Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: touch, feel, sense of touch, tactile sense, tactility, contact, using one's hands, sensation, sense, suspicion, sneaking suspicion, notion, inkling, hunch, fancy, apprehension, presentiment, premonition, foreboding, love, care, affection, fondness, tenderness, warmth, warmness, emotion, sentiment, emotional state, compassion, sympathy, empathy, fellow feeling, understanding, concern, solicitude, solicitousness, tender-heartedness, brotherly love, sensibilities, sensitivities, self-esteem, ego, pride, opinion, belief, view, impression, intuition, instinct, estimation, guess, theory, hypothesis, thought, way of thinking, point of view, atmosphere, ambience, aura, air, mood, climate, character, overtone, undertone, tenor, spirit, quality, flavour, colour, aptitude, knack, flair, bent, talent, gift, skill, art, trick, faculty, ability, propensity, inclination, sensitive, warm, warm-hearted, tender, tender-hearted, caring, soft-hearted, sympathetic, compassionate, empathetic, responsive, receptive, intuitive, thoughtful

Antonyms: bad feeling, acrimony, animosity, animus, antagonism, antipathy, aversion, bitterness, detestation, disgust, dislike, disrelish, enmity, friction, grievances, grudges, hatred, hostility, loathing, malevolence, malice

Showing 401 to 425 of 673 results

401. Commencement Address

Acts 1:6-14

Sermon

Bill Mosley

... pledge to quit their sinning. At one of these meetings, a lady was asked what she was going to quit. She said she had not been doing anything and was going to quit doing that. Perhaps it's time for us to quit doing nothing! One of the oldest tricks in the book for mischief-minded big-city kids is to stand on a street corner, craning necks back to look at some non-existent phenomenon in the sky, just to see how many people you can influence to follow your gaze upwards. The temptation is almost irresistible ...

402. Out of Conflict

Genesis 25:19-34

Sermon

James L. Killen

... Jacob and himself for letting it happen. The conflict between the two brothers became a conflict between their parents, Isaac and Rebecca -- or was it the other way around? Was it the parents' partialities that generated the conflict between the brothers? Eventually, Jacob tricked his father into giving him a blessing that was intended for Esau. The ancients took things like that very seriously. Once the blessing was given, it could not be taken back. That made Esau so angry that he resolved to kill his ...

403. Bloody Lintels — Broken Bread

Exodus 12:1-14

Sermon

Arley K. Fadness

... then flies, sick livestock, boils, incessant thunder and hail, locusts, and darkness. The tug-of-war gets nasty -- back and forth. "Yes, go. No, you can't. Yes, get out of here. No, you've got to stay." Finally the time is up. No more games, no more tricks. The final plague comes. It's the plague of death of the firstborn -- the most devastating plague of all. The Pharaoh/Hebrew clash began with the birth of Moses when the Pharaoh did not spare the firstborn of Israel. Now Israel's God will not spare those ...

404. Grace for a Complaining People

Exodus 16:2-15

Sermon

Arley K. Fadness

... wheel, which they turned as they trotted around, thereby generating power. The donkeys wore blinders in order to block them from seeing the great wheel. Day after day they kept trotting around and around, but the blinders attached to their bridles tricked them into thinking they were going straight. One day the driver pulled off the blinders -- and the animals went crazy! "Even the dumbest animal," writes author Maurice Lamm, "cannot saunter purposelessly, going in circles all day and getting nowhere...."3 ...

405. The Golden Calf

Exodus 32:1-14

Sermon

Charles L. Aaron

... of the mountain were twiddling their thumbs, pacing the floor, checking their sundials. Where was Moses, anyway? What was taking so long? What are we supposed to do while we are waiting? Are we sure he is even coming back down? Maybe their minds started playing tricks on them. They probably knew the story of Enoch -- it was an ancient story. Enoch was one of the descendants of Adam through Seth. In a puzzling verse, the narrator tells us, "Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him ...

406. Passing and Failing

Deuteronomy 8:7-18

Sermon

Charles L. Aaron

... can help, but we may need to see a physician, too. In any case, our faith is part of what helps us defeat despair and bitterness. The writer Dan Barber discovered at a fairly early age that he had contracted multiple sclerosis. MS has played tricks with his thinking and concentration. He tires easily and struggles with his memory. All of that makes it harder for him to write. He struggles to keep discouragement at bay. He draws strength from a book by Floyd Skloot, who developed viral brain damage while ...

407. Sheep that Count

1 Peter 2:19-25

Sermon

Richard W. Ferris

... place. So he carefully sneaked away from the flock and the watchful eye of his shepherd. Edgar never returned to his flock. Of course, he never got to see the rest of the world either, not even the inside of Destiny's den. Destiny had played a mean trick on Edgar, and Edgar became Destiny's victim. But the other lambs that coveted Edgar's freedom didn't know what really happened. They had visions of Edgar out in the world on one adventure after another, and a few of them followed Edgar's Destiny. We don ...

