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 4526 to 4550 of 4959 results

4526. The Sign of Jonah

Matthew 12:38-45

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

... had witnessed his healings and exorcisms, but now they wanted irrefutable evidence that defied natural explanation. Paul speaks of exactly that attitude in 1 Corinthians 1:22, “Jews demand miraculous signs.” Such an attitude does away with faith. It originates not in a desire to know but in the decision not to believe. You are a wicked and adulterous people, responds Jesus. You insist (the NIV’s ask does not do justice to the intensive compound epizēteō) on a miraculous sign as a prerequisite for ...

4527. God’s Goodness Redefined: The Nearness of God

Psalm 73:1-28

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

... in that although my flesh and my heart may fail (i.e., my physical properties deteriorate and I lack the freedom from human ills, envied in vv. 4–5) but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. The confession, earth has nothing I desire besides you, shows that the speaker has found the antidote to his earlier envy (v. 3); now to have God is to have all. In much of the Psalms and OT, we see the expectation that the righteous will be blessed and the wicked will be judged, sometimes ...

4528. The Vinedresser and the Plundered Vine of Israel

Psalm 80:1-19

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

... man at your right hand. Yahweh is invoked to reaffirm his loyalty to the king by placing his hand upon the man of his “right hand.” The vows of loyalty and of praise (v. 18) tacitly suggest an awareness of the people’s past failure. The people still desire to cling to the one who has afflicted them (vv. 4–6). Overall, the focus of the psalm’s argument against God’s intense, persisting anger lies in its impressing upon God the investment he has made in the people. This is noted by the imagery, by ...

4529. The Conspiracy of the Nations

Psalm 83:1-18

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

... kings, Zebah and Zalmunna (8:1–21). Included here is another quotation (v. 12) similar to the one from Israel’s current enemies. Thus, we see that earlier plotters were destroyed in their own schemes. This psalm may draw a distinction between the fates desired for the leaders of this conspiracy and their armies. Their nobles and their princes are to suffer the same fate of Oreb and Zeeb, and of Zebah and Zalmunna. The conspirators are to be destroyed as Sisera and Jabin, both leaders of the Canaanite ...

4530. From the Darkness of the Grave

Psalm 88:1-18

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

... them to the speaker’s own case: But I cry to you for help. Evidently the speaker has received no such wonders. Hence another rhetorical question follows: Why, O LORD, do you reject me? This is the enigma that permeates the texture of this psalm: why should the God who desires to save and receive praise deny deliverance to the speaker?

4531. Vows About Acceptable and Unacceptable Associates

Psalm 101:1-8

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

... :4a, that Yahweh’s worshiper is he “who despises a vile man but honors those who fear the LORD.” As a psalm of temple entry, Psalm 101 presents Yahweh’s pilgrims with “instruction” about what the God who inhabits the temple desires of his worshipers. For the purpose of clear instruction Yahweh’s expectations are embodied in two character profiles, “the righteous” and “the wicked.” One’s loyalty to Yahweh is measured, in part, by the company with which one aligns oneself. These psalms ...

4532. The Lord of Reversals: Thanksgiving of Desert Wanderers, Prisoners, the Sick, and Sailors

Psalm 107:1-43

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

... and he brought them out (vv. 10–16). Next, the sick, ailing because of their iniquities, cried, and he healed them (vv. 17–22). Finally, sailors who experienced Yahweh’s tempest at sea cried, and he stilled the storm and guided them to their desired haven (vv. 23–32). The four narratives about desert travelers, prisoners, the sick, and sailors (vv. 4–32) follow a regular pattern. Some encountered distress, and then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he saved them. Each group is enjoined ...

4533. The Yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees

Matthew 16:5-12

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

... were bound up in a legalism that missed the entire point of God’s intention (cf. Matt. 5:20). Fenton writes, “The band of disciples must be on their guard against a self-conscious religiosity that demands guarantees, when it is God’s desire to break in unexpectedly through the fixed notions of their system” (pp. 333–34). The Sadducees were guilty of identifying the kingdom of God with material possessions and pinned their hopes on achieving it by political action (Barclay, vol. 2, p. 132). Rigid ...

