Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 4326 to 4350 of 4977 results

4326. An Invitation to Christian Discipleship

Matthew 4:18-22

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... Dive in deeper. To somebody else Jesus says, Let’s GO FOR A GREAT ADVENTURE. It is time to ride the rapids. I don’t remember exactly when it happened in the tides of time, but the Lord came to me one day and said, “Howard, it’s time to quit paddling in the pond. Come with me to ride the rapids.” To say that I was scared is more than you can imagine. I liked it beside the still water. Yet the call was persistent and profound. Reluctantly I followed. “Is the river deep?” I asked my divine Guide ...

4327. The Difference Disciples Make

Matthew 5:13-16

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... secure?” Most of the time you and I live in a world of work and commerce. It is a world that honors people for being attractive and productive. It reveres winners and scorns losers. It rewards independence and deplores dependence. Most of us have done quite well in that world. We have a very hard time believing that everybody else is not just like us. But they are not. Not everyone has your intelligence. Not everyone is fortunate enough to have your health. Not everyone got the breaks that you have gotten ...

4328. When It’s Time to Seek Direction

Matthew 2:1-12

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... Everything else in life can wait, but the search for God cannot wait”. Larry King says, “I have a lot of respect for true people of faith. I have interviewed hundreds of them, I have always searched myself and I envy people who have it. I just can’t quite make the leap for myself.” According to Newsweek Magazine, a mother has a 4 year old who comes in the door and says to her, “What’s that man doing on the cross?” The child has seen a crucifix. The mother said, “I knew instantly that I had ...

4329. Hearing the Questions of Children

Genesis 22:1-14

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... so sorry, I didn’t know your mother had died, how did it happen?” He looked up to her and with tears in his eyes said, “Well, everybody knew it, it was on the television. My daddy choked my mama to death. Why didn’t you come?” I can never quite forget the echo of that child’s question in my mind—“Why didn’t you come in my hour of need?” Those of us at the Annual Conference last week learned that the children in Kamina, Africa eat, at best, only twice a week. Somebody has got to be asking ...

4330. Deciding To Excel In Everything

II Corinthians 8:1-7, 11-12

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... with you about it for just a moment. Someone said, “Money talks.” I guess it does. According to legend, a hundred dollar bill and a dollar bill got into a conversation at a local bank. The hundred dollar bill said to the dollar bill, “Man, I’ve had quite a life. It’s been a wonderful life. I’ve been on cruises; I’ve been to resorts; I’ve been to exotic places all around the world. I can tell you that life is exciting and wonderful, a grand adventure. Mister Dollar, how has life been for you ...

4331. Praising God All Day Long

Psalm 100:1-5

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... , is auctioned cheap to a thoughtless crowd, much like the old violin. A joint of pot, a glass of wine, a game—he travels on. He's going once; he's going twice; he's going; he's almost gone, but the Master comes and the foolish crowd never can quite understand, the worth of a soul or the change that's wrought by the touch of the Master's hand.' We are God's people. Let us never forget. We have been bought with a price. We are redeemed by the blood of the crucified One. According to the dictionary ...

4332. The Fellowship of Kindred Minds

Philippians 1:1-11

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... churches, thought I was worth trying to help. Every Sunday she would make a list on the bulletin of all the grammatical errors I made in my sermon and give them to me on her way out of church. There was a little church who just would not let me quit when I wanted to give up, having grown weary in well-doing. They kept me in the pulpit. You have names for those people. Even now, you can remember their words. In fellowship we are blessed with people who share the journey of faith. “I thank my God every time ...

4333. The One in Whom We Glory

John 12:12-19

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... airline pilot." Things are not always what they appear to be. There is not much shock and awe in a mustard seed or yeast in dough. Not many people find treasures in fields or precious pearls in oysters. Even though the kingdom of God is like these things, be quite assured, our God reigns. II. OUR GOD RULES. For thine is the power. Power, all power, surely is thine. But don't be fooled. Not power to force, but power to forgive. Not power to hurt, but power to help. Not power to destroy, but power to deliver ...

