Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 4376 to 4400 of 4939 results

4376. Who's Number One?

Exodus 20:1-3

Sermon

James Merritt

9/11 - All of us know that date. Because of that date, another cabinet level department was created to serve the President of the United States - Department of Homeland Security. Note the keyword in that department which is home. The greatest way to protect the homeland is to protect the homes in that land. That is why I am beginning a series of messages I am entitling "Homeland Security." We are going to be dealing with the Ten Commandments, because the greatest way to protect our homes is to teach our ...

4377. Finishing Strong

Nehemiah 9:38--10:39

Sermon

James Merritt

The Constitution of the United States had just been signed and America was officially a nation. Benjamin Franklin walked out of the meeting room where many people were anxiously awaiting the news. One lady by the name of Mrs. Powel walked up to Benjamin Franklin and said, "So Mr. Franklin what type of government have your delegates given us?" Benjamin Franklin gave this famous reply - "A republic madam, if you can keep it." What Ben Franklin meant by that was, the Constitution had laid the foundation for ...

4378. More Than a Book

2 Timothy 3:10--4:8

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

Today we presented each of our third graders a Bible. Why did we do it? Certainly their parents could afford to buy Bibles, and I imagine that in each of the homes from which these children come there are more than one Bible. It isn’t that we thought that if we didn’t get a Bible to them, they would not have access to the scripture. So, why did we do it? We did it to make a statement - to say not only to these children, but to ourselves - all of us - that for the Christian in the church this is it. This is ...

4379. The Essence of the Gospel

2 Corinthians 4:1-18

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

I don’t know how It Is with you, but I can recall occasions when a text of scripture grabbed my imagination, gripped my mind, burrowed its way into my soul, and became a part of my being. In many instances, I can relive the setting when that happened, and it energizes my life. Our scripture for this is such a case. It was Senior Recognition Day at Candler School of Theology, Emory University, 1958. From the time I answered the call to preach as a seventeen- year-old country boy in Mississippi, I’ve always ...

4380. The Lord’s Prayer and The Stones-Serpents-Scorpions Story

Luke 11:1-13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

What you do is your history. What you set in motion is your legacy.” Are you just pouring concrete or building a skyscraper? Every one of us wants to leave a “legacy.“ Something that outlasts our biological lives and can somehow continue to declare “I was here.” For a very few this is achieved through intellect or infamy, greatness or great sacrifice. But for those of us who know we are not Augustine or Martin Luther, or Christopher Columbus or George Washington or Albert Einstein or Martin Luther King, Jr ...

4381. Powerless People

Judges 4:1-24

Sermon

Argile Smith

Some time ago, someone in Fred’s congregation asked him to read a book by a fellow named Tex Sample. As pastor of the church, Fred always appreciated the opportunity to read books recommended by his congregants. His long years of ministry had taught him that in almost every book he could find at least one good idea. Sometimes the idea would find its way into one of his sermons. At other times, the idea would be tucked away for further examination, or it would be presented over coffee to engage the people ...

4382. Jesus Heals Body and Soul

Mark 1:29-34

Sermon

King Duncan

Two of our greatest presidents were born in February, George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. One of the things I love about Lincoln was his sense of humor. Abe Lincoln laughed at himself, and especially at his appearance. He was reportedly a very plain looking man. I particularly like one story that Lincoln told on himself. He said, “Sometimes I feel like the ugly man who met an old woman traveling through a forest. “The old woman said, ‘You’re the ugliest man I ever saw.’ “‘I can’t help it,’ the ugly man ...

4383. Saints Are Awake to Life's Deepest Joy

Luke 6:20-31

Sermon

R. Robert Cueni

Today we observe All Saints. Because it is an important celebration, we need to come to some agreement on what is meant by a "saint." If you Google the word, you discover many different definitions and understandings. Among some Protestant groups, every Christian becomes a saint upon joining the "Church Triumphant." In that understanding, All Saints honors and remembers all who have died in Christ and sainthood is the designation of all deceased Christians. Among other Protestants, saints are understood, ...

