Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 4201 to 4225 of 4489 results

4201. The Choice for God or the World

John 10:1-10

Sermon

Richard Gribble

Once upon a time, a great and loving king ruled over a vast territory. There was something very strange about this kingdom, however. Everything was the same. The people ate the same food, drank the same drink, wore the same clothes, and lived in the same type of homes. The people even did all the same work. There was another oddity about this place. Everything was gray - the food, the drink, the clothes, the houses; there were no other colors. One day, a majestic and very beautiful bird flew from the west ...

4202. A Cubed Community

Matthew 18:15-20

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

One of actor/comedian/educator Bill Cosby's greatest old comedy routines is "Noah." Cosby replays the conversation between God and Noah as the Divine tells the clueless human about his watery plans and the need for an ark. True to Genesis 6:15-16, God tells Noah to build this boat with specific instructions: "the length of the ark three hundred cubits, its width fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits." Noah listens to all God's instructions with a stunned grin frozen on his face. Then finally sums up ...

4203. What Is Jesus Doing?

Matthew 28:1-10

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

In their Easter preparation work in Sunday School, the teacher asked each student, "What does Easter mean to you?" One kid replied: "Easter means egg-salad sandwiches for the next two weeks." Okay, it was a bad answer. But it was a good question. What does Easter mean to you? How does it change your life? Does it mean something more than an opportunity for a new spring outfit, a family dinner, and an excuse to bite the heads off all those annoying little purple and pink marshmallow Peeps? Throughout the ...

4204. Which Will It Be - the Silvered Cross or the Slivered Cross?

Matthew 17:1-13, Mark 9:2-13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

Except for Christmas and Easter Sunday, there isn't a lot of everyday recognition of the Christian liturgical calendar in our post-Christian culture. But this is a new phenomenon. Our kids might not believe us, but not only did most businesses used to close on Sundays, but other Christian observances were commonly honored as well. McDonald's came out with it's Filet-O-Fish sandwich in the 1960s not out of some kind of early health consciousness, but so that on Fridays observant Catholics could still drop ...

4205. Bridge Building Belongs to You and Me

Isaiah 9:1-7

Illustration

Brett Blair

Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall told this story: There were two unmarried sisters who had such a bitter fight that they stopped speaking to each other. Unable or unwilling to leave their small home, they continued to use the same rooms and sleep in the same bedroom. A chalk line divided the sleeping area into two halves. The chalk divided rooms so that both sisters could come and go and get her own meals without trespassing on their sister's space. In the black of night, each could hear the ...

4206. Baptism of the Lord

Psalm 29:1-11, Isaiah 42:1-9, Acts 10:23b-48, Matthew 3:13-17

Sermon Aid

Marion L. Soards, Thomas B. Dozeman, Kendall McCabe

OLD TESTAMENT TEXTS The central focus of the First Sunday After Epiphany is the baptism of Jesus. Isaiah 42:1-9 provides commentary for interpreting the significance of the baptism of Jesus for Christians, while Psalm 29 is a hymn of praise that can be used liturgically to celebrate the event. Isaiah 42:1-9 - "The Commissioning of the Servant" Setting. Isaiah 42:1-4 (and perhaps vv. 5-9) is often described as one of the Servant Songs in "Second Isaiah" Isaiah 40-55). Four times the anonymous exilic prophet ...

4207. Proper 25

Deuteronomy 34:1-12, Matthew 22:34-40, Matthew 22:41-46, 1 Thessalonians 2:1-16, Psalm 90:1-17

Sermon Aid

Marion L. Soards, Thomas B. Dozeman, Kendall McCabe

OLD TESTAMENT TEXTS Deuteronomy 34:1-12 is the account of Moses' death on Mount Nebo, his burial by God, and the passing on of his leadership to Joshua. Psalm 90:1-6, 13-17 is a prayer ascribed to Moses. The lectionary does not include v. 13, but it is included here since it introduces the prayer ascribed to Moses. Deuteronomy 34:1-12 - "Standing Tiptoe on Mount Nebo" Setting. Deuteronomy 34 is the account of Moses' death. The chapter consists of careful to graps location in Moab and includes a reference ...

4208. Great Men Are Often Broken by Their High Ideals

Matthew 21:1-11

Illustration

Brett Blair

Some years ago a book was written by a noted American historian entitled "When The Cheering Stopped." It was the story of President Woodrow Wilson and the events leading up to and following WWI. When that war was over Wilson was an international hero, There was a great spirit of optimism abroad, and people actually believed that the last war had been fought and the world had been made safe for democracy. On his first visit to Paris after the war Wilson was greeted by cheering mobs. He was actually more ...

