Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 4326 to 4350 of 4972 results

4326. The Right Connection

John 15:1-8

Sermon

James Merritt

... hover over him and drop a rescue line and gradually hauled him back to earth. Well, as soon as Larry Walters hit the ground, he was arrested, and as he was being led away in handcuffs, a television reporter called out, "Mr. Walters, why did you do it?" He stopped, eyed the man, and then simply said, "A man just can't sit around." There is far more to life than just sitting down doing nothing. Every person has been put on earth for two reasons: First of all, to know God in their heart; secondly, to show God ...

4327. The Ministry of the Holy Spirit

John 16:7-11

Sermon

James Merritt

... judgment he would receive. If Satan, the king of sin, has not escaped judgment, neither will his subjects. But only the Holy Spirit can convince you that that is true. Dr. R. A. Torrey, a great preacher, was traveling one time through the countryside, and he stopped at a little family hotel. He asked the proprietor if it would be all right if he gave a devotion to the family since it was kind of a family hotel? The proprietor said, "All right." Well, Dr. Torrey gathered everybody together, and being a great ...

4328. Going For the Gold

Joshua 1:1-9

Sermon

James Merritt

... done for them in the past, the Passover, the parting of the Red Sea, the manna in the wilderness, was to get them ready to go into Canaan. He had brought them out that he might bring them in. But what happened to them has happened to many Christians; they stopped in the wilderness. They settled for the bronze when they could have had the gold. Jesus Christ did not die and come out of the grave just to get your soul into heaven, but to get heaven into your soul. In this first chapter we learn God's battle ...

4329. Dad: The Head of a Godly Family

Joshua 24:15

Sermon

James Merritt

... to go to church; it is not even the father's job to allow his family to go to church. It is the father's job to take his family to church. Every father ought to have a sign on his desk that reads: "The buck stops here." THE LIFE OF THE FAMILY NEVER RISES ABOVE THE LEADERSHIP OF THE FATHER. Worldly fathers produce worldly families. Selfish fathers produce selfish families. Godless fathers produce godless families. But spiritual fathers produce spiritual families. b. He Made a Demand of His Family Joshua said ...

4330. The Thrill of Victory Beats the Agony of Defeat

Judges 7:1-17

Sermon

James Merritt

... Christianity. Several years ago I visited a lady who had visited our church. She said, "We just left a church because they were going into a building program." She said, "We don't mind giving, but we are tired of having to pay for more buildings." I just stopped the visit right there. I said, "Excuse me, I'm in the wrong house." She said, "Why do you say that?" I said, "Because we are about to start a new building program." She never came back. I want to give you fair warning. A soul-winning, evangelistic ...

4331. No Excuses

Luke 9:57-62

Sermon

James Merritt

... else do you do for a living?" You see, what most people never see are the letters that must be answered, and the phone calls that must be returned, and the problems that must be solved, and the criticism that must be heard, and the rumors that must be stopped, and the people that must be seen. They get into the ministry and realize that it's not all glitter and glamour and flash and dash, and they drop out. Well, this man thought that following Jesus was all sunshine and no rain, all comfort and no pain. I ...

4332. What Impresses God

Luke 18:9-14

Sermon

James Merritt

... is, this man thought then what a lot of people think today—he thought his goodness gained him brownie points with God. He thought God accepts a person based on what they do for Him. He was religious and proud of it. Let me just stop right here and make an application. If you are trusting anything—church membership, church attendance, baptism, religion, good works—other than Jesus Christ to make you right with God, and to get God to accept you, you are fooling yourself. The Pharisee thought that God ...

4333. Are You Going to Fish or Cut Bait?

Mark 1:16-18

Sermon

James Merritt

... his stated authority. That is, people ultimately cannot and will not follow a leader unless that leader deserves to be followed. Billy Graham was in a certain town years ago, and he wanted to mail a letter, but he had no idea where the post office was. So he stopped a little boy walking the street and asked him if he could direct him to the nearest post office. Well, the little boy said, "Yes sir, go down to the red light, turn right, go two blocks to the second red light, turn left, go one block, turn back ...

