Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 4751 to 4775 of 4999 results

John 14:23-29

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... Here is a fresh pie I have made to help welcome you to our street." The couple looked back and forth at one another with a kind of awkward embarrassment. After a few nervous moments the wife spoke up. "I don't know quite how to say this, but we've been ... family. Now the sad truth is, that we can maintain the relationship of God as a guest. We do that every Sunday that we do the kind of head bob acknowledgment to God. Or we can invite God in as part of the family. We are God's family, joint heirs of the ...

4752. LENT: The Passion of Christ: "Raised"

John 20:1-18

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... For the most part, all of that vast emptiness has a very negative connotation. And yet here we are gathered to worship on day that celebrates emptiness. Easter. We come to celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus from the tomb. Today we come to celebrate an empty tomb. That's kind of bizarre if you think about it. We have come hear to sing and rejoice because the Tomb of Jesus is empty. Let's look at the passage from John 20:1-18 which describes that's first morning. [1] Early on the first day of the week, while ...

4753. Come On In The Water's Fine

Luke 3:15-17, 21-22

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... it. It was still a pretty place. But out in front of that pretty, picturesque little church was a sign that read:"Barbecued Chicken, Ribs & Pork." It wasn't a church anymore. The church had died. It was a restaurant now and it was full, full of all kinds of people, sitting in those pews, eating barbecue. The building was packed and Craddock said to his wife, “It’s a good thing this isn't a church anymore. These folks would not be welcome." That Church's focus became themselves. Their aim was inward. The ...

4754. The Grateful Samaritan

Luke 17:11-19

Sermon

King Duncan

... ? 4. I wonder if Jesus would also do something for my allergies. 3. All right! Now I can buy a new wardrobe. 2. Why didn’t this happen sooner? And number 1: Thank you, Jesus! You are my Lord and Master. (3) Only one of the ten returned with this kind of response. But that one gave us some important lessons. For one thing, we can see that faith and gratitude go hand in hand. Think about it and I believe you will agree. If you trust God, you cannot help but have a profound sense of gratitude about what God ...

4755. One of the Family

Hebrews 1:1-4; 2:5-18

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... morning, you're invited to an old fashioned family gathering. The table has been spread with more than any of us will ever be able to digest. And today, we don't have to worry about clean up, it is Jesus who does the cleaning up today. No matter what kind of mess there is in our lives, He offers to clean it up and help us start over. And He'll never forget that we belong to Him. You are "One of the Family." 1. Preaching Magazine, Vol. 11, No. 2 (Preaching Resources, Jackson, TN) 2. Preaching Magazine, Vol ...

4756. Blast From The Past

John 17:1-19

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... their prayer time that Mom needed our prayers. She didn't know what it was all about, but lifted Mom and me in prayer. It was kind of an incredible feeling. I told Mom about it and she felt the same way. People we didn't even know were praying for Mom. ... stuff. Have you seen the bumper sticker that was popular a few years ago - "The one who dies with the most toys wins." That kind of expresses our consumer mentality doesn't it? But you know, a life of just stuff is pretty empty. Because no matter how much ...

4757. See What Love . . .

1 John 3:1-7

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... how to let it go. And then that baggage gets in the way of any meaningful or deep relationship with their children. Maybe that's the kind of family you grew up in. If that's the case, then we sure don't want you to take a nostalgia trip back there. ... a greater safety and a greater comfort than any of us could ever experience with our earthly families. For those who've never experienced that kind of love, comfort and safety, let me tell you, you're in for a treat. For those of you who grew up loved, it doesn ...

4758. The Dawn of Forever

John 20:1-18

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... to life again is, according to the laws of nature, extremely improbable. But if there is a God of the traditional kind, natural laws only operate because he makes them operate." Swineburne used the Bayes Theorem to assign values to things like the ... day. Surprisingly, his mother responded, "Nothing much. Ralphie had a fight." His father put down the paper and gazed at Ralphie. "A fight? What kind of fight?" Mom replied, "Oh, you know how boys are. I gave him a talking to. Oh, I see the Bears are playing the ...

