Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 4326 to 4350 of 4972 results

4326. The Technicolor Sign

Genesis 9:1-17

Sermon

Larry Powell

... cans and glass jars, and I had not anticipated the difference being so disconcerting. Strangely confused, conscience-stricken and afraid, I somehow managed to muster the wherewithal to sling the air rifle against the side of the barn and run to the house. Leaving a piece of my overalls on the top strand of a barbed wire fence, scattering chickens all over the backyard, and sobbing uncontrollably, I bounded upon the back porch. Grandmother heard me coming well before I arrived. Straight into her arms I ran ...

4327. An Old Plan For New People

Genesis 17:1-27

Sermon

Larry Powell

... sun. Sunday morning, he carefully brushed the hand-me-down trousers with the palm of his hand and slipped into the clean shirt. Barefoot, he stopped along the way to wash his feet in water which had accumulated in a road-rut, and dried them with leaves. As we would suspect, he entered the church quietly and assumed an inconspicuous place on a back pew. It was a "white folks" church and Charles felt terribly uncomfortable. In a while, the minister invited all children who could read to come forward to the ...

4328. When Ten Equals Two

Exodus 20:1-21

Sermon

Larry Powell

... I am not speaking now of the polite nod or mental tip-of-the-hat which one solemnly executes in the presence of things which inspire those kinds of gestures, wherever and whatever they may be. I am speaking of the kind of reverence which leaves one slack-jawed, awe-inspired, elevated above the ordinary. Sometime ago, it was my privilege to visit St. Giles Cathedral in Edinburgh, Scotland, and to be absolutely overwhelmed by a sense of God’s majesty. One feels incredibly small in the midst of something so ...

4329. A Thimble Full Of Ocean

Jeremiah 30:1--31:40

Sermon

Larry Powell

... his thoughts, Henry continued reading the paper. Later that evening, the wife said to Henry, "I’m going to bed now, dear. Don’t you sit up and grieve about something that is in the past." The next morning, Henry paused to tell the wife goodbye as he was leaving for the office. "Now I don’t want you to worry about what you did," she said. "Try to forget about it." Then there was the time at the dinner table she told him that God had forgiven him for what he had done, she had forgiven him, and ...

4330. Behold the Blood of the Covenant

Exodus 24:1-18

Sermon

Larry Powell

... , if thou art willing, remove this cup from me; nevertheless not my will, but thine be done" (Luke 22:44). The disciples had their own agenda. They were sleepy. Matthew tells us that they dozed three different times. Preoccupied by fatigue, they were content to leave matters of the kingdom and the business of the New Covenant to Jesus (something they never would have done had they understood what had been said to them at the table). He needed them, the ministry of their presence, in this dark hour and they ...

4331. Man Of Sorrows

Isaiah 52:13--53:12

Sermon

Larry Powell

... , bridled his conscience and secured his position. He also added his name to the list of "Deserters." Jesus was totally alone. It was as he had said: "The hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, every man to his home, and will leave me alone" (John 16:32). He was in that moment "a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, and as one from whom men hide their faces" (Isaiah 53:3). There Had Been a Conspiracy Actually, there had been numerous conspiracies, but they had all been directed ...

4332. Marduk? or Yahweh?

Isaiah 40:1-31

Sermon

Richard L. Eslinger

... who remained behind, the signs were poignant and dear. The Temple of the Lord, where the swallows once nested, was now a ruin. Its pillars now looked like the tree trunks of a cut-over forest. In the streets of Jerusalem, scrub brush grew tall in the streets, its leaves rustling in the dry wind. The walls of the city had been a metaphor of the glory of Zion, but now they spoke a parable of the irony of a people chosen for judgment. Jerusalem looked like the morning after. The other sign of God’s wrath was ...

4333. We May Have to Change Our Name

Isaiah 61:1-11

Sermon

Richard L. Eslinger

... is a gift and not an achievement. The victories belong to the Lord. But if there is something abnormal in a church which refuses to take time for praise and the "wasted time" of worship, it is equally sad to see a church which never leaves its walls for service to a world in need. Then its praise rings hollow and the people, incredibly, begin worshiping their own image. An early-warning signal of this disease may be sounding when a congregation prints up brochures for visitors, pointing them to the ...

