Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 4401 to 4425 of 5000 results

4401. How's the Old Complaint?

Deuteronomy 26:1-11

Sermon

Mark Trotter

I love that George Bernard Shaw story about the time he went into a used bookstore. He browsed around the dusty shelves looking for some treasure, the way you and I like to do, and discovered one of his books there. It saddened him to think that anybody would throw away one of his books. He took it off the shelf and discovered that it was a book he had given to an old friend. The inscription was there inside the cover: "To W.T.B., With compliments, G.B.S." So he bought the book, and mailed it back to his ...

4402. Is There Anything I Can Do?

Luke 3:1-6

Sermon

Mark Trotter

You hear it from well-mannered guests, "Is there anything I can do?" It is the polite question to ask the hostess. She gets up to make the final preparations for the meal, leaves the living room. You say, "Is there anything I can do?" Usually the answer is, "No. Just sit there, be comfortable, everything is taken care of." That question is asked more rarely after the meal. It's 11:00 p.m., people still sitting there in the living room, talking. It is not often then that a guest will ask, "Is there anything ...

4403. Landing Instructions

Isaiah 40:25-31

Sermon

Mark Trotter

We were all attracted to the story of Lance Armstrong winning the Tour de France last weekend, that grueling bicycle race. It is one of the great endurance races in the world today. Lance Armstrong won it in record time, two years after undergoing surgery and then chemotherapy for cancer that spread throughout his body, including to his brain. It is a testimony first of all to the wonderful advances that medicine has made in curing cancers, but everyone recognizes as well that it is a terrific testimony to ...

4404. Let Us Pray

James 5:13-20

Sermon

Mark Trotter

The Letter of James has been problematic right from the very beginning. In the first place it's not really a letter, it's a sermon. It was circulated around the Church the end of the first century, because it was thought to be worthy for instruction. Indeed it is. It has some notable epigrams, such as, "Be doers of the word, not hearers only," worthy of being embroidered into a sampler and put on your wall. The main criticism of the letter from the beginning was that it is not like Paul's letters. Paul's ...

4405. Reflections on a Bumper Sticker

Mark 2:1-12

Sermon

Mark Trotter

When I see a bumper sticker, I like to pull up along side the car and see if the message fits the driver. Sometimes it's a surprise. I saw an off-color bumper sticker on a car. I pulled up along side, and saw a little old lady driving. It makes you wonder what's happening to our world. Jean saw a car with a bumper sticker on it that said, "Honk if you love Jesus." So she pulled up along side and honked, and the man flipped her off. So you never know. I saw a bumper sticker that said, "Life is too short to ...

4406. Serpents and Other Signs

Numbers 21:4-9

Sermon

Mark Trotter

The Old Testament lesson this morning is about a serpent on a stick, whatever that is. In fact, it is called a "fiery serpent." This strange passage from the Book of Numbers records an incident in the Exodus, that trek of the Hebrews across the Sinai Desert, out of slavery in Egypt to freedom and a new life in the Promised Land. This passage is known as a "murmuring" passage. There are several of them in the books that describe the Exodus. Murmuring, as in grumbling and complaining, which was constant on ...

4407. Stirring Things Up

Mark 13:1-8, Hebrews 10:11-25

Sermon

Mark Trotter

The Union Tribune carried a series of articles this last week on the variety of religions that are emerging as we approach the millennium. We used to talk about religion in America as Protestant, Catholic and Jew. Now there are more Muslims in America than there are Episcopalians, and soon there will be more than there are Jews. Now with the largest in-migration to this country from Asia, there will soon be a lot of Buddhists to add to the mix in America. So while at the beginning of the 20th century you ...

4408. The Sin of Being Less

Colossians 3:1-14

Sermon

Mark Trotter

There is a story about a woman who rode the same bus to work every morning. One day an old man got on the bus. He was shabbily dressed, obviously down and out. She thought about what she could do to express Christian love to this poor man. How could she reach out and help him? She got up, took a dollar out of her purse, went over to the man, pressed the dollar into the palm of his hand, and said, "Never despair. Just remember, never despair." The next day the woman was on the bus again. The man got on at ...

4409. They Grow Up Fast

Luke 2:41-52

Sermon

Mark Trotter

I selected this lovely hymn this morning, "Once in Royal David's City," because of its reference to the childhood of Jesus. It is one of the few places where you will find any reference to the fact that he grew up the way we have to. The third verse reads, "Jesus is our childhood's pattern; day by day, like us he grew." The hymn was part of a fascinating project, one of a series of hymns written by Cecil Alexander, back in 1848, to teach children the meaning of the Apostles' Creed. "Once in Royal David's ...

