Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 4126 to 4150 of 4936 results

4126. Changing Times

Mark 1:1-8

Sermon

Wayne Brouwer

Advent reminds us of the flow of time. We are all bound by time. Time is our teacher, our boss, our constant companion. Time locks us into the march of life and forces us to wake up each morning in a place we’ve never been before, in a place we can never return to again. All our lives we struggle with time. When will we ever have enough time? When will I be old enough? When will time stop long enough for me to love you? One woman went through a great period of depression when her husband died. The grief ...

4127. Is the Doctor in Today?

Mark 5:21-43

Sermon

King Duncan

Our lesson for today is about two people who came to Jesus for help with a medical problem. Nothing surprising about that. Even today, we are dependent on doctors for help with our medical problems. Maybe that’s why it’s so much fun to tell jokes at the expense of the medical profession. Says one comedian: “My doctor told me he’d have me on my feet within two weeks. He was right. I had to sell my car to pay his bill.” “My left arm hurt me,” said a senior citizen, “and so did my right foot, my neck and my ...

4128. The Challenge to Forgive

Luke 7:36--8:3

Sermon

Maurice A. Fetty

Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little. — Luke 7:47 It is a dramatic scene out of America's mythical past — a Western scene of cowboys, saloons, and gunslingers; a scene of wide-open spaces conquered by fierce individualists, liquor, and true grit. It is a scene, however, a little different from the cowboy heroes of my childhood, the scenes of the good guy, white hat heroes like Roy Rogers and Gene Au-try, not even to ...

4129. Peter Addresses the Crowd

Acts 2:14-41

Understanding Series

David J. Williams

Though not the first speech in Acts (cf. 1:16–22), this is the first to proclaim the Christ event, that is, it is the first instance of the kerygma. It touches on the ministry and death of Jesus, but its chief concern is to show that Jesus is the Messiah, and to this end it lays greatest emphasis on his resurrection and ascension. As we shall see, this speech sets the pattern for much of the other preaching in Acts. From a survey of all the instances of kerygma in Acts, C. H. Dodd has identified six basic ...

4130. Wives for the Benjamites

Judges 21:1-25

Understanding Series

Cheryl A. Brown

Israel Preserved Intact: Just when it looked like one crisis was averted, another came to light. It is, however, not surprising, for that is how it is when chaos prevails, when “what is right in a person’s eyes, he/she does” (21:25). At the end of the book of Judges, the Israelites do not seem to be able to extricate themselves from the miry bog that they have gotten themselves into. Though they appear to call out to God for help, they still rely on their own absurd solutions that only make matters worse. ...

4131. Jesus Predicts His Death

John 12:20-36

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

The principle that the “whole world has gone after” Jesus (v. 19) finds immediate illustration in some Greeks who were among the worshipers at the festival (v. 20). Their request to see Jesus was directed at Philip (cf. 1:43–44), ceremoniously passed along by him to Andrew, and by the two of them to Jesus (vv. 21–22). These two disciples have been seen together twice before: first as Jesus’ agents in initially gathering a group of followers (1:35–45), and later as the two whose faith Jesus tested before ...

4132. The Servant of the Lord

Isaiah 49:1-7

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

To Restore the People and the Land: So 49:1–6 is a major turning point. So far the Poet’s focus has been Jacob-Israel. Henceforth it will be Jerusalem-Zion. So far the addressee has been Jacob-Israel. Henceforth it will be Jerusalem-Zion. So far Yahweh’s promise has thus concerned the fall of Babylon and the end of the Judeans’ enforced residence there. Henceforth it will concern the restoring of the city that virtually none of the exiles have ever seen. Once more there is no need to infer that time has ...

4133. The Trial of Jesus before the Sanhedrin

Mark 14:53-65

Teach the Text

Grant R. Osborne

Big Idea: This is the first terrible contrast during Jesus’s trial: the horror of people condemning Jesus without seeking truth versus the reality of Jesus as final eschatological judge (which turns out to be the final stage in the christological development in Mark). Understanding the Text There is a frightening chronology and logical progression in each of the final scenes of Jesus’s passion. The movement away from Jerusalem to Gethsemane on the Mount of Olives is preparatory, as Jesus prayerfully ...

