Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 426 to 450 of 3160 results

Luke 5:1-11

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... Officer, I told her that I was in a real big hurry, that I had a close connection. She saw that I was obviously nervous and anxious. I'm not sure what else she thought -- you know you hear these stories about how they detect drug smugglers and that sort of thing -- whatever the case, she saw my anxiety and quick as a flash, for some reason, she said, "What is your profession?" Well, I didn't think too much about that, so I simply responded, "I'm a Methodist minister." I was not prepared for her comeback ...

427. Branching Out

John 15:1-17

Sermon

Michael Milton

... , disciples can be called Christians and have common language, common culture, sing the same hymns, read the same Bible, share membership in the same church, and yet not have union with Christ. What did Jesus say? Jesus talked about His coming as a time when there will be a sort of immigration line. In Matthew 25.31-46, He described a time when people will line up before Him, on His right and on His left. He spoke of sheep on His right hand and goats on His left hand. And Jesus says that He will tell both ...

428. Commencement Address

Acts 1:6-14

Sermon

Bill Mosley

... we should lift up the good, whatever is good in anyone or anything, and celebrate it for what it can be. Not all mothers are good, but motherhood is good. Don't you think? What an ambiguous sort of occasion this is! -- a happy day for some of us, sad and troubling for others, for a whole host of reasons. And what an ambiguous sort of occasion the Ascension of Jesus is! On the one hand, it says he is among us still, and will be until the end of time, and sends his power among us in the Holy Spirit. But ...

429. Connect the Dots

Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23

Bulletin Aid

Frank Ramirez

... Hid from who, Lord? They're as clear as glass. Who could fail to understand your parables? Unless, of course, we simply don't want to face the facts. We are not seeds - we make choices. Yet your parable causes us to consider - what sort of seed have we become? What sort of soil do we choose to plant ourselves in? We see at last, Lord, that your parables are not clear glass for us to look through. They are mirrors. We see ourselves. Good move, God. Amen. Hymns "O Worship The Lord" "Wonderful Grace Of ...

430. The Reward

1 Corinthians 3:10-11, 16-23

Sermon

James L. Killen

... know until some crisis makes it obvious. Paul introduces the idea of a judgment day into our thinking. "... the work of each builder will become visible, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each has done" (1 Corinthians 3:13). Are we talking about the final judgment? Paul may have been. But judgment day can come right in the middle of life when something happens that puts our building to the test, something like a catastrophic illness ...

431. Living Hope

1 Peter 1:3-9

Sermon

Richard W. Ferris

... hope. As long as we have a breath of life left in us, we have a living hope. And as long as we have our assignment for tomorrow, we continue to believe that tomorrow is a possibility. Go to any rehabilitation hospital and you will find people with all sorts of needs and ailments. When people enter a hospital like that, they find out quickly that they have to work to get better. A stay in a rehab hospital is not an easy vacation. Patients learn a lot about themselves that they didn't know they were capable ...

432. Because

1 Peter 1:1—2:3

Sermon

Richard W. Ferris

433. No Longer Damned

Romans 8:1-11

Sermon

William G. Carter

... There is another cousin who served in the first Gulf War as a demolitions expert with the Marines. He blew up things for a living. Mostly he blew up things that belonged to other people. Can you help me sort out which one belongs to God, and which one does not? It's a mystery to me. I think only God can sort it out. All I can say is Romans, chapter 8, verse 1: "Therefore, there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." Tony Campolo tells the story somewhere about getting a phone call at home. A ...

434. The Day of the Lord

1 Thessalonians 4:13--5:11

Sermon

Rick Brand

... time, and there is no sense worrying about it. Yet, it is an absolutely essential last chapter to the biblical story. If there was no expectation of the moment when God brings forth his kingdom in fullness, in completion, when God does come to shake and to sort and to judge the powers and principalities of this earth, then we should of all people be the most to be pitied. The Second Coming of Jesus Christ is the symbol doctrine for the completion of the story of God's love. It is the promise which brings ...