4334. Will the Real Prophets Please Speak Up?

Deuteronomy 18:14-22

Sermon

Richard L. Eslinger

... for themselves. Given all these self-anointed prophets, it is obvious that the question must be raised as to real prophecy. Who are the true and who are the false prophets? "Will the prophets of God please stand up?" Some would insist, though, that we leave things pretty much like they are. "Shouldn’t we look for the good in everybody?" "If someone says he or she is a prophet, well, okay." "It would be rather illiberal of us to presume to judge among the prophets anyway." And so the prophets continue ...

4335. A Royal Lament

2 Samuel 1:1-16

Sermon

Roger Prescott

... jacket that he wore in preference to pajamas. Dave would watch him kneel beside his bed and say his prayers. Then he would get into bed, and say to Dave, "Goodnight, pal, will you please put out the light?" Dave would put out the light, leave the apartment, say goodnight again to the Secret Service agent on duty in the downstairs hall, and drive home to his own house in McLean, Virginia. - Kenneth O’Donnell and David F. Powers* (*Johnny, We Hardly Knew Ye, Little, Brown, 1972, p. 264.) When Kennedy ...

4336. The Establishment of An Empire

2 Samuel 5:1-5

Sermon

Roger Prescott

... came riding into Jerusalem on his flea-bitten mule a thousand years later, it was as the Son of David that they hailed him.* (*Frederick Buechner, Peculiar Treasures, Harper & Row, 1979, p. 24.) We do not know what our lives will become either. Our faith leaves the door open to many mysteries - and their celebration. And after a beginning, David’s career moved along with strength. And David became greater and greater, for the Lord, the God of hosts, was with him. - 2 Samuel 5:10 There were plenty of ...

4337. An Unusual Legacy

2 Samuel 23:1-7

Sermon

Roger Prescott

... a blend of good and evil, strength and weakness, hope and despair. But there is another important document that makes up a part of our lives. A will. That which we bequeath to our families and to our world. Sometimes there isn’t much money involved, but we all leave a legacy (whether we know it or not) by the lives we live. Our narrative today, 2 Samuel 23:1-7, is often called "the last words of David." Whether he or some later writer composed these words doesn’t really matter. They sum up some of what ...

4338. King of Atlanta

Romans 8:28-39

Drama

Michael L. Sherer

... the streets of Atlanta, to special services at Morehouse College, where he was once a student. It was the largest funeral procession for a private citizen in American history. LECTOR: If any person would be my disciple, let him take up his cross and follow me. As the drama participants leave the chancel, the congregation sings the hymn, "Lift High the Cross."

4339. Childs of Center Point

Drama

Michael L. Sherer

... things through Christ who strengthens me." I memorized that when I was in confirmation class. Trouble was, I never really took it very seriously. LECTOR: If anyone would be my disciple, let him take up his cross and follow me. The congregation sings "Lift High the Cross" as the participants leave the chancel.

4340. Gretchen Felt Sad

Luke 18:15-17

Children's Sermon

Shirley Jennings

... you like to sit beside me for a few minutes while you’re feeling sad?" "Yes," she said. "Okay," he said, "We’ll sit here together for a few minutes while I talk to your mother." So while they talked, Gretchen sat beside him. When the minister was ready to leave, Gretchen wasn’t looking sad anymore. Then the minister and Gretchen told each other goodbye. She waved at him and he waved at her, and she smiled and so did he. What do you do when a friend can’t come to play with you? I tell my mom or ...

4341. Making Friends

Proverbs 17:17

Children's Sermon

Shirley Jennings

Object: None Lesson: Knowing how to be friendly is important. What do you do when you’re here at church and children you don’t know come to Sunday school class or junior church? Leave them alone? Talk to them? Just talk to the people I already know? A new person would probably like to know your name. You could say, "I’m Betty;" or: "I’m John," or: "What’s your name?" Then listen carefully so you can remember the other person’s name. ...

