Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 4151 to 4175 of 4884 results

Matthew 13:44-46

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... The Parable of the Pearl of Great Price,” recorded by Matthew immediately following the parable of the buried treasure. A rich merchant man was on a continuous search for goodly pearls. One day he found the most treasured pearl in all the world, the most beautiful perfect pearl he had ever seen. And he went out and sold all that he had—all of his other pearls included—and bought that one pearl, the pearl of great price. Like the farmer who found the treasure in his field, the merchant did not hesitate ...

4152. There's a Better Way than Shooting Somebody

Matthew 18:15-20

Children's Sermon

King Duncan

... of a bird. It will mat the feathers and interfere with the wings and eventually cause slow but certain death from exposure and starvation. Anger and resentment are like that. All of us get mad from time to time. People do things to hurt us or upset us. That's perfectly natural. But if we hold on to our anger, it works kind of like oil in a bird's feathers. It works its way up into something that hurts us and may end up hurting others. The best thing we can do when people hurt us or upset us is ...

4153. The Grace Question: “Are You a Teacher…and Yet Do Not Understand These Things?”

John 3:1-21

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... they would spend all of their lives observing every detail of the scribal law. What exactly did that mean? The Law was the first five books of the Old Testament. To the Jews, the Law was the most sacred thing in the world. They believed the Law to be the perfect word of God. To add one word to it, or to take one word away from it, was a deadly sin. It was this good man, committed to the Law, committed to doing what God would have him do—it was this man who came to Jesus inquiring about salvation ...

4154. Are You a Pillar or a Pillow?

2 Thessalonians 2:13-17

Sermon

King Duncan

... or twice a year Christians--have always been Christ’s deadliest enemies. True pillars are like trees--standing fast, yet still growing. Do you see now why I wanted to take this time to praise our pillars? I am not implying that anyone in this room is perfect. I am not saying that all of us do not have room for improvement. I simply want to express my appreciation and the appreciation of this congregation to those of you who, in spite of personal difficulties and in spite of the flaws of your pastor and ...

4155. The God of Hope

Isaiah 11:1-10, Matthew 3:1-12, Romans 15:4-13

Sermon

King Duncan

... . Their inner nature is radically transformed. Petty quarreling comes to an end. Instead of seeking fame, power and wealth the people of the world seek to serve one another. Love, kindness and generosity become more important than greed or success. In short, the perfect society emerges--a society in which the dignity of every human being is honored. (3) The prophet Isaiah looked forward to that kind of day. He looked forward to a day when “The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down ...

4156. The Fall

Genesis 3:1-24

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... , then we should not see these speeches of God as his way of “getting even” or “teaching a lesson” to Adam and Eve. They may in fact be love gifts from God, his way of wooing the couple back to himself. Why should a person who once walked in perfect fellowship with God and is now separated from the garden want to get back to God if he sees no need for that, and his life is essentially problem free? For Adam that involves trying to till a cursed ground. It is not labor but the difficulty of that ...

4157. From Adam to Noah

Genesis 5:1-32

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... the Sethites. Longevity in Old Testament thought is a sign of divine blessing on the godly (see Deut. 4:25; 5:33; 30:20). One of the names in this passage is well known—Enoch. It is not without significance that he is the seventh (the perfect position) in this genealogy. Unlike everyone else in the chapter, whose death is recorded, Enoch is “taken away.” (For other divine “takings” see 2 Kings 2:1 [Elijah]; Ps. 49:15; 73:24.) Perhaps long life is not the greatest blessing one can experience. To be ...

4158. Joseph Makes Himself Known

Genesis 45:1-28

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... if they move to Egypt. They will live in Goshen, a fertile area in the northeast delta region. Unlike many immigrants who are consigned to desolate places, Jacob and his sons will move into lush land where harvests will be bountiful. Goshen is the perfect place for Jacob to settle his family. Here they can live without close contact with the native Egyptian people. As the brothers head back to Canaan they do so with Egyptian carts, new clothes, food, and provisions, with something extra for Benjamin (45:21 ...

4159. Moses’s Call and Commissioning

Ex 3:1-22, 4:1-17

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... . Moses is shepherding Jethro’s flocks near Horeb, the mountain of God, when the burning bush attracts his attention. The Hebrew word for bush (seneh) appears in the Bible only five times and sounds similar to Sinai. Fire is formless, powerful, luminous—a perfect means of representing God. Although the messenger appears in the flaming bush, it is the Lord who speaks with Moses; the messenger has nothing to say. God identifies himself as the God of the covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and declares ...

4160. Return to Egypt

Exodus 4:18-31

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... been particularly significant in the Egyptian context. After death the heart was weighed in a scale opposite a feather. If the heart outweighed the feather the deceased would suffer judgment. Pharaoh’s weighty heart would have indicated that he did not after all perfectly embody the gods Horus and Re and their authority. The form of hazaq in God’s initial statement that he will harden Pharaoh’s heart (4:21) suggests God’s direct involvement and the recurrence of Pharaoh’s rejection. As the signs ...

