Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 401 to 425 of 609 results

401. The Good Life vs. The God Life

Isaiah 55:1-13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

At our kids' school there's only one day a week that offers a hot lunch (prepared by parent volunteers). That means four out of five mornings each week we confront the dreaded "what will we eat for lunch?" dilemma. How do you face down that morning-monster with your kids? I confess: we inevitably succumb to the supermarket temptations of convenience and individual packaging. The differences in sales receipt totals for a cart full of cold-lunch necessities versus a cart full of real food is atrocious. We ...

402. There Will Be No Adults in Heaven

Mark 10:13-16

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

[A great way to begin your sermon this morning is to feature the favorite hats of your preteen or teen boys. Arrange ahead of time for them to come up to the front wearing their favorite caps. If one of them has a collection of hats, have them show it off. See if you can get them to take their hat off. Have fun with this group that is so often neglected in church.] Ever since he was three years old our son Thane has worn a hat a baseball-type cap. He might as well have been born bald. We never get to see ...

403. It's My Life, Isn't It?

1 Corinthians 6:12-20

Sermon

James McCormick

It was in an Ann Landers column some time ago – a letter from a grief stricken mother. Her son had died at the age of 33, weighing 560 pounds. His parents had warned him about the dangers of obesity. But he always replied, “It’s my life. I’ll do what I want with it.” As I read that, I remembered reading about a wife and mother who became bored with her life. One day she left her husband and family to go to Las Vegas with a man who had left his wife. Her only words were, “It’s my life. It’s the only one I’ ...

404. Are You Getting Hymns Out of Your Lions?

1 Corinthians 7:1-40

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

If there were one word everyone could agree on to describe twenty-first century living, it would surely be stressful. Anyone here this morning want to deny that we face a host of stress-inducing factors in this world? How about terrorism. How about war? How about avian flu? How about global warming, or diminishing resources, vanishing species, increasing Population, or WMD's? Not to mention the Islamic Republic of Iran with a head of state who's on record wanting to nuke Israel out of existence? And that's ...

405. Proper 9

Psalm 45:1-17, Romans 7:7-25, Matthew 11:25-30, Matthew 11:1-19, Genesis 24:1-67

Sermon Aid

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

OLD TESTAMENT TEXTS Genesis 24 is the story of how the servant of Abraham searches for a wife for Isaac in Mesopotamia and finds Rebekah. Psalm 45:10-17 is the second half of a Marriage Song that focuses on the bride. Genesis 24:34-38, 42-49, 58-67 - "A Story with Many Heroes" Setting. In many ways the testing of Abraham in Genesis 22 (the lectionary lesson for last week) concludes the Abrahamic cycle of stories in Genesis even though his death is not recorded until Genesis 25. The story of Abraham began ...

406. Changed Lives - The Woman at the Well

John 4:1-26

Sermon

King Duncan

One day a jet airline left Washington, D.C., with the destination of Columbia, South Carolina. On board was a counselor traveling to Columbia for a mental health conference at the University of South Carolina. The counselor was an atheist. Somewhere during the flight the pilot discovered the landing gear was stuck. That meant trouble. He turned the plane and headed for Greensboro, North Carolina. There was a facility there where mechanics on the ground could give instructions to the pilot by radio and make ...

407. Roll out the Green Carpet

Matthew 21:1-11

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

Before every “feast day” on the calendar—-Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, etc—-the local newspaper runs a reminder to its readers: Don’t include your pets in your over-indulgence! For Thanksgiving and Christmas the cautions are against letting Fido chow down on rich turkey skin, ham fat, giblets, gravies, and other greasy goodies. Your vet will tell you that there is always a huge spike in pets needing treatment for painful pancreatitis as a result of gobbling down all those rich human handouts. The ...

408. The Gift of Newness

2 Corinthians 5:17-20

Sermon

James McCormick

What picture pops into your mind when someone says the word, “church”? Is it a picture that quickens your pulse and stirs your blood? Or, is it a picture more likely to encourage a snooze? Is it characterized more by excitement and adventure? Or more by dullness and predictability? If we are talking about the first century church, those questions are easy to answer. Those first century Christians became so excited about their message that onlookers accused them of being drunk. They became so energetic ...

