Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 451 to 475 of 1285 results

Drama

Charles L. Koester

... of the Kingdom of God and by anticipating its reality in their observances, they would thereby guarantee its existence, and even assist the coming of the Kingdom of God and the Messiah. So, you see, many who awaited the Messiah looked for the appearance of a double figure, a Messiah who was king and redeemer, political and spiritual hero all in one. You of your century, from your vantage point of our history, can see how wrong all these expectations were. They were not God’s way of coming and entry into ...

452. Sharing with Our Brothers

2 Corinthians 8:1-15

Sermon

Ewart E. Turner

... an estimated 2 billion people who are undernourished. Of these, 460,000 are reported as suffering actual starvation. We are told that one person dies of starvation every time we draw a breath. The world population is expected to double in forty years. Massive solutions are needed and are being attempted. The churches, governments, foundations, are attacking the problem in earnest. Obstacles have to be overcome everywhere. The Green Revolution showed promise, but the miracle grains require more fertilizer ...

453. Toward Health With Confidence

Sermon

Leonard H. Budd

... It happened over a year ago." The driver left our town in the late afternoon - he took a rest in the shade of our houses, and talked more of this Jesus and his power over evil spirits, over infirmities, over troubles. My mother heard him speak. My mother - bent double, seated in the door, her head down. And as the driver left I noticed that my mother’s eyes were wet. That brought tears to my eyes, for I knew what fearful hope had crossed her mind in those moments of hearing about Jesus. Jesus came to our ...

454. Recognizing The Hidden

Sermon

Leonard H. Budd

... called to the lad again. And, as before, no lad and no reply. Where was the brat? Was he not getting food and a place to sleep in the barn? He will receive a hard thrashing for not being near at his master’s call. Suddenly the old man bent double, his tool and pieces of leather dropped to the crude wood flooring. A pain in his chest - such pain he never knew. He lay still, yet the pain continued. How long he lay he did not know. It was the lad who found him. He reached over to see if ...

455. THE JOY OF CHRISTIAN LIVING

Galatians 4:21-31

Sermon Aid

John W. Rilling

... but joy cometh in the morning." Those without faith may lament about life: A crust of bread and a corner to sleep in, A minute to smile and an hour to weep in, A pint of joy to a peck of trouble, And never a laugh but the moan comes double - And that is life!" But that’s not the way the apostle reads it. Read on in Galatians and you will find what Paul suggests ought to happen in lives "surprised by Joy." A Christian, being one who has been rescued, redeemed, restored, liberated will find his joy in going ...

456. A New Kind of Teaching

Mark 1:21-28

Sermon

Maurice A. Fetty

... that? Add to that the 60,000,000 pages a year of scientific and technical literature produced in the world plus the 365,000 books written each year, and you have an absolutely overwhelming amount of information. Furthermore, the information, the amount of knowledge, doubles every ten to fourteen years! (cf. Alvin Toffler, Future Shock, p. 30 ff.) Who on earth is going to sort all that out? How are they going to decide what to leave out? Who will teach it and how? Furthermore, what possible relevance does ...

457. On His Way

Matthew 21:1-11

Sermon

Larry Powell

See in your mind’s eye a city that has doubled in population almost overnight. The city is Jerusalem and faithful Jews have converged upon the holy city from great distances to celebrate the Passover. They have come from every country district and all the lands of the Diaspora. The Jewish historian, Josephus, recorded that as many as 1,000,000 ...

458. Feet Of Clay

2 Samuel 11:1-27

Sermon

Roger Prescott

... boats behind him and found his way back to the ice floe. I can remember Father’s coming up to the ice, and the water that splashed on him froze solid on his body. The only place it hadn’t frozen was on his hands because he was pulling the double-bladed paddle ... When we had made it back to the village, I asked my father why he had left me out there. "Why didn’t you let me go back with you the first time?" My father looked at me and said, "Sam, I looked at the other two men ...

459. Paul of Tarsus

2 Corinthians 12:1-10

Drama

Michael L. Sherer

... a pretty big dose to swallow. When you think about it, it’s a wonder Paul got anybody to take him seriously in the first place. ANTAGONIST: To tell the truth, I still have a little trouble with this "strength-in-weakness" business. That sounds more like double-talk than anything I’ve heard in quite a while. No wonder we have trouble getting people to join the church. With a plan like that, you’d have to be a fool to sign on, wouldn’t you? PROTAGONIST: I wonder if it’s foolish, showing tenderness ...

