Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 4351 to 4375 of 4943 results

4351. Wash Up First For The Meal Before You Eat!

John 13:1-17

Sermon

Mark Ellingsen

... I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example [or pattern] that you also should do as I have done to you' (John 13:12-15)." Later the story even continues, and John has Jesus say: "Truly, truly I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master; nor is he who is sent greater than he who sent him. If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them ... A new commandment I give to you ...

4352. Why Did Jesus Have To Die?

Sermon

Mark Ellingsen

"So they took Jesus, and he went out, bearing his own cross, to the place of a skull, which is called in Herbrew Gol'gatha. There they crucified him ... (John 19:17-18)." The story continues, and we know it well. He was crucified with two other criminals - one on each side. We know about the sign that Pilate hung on the cross - proclaiming Jesus (sarcastically) to be "King of the Jews (John 19:19-24)." We know about how the soldiers divided up his clothes ( ...

4353. Led By The Shepherd

John 10:1-21

Sermon

Mark Ellingsen

... a reformer. The status quo must be challenged. The system is not working. Whatever promotes freedom and liberation from oppresive existing structures is good, and we must get behind such movements. Live for today; let the future take care of itself. The great enemy is continuity and the boredom it produces. Still others of us have the instincts of a conservative: We have always done it that way here at church and here in our community. So why change the system? A few proponents of that attitude can be found ...

4354. The Majesty Of God's Love

Matthew 28:16-20

Sermon

Mark Ellingsen

... the idea that we should understand today's gospel story, like we do the transfiguration, as a revelation of Jesus' heavenly glory.2 In a way, then, this resurrection appearance points us to the theme of the day - to the ascension; to the way Jesus is continuing to relate to us as he sits in his heavenly glory after the ascension. There are more clues in Matthew's gospel that today's gospel lesson is properly read in relation to Jesus' ascension. It is, after all, the very end of the gospel. No further ...

4355. Are You Born Again?

John 3:1-15

Sermon

Mark Ellingsen

... exact time when Christ came into our life. Worse yet, even if we could pick out an exact time when we came to Christ, it does not seem like there is anything much different about our lives. To be sure we try to live like Christians. Yet we continue making mistakes: We are unkind and inconsiderate; we lose our temper; we gossip; we may even cheat and steal. And so we wonder and worry about just how good a Christian we are. The result is that texts like today's gospel lesson which talk about being born again ...

4356. Where Have All The Visible Miracles Gone?

Matthew 17:1-13

Sermon

Mark Ellingsen

Today we celebrate the miracle of transfiguration. It is a great story - a great way to continue our Lenten discipline of preparing for the Easter season. Jesus takes three of his disciples up on a mountain with him, and before their very eyes he is swallowed up by the glory of God's great might. In the presence of such glory, his clothes turn white as light ...

4357. Competition In The Kingdom?

Matthew 20:17-19

Sermon

Mark Ellingsen

... whom Jesus actually entrusted his mother as he was dying (John 19:25-27). No doubt about it, these two sons of Zebedee were truly devoted to Jesus. It is believed that James met a martyr's death after being the early church's first missionary to Spain. And John continued to carry on a ministry with Peter in Jerusalem after Jesus' ascension into heaven (Acts 3:1-4; 8:14). Do you and I not try to live as faithfully in our own way? Yet on the day when our gospel lesson took place, this sort of faith was not ...

4358. Previews Of Coming Attractions

Jeremiah 33:1-26

Sermon

Ron Lavin

... in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord who practices kindness, justice, and righteousness in the earth; for in these things I delight, says the Lord. Jeremiah 9:23-24, RSV Jeremiah's fearless criticisms brought him continual trouble with the secular and religious authorities. One sabbath day, the prophet planted himself in front of the temple and sternly predicted its downfall if the people did not mend their ways: Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, burn incense ...

4359. Transformed For The Great Awakening

Sermon

Ron Lavin

... will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. Transformed people - that's what is needed for our day - transformed people who let their lights shine until the second coming of Christ. Radiant smiles and glowing reports of what God has done in Christ and continues to do in the Holy Spirit - that's what transformed Christian people need to share, thus sharing with others the best preview of the coming attraction of God's reign. Let me say it one last time, this time through two children's stories and ...