4410. This Is a Test

Genesis 22:1-14

Sermon

Mark Trotter

Our text for this Sunday is from the Book of Genesis, the story of Abraham's sacrifice of his son, Isaac. It is one of the most powerful, profound, and disturbing stories in all of the Bible, and all of literature, for that matter. It is the conclusion of the story of Abraham, and therefore it cannot be understood apart from the whole story of Abraham. The story of Abraham is the story of a promise. The promise was given to Abraham, and to Sarah, this childless couple, that they would be given a child, and ...

4411. This Is Not the Race I Entered

Mark 8:27-38

Sermon

Mark Trotter

The scripture lesson for this morning comes from the Gospel of Mark, right in the mid-point of the story. It is the hinge on which the plot turns. Mark has a wonderful symmetry to his gospel. The turning point comes in the exact middle of the narrative. There are sixteen chapters in the Gospel of Mark, and this scene comes in the eighth chapter. Behind us in the first seven chapters are the halcyon days in Galilee, those three years in which he gathered his disciples and taught them. Ahead of us now are ...

4412. Timing Is Everything

Matthew 11:2-11

Sermon

Mark Trotter

There was a joke that came out of the Soviet Union many years ago about a Russian who stood on the street corner in Moscow, and shouted, "Down with Khrushchev!" He was arrested and sent to prison camp for ten years. While he was in prison he had a change of heart, and came to see that Khrushchev was a great leader after all. The only problem was, while he was in prison the times changed, and Khrushchev was deposed from office and publicly denounced. When the man was released, he went back to that same ...

4413. What Time Is It?

Matthew 24:36-51

Sermon

Mark Trotter

As the year wears down, the days become shorter, the nights longer and darker. All people, both in our time and in ancient time, turn to questions of human mortality and the future of the earth. When I was in Mexico at the end of October, I saw the preparation for El Dia de los Muertos, "The Day of the Dead." Shrines were being erected in anticipation of November 2. The picture of the deceased loved one will be placed in the middle of the shrine, the frame of the shrine will be decked with beautiful yellow ...

4414. Where Can I Find the Church?

Acts 2:1-8; 4:32-37

Sermon

Mark Trotter

For nine months now people have been asking me how I liked my trip to Germany, and for nine months I have been telling them I haven't gone yet. Last summer you all graciously gave Jean and me a trip to Germany in commemoration of my twenty years as one of your ministers. Actually, it has taken us nine months to get packed. Anyway, we are leaving tomorrow morning and will be tourists in Germany for two weeks. Anticipating the trip I was reminded of an incident that happened several years ago when I ran into ...

4415. While You Are Waiting

Matthew 25:1-13

Sermon

Mark Trotter

One of the prominent themes of the Advent season is the theme of waiting. One of the favorite lessons about waiting is found in Jesus' Parable of the Bridesmaids, which was read as our New Testament lesson for this morning, and was echoed in the anthem performed by the Contemporary Singers, "Keep Your Lamps!" Jesus' parables are often based on customs that were familiar to the audience to which he first addressed them. The Bridesmaids is no exception. I understand that the custom, which is reflected in the ...

4416. In the Darkness of Despair, There Is the Light of Hope

Isaiah 9:1-7

Sermon

Thomas A. Pilgrim

A student at The University of Georgia got a job as a disc jockey at a little radio station in Commerce, Georgia. He also got a room at a hotel in town and commuted to school, which was not far away. Sometimes at night, he would crawl out of his window and sit on the roof of the hotel. He would look out over that little town. One night when he was up there, he wrote a song called “City Lights.” The rest is country music history. His name was Bill Anderson. An Episcopalian minister in Boston worked himself ...

4417. In the Darkness of Suffering, There Is the Light of Life

John 1:1-18

Sermon

Thomas A. Pilgrim

Several years ago, I read Sidney Sheldon’s Novel, The Windmills of the Gods. I read it with a good deal of interest, though it was not about windmills and it was not about God. I was struck by a scene where the heroine had lost her young husband, a doctor. She was left with her two children, and was trying to put her life back together. She laid awake one night thinking how easy it would be to die, how happiness and love were so easily snatched away. Then this thought ran through her mind, “The world is ...

