Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: Levi, disciple, evangelist, tax collector, the 12, the twelve, apostle, sermon on the mount, jewish audience, beatitudes, lord's prayer, great commission, parables, olivet discourse, mount of olives, olivet, synoptic

Showing 4276 to 4300 of 5000 results

4276. God’s Miraculous Provision: Caring for the Needy

Mark 6:30-44

Teach the Text

Grant R. Osborne

... thanked the parents of the bride!” One wonders if that perspective in fact reflects the heart of many Christians. When we pray before a meal, are we really thinking, deep down, that this meal is the result of our hard work? Do we really see the Lord as the giver of all good gifts? We must understand the biblical reality that all good gifts come from God. The process of disciple-making Applying the Text: We need to follow the example of Jesus in the process of developing mature disciples. We see in Mark ...

4277. Jesus Takes the Initiative

Luke 21:5-38, Luke 21:1-4, Luke 20:41-47

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R.T. France

... back again to receive His followers to Himself, this world loses its hold upon him. Gas stocks and water stocks and stocks in banks and railroads are of very much less consequence to him then. His heart is free, and he looks for the blessed appearing of his Lord, who, at His coming, will take him into His blessed kingdom.” Quote: Mere Christianity, by C. S. Lewis. “I must keep alive in myself the desire for my true country, which I shall not find till after death; I must never let it get snowed under or ...

4278. The New-Covenant Ethic of Love

Romans 12:9-21

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C. Marvin Pate

... ’s children of their destiny (hope) when they are experiencing the furnace of affliction. The early church was devoted to prayer (Luke 18:1; Acts 1:14; 2:42; 6:4; 1 Thess. 5:17; Eph. 6:18; Col. 4:2). 12:13 Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality. Verse 13 returns to loving others, particularly the family of God. Two acts of love are specified: share with God’s people in need and be hospitable. The early Christians wonderfully demonstrated charity to one another and beyond ...

4279. Unity of Life and Faith

1 Corinthians 6:12-20

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Preben Vang

... (15:35–49). The body is not a mere shell for the spirit to be destroyed at the end of bodily life. The human being is one unit, all of which will face judgment and redemption. 6:14 By his power God raised the Lord from the dead, and he will raise us also. Christ’s bodily resurrection forms the foundation for Christian hope and the Christian teaching on discipleship. The resurrection of Christ is not unrelated to the daily experience of the Christ follower. Rather, Christ’s resurrection introduced ...

4280. John’s Introductory Vision The Risen and Glorified Christ

Revelation 1:9-20

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J. Scott Duvall

... Alpha and Omega” in 1:8; 21:6; 22:13). In the midst of cultural confusion about Jesus, the church is called to proclaim him as the divine-human being that he is. The symbolic language used here should not be taken literally (i.e., the risen Lord has a sword sticking out of his mouth). Rather, this vision communicates Jesus’s character and ability. We distort the message of Revelation when we force a literalistic interpretation on picture language (e.g., Jesus as the Lamb of God). 2. We are in the best ...

4281. God on His Throne as the Sovereign Creator

Revelation 4:1-11

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J. Scott Duvall

... In his holiness and power, God is also eternal (cf. 1:4, 8). “Who was, and is, and is to come” is most likely an expansion of the “I am who I am” of Exod. 3:14 (cf. 1:4, 8; 4:9–10). 4:11 You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being. The elders now join the living creatures in praising God. Here the word “worship” (proskyne?) suggests the common Eastern custom of prostrating oneself ...

4282. Worthy Is the Lamb Who Was Slain

Revelation 5:1-14

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J. Scott Duvall

... passage also cautions us against becoming too casual or flippant in our relationship with Jesus. Yes, he considers us his friends (John 15:13–15), but he cannot be reduced to our private god tasked with meeting our every demand. He is the Lord of lords who is enthroned with God and worthy of universal worship. The priority of worship itself warns us not to drift into an unspiritual fantasy that Jesus exists to serve us. Illustrating the Text From the earliest days, Christians were known for worshiping ...

4283. Proclamations of Judgment and Reward

Revelation 14:6-13

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J. Scott Duvall

... a promise of a future heavenly reward. The second of seven beatitudes in Revelation spells out what God has in store for his faithful people (1:3; 14:13; 16:15; 19:9; 20:6; 22:7, 14; see the sidebar in 1:1–3). To “die in the Lord” doesn’t necessitate martyrdom, but depicts dying as a faithful follower of Christ (cf. 1 Thess. 4:16) and applies to any Christ follower, from the first century on (i.e., “from now on”). The voice from heaven is now joined by the Holy Spirit’s “Yes” to authorize ...