4384. The Second Appearance and Its Sequel

John 20:19-23, John 20:24-31

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

The scene shifts from the tomb in the garden to a locked room somewhere in Jerusalem, and from “early on the first day of the week” (v. 1) to the evening of that first day of the week (v. 19). Despite the faith of the beloved disciple (v. 8) and despite the message brought by Mary Magdalene (v. 18), the disciples as a group are still afraid. Their reaction to her message is not recorded in John’s Gospel, but another tradition appended to Mark by later scribes states that after Mary had seen Jesus she “went ...

4385. Thanks for Their Gifts

Philippians 4:10-20

Understanding Series

F. F. Bruce

Paul’s Sufficiency Paul now comes to one of his main reasons for writing. If this note (4:10–20) was an integral part of the main letter, he has reserved it to the end to give it prominence—his expression of thanks for the gift that Epaphroditus had brought him from the Philippian church. 4:10 I rejoice greatly in the Lord, meaning “I gave joyful thanks to the Lord” (when I received your gift). Paul is grateful to the Philippian Christians for the gift they have sent, but his rejoicing arises chiefly from ...

4386. The Year of Canceling Debts

Deuteronomy 15:1-11

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

Release of Debts and Slaves: Those who see the order of the Decalogue reflected in the structure of the laws in Deuteronomy 12–26 relate the whole section from 14:28 to 16:17 to the fourth (sabbath) commandment. The sabbath commandment focused on the needs especially of the dependent sections of the population (5:14) and was motivated by God’s redemptive action on behalf of Israel when they were oppressed slaves (5:15). Chapter 15 is saturated with the same social concern and the same motivation. It is the ...

4387. Revolutionary Rules For Living

Luke 6:27-36

Sermon

Derl G. Keefer

Author Bob Welch observed that in Les Miserables that the uprising that Victor Hugo observed occurred in June, 1832 as a small Parisian insurrection that lasted only a short time. It was more of a street riot with a tragic outcome. Quoting Hugo, Welch said that the uprising was a defiance against the royalist government of France as a reaction to three problems of the day. First it was a defiance of man by the exploitation of his labor. Second, it was in opposition of the ruination of women by starvation ...

4388. Bigger, Better, Basta!

Luke 12:13-21

Sermon

Lori Wagner

Have you ever seen a hoarder? A true hoarder? I don’t mean someone who collects teacups, baseball cards, or precious stones. A collector displays selected objects for all to see. A real hoarder stuffs things away for fear of not having enough. In fact, a hoarder never has enough! Hoarding is a very private disorder, one that usually accompanies isolation, fear, and phobia. A psychological disorder, hoarding is not only isolating, but it can be dangerous, causing problems in living conditions, cleanliness, ...

4389. The Most Important Question

Acts 10:34-43

Sermon

Charley Reeb

Have you ever heard a golfer miss a three-foot putt and say, “Thomas Jefferson!?” What about a plumber mash his thumb and scream, “Robert E. Lee!?” I haven’t either, but many shout the name of a man who was born two thousand years ago in a backwoods town to a poor unwed teenage mother. Many exclaim the name of a man who was shamefully executed as a criminal at the age of thirty and died homeless and poor. Ironic, isn’t it? For some mysterious reason, Jesus is the most famous figure in all of history. More ...

4390. Getting Out Of Our Own Way

Matthew 16:21-28

Sermon

Roger G. Talbott

I'd like to ask you to relax for a moment about the clothes that you are wearing. Think about how your clothes say something about who you are: your gender, your age, your economic status, maybe even how you feel about yourself. As you think about that, imagine yourself in quite different clothes. Note that your real self would not change. Even if you were wearing Eskimo clothes or Arabian clothes, you would still be who you are, so your real self is not your clothes. Therefore, you are not your clothes." ...

4391. The First Hole

Acts 2:42-47

Sermon

Robert R. Kopp

Awe came upon everyone.... -- Acts 2:43 I grew up in the Forty Fort United Presbyterian Church near Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. Though the church has been around for over 200 years, I'm its only son who became a pastor. They even have a picture of me hanging near the back door under an exit sign. Despite my mom's assurances, I've always wondered why it ended up there. That suspicion aside, Forty Fort U-P did more than any other in shaping my life and ministry. That's where I met Jesus, kissed a girl for ...

