Sermon and Worship Resources

Antonyms: keep, claim, continue, stick by, self-control, power through, achieve, defend, bear, hope, acquire, quick visit, adopt, continue along, adhere, remain, pursue, support, take up, keep up, reuse, advocate, stay, persevere, cherish, keep going, carry on

Showing 4326 to 4350 of 4963 results

4326. Household of Faith

II Timothy 1:3-7

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... that it had all been decided a long time ago. When I get to heaven, I'm going to ask her, “How could you have been so certain so long ago?" A household of faith. When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth? Oh, I hope so. I really, really ...

4327. The Holy Spirit and You

Acts 2:1-13

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... catch them all on fire. As smoke filled the house, we jerked blazing pizzas from the oven, hosing them down in the sink. I made the mistake of saying to her, “You mean you put boxes of pizzas in the oven?" She started speaking in tongues that I hoped was unknown to our guests. When it was all over I said to those gathered, “This may be the closest thing to a Pentecostal experience you will ever behold at a Methodist gathering." Of course, it is not the special effects of wind, fire, and smoke that make ...

4328. The Uniting Peace of Christ

Ephesians 2:11-22

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... Sunday. It was the conviction of that little group of ministers that at least one Sunday a year, Christians of all cultures, all countries, all denominations, all associations, ought to spread a table of hope for all humanity. So today, from Russia to Tennessee, from Africa to Mexico, Christians gather in the sure and certain hope that Christ alone can make us one. The peace of Christ be with you. The apostle Paul put it this way: “He is our peace who has made the two one, and destroyed the dividing ...

4329. We Believe in Jesus Christ

John 20:19-31

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... . Hindus, in the name of reincarnation, keep coming back until they get it right. Christianity is the only religion where God comes down to save us by grace through faith, which is God's absolute gift to us. In all other religions you are saved by works, hoping somehow to climb the ladder until you finally get into the presence of God. Sandy and I attended a funeral several years ago out in the country where an uneducated preacher got up and said of the deceased: “Ed is dead. Nobody is going to help Ed ...

4330. How Can This Be?

Luke 1:26-38

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... My search for purpose has ended. I have found my place to be." Songs, good feelings, beautiful liturgies, nice presents, big dinners, sweet words do not make Christmas. Christmas is saying, “Yes" to something beyond all our emotions and feelings. Christmas is saying, “Yes" to a hope based on God's initiative which has nothing to do with what I think and feel. Christmas is believing that the salvation of the world is God's work, not mine. If he can use me in the process, so be it. So this Christmas, May ...

4331. What Would Jesus Say About Marriage?

Matthew 19:3-12

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... down this aisle Saturday after Saturday is, “Are you sure you are ready for this?” I say it to ease the tension of the moment hoping he won’t faint in the midst of the ceremony. Jesus said it to alter tradition. Old Testament Law ordered every woman to be attached to ... we are married unless you get cancer or as long as you stay attractive or until somebody else comes along, what hope is there for real love? Phillip Yancey, on the twenty-fifth anniversary of his marriage, wrote this letter to his wife ...

4332. What Would Jesus Say About War?

Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... to speak up and remove all doubt.” I think about that today. On the one hand, enough has already been said. On the other hand, you keep asking. So in a spirit of prayer and deep humility, I share some thoughts with you today that I hope might guide us as we seek our way forward in this diverse body of faith, as citizens of a beloved country in a world that desperately needs to discover community. United Methodists have never been of one mind about war. Officially we believe “war is incompatible with ...

4333. What Would Jesus Say About Modern Churches?

Mark 1:4-11

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... and shall be preserved to the end of time as the visible body of Christ on earth. The local church remains God's best hope for humanity. For a lifetime now, the Church has captured my heart, my mind, and my deepest devotion. After all these years I can ... to the water and remember your baptism. You have been initiated into the body of Christ. You are the hope of the world. You are water-washed and spirit- filled people of God and by God's grace and your devotion, the best days of the Church are yet to be.