4360. Good News!

Isaiah 51:17--52:12

Sermon

Ron Lavin

... the surgery with great Christian courage, but we wondered what this bad news would do to Nicolas. Would this major tragedy destroy Nicolas' fledgling faith? A quiet man, Nicolas tried hard to express his feelings of fears that now he might lose his wife. Jean continued to witness that Christ would get them through this crisis. Nicolas prayed out loud for the first time at a quiet supper we shared in an English cottage that was more than 400 years old. The prayer was a thing of beauty and simplicity. "God ...

4361. From Inferiority To Fulfillment

Isaiah 62:1-12

Sermon

Ron Lavin

... his book, Extraordinary Living for Ordinary Men, Sam Shoemaker, one of the co-founders of Alcoholics Anonymous, makes the point that the wedding at Cana means that Jesus came to give us new life and that everywhere we let him in, Jesus continues to do extraordinary things with ordinary people like us. You alone will get nowhere, but you and Jesus Christ together make an unconquerable partnership for extraordinary living. It all depends on whether or not we believe this Word: "Yahweh delights in you." Before ...

4362. No One Enters The Kingdom… Save With Empty Hands

2 Samuel 5:1-5

Sermon

Richard Hasler

... agonizing decisions were made that day. The underlying issue in signing the charter was one of authority. Who was going to rule over us? We chose to bind ourselves together in a covenant under the kingship of Christ. Such an act of submission has continuing implications for all aspects of our life together. In our confession of faith we must be careful that our own special formulation of words and thoughts do not become sacrosanct to the extent that we cannot confess our faith in any other manner. If this ...

4363. How To Hear A Sermon

Micah 1:1-7

Sermon

Richard Hasler

... we are to hear a sermon let us also enter into dialogue with the preached Word. After the worship service one Sunday morning a man greeted the pastor with words to this effect: “We didn’t do so well today.” The pastor asked what he meant. He continued: “Your sermon was not as helpful as it might have been because I wasn’t working with you. There was something in the message that I was resisting.” This man had the right idea about the function of a sermon. Preaching involves not just the person ...

4364. When God’s “No” Means “Yes”

Habakkuk 1:1-4, Habakkuk 2:2-20

Sermon

Richard Hasler

... Schultz’s cartoons Snoopy is dancing merrily along the way with apparently not a care in the world. Lucy confronts him with the rather dismal words: “You wouldn’t be so happy if you knew what was going to happen!” Snoopy ignores her warning and continues to dance merrily on his way and comments to himself: “Maybe it’s already happened!” Snoopy’s attitude captures the spirit of all of us who seek to live by faith. We do not have a detailed blueprint for the future, but we are not worried ...

4365. The Best Offense Is A Good Defense

Zephaniah 3:1-20

Sermon

Richard Hasler

... our new enterprise of faith. They caught something of the spiritual adventure involved, but after a short time it soon became evident that much of the new church development was not glamorous but rather was a mix of hard work, self-discipline and continuing sacrifice. Not everyone who first showed interest was able to accept these conditions, and they eventually dropped out. What does happen when we are willing to let God correct and teach us? What are some of the dominant features of disciplined people ...

4366. Leaping For Joy

Malachi 4:1-6

Sermon

Richard Hasler

... who have become discouraged. They have begun to question the wisdom that other people who ignore or violate the law of Moses seem to prosper. Should they not soften their consciences and follow suit? Malachi declares the word of the Lord admonishing his people to continue in their faithfulness to the law of Moses. The day of the Lord is coming. That great day will be preceded by the appearance of Elijah who personifies all true prophets in Israel. Furthermore, the day of the Lord will bring the conquest of ...

4367. The Road To Emmaus

Luke 24:13-35

Sermon

Thomas A. Pilgrim

... ways is a witness to the power of resurrection. Our words of comfort and hope are a witness to the power of the resurrection. The resurrection of Jesus Christ has made Christians out of us and our lives are a witness to the power of it. And this power continues to sustain our living. It gives us hope for today and all the tomorrows which await us. On the final night of his life when the Washington preacher Peter Marshall lay dying, he said to his wife as she left his room, "I'll see you in the morning ...