4392. Advent 1

1 Thessalonians 3:6-13, Jeremiah 33:1-26, Luke 21:5-38

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

COMMENTARY Old Testament: Jeremiah 33:14-16 The days are coming when Yahweh will fulfill his promise to send a son of David who will save his people. This prophecy by a post-exilic author is a repetition of Jeremiah's original promise in 23:5-6. Jeremiah predicted that the Davidic kingdom would be restored soon after the fall of Jerusalem in 586 B.C. when Judah was carried captive to Babylon. During the exile the people lost hope of the restoration of their nation. The unknown author repeated Jeremiah's ...

4393. The Better Part

Luke 10:38-42

Children's Sermon

B. Kathleen Fannin

Visual Aid: A basket suspended by its handle from a strong rubber band; a work glove; a small bag of toys such as marbles, a doll, and a stuffed animal; a mathematics textbook; a music book; a baseball; a can of pet food; a Bible; a box to hold all this stuff. Lesson: Stress; making choices; helping one another. As the children come to the front of the sanctuary, I take the work glove and basket out of the box and ask one of the taller boys if he will help me out this morning. He agrees, so I hand him the ...

4394. Twelfth Night

Luke 2:1-7, Luke 2:8-20

Drama

Jerry Eckert

Comment: For Christmas Eve, 1993, we went to a simple format. The liturgist and I alternated as we did prayers, carols, and scripture texts about Mary, Joseph, and Jesus, and concluded with a candlelight ceremony. Planning for 1994 again made us search our imaginations. Maybe these moods go in cycles. We felt we wanted something more for this new year. I suggested the "You Are There" format (from CBS's radio and television programs of that name) and that got several excited. It involved people from the ...

4395. Lent 2

Luke 13:31-35

Bulletin Aid

Jack Brownlee

ORDER OF SERVICE Opening Words L: Let us worship our Creator, the God of Love. P: God continually preserves and sustains us. L: We have been forgiven to embrace new life. P: Through Jesus Christ we have received the full love of God. Hymn "How Firm A Foundation" Prayer Of Confession Unto thee, O Lord do I lift up my soul. I put my trust in thee, O God. Show thy paths, teach thy ways, lead in thy truth; remember, O Lord, thy tender mercies. Do not remember my sin. Take from me my self justification. Center ...

4396. Lessons From The Mountaintop

Exodus 24:1-18, Matthew 17:1-13

Sermon

Robert Beringer

Frederick Buechner in his book, Peculiar Treasures, writes about Moses in the following way: "Whenever Hollywood cranks out a movie about Moses, they always give the part to somebody like Chariton Heston with some fake whiskers glued on. The truth of it is, he probably looked a lot more like Tevye the milkman after 10 rounds with Mohammed Ali. Moses up there on the mountain with his sore feet and aching back serves as a good example of the fact that when God puts the finger on people, their troubles have ...

4397. Encounters With Christ III: Jesus and Nicodemus

John 3:1-21

Sermon

James W. Moore

His name was Paul. He lived in a small town in the Pacific Northwest some years ago. He was just a little boy when his family became the proud owners of one of the first telephones in the neighborhood. It was one of those wooden boxes attached to the wall with the shiny receiver hanging on the side of the box… and the mouthpiece attached to the front. Young Paul listened with fascination as his mom and dad used the phone… and he discovered that somewhere inside the wonderful device called a telephone lived ...

4398. Windows Of Wonder

Sermon

James Angell

I feel life is so small unless it has windows into other worlds.- Bertrand Russell "Windows On The World" is the name of a classy restaurant atop the World Trade Tower in New York. It has tall panels of windows, and it is one of the best places - especially around sunset - to see what the Apple looks like from 60 or 70 stories up. "Windows" is also a metaphor in preaching that describes the role illustrations play in making sermons concrete, powerful, and memorable. They let the light in. Through them we ...

4399. The Freedom To Be Wrong

Luke 18:9-14

Sermon

I want to begin with a situation that might happen to a young person. I hope that those of us who are older will think back to our youth and put ourselves into the same story. Let’s say you’re still living at home and going to school. On a Saturday night you take the family car. Let’s admit you’re an excellent driver and that you have the right to think of yourself as careful and prudent at the wheel. This is the image your parents have of you and you’re pleased with that. Good for you. You are with the ...

4400. ADVENT 1

Jeremiah 33:1-26, Luke 21:5-38, 1 Thessalonians 3:6-13

Sermon Aid

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