Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 4551 to 4575 of 4964 results

4551. A King Like No Other

Luke 23:26-43

Sermon

King Duncan

... . He saw obviously another crown than the crown of thorns. (5) The second criminal says, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” And that’s our prayer. None of us deserves to enter Christ’s kingdom, not on our own merit. We have only one hope, our connection to Christ. “Remember me, Lord, when you come into your kingdom.” And at this point Jesus made him a promise, but not to him only, but to all who call out to Christ for salvation: “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me ...

4552. The Christian's Royal Jelly

1 Corinthians 1:1-9

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... in the prairie, the vast expanse of wilderness beyond the Rocky Mountains, the lure of the Pacific coast, enticed multiple generations of new immigrants to start a new life in a new place. They moved away from the familiar and into the unknown with optimism and hope. In 1873 Dr. Brewster Higley published a poem entitled “My Home on the Range,” which a few years later was set to music and became the state song of Kansas: “Home, Home, on the Range.” It is a “cowboy song,” a ballad to be belted out ...

4553. Nothing to Hide

Psalm 32:1-11

Sermon

King Duncan

... have our act together. Maybe that’s why our society is so into appearances: they distract us from the inner turmoil many of us hide every day. Remember the scene in the movie The Wizard of Oz when Dorothy and her comrades finally meet the Wizard? All their hopes and dreams for the future are tied up in meeting the great and powerful Oz. But when they finally make it into the Wizard’s inner court, they discover that he is not a great and powerful magician with the power to change their lives. He is only ...

4554. Here's Mud in Your Eye

John 9:1-12

Sermon

King Duncan

... birth. This was not unusual. There were many persons with various handicapping conditions begging for help along the side of the road in Jesus’ world. Beggars would frequently position themselves in public places and, if possible, near the entrance to the Temple hoping that passersby would be in a charitable mode. What else could they do? Their employment opportunities were few, no matter how capable they might have been otherwise. I read recently that 80 percent of those in this country who are blind ...

4555. Five Ways to be "Holy" During Holy Week

Matthew 21:1-11

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... are counted and the majority has spoken, the “best” Italian restaurant turns out to be Olive Garden. Every disciple of Jesus must decide: do I want to be an Olive Garden, or do I want to be an Eden Garden, a Dream Garden, a garden of imagination and beauty and hope. 3) Third, find ways to ride a donkey this week. No, I don’t mean become a Democrat. In that sense, Jesus didn’t ride the backs of elephants or donkeys. But, ride a donkey this week in the sense of finding ways to be humble, to lower and ...

4556. What If It's True?

John 20:1-9

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... s body. Immediately the body reacted by moving, curling up, its tail twisted. It had life again. But the first reaction of the little girl to a toad come to life was not rejoicing, but screaming in horror and dropping the box. It is one thing to hope for a life come back to life. It is another thing to accept that there actually may be an indestructible spirit that can overcome death, that resurrection may be real. Most of us are caught somewhere between wanting to believe in the power of resurrection and ...

4557. Voice Recognition

John 20:19-23

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... could be comforted, but so that they could continue that “Jesus-voice” outside of that safe haven. We are now Jesus’ voice, we are now Jesus-speak in this world. And the best voices, the best prophets are not boom-boxes of doom but bearers of hope. But there is no slyer piece of ventriloquism than letting things speak for themselves. Let your life so speak for itself that the world may hear the Jesus in you, and glorify your Father which is in heaven (Mt.5:16). In other words, to ventriloquize Jesus ...

4558. A Holy Kiss (Father's Day)

2 Corinthians 13:11-14

Sermon

King Duncan

... out with him. They wouldn’t even let him come to their apartment. Rene used to walk up and down the sidewalk next to their building, just hoping that she would come to the window, and maybe blow him a kiss. And then, one day, he saw it: the Fire Alarm! It was located right ... another with a kiss. But we can still express our love with a handshake or a hug. As we leave here this day, I hope each of us will turn to somebody and express our appreciation for them. We, too, need to focus on that which is central ...

