Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 4876 to 4900 of 5000 results

4876. One Life Will Do Fine

Illustration

Staff

In one of his books, noted Presbyterian author Frederick Buechner tells about a trip to the grocery store. He and his wife were in a hurry, so when they entered the small New England general store, they tore their shopping list in two. He took one half of the list and she took the other and they set off down separate aisles. The store was mostly empty so they talked with each other from one aisle to the next. Standing by the shelf of breakfast cereal and cake mix, Buechner called out, "Don't forget the ...

4877. Sorry, Wrong Plane

John 6:24-25

Illustration

Staff

During one of the busiest times at Houston's Hobby Airport, a flight was delayed due to a mechanical problem. Since they needed the gate for another flight, the aircraft was backed away from the gate while the maintenance crew worked on it. The passengers were then told the new gate number, which was some distance away. Everyone moved to the new gate, only to find that a third gate had been designated. After some further shuffling, everyone got on board. As they were settling in, the flight attendant made ...

4878. In Search of Jesus

John 6:16-24

Sermon

King Duncan

One day, Marlene Nance’s little daughter, Emma, was playing with her paper dolls. These were special paper dolls. They were all Bible characters. Suddenly Emma realized that the Jesus paper doll was missing. Marlene and Emma looked all over the house, but they couldn’t find Jesus anywhere. Later that afternoon, Emma came running to her mother with some good news. She had found Jesus! He was in one of her Daddy’s magazine. Emma proudly held out her new Jesus. Marlene gasped as she took the picture from Emma ...

4879. Getting Rid of Anger

Ephesians 4:17--5:21

Sermon

King Duncan

Have you ever said something to somebody that you later regretted? A man named Bob Monkhouse says he got angry at the manager of his local dry cleaners and expressed his anger quite forcefully. He realizes now that he probably did not leave the manager with a very favorable impression. He knows that because recently he put a red ballpoint pen in the breast pocket of his white shirt and forgot to put the cap on it. It made a ghastly red stain with a dark center all over the pocket. His wife said, “It won’t ...

4880. A Time for Opportunity

Ephesians 4:17--5:21

Sermon

King Duncan

Some of you are familiar with a 26-year-old blogger in Montreal, Canada named Kyle MacDonald. Kyle is the ultimate modern day horse trader. He has become famous for trading a red paper clip for a house. Yes, you heard right. A paper clip for a house. How did he accomplish this remarkable exchange? Well, he didn’t have a job, but one day he looked at a red paper clip on his desk and decided to trade it on the barter section of the popular website Craigslist. He asked people to trade with him anything of ...

4881. A Stone’s Throw Away

1 Samuel 17

Sermon

James Merritt

Anyone who knows anything about the Bible knows that beyond question, the central character and the hero of the entire Bible is the Lord Jesus Christ. With the exception of Jesus Christ, one individual has more scripture devoted to Him than any other individual. Would you know who that is? Hint: It is neither Paul nor Moses. This character is mentioned in I and II Samuel, I Kings, I Chronicles, and seventy-five psalms. He is the first person named in the New Testament after Jesus Christ and he is the last ...

4882. Decoding the Da Vinci Code (Part One - Exploring the Fiction)

1 Timothy 1:4

Sermon

James Merritt

I don't watch a whole lot of television, but one of my favorite shows is CSI. CSI is one murder mystery after another that uses state-of-the-art technology and forensical analysis to find out "Who Done It?" I have yet to see a show that does not absolutely fascinate me with what science and technology can do. That is why I can understand why The Da Vinci Code would appeal to so many people regardless of its religious content, because it is a murder mystery. The victim is the curator of The Louvre Museum in ...

4883. Belling the Cat

John 6:60-71

Sermon

King Duncan

Aesop once told a fable about a group of mice who lived in a barn. Life was wonderful, except for a sneaky cat. Hardly a day went by without a poor mouse being chased or even eaten by the cat. Finally, the head mouse called a meeting. “Ladies and gentlemen, youngsters and baby mice,” he stated. “The time is now come to resolve our problems with the cat. Does anyone have any solutions?” The mice were abuzz with ideas and suggestions, but none seemed to solve the problem. Then a young mouse got up, took the ...