4334. It Was the Birthday of a King

Matthew 1:18-25

Sermon

James Merritt

... world, and that is to seek and to save that which was lost. Now you need to understand that back in those days Jesus was an ordinary Jewish name. It was as common in that day as the name John is common today. When Mary named that boy Jesus nobody stopped to ask what she meant by that name. There were a lot of other little boys running around that countryside with the name Jesus. I imagine that there were even mothers who said after Mary had her baby, the last thing we need around here is another kid named ...

4335. Why Were the Wise Men Wise?

Matthew 2:1-12

Sermon

James Merritt

... the ancient land of Persia, better known as Babylon. That was a three hundred mile journey through a hot barren Syrian desert. Keep in mind, they probably came by camel; not by airplane, not by train, not by car. There were no restaurants, hotels, or rest stops. They had to face hostile tribes, they had to cross the swirling Tigris and Euphrates rivers. They had to fight the hot desert sun, serpents, vipers, gnats, and locusts just to get to Jesus. I think about today how we have to make everything just ...

4336. Thou Shalt Not Judge - True or False?

Matthew 7:1-6

Sermon

James Merritt

... are looking for the speck. I have found that every church has "speck inspectors." I call them "splinter specialists." They are part of the FBI—the Fundamentalist Bureau of Investigation. They just love to find fault with other people. But having said that, if we stop here we won't understand what Jesus meant, because the key to this passage is v.5, where Jesus tells us how to walk the tight rope between confronting the sin and condemning the sinner: "Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye ...

4337. Put Up and Shut Up

Proverbs 18:21

Sermon

James Merritt

... about anything. He said, "I have never been hurt by anything I didn't say." b. Use Your Tongue Carefully I want to come back to this matter of gossip. We have seen how Solomon condemns the tongue that starts gossip, but he also praises the tongue that stops gossip. "A talebearer reveals secrets, but he who is of a faithful spirit conceals a matter." (Prov. 11:13) "He who covers a transgression seeks love, but he who repeats a matter separates the best of friends." (Prov. 17:9) The tongue should be used as a ...

4338. Manual Labor Is Not the President of Mexico

Proverbs 6:6-8

Sermon

James Merritt

... . Solomon said, "Slothfulness casts one into a deep sleep, and an idle person will suffer hunger." (Prov. 19:15) The sluggard doesn't work, therefore makes no income; with no income he can buy no food; with no food he goes hungry. But the problem does not stop there. Listen to what else Solomon says about the sluggard: "The slothful man does not roast what he took in hunting, but diligence is man's precious possession." (Prov. 12:27) "A slothful man buries his hand in the bowl, and will not so much as bring ...

4339. How to Lower Your Temper (-ature)

Proverbs 16:32

Sermon

James Merritt

... Godhead experience anger? God the Father knows what it is to be angry. No less than eighteen times the Old Testament speaks of "the anger of the Lord." To those who want to emphasize the love of God exclusively against the holiness of God, Psalm 7:11 is a show-stopping verse: "God is a just judge, and God is angry with the wicked very day." The word angry in the Hebrew language literally means "to foam at the mouth." Do you know how angry you have to be to foam at the mouth? Yet, God is just that angry with ...

4340. If the Confession Doesn't Fit You Cannot Acquit

Proverbs 28:13

Sermon

James Merritt

... getting caught, and not sorry for the hurt your actions caused. Accept the consequences. Now that may mean going to jail. It may mean being formally charged with a crime. It may mean resigning from office. But do whatever is necessary. Alter your behavior. Stop doing the behavior that violated the commands of Scripture and gave you a guilty conscience to begin with. Ask for forgiveness. Ask the person you offended to forgive you. After you have done these things, you know your confession has been real. III ...

4341. Mom: The Heart of a Godly Family

Proverbs 31:10-31

Sermon

James Merritt

... of calling "Mother." I. The Value of a Mother's Worth The section begins with this question, "Who can find a virtuous wife?" Well, whoever does hits the jackpot because Pr. 18:22 says, "He who finds a wife finds a good thing, and obtains favor from the Lord." Now stop and analyze that question. He does not ask "who can buy a virtuous wife?" for a virtuous wife is not for sale. He asks "who can find a virtuous wife?" You've got to look for a virtuous woman, you've got to search for her. The word virtuous ...