4759. At Cross Purposes

Mark 8:31-38

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... August 25, 1989. About 9 monuments commemorate this extraordinary event. The nation's pride is the Hill of Crosses, located north of Siauliai. Lithuanians erected crosses there as early as the mid-19th century. The Soviet government couldn't tolerate that kind of spiritual expression, so they totally destroyed the hill in 1961, then again in 1973 and 1975. But people kept erecting more crosses, until in 1980 their destruction stopped. Today the crosses number in the thousands. They are different sizes and ...

4760. License to Steal

Luke 18:9-14

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... their crimes that day. But the Romans had it right. Jesus was as much as a thief as those robbers on his left and his right. Jesus was The Third Thief on Golgotha. The first two thieves stole money and objects from households. Jesus was a different kind of thief. The third “thief,” the one Pilate dubbed “Jesus, King of the Jews,” pulled off the greatest heist in all of human history right in front of their eyes. This Jesus had a long criminal record. He had already “robbed” the woman at the well ...

4761. Fighting Back Against Falling Back

2 Thessalonians 3:6-15

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... hunker down and veg out. The feeling that all there is ahead of us is a cold, dark future can bring on a kind of human “root vegetable” behavior. The just finished political races bombarded us with bad news. Employment numbers are slightly improving but not ... “idleness” to the life of the faithful. This “idleness” was not just a sitting-around-watching-MTV all day- kind of inactivity. It was the idleness that took on the activity of despair, disorder, and disobedience. Those obsessed with ...

4762. Proper 9, Pentecost 7, Ordinary Time 14

Psalm 145:8-14, Zechariah 9:9-13, Matthew 11:1-19, Romans 7:15-25a

Bulletin Aid

Amy C. Schifrin

... and humility all of our days, through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. All: Amen. A Litany For Sharing The Peace I: The Lord is gracious and full of compassion slow to anger and of great kindness. II: We try not to think about your anger, Lord, for when we do, we have to face our own sin. I: The Lord is loving to everyone and his compassion is over all his works. II: Everyone, Lord? Even those people that we are angry with? I: All your ...

4763. The Time of Preparation and the Time of Fulfillment

Matthew 11:2-12

Illustration

Mark Trotter

... a verse that reads, in the King James version, "The God of my mercy shall prevent me..." In the old King James English, "prevent" means "go before." Hugh Redwood said that somebody had written in the margin after that verse this paraphrase: "My God in his loving kindness shall meet me at every corner." Redwood said that was like light shining in the darkness of his life, and he was encouraged to go on, confident that God is at work, preveniently, even when we are not aware of it. Which is why we are asked ...

4764. Adopted! Thank God!

Ephesians 1:1-14

Sermon

King Duncan

... is also speaking to anyone who has the form of godliness but not its spirit. Some of you will head to the gym in the weeks ahead and seek a new body. Others will go back to school and try to improve your mind. Still others may seek out some kind of on-the-job training in order to advance professionally. But what Christ offers you this year is an opportunity for an entirely new life. A new attitude, a new sense of identity, a new heart as it were all this Christ offers. But that is unlikely to happen unless ...

4765. St. Andrew Christians

John 1:35-42

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... be offering us something good. And what if that “something” was more than simple politeness or momentary care? What if the “something” being offered to us was a whole new truth, a whole new life, a whole new possibility of being? What if offering that kind of message was our definition of the “right” thing to do? In today’s gospel text we are faced with two examples of someone doing a crazy “right” thing. First there is John the Baptist. Here is a man who spent his life urging others ...

4766. Leaving Home

Genesis 12:1-8

Sermon

King Duncan

... awe and said: “Lord, your creation is beautiful! Can I have it?” That’s the worldview of a materialist. Finally, the fourth angel observed in awe and said: “Lord, your creation is beautiful! Can I help?” That’s the worldview of God’s faithful. (8) That is the kind of obedience that God honors. God told Abram to leave his home and God made Abram a promise and an assignment—that he would be blessed and that he would be a blessing. May we be blessed and may we be a blessing to others as well. 1 ...