4209. Never Read Any of His Books

John 20:1-18; Luke 24:36-49

Illustration

James W. Moore

Let me tell you a true story that happened some time ago: A young boy's father died in a car wreck when he was twelve years old. He read it in the newspaper before anyone got word to him to tell him about it. When he saw that picture of the family car smashed-up on the front page of the newspaper… and read that his dad had died in that accident, he was thrust immediately and painfully into the shocked numbness of deep grief. Strangely, one of his very first feelings were those of guilt. He had remembered ...

4210. His Name Shall Be Called Emmanuel

Matthew 1:18-25

Sermon

James W. Moore

G. K. Chesterton, the noted British poet and theologian was a brilliant man who could think deep thoughts and express them well. However, he was also extremely absent-minded… and over the years he became rather notorious for getting lost. He would just absolutely forget… where he was supposed to be… and what he was supposed to be doing. On one such occasion, he sent a telegram to his wife which carried these words: “Honey, seems that I’m lost again. Presently, I am at Market Harborough. Where ought I to be ...

4211. Someone Had Tripped the Switch

Acts 2:1-21

Illustration

James W. Moore

Bishop Bob Morgan in his book Who's Coming To Dinner? tells a powerful story about a Dutch pastor and his family who during the second World War got into big trouble with the Nazis. The Dutch pastor and his family had been hiding Jewish people in their home to keep them safe from Hitler's forces. They were eventually found out. And one night in the darkness, they heard the sound of heavy boots and the loud impatient knocking on the door. They were arrested and loaded into a cattle car to be taken to one of ...

4212. Leave It All Behind

Matthew 9:9-13, 18-26

Illustration

Billy D. Strayhorn

When John D. Rockefeller died, one man was curious about how much he left behind. Determined to find out, he set up an appointment with one of Rockefeller's highest aides and asked, "How much did Rockefeller leave behind?" The aide answered, "All of it." Jesus is reaching out to you just as sure as he was reaching out to all three of these people. What is it that you need to leave behind? What burden do you need to lay down? What is it that's breaking your heart? What area of your life is filled with pain ...

4213. God Is Pro-Life

Exodus 20:13

Sermon

James Merritt

I read in the paper last week a fascinating article by a woman named Naomi Wolfe. She is an unabashed, avowed, feminist. The title of the article was: "A call for truth." The byline of the article was: "Pro-choice advocates should defend abortion honestly, says a prominent feminist author." I want to share with you just a part of this article: At its best feminism defends its moral high ground by being simply faithful to the truth to women's real-life experiences. But to its own ethical and political ...

4214. The Key That Unlocks the Door to Spiritual Power

Mark 14:36

Sermon

James Merritt

One of my heroes is Winston Churchill. In my opinion, he was one of the two or three greatest men of the Twentieth Century. When he arose on June 18, 1940, to speak to the House of Commons, he must have felt as if the weight of the whole world was upon his shoulders. It looked as if Britain was to stand alone against the German Juggernaut that had crushed Poland, Denmark, Belgium, Czechoslovakia, The Nether-lands, and now France. The morale of the nation was at all time low. The fate of the free world hung ...

4215. Know Your Weeds

Matt 13:24-30, 36-43

Illustration

Todd Weir

Pastor Todd Weir knows a lot about weeds. He says: I learned more about weeds than I ever wanted to know as a boy in Iowa. Walking through the soybean feels to cut out the weeds was my summer job from age 13. A wise farmer once taught me that all weeds were not the same and could not be destroyed in the same way. A cockle burr had shallow but widespread roots and had to be pulled out to get all the roots. If you hacked it off at the ground level with a hoe it would be back in a week. A milkweed had a very ...

4216. Won't You Come Home, George Bailey?

Luke 2:1-7

Sermon

This being the MotorCity, let's start with a pair of transportation tidbits. Several years ago, I told you that since the gospel makes nary a mention of camels, I was willing to speculate that the three kings drove to Bethlehem in a Honda. For tradition has it that "they were of one accord." But now I am able to offer an eyewitness report that Santa Claus (or his brother who dresses like him) drives an Audi ... a beige Audi ... a beige Audi wagon ... complete with a cell phone. For I followed Santa south ...

