Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 4551 to 4575 of 4972 results

4551. Matthew 28:1-10

Matthew 28:1-10

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... angels in the tomb, things are still unclear. Jesus himself appears at first in a veiled, unrecognizable form. For John, the resurrection is as mysterious as it is miraculous. For Matthew the resurrection is a parade, a party, a pull-out-all-the-stops production number. As in John, the scene opens at daybreak with Mary Magdalene, this time accompanied by "the other Mary" hurrying to the tomb. Some scholars suggest that these two women might have been what the church would later call "deacons," a responsible ...

4552. Acts 7:55-60

Acts 7:55-60

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... enrages it beyond all semblance of reason. The proudly legal-minded Jews betray their own traditions and degenerate into a mob. Incapable of enduring any more arrow-straight accusations, unwilling to listen for the calming tones of any remaining rational voices, the crowd stops up its ears, scalds Stephen with its tongue, drags him outside the city walls with its hands and madly proceeds to stone him. As the stones begin to fly and Stephen starts his walk through the agates of deepest darkness," he utters a ...

4553. Exodus 17:1-7

Exodus 17:1-7

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... and happy" as slaves in Egypt. While Moses' initial petition to the Lord is not recorded, Exodus does give Yahweh's lengthy answer to these complaints. The resulting solutions, of course, were the gifts of morning manna and evening meat (quails) - stopping complaints by stuffing the kvetching mouths of the Israelites with more food than they could possibly consume. But instead of inspiring more trust and confidence in both Moses' leadership and Yahweh's enduring care, these miracles only seemed to feed and ...

4554. Mark 13:24-37

Mark 13:24-37

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... to perform while waiting for the master's return but the way they may choose to complete that task is left up to them. Constant alertness, readiness, attentiveness to their work is part of the responsibility that comes with this freedom. Watchfulness must be a non-stop, round-the-clock activity as verse 35's reference to the four watches of the night (according to the Roman system) indicate. The Son of Man is no respecter of our established routines or schedules he is just as likely to interrupt us during a ...

4555. Ephesians 1:3-14

Ephesians 1:3-14

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

The letter to the Ephesians opens with the lengthy prayer of thanksgiving. In Greek, these 13 verses are one long, continuous statement as though the author, so caught up in the wonder of God's work through Christ on our behalf, simply could not stop for breath. Consider all the theological issues covered in this prayer God's work through Christ, the plan of salvation effected, a repeated emphasis on God's sovereignty in this plan, the re-creation of humanity as a result of Christ's redemptive death, the ...

4556. 1 Samuel 3:1-10 (11-20)

1 Samuel 3:1-10 (11-20)

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... to "punish his house forever" is based on the actions of several family members. Not only are Eli's notorious sons denounced for their blasphemy, but Eli himself is declared a party to their sins because he knew all that was going on and did not stop it (v.13). The guilt of Eli's house cannot be expiated by the standard means of sacrificial atonement because it is this very atoning system that the sons of Eli have treated with blasphemous contempt. Since they have no belief in the sanctity of the system ...

4557. Mark 14:1-15:47

Mark 14:1-15:47

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... insistence, "I do not know or understand," is stated poorly so that the Greek text's grammar reflects the panic and desperation of the disciple. Speaking with his body as well as with words, Peter moves out of the courtyard proper, only to stop and look at the gateway. In several Greek editions and in the NRSV, verse 68 concludes with the ominous observation kai alektor ephonesen, "then the cock crowed." However, since that final phrase is missing from some of the most important codices (Vaticanus and ...

4558. Mark 16:1-8

Mark 16:1-8

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... Mark takes care to let his readers know that time has moved forward to the third day the Sabbath was over. It now was the "first day of the week." The women are worrying about the large stone that blocks their entrance into Jesus' tomb, but they do not stop to try to find someone to help them. In verse 5, Mark identifies the presence there in the tomb. He calls it a neaniskos, a term he uses only one other place in his gospel the enigmatic reference in 14:51-52. Clearly the position and description of this ...