4534. A Brother Who Sins Against You

Matthew 18:15-20

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

... means “to produce a sound together,” cf. the English “symphony”) has to do with the decision concerning an unrepentant member of the believing community. God will answer the united concern of praying people. In fact, wherever two or three come together earnestly desiring to know the will of God, he himself will be “right there with them” (Williams). Additional Notes 18:15 Some manuscripts omit eis se (NIV against you). This could have been an interpolation based on eis eme (NIV against me) in v ...

4535. Oppressed But Not Crushed

Psalm 129:1-8

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

... of verse 8 can be clarified by reference to Ruth 2:4. Here we see the custom of a passer-by (in this case Boaz, the owner) greeting “the harvesters” (the same Hb. term for reaper in 129:7) with a blessing. Thus, verse 8 expresses the desire that no one would wish a blessing on this harvest of withered grass. (“The reaper” and “those who pass by” are thus simply incidental third parties to this conflict between Zion and its haters.) Thus, the fate expressed for the wicked is that of shame (v. 5 ...

4536. The Greatest Commandment

Matthew 22:34-40

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

... it must be a love that dominates our emotions, directs our thoughts, and is the dynamic of all our actions (vol. 2, p. 278). Love of God is foremost (prōtos in v. 38 indicates rank) in that it is the supreme obligation. From it stems the ability and desire to love those who are created in the image of God (Gen. 1:26–27). There is a second commandment that is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. Jesus draws this from Leviticus 19:18. Jesus may have been the first to combine these two commandments in ...

4537. The Parable of the Talents

Matthew 25:14-30

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

... slave” (Goodspeed) is flung out into the darkness (described in v. 41 as “eternal fire”), where he can “weep and wail over his stupidity” (Phillips). The warning is appropriate for Christians who rest upon their religious profession without any apparent desire to live out its implications. The point of the parable is crystal clear. The servants of Christ, as they await his Parousia, have been entrusted with the responsibility of utilizing the gifts they have been given by the Master. To fail ...

4538. Daniel’s Training in Babylon

Daniel 1:1-21

Understanding Series

William Nelson

... of dying in Judah. Daniel seems to create a third tradition (unless he is following a tradition no longer preserved elsewhere) by moving Jehoiakim’s exile to the third year of his reign. One reason for the creativity of chapter 1 might be the author’s desire to show how Scripture had been fulfilled. Jeremiah predicted that the exile would last seventy years (Jer. 25:11–12; 29:10). According to the Chronicler, the period of the exile began with the destruction of the temple in 587/586 B.C. and ended ...

4539. Nebuchadnezzer’s Dream of a Tree

Daniel 4:1-18

Understanding Series

William Nelson

... language, who live in all the world (4:1). “All the world” is only a slight exaggeration since Babylon controlled most of the territory known or settled at that time. This is followed by the salutation: May you prosper greatly! (4:1). More literally, he desires their peace to grow great, but shelam, “peace,” is a rich word that can include “well-being” and “prosperity,” so the NIV is on the mark. Almost the same form is used by King Darius (Dan. 6:25) and by Artaxerxes (in another Aramaic ...

4540. The Writing on the Wall

Daniel 5:1-31

Understanding Series

William Nelson

... 5 of the Old Greek and by the Theodotionic version of the Septuagint. Some have suggested that the second “mene” was added on purpose so that there would be four terms instead of three. It is thought that this would have been motivated by a desire to match the four terms to the four kingdoms of chapters 2 and 7 (Lacocque, Daniel, p. 100). However, there is no support for this in the interpretation itself. That is, there is no indication that the first “mene” stands for Babylonia, the second “mene ...

4541. Daniel’s Vision of a Man

Daniel 10:1--11:1

Understanding Series

William Nelson

... 10:20–11:2a The angel commences with a question: Do you know why I have come to you? (10:20). Of course Daniel should know, because it was revealed to him in verses 12 and 14. The angel has been sent in response to Daniel’s prayer and desire for knowledge and will disclose the future of the Jews. This repetition is probably a doublet: two versions of the story have been brought together here. If so, then verse 14 is from a source in which the angel tells his purpose early; verse 20 is from an alternate ...

