Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 4626 to 4650 of 4977 results

4626. One Pastor's Answer to What He Does

Illustration

Editor James S. Hewett

... He plans programs and recruits and trains workers when he can get them. He is determined to multiply ministry and not monopolize it. He wants people to experience the joy of being givers of Christian service as well as being recipients. Then he spends considerable time in keeping people out of each other's hair. Between all this he prepares a sermon and preaches it on Sunday co those who don't happen to have any other engagement. Then on Monday he smiles when some jovial chap roars, "What a job—one day a ...

4627. The Human Scene

Illustration

Editor James S. Hewett

... one morning and read an editorial that went something like this: "The world is too big for us. Too much going on, too many crimes, too much violence and excitement. Try as you will, you get behind in the race, in spite of yourself. It's an incessant strain to keep pace…and still, you lose ground. Science empties its discoveries on you so fast that you stagger beneath them in hopeless bewilderment. The political world is news seen so rapidly you're out of breath trying to ...

4628. The Tongue

Illustration

Editor James S. Hewett

... ." "The tongue can speak a word whose speed," Say the Chinese, "outstrips the steed." The Arab sages said in part, "The tongue's great storehouse is the heart." From Hebrew was the maxim sprung, "Thy feet should slip, but ne'er the tongue." The sacred writer crowns the whole, "Who keeps the tongue doth keep his soul."

4629. All in the Family

Acts 2:1-11

Sermon

King Duncan

... on giving. So she walked up and down the aisle, tearing off more pieces of her flame and passing them to everyone within reach. (1) That little girl understood the real meaning of Pentecost, didn’t she? She wasn’t going to keep the awesome power of the Holy Spirit to herself. She was going to share her flame with everyone she could. Today we celebrate Pentecost--the day the church was born. This is also National Family Month which is observed during the five-week period between Mother’s Day in May ...

4630. They'll Know We Are Christians by Our...

Galatians 5:1-15

Sermon

King Duncan

... , “I will tell you their greatest virtue in terms of their greatest vice. It is the sin of ‘kai po.’” What is the sin of “kai po”? It is the sin of “eating alone.” These people of the Pacific Islands would go to great lengths to keep from eating alone. They would go without food for several days until they could find someone with whom they could share their blessings. (6) Can you imagine being so committed to your brothers and sisters in Christ that you consider it a sin to not share your ...

4631. Can We Really Love Our Enemies

Luke 6:27-36

Sermon

Charles H. Bayer

... resolve international issues by throwing an army at someone or threatening him with a bomb. That may temporarily keep the peace, but it won't solve the problem. But when we learn to treat our enemies differently, there is hope. Right now the Soviet Union ... is beginning to act differently, while we in the United States are keeping our guard up. If we are really the Christian nation we claim to be, why hasn't the initiative first come from ...

4632. Where's the Magic?

Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-12

Sermon

King Duncan

... we allow God’s Spirit to guide us. Faith is a commitment of all we are and hope to be to God. Faith is an assurance that the God who created us is with us in every battle we may face. Faith is also that unshakable sense of trust that keeps us going through life’s dark and difficult valleys. But there is one thing more found in our lesson for today: Faith is a promise that, as Abraham described it, there is a “city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.” We speak far less about heaven ...

4633. A Vision of Beauty and Hope

Isaiah 2:1-5

Sermon

King Duncan

... a wall of shame and death between them and God and drove them out of God’s presence. Our sin separates us from God and every good thing that God supplies—love, wisdom, joy and peace. Our sin separates us from each other. Our selfishness and pride keep us from experiencing intimacy with others. In Isaiah’s vision, he sees an undoing of the Tower of Babel when the people tried to build a tower up to the heavens, and God confused their languages and scattered them to prevent them from trying to become ...

4634. Less Fear; More Fruit

Matthew 3:1-12

Sermon

Dean Feldmeyer

... source of our constant state of fear is unscrupulous business leaders, advertisers, pundits, and politicians who have discovered that they can increase their power and influence if they manage to keep people afraid. The snake oil sellers of the Old West convinced their audiences to be afraid and then offered to sell them the solution that would keep them safe and well. The snake oil salesmen of this age wear expensive suits and drive big cars, are given big bonuses, and are elected to political office but ...

