Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: Levi, disciple, evangelist, tax collector, the 12, the twelve, apostle, sermon on the mount, jewish audience, beatitudes, lord's prayer, great commission, parables, olivet discourse, mount of olives, olivet, synoptic

Showing 4151 to 4175 of 5000 results

4151. The Door of Service

Luke 22:7-38

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... help you win. Greatness in the kingdom of God is more important than greatness in the board room. Authority is not to be lorded over others. Use your power to create not destroy. Serving the table is more Christ like than sitting at the table. II. ... his soul. In becoming a servant there was satisfaction and peace. In conclusion, St. Ignatius of Loyola gave us this prayer: Teach us, good Lord, to serve as you deserve To give, and not to count the cost To fight, and not to heed the wounds To toil, and ...

4152. The Road of Joy

Philippians 4:4-7

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... all the candles burning, the pastor spoke up boldly and said, “Now that everyone is lit, let us sing ‘Joy to the World'." It is the powerful affirmations found in that great hymn of Isaac Watts that I want us to ponder today. I. JOY TO THE WORLD, THE LORD IS COME! Surprise, surprise God is here. “The word became flesh and dwelt among us." Most of us live routine lives. We eat at the same restaurants, watch the same TV shows, shop in the same stores, and sit in the same pews at church. Life is just ...

4153. Habakkuk: The Problem of Evil

Habakkuk 1:1-4

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... 's the question of every child traveling on vacation. It's the question of every mother in her ninth month of pregnancy. As I took an extended vacation at Vanderbilt hospital this week with a cough that wouldn't stop, I found myself asking, too, how long, O Lord, how long? Of course, Habakkuk had deeper things on his mind. He wanted to know. “How long must I cry for help, but you will not listen? How long must I cry, ‘Violence!' but you do not save?" As bombs once more burst over the same territory from ...

4154. Serving the Poor—Compassionately

Matthew 25: 31-40

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... to come. I. SAINTS ARE THOSE WHO SEE. Every time I read Jesus' parable of the Last Judgment, I am struck by the adverb “when." ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry, or when did we see you thirsty, or when did we see you naked, or when did we ... didn't remember helping; those who passed by didn't remember passing by. So the common question of all on the last day is “When? Lord, when?" Mother Theresa once said, “I never look at the masses as my responsibility, I look at the individual. I can love only one ...

4155. Surprise

Luke 1:26-38

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary. I. MARY WAS SURPRISED BY JOY. Joy to the world the Lord is come Let all their songs employ! Never mind that Gabriel's wings are shaking at the sight of Mary. Ignore the fact that Mary ... right road though I may know nothing about it. Therefore I will trust you always. . .Amen." Do you ever pray a prayer like that? So be it Lord, let it happen, I'm ready, let's go. When our boys were little, I would come home from work at the end of the day, ...

4156. Come and See

Luke 2:1-20

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... plant will survive without tender loving care! What is more helpless than a baby? There in a tiny manger lies the Lord of lords and King of kings! He is the Savior of the world. Let Him bring you life, abundant life, meaningful life, eternal ... Remember how simple it all was back then? Reveling in the joy of grandchildren, I found myself praying at bedtime the other night: Be near me Lord Jesus, I ask you to stay, Close by me forever, and love me I pray. Bless all the dear children in thy tender care, And fit ...

4157. Living in Gratitude

Philippians 4:4-8

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... us have lost our hats, not to mention our self-esteem, our hope for tomorrow, our confidence for today. Can you rejoice in the Lord anyway? Is there a song in your heart that the world never gave? Is there a peace the world cannot take away? Gratefulness is ... meal. He was raised to be thankful for the food he received. In Sabbath school he learned to pray the Psalms. “Bless the Lord, O my soul …and forget not all God benefits." Such were the prayers that came from Jesus' lips. In his hymn of Jubilation ...

4158. The Broken Body of Christ

1 Corinthians 11:17-26

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... the bread and drinks of the cup." Examination is not one of my favorite activities. I never liked tests in school and I have come to enjoy medical exams even less than mental ones. When it comes to a probe of the soul, I would like to pass. But the Lord doesn't let me off that easily. So we come to Communion with confession on our lips, “We have erred and strayed from God's ways like lost sheep. We have followed too much the devices and desires of our own hearts. We have not loved our neighbors and we ...

