Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 4701 to 4725 of 4986 results

4701. Eschatological Discourse: Prediction of the Temple’s Destruction

Matthew 24:1-35

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Jeannine K. Brown

... we must assume that Matthew intends the whole passage to read coherently. So reading holistically and with attention to Matthew’s intention can only help us as we preach and teach the text. And in preaching this text it could be especially helpful to stay with Matthew throughout the sermon or lesson rather than quickly diverging to other New Testament books that we perceive fill in or clarify what we read in Matthew. The warning issued by Richard Hays is particularly apt in passages like this one: “We ...

4702. Eschatological Discourse: Being Prepared for Jesus’ Return

Matthew 24:36-51, Matthew 25:1-13

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Jeannine K. Brown

... that we can obtain; knowledge of the timing was even outside of Jesus’ purview (24:36). Thus, looking forward, anticipating Jesus’ return, is a matter of trust—Matthew’s answer to so many issues of the Christian life. And it is a matter of staying alert. These are themes that will preach. 2. Jesus’ parables stress being watchful and faithful at all times so that his followers will be ready for his return. The theme of readiness pervades this passage. The way to be ready is to faithfully live ...

4703. Eschatological Discourse: Being Faithful and Merciful

Matthew 25:14-30, Matthew 25:31-46

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Jeannine K. Brown

... with a call to be prepared, since there will be no precursor signs for Jesus’ reappearing (24:36–51). Matthew 25:14–46 continues with this theme of readiness by narrating two more parables of Jesus, one focusing on faithfulness as the way to continually stay prepared (25:14–30), and one on actions of mercy and justice as the way to live out covenant faithfulness (25:31–46). Themes of faithfulness, mercy, and justice have already been introduced as hallmarks of Torah adherence (23:23), which are to ...

4704. Jesus Is God’s Faithful Son in Gethsemane and at His Arrest and Trial

Matthew 26:31-35, Matthew 26:36-46, Matthew 26:47-56, Matthew 26:57-68, Matthew 26:69-75

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Jeannine K. Brown

... with the people of Israel (3:15–17 [“to fulfill all righteousness”]) and, as faithful representative of Israel, resists all temptations to turn aside from God’s will for him (4:1–12). Although tempted to take a different path (16:22–23), he stays the course to the cross. Here in Gethsemane we see the most heart-wrenching of moments in Jesus’ journey to the culmination of his mission to “give his life as a ransom for many” (20:28). Yet even with his death looming before him, Jesus ...

4705. Jesus’s Authority to Forgive and Heal Sinners

Mark 2:1-12

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Grant R. Osborne

... They gathered in such large numbers that there was no room left. After the Galilean ministry of 1:38–45, Jesus returns “home” to Capernaum (2:1), which he has made his headquarters (1:21; Matt. 4:13). Probably this is Peter’s home, where Jesus stays when in Capernaum (see on 1:29). He apparently slips in secretly, but his renown continues unabated from 1:33, 37, 45, as the crowds come anyway from all around and fill every corner of the house and possibly the immediate neighborhood as well. As in ...

4706. Mission and Rejection in Galilee

Mark 6:14-29, Mark 6:7-13

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Grant R. Osborne

... out depending on God for their needs, allowing those to whom he sends them to provide for them. The thrust is twofold: do not use ministry for profit or self-aggrandizement, and go entirely to serve and glorify God. 6:10 Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you leave that town. The goal of mission is not to find the nicest living arrangements but rather to bring people into the kingdom. They are to depend on the hospitality of each village they visit, and they must be content with whatever living ...

4707. The Exorcism of a Child Develops a Humble Model for Faith

Mark 9:14-32

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Grant R. Osborne

... the disciples (“I asked your disciples to drive out the spirit, but they could not” [v. 18]), so Jesus is especially exasperated with the “unbelief” (= “hardness of heart” in 6:52; 8:17) of his own followers.5 how long shall I stay with you? . . . put up with you? These two pointed questions by Jesus reflect the coming cross. He indeed will not be with them much longer. Still, his exasperation is evident. Will there be sufficient time to transform their self-centered unbelief (again, especially ...

4708. The Model of Jesus for Discipleship Service, Not Self-Seeking

Mark 9:33-37, Mark 9:38-41, Mark 9:42-50

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Grant R. Osborne

... 50). Interpretive Insights 9:30–31 did not want anyone to know where they were.They are now headed south through Galilee toward Jesus’s destiny in Jerusalem. On the way to Capernaum, Jesus eschews public exposure (probably meaning that he stayed in the wilderness away from villages and towns) in order to spend his time privately with his disciples. On the “road to Jerusalem” Jesus trains his followers and prepares them for both the terrible events to come and their ministries afterward. delivered ...