460. Francis of Assisi

1 Corinthians 1:18--2:5

Drama

Michael L. Sherer

... where does that leave the wise men? Or the scholars? Or the skillful debaters of this world? ANNOUNCER: In news on the Italian scene, Pope Innocent III announced this afternoon that the size of the army protecting the Vatican would be doubled, following the unsuccessful attempt last week of mercenaries to scale his palace walls in search of treasure, which, rumor has it, is considerable. Cost of the tightened security will, or course, come from church funds, which means local offerings will probably have ...

461. Overcoming Loneliness

Sermon

Robert G. Tuttle

... occasional and magical return to intimacy." This had its start a long time ago: "And the Lord said, It is not good that man should be alone. I will make a helpmate for him" (Genesis 2:18). There is an old Swedish proverb: "Shared joy is a double joy. Shared sorrow is half a sorrow." The wisdom of Paul Tournier in his book, Reflections, supports this thesis. "Modern man, despite appearances, is less aware of his own nature and motives, and is lonelier as he faces them. We pity the savage amid his mysterious ...

462. Your Undivided Attention, Please

Deuteronomy 6:1-25

Sermon

Alton F. Wedel

... wrote the message on a piece of paper, took it to the beggar, and asked him to deliver it. The beggar proudly stood up from his accustomed beggar’s perch and answered, "My business, sir, is to solicit alms. I do not run errands." The story has a double edge. Certainly the beggar was a single-minded person, faithful to the job description he had written for himself. He reminds me of the top executive whose business is to run the company, not to put on coffee for the office force. One ought not exceed the ...

463. The Reality Of The Resurrection

Luke 24:36-49

Sermon

Brett Blair

... and Monroe were never commissioned to make such a purchase. Standing on the eastern banks of the Mississippi River 200 years ago it was hard to believe that the US would ever own the rights to the river and that 828,000 square mile area. But it doubled the size of the United States and the evidence of that great purchase is all around us today. We are celebrating a tricentennial: 300 years ago on June 17, 1703 a young boy named John was born to Rev. Samuel and Suzanna Wesley in Epworth England. It ...

464. The Reality of the Resurrection - Sermon Starter

Luke 24:36-49

Illustration

Brett Blair

... this: Livingston and Monroe were never commissioned to make such a purpose. But now standing on the eastern banks of the Mississippi River 200 years ago it was hard to believe that the US would ever have the rights to that 828,000 square mile area. But it doubled the size of the United States and the evidence of that great purchase is all around us today. 300 years ago on June 17, 1703 a young boy named John was born to Rev. Samuel and Suzanna Wesley in Epworth England. It was perhaps no surprise that John ...

465. The Advent Hope

Romans 14:1--15:13

Sermon

T. A. Kantonen

... Messiah live here and now by the power of the world to come. Yet the church looks forward to the second coming of her Lord when the inevitable consequences of the victory he has already won will become fully manifest. The Christian hope thus has the double aspect of "already" and "not yet," of "I have come" and "I shall come again." The Kingdom of God as a present reality is the key to the Christian interpretation of history and the ground of the Christian hope for the world. The risen and glorified Christ ...

466. The Heart of the Reformation

Romans 3:21-31

Sermon

T. A. Kantonen

... When Stanley Jones was missionary in India, a British government official told him how he became a changed man. He said that he first became involved in sexual immorality when he went to Europe to study, leaving his trusting wife behind. When he returned home he continued his double life. The innocent trust of his wife stabbed him like a knife until he could bear the guilt no longer. He made up his mind to make a full confession to her but he was afraid that it would break up their marriage. But one day he ...

467. Advent 3: Won't You Let Him Into Your Gift-Giving?

Matthew 2:1-12

Sermon

James W. Moore

... . Watch his gills gasp and scales dry. Is he happy? No! How do you make him happy? Do you cover him with a mountain of cash? Do you get him a beach chair and sunglasses? Do you bring him a Playfish magazine and a martini? Do you wardrobe him in double-breasted fins and people-skinned shoes? Of course not! So, how do you make him happy? You put him back in his element. That’s what you do. You put him back in the water. He will never be happy on the beach simply because he was not made for ...

