Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: thirstiness, dryness, parched, craving, strong desire, longing, yearning, avidity, hunger, voracity, keenness, eagerness, lust, appetite, passion, love, crave, want, covet, desire, hunger for/after, lust for/after, hanker for/after, have one's heart set on

Antonyms: aversion, distaste, apathy, dislike, hatred, antipathy, disgust, disregard, abhorrence, acrimony, wet, animosity, animus, antagonism, bad feeling, bitterness, be averse to, detestation

Showing 4476 to 4500 of 5000 results

4476. Heart To Heart

Ezekiel 18:1-32

Sermon

John R. Brokhoff

... to heart! Get A New Heart! "Get yourselves a new heart and a new spirit," says God in our text. What a challenge, but why should we want a new heart? What is wrong with the one we have? One reason for a new heart is in the heart itself. It is of crucial importance ... than the heart. One time a man took a pendulum to a clock repair shop to get his clock running again. He said he wanted the pendulum fixed because it no longer swung. The clock man said that he needed the whole clock in order to make the pendulum ...

4477. Out of the Darkness

John 9:1-12

Sermon

Robert Bachelder

... begin to use our resources to reduce the dreadful poverty which gives rise to crime. As the General said, you cannot produce peace with hate and a club. A strong defense is necessary, but strong social and economic structures are just as important. Of course, we want the world to be safe for democracy. But we would like to be safe in our homes and on our streets as well. Samuel Willard, the Congregationalist divine who preached the Election Sermon to the assembled magistrates in Boston in 1682, said on that ...

4478. Messages From God

Matthew 3:13-17

Illustration

Brett Blair

... My #1 Best Seller? There Will Be a Test.--God It's a cute campaign and clever and it would be nice if God actually would spend a little more time advertising his thoughts. But this is the fault in us humans. We want a definitive answer. We want some rules to go by and we want to be told how to behave and what we should do. The Ten Commandments do this for us but we slowly found out --through centuries and centuries of countless sins and human atrocities--that we were not able to abide by them, not perfectly ...

4479. Stephen’s Stones

Acts 7:54--8:1a

Sermon

Richard F. Bansemer

... we were there and heard him say things that dying persons seldom say. Let’s try to imagine ourselves standing down by some lake where there are plenty of stones. The sky is blue, and the wind is warm. A seagull from the coast is soaring, and a mob wants to kill someone - me - you, because of what we believe. It’s tough to believe it could happen, but if it did, I see it ending very differently. Who among us would be able to keep the faith when persons surrounded us with heavy stones determined to cast ...

4480. Eternal Echo Of Easter - Part 1

Matthew 28:1-10

Drama

Esther R. Russ

... brought glad tidings - her Son, Jesus, was alive! Later, Peter, John, and I returned to the tomb. They had doubted my report and wanted to see the empty tomb for themselves. Afterwards, they hurried away to tell the other disciples, leaving me alone in the garden. I ... Galilee? I returned to the tomb where his body had lain; I touched the remains of the burial linens. I wept bitterly. I had wanted to show him one last time that I loved him, and now - now I could not even anoint his body. Suddenly, two angels ...

4481. "Two Men in White Suits"

Matthew 25:31-46

Sermon

Peter Rudowski

... he is called to the principal’s office, winds up saying, "I must have done something great in art today. Ah, I must be wonderful to get all these rewards. I must be the citizen of the week. I bet I got another A in history, and the principal just wants to ask me some perspective types of questions." We all know those kinds of people. We delight when the principal says to them, "You parked your car in the wrong spot. Get it out of there or we tow it away. If it happens again, you’re suspended." We’re ...

4482. Who Keeps Getting in My Way?

Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon

Wallace H. Kirby

... happy myself. I pray for world peace, but my deeper prayer is that I may be secure and undisturbed." As Jesus looks at the whole picture, he says our central authority cannot be self. It must be God. "Seek first the Kingdom of God," and we want to. Oh, how we want to! But we keep getting in our own way. Highway markers exhort us to "get right with God." To many of us that means confessing our sins, pleading for forgiveness, and starting with a clean slate. It does mean that, but it means more. To get right ...

4483. Who Has Everything?

Matthew 5:5

Sermon

Wallace H. Kirby

... . I’ve told her that she’s got to get out there and scratch and assert herself if she is to ever get anywhere." I have sat with a pastor-parish committee in a local church and heard a member state emphatically that we "don’t want a meek, mealy-mouthed preacher; we want a bold and aggressive person who can stand up to anyone." Our whole concept of meekness, in society and in business, in the home and in the church, makes us wonder what in the world Jesus had in mind when he said: "Blessed are the meek ...