4159. You Can't Stay on the Mountain Forever

Mark 9:2-13

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... that when they lifted up their eyes they saw Jesus only. Here is the heart of their immediate experience. They needed only a vision of Jesus and the full knowledge of who He was; now they had it. Perhaps the greatest need of those who try to do the Lord’s work today is a vision of Jesus, the glorified Christ.” (Hill, op.cit., p. 93) The point is two-fold. One, there is a place for ecstasy in our Christian experience. In fact, “we need moments of ecstasy, for we are more than rational beings who think ...

4160. Set Free for Life

John 11:17-37

Sermon

Lee Griess

... 'd only come sooner, "my brother would not have died." There is hurt in those words. Hurt and disappointment. The one person who could have made a difference, didn't, and Martha wants to know why. And so do we. Perhaps we've done what Martha did — called upon the Lord and sought out healing, asked God for help and looked for Jesus to come. We can almost hear Martha, can't we? Surely he will come, surely he will help. Didn't he aide the paralytic? Didn't he cure the leper? Didn't he give sight to the blind ...

4161. If Your Sense of Purpose Ever Becomes a Burden, Remember Your Value

Matthew 10:40-42

Sermon

Mark Ellingsen

... will be remembered in 200 years. The book of Ecclesiastes told the truth centuries ago: "A generation goes, and a generation comes ..." (Ecclesiastes 1:4). Pastor Warren is correct that what we do has eternal significance in the sense that it is not forgotten by our Lord. But what you and I do is not eternally significant in the sense that it unambiguously contributes to Christ's mission. That's too arrogant, too much of a burden, and not biblical enough for me. I don't know about you, but if I thought that ...

4162. Why We Need the Pledge of Allegiance

Matthew 13:31-35, Matthew 13:44-46, Matthew 13:47-52

Sermon

Wayne Brouwer

... and set it to grow here on earth. A fourth possibility, when we look for a way to read these parables of the kingdom, is that Jesus is primarily focusing our attention on the future, and keeping our eyes trained toward the skies. We know that some day the Lord who spoke these parables will come back again, and then the fullness of his kingdom will become a glorious reality. Now, however, we live in the kingdom of Satan, the prince of this age, the ruler of the powers of darkness, as Paul put it. So we hide ...

4163. What Did The Turkey Say? (Or Contentious Communities)

Isaiah 58:3-9a (9b-12)

Sermon

Tony Everett

... from the bondage of Egypt and Babylon. God named them and claimed them as his own people. God made them his precious and honored people. In the waters of baptism, God has named and claimed us as his own children. In the bread and wine of the Lord's Supper, God nourishes and sustains us with the living presence of God's own Son. Because the returning exiles were God's precious children, God could expect them to show his gifts to others. In Christ, God has gathered us hypocrites into his arms; God gives ...

4164. Forty Days and Forever

Exodus 24:12-18

Sermon

Tony Everett

... celebrated God's presence and guidance. Here they pledged to obey God's instruction. Our text begins with an articulation of three crucial aspects of God's forming and guiding presence in the lives of God's people: God invites, God's people wait, God gives. The Lord said to Moses, "Come up to me on the mountain, and wait there, and I will give you the tablets of stone, with the law and the commandments which I have written for their instruction."— Exodus 24:12 First, God invited Moses to meet him on the ...

4165. The Armor of Light

Romans 13:8-14

Drama

Larry Lange

... to lay aside those works of darkness, Harry, and put on the real armor of light. It's time for you to put on the Lord Jesus Christ who did not come to smite you, but to love you. Harry: Jesus loves me? Margaret: Yes, Harry, it is hard to believe. ... shrugs it off, then returns to looking through the binoculars.) In baptism, Harry, when we put on the armor of light, when we put on the Lord Jesus Christ, we were marked with his cross. The cross defines whose we are, but also who we are and how we are to live. ...

4166. LENT: The Passion of Christ: "Raised"

John 20:1-18

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. [2] 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." [3] Then Peter and the other disciple set out and went toward the tomb. [4] The two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. [5] He bent down to ...

4167. Easter 6

Psalm 66:8-20, John 14:15-21, Acts 17:22-31, 1 Peter 3:13-22

Bulletin Aid

Amy C. Schifrin

... of the nations. All: Praise to you, God of the mountains. Praise to you, God of the coastlands. Leader: Praise to you, God of this time and place. Praise to you, that in the faith of Jesus you make yourself known. In the night in which he was betrayed, our Lord Jesus took bread and gave thanks, broke it and gave it to his disciples to eat, saying: “Take and eat. This is my body given for you. Do this for the remembrance of me.” Again, after supper, he took the cup, gave thanks, and gave it to all to ...