4284. The Warrior Messiah Conquers the Two Beasts and Their Followers

Revelation 19:1-21

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J. Scott Duvall

... a word is not a lifeless sound but an active agent that achieves the intention of the one who speaks” (e.g., Gen. 1; Heb. 4:12).2Eighth, in verse 16 Jesus wears a title on the part of his robe that falls across his thigh: “king of kings and lord of lords.” This Old Testament title for God is now used of Christ to affirm his sovereignty over all competing earthly rulers, Caesar included (Deut. 10:17; Dan. 2:47; Zech. 14:9; 1 Tim. 6:15; Rev. 1:5; 17:14). 19:14 The armies of heaven were following him ...

4285. Elihu Makes His Appearance

Job 32:1--37:24

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Daniel J. Estes

... do that? Are they blind, biased fans, or do they actually know your character that deeply? Who are the ones that would stay on your side, forgive you, and love you, even if you did do it?” Point out that God knows our hearts even better than we do. The Lord knows us and our motivations completely and still loves us whether we are innocent in a given situation or not, and he loves us enough to forgive and redeem us at the cost of his only Son, even when we have been guilty of trampling him underfoot in our ...

4286. “As the Deer Pants for Streams of Water, So My Soul Pants for You, My God”

Psalm 42:1-11, Psalm 43:1-5

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C. Hassell Bullock

... my God.This is the goal of his longing, the moment of return to the temple, where he experiences the God of his greatest joy (lit., “God of the joy of my delight”; ESV, “God my exceeding joy”). The psalmist calls the deity “God, my God,” in place of “Lord, my God” (YHWH ’elohay; e.g., 7:1, 3), which we would expect to find in the non-Elohistic psalms.10 43:5 I will yet praise him.The psalmist, for the third time, expresses his hope that he will yet worship in the sanctuary in Jerusalem ...

4287. “No One Can Redeem the Life of Another or Give to God a Ransom for Them”

Psalm 49:1-20

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C. Hassell Bullock

... their shepherd (but the upright will prevail over them in the morning).This verse forms quite a contrast to Psalm 23, where the Lord is the psalmist’s Shepherd and leads him safely through the “valley of the shadow of death” (23:4; see NIV footnote)! Here ... depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 8:35, 38–39). Invest in eternity. Bible: Psalm 49 provides a great connection to the parable of the rich fool (Luke ...

4288. “Create in Me a Pure Heart, O God, and Renew a Steadfast Spirit within Me”

Psalm 51:1-19

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C. Hassell Bullock

... ,” written by Nicholson in 1872, is based on Psalm 51. The first verse is a prayer, inviting God both to reveal and to rid us of our sin (51:1–4). In the second verse we are confessing our desire to sacrifice our will and all we are to the Lord (51:16–17). In verse 3 we are confessing our faith in the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross to deal completely with our sin (51:7). Finally, the last verse is a prayer, asking God to create a new heart in us that we may live in a new ...

4289. “Even When I Am Old and Gray, Do Not Forsake Me, My God”

Psalm 71:1-24

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C. Hassell Bullock

... cross has become a sign of hope and liberty for people all over the world. And the life of each Christian has the potential to become a sign to the world of a great, loving, and powerful God. But this will happen only if we are willing to represent the Lord to the world. As the psalmist writes, with confidence, “I have become a sign to many” (Ps. 71:7). “I have become a sign.” Personal Testimony: On a Sunday in May 1993, as my wife and I were saying good-bye to friends we had met at our church in ...

4290. Spiritual Warfare and Jewish Suffering

Daniel 8:1-14

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Ronald W. Pierce

... a hostile person—in part, because of your own failures. Just the thought of such an experience produces anxiety and fear. How could a believer face such an experience and survive? The apostle Paul urges the Ephesians with these words: Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this ...

4291. Closing

2 Corinthians 13:11-14

Understanding Series

James M. Scott

... in the sense of “be in agreement, live in harmony” (cf. Herodotus 1.60.2; Dio Chrysostom 34.20; Phil. 2:2; [3:16]; 4:2; Rom. 12:16; 15:5). Just as the Corinthians are being transformed into “the same image,” that is, the image of the resurrected Lord (cf. 2 Cor. 3:18), so also they are to reflect this image by “thinking the same thing.” As we have seen, the Corinthian church is wracked with dissension among factions (cf. 2 Cor. 12:20; 1 Cor. 1:10), much like the situation of Korah’s rebellion ...

