Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 451 to 475 of 4943 results

451. Jesus Says, 'Just Do It'

Luke 17:1-10

Sermon

Dr. Chane M. Hutton

... that this Christian woman has done over the years. Frieda Hannah is a modest person. She is always embarrassed to talk about what she does. When asked on one occasion where she gets the energy and determination, she responded, "God did not place me in this world just to take up space. It is not enough just to go along. God wants me to make a difference where I can." (3) That's it! That's what Jesus was saying to his disciples. Just do it! Make a difference where you can. You already have all the faith you ...

452. The World's Worst Bargain

Mark 8:31--9:1

Sermon

King Duncan

... If any man will come after me, let him....” She was referring, of course, to the verse in Matthew’s Gospel that reads like this in the King James Version: “Jesus said to his disciples, ‘If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.” Mark records this same teaching. It reads like this in the New International Version of the Bible: Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and ...

453. Jesus Heals Body and Soul

Mark 1:29-34

Sermon

King Duncan

... for non-church people, it is not true for couples who are committed in a serious way to their faith. If you want your marriage to last invite Jesus into it. Pray for your spouse. Pray for your children. Give God an open invitation to take up residence in your household. It will make a difference. When Jesus is present, there is healing. Simon Peter’s mother-in-law discovered that. For the past two thousand years millions of other people have discovered it as well. Whether it is physical healing, emotional ...

454. Overseers and Deacons

1 Timothy 3:1-16

Understanding Series

Gordon D. Fee

... . Line 5, was believed on in the world, seems to accompany line 4 as a word about the response to the proclamation of the gospel. The content of these lines, therefore, which begin with Christ’s own entry into the world and in 4 and 5 take up the apostolic witness to Christ, has caused most interpreters to view it as some form of heilgeschichtliche hymn, that is, a hymn that tells the story of salvation (cf. J. Wilbur Chapman’s “One Day,” or Fanny Crosby’s “Tell Me the Story of Jesus”). If ...

455. The Call of the Cross

Luke 9:18-27

Sermon

... is Lord forevermore. Doesn’t it seem to you that Jesus would have said enough with his death-resurrection prediction for this occasion? But Christ wasn’t done yet; he had one thing more to say: "If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me ..." There’s no way of determining if the disciples comprehended what Christ was getting at at that point in their relationship with him, is there? It turned out to be more than a call to commitment; it was a call to ...

456. Hugging The Coastline

Hebrews 11:1-40

Sermon

King Duncan

... Albert Teaster. A man walked in and placed a box in front of Teaster. It was not a gift; rather, it was a challenge. Two weeks earlier, Albert Teaster had preached on Mark 16: 15-18. This is the passage that says that believers are able to take up poisonous snakes and not be hurt. This man, in the hopes of mocking Rev. Teaster, had brought a five-foot long rattle snake to the service. The congregation held their breath as Teaster reached into the box and lifted out the snake. Quick as lightning, the reptile ...

457. Love One Another

Luke 7:36-50

Sermon

James W. Moore

... as outcasts… and tenderly, He drew them into the circle of love. When it came to love, He had lots of cups to share. And then He said to His followers, “Look now! This is the way I want you to love. Love one another as I have loved you.” Take up the torch of Christ-like love! This was so important to Jesus… but the truth is… at first the disciples did not get it. They were not tuned in! What Jesus was calling on them to do was a dramatic departure from that “we only have one cup” approach to ...

458. There Will Be Light

Isaiah 2:1-5

Sermon

King Duncan

... in every heart. Today our emphasis is on the light of Christmas. In today’s lesson Isaiah writes, “He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore. Come, O house of Jacob, let us walk in the light of the LORD.” Isaiah spoke of a world of peace and light. Next week we will deal with peace. Today, we want to talk ...

459. The Cost of Discipleship

Matthew 17:1-9

Sermon

James L. Killen

... not always be good. Most of us in the West have no idea how costly it is to be a Christian in the Middle East right now. The way into the realization of the good possibility that God wants to give to each of us and to our world involves taking up the cross and following Jesus. Now, it is important for us to know just what that looks like. It does not look like living life with a long face. It does not look like suffering as if suffering were a valuable thing in itself. On the contrary, one who enters ...