4559. How Does Your Garden Grow?

Matthew 13:31-35

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... sea, the cardinal rule is to feed the soil not the plants, feed the water not the water’s creatures. It is by adding to that richness of the growing, nurturing environment, whether soil or sea, which creates the harvest that is hoped for by the gardener. Organic farmers are all about returning nutrients to the soil through the use of organic, natural composting materials — stuff that decomposes and enriches the soil, giving the next generation of plants the best possible “launching pad” they could ...

4560. The Glory of the Cross

Galatians 6:11-18

Sermon

James Merritt

... s feet, he traced out the sign of the cross. Alexander Solzhenitsyn said that as he stared at that sign, his entire perspective shifted. He knew that even though he was only one man against the all-powerful Soviet Empire in that moment, he also knew that the hope of all mankind was represented by that simple cross, and he knew that the cross represented the greatest power in all of the universe. He slowly got up, picked up his shovel and went back to work, from that moment on he said, under the sign of the ...

4561. Lost Baggage: Losing Your Baggage

Ephesians 4:17--5:21

Sermon

James Merritt

... in his mind and it plays in his mind and it wakes him up at night. Listening to the tragic life of John, the pastor fights back tears. Can you imagine yourself seated next to such a person? What would you say to someone who had endured such tragedy? What hope could you share with them? But the story is not over. At 18, he gets a girl pregnant and has a daughter. Now, he has child support payments to make and no job. Finally, he joins the Army and while he is in the Army he meets another girl in ...

4562. For Those Who Are Auditing the Class

Matthew 16:21-28

Sermon

King Duncan

... about transplants, and I want us to go the hospital together today, because I want to give you my good heart!” Obviously John was stunned. He hugged his dad tightly. Together they cried. That special moment touched John so powerfully that for the first time, his hope was restored. He decided to quit feeling sorry for himself and to find another solution to his dilemma. A short time later, John was able to have a bypass surgery and he was healed. Today he is a successful physician. He didn’t have to have ...

4563. That's Not Fair

Matthew 20:1-16

Sermon

King Duncan

... the day, and thus was unable to earn a whole denarius, his family would eat, but not enough to stave off hunger pangs. (3) I hope that you will appreciate, then, what is at stake for the workers in this story. It is not only about fairness. For some of these ... and who does not. If that bothers you, get over it. If there are no limits on grace, if it exceeds everything we could ever hope for, everything we could ever expect, how can one person say he’s got more than another? If I have a great deal of money ...

4564. An Invitation to a Wedding

Matthew 22:1-14

Sermon

King Duncan

... the honor of your presence at the marriage of their Mother and Father. Because they are combining two households, they already have at least two of everything. So please, no presents! Reception and garage sale immediately following the ceremony.” (1) There is no more hopeful event on earth than a wedding . . . at any age. Jesus loved weddings. His first miracle was at a wedding. On one occasion he referred to himself as a bridegroom. So it is not surprising that at least one of his parables should feature ...

4565. Leave Your Calculator Home

Matthew 22:15-22

Sermon

King Duncan

... method. The sense of shame evoked by the racket is enough to make most people come out and pay, says a tax official, who noted, “The drive has been such a great success that we have had several inquiries from other cities and towns about it.” I hope our tax officials do not find out about their success. Our neighborhoods are noisy enough. The people of Jesus’ time felt the same way about taxes that many of us do. But paying taxes was even more problematic for them. For one thing they had to use Roman ...

4566. An Announcement from the Wilderness

Mark 1:1-8

Sermon

King Duncan

... the grocery store. Later at the grocery store checkout, the clerk asked, “Have you kids been good so Santa will come?” “I’ve been very good,” replied Jason, “but my sister just robbed a store.” (1) Well, I hope all our boys and girls are being good with Christmas coming. For that matter, I hope all our adults are being good. After all, Santa is watching. It is interesting how each of the Gospels tells about the coming of Christ in a different way. Matthew prepares us for this wondrous story by ...

4567. Humvee Holiness and Humble Holiness

Matthew 23:1-39

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... soul of the body. There are two things we all know about “profiling.” First, it is illegal and it is wrong. Second, it is what each of us instinctually does every day. We all judge those we encounter on some “gut level” regardless of what we believe and hope and pray for. We like the UPS guy. We cannot stand the checker on Aisle 6 at the grocery store. We know there is some kind of problem with the guy who wears shorts and a fuzzy fur hat as he wanders the neighborhood every day. We make judgments ...