4418. The Tree That Didn't Get Trimmed

Romans 11:33-34

Drama

Matthew Powell

Cast Storyteller 1 Storyteller 2 Fir Tree Actor 1 (plays Woodsman and Grocer) Actor 2 (plays Lady Shopper and Farmer's Wife) Actor 3 (plays Child, Customer 1, and Cemetery Man) Actor 4 (plays Customer 2 and Farmer) (The two Storytellers stand at opposite ends of the playing area; the Tree stands in the center. Actors 1-4 sit slightly back until they "enter") Storyteller 1: If you walk through a grove of balsam trees you will notice that the young trees are silent. They are listening. Storyteller 2: But the ...

4419. Willibald Krautman's Trip To Heaven

Matthew 11:2-11

Drama

Matthew Powell

Cast Storyteller Willibald Krautman Saint Peter Wife (Storyteller sits or stands off to one side. Willibald stands at center. Wife sits facing away from the audience until she "enters." Saint Peter sits until his "entrance," when he stands on his chair) Storyteller: Willibald Krautman and Christmas - these two things belonged together like a door and its hinges, like a clock and its face, like a bell and its tower. The whole year long, Willibald Krautman thought about, dreamt about, and prepared things for ...

4420. Christmas Every Day

John 1:1-14

Drama

Matthew Powell

Cast Storyteller 1 Storyteller 2 Little Girl Everybody - plays the Christmas fairy, the other children, Mother, Father, the police, and so on. (If the director wants to use more actors, he or she can divide this into two or three roles. However, it works very well if one actor does all the roles and changes voices.) (The actors are standing or seated from stage right to stage left: Storyteller 1, Little Girl, Everybody, and Storyteller 2) Storyteller 1: Once there was a little girl who liked Christmas so ...

4421. Baptism of our Lord

Isaiah 42:1-9, Matthew 3:13-17, Acts 10:23b-48

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

COMMENTARY Old Testament: Isaiah 42:1-9 Yahweh describes the character and work of his Servant. This is the first of four servant songs in Isaiah. In verses 1-4 the Servant is described as chosen and well-pleasing to Yahweh, Spirit-filled, patient, and faithful. In verses 5-9, the work of the Servant is to bring the light of salvation to the world, justice, and he shall be a covenant of the people. How does this passage relate to Jesus' baptism? As the Servant was anointed with the Spirit, Jesus at his ...

4422. Epiphany 3

Isaiah 9:1-7, 1 Corinthians 1:10-17, Matthew 4:12-17, Matthew 4:18-22

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

COMMENTARY Old Testament: Isaiah 8:23-9:3 In the darkness of conquest, a light is seen bringing great joy. Today's Lesson is in part a repeat of Christmas Day. Then it was used as a fulfilled prophecy of the birth of the Messiah-king. Here it is used as fulfillment of the glorious time for the land, "Galilee of the nations." Matthew, in today's Gospel, sees the start of Jesus' ministry in Galilee as the fulfillment of this promise. The historical background: In 734 B.C. Assyria takes into captivity Zebulon ...

4423. Lessons for Year A Epiphany 4

Micah 6:1-8, 1 Corinthians 1:18-31, Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

COMMENTARY Old Testament: Micah 6:1-8 Yahweh has a controversy with his people for their forgetting past blessings and what God requires of his people. This scene is a cosmic law court. Yahweh takes his people to court for he has something against them. The elements of nature are the witnesses to the trial. Yahweh has been offended and asks his people, "What have I done to you?" that you have deserted me. Since there is no answer, he reminds them of past blessings: freedom from slavery and entrance into ...

4424. Transfiguration

Exodus 24:1-18, Matthew 17:1-13, 2 Peter 1:12-21

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

COMMENTARY Old Testament: Exodus 24:12-18 God appears to Moses on Mount Sinai. Old Testament: Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14 The vision of the one who has been living forever. Epistle: 2 Peter 1:16-21 The disciples witnessed Jesus' transfiguration. Epistle: Philippians 3:7-14 To know Christ is to have life. Gospel: Matthew 17:1-9 God is transfigured before three disciples. THEOLOGICAL REFLECTIONS Gospel: Matthew 17:1-9 1. The uniqueness of Jesus. In essence the Transfiguration is a sacred "peep show." Before the ...

4425. Palm Sunday

Isaiah 50:1-11, Matthew 27:11-54, Philippians 2:1-11

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

COMMENTARY Old Testament: Isaiah 50:4-7 Yahweh's servant faces suffering confident of his help. This pericope constitutes the third of the four servant songs in Isaiah. Yahweh's servant hears his voice and is therefore fortified with determination to suffer mental agony in terms of ridicule, false accusations, humiliation, and shame. He suffers confidently because Yahweh will vindicate, help, and pronounce him innocent. Epistle: Philippians 2:6-11 Jesus' humiliation and God's exaltation of him. Paul is ...

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