460. The Cup of the Lord's Wrath

Isaiah 51:17--52:12

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... around what lies in between, but these verses are also rich in their relationship with other Scriptures. They take the particular image in verse 7 from Nahum 2. The prophet declares, “You know that promise in Nahum? Its moment has arrived.” The verses also take up the declaration in Psalms 98–99 that Yahweh reigns, and they declare that this is now a reality reflected in actual events. It has long looked as if Yahweh was not reigning. Events will now demonstrate that Yahweh is acting as king. When the ...

461. About Unclaimed Luggage

Luke 15:1-7, Luke 15:8-10, Luke 15:11-32

Sermon

King Duncan

... . But every year, thousands of items are lost or left behind on America’s airlines and never claimed. Eventually, all those lost items end up in the small town of Scottsboro, Alabama, at a store called the Unclaimed Baggage Center. This store, which takes up an entire city block, has arrangements with nearly every airline to buy luggage that cannot be returned to its rightful owner. Any unclaimed piece of luggage that is left behind on a major airplane eventually ends up at the Unclaimed Baggage Center ...

462. The World's Most Extraordinary Club

Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon

King Duncan

... apply for membership, pass an interview and pay an annual fee to belong. Once you go through all those steps, they’ll share their address with you. (2) There’s a club in London, England called the Hurlingham Club that is so exclusive that it takes up to 15 years to become a member. A current member has to die or resign before they’ll let anyone new join. Another London club, 5 Hertford Street, is called the most exclusive private club in the English speaking world. Its membership is made up strictly ...

463. The Scariest Job Interview

Acts 1:1-11

Sermon

King Duncan

... .” (6) That’s what we get to do too! We get to love people really well who would never step foot in a church. God isn’t contained inside these four walls. That’s the whole purpose of the Holy Spirit—so the living presence of God could take up residence inside every believer. That means that wherever you go, God goes too. The presence and the power and the love of God go with you into every situation. Doesn’t that make you want to get out there and fulfill your purpose? Doesn’t it reassure you ...

464. Plain Talk

Luke 6:17-26

Sermon

Charles H. Bayer

... are blessed, and we are not poor, are we not blessed? What's so great about being poor? Do we have any volunteers? Isn't much of our effort exerted and money given to help the poor get richer? If poverty is so blessed, why do we take up offerings to alleviate hunger? If the poor are blessed, wouldn't our Christian duty lie in taking away from them what they have now, so they can be even poorer and therefore more blessed? That interpretation means we have not read carefully. Jesus didn't hold that poverty ...

465. Passion Sunday

Mt 26:14–27:66 · Phil 2:5-11 · Is 45:21-25; 50:4-9 · Ps 31

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

... , Michael decides that the only way to shock Nick into his senses is to also play this senseless game. From a human standpoint, Michael's supreme gesture is the height of foolishness. Yet, it is the ultimate embodiment of incarnational love that is willing to take up its cross for the sake of those in bondage to sin and death. Illustration: Death possesses a peculiar power to control our lives. When I was an adolescent, I had the neurotic fear that I might die a premature death if I did something wrong ...

466. Proper 17

Exodus 3:1-22, Jeremiah 15:15-21; 20:7-18, Matthew 16:21-28, Romans 12:1-8

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

... difficult for the Lord to fulfill his mission. It is interesting to see that Peter, the first to confess Jesus as the Messiah, cannot understand the implications of his profession. Jesus then announces that if anyone would be his disciple, he must be willing to take up his cross and follow him. In other words, the follower of Jesus must be willing to suffer and die, if need be, for the sake of the kingdom. True life comes only to the person willing to give to the Lord. THEOLOGICAL REFLECTIONS Old Testament ...

467. The Nearness Of A Faraway God

Isaiah 40:12-18

Sermon

Erskine White

... of the earth in a measure,and weighed the mountains in scales ...Whom did He consult for His enlightenment,and who taught Him the path of justice ...Behold, the nations are like a drop from a bucket,and are accounted as dust on the scales; He takes up the islands like fine dust ...All the nations are as nothing before him, they are accounted by Him as less than nothing and emptiness. Theodore Roosevelt also contemplated the "awesome wonder," but he found that wonder in the stars. It is said that whenever a ...