408. Timing Is Everything

Matthew 11:2-11

Sermon

Mark Trotter

... the times changed. The next person to come along was Robert Fulton. It was not so much that Fulton invented the steamboat, but that he just happened to be there when the time was right. As the author wrote, "The inventor's eminence may be more a trick of chronology than anything else, due to being active at the very moment when fruition was possible." It's a wonderful statement. It tells you that timing is everything. That's what we learn from the Bible. Look at our lesson for this morning. The disciples of ...

409. You Can't Win them All

Matthew 10:2-14

Sermon

Mark Trotter

... in our day are those preach Christian faith as if it were some simple formula for success. Some of the most popular self-improvement books, I notice, on sale in the bookstores picture Jesus as dispensing advice on how to make it big in this world. Which is quite a trick, since if there was one thing that was consistent in Jesus' teaching it was to give away everything that you have to the poor, take up a cross, and follow me. That is not the kind of advice that you frame and put on the wall. Jesus did not ...

410. Proper 24

Matthew 22:15-22, 1 Thessalonians 1:1-10, Isaiah 44:24--45:25, Exodus 33:12-23

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... and thus they became examples to the other churches. Gospel: Matthew 22:15-22 (C, E); Matthew 22:15-21 (RC) Religious leaders attempt to trap Jesus by asking him whether taxes should be paid to Rome. The religious leaders came to Jesus with a trick question that no matter how he answers, he is in trouble. Pharisees and Herodians come to him with the question whether taxes should be paid to the Roman government. The Pharisees would say, "No"; the Herodians would answer, "Yes." If Jesus said one should not ...

411. Demonstrating the Divine

John 1:10-18

Sermon

Susan R. Andrews

... of Christ on earth. Yes, John tells us how we are to "demonstrate the divine." We are called to embody a paradox - the paradox of grace and truth. The fact that the Christian faith is paradoxical is a challenge. If opposite things are true, then the trick is to hold that opposition in balance - the truth of God with the grace of God. I think it is our inability - or perhaps our unwillingness - to struggle with this balancing act that has gotten our beloved Presbyterian church into so much trouble; that has ...

412. But Wait! There's More!

Luke 20:27-40

Sermon

King Duncan

... husbands. Seven times a widow! But that’s beside the point. Theoretically, what the Sadducees want to know is, Whose wife will she be in heaven? Again, the Sadducees didn’t believe in heaven in the first place, as the text plainly notes. They were trying trick questions on Jesus to see if they could get him to say something that they could use against him. The Sadducees remind me of a joke I heard recently about the Jesus Seminar. Are you familiar with this group of scholars? They are a contemporary ...

413. Saved by the Bell

Luke 23:26-43

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... , an angel gets his wings. When the church bell rings, snares are broken, cords loosed, wounds healed, prisoners freed. Have you heard those bells? Is the world hearing those bells in this belfry? Can you hear the bells ringing? Show here the video clip from the famous "Trick or Treatment" (1 November 1982) Halloween episode of M*A*S*H and the "he's dead" toe tag (M*A*S*H: The Last Will and Testament, Collector's Edition, 20th Century Fox, Columbia House Video, 1998). End with this: Some Sunday I'm going to ...

414. A Sign or a Son?

John 6:25-59

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... been the recipients of one of Jesus' most astonishing miracles all five thousand of them had been fed to fullness with just five loaves and two fish. But come a new day, and they start clamoring for more signs or at least, more bread. Jesus refuses to do more tricks for the crowd. Jesus declines to whip up a new batch of manna in the wilderness. He knows this crowd is looking only for signs they can hold in their hands and place in their mouths. The problem is this crowd thinks the signs are the be-all and ...

415. Make Room for Mystery

Isaiah 55:1-13

Sermon

James McCormick

... with mystery. I suppose that’s why I have never seen a totally satisfying movie about Jesus. Whenever I have seen Jesus depicted on the screen, usually he has come across to me as just another human being – a rather nice human being, with a bag of tricks perhaps, but just another human being. You look at him that directly and you miss the experience of the divine that was at work in him. You miss the mystery. That’s why the oblique look is required. I experience Jesus much more authentically in Handel ...

416. Proper 10

Psalm 119:1-176, Romans 8:1-17, Matthew 13:1-23, Genesis 25:19-34

Sermon Aid

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

... names. That Esau would give up his birthright (which in Hebrew is built off the word for "blessing") for red pottage (both words in Hebrew are spelled very similarly to "Edom") is a commentary on his rash and impulsive character. That Jacob would trick Esau out of his birthright at a moment when he was vulnerable and famished is also a commentary on his inherently unethical character. This is a story without heroes. The naming of the twins is important for it is commentary on their character. Furthermore ...