4559. Mark 6:1-13

Mark 6:1-13

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... to paint a poignant picture of Jesus' ministry. Together they demonstrate both the risks and rewards that are a part of Christian discipleship. Chapter six continues Mark's theme of movement along the way of the Lord (1:2,3) but for Jesus this next stop is filled with disappointment. In Mark's gospel Jesus has just accomplished some of his most amazing miracles stilling the wild storm at sea (4:35-41), healing the frightening man at Gerasene (5:1-20), and restoring Jairus' little daughter to life and health ...

4560. John 6:35, 41-51

John 6:35, 41-51

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... with John's insistence that Jesus and his message are about spiritual truths and spiritual realities, Jesus does not even address this issue with this belligerent crowd. He only chides them as Moses had earlier to his band of grumpy Israelites to stop "complaining among yourselves." The faithful reader, John trusts, will easily perceive the crowd's wrong-headed conclusions. Indeed, since Jesus' divine origins are only admissible on the grounds of faith, there is no reason to set them up for debate. The ...

4561. Mark 8:27-38

Mark 8:27-38

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... unprepared for and as yet incapable of comprehending. Peter once again acts as the leader but this time in an almost protective way. Instead of publicly denouncing Jesus' words, he "took him aside" as if he could quietly convince Jesus that he had better stop spreading such weird rumors both for his own sake and for the sake of his followers. Peter's protective action both challenges Jesus' authority over his own disciples and denies the hard truth that Jesus proclaims to them. It is with stern, decisive ...

4562. Mark 10:2-16

Mark 10:2-16

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... Jesus concludes his public words to the Pharisees by pronouncing, "Therefore what God has joined together [literally "yoked together"], let no one separate" (v.9). But the lesson on divorce, loyalty and God's intentions for men and women in relationships does not stop there. Mark's gospel breaks up this discourse by having the disciples and Jesus now leave the crowds and retreat to the privacy of their local home base and the intimacy of a private tutorial. The "whatever cause" phrase from Matthew that is ...

4563. Mark 10:35-45

Mark 10:35-45

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... claimed and Jesus will award them accordingly. Rather, Jesus indicates that it is not his will but God's will that shall determine the onset of that age of glory and God who will prepare the setting of all eschatological events. In verse 41, Mark stops singling out James and John as the most wrong-headed disciples and allows the other ten to put on an equally ridiculous display. We know from Jesus' response to all the bickering that suddenly breaks out that the other disciples are arguing against James and ...

4564. Mark 10:46-52

Mark 10:46-52

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... and decisive. Bartimaeus' insight is sharp (calling Jesus the "Son of David") and his conviction is unquenchable. When others try to "shush" him down, Bartimaeus responds by shouting louder. His faith in Jesus' ability to heal him is so great that it in effect stops Jesus in his tracks (v.49, "Jesus stood still"). When told Jesus had called him, Bartimaeus springs into action. What had been a dusty lump of a beggar sitting by the roadside is transformed into a vital, vibrant man, who first springs up and ...

4565. Revelation 1:4b-8

Revelation 1:4b-8

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... in the 50s, 60s, 70s, and 80s. Certainly the content of Revelation has never been a subject for agreement. The stockpile of bizarre images and cryptic pronouncements appear to be both eschatological and historical, but where Revelation's interpretation of its own age stops and its predictions for the distant future begin is part of its delightful mystery. Few books in the Bible cause such powerful reactions among people as the book of Revelation. Whether readers believe it to be a blueprint of the future or ...

4566. The Most Stubborn Man in the Bible

Jonah 3:1-10

Sermon

King Duncan

... are hidden, that we are safe. We couldn’t be more mistaken. There is a story that comes from the days of the great British sailing ships. The British warship Sparrow suspected another vessel, the Nancy, of carrying illegal contraband. And so the Sparrow stopped the Nancy off the coast of Haiti. An examination of the Nancy’s papers and cargo yielded only circumstantial evidence of wrongdoing. Still this was enough for the captain of the Sparrow to seize the ship and to tow it into Kingston, Jamaica ...

4567. LIVE-SAVING STATIONS

Mark 1:14-20

Illustration

Mickey Anders

... was in chaos. So the property committee immediately had a shower house built outside the club where victims of shipwreck could be cleaned up before coming inside. At the next meeting, there was a split in the club membership. Most of the members wanted to stop the club's life-saving activities as being unpleasant and a hindrance to the normal social life of the club. Some members insisted upon life-saving as their primary purpose and pointed out that they were still called a life-saving station. But they ...