4342. Should Christians Always Oppose War?

Romans 13:1-7

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... they would kill the sheriff. The movie focuses on one particular day. The sheriff has just married the beautiful Grace Kelly. She happens to be a devout Quaker utterly opposed to all violence. The sheriff resigns from law enforcement and the couple is about ready to leave town on their honeymoon. He is going to start a new life as a rancher. Suddenly word comes that the outlaw brothers have been released from prison and are due to arrive that very day on the noon train. Everybody urges the couple to get out ...

4343. The Whip of War

John 2:12-25

Sermon

Brett Blair

4344. Partners in the Impossible

John 6:1-15

Sermon

Richard Patt

... to be fed. Feeding the hungry was part of Christ’s mission, and is part of ours. But again the statistics make us partners in what seems to be the impossible. Two-thirds of the world’s food production is consumed by one-third of the people. That leaves the food supply for two-thirds of the world’s people in question. And of those two-thirds, one-third live in severe, agonizing hunger each and every day. By what kind of impossible political coup do you and I turn those facts around? This story in our ...

4345. Give Me Jesus!

John 6:60-71

Sermon

Richard Patt

... we come to the little exchange of words in today’s Bible story. In verse 66 we read: Because of this, many of Jesus’ followers turned back and would not go with him any more. So he asked the twelve disciples, "And you - would you also like to leave?" Simon Peter answered him, "Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life." To put it in modern terms, wasn’t Simon Peter really saying, "Give me Jesus!"? Yes, when all else is said and done concerning our life and religion, give me ...

4346. Then He Went Home

Mark 3:20-30

Sermon

Ron Lavin

... to change. What is it that divides a home? What is it that divides a family? What is it that divides friends? What is it that divides a nation? What is it that divides nation from nation? The answer is clear: An arrogance and pride that leaves no possibility for repentance and forgiveness. The ancient words of Jesus are more contemporary than our morning newspapers. Much has changed in the past 2,000 years. The human heart remains the same. It can pump blood as long as it has not turned to stone. Jesus ...

4347. Let Us Cross To The Other Side

Mark 4:35-41

Sermon

Ron Lavin

... going back to former ways of thinking, says, "From now on, therefore, we regard no one from a human point of view" (2 Corinthians 5:16, RSV). There you have it "from the human point of view" - that is, the side that we humans seem incapable of leaving. We are in the center, asking the questions, feeling that we are uncared for, asking, "What are we doing here?" That question comes at the apparent breaking point. But the breaking point may be the turning point, because we no longer see things just from the ...

4348. Divine Alka-Seltzer

Mark 8:31--9:1

Sermon

... a hope. How to expand the vision in the midst of pain? Even to the point of rejoicing? Well, read on. There are times in my life when I just want to run and hide. I remember an incident when I was nine years old. My father was ready to leave the house to go to the hospital for what turned out to be a very serious cancer operation. How much of that I understood I don’t remember, but I do recall vividly hiding in my parents’ bedroom, somehow believing that if I just didn’t say goodbye to my ...

4349. You CAN Take It With You

Luke 24:36-49

Sermon

... scars, most of us will carry emotional scars with us to the grave and beyond. Like any disciple, we will show signs of anxiety and doubt, of fears and of failures that have taken their toll in this life. These emotional scars may leave their visible signs, as well. For within, our bodies will be psychosomatic testimonies to unresolved feelings, unvented hostilities, and unspoken truths from our life here on earth. The holes and ulcers marking us will betray emotional scars that were never healed because we ...

4350. My Soul Is Glad - Because of God

Luke 1:46-56

Sermon

... pain and agony, the final arriving at a point where he could live with what had happened. It is noted that "he has always been a deeply religious man. His faith, he said, not only has sustained him through his injury, the ensuing complications and his wife’s decision to leave him after his release from the institute, but it has also given him a sense of a divine hand in it all." What an irony! A divine hand in all of that? "Perhaps, he said, it is his lot, after having fallen, to be a symbol of hope." No ...

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