4709. Jesus’s Entry as the Messiah Who Triumphs through Suffering

Mark 11:1-11

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Grant R. Osborne

... and Bethany at the Mount of Olives. The road to Jerusalem has ended; they have arrived at the place of destiny. Pilgrims often arrived a week before Passover to purify themselves and get ready. Bethany (on the Jericho road two miles east of Jerusalem) was where Jesus stayed during passion week (vv. 11–12), and the Mount of Olives recalls Zechariah 14:4: “On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives” (cf. Ezek. 43:2–9). The Messiah has come, and the Day of the Lord approaches. 11:2–3 ...

4710. Prophetic Actions—The Temple Condemned and the Fig Tree Cursed

Mark 11:12-19

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Grant R. Osborne

... on reaching Jerusalem” (v. 15), “when evening came” (v. 19), “in the morning” (v. 20). This is similar to 1:21–34, depicting events that were interconnected from Sunday to Tuesday. The same is true of geography, as Jesus enters Jerusalem on Sunday, stays at Bethany for the night, journeys back to Jerusalem on Monday, returns to Bethany for a second night, and then returns to Jerusalem on Tuesday. Both the entry and the temple incident are messianic acts. 11:12–13 Jesus was hungry. Seeing ...

4711. The Necessity of Vigilance in Light of the Parousia

Mark 13:32-37

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Grant R. Osborne

... there were four from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m., each three hours long). The emphasis is on the unexpected nature of the return, which can occur at night when the guards may be sleeping rather than watching (cf. Rev. 16:15: “Blessed is the one who stays awake”). Those so-called prophecy preachers who often predict the exact time of the Lord’s return are laboring under false pretenses, for God does not intend us to know the time that he has established for the eschaton. 13:36 If he comes suddenly, do not let ...

4712. The Messianic Anointing of Jesus

Mark 14:1-11

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Grant R. Osborne

... a thematic order, placing it here to contrast the woman’s action with Judas (for the issue of chronology, see the sidebar “Introduction to the Passion and Resurrection”). Bethany was two miles away on the eastern slopes of the Mount of Olives, and Jesus was staying there for Passover week (11:1, 11), probably in the home of his close friends and followers Mary (John 12:3 tells us she was the woman), Martha, and Lazarus. We know nothing more about Simon, but the occasion is an evening meal, and he was ...

4713. The Passover as Eucharist: Jesus’s Body and Blood Given for Us

Mark 14:27-31

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Grant R. Osborne

... concluded the Passover Seder. The apostolic band (minus Judas) then followed Jesus out of the city, across the Kidron Valley, and onto the slopes of the Mount of Olives to spend the night. They did not return to Bethany because for Passover they needed to stay in the environs of Jerusalem, and the mount “fell within the boundaries of greater Jerusalem.”8 14:27 You will all fall away. The discussion in verses 27–31 probably occurred as they were walking, for they leave the upper room in verse 26 and ...

4714. The Birth of Jesus

Luke 2:8-20, Luke 2:1-7

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R.T. France

... area. The manger was therefore part of an ordinary living room, and there is no basis in Luke’s account for the sentimental idea that Jesus was born excluded from human society. Since Bethlehem was Joseph’s ancestral home, we may assume that they were staying with relatives.2See also the comments on the “inn” in 2:7 below. Interpretive Insights 2:1 Caesar Augustus. Augustus was effectively emperor from 31 BC to AD 14. Luke mentions him here not only to provide a basis for the census that took ...

4715. Feasting and Fasting

Luke 5:33-39, Luke 5:27-32

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R.T. France

... may be required for the new wine of the kingdom of God. 5:39 The old is better. This unexpected addition seems to turn the preceding imagery on its head. But perhaps that is the point: while Jesus offers new wine, most people prefer to stay with the old—a wry comment on the deadening effect of the religious conservatism represented here by the Pharisees.2 Theological Insights The proverbial saying of 5:31 and Jesus’s programmatic declaration in 5:32 together set out the theology of salvation that ...

4716. The Good Life

Luke 6:17-26

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R.T. France

... with their work and then took refuge in the mountains. The people kept them hidden among them, and Erle, a strong and athletic man, continued his outreach, this time to American guerrillas resisting the Japanese. Another camp where many missionaries were staying during this time was eventually attacked by the Japanese, and all of the missionaries were executed. In one of Erle’s last letters before escaping to the mountains, he wrote, “I believe the missionaries are going to see real persecution before ...

