Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 4201 to 4225 of 4972 results

4201. Are You a Leg-Grabbing Christian?

Matthew 6:25-34

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... for the birds of the air (verse 26) and the grass of the field (verse 30) lavishes so much concern on these simple life forms, Jesus declares, "will God not much more clothe you" (verse 30)? Jesus insists that his disciples not only stop worrying about their lives, but that they should have complete confidence in God's ever-present, ever-sustaining love and concern for all God's children. God's creation, Jesus reminds his listeners, was established with divine intentionality. Each living thing each animal ...

4202. The Woods Are Lovely, Dark, and Deep

2 Samuel 18:1-18

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

The first poem I really related to in a personal way in junior high English class was Robert Frost's "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening." When I read "The woods are lovely, dark, and deep. But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep, And miles to go before I sleep." I knew exactly what the poet was saying, because I knew the powerful pull ...

4203. Warts and All

2 Corinthians 12:1-10

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... brush in his gospel palette. Paul's thorn could be used by God to show people the great truth of Christ that in choosing the path of obedience, Jesus revealed his greatest strength, his divine grace and mercy, his triumph over sin and death. Eventually Paul stopped wailing about his warts and started wearing them proudly declaring he would "boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me" (verse 9). Weaknesses and warts have a way of popping out and rearing their ugly ...

4204. Loud and Clear

Acts 2:1-13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... we are invited to plug into the power of that interpreter, who can express our love for Jesus, our lives of faith, and the gospel in ways we can't even begin to imagine. But there is a price tag for this personal interpreter. We have to be willing to stop being control freaks about our lives. We have to learn to trust the Spirit. We don't like that, do we? Many of us are uncomfortable talking about the Holy Spirit. When it comes to the Trinity, we often feels, as Leonard Sweet puts it, "Two's company, three ...

4205. The World's Greatest Cover Up

Romans 4:1-25

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... for removing hairs (men and women's different), after-shave, cologne, perfume, toothpaste to cover up our teeth, mouthwash to cover up our gums, moisturizers, hair spray, eye-drops for contacts (to cover up the fact that we need glasses). Men may be able to stop here, but most women are just getting going. Now there's all the concealer (to hide dark circles and red splotches), foundation and face powder (to make skin look even toned), blush (to put red splotches and unevenness back onto our faces, but where ...

4206. The World's Best Hearing Aid

Mark 9:2-13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... rebuke his master, rejecting his words, shutting his ears to the truth of Jesus' message. Fear kept Peter from hearing the unmistakable ring of truth in Jesus' voice. The transfiguration, that "sneak peak" at Jesus' glory and divinity, was designed to help the disciples stop listening to their fears and open their ears to the new and unexpected deliverance that Jesus preached and lived. What's keeping us from hearing God's voice? Have you managed to develop you own selective hearing to the point that only a ...

4207. The Oneness of Twoness

Romans 14:1--15:13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... the top of the Senate, there arose such a clatter To eliminate Jesus, in all public matter. And we spoke not a word, as they took away our faith Forbidden to speak of salvation and grace. The true Gift of Christmas was exchanged and discarded The reason for the season, stopped before it started. So as you celebrate "Winter Break" under your "Dream Tree" Sipping your Starbucks, listen to me. Choose your words carefully, choose what you say Shout MERRY CHRISTMAS, not Happy Holiday !

4208. By God’s Spirit

Zechariah 4:1-14

Sermon

James McCormick

... in the 6th century B.C. He was a Babylonian Jew who returned to Jerusalem after the Exile to complete the rebuilding of the Temple. The work had been started some 23 years earlier, but it had lost momentum and had come virtually to a stop. There was active opposition from some. And even among those who longed to see the Temple rebuilt, most had lost hope. It was too difficult. It couldn’t be done. Then Zerubbabel appeared on the scene and the prophet Zechariah assured the people that Zerubbabel would ...