4161. Preparations to Receive the Covenant

Exodus 19:1-25

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... it, it serves to lead to Christ (Gal. 3:24; see also Rom. 7:7–13). Torah also sets the basic standards by which social structures function. Finally, Hebrews 10:1 suggests that the righteousness and goodness evident in torah is a shadow of the perfection and justice that will prevail when this world’s injustices have finally been overcome. This is a source of hope in a disheartening and fallen world. These instructions address every aspect of life as a unified whole. Many scholars have rejected the three ...

4162. Contributions

Exodus 25:1-9

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... journey. The Sinai event is continued in the tabernacle, combining God’s presence and his mobility. The tabernacle is a powerful visual lesson about approaching the holy covenant God. It is exquisitely constructed, remarkably extravagant, and representative of the beauty and perfection of the Master of the Universe as he comes to dwell in his people’s midst. The pathway is via blood sacrifice and subsequent symbolic cleansing. The very process of taking the life of the animal, the mess, the bloodshed ...

4163. Priestly Attire

Ex 28:1-43

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... presence, likely refers to their use of the Urim and Thummim (Deut. 17:9–10). It is not clear how the Urim and Thummim functioned or even what the words mean. The traditional suggestion is that Urim means “lights” (from Hebrew or) and Thummim, “perfections” (from Hebrew tom); a confirming light would indicate a positive answer. Not every incident where they may have been used, however, so easily fits into the pattern of casting lots with simple positive or negative answers (cf. Judg. 1:2; 20:18; 2 ...

4164. Consecration of Priests

Exodus 29:1-46

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... Aaron and his sons are to lay their hands on its head, representing their identification with this living creature whose life will be a substitute for theirs. The consecration of the priests is an intricate, seven-day process and one that must be completed perfectly. Leviticus 8–9 indicates that Moses, Aaron, and the priests fulfill all the requirements; in response, the glory of the Lord appears to all the people, and fire consumes the Lord’s offerings on the altar. The burnt offering of two lambs (29 ...

4165. Incense Altar, and Half-shekel Contribution

Ex 30:1-16

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... Lev. 10:1) and forfeit their lives as a result. The cloud of incense will come to be symbolic of the prayers of the saints (Ps. 141:2; Rev. 5:8). The imagery and theology of Exodus infuse the book of Revelation, as it looks forward to perfect worship in the very presence of God. The half-shekel payment, collected in conjunction with the census, maintained the cultic system. It is called atonement money and serves as a reminder that the members of the community have been ransomed (30:12). While the original ...

4166. Revelation of God’s Glory

Exodus 33:12-23

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

At this point, Moses, who already has entered into the cloud, requests to see the glory of God, the visible manifestation of the complete power, perfection, and radiance of God’s person. This manifest presence of God with his people has already been demonstrated in the wilderness, where the cloud was the vehicle for God’s glory. In Exodus 24:17, his presence appears as the brilliance of fire to all Israel. Subsequently, the glory of ...

4167. The Radiant Face of Moses

Exodus 34:29-35

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... forty days and forty nights (Deut. 9:9, 18), recognizing his need to be prepared to be the covenant mediator who will declare the word of God. This fasting is a prototype of that of Jesus Christ, who in preparation for his role as the perfect mediator of the new covenant will fast in the Judean wilderness for forty days and nights. Just as the Ten Commandments are written again, graciously given to instruct and restore the Israelites to a right relationship with their covenant Lord, the Word incarnate came ...

4168. Separating Defilement from Sanctuary and Community

Leviticus 16:1-34

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... (1 Cor. 4:5); rather, it demonstrates to his created beings, who cannot read thoughts of faith, that he is fair when he extends mercy. Thus the judgment in the New Testament has the same function as the ancient Day of Atonement judgment: to vindicate the character of God, which perfectly balances mercy and justice in love (cf. Ps. 85:10).

4169. The Turning Point

2 Samuel 11:1-27

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... . Though Uriah is one of David’s top thirty-seven soldiers (23:39) and more than willing to risk his life for David and for Israel, David mercilessly steals his wife and arranges for his death. Since only Joab suspects foul play, it looks like the perfect crime. Bathsheba mourns for her husband (perhaps seven days; cf. Gen. 50:10), then slips into the royal harem. It all looks very innocent, but the Lord notices. In his eyes David has broken the last five Mosaic commandments in this one brief episode. The ...

4170. David’s Census

2 Samuel 24:1-17

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... divine beings called the “sons of God” whose duty it is to serve the Lord (Job 1:6; 2:1; see NIV notes). The “satan” in Job is a sort of divine prosecutor whose task is to ferret out hypocrisy. Sometimes the taking of a census was perfectly acceptable (Numbers 1; 26), so David’s sin must here involve the motivation behind the census. In all probability David is guilty of pride as he glories in the size of his armies and the numerous victories he has won. Backed by faithful, highly skilled troops ...