4334. When God Speaks

Psalm 29:1-11

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... God in the storm? God is giving strength. Verse 11 says it clearly, “The Lord gives strength to his people." Isaiah had it right. They who hope in the Lord shall renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not ... in the press was Bloom’s deep abiding Christian faith. He sent this e-mail to his wife just days before his death. “I hope and pray the troops get out of this in one piece. But I am at peace. Here I am supposedly at the peak of ...

4335. The Constant God in a Changing World

Psalm 48:1, 9-14

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... of the Bible Paul says “Love is patient and kind; it does not envy; it does not boast; it is not proud. Love is neither rude nor self-seeking; it is not easily angered and keeps no record of wrongs. It always protects; it always trusts; it always hopes; it always perseveres. Love never fails." I shall never forget one day when the wedding party was gathered at the altar and I was about half way through that reading when the groom fainted— he hit the floor and went out cold as a cucumber. Of course, the ...

4336. The Kingdom for Which We Long

Matthew 13:31-35, Matthew 13:44-46, Matthew 13:47-52

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... mother. When the toddler saw the lady crying, he slid down from his chair, laid down his toys, walked over to the lady and, touching her on the knee, said, “It’s all right, it’s all right, everything is going to be all right.” The lady smiled. The hope of people of faith is that it’s going to be all right even when it seems to be all wrong. The kingdom of God is both now and not yet. Someday Kleenexes will be discontinued and funeral homes will go out of business. Caskets will be converted into ...

4337. Let the Living Begin

John 10:1-10

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... am, I have an obsession about church.” You don’t need me, I need you. For all that I am, all that I hope to be, I owe to the body of Christ who dared to believe in me. So, call me crazy, but I still believe: The Church is the body of Christ. The ... Church is blessed of God. The Church is God’s best hope for humanity. The Church deserves my heart, my life and my deepest devotion. It’s time for some of you to step from the margins into ...

4338. Singing With the Saints of Glory

Revelation 5:11-14

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... SERVE In church we have an outpost of heaven. In worship we get a foretaste of glory divine. The local Church is God’s best hope for humanity. Sometimes in my moments of devotion I am prone to exclaim “This is bigger than all of us.” Surrounded by the saints ... to be incurred with renovations. So what on earth are we going to do for heaven’s sake? The local Church is God’s best hope for humanity. At this outpost of heaven, it’s a foretaste of glory divine. To God be the glory for the things he has ...

4339. Marching Forward by Faith!

Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... 's advice. Porter lived by faith. In Hebrews 11:1-2 we read, “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for." Psychologists say—look within. ... acts of both will and intellect. It goes far beyond belief into active commitment. If belief seeks security, faith accepts risk. Faith is grounded in hope; faith is never final nor certain, but always asking and seeking and living and moving. Life has taught us to hold on. God invites ...

4340. Finding Our Reason For Being

Luke 4:14-21

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... fundamentalists to be about the healing ministry or are we going to take it back into mainline churches of Protestantism in this world? That is a question I would like to raise with you today. Heal me hands of Jesus and search out all my pain Restore my hope, remove my fear, and bring me peace again. It’s time to recover the power of prayer. It’s time to extend the compassion of Christ. It’s time to comfort those who mourn. It’s time to build up the brokenhearted. May the Gentle Healer make himself ...

4341. What is the Future of Marriage?

Mark 12:18-27

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... Fifty years is a long time.” With a gleam in his eye he responded, “Not nearly as long as it would have been without her.” Strong marriages may not make the news, but they are no less real! They are still our best hope for enduring intimacy. They are still our best laboratory for raising responsible children. They are still the foundational fabric of a moral society. Are we doing enough in the church to prepare couples for marriage, strengthen couples in their marriage, assisting couples in developing ...

4342. Welcoming God Into Our Homes

Revelation 21:1-8

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... the grace of God, we parented sons when we knew little, if anything, about parenting - By the grace of God, we made a commitment to hang on when things were hard - By the grace of God, we have persevered, endured, and been born anew. Today we rejoice in the hope that is ours through Christ Jesus our Lord. God is in the renewal business. God is a change agent. God wants to make all things new. So many people say, “You made your bed, now lie in it.” God says, “Rise from your poorly made beds and receive ...