4168. Easter 7

Psalm 68:1-10, 32-35, John 17:1-11, Acts 1:6-14, 1 Peter 4:12-14; 5:6-11

Bulletin Aid

Amy C. Schifrin

... between the festivals of Ascension and Pentecost we are reminded on this day of the oneness that defines the church. Can you invite a congregation from another denomination to worship with you? Can you celebrate your common life as disciples of the living Lord? What a wonderful way to prepare for the coming of the season of Pentecost. Prayer Of The Day Leader: God of the swirling planets, God of the ever-expanding universe, your glory is eternal, your beauty without end. We pray that here, today, through ...

4169. Proper 13, Pentecost 11, Ordinary Time 18

Psalm 145:8-9, 14-21, Isaiah 55:1-5, Matthew 14:13-21, Romans 9:1-5

Bulletin Aid

Amy C. Schifrin

... and drink. This cup is the new covenant in my blood, shed for you and for all people for the forgiveness of sin. Do this for the remembrance of me.” All: You open wide your hand and satisfy the desire of every living creature. Leader: Blessed are you, O Lord, our God. You opened wide your hand again, and again, and again, until that day came when you opened wide your hand and it was nailed to a cross. May such an embrace of the world not remain unnoticed in our hearts; and so we ask for your Holy Spirit ...

4170. Proper 21, Pentecost 19, Ordinary Time 26

Psalm 25:1-9, Ezekiel 18:1-4, 25-32, Matthew 21:23-27, Philippians 2:1-3

Bulletin Aid

Amy C. Schifrin

... your will. Tax collectors, prostitutes, and garden-variety sinners, you call us all, that we might enter your kingdom. May we run swiftly to answer your call, that receiving the joy that you have promised, we would forever sing your praise, through Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. All: Amen. Offertory Prayer All: Friend of sinners, you have blessed us with these gifts and strengthened us by your life-giving promises. We lift our hearts ...

4171. Leaving Home

Genesis 12:1-8

Sermon

King Duncan

... told him . . .” It would be impossible to overstate the significance of Abram’s step of faith for the subsequent history of the world. Three great world religions Judaism, Christianity and Islam trace their roots back to Abram’s act of obedience. “So Abram went, as the Lord had told him . . .” This, by the way, is what faith is. God speaks, we obey. We don’t say, “I’ve got to bury my father”; we don’t say, “I can’t afford it”; we don’t say, “My friends in Sunday School won’t ...

4172. John 20:19-31

John 20:19-23

Sweet

... unanimously assert. Note that Thomas does not dismiss the possibility that their good news is accurate. But he does insist that Jesus meet his criteria before he will affirm his faith. The failed logic of Thomas’ demand is that it is only after the risen Lord -the Messiah, the Son of God -obediently bows to Thomas’ own personal whims that he will believe that Jesus wields the power to conquer death. This second scene unfolds “a week later,” making this once gain the day of the week that will become ...

4173. The Voice

1 Samuel 3:1-10 (11-20)

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... own, she brought the lad to the high priest Eli. After all, he was only hers for a little while; he was on loan from the Lord. It was not the best of times for the people of Israel, but not the worst, either. There were no wars going on, no threats from ... someone to church this week. We are living in a time much like that of the boy, Samuel, a time when the "word of the Lord was rare." But the message of scripture is that God is not silent forever. One morning, as you prepare to begin the day, one night, ...

4174. When God Is Gone

Job 23:1-9, 16-17

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... the ritual of the day of atonement, the opening lines of Psalm 22, a psalm that is anything but a song of doom and despair. No, a psalm of victory and deliverance even from the most powerful of enemies. Listen to the way it ends: You who fear the Lord, praise him! All you descendants of Jacob, honor him! Revere him, all you descendants of Israel! For he has not despised or disdained the suffering of the afflicted one; he has not hidden his face from him but has listened to his cry for help ... The poor will ...

4175. Transitions

2 Kings 2:1-12

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... company of prophets" who again pull Elisha aside and ask the same question that had been posed at Bethel. Elisha's response is equally irritable, equivalent to, "Yeah, I know; just shut up about it!" Now Elijah offers Elisha one more opportunity to back off: "Stay here; the Lord has sent me to the Jordan" (v. 6a). Again, Elisha will have none of it, so the two press on. Now they arrive at the river. It seems that everyone knew what was about to take place so even fifty or so of the local clergy are tagging ...

Showing results