417. Proper 11

Mt 13:24-30, 36-43 · Rom 8:12-25 · Ps 139 · Gen 28:10-19a

Sermon Aid

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

... of Sheol to the heights of the heavens. Genesis 28:10-19a - "Putting Conditions on Visions" Setting. This is the second lesson from the Jacob cycle. The trickster Jacob has been living out the meaning of his name for some time now. He has not only tricked his brother, Esau, out of his birthright, but he has also stolen Isaac's blessing that rightfully belonged to Esau. (The blessing is an almost magical gift of prosperity which can only be given once.) In the present story Jacob is on the lam, fleeing from ...

418. Changed Lives: The Man Born Blind from Birth

John 9:1-12

Sermon

King Duncan

... and a belt to hold it all together. Angus and Minnie insist on a reflector belt because it has already snowed in Minnesota, and you can’t see a ghost in the snow. The little boy can hardly stand still long enough to get the belt on. He is going trick‑or‑treating alone, so Angus says he’ll trail along behind to make sure the boy is OK. Before Angus can get his coat on, however, James races out the door full speed . . . and runs smack dab into their maple tree. Angus rushes out to be sure he is okay ...

419. A Personal Experience (Good Friday drama)

John 19:28-37

Drama

Russell N. Gallimore

... I beheld the faint form of a man. He was stumbling along. He appeared to be lugging something. A host of uniformed men were following him. As he drew closer, the man’s appearance gave forth silent but thundering testimony to his mistreatment. Blood tricked down his cheeks and he wobbled under the weight of a lengthy wooden timber. Taunting jeers and vicious verbal barbs were being hurled at this poor creature. The men following him often shouted obscenities and lashed-out at him with whips. Was I dreaming ...

420. The Bridge over Troubled Water

Psalm 23:1-6

Sermon

James W. Moore

... one time or another will have to face trouble. Not one of us is immune from the storms of life. There is no wall high enough to shut out trouble. There is no life (no matter how much it may be sheltered) that can escape from it. There is no trick (however clever) by which we can evade it. Some time, some where, maybe when we least expect it,… trouble will rear its head and confront and challenge every one of us. The Psalmist did not say, “I will meet no evil.” He said, “I will fear no evil!” So ...

421. Sleep With the Lions Without Being Eaten

Daniel 6:1-28

Sermon

James Merritt

... , godly man is to pass an immoral ungodly law. That is exactly what they did. "Then these men said, ‘We shall not find any charge against this Daniel unless we find it against him concerning the law of his God.'" (v.5) They went to King Darius and tricked him into passing a law that no one could pray to any god except him for thirty days. Here's how they did it. First of all, they used deceptive falsehood. "So these governors and satraps thronged before the king, and said thus to him: ‘King Darius, live ...

422. The Only Way to Fly

2 Timothy 3:15-17

Sermon

James Merritt

... on time. Do you know why all of this is so? Because the instrument is the word of God. It never fails, it never malfunctions. You can go by it from the cradle to the grave. It is the only way to fly. 1 "Pilot's Sense of Motion Easily Tricked," USA Today, Thursday, July 22, 1999, p. 5a. 2The Little Brown Book of Anecdotes, Clifton Fadiman, General Editor, p. 145-146.

423. God's Prescription for a Healthy Christian

Jude 1:17-21

Sermon

James Merritt

... ) You see, apostates never take God by surprise, and they should never take His church by surprise. Jude specifically tells us that these apostates will be "mockers." Now the word mocker literally means "to act in a childish fashion, to make fun of, to play a trick on someone." Now there is nothing wrong with being childlike, but there is something wrong with being childish. Like a child, they will mock and make fun of holy things. They will mock at the gospel of God. They will say things like "Jesus is not ...

424. Don't Forget to Forgive

Matthew 18:21-35

Sermon

James Merritt

... for hurting me."1 Now the Apostle Peter asked the question that many people would like to ask, but sometimes are too ashamed to ask. His question was: "How many times do I have to forgive a brother who sins against me?" Now Peter pulls a shrewd trick. He makes a suggestion to Jesus. He says, "Up to seven times?" Now that seemed very generous to him because the going rate in that day was three times. According to the Talmud and Rabbinic law, you were obligated to forgive someone three times. But after the ...

425. Let's Get Ready to Rumble

Ephesians 6:10-20

Sermon

James Merritt

... told in v.11 that we are to "stand against the wiles of the devil." Now the word "wiles" is a very interesting Greek word. It gives us the English word "method." It literally means deceit or trickery. The Living Bible translates it this way: "Watch out for the tricks of Satan." Satan is the master of deception. The devil has even deceived us in the way we think about him. We conjure up the picture in our mind of a little man wearing long red underwear, with horns on his head, a forked tail and a pitchfork ...

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