435. He's Back

Mark 1:1-8

Sermon

Mark Trotter

... Judah, destroyed the city of Jerusalem, then took a portion of the population of Jerusalem back with them to Babylon, as sort of an insurance against an uprising. It was cheaper to move potential trouble makers back to Babylon then to garrison an ... experienced Jesus' requirement of him. He knew he had to change. He read in the Bible that Jesus, too, was a revolutionary of sorts. He had come to overthrow a power that was holding the world in bondage. But he specifically rejected the temptation to use violence ...

436. Now Stand Up Straight!

Luke 13:10-17

Sermon

Mark Trotter

... number of books I can't return roughly equals the number of books that have never been returned to me, I figured there was some sort of natural law at work here, some invisible hand that was meting out justice. One of the books that I read last week on my ... Church in Los Angeles, to come and speak to a gathering of about 3,000 young people, most of them members of gangs. It was sort of a gang summit. Chip Murray invited Rodney King to address them. King hesitated. He said, "I can't speak to this large group of ...

437. The Source of Self Esteem

Romans 8:14-25

Sermon

Mark Trotter

... live in a democracy that was supposed to dismantle hierarchies. But if you've noticed, all societies arrange themselves into some sort of hierarchy, always a few at the top who are privileged, and a great mass of people at the bottom who ... attention to the world. It pays no attention to the structures that the world sets up to put us in our place. But after a while, the world sorts us out, tells us who we are, tells us what our place is. "This is assigned to you. You stay there now." We begin to live the life ...

438. Transformed in Christ

John 3:1-17

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... monarch Queen Victoria. One day her highness paid a visit to a paper mill on the outskirts of London. Without realizing who his distinguished visitor was, the foreman showed the Queen around the facility. She went into the rag sorting shop of the mill where workers sorted rags that were refuse from the city. Upon inquiring what was done with these seemingly worthless rags, she was informed that they would eventually become the finest white writing paper. After the Queen's departure the foreman was informed ...

439. Pentecost! Slow ... and Sure!

John 20:19-23

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

... , the first day of the week." This means the early church was having a Sunday evening fellowship meeting. And what would you find should you enter that church? Let's suppose you're searching for a church home and you go visit the early first church. What sort of group would you find? The text tells us there was a pervasive atmosphere of fear in the meeting. Not joy, not love, not teaching - but fear. You see, Jesus had been crucified within the past week, and the disciples did not know but what they would ...

440. Go to Heaven?

Matthew 25:31-46

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

... and the goats. Those to whom Jesus says, "Come!" and those to whom Jesus says, "Depart!" Those who are so self-absorbed they live without God and with no service to others, and those who in humility become God-aware, trusting, and servants to others: These are the two sorts of person in our world. They are the two who will stand before God at the last day to be judged. Which person are you? Suggested Prayer: I am poor before you. And I care. O make me meek and hungry as I trust in your provision. Amen.

441. Once More with Feeling!

Luke 17:11-19

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

... or too something to say a sincere thanks. Why, it seems like the words thank you are becoming more and more rare. Thanksgetting is sort of like an endangered species these days. It may even become extinct like the great whales or the whooping cranes. Why don't we ... too big for us to deal with. So we ignore it, feeling a bit guilty. Every time we read verses like 1 John 3:17, we sort of cringe. "But if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's ...

442. Jesus Calls for Treen Christians

Matthew 13:31-35

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... breadth trees provide our landscape and our lifescape with three dimensions. Think how flat our world would be without trees. Trees allow us to rise above the surface of the earth on which we walk while. Tree branches weave a living room across the sky where all sorts of birds and animals and insects gather. No wonder Jesus found the image of the gigantic mustard tree-like shrub a fitting symbol for the kingdom of heaven. In fact, the parable of the mustard seed is less about the seed than it is about the ...