4342. America: You Are Too Young to Die

Psalm 80:1-19

Sermon

James Merritt

... starboard side to the port side bearing down on two sailors who were frantically trying to work with some sails, and did not even see the cannon coming. Without a moment's hesitation, this naval officer through himself in front of this cannon and somehow stopped it before it reached those two shipmates. Both of his legs were broken under the tremendous weight of this cannon, but he saved the day by throwing himself under the gun. Well, the next morning this young naval officer, on crutches and in tremendous ...

4343. The God of Grace and Glory

Psalm 84:11

Sermon

James Merritt

Let me ask you a question. What is God to you? Sometimes you ought to just stop and really think and meditate on that one question. Or maybe I should say, Who is God to you? Without question, the psalmist who penned Psalm 84:11 had a deep relationship with God. He knew what God was; He knew who God was. I love this verse. Whenever I ...

4344. God's Favorite Day

Psalm 118:24

Sermon

James Merritt

... was good? Did you hand out a smile, or just give them a frown, Did you lift someone up—or push someone down? Did you lighten some load or some progress impede, Did you look for a rose or just gather a weed? Did you trust in the Lord or stop and say "no," Did you come to the Savior or say "I won't go?" What did you do with your beautiful day, God gave it to you. Did you throw it away? God's favorite day is today. If you're lost you can make today the greatest day ...

4345. The Law of the Harvest

Psalm 126:5-6

Sermon

James Merritt

... are crowned, and the site of the funeral of Princess Diana. I thought about an elderly lady who was in a group of tourists visiting London, and the guide was explaining the history behind Westminster Abbey. She interrupted him and said, "Young man! young man! will you stop your chatter for a moment and tell me one thing—has anyone been saved here lately?"1 That really is the question that should be asked of every church. Has anyone been saved here lately? Someone has said, "If a man has a soul (and he has ...

4346. Team Work is Dream Work

Psalm 133:1-3

Sermon

James Merritt

... must work together, we must stay together. So I want to talk to you today about the vastly important subject of unity. I. The Beauty of Unity David begins with a simple word "Behold." Now the word behold in the Hebrew language would be our way of saying today, "Stop, Look, and Listen!" David is telling us that a fellowship that is united and a people that are one, is a sight to behold. In fact, I don't believe there is a more beautiful sight anywhere on the earth when God's people are truly united under the ...

4347. Our God Is an Awesome God

Psalm 139:1-18

Sermon

James Merritt

... like a "know it all?" Well with God, it's not acting; He is the true "know it all." I Jn. 3:20 says, "God is greater than our heart, and knows all things." Has it ever occurred to you that nothing ever occurs to God? He never has to stop and think about anything. God is just like your teenager—you can't tell him anything because he already knows it all. That is why secret sin on earth is open scandal in heaven. Abraham Lincoln once said, "You can fool some of the people all of the time, and ...

4348. Just Know Him In His Visible Return

Revelation 1:7-8

Sermon

James Merritt

... the second coming of Jesus Christ. If you want to know him in his visible return, you must take three attitudes toward his second coming. I. We Must Accept the Virtual Fact of His Coming John begins by saying, "behold," that word has the force of "stop, look, and listen." There is to be no doubt, no hesitation, no equivocation, no indecision about the fact that Jesus is coming again. a. Bold Declaration of His Coming John says, "He is coming." He did not state this as a possibility, a plausibility, or even ...

4349. God's Will: Don't Leave Home Without It

Romans 12:1-2

Sermon

James Merritt

It was one of those attention-grabbing headlines that made me stop and read the article. The headline read: "Plane With A Mind Of Its Own Crashes." The story that followed was not only very funny, but illustrated a great truth. Here is the story: Paul Sirks owned a Vintage single-engine plane, a 1946 Aeronca Champ. He had landed the plane ...

4350. Love: The Happiness of a Godly Family

1 Corinthians 13:4-7

Sermon

James Merritt

... of you men are objecting in your heart right now, saying, "I'm just not the hugging kind." I realize that hugging and kissing in the family today has become more the exception than the rule. Even in caring homes, most parents, particularly fathers, will stop touching their children once the children reach the grade school years.3 Well, men, the Bible paints a different picture. The greatest father perhaps in the New Testament, was the father of the prodigal son. When that big strapping boy came home from a ...

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