4292. Ten Commandments and the People’s Response

Exodus 20:1-21

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... Deut. 19:16–21). The rest of Scripture presents lying in general as a heinous offense. The book of Proverbs repeatedly warns of the damage that false speech does, declaring that a lying tongue and a false witness who pours out lies are detestable to the Lord (Prov. 6:16–19). Jesus strikes at the root of the problem, calling the devil the father of lies and a murderer from the beginning (John 8:44). The end of liars, along with such offenders as murderers, the sexually immoral, and idolaters, will be the ...

4293. The Golden Calf

Ex 32:1–33:6

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... nature (32:21–24). Worse yet, he reduces his active role in fashioning the calf to a passive one: “I cast it into the fire, and this calf came out” (32:24 NKJV). It seems that the destruction of the calf prompts a riot among the people, and the Lord calls on those who are faithful to him to kill the idolaters (32:25–29). The choice made by the tribe of Levi, Aaron’s own tribe, is not an easy one (32:26). Killing three thousand people who are continuing in flagrant disobedience is a horrifying task ...

4294. The Radiant Face of Moses

Exodus 34:29-35

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... radiant” in the NIV is not used this way elsewhere in the Old Testament. It is related to the word for “horn” and prompted earlier translations and representations to depict Moses with horns. Doubtless, however, these were rays of light. The glory of the Lord thus moves from the mountain to Moses and finally to the tabernacle. This veil has both positive and negative implications for the people. On the one hand, that his face reflects the presence of God reassures them. On the other, it is only Moses ...

4295. Holiness of Light and Bread

Leviticus 24:1-9

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... :12–17). So the Israelites did not feed God, but placed bread or basic food before him to acknowledge their dependence upon him as their ongoing Creator and Provider in residence (cf. Ps. 145:15–16; Dan. 5:23). Light and bread are powerful symbols of the Lord’s care for the Israelites. In the New Testament, Christ claims to fulfill these roles for all people by calling himself “the light of the world” (John 8:12; 9:5), “the bread of life” (John 6:35, 48), and “the living bread that came down ...

4296. Departure from Sinai Wilderness

Numbers 10:11-36

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... wilderness journey with God: At last, on the twentieth day of the second month of the second year after the Israelites left Egypt, the divine cloud lifts from “the tabernacle of the Testimony” (10:11 NIV 1984). This is only twenty days after the Lord has commanded Moses to carry out the military census (1:1), and a week after the alternative Passover, on the fourteenth day of the second month (9:11). When the Israelites set out from the wilderness of Sinai in accordance with the procedures that ...

4297. Tablets Like the First One

Deuteronomy 10:1-11

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... once again as God personally rewrote the same words that were on the first set of tablets that Moses had smashed in disgust at the people’s sin. Unlike other commands, which God gave through the mediation of Moses, these came directly from the Lord, hence their importance and significance. These stone tablets were to be put into a “chest” or “ark” (10:2–3). This probably was not the same permanent receptacle made by Bezalel (Exod. 37:1) but was a temporary box. Verses 6–9 seem intrusive ...

4298. Circumcision at Gilgal

Joshua 5:1-12

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... in 5:2–15. The first thing Israel is required to do is to circumcise all their men (5:2–9). The command of the Lord and Joshua’s obedience are reported in 5:2–3. Note that the word “again” in 5:2 does not necessarily mean that Joshua has ... the enemy’s attacks after the procedure (cf. Gen. 34:13–29). But the people obey by faith, and when they do, the Lord declares that their past disgrace of having been slaves in Egypt will be rolled away (5:9). This is presumably because their demonstration ...

4299. The Sun Stands Still

Joshua 10:1-15

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... Book of Jashar (10:13), about which little else is known other than that it also contained David’s lament for Jonathan (cf. 2 Sam. 1:18). This unprecedented and hitherto unmatched intervention of the Lord in response to Joshua’s bold prayer thus prompts the author to declare in no uncertain terms that the Lord is fighting for Israel (10:14). Regarding the miraculous standing still of the sun and the moon, there is a plethora of attempts to explain what exactly happened, and no unanimity as yet exists ...

4300. Towns for the Levites

Joshua 21:1-45

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... with pastureland for their livestock. So, in accordance with Numbers 35:1–8, each tribe assigns a number of towns with surrounding pastureland to the Levites (21:1–42). Note that these towns are not to be construed as “inheritance” for the Levites because the Lord has already ordained that they are not to receive any inheritance in the form of land that can be passed on permanently to their descendants (Num. 18:23–24; Deut. 18:1–2). The Levitical towns are therefore merely towns for them to live ...

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