4217. Light Shining out of Darkness

Matthew 14:22-33

Illustration

William Cowper

God moves in mysterious way, His wonders to perform; He plants his footsteps in the sea, And rides upon the storm. Deep in unfathomable mines Of never failing skill, He treasures up his bright designs, And works his sovereign will. Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take, The clouds ye so much dread And big with mercy, and shall break In blessings on your head. Judge not the Lord by feeble sense, But trust him for his grace; Behind a frowning providence, He hides a smiling face. His purposes will ripen fast ...

4218. The Great Divide

Matthew 16:13-20

Sermon

King Duncan

It has been said there are only two groups of people in the world: those who divide people into groups and those who do not. And I suppose that is true. But we do live in a divided world. East and west, north and south, blue state and red state, black and white, male and female, rich and poor the list goes on and on. Some of these differences are of little importance. Others shape our existence from the cradle to the grave. No divide, however, is as important as that divide represented in our lesson for ...

4219. Matthew 15:21-28

Matthew 15:21-28

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

Once again, Jesus has been accosted by Pharisees for failing to strictly follow the traditional rituals for washing and eating. Once again, Jesus patiently explained the larger concept of “defilement” to a clueless crowd and even denser disciples. Little wonder an exhausted Jesus decides to “get out of Dodge.” Leaving Galilee and heading northwest, Jesus’ departure took him to the Mediterranean coast, the pagan territory of Tyre and Sidon. Both these cities have to their scriptural record several ...

4220. Where Earth and Heaven Meet

John 1:14

Sermon

John E. Harnish

It's a kid's book, really, but it's fascinating. The title is "501 Incredible But True Facts to Amaze You". For example, did you hear about the guy in Virginia who was struck by lightening seven times…and lived! I can't figure out if that is good luck or bad luck. Or the fact that a python can swallow a pig whole, and then not eat again for a year. Did you know that Beethoven used to dump ice water on his head to stimulate his brain? But even more fascinating, here are some facts about our world: The ...

4221. The Magna Carta of the Human Soul

Romans 12:9-21

Illustration

Leonard Sweet

In 1215 the English barons, fed up with the wimpy, weak‑willed rule of King John, forced their way into London. They brought with them a new document for the king to sign. Wisely, the King signed and sealed it at Runnymede, a water-meadow about twenty miles southwest of London. We know this document today as the "Magna Carta," the "Great Charter," or literally, the "Great Paper." This ground‑breaking document forced the King to acknowledge limitations on his ruling rights, forced him to accept the ...

4222. Romans 13:8-14

Romans 13:8-14

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

Today’s epistle text breaks into two distinct parts: verses 8-10 and 11-14. Verses 8-10 continue the theme Paul introduced in chapter 12, here masterfully connected to the more mundane matters of the disciple’s relationship to civil authorities. Paul accomplishes this high-wire walk with one balance-beam line: “Owe no one anything, except to love one another.” The fiscal accountability the apostle advocated in 13:7, “pay to all what is due them,” is transformed into an ethical mandate for everyone. “All” ...

4223. Building Relationships

Matthew 18:15-20

Sermon

King Duncan

In 1997 the following letter appeared in newspapers throughout our land: Dear Ann Landers: You recently printed a sweet “how‑we‑met” story. The woman said at the end of World War II, she sat behind a soldier in church. He knew all the lyrics to the songs so she figured he couldn’t be all bad. Later, she learned he was a doctor. Three months later, she slipped on an icy walk and injured her arm. That same doctor insisted she stay in the infirmary, and he visited her twice a day. When she was discharged, he ...

4224. Apologies

Matthew 18:15-20

Illustration

King Duncan

In the comic strip, Andy Capp, the principal character is a chronically unemployed cockney ne'er-do-well who spends most of his days playing soccer and most of his nights at the corner pub, both of which drive his long-suffering wife, Flo, up the wall. In one episode, Andy is pacing the floor while Flo stands with her arms crossed. Finally, she breaks the silence: "Three whole days without speaking. This is ridiculous." In the next frame she says to Andy, "I'm sorry I acted the way I did . . . you were ...

4225. Thanksgiving and Thanksliving

1 Corinthians 1:3-9

Sermon

Donald Charles Lacy

Don't you just love times of thanksgiving? Yes, and Saint Paul is a genius at reminding us of this component to victorious living. His "attitude of gratitude" finds its way throughout his letters, except possibly for Galatians. My first response to all of this is "what a wonderful way to live our lives." Of course, he is rooted and grounded in his Savior and Lord. It is a natural — most likely spontaneous response — to the depths he discovers in Jesus. Perhaps the most missing ingredient among those who ...

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