4568. A Very Different Top 10 List

Mark 1:21-28

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... indeed be eaten alive: by exactly those things you mentioned needing to put on the extinct list: greed, jealousy, anger, hypocrisy, selfishness . . . . Go exorcize some demons this week. Make a list of things you want to go extinct in your life, and then stop feeding them. Change the climate in your home and in your heart. Make the climate in which you live inhospitable to hatred, a wasteland for bigotry, a desert for envy. [Alternative Beginning: Here is an alternative start to your sermon, which can be ...

4569. Help in Facing Our Fears

Mark 1:21-28

Illustration

Leslie Weatherhead

... his shoulder. The first time he looked back, the cat was the size of a calf. The next time he looked, it had grown to the dimensions of an elephant. Then the boy fell, and was unable to go farther. Resolutely he got up and faced the pursuing horror. It stopped. So he took a step toward it. It backed away. As he continued to advance toward it, it began to shrink in size as it retreated from him. Finally it changed into a mouse and ran under the door of the witch's cottage to be seen no more. The ...

4570. Did Your Mother Ever Say To You?

Mark 1:21-28

Illustration

Richard J. Fairchild

... plant potatoes in those ears. I'm not your maid. If your friends jumped off a cliff does that mean you have to jump too? Just wait till you have kids of your own! Don't talk with food in your mouth! You weren't born in a barn, so stop acting like you were! And of course I am sure you have heard, if not uttered, the all time classic Because I'm your mother, that's why! These expressions have been passed from generation to generation. They are expressions of authority - the authority of a parent over a child ...

4571. God's Workmanship

Ephesians 2:1-10

Sermon

King Duncan

... gag. The company that was charged with keeping it serviced hadn’t been heard from for days. Suddenly a truck rolled down the street toward the site. Its radio was blaring wildly. The attention of everyone on the worksite shifted to the vehicle as it slid to a stop in front of the partially completed house. They noticed that it wasn’t the regular maintenance man for the port-a-john who got out of the truck. Instead, it was a big, burly guy, covered with tattoos. He was singing at the top of his lungs. He ...

4572. Everyone Is Looking For You! - Sermon Starter

Mark 1:35-39

Illustration

Brett Blair

... insignificant at the time, but had a profound influence on the rest of his life. The winter he was 9, he went walking across a snow-covered field with his reserved, no- nonsense uncle. As the two of them reached the far end of the field, his uncle stopped him. He pointed out his own tracks in the snow, straight and true as an arrow's flight, and then young Frank's tracks meandering all over the field. "Notice how your tracks wander aimlessly from the fence to the cattle to the woods and back again," his ...

4573. God’s Tattoos

Isaiah 49:8-26

Sermon

Mike Ripski

... on how reluctant his friend is to talk about his experience. I suspect it is because to talk about it is to relive it. Memory has the power of moving what was to what is, of making the past present. On this Memorial Day weekend I want us to stop, remember those who have died in war, and imagine the memories of those who have experienced the hell of war. There are those who carry in their souls what their fellow human beings did to them, and what they did to their fellow human beings. They carry what they ...

4574. The Big E

John 9:1-12

Sermon

Mike Ripski

... re going to be disappointed. In my opinion, the most important question we humans ask is not, Why do we suffer? But, Why are we so richly blessed? And, Why do we inflict so much suffering on one another? And, Why don’t we do more to stop the horrific suffering we are aware of? Jesus heals a man born blind from birth. What could possibly keep his parents from rejoicing over the gift of sight he has received? A religious community that threatens them with expulsion if they acknowledge what has happened and ...

4575. The Golden Gate

John 10:1-21

Sermon

Mike Ripski

... that Jesus prepares. Jesus says, “Come and eat with me and I’ll give you my life abundantly, so that you are enabled to do what I do: absorb the consequences of sin by forgiving those who hurt you, so the vicious cycle of revenge can be stopped. This is the nature of the life Jesus gives abundantly. B. The Psalmist continues: “You anoint my head with oil.” That was the way kings were made. Whent the prophet Samuel selected the shepherd-boy David to be the king of Israel, he anointed his head with ...

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