4171. Building the Temple Structure

2 Chronicles 3:1-17

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... While the Holy Place of the tabernacle contained one lampstand and one table (for the bread of the Presence), according to chapter 4 this room contains ten gold lampstands, ten tables, and ten small basins. The Most Holy Place (3:8–14) is constructed in a perfect square, the use of fine gold appropriate for the place of God’s manifest presence. While the cherubim in the tabernacle were simply part of the ark (Exod. 25:10–21), the cherubim in the temple are standing side by side and facing the entrance ...

4172. Hezekiah's Pride, Success and Death

2 Chronicles 32:24-33

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

According to 32:25–31 Hezekiah is not perfect; he struggles with pride. Although the account here does not provide details on this pride, the parallel account in 2 Kings 20 as well as 2 Chronicles 32:31 reveals that his pride leads him to show his royal accomplishments to envoys from a potential ally, the Babylonian king Marduk- ...

4173. Eliphaz's Second Speech to Job

Job 15:1-35

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... pillars of wisdom and understanding. How dare one lone mortal take these on, and do so by rejecting soft-spoken divine consolation with raging outbursts (15:11–13). Eliphaz again draws from his first speech (4:17–19) to reiterate that no human is perfect (15:14–16). Job has been declaring himself innocent (9:21; 13:23). Eliphaz has been listening. “What is man, that he could be pure,” is Eliphaz’s rebuttal in 15:14, attempting to break through Job’s entrenchment. 15:17–35 · Eliphaz again ...

4174. Zophar

Job 11:1-20

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... texts: 11:1–20; 20:1–29; 27:13–23 · Zophar’s words:All three friends share a core assumption about Job: he is guilty of sin. But beyond that, they do differ. In the first cycle, Eliphaz grants Job’s suffering as but a hiccup in a near perfect life. Bildad would have Job focus on the moral lesson of Job’s children: they are dead; Job is not. Job is therefore more pious than they but still has within him impurity, which he must address (Job 18). Zophar is straight to the point: sin—so much sin ...

4175. Zophar's Second Speech to Job

Job 20:1-29

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... texts: 11:1–20; 20:1–29; 27:13–23 · Zophar’s words: All three friends share a core assumption about Job: he is guilty of sin. But beyond that, they do differ. In the first cycle, Eliphaz grants Job’s suffering as but a hiccup in a near perfect life. Bildad would have Job focus on the moral lesson of Job’s children: they are dead; Job is not. Job is therefore more pious than they but still has within him impurity, which he must address (Job 18). Zophar is straight to the point: sin—so much sin ...

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Antonyms: deficient, imperfect

Showing 4151 to 4175 of 4884 results

4151. Serendipity

Matthew 13:44-46

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

4152. There's a Better Way than Shooting Somebody

Matthew 18:15-20

Children's Sermon

King Duncan

4153. The Grace Question: “Are You a Teacher…and Yet Do Not Understand These Things?”

John 3:1-21

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

4154. Are You a Pillar or a Pillow?

2 Thessalonians 2:13-17

Sermon

King Duncan

4155. The God of Hope

Isaiah 11:1-10, Matthew 3:1-12, Romans 15:4-13

Sermon

King Duncan

4156. The Fall

Genesis 3:1-24

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

4157. From Adam to Noah

Genesis 5:1-32

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

4158. Joseph Makes Himself Known

Genesis 45:1-28

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

4159. Moses’s Call and Commissioning

Ex 3:1-22, 4:1-17

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

4160. Return to Egypt

Exodus 4:18-31

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

4161. Preparations to Receive the Covenant

Exodus 19:1-25

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

4162. Contributions

Exodus 25:1-9

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

4163. Priestly Attire

Ex 28:1-43

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

4164. Consecration of Priests

Exodus 29:1-46

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

4165. Incense Altar, and Half-shekel Contribution

Ex 30:1-16

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

4166. Revelation of God’s Glory

Exodus 33:12-23

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

4167. The Radiant Face of Moses

Exodus 34:29-35

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

4168. Separating Defilement from Sanctuary and Community

Leviticus 16:1-34

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

4169. The Turning Point

2 Samuel 11:1-27

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

4170. David’s Census

2 Samuel 24:1-17

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

4171. Building the Temple Structure

2 Chronicles 3:1-17

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

4172. Hezekiah's Pride, Success and Death

2 Chronicles 32:24-33

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

4173. Eliphaz's Second Speech to Job

Job 15:1-35

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

4174. Zophar

Job 11:1-20

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

4175. Zophar's Second Speech to Job

Job 20:1-29

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... texts: 11:1–20; 20:1–29; 27:13–23 · Zophar’s words: All three friends share a core assumption about Job: he is guilty of sin. But beyond that, they do differ. In the first cycle, Eliphaz grants Job’s suffering as but a hiccup in a near perfect life. Bildad would have Job focus on the moral lesson of Job’s children: they are dead; Job is not. Job is therefore more pious than they but still has within him impurity, which he must address (Job 18). Zophar is straight to the point: sin—so much sin ...

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