409. Liberty and Civility - Sermon Starter

Galatians 5:1-15

Illustration

Brett Blair

The United States of America is nearly 250 years old today. That's a long time for a nation to remain free. But, when you look at our history in the context of world history America is just a CHILD among the nations. Egypt, China, Japan, Rome, Greece all make America's history seem so short. Consider what a brief time we've really been here as a nation: When Thomas Jefferson died, Abraham Lincoln was a young man of 17. When Lincoln was assassinated, Woodrow Wilson was a boy of 8. By the time he died Ronald ...

410. The Scarlet Letter

Exodus 20:14

Sermon

James Merritt

Probably the mother of all misprints in any book, came in the misprint of a Bible. In 1631 someone discovered a word that was missing in a newly published version of the Bible, called The King James Version. The missing word was "not" in the seventh commandment which then made the Authorized Version to read, "Thou shalt commit adultery." From then on, this 1631 addition of the Bible became known as the "Wicked Bible."[1] Well, this seems to be the Bible the world is wanting to read today. Without question ...

411. Let Me Tell You about the Birds and the Bees

Proverbs 5:15-23

Sermon

James Merritt

A little third grade boy named Johnny came in from school one day, walked up to his daddy and said, "Daddy, there's something I need to ask you." "What is it son?" "Daddy, where did I come from?" Well, the father very nervously reached over and picked up some diagrams and pictures, because he had been planning for just this moment. He spent the next forty-five minutes explaining the process of birth. With a smug look on his face, inwardly congratulating himself on his great job, he said, "Son, does that ...

412. A Deserter in God's Army

1 Timothy 4:9-10

Sermon

James Merritt

One of the most fascinating cities I have had the privilege of visiting is the City of Rome, Italy. If you ever go there, one of the main attractions in the very heart of the city is the ancient ruins of the Roman Coliseum. This was the place where chariot races were held, and where the Christians were fed to the lions. Right across the way from that coliseum, underground, dug out of rock, are the remains of what was called the Mammertine Prison. It was literally carved out of stone. There were no windows ...

413. Try a Little Kindness (Fruit of the Spirit: Kindness)

Galatians 5:22

Sermon

James Merritt

After Confederate General Robert E. Lee retired from the military, he was named President of Washington & Lee University in Lexington, Virginia, originally named Washington Academy because of a gift from George Washington. The name was changed in 1871 in honor of General Lee. While Lee was president of the University, a new student came into his office and asked for a copy of the school's rules and regulations. Lee looked at him and said, "Son, we don't have any rules and regulations in print." The young ...

414. Never Let Them See You Sweat (Fruit of the Spirit: Self-Control)

Galatians 5:23

Sermon

James Merritt

I heard about a flight instructor that was sitting next to his student in their single engine plane, when he said, "Well, I think it's time to take her in for a landing. Are you ready to go down?" The student said, "No problem, let's do it." Well, as they were approaching the runway, the instructor looked at his student and noticed how calm he was. Normally, students who are coming in for their first landing were nervous, wide-eyed, and sweating bullets. But this young man was as cool as the other side of ...

415. Dirty Dreams and Slick Schemers

Jude 1:8-11

Sermon

James Merritt

I'm sure all of us have had dreams that are extremely strange. I have found that dreams basically fall into three categories. Some dreams can be very delightful. The next time you ladies look at your sewing machine you might remember that it was the result of a dream. As Elias Howe was working on the development of the first sewing machine, he had one problem. He could not see in his mind where to locate the eye of the needle. He was running out of money and about to shut down his invention, when one night ...

416. Faithful Fathers Fortify Families

Deuteronomy 6:1-15

Sermon

James Merritt

Malachi 4:6 is the last verse in Malachi. Now that is significant because Malachi is the last book of the Old Testament. Malachi 4:6 is the last verse in the last chapter of the last book in the Old Testament. Now all of that is interesting because when Malachi put his quill down, for 400 years God was absolutely silent. He gave no further revelation; for four centuries not one word. Now think about it. If you were God and you were not going to speak for 400 years before your son came into world; before ...