4568. The Two Faces of Thanksgiving

Ephesians 1:15-23

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... a “spirit of wisdom” and a “heart enlightened.” Because of that new faith in Christ, Paul declares that the faithful know the “hope to which he has called you” and so may revel in and reveal the “riches of his glorious inheritance” — that is, a ... been given, a relationship with the risen, regnant and returning Christ who calls the faithful to a “glorious hope” and an illustrious “inheritance.” Admit it. Every family gathering includes some we cannot wait to “embrace,” and some ...

4569. Why Christmas Is So Dangerous

Luke 1:26-38

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... remodel. Finally everything is just as you envisioned it. Then “Gabriel” arrives and announces “good news.” The dream job you always hoped for is awaiting you. The chance of a lifetime has arrived where you can use all your energies and creative powers ... today can tell you. Pain, suffering, evil, and the inevitability of mortality, they all make “loving” an action of both hope and heartbreak. But Christmas brings another kind of danger to your heart. Christmas is dangerous to anyone who wants to ...

4570. I'm Listening

1 Samuel 3:1--4:1

Sermon

King Duncan

... interested in what the story of Samuel means for our lives. First of all, it reminds us of the importance of listening…listening to God and listening to one another. Most of us will not be hearing mysterious voices in the night. At least, I hope not. I did read recently that, according to recent research, the experience of hearing voices is not all that unusual. Estimates suggest that more than half of the “normal” population have heard strange voices at some time or another, while about 4 per cent of ...

4571. The Condemning Heart

John 3:1-21

Sermon

King Duncan

... doesn’t dig up our past sins. He comes into a relationship with us, forgives and restores us. Too often we forget that when Jesus died he took our past, present and future sins with him. If you are feeling estranged from God by any past sin, I hope you will lay it down this morning and accept Christ’s forgiveness. Remember Christ’s teaching that we are to love our neighbor as we love ourselves. Some of us are too hard on ourselves. And it stands as a barrier between ourselves and others. More than 30 ...

4572. TGFGF - Good Friday

John 18:1-11

Sermon

King Duncan

... said that, but if he did, he was a man who truly loved his country. “I’m glad it was me instead of you.” Who did Christ love when he lay down his life? Obviously he loved all of humankind. He loved you and he loved me. So I hope you won’t think me too flippant for naming this brief message TGFGF Thank God for Good Friday. There are some things about Good Friday we need to remember. First of all, Good Friday is about suffering. Many churches are removing their crosses as the center of their worship ...

4573. Skull Hill

John 12:20-36

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... what gives us our ability to keep Christ forming in us. The old Quaker hymn “Tis the Gift to be Simple” extolls the “gift” being able to “turn” — like clay on a potter’s wheel. We “keep turning, turning, ‘til we come round right.” But the hope for clay’s continual shaping and remolding ends when the clay is “fired.” When the “firing” of the clay is done, the vessel is fixed. Clay can be reformed and transformed on the potter’s wheel until it is time for the firing. Then the ...

4574. Christians and Grits

Acts 4:32-37

Sermon

King Duncan

... -class church. There are not many financially needy people in our midst. I haven’t seen any Maseratis in our parking lot, but we are, for the most part, quite fortunate people. Every once in a while, someone might find themselves in a tight situation, and hopefully we are there to help. Most of our encounters with financially needy people, however, will be with people in our community. If we are going to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus to our community, we are going to minister to the needy ...

4575. The Door Is Open

John 10:1-21

Sermon

James Merritt

... that said, “four children,” Teresa slammed the door, shut it, locked it and through away the key! Every day of our life we hope and pray that we are walking through the right door at the right time. On the other hand, there are teenagers who are ... to war and he was concerned about his father’s safety and he wrote his dad a letter that said, “Dear Daddy: I love you and I hope you live all of your life.” That is exactly what God wants for you. He gives you life so you will truly live your life. You ...

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