4334. Let Go of the Stone

Mark 16:1-8

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... embrace a life of HOPE. Never morning wears to evening but some heart breaks, a heart just as sensitive as yours or mine. In the last few months, Sandy and I have buried our grandson and walked through the valley of the shadow of death with my father. Quite candidly I must admit the grief is greater than I imagined, the sorrow is deeper than I anticipated. Morning after morning I rise from my sleep saying, “Lord, I need to snap out of this," yet the fog is dense, the sadness lingers, and the fact remains ...

4335. We Believe in Jesus Christ

John 20:19-31

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... . Zacharias one day how he came to be such a profound Christian. Dr. Zacharias replied, “I was raised in India in a nominal Christian family. At 17 I found myself under a lot of pressure. In our home, academic performance was of supreme importance. I couldn't quite make the grade and I became deeply depressed. One day at school I checked out some poisons from the science lab, put them in a glass of water and swallowed them. I was rushed to the hospital. A friend came to see me and read me Jesus' statement ...

4336. How Can This Be?

Luke 1:26-38

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... heaven was a 13-15 year old peasant girl from the nowhere place of Nazareth, a hilly, hick town southeast of the Sea of Galilee, with a population of less that 100, counting chickens and dogs. She was engaged to a carpenter by the name of Joseph and was quite anxious to pledge her loyalty and sacred honor to this older man who would provide her a home and a family. Who was Mary? She is an ordinary teenager, for whom God has an extraordinary mission, namely to give birth to the Son of God. Behold the mystery ...

4337. What Would Jesus Say About Materialism?

Luke 12:13-21

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... , twenty-six discarded tires, eighty-five hundred bottles, seventeen thousand cans, one ton of plastics and eight and one-half tons of paper. Is that what the generations to come after us will have? Are we investing in that which out lasts us? Jesus was quite clear about it when he said, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures in earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven where moth and rust do not destroy and where thieves ...

4338. What Would Jesus Say About Marriage?

Matthew 19:3-12

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... . Marriages die. The same God who raised Jesus from the dead can break hearts of stone. That is our Christian belief, isn’t it? It also takes willing persons to enter in to that resurrection. When is it time to go? When trust is destroyed. Jesus was quite explicit about this in all of his teachings. He always made an exception to this covenant rule, for adultery. Dave did not mean to hurt anybody, he was just lonely, feeling inferior and needing a little boost to his ego. The flirting he started with the ...

4339. Come, Holy Spirit, Come

Psalm 104:24-34

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... wind. In the New Testament the word for wind is Pneuma, which means spirit, breath, air. Your problem, Nicodemus, is that you are short of breath. You are worn out, tired—too many night meetings, too many stressful days. Nicodemus you need to be born again. Quit trying to control the wind; let it blow and be born from above. Try being instead of doing. Job knew what it was to have the breath knocked out of him. In one sweeping disaster he loses his farm, his family, his assets, his accumulations. Lying ...

4340. We Believe in the Forgiveness of Sins

1 John 1:5-2:2

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... cleanses us from all sin. Keith Miller said: For years I tried to clean up my life without confession. I was like a man who kept fumigating his house but had a basement full of dead dogs. Things somehow looked clean but they never smelled quite right. Confession is good for the soul because it opens the doors of forgiveness. III. THE FREEDOM OF FORGIVENESS If we confess, God who is faithful and just will forgive. When it comes to forgiveness, God takes the initiative. God invented forgiveness as a remedy ...

4341. Diving Deeper

Luke 5:1-11

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... a lift? We start the Christian life with high hopes and great expectations. We believe God can do anything but fail—then illness strikes, divorce happens, death comes, jobs disappear and God doesn’t seem so mighty anymore. Today we are torn between the desire to quit and the courage to carry on. Or we’ve given ourselves to church service and invested our energy in church systems. We’ve endured our blows from church politics. It’s all taken a toll. We’ve hurt so much that we’ve become uncaring ...