4635. Preparing the Way

Matthew 11:2-11

Sermon

Dean Feldmeyer

... has to be done early — while the sun is shining and the ground is dry. Building the house soundly is part of the way we prepare for the hurricane that may never come if we do, but will most certainly come if we don’t. Preparation is often what keeps us alive. Preparation is how we get ready. For many of us, and certainly for children, Advent is a time of waiting and anticipating. For Christian adults, it’s also a time of preparing and getting ready for the arrival of the Messiah. To help us in our ...

4636. Point of Reference

Illustration

Dick Cupp

... a 10-foot pole that he carried with him to probe for holes in the ice as he walked. He struck the pole in the snow and tied his bright-colored scarf to it. Then he began looking for the hut, keeping the pole in sight as a central reference point, knowing that he could always return to it if necessary. He struck out, first in one direction, then in another, always keeping the pole and scarf in sight. Three times he came back to his point of reference; on the fourth try, he found his hut. His life was saved.

4637. Courage

Luke 17:5-10

Illustration

Mark Trotter

... to go into an unknown future in spite of the doubts. Faith doesn't remove fear either. Faith is the courage to do the right thing even when your knees are trembling. Faith doesn't remove disappointments, or guarantee victory. Faith is the courage to keep on going even when you want to give up, but you keep on going. That is what faith looks like. Madeleine L'Engel put it perfectly. "I don't have to have some special qualification to do what I have to do. All I have to do is have the courage to go on and do ...

4638. Thy Will Be Done

Luke 20:27-38

Sermon

Molly F. James

... it is wrong to apply the same categories to it. Jesus is asking them to broaden their vision, to change their perspective. But the Sadducees are stuck in their own world and can not broaden their vision. It is so easy to get stuck in our own little worlds. We keep our vision focused on ourselves or on what is immediately around us. It is easy to assume that we know what the right answer is or what the right thing to do is in a given situation. It is easy to assume that our experience is the same as others ...

4639. Reading the Last Chapter First

Matthew 17:1-9

Sermon

King Duncan

... camp or another? As soon as certain topics come up, people separate into one camp or the other on that topic. For example, coffee drinkers vs. coffee haters. Cat people vs. dog people. Morning people vs. night people. We could start some serious divisions here if I keep going. But there’s one more habit that divides people into separate camps. It’s the habit of reading a book all the way through to the end vs. reading the last chapter first. How many of you read a book from beginning to end? How many ...

4640. The Problem with "Fawneys"

Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18

Sermon

King Duncan

... I mean to make a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. There I will climb to the top of Mount Sinai and read the Ten Commandments aloud.” “I have a better idea,” Mark Twain remarked. “Why don’t you stay right at home in Boston and keep them.” Twain knew the man’s heart. Phony. Hypocrite. Robert J. Morgan tells about the disgust many Americans felt when transcripts of the famous Watergate tapes were released. Many Americans were stunned to read of the unrestrained filthiness of language used in the Oval ...

4641. Loving Made Real

John 13:1-17, John 13:31-38

Sermon

David & Marian Plant

... all due respect inquiring if such a touch is okay. But at least we hold to the importance of touch. Just as God touched the earth to create us through the molding of the dirt, and breathed upon it closely enough to give it Spirit, we at least hope to keep alive the importance that our God came to be with us in the form of Christ. Our God allowed us to drink and eat together around a table. Our God allowed us to ask questions face-to-face, to behave like children, to grow into adulthood. Our God allowed us ...

4642. The Art of Following

Matthew 4:12-17, Matthew 4:18-22

Sermon

Dean Feldmeyer

... . They both appear in the gospel of John and are followed by admonitions telling his disciples what to do. If you love me, keep my commandments. If you love me, feed my sheep. The phrase “worship me” appears only three times in the gospels — once in Matthew, ... of follow Christ is not an invention of bad people; no, it is more an invention of those who spinelessly want to keep themselves detached at a safe distance from Jesus."[2] But it is not to the safe, detached, and metaphorical understanding that ...