4484. He Bore Our Sins

2 Corinthians 5:11--6:2

Sermon

Dennis Kastens

... is a God, and I’ll tell them he is just and holy, but that they are too bad to come to him." "That won’t do," answered Satan. "Their very need will drive them to him. And their Bibles tell them how God invites sinners to receive pardon. I want something more clever than that to ruin men." Once more the demons heard the terrible question ring through the courts of darkness, "Who will go forth to ruin souls?" There was a pause. Then in his dream he saw a third demon come forward and say, "I will." "And ...

4485. Will My Ship Sink or Float?

Romans 8:28-39

Sermon

Robert G. Tuttle

... work it out." Then when we have done all we could, he speaks, he appears, he pulls us through. We learn both from the struggle and from the loving help of God that pulls us through. At times God speaks, but we are too busy to listen. We do not want to hear what he says. It is contrary to our plans. Sometimes we hear the voice of God, and tomorrow we wonder if we imagined it. Obey it as we hear it and we will know. God has spoken to me unmistakably maybe five times in my life. He has ...

4486. Shepherding One Another in a Collapsing World

Romans 9:1-29

Sermon

Robert G. Tuttle

... and in the process being cleansed from poisoned memories." Colson’s Jewish lawyer, Shapiro, asked him, "How do you do it? ... Two indictments, a lynch mob at the court house, everybody in town howling for your hide ..." A direct answer came from Chuck, "If you really want me to explain, we’ll have to start 2,000 years ago. That’s where you boys missed the boat." (And that is what is breaking Paul’s heart.) Colson pleaded guilty, when he didn’t have to. He went to prison. It was a very difficult ...

4487. The Need for Transfiguration

2 Peter 1:12-21

Sermon

Hubert Beck

... drab, so hum-drum, so dull, so boring even to one’s own self that one could hardly stand it? In moments like that - and for some people a good part of their life seems to be spent like that! - we feel that we simply must get beyond ourselves. We want to feel transfigured at least, to feel bright and cheery and extraordinary and unique and charming and interesting so that we may gain a new sense of self-importance. The world offers a variety of ways to do that, for it knows how to play off of feelings like ...

4488. EVERY DAY AND ITS POSSIBILITIES

Illustration

John H. Krahn

... a sanctimonious saying. But the Bible says, "With God all things are possible." Satan detests that God is suggesting to you that you can become a somebody in a world of too many nobodies, a success in a crowd of failures. He does not want you to live up to your God-given potential; instead he wants you to be down on yourself, to hate to get out of bed in the morning. Tomorrow morning, when the alarm rings, be the person God says you can be. Proclaim with the psalmist, "This is the day the Lord has made, let ...

4489. WE HAVE GREAT POTENTIAL

Illustration

John H. Krahn

... the impossible dream, to fight the unbeatablc foe. My lord you gave me a new name. You called me your lady." And through eyes clouded with death he recognizes her and says, "Dulcinea," and he dies. God has given all of us great potential. He believes in us and wants to help us lead full and useful lives. We need to join God in his faith in us. An ever-deepening faith in Jesus Christ is the best way to accomplish this. Come, Lord Jesus, be our guest and bless us with a doubt-cleansing faith, a possibility ...

4490. EASTER POWER

Illustration

John H. Krahn

... Christ rose from the dead, and I believe the resurrection power of God is still being unleashed today. God wants to resurrect us from whatever defeat is in our lives and then give us a victorious death. He wants to resurrect us from a life of loneliness and gloom into one of meaning and joy. He wants to resurrect us from a life deadened by fear to a life enlivened by confidence. He especially wants to resurrect us from our own personal death into his very own personal paradise. So roll back the stone ...

4491. THE BEAUTY OF SELF-LOVE

Illustration

John H. Krahn

... forth in an emergency? Would he be in the back seat only being consulted occasionally for advice? Or, does he sit beside you, one with whom you have regular conversation? Or is he in the driver’s seat, at the controls, guiding your life in the direction he wants it to go? When God is loved first and foremost and when we enjoy the beauty of a loving God, we can then enjoy the beauty of loving our neighbor. The word love in the Bible does not necessarily mean a personal liking, a sentimental affection, but ...