4342. Believe

Matthew 1:18-25

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... poverty, possessed by greed and power. Sometimes I get down on my knees and say, ‘Can’t the good people of this world, whatever their faith, find a better way? Can’t we together find a better way?’ It’s time for some creative thinking. It’s time to quit choosing up sides and yelling at one another. It’s time to find a higher road. It’s time for conscientious people to begin thinking outside the box. I live my life by a simple motto: “It’s not what happens to you but what you do with what ...

4343. Lost and Found

Luke 15:1-10

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... used to usher and my wife used to sing in the choir, but when we made the move to the new sanctuary (which tells you how long he has been gone) we got lost in the shuffle. We felt shut out by our Sunday school class and we slowly just quit coming. I started playing golf on Sundays and felt a closeness to God that I didn’t feel in church. Classify me as you wish, but until I feel a sense of fulfillment from church, I probably will keep playing golf.” People are lost to narcissism. Some people cannot ...

4344. News Too Good To Tell

Luke 9:28-36

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... voice. “This has been the worst day of my life,” she said. “It was awful at the office. We lost our biggest account; co-workers were obnoxious; clients were unreasonable. I came home to find the kids had broken my favorite lamp; the baby sitter is quitting; and the water heater is out; and now surprise of surprises, my normally sober husband comes home drunk.” Perhaps all of us are a little circumspect about surprises. If things seem too good to be true, they usually are. We even feel that way about ...

4345. What Is the Future of United Methodism?

John 2:12-22

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... .” Independent churches are generally led by entrepreneurial pastors who attract self-serving members longing to have their needs met by a congregation. Although about 80% of such church-starts are aborted within ten years, some in our day have been quite successful at attracting huge numbers of constituents. What’s wrong with churches geared to customer service designed to meet their members’ needs? Isolation. No man is an island. No one walks alone. So Bill Hybels, pastor of Willow Creek Community ...

4346. What is the Future of Marriage?

Mark 12:18-27

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... . It marks off a boundary of privacy and security from the rest of the world. Open Marriage is an oxymoron. Even those who promoted the idea back in the ’70’s have had second thoughts. Marriage is not for everyone and need not be. Paul was quite clear about the value of singleness. Jesus was a single adult. Let those who enter this union find the grace to be faithful. The greatest enemy of marriage, according to Jesus, is adultery. Experts still estimate that 40% of married women and 50% of married men ...

4347. The Dynamics of Being a Dad

Ephesians 6:1-4, Ephesians 6:10-20

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... is the first commandment with a promise. A Sunday school teacher asked her elementary students what they thought the promise meant. One mischievous boy replied “I guess it means I better do what my parents tell me or they are liable to kill me.” Not quite—the commandment has more to do with Social Security and Medicare than with disobedient minors, although the principle applies to all. When we honor the elderly we rise above the rest of nature and become our true human selves. God expects more of us ...

4348. The Door of Service

Luke 22:7-38

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... matters. When I pastured a church in the heart of the city, our front steps would often be covered with whiskey bottles on Sunday morning. I made a habit of carrying them into the church and discarding them in my trash can. The habit created quite a stir since members have a way of knowing what pastors place in their trash cans. The discussions didn't alter my practice, however. It was one small way I could help on Sunday morning. Some service is rendered in being served. Peter protests against Jesus ...

4349. Luke 9:51-62

Luke 9:51-56

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... Judaism by making the focus of their faith the shrine at Mt. Gerizim instead of Mt. Zion. Samaritans rejected both the theological and political authority of Jerusalem, the Temple, and its priestly hierarchies. In the eyes of Jerusalem Jews, Samaritans were not quite Gentiles, but they certainly stood outside God’s favored status. Again, it was a family feud. Jesus’ approach then is to those who have already rejected the authority of Jerusalem. Yet the villagers reveal themselves to be just as deaf to ...

4350. The Power to Rise Again

Mark 16:1-8

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... great “gettin' up" morning is available to you and me. We who are dead in our trespasses and sins can find new life in Christ. We who are walking through the valley of the shadow of death can find a Savior who walks beside us. We, who quit living before we died, settled down to just survive, who are still marking time, but missing life – we, too, can rise again! “For Jesus came that we might have life and have it abundantly" (John 10:10). II. RESURRECTION POWER WILL HELP US BREAK FREE The question ...

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