4368. Wedding: No Guarantees

Sermon Aid

Scott Campbell

... that the way ahead for you will be smooth and straight. There is no promise that the commitment you make so joyously today will be easy to maintain. On the contrary, the promises which you make to one another will require constant attention and continuing commitment. Just as your love has not begun and does not end with this service of marriage, the relationship to which you publicly commit yourself today is an ongoing, living bond between you. The days ahead will bring changes in your lives. You will ...

4369. Wedding: 1 Corinthians 13

1 Corinthians 1:1-9

Sermon Aid

Mark Pepoon

... as a human being but always looking for that certain “something,” that fulfillment, that source of eternal satisfying love. Christ’s love in us through faith in him gives and diffuses. It renews us in our minds, our wills, and our affections — and will continue on forever with its capacity to give and forgive. Now let us insert the names of you as marriage partners in the same portion of Scripture. In the place of that word “love,” we will use your names, as two Christian people. Remember, it ...

4370. Wedding: Love and Fear

1 John 4:1-6

Sermon Aid

Charles E. Wolfe

... long haul. When a man and woman fall “in love” the sky-rockets explode. When they decided to form a family before God, however, much more is involved than the sky-rockets. It is the will, and not emotion, which maintains a family over the years. They can continue loving even when they don’t feel like it. First John does not use this particular verb of the love of man and wife, but in Ephesians 5:25 husbands and wives are to love each other as Christ loves the church. This had better be more consistent ...

4371. Rejoice In The Lord

Isaiah 9:1-7

Sermon

Robert Beringer

... Isaiah, however, believed in a God who cares, and who never stops caring even when we turn our backs on God. In ancient Rome, sensitive and cultured people for years had protested in vain the butcheries that took place in the arena. The bloody contests continued until one day, a Christian monk by the name of Telemachius leapt into the ring, and pushing himself between two gladiators, cried out, "In the name of Jesus Christ, stop!" A sword flashed, and the defenseless man fell to the ground. But it must have ...

4372. The Illusion Of Neutrality

Deuteronomy 30:11-20

Sermon

Robert Beringer

... know it, would pass out of existence, and with it would go the mainspring of Christianity - the one insitution that keeps alive the redemptive power of God's revelation in Christ. Some people can afford to be neither for or against the church, only because others continue to be stubbornly and devotedly for it. Thank God for the sometimes faithful few, who have been willing to pay the price to keep the doors of a church open. Neutrality is always a luxury for which someone must pay the price. 2. The Refusal ...

4373. Is Anybody There? Does Anybody Care?

Isaiah 49:8-26

Sermon

Robert Beringer

... describes a God who has a plan to work out in this world. Like a wise and loving parent, God shares our falling and rising, our weeping and our laughter, and somehow God weaves it all into a grand design. 2. God Is At Work In Everything Isaiah continues his encouragement to his people by insisting that God is at work for good in everything that happens to them. Picturing God as a shepherd, the prophet says, "They shall feed along the ways, on all bare heights shall be their pasture; they shall not hunger or ...

4374. The Baby Who Changes Everything

Isaiah 7:1-25

Sermon

Robert Beringer

... noble concepts that motivate our lives at their best, freedom and peace, decency and kindness, forgiveness and love, all these we have drawn from Emmanuel. Of course, all these things did not happen at once, and much remains to be realized in our world as Christ continues to challenge us over the problems of war and race, economic injustice and the source of AIDS. But let us never forget that the One who began life as a baby in Bethlehem is the one who has changed all things! Kenneth Scott Latourette, the ...

4375. What Is God Like?

Isaiah 63:7--64:12

Sermon

Robert Beringer

... . The God about whom Isaiah wrote so long ago and whom we meet in Jesus Christ is none other than the master architect of human life. God's touch can change lives that are out of tune, lives that are battered and scarred by years of sinful living. As we continue to celebrate this wondrous Christmas season, let this be a time when we draw close to God and discover again the God of steadfast love, the God who suffers with us, and the God who redeems us in amazing grace and mercy.

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