4209. Make Room for Mystery

Isaiah 55:1-13

Sermon

James McCormick

... am saying some things that I need to hear. And, if you like, I’ll let you listen in to what I am saying to me. What I am pleading for is a balance to life. We must ask and answer as many questions as we can. We must never stop searching for the truth. But, once we have reached the end of our mind’s leash, we must acknowledge that there is more to life than what we understand. As God has said, “My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways.” After we have wrestled with ...

4210. What to Do with Yesterday - A Sermon for a New Year

Psalm 103:1-22

Sermon

James McCormick

... , her children and everyone around her were affected by the stink of it. When God cuts the cable, he takes that kind of garbage away, too. Listen to the good news: there is no sin God is not willing to forgive. There is nothing you can do to make God stop loving you. There is nothing you can do to make God love you more than He already does. Right now, you are the loved, forgiven, blessed children of God. And the future can be good for you, if you will let God cut that cable! I want to tell you ...

4211. Conviction with Compassion

John 8:1-11

Sermon

James McCormick

... and the darkness light; the placing of pleasure and possessions at the top of our list of values; an affluent culture tolerating hunger, homelessness, illiteracy and sub-standard health care; the world increasingly divided into the haves and the have-nots; where would the list stop? I could go on and on, but you get the point. When you take a panoramic view of contemporary morality, are you content with what you see? It is such a serious problem that I need to address it, using the scripture in the gospel ...

4212. Sing the Resurrection Song

Mark 16:1-20

Sermon

James McCormick

... quiet, you have to tell. Remember the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem on that first Palm Sunday? The people were shouting and celebrating, waving palm fronds. The religious leaders, fearful that an unruly crowd would arouse the wrath of Rome, told Jesus to make his followers stop, to be quiet. Do you remember what Jesus said in response? He said, “I tell you, if these were silent, the stones would shout out!” You can’t keep the good news of Jesus bottled up. You just can’t. If you have met the risen ...

4213. What Is That in Your Hand?

Exodus 4:1-17

Sermon

James McCormick

... There is a delightful fable from the Middle Ages that speaks to me. A tiny sparrow was lying on its back in the middle of the road, its little legs pointing up toward the heavens. A horseman came riding by, saw the sparrow, pulled his horse to a stop, and dismounted. He asked, “Why are you lying in the road like that?” “I heard the sky was going to fall today,” the sparrow answered. The horseman laughed out loud and said, “Oh? And do you expect to be able to support the sky on those spindly little ...

4214. Promises to Keep

Hebrews 8:1-13

Sermon

James McCormick

... a good family? Not on your life. Such blessings would be reserved for those who deserve them! You have to keep your part of the bargain! If you planted a garden and were not faithful, I would have it rain right up to your property line, and stop. Not a drop on your crop! There would be perpetual drought until you took your faith commitment seriously. And, if you cut church and went fishing on Sunday morning – nary a nibble, not on Sunday morning! And, Sunday morning golfers? I would have every ball find ...

4215. It Is Also Blessed to Receive

John 13:1-17

Sermon

James McCormick

... off. No, there can be no meaningful relationship unless we are able to receive as well as give. Sometimes, I have done it right. I well remember that when my parents were in their 80’s, retired and living on Social Security and a small pension, they never stopped wanting to give to their children as they had done all their lives. So, whenever we would go to see them on vacation, or whenever we had a large expense, my parents would send a check to help out. Now, I could have sent it back, explaining that ...

4216. Lifelong Disciples

Matthew 28:16-20

Sermon

James McCormick

... from Jesus, to look at and to live all of life in the light of what God has shown us throughout history, especially in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. We are to do that every day for as long as we live, so that we grow and never stop growing, as we become mature, adult Christians. If the right things are happening, as long as you live, you and God will be working on something. If the right things are happening, you are not the same person today that you were a month ago, and you will not be ...