4717. “Love Your Enemies”

Luke 6:27-38

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R.T. France

... people and arrogantly insists on the reasonableness of his deed. Despite his horrific deeds, Raskolnikov is shown grace and love by a converted prostitute, Sonya. She not only enjoins him with passion and wisdom “to accept suffering and achieve atonement,” but also lovingly stays by his side, even going with him to Siberia when he serves his sentence there. She refuses to compromise her belief that all must accept the consequences of sin and submit to the mercy of God. In a final scene Dostoevsky writes ...

4718. “Love Your Neighbor”

Luke 10:25-37

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R.T. France

... misunderstanding. 10:35 he took out two denarii. This is about two days’ wages (cf. Matt. 20:2), enough to pay for a few days in the fairly basic accommodation at the inn. But the traveler’s care extends even to the possibility that a longer stay might be needed. His “compassion” (10:33) is not just impulsive; it is practical and thought through. 10:36 Which . . . was a neighbor to the man? In Leviticus 19:18 the “neighbor” is the one to be loved, and in that sense the “neighbor” in ...

4719. The Failure of Israel’s Leadership

Luke 11:37-54

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R.T. France

... Dickinson, was “without hope” and could not claim faith in Christ. They, of course, were Lyon’s greatest concern.2 Whatever the case, Dickinson remained ambivalent spiritually for the rest of her life. In one poem she wrote about church, Some keep the Sabbath going to church; I keep it staying at home, With a bobolink for a chorister, And an orchard for a dome.

4720. Divided Loyalties

Luke 12:1-12, Luke 12:13-21

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R.T. France

... of blessings standing by— Let us (said He) pour on him all we can; Let the world’s riches, which dispersed lie, Contract into a span. So strength first made a way, Then beauty flow’d, then wisdom, honour, pleasure: When almost all was out, God made a stay, Perceiving that, alone of all His treasure, Rest in the bottom lay. For if I should (said He) Bestow this jewel also on My creature, He would adore My gifts instead of Me, And rest in Nature, not the God of Nature: So both should losers be. Yet ...

4721. Ready for the Kingdom of God?

Luke 13:31-35, Luke 13:22-30, Luke 13:18-21

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R.T. France

... s Progress, by John Bunyan. Few writers explain the straight and narrow way more powerfully than does Bunyan (1628–88), or the dangers of laxness and straying from the path. In one passage from the classic book (1678) Christian is admonished by Evangelist to stay true to the appointed way and to refuse to listen to Worldly Wiseman. Evangelist says, Now there are three things in this man’s counsel thou must utterly abhor: 1. His turning thee out of the way. 2. His labouring to render the Cross odious ...

4722. Table Talk

Luke 14:1-14

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R.T. France

... person, a bright, insightful boy named Jackie whom he calls “a twelve-year-old saint.” Hassler was only a few years older, and during their acquaintance Jackie contracted a fatal illness. Hassler visited him regularly, and the “sweetness of [Jackie’s] soul” stayed with him for a lifetime. Jackie remarked on the boys playing football outside his window without “a trace of envy in his voice,” and when Jackie’s brother-in-law, worried about his weight loss, often brought him a quart of ice ...

4723. The Death of Jesus

Luke 23:44-49, Luke 23:26-43

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R.T. France

... set out in this section. What do you think Luke was aiming to achieve by this blending of negative and positive attitudes? Notice, for example, the irony in the mocking of Jesus to save himself if he is truly the Messiah. Ironically, it is by staying on the cross that Jesus confirms he is the Messiah and brings salvation to the world. Notice, too, that even on the cross Jesus continues to offer forgiveness and salvation (23:34, 43). He is truly the Savior of the world. Another traditional teaching method ...

4724. The Risen Jesus Revealed

Luke 24:13-35

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R.T. France

... ’s message. A distance of seven miles allows time for the journey to be made in both directions on the same day. 24:14 about everything that had happened. In 24:19–24 we will hear the gist of this conversation. They have perhaps been staying in Jerusalem for the Passover festival, and so they have witnessed the whole sequence up to and including the dramatic announcement by the women. 24:15 Jesus himself came up and walked along with them. While there are features of the risen Jesus in the Gospel ...

4725. The Gospel of God in Christ through Paul

Romans 1:1-17

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C. Marvin Pate

... 25 highlights faith as the means to justification, and Romans 5–8 seems to emphasize eternal life as the gift of justification. Third, are Habakkuk and Paul at odds with each other? That is, does Habakkuk 2:4 affirm that obeying the law is the way to stay in covenant with God? There does seem to be tension between Habakkuk and Paul here. For Habakkuk, obedience to the law is the means to being faithful to God; for Paul, faith in Christ is the means to be justified. But this is no real contradiction, since ...

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