468. Advent 4. Won't You Let Him Into Your Christmas?

Luke 2:8-20

Sermon

James W. Moore

... and filled them with -- Trinkets for his five sisters, -- Trinkets he had bought with money he had saved from his paper route, -- Trinkets he had thoughtfully and carefully selected for each of his sisters. On Christmas morning, the family ran into the living room and found a double surprise. (1) First of all, they discovered that the real Santa is so smart. He found them in Tyler, Texas, and he left all the right things. He left for them just what they would have asked for if they had been able to see and ...

469. Good News for Bad Times

Isaiah 40:1-31

Sermon

John R. Brokhoff

... News Of Pardon There is, first of all, the good news of mercy. God tells Isaiah to tell the people and us, "Speak tenderly to Jerusalem ... her penalty is paid." This is good news for a people who have suffered a lot. The Israelites paid double for their sins. Before their captivity the Jews were faithless to God by worshipping and following other gods of the day. They practiced social injustice that made the rich richer and the poor poorer. They were guilty of gross immoralities. For 50 years they paid ...

470. A Voice to be Heard

John 1:19-28

Sermon

Maurice A. Fetty

... of drugs, would we not collapse the drug cartels and the drug violence overnight? After all, asks Robert Reno in one of his columns, is drug use really a national epidemic? About 0.9 percent of the population regularly uses cocaine. If you double that to include crack and heroin use, you still have less than two percent of the population using drugs. But seven percent of Americans have heart problems. Nearly eleven percent have high blood pressure, twelve percent have arthritis. Smokers comprise 27 percent ...

471. When the Sermon Turns Sour

Luke 4:14-30

Sermon

William G. Carter

... in the land of Israel in the time of Elijah. But remember where he went? God sent Elijah to a Gentile woman in Sidon.” “Let me tell you another story,” Jesus said. “Remember Elisha? He followed Elijah, and whatever spirit Elijah had, well, Elisha was given a double share of it. He was a powerful man. And in his time, there were many people with leprosy in the land of Israel. They were sick and covered with sores. But Elisha didn’t heal any of them. Instead he was sent to Na’aman, a Gentile army ...

472. Taking the Sting Out of Death

1 Chronicles 15:1-16:6

Sermon

Harold Warlick

... about death removed — to learn again that we have been mistaken in our fears. Paul wrote the Corinthians that there is no sting in death for those who know Christ. They could sing and live in great joy because their eyes produced a brief but real “double exposure” so that right behind the wall of terror they could see the one who received them. The sting was removed from death for them because Jesus had demonstrated that it is but a doorway into another realm just as our birth from our mother’s ...

473. A Sense of Urgency

Acts 9:32-43

Sermon

Carlyle Fielding Stewart

... things that require our immediate and utmost attention. How many times have we heard, “Sorry, too late, or “The deadline has passed, or “Time has expired.” Life does not always give us a timeout to tend to urgent matters. Life does not always grant us double and triple overtime. Some things we must do now because the circumstances require immediate action. Time is the most important of all of our resources. It’s the only thing we can give to others and never get back. The clock is ticking down on ...

474. The Promising Child

1 Samuel 2:12-26

Sermon

Harry N. Huxhold

... took his entire family to worship at the temple which was at Shiloh. At whatever festival the family was celebrating they had a special feast, and Elkanah would present gifts to each member of his family. Out of love and sympathy for Hannah, her husband gave her double portion of the gifts. Yet Hannah was not consoled. She refused to eat and went to the temple and prayed through tears for God to bless her with a child. In her prayers she vowed to God that were she to be blessed with a son, she would ...

475. Ready or Not ( A Drama about Commitment)

Drama

Dave Marsh

... map) This is a map of Florida. And it’s from 1985! Have you even looked at this thing? Dave: Sure, I have. I think…. What have you got? Vicki: I’ve got the latest maps of Virginia plus I’ve marked all our camp sites and I’ve double checked everything online with MapQuest. Dave: Well, ok. Fine. But do you have one of these? Vicki: What is it? Dave: It’s a compass, silly. Vicki: This isn’t a compass! (pulls out the tape) This is a tape measure with a calculator built into it! Dave: Oh really ...

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