4217. In Life Nothing Works but the Impossible

Matthew 1:18-25

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... York: Routledge, 2003), 123. "What you can plan is too small for you to live." –poet David Whyte, “What to Remember When Waking” O to break loose, like the Chinook salmon jumping and falling back, nosing up to the impossible stone and bone crushing waterfall raw-jawed, weak fleshed there, stopped by ten steps of the roaring ladder, and then to clear the top on the last try, alive enough to spawn and die. –Robert Lowell, “Walking Early Sunday Morning”

4218. You Shall Name Him Jesus

Matthew 1:18-25

Sermon

King Duncan

... to the buses. “Fruit Stand, do you know which bus is yours?” He didn’t answer. The teacher knew that lots of kids are shy on their first day. It didn’t matter anyway since she had asked the parents to write the names of their children’s bus stop on the reverse side of their name tags. Just as she put the boy on the bus and said “Good‑bye Fruit Stand, I’ll see you tomorrow,” she turned over his bus tag‑-and there, neatly printed, was the word, “Anthony.” (1) Names are interesting. A ...

4219. A New Vision

Matthew 2:1-12

Sermon

King Duncan

... brought up in the Jewish faith, but like many young people he had wandered away. God had become a meaningless symbol. He had no motivation to live another day and no one could convince him otherwise. So he prepared to take his own life. On his way, he stopped by Leo’s office. Fortunately, the good doctor was in. The student told Leo that he had lots of money, clothes and cars. He had been accepted at several of the top engineering schools to work on his Master’s degree. He had everything going for him ...

4220. A Word of Hope for a Hard World

Matthew 2:13-18

Sermon

King Duncan

... , Tattoo’s owner headed out for a drive. He didn’t notice that Tattoo’s leash had gotten caught in the car door. Police officer Terry Filbert, patrolling the neighborhood on his motorcycle, spotted the poor dog running--and occasionally rolling--alongside the car. The officer stopped Tattoo’s owner and alerted him to the situation. Tattoo came out all right, but he hasn’t been begging for any walks for a while. He’s kind of content to stay at home. (1) You may feel like Tattoo after the last few ...

4221. Which End Is Up?

Ephesians 3:1-13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... those crowds that bolder riders get into trouble. “Back country” boarding and skiing become more popular every year. But it is these off-the-beaten-track excursions where the most serious danger of avalanches looms. When tons of snow start to slide nothing can stop its breakneck blast down a mountainside. You cannot outrun an avalanche. For those lucky few who have survived being buried in a snowy tomb [you may want to tell an avalanche survivor story here if you live in a state where skiing is popular ...

4222. Under New Leadership

John 1:29-34

Sermon

King Duncan

... Rover, which the man ignores because he is already on his cell phone talking to London. She keeps honking. He finally hears her, flings down the phone, leans out of the window, and makes an obscene gesture at her. She continues to honk while waving him to stop. Fulghum, then, hits his horn which he salvaged off an old Model A. It goes AAAOOOGAAH. The man jams on his brakes, flings open the door of the Range Rover and tries to get out--without first unlatching his seat belt. At the same moment, his morning ...

4223. 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 ...

4224. A New Attitude

Matthew 17:1-13

Sermon

King Duncan

... was in one of those three groups. The title of his book, In Thin Air, comes partially from an experience he had on top of the mountain. As he was beginning his slow descent back down the mountain, Krakauer became concerned about his oxygen supply. He was going to stop and rest for a few moments while he waited on others who were still making it to the top. So he asked Andy Harris, a guide with another team with whom he had become close friends, to turn down his oxygen supply, so as to conserve it for the ...

4225. Christmas 2

Psalm 147:1-20, Jeremiah 30:1--31:40, Ephesians 1:1-14, John 1:1-18

Sermon Aid

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

... is that God is praiseworthy because God has power over creation. A variety of motifs arise in this section. God's rule in Zion is worthy of praise because it makes life secure, it carries blessing, it brings about peace and abundance. If the psalm stopped here, this hymn of praise would be little more than a celebration of all the things in our lives that give us immediate security. Although the second section is also a celebration of divine power in the world, there is nevertheless a slight shift in focus ...

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