4542. The Calling of Levi

Mark 2:13-17

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

... circle. In the minds of these critics, Jesus should have disassociated himself publicly from such sinners and should have summoned them to repentance and study of the religious law as a precondition for any social acceptance. These critics were desirous of upholding a religious standard and of chastening and perhaps reforming transgressors. Jesus’ mission was the proclamation and bestowal of God’s new salvation and merciful welcome. These critics probably believed that obedience to the religious law was ...

4543. The Parable of the Mustard Seed

Mark 4:30-34

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

... to the crowd’s level of understanding, and this tends to verify our suggestion that 4:12 is to be taken as irony. Parables are not really intended to confuse the crowds, but they are veiled communication forms, requiring active listening and the desire to understand. A major theme in Mark is that the true significance and meaning of Jesus were not really clear until after his crucifixion and resurrection. The parables are seen as the appropriate form of speech during the period when the full meaning ...

4544. The Healing of a Boy With an Evil Spirit

Mark 9:14-32

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

... great distress throughout history, was no doubt intended by Mark to depict the need of his readers to trust in Christ more fully and more intelligently. The everything that is possible in 9:23 does not convey that believing will magically produce anything one might desire but rather means that Jesus’ power is available by faith to meet any need that arises in the course of ministering in his name. 9:27 Lifted him to his feet is literally “raised him,” the same term used to describe the action of God ...

4545. Causing to Sin

Mark 9:42-50

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

... participation in the kingdom of God is worth any sacrifice. The parts of the body mentioned here are really symbols for various types of activity, for example, the hand that grasps for things it should not, the foot that goes where it ought not, or the eye that desires what it ought not. Mark 9:48 is an allusion to Isaiah 66:24, which speaks of everlasting judgment upon those who rebel against God. It is introduced as a comment on the word hell (v. 47), indicating that what is meant is the final judgment of ...

4546. Paying Taxes to Caesar

Mark 12:13-17

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

... . That Jesus asked for a coin may indicate that he too avoided the handling of the money for the same reason. 12:17 They were amazed: It is fairly obvious that Mark means that Jesus’ opponents were still hostile and that any amazement on their part did not minimize their desire to be rid of him. Cf. Luke 20:26.

4547. Gethsemane

Mark 14:32-42

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

... face trial and even execution for his sake, were surely supposed to see Jesus’ prayer as a powerful example to them of the submission to the will of God they were to emulate in their time of testing. That is, Mark’s account is not motivated by a desire to give a sentimental picture of Jesus, but it is intended to give his readers a role model to follow. It reflects a practical concern for their ability to stand firm in trials of their faith. The prayer of Jesus, which describes what is about to happen ...

4548. The Death of Jesus

Mark 15:33-41

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

... , both giving them great prominence and pointing to them as guarantors of the events. The same women who saw Jesus crucified and buried also first see the vacant tomb and first hear the news of the risen Lord. There may very well have been a desire to emphasize the reality of all the events by emphasizing the presence of these same women at them all. And, of course, in light of the marginalization of women in subsequent Christian practice, Mark’s featuring of these women suggests a much more positive role ...

4549. Jesus Presented in the Temple

Luke 2:21-40

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... this way, Simeon’s statement to Mary parallels the rest of the oracle. Just as Jesus will cause division in Israel in general, so his own mother in particular will experience anguish over her son’s message and ministry. Possibly in keeping with his desire to present two witnesses, Luke next depicts the response of the prophetess, Anna (v. 36). “Anna” is the same as the OT name Hannah and might be intended to recall Samuel’s mother (1 Sam. 1–2), especially in light of the similarity between ...

4550. Jesus Heals a Paralytic

Luke 5:17-26

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... make a transition from celebrated healings in chap. 4 to healings in chap. 5 that raise religious questions, and finally to healings in chap. 6 that lead to serious opposition and eventually to a plot to have Jesus killed. Implicit in all of this is Luke’s desire to explain how one who could and did amaze so many with his benevolent power could end up being rejected and put to death. 5:17–26 In the episode in which the paralyzed man is cured, Jesus encounters criticism from the religious leaders of his ...

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