443. Missing the Mark

1 Samuel 8:1-22

Sermon

Charles Allo

... a government. We could be attacked anyway and anytime. As I tell my story, I bet that you too are reliving those memories now in some sort of way. I bet you can recall where you were, what you were doing, how this made you feel. Well if you can relate to these ... probably cause more harm in adding the salt on the wounds again. But honestly these are normal in that everyone goes through some sort of situation that hurts us. It definitely doesn't make it right, but I am bringing this up to tell you that you ...

444. The Longest Running Parade in History

Psalm 118:1-29

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... deserved by such a dignitary. The problem with Palm Sunday celebrations, however, like that first joyous parade into Jerusalem, is that they never get out of the parking lot. In fact it is a problem endemic to parades of all sorts. They don't have any momentous grand finale. They just sort of peter out. In Matthew's gospel when Jesus reached the temple he dismounted, entered the temple-courtyard, and in a rage, drove out the money changers and dove sellers. But the crowd has disappeared. There is no mention ...

445. The Monsters We Are All Afraid Of

Luke 20:27-40

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... . There could be dragons, unknown monsters, waiting for us there. On September 11, 2001, we all passed through a portal of sorts. The closet door we had long been edgily ignoring suddenly blew open and a terrible monster did leap forth. Once that ... him scares me when I jump into my dread. He hasn't any notion of how adults ought to play And tries to make a fool of me in every sort of way. He stays so close beside me, he's a coward you can see. I think it shameful to stick to people as my ego clings to me. ...

446. Son-burned, Wind-blown, Earth-Stained

Luke 12:35-48

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... to check in at some overnight establishment (even though these were always cheap, family-friendly motels). If a bus trip was involved we had to look even nicer, since we'd be traveling with all sorts of other people. Besides, since it cost money to ride the bus we were supposed to see the long, hot trip as some sort of special occasion. The first time I rode in an airplane, it was definitely a formal affair. For my parents, the pricier the trip, the more formal the attire. Last month, the ranks of the ...

447. ASAP

Luke 11:1-13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... first big solo adventure. Yet because of their joined-at-the-ear, cross-country cell phone connection, father and daughter were never out of touch. No one was really ever completely on their own. The dad got peace of mind (sort of). The daughter got her independence (sort of). And no one had to face being completely alone, isolated from what was happening to the other. Thanks to cell phones, instant messaging, pagers, voice mail, and satellite hook-ups, the whole world seems to know each other's business ...

448. Innercizing Your Shopping List

1 Thessalonians 3:6-13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... alone. In fact, despite the fact that Paul apparently did successfully make a return trip to this congregation, what they truly lacked was something not even Paul himself could teach them the rapturous experience of a life lived in faith through all sorts of advents and armageddons, all sorts of peaks and pitfalls. This may be the first Sunday of Advent on the church calendar. But for those of you who make your living in retail, this is the first of five weekends that determine whether you will end the year ...

449. Show and Listen

Acts 8:26-40

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... fighting, the door bell is ringing . . . and this fool on the phone launches into some selling spiel that can go on for ten minutes before a breath is drawn. The best, simplest defense is just to hang up. But I admit, its hard to resist making some sort of caustic comeback. Even worse, how many of you have actually had the telemarketer call you back wondering "how did we get cut off?" Or they call back irate, angry at you for hanging up on them! These telemarketers are the twenty-first century's most common ...

450. It Is Good News!

1 John 4:7-21

Sermon

James McCormick

... He is meek and lowly of heat, and ye shall find rest unto your souls.” The music stopped and the two students got up to leave. The young man again turned to the woman and said: “I really don’t believe it, but every time I hear it, it sort of gets to me, you know?” They thought they were through with God - all done with that Sunday School stuff. But God wasn’t through with them. Through that lovely music He was reaching out to them. And it was Christmas again! That’s the good news – not that ...

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