4767. Playing the Blame Game

John 9:1-12

Sermon

King Duncan

... that healing. Work for that healing. Never give up hope. Just as Christ healed the man blind from birth, God’s will is for all God’s children to be well, to be strong. That’s true of all of life. If you have a hurt of any kind, or a need of any kind, whether it is physical or mental or emotional or financial or whatever it may be don’t sit around wondering who is to blame. Don’t sit around feeling sorry for yourself. Focus on God’s desire for healing. Do what you can to bring healing. Focus ...

4768. Daring Thomas

John 11:1-16

Sermon

King Duncan

... the Navy.” When you make a commitment to the armed services, it takes priority over the rest of your commitments. So it is when you make an authentic commitment to Christ every area of your life will be affected by that commitment. Thomas had that kind of commitment. I see Thomas as an enthusiastic, willing young man who was passionate about serving Christ. Jesus was returning to an area where people were threatening his life and Thomas responded, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.” That’s ...

4769. Let My Little Light Shine - Sermon Starter

Mt 5:13-20

Illustration

King Duncan

... because of his manager's encouragement he felt different about it. Something in him was turning around. He found himself pitching the best ball of his career. In the National League pennant drive, he won 13 games out of 14. There are all kinds of theories about how to motivate people. We can do it through guilt, through fear, through shame. But these were not Jesus' methods. Jesus motivated through positive messages of hope and encouragement. Consider our lesson for today. Jesus says to his followers, "You ...

4770. You Are God's Temple

1 Corinthians 3:1-23

Sermon

King Duncan

... but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.” How did Jesus answer this woman’s statement? He said, “A time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.” (John 4:22-23) God is Spirit. That means that God does not have a physical dwelling place. God is not on a mountain or in a building. God dwells ...

4771. Romans 5:12-19

Romans 5:12-21

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... and the triumph of God’s grace and righteousness. We color Lent with the grey of Ash Wednesday ashes. We see it as a kind of long slog of things “given up” or new tasks to accomplish. But Paul’s text from Romans encourages us to look to the ... text and see it as some strange digression that is slightly off-point. What Paul does present here is a new kind of comparison, one that takes for granted the recognition of some traditional Jewish theological assumptions while introducing a new ending for ...

4772. Lose Yourself

Matthew 21:1-11

Illustration

Joanna Adams

... . It is called the Winners Church, and according to its leaders, it lives by a motto that comes from America's religious culture. Here's the motto: "Be happy. Be successful. Join the winners." People flock to that kind of church, I guess. But it all depends, doesn't it, on how we define winning? I wonder what kind of church you would have if your motto were "Whoever wishes to be great among you must be your servant." Or about this one for a motto, "Those who want to save their lives will lose them and ...

4773. Palm Sunday – Who Is That?

Matthew 21:1-11

Illustration

Scott Hoezee

... stretch of road where the Macy's parade is held each Thanksgiving Day. Imagine that one spring day a kind of makeshift parade is being staged along upper Fifth Avenue near Central Park. But this is not the Macy' ... the center of it all is a modest, average looking fellow astride a donkey's colt which actually is too small for him to ride with any kind of dignity. But the members of the parade entourage are nothing if not jubilantly excited. Especially the kids are making a lot of noise, singing and shouting. ...

4774. Loving Deeply (Mother's Day)

1 Peter 1:13-2:3

Sermon

King Duncan

... the secular world would even understand. These are words written for the community of faith. It is Christians to whom he is saying, “Love one another deeply, from the heart.” Love is the glorious burden of the Christian. Christians disagree about all kinds of things. We disagree on social issues. For example, some Christians are teetotalers when it comes to alcoholic beverages; others see no problem with drinking in moderation. We argue over how people are to be baptized and whether Christ is present in ...

4775. Family Resemblance

John 14:5-14

Sermon

King Duncan

... a sensible way of treating children. Treat them as though they were young adults . . . Never hug or kiss them, never let them sit on your lap. If you must, kiss them once on the forehead when they say goodnight . . . Can’t a mother train herself to substitute a kindly word, a smile, in all of her dealings with the child, for the kiss and the hug, the pickup and the coddling? . . . If you haven’t a nurse and cannot leave the child, put it out in the backyard a large part of the day. Build a fence around ...

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