4134. Jesus’s Manifesto

Luke 4:14-30

Teach the Text

R.T. France

Big Idea: Back in Nazareth, Jesus sets out on his mission of deliverance, but his own townspeople in Nazareth reject him because of his vision for the salvation of all people everywhere, which includes the Gentiles. Understanding the Text Jesus’s return from the wilderness area marks the beginning of his public ministry, which will be focused in his home province of Galilee until he sets off for Jerusalem in 9:51. Mark and Matthew record a single visit to Nazareth, which they place later in their ...

4135. The Cost of Discipleship

Luke 14:25-35, Luke 14:15-24

Teach the Text

R.T. France

Big Idea: The kingdom of God demands our full commitment; you cannot be a half-hearted disciple. Understanding the Text Jesus’s table talk in the house of a leading Pharisee continues with a parable about a similar banquet, which picks up the theme of 14:12–14, the challenge to invite those who cannot reciprocate. In the parable, however, the host represents God himself, whose open-hearted generosity is the model that we are called to follow. But the parable also highlights the obverse of that free grace, ...

4136. The Focus of Christian Worship

1 Corinthians 14:26-40, 1 Corinthians 14:1-25

Teach the Text

Preben Vang

Big Idea: Christian worship gatherings must be conducted in an orderly fashion to avoid confusion and to ensure that the character of Christ is clearly portrayed throughout the service. Individuals desiring to share their gifts must submit to the greater purpose of portraying Christ. Understanding the Text Having dealt generally with the matter of tongue speaking (the exercise of private devotion) in a public gathering, Paul now turns to the more specific subject of how several of the questions he ...

4137. “Create in Me a Pure Heart, O God, and Renew a Steadfast Spirit within Me”

Psalm 51:1-19

Teach the Text

C. Hassell Bullock

Big Idea: God delights in the spiritual transaction of repentance that begins in the human heart. Understanding the Text Bernhard W. Anderson calls Psalm 51 “one of the pearls of the Psalter.”1Among the seven penitential psalms,2this one, in Weiser’s estimation, is the most important because it “demonstrates the essence of true penitence.”3This psalm falls generally under the classification of the individual lament, and more specifically, to use Kraus’s subcategory, “Songs of the Sick and Anguished.”4As a ...

4138. Widows and Their Worries: Back to Bethlehem

Ruth 1:1-22

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

Setting: Famine and Family Tragedy (1:1–5) · The grim opening of this story grips the reader on three counts. First, it is neither a prosperous nor a fruitful time in the nation’s life (1:1). Second, and not unrelated, the people of Israel face famine (1:1). The fact that a famine prevails in Bethlehem, in Judah’s “house of bread,” together with the religious crisis dominating the landscape indicates an unpleasant visitation by the Lord on the land. The Lord promised famine as one among many of his acts of ...

4139. Come and See

John 1:29-42

Sermon

James L. Killen

"Come and see." Jesus spoke those words to two of the disciples of John the Baptist (John 1:39). Scholars have learned that the author of the fourth gospel often loads words with meanings that go far beyond what they might mean on the surface. That must certainly be true of this statement. John tells the story of the calling of the disciples a little differently from the way the other gospel writers tell it. John tells us that soon after Jesus was baptized, John was talking with some of his own followers ...

4140. Jerusalem’s Deliverance Foretold

Isaiah 37:1-13

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

Hezekiah’s Great Political Crisis Confronts Him (37:1-7) We may be surprised to find the introduction to the second half of the book in chapters 34–35 followed by four chapters of prose stories about Hezekiah, the last of the kings of Isaiah’s own lifetime. One reason for this surprise is that they also appear in 2 Kings. As with 2:2–4, we do not know which is the more original version. But Isaiah is prominent in the stories and they incorporate some of his prophecies, so it is reasonable enough that they ...

4141. A Law Written On Our Hearts

Jeremiah 31:31-34

Sermon

King Duncan

You’ve seen her--the lady with the blindfold, a balance, and a sword. She is Lady Justice. She is supposed to represent our judicial system. Since the 15th century the blindfold has represented the idea that justice should be meted out objectively, without fear or favor, regardless of identity, money, power, or weakness. At least that’s what the lady with the blindfold is supposed to represent. For some of us that blindfold may represent the imperfection of some of those who make our laws. After all, there ...