4643. Lost in the Wonder of God

Matthew 28:16-20

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... �Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing” Based on the Story Lectionary Major Text Matthew 28: Matthew’s Witness about the Commissioning of Jesus’ Disciples Minor Text Psalm 23 God will be with you even through the valleys Psalm 121 God will be with you and keep you always Psalm 125 The Lord Abides with you forever like the mountains Daniel’s Night Vision (Daniel 7:14) God’s Authority Ezekiel 28 (11-15) God’s Mountain Isaiah 65 The Promise of God’s Holy Mountain Matthew 14 Jesus feeds a multitude ...

4644. Moving On

Luke 6:12-16, Luke 9:1-9, Luke 10:1-24

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... , he knows who he is, and his disciples know “whose” they are; 5) he knows what the mission is and never forgets it; 6) he is always looking forward, not back; and 7) he takes time to rejoice in the victories. Breaking it down --Jesus knows when to keep moving, and he knows when to stay still, when to pause, to pray, and to rejoice! Do you? We know from the scriptures that Jesus never did anything without first descending into nights and ascending into days of prayer. Luke tells us he did this before he ...

4645. The Death of John the Baptist

Matthew 14:1-12, Mark 6:14-29, Luke 9:1-9

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... pressure to perform, to show bravado, parade pride, and to look good in front of our peers, especially when we are in positions of power or status. But the question of who is really in “charge” is answered by the one carrying the “charge.” A “charge” to keep may be the oath that defines your life. What defines your life? Who is in charge of your life? What is on your “charge” reveals who you are in the eyes of God and in the eyes of others. Your platter is your own face, your offering to ...

4646. Syrophoenician Lives Matter!

Mark 7:24-30, Matthew 15:21-28

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... Sidon. A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, "Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is suffering terribly from demon-possession." Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, "Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us." He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel." The woman came and knelt before him. "Lord, help me!" she said. He replied, "It is not right to take the children's bread and toss it to their dogs." "Yes, Lord ...

4647. God Gives the Pharisees the Finger!

John 7:25-44, John 7:45--8:11

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... If she passed (meaning she became pregnant with a period of time and her loins remained fruitful….that is God-blessed in their minds), then she would be rendered innocent, and would continue to carry on the bloodline of the man, and he would be bound to keep her.** However….here is the rub: “Only when the man is himself free from guilt, will the waters be an effective test of his wife’s guilt or innocence; but if he has been guilty of illicit intercourse, the waters will have no effect.”**** This ...

4648. The Good Catch

Matthew 17:24-27

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... Temple tax however brings up another important issue. There is a heavenly kingdom in which all God’s children are free and owe no debt to anyone. And there is an earthly community of faith, which strives to worship together and do ministry together, to keep the traditions, to keep the stories of Jesus alive. We are all free, but yet, we must volunteer from God’s bounty given to us, our time, our means, our baptism, our lives to the service of Jesus’ mission in the world. For now, it’s all we have ...

4649. The Great Dinner

Luke 14:1-14, Luke 14:15-24

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... of his own hometown, not to mention the Pharisees, and those who thought they were genuinely good people –like the rich young ruler. Jesus has a lesson for all of us. And no matter how good we think we are, we can always take time to re-evaluate our keeping of God’s covenant. Do we take the blessings that God gives us and run with them, basking in God’s glory for ourselves and ourselves only? Or do we try our best to share those blessings with those around us, and to give to them the “best” that ...

4650. Fleeced

Judges 6:1-40, John 20:24-31

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... . It’s very hard to believe that there can be joy in all of that sorrow. Is that the truth? No. But it’s the way we see things at that moment. That’s why four of the most important words in the Bible, words that everyone should memorize and keep close at hand are these: “It came to pass.” Touching and seeing can be deceptive. One of the most curious stories in the scripture is the story of Jacob and Esau. When it came time for Esau (the eldest) to be blessed to carry on the family covenant name ...

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