4343. When God Builds the House

Psalm 127:1-5, 1 Corinthians 3:10-15

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... a few years ago that there is a high correlation between church building programs and the transfer of the senior pastor. I questioned his research until I realized that I moved on two of my last three building programs before we ever entered the new facilities. Don't get your hopes up. I have not come to pass, I have come to stay. The good Lord willing and my health doesn't fail, you are stuck with me for a while. There is a verse in Solomon's psalm that I have overlooked for a lifetime. It's verse 2—In ...

4344. The Power of a Helping Hand

Luke 10:25-37

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... when he saw him he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. By birth and by calling, you would assume that someone paid to be righteous would stop to render assistance. Did hope rise and despair follow when the broken man watched the priest pass by, or somehow was he not surprised? If a priest touched a dead man, he was dead meat for service in the temple. He would have to go through all kinds of ritual cleansing to be reinstated ...

4345. From Anger to Courage

Mark 11:12-19

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... for having no fruit and cleanse the temple that had become too cluttered for prayer. Yes, Jesus knew how to be angry. We call His anger “righteous anger." When He saw a wrong, He tried to right it. When He encountered a pain, He tried to heal it. When hope was lost, He tried to restore it. What bothered Him most, got under His skin the worst, was the misunderstanding of His own. He came to his own, but His own received Him not. That was too much. So, He storms into the temple, overturns the tables, takes ...

4346. The Power to Belong

Acts 4:32-35

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... member of that congregation. My devout mother doubted I was old enough to know what I was doing. A few skeptics seemed sure I was not sincere. That was 49 years ago. I still love Jesus and I still believe the local church is God's best hope for humanity. So on this Sunday that we have set aside for membership and confirmation, I want to talk about the power of belonging. I. BELONGING TO A CHURCH INSPIRES US “With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus" (Verse ...

4347. Follow

Mark 1:14-20

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... the depths of our hearts and says to us in the innermost parts of our being, ‘Will you trust Me? I know you don't know everything about Me, but will you trust Me? Will you follow Me?' Here's the formula—Faith + Hope = Trust. Faith comes from personal experience of Jesus as Lord. Hope is reliance on the promise of Jesus. Trust is coming to the conclusion that one thing in life is certain— that is “The Love of Jesus Christ. Jesus loves me no matter what." Trust is not based on proof. Trust is rooted ...

4348. The Road of Joy

Philippians 4:4-7

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... other religion of the world, human kind is searching for God. They climb mountains, observe rituals, pursue meditations, in hope they will somehow be able to connect to the Divine and satisfy their spiritual hunger. Christianity is different. In ... can make us better. It can leave us grumbling or make us grateful. We decide what we will do with what is. Joy is a hope we embrace. Every problem has a life span. No trouble enjoys everlasting life. Things may not get better, they may even get worse, but thanks ...

4349. The Road of Peace

Isaiah 9:2-7

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... child of God. We hate because we want revenge. Out in Katy, Texas, a group of Muslims bought 11 acres with plans to build a mosque. This suburban neighborhood of Houston however, rebelled. Craig Baker, a neighbor, got so mad he put up signs announcing weekly pig races hoping to convince the Muslins to change their minds. Muslins don't hate pigs – don't eat pigs. In despair, I bowed my head, “There is no peace on earth," I said. For hate is strong and mocks the song, of “Peace on Earth Good Will to Men ...

4350. What Can Christians Learn from Buddhists?

Romans 8:18, 28

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... not the curse." And so it happened that one of my sons said to me as I fought my way back from the curse of cancer, “Dad, you are a better person and a better preacher after cancer than before cancer." With tears in my eyes, I said, “Oh, I hope so. Oh, by God's grace, I hope so." So never let your suffering go to waste. Redeem it for the glory of God.

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