4492. WHAT HAS EVER HAPPENED TO HONOR?

Illustration

John H. Krahn

... your spouses by caring for them. Don’t attack them by your words or your actions, but build them up. Do you love them? Tell them. Better, show them. Children, your parents are a gift from God to you. They make many mistakes, but they love you and want the best for you. Honor them, tell them you love them. Better yet, show them. The person with whom you work, those people you’ll meet later today, tomorrow’s companions through life, all need to be touched by your love and esteem, for through your love ...

4493. The Joy of Being a Caring Person

Mt 25:31-46 · Lk 16:19-31

Sermon

Robert G. Tuttle

... a pity to wait until we have missed life, to see what it is all about. Jesus said that we really don’t know ourselves. He wants to help us know the truth about ourselves and about life. At the judgment those who had not cared were surprised at their own blindness, and ... , or for any of us. I see some needs about me, where I touch life, which I will have to take care of myself. I will want to take care of them, as a part of my life. But, am I a caring person? When people come into my presence with a problem, ...

4494. The Gospel According to Christ’s Enemies

John 11:1-16

Sermon

Richard Hoefler

... request. God works in his own way. It rests with him to know what is best for us. In the case of Mary and Martha, they wanted a sick brother to be cured. Jesus, however, had a far more profound plan to meet their need. He had chosen Lazarus to be a sign ... rush to Lazarus’ side to save him from death. A Matter of Timing Van der Loos believes the harsh delay was not that "Jesus still wanted to settle his affairs in Perea, or to test the faith of the family at Bethany, but must be regarded in the light of the ...

4495. When the Church Is the Church

Philippians 2:1-11

Sermon

Raymond Gibson

... is what happens when the church is the Church. That is the kind of church which St. Paul saw as being possible among the Christians in Philippi. Wouldn’t it be great to be members of a church like that? We can be, if we want to. If we really want to. 1. Eugene L. Smith, Mandate for Mission (New York: Friendship Press, Inc., 1968), pp. 66-67. Used by permission. 2. Clarence Jordan, The Cotton Patch Version of Paul’s Epistles, (New York: Association Press, 1968), p. 117. Used by permission. 3. Arthur John ...

4496. What It Takes to Stay Christian

1 Thessalonians 1:1-10

Sermon

Raymond Gibson

... most of us can remember times when our faith was strong and vital, when Christ was so real in our lives that he literally walked with us daily, when worship and Bible study, prayer and Christian service were so exciting that we didn’t want the days to end. We were in good shape as Christians: enthusiastic, winsome, and effective - and we knew it. But then something happened. Maybe a Christian friend disappointed us - or perhaps we became disillusioned with our pastor - or a prayer wasn't answered as ...

4497. The Only Fact That Really Matters

1 Corinthians 15:12-34

Sermon

Raymond Gibson

... Resurrection becomes the only fact that really matters. The roster of witnesses which Paul gave to the Corinthians and the long list which I just mentioned all have one thing in common: they were all witnesses to the living Lord, to the fact of the Resurrection. And, if we want to be a part of that goodly fellowship, "the communion of the saints," we have to be witnesses of the same fact. People have to be able to look at us and see something different. They have to be able to look at us and see people who ...

4498. A Liturgical Drama For Advent

Drama

Tom Eberle

... possibly be true, that your light overcomes the darkness about me? Narrator: "All that came to be was alive with his life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines on in the dark, and the darkness has never mastered it." [John 1:4-5] One: I want to be a believer in the light, but I am afraid that some strong gust of wind will come upon me and extinguish it. Light: I understand your fears, but take heart. The light I give you is given freely, never to be removed from this world again. My light ...

4499. A SERMON-DRAMA FOR EASTER

Drama

Tom Eberle

... ; now I must enter it. Maria: Then, it is your immersion into the water of baptism that causes you turmoil. Severus: Maria, you know that I want to be a part of this faith. But why must I enter into it in such a manner? Let the teaching I have received suffice. I ... you are married to is worthy of nothing more than to be thrown on the city garbage heap. Maria: Your questions make me want to embrace and hit you at the same time. Certainly you are Severus before you are baptized, and you will still be Severus ...

4500. Nicodemus

John 3:1-21

Sermon

... ? It is a black robe with four gold stripes on each sleeve. I have never been so jealous in my life. All of my life I have wanted me a robe like that. If you had no earthly idea who Reinquist was, you would still be able to identify him as a man of power ... was a very rich man." There is a reason that Nicodemus comes to Jesus by night. He skulks in the darkness because he does not want to be seen with the Nazarene. Nicodemus is drawn to him, he is curious. Yet, for all of his interest in Jesus, he is still ...

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