417. For His Eyes Only

Matthew 6:1-4

Sermon

James Merritt

If you have ever gone for a job interview, one of the questions that you will be asked is something like this: "Tell me what you have done in the past that would qualify you for this job?" Or, they may ask you something like this: "What character qualities do you have that would make me want to hire you?" But if you will think back to any job interview you have ever had you were never asked this question: "Why do you do what you do?" When people try to size us up and find out what kind of persons we are, ...

418. The Road Less Traveled

Matthew 7:13-14

Sermon

James Merritt

Are most people going to heaven? Well, most people think they are. According to researcher, George Barna, 98% of Americans believe they are going to heaven. When read the statement, "When you die you will not go to heaven," only two out of a hundred agreed.1 The Lord Jesus disagreed. He said, "Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there ...

419. God's Way or the Highway

Matthew 7:13-14

Sermon

James Merritt

One of America's best known theologians tells the story of how he was talking to his five- year-old son, and he asked him two questions. First of all, he said, "Are you sure that when you die you will go to heaven?" The little boy said, "Yes, Daddy, I am." He then asked him the second question. "If you were to die tonight and God said to you, ‘Why should I let you into my Heaven?' what would you answer?" His little boy didn't hesitate. He said immediately, "Because I'm dead." Now believe it or not, that is ...

420. Power in the Pulpit

Philippians 3:1-11

Sermon

James Merritt

When I was asked to speak on the topic "Power of the Pulpit" I could not help but think about a term that originated with Theodore Roosevelt when he was President of the United States. He referred to the White House as a "Bully Pulpit," meaning a terrific platform from which one could persuasively advocate the truth. In a real sense I believe that every church pulpit should be a "Bully Pulpit." I am reminded of the story of a little boy who was talking to his mom, and he said, "Mother, may I be a preacher ...

421. The Blessing Of A Godly Mentality

Genesis 18:16-33

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

In just two days we will celebrate America’s 230thbirthday.” She is still a youngster in terms of national longevity. Her population is approaching 300 million. She is the only authentic super-power on earth. One of the ways to measure America is the “gate test.” That is, if a nation opens its gates, how many people want to get out and how many people want to get in? I don’t know of any Americans who want to immigrate to another country, and if they do, the gate is open. But then just consider the untold ...

422. I Believe In God The Father Almighty

Genesis 1:1-2:3

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

The most radical words in the Apostles Creed are the first four- “I believe in God.” But you might respond, “Wait a minute, brother Bill. I thought that all cultures, past and present, have believed in some kind of god. So, what’s so radical about that?” Well, that’s true. But in those first four words of the Creed, we are saying much more than just that we believe God exists. We are declaring that he is the central truth around which our lives revolve. He is our Sovereign, our supreme commander. Notice ...

423. Mary, Did You Know?

Luke 1:26-38

Sermon

King Duncan

One of the most beautiful of the modern Christmas songs was written by a man who is best known, perhaps, as a comedian. His name is Mark Lowry. Lowry is also a musician of some note. He performed for many years with the Gaither Vocal band. In 1984 he was asked to pen some words for his local church choir and he wrote a poem that began like this, “Mary, did you know that your baby boy would one day walk on water? Mary, did you know that your baby boy would save our sons and daughters?” A few years later ...

424. A Double Share of the Spirit

2 Kings 2:1-12

Sermon

Schuyler Rhodes

Each one of us gathered here today comes bearing the echoes of great people in our lives. Each one of us bears the mark of someone who touched us in a powerful way. It might be a mother or father, a grandparent, or an aunt or uncle. It could be a neighbor who took you under his or her wing, or a teacher, or even, dare I say, a pastor. If you're really blessed, you might even receive more than one such fellow traveler. The blessings of such people walking with us on our journey cannot be underestimated. ...

425. Surprised Saints

Matthew 25:31-46

Sermon

King Duncan

Over many decades, the little magazine Reader’s Digest has been a reliable source of humor drawn from everyday life. In one issue several years ago a nurse wrote in to tell about what was then a new piece of equipment. The nurse worked in a gynecologist’s office and they were beginning to use a battery-operated device called a mini-dop on expectant mothers to listen to the heartbeat of their babies. The problem with these early devices was that sometimes they picked up interference from the radio or ...

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