4142. Treasure Hidden In a Clay Jar

2 Corinthians 4:5-12

Sermon

King Duncan

A few years ago, a brother and a sister in west London found an old vase while cleaning out their parents’ home. They thought it might have some value. Subsequently they hired Bainbridge, an auction house, to sell it. They discovered it was valued at nearly $2 million. But, get this: after 30 minutes of spirited bidding at the auction, this vase, which turned out to be an 18th century Qing [pron. cheeng] Dynasty vase went to a buyer from China for more than 69 million dollars, the most ever paid at auction ...

4143. Playing Golf at Midnight

Mark 10:46-52

Sermon

King Duncan

A man named Charley Boswell was blinded in World War II while rescuing a buddy from a burning tank. Charley had always been a great athlete so, after the war, he took up golf. And he was astoundingly good at it. In short, Charley Boswell won the National Blind Golf Championship 16 times, once shooting a score of 81. In 1958 Charley went to Ft. Worth, Texas to receive the coveted Ben Hogan Award in honor of one of the greatest professional golfers in history. Mr. Hogan agreed to play a round of golf with ...

4144. Use Your Head as Well as Your Heart

Luke 14:25-33

Sermon

King Duncan

Have you ever noticed that some people don’t think things through very well? There’s a story about a professional football player who wasn’t very fond of team curfews when the team was playing on the road. So this player had a routine that he followed whenever his team was in another city. If he wanted to stay out after curfew, he would take whatever he could find loose in his hotel room and cram it under his bed cover so it would appear that he was in his room. However in one motel there was very little ...

4145. Lion of Judah

Gen 49:1-28, Judges 13-15, Matt 4:12-17

Sermon

Lori Wagner

[If there is a Lions Club still functioning in your community, find out if any member of your church is a member. Then either use this moment as an interactive to talk about their club, and rituals, or you tell the story and use them to back you up so that you make sure you’re getting the story right.] So the interview might go like this . . . . or turn this into a narrative . . . or make it a personal story. How many here belong to or know someone who belongs to a local Lion’s Club . . . . . Do you have ...

4146. A Dirt Story

Matthew 13:1-23

Sermon

King Duncan

A Sunday school teacher had been teaching about how God created Adam from the dust of the earth. A little boy in the class—who happened to be the pastor’s son—said with alarm, “You mean I’m made out of dirt?” His teacher responded, “Well, in a sense, yes.” He thought for a moment, processing this information through his four-year-old brain, then stated wide-eyed, “My Mom is NOT going to be happy about that!” (1) Today I am telling a “Dirt Story” [as opposed to a dirty story which would not, of course, be ...

4147. Abba! Father!

Galatians 4:4-7

Sermon

Ron Love

Joseph Mohr, a 24-year-old Austrian priest, believed he needed to instill peace and hope into the lives of his troubled and bewildered parishioners. The year was 1816, just a year after the army of Napoleon destroyed their city and countryside. The salt trade, on whose livelihood the town survived, was savagely disrupted from the fighting. The salt trade was so important to the economy that the regions capital was named Salzburg, which means “Salt City.” Mohr was an accomplished musician and he penned a ...

4148. Advice

Romans 12:2, 9-20; 13:8-9

Sermon

Will Willimon

In Shakespeare's Hamlet, there is the scene where old Polonius, an aging, sentimental blowhard, gives advice to his son, Laertes. Laertes is preparing to leave for France and old Polonius, knowing what sometimes happens to eighteen year olds in Paris, does what fathers do -- he offers advice. Most of his advice is rather innocuous. In those days, before dreaded social diseases, there wasn't really any important parental advice like, "Always remember what Surgeon General Koop says…" Despite its stupidity, ...

4149. Desperation to Hope

Mark 5:21-43

Sermon

Dean Feldmeyer

Roland Jaffe’s brilliant and beautiful film, “The Mission” (1986) tells the true story of the Spanish Jesuit missionaries who served the indigenous (Indian) populations of Brazil, Argentina, and Paraguay during the first half of the eighteenth century. The “Jesuit Reductions,” as history has dubbed them, were mission stations created by the Jesuits to bring Christianity to the natives through education and medical service. They were independent of the Spanish government — though protected by it. The plot ...

4150. The Family

Genesis 37:1-36

Sermon

Will Willimon

Because we are all at the beginning, let us begin at the beginning with the Book of Genesis, a Bible book whose name means ''in the beginning." Let us begin with a family story, which seems appropriate, appropriate considering that many of you students have begun your college careers by separating from your families in order to come to Duke, a separation which pains some of you and delights others. We begin with a family story. It's a story not about just any family but the first family, since the head of ...

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