000 Bibles from a publisher getting out of Bible sales and sold them all. Today, Earl is the founder and president of ...

4024. A Fool’s Tools

Sermon

It was a ghastly scene. All the faces looked the same, all the bodies had the same blob-like shapelessness, there was no color (only a kind of gray), and whenever there was movement it was uniform ... very uniform ... reminiscent of what we know today as the prisoner’s shuffle. There was no variation ... no difference ... no anything. Just a huge, uniform nothingness. The air was hot, stale, and ...

4025. In Defense of the One-Talent Servant

Sermon

A sermon in drama Narrator: For the next few minutes imagine that this sanctuary is a courtroom, and we are met to witness the trial of the one-talent servant. Usual courtroom rules and procedures have been altered and, in some cases, suspended altogether. Still, our aim is to hear the truth. We have heard the familiar story of the one-talent servant in the reading of today’s Gospel. It is a par...

Showing 4001 to 4025 of 4508 results