468. The Two Fires

Luke 12:49-53

Sermon

Wallace H. Kirby

... was talking about. In personal meditation, or in coversation with the other followers of Jesus, they found themselves professing that they really did trust God, that they did forgive others, that they had an intense desire to please God. Most of all, they felt compelled to take up the message and work of Christ again. Without fanfare, the second fire of Christ’s spirit had done its work of change. If we have any gospel good news at all, it will not neglect to speak about this. So Christ is "fire" in a ...

469. Calming Of The Tempest

Mark 4:35-41

Sermon

Brett Blair

... face the question. In the 6th chapter of John we read where the crowds began to fall away from Jesus. Oh, people still followed him. But the old excitement was no longer there. Jesus was no longer talking about the Kingdom of God. He was talking about taking up a cross the obligation side of religion. It was at this point that Jesus turned to the disciples and asked, “Do you also wish to go away?” It was Simon Peter who spoke for the group. Peter often spoke impetuously, often out of turn, often without ...

470. Choose Life!

Deuteronomy 30:15-20

Sermon

King Duncan

... smoking tobacco when that warning appeared? Millions did, but for many others the habit was too well established. Why would anyone ever choose to begin to smoke? Why choose death when you can choose life? Yet there are teenagers this year who will still choose to take up this deadly habit, though, fortunately, not nearly as many as when most of us were young. In that respect, teenagers are a lot smarter today than we were. There is not a person in this room who is not aware of the dangers of alcohol and ...

471. Loch Ness, Locusts, and Bread

Joel 2:1-2, 12-17

Sermon

Bill Mosley

... our eyes on the cross of Jesus. For these forty days, if not for every day and all our lives, we try to live just a little like Jesus in the wilderness fasting for forty days. We try to give of ourselves openly, as he gave. We try to take up our cross as he took up his, and we dedicate ourselves because he dedicated himself to giving us grace, forgiveness, and eternal life. Maybe sometime, maybe this Lent, instead of wanting just a little more bread, we should take a step back and look at the size of the ...

472. Palm/Passion Sunday

Mt 26:14-27:66 · Php 2:5-11 · Isa 50:4-9a · Ps 31

Sermon Aid

Marion L. Soards, Thomas B. Dozeman, Kendall McCabe

... more of a lament than a song of confidence. Although God is the object of the psalm, and, indeed, looms large beneath the surface in every verse, it is the experience of the psalmist, who is presently at a great distance from God's salvation, that takes up most of the imagery. The opening call for salvation in vv. 9-10 ("Be gracious to me, O LORD") gives way immediately to a physical description of the psalmist. Not only are her eyes dissolving (Hebrew, 'ss; NRSV, wasted) from grief, but her very bones are ...

473. And the Angel Said to Harry Potter

Luke 1:26-38

Sermon

... ." In one of the most enchanting scenes (which comes early, so don't dawdle in the popcorn line), thousands of invitations, delivered by owls, flood the home where Harry lives, suggesting it is now time to become who Harry is….by leaving where he lives and taking up residence at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. And why wouldn't Harry want to leave home, given that he is being raised by a grotesque and demonic aunt and uncle who make him sleep in the closet and who do not give him a fraction ...

474. No Green Without Red

Mark 10:35-45

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... songbook used in many churches across America today. It found that only one percent of the hymns contain references to the cross. The church is losing sight of the centrality of the cross. "If anyone wants to be a follower of mine, let him renounce himself and take up his cross and follow me. For anyone who wants to save his life will lose it; but anyone who loses his life for my sake will find it." In our hymnals the doctrine of the atonement is becoming as rare as Christmas cookies for carolers. It is ...

475. Where a Cross Should Be Worn

Matthew 6:1-4

Sermon

King Duncan

... tells about a play or skit for church youth groups that he once read. It was the story of a man named Sam. Sam was a Christian but that was not foremost in his life. Then one day Sam ran into Jesus. And Jesus asked him to “deny himself” and “take up his cross.” “Well, as you might imagine, as any of us might be, Sam was reluctant, but he eventually agreed. To help him out, Jesus literally gave him a cross to serve as a reminder. But the cross he received was not a pocket cross, one that he could ...

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