4884. Join the Winning Side!

John 6:56-69

Illustration

John Ortberg

Jim Wallis writes that when the South African government canceled a political rally against apartheid, Desmond Tutu led a worship service in St. George's Cathedral. The walls were lined with soldiers and riot police carrying guns and bayonets, ready to close it down. Bishop Tutu began to speak of the evils of the apartheid system how the rulers and authorities that propped it up were doomed to fall. He pointed a finger at the police who were there to record his words: "You may be powerful, very powerful, ...

4885. Footprints

Ephesians 6:10-20

Illustration

Robert R. Kopp

No doubt you have heard the story Footprints: One night a man had a dream. He dreamed he was walking along the beach with the Lord. Across the sky flashed scenes from his life. For each scene, he noticed two sets of footprints in the sand, one belonging to him, and the other belonging to the Lord. When the last scene of his life flashed before him, he looked back at the footprints in the sand. He noticed that many times along the path of his life there was only one set of footprints. He also noticed that ...

4886. One Nation Under God

2 Chronicles 7:14

Sermon

James Merritt

When Ronald Reagan was elected President of the United States, he and Nancy had to get used to the Executive Mansion on their own. President Carter had broken with recent tradition and had not given the Reagans a tour of the White House. If you remember, during those days it was a difficult campaign with Carter and Reagan both bitterly fighting out what was to be a runaway election landslide for Reagan. The Carters greeted the Reagans a few days before the Inauguration, and then turned them over to White ...

4887. Mind Games

2 Corinthians 10:3-5

Sermon

James Merritt

(After a video of Hershel Walker) Oh, those were the glory days! Now there is something most of you probably missed in seeing that video. You thought the focus was on Hershel Walker, but the key to what you just saw was the offensive line. Not even Hershel Walker, the greatest college running back who ever lived, who happened to play for the greatest college football team, at the greatest university in history, cannot run one yard unless he has an offensive line opening the holes. There is an old football ...

4888. Will the Real God Please Stand Up?

2 Corinthians 13:14

Sermon

James Merritt

I have been to Israel on many occasions and without question, one of the most impressive architectural sites is what is known as the Dome of the Rock. It is the masterpiece of Islamic architecture. It was erected in 691 A.D. to enshrine the rock where traditionally it has been held that Abraham sacrificed Isaac. To this day it is probably the most distinctive and beautiful monument in all of Jerusalem. If you look carefully, you'll notice the geometry of a dome supported by an octagon shaped building. It ...

4889. All By Myself: The Fear of Loneliness

2 Timothy 4:9-21

Sermon

James Merritt

Last week we introduced a series of messages that I am calling - fear factor. I am dealing with fears that are common to all of us that many of us will face at some time in our life. Today, I am dealing with the fear of loneliness. If you have ever been lonely or felt lonely, you know it is one of the most terrible feelings in the world. Celine Dion re-did a classic song a few years ago entitled, "All By Myself". The lyrics themselves are haunting. Here is just a part of it. Livin' alone I think of all the ...

4890. What Is 40 Days Of Purpose?

2 Timothy 4:9-18

Sermon

James Merritt

We are about to begin a journey, a forty-day journey that I believe will change your life more than any other forty days that you have ever lived. In that forty days we are going to ask and answer the single most important and fundamental question anyone can ever ask in this life which is, "What On Earth Am I Here For? What Is My Purpose? Why Am I Alive?" The Bible says God never created anything without a purpose or a reason. Whether it is animal, vegetable, or mineral, everything that God created has a ...

4891. Explore the Evidence

Acts 1:1-3

Sermon

James Merritt

I heard a story the other day about a man that went on vacation to the Holy Land with his wife and mother-in-law. Half way through their trip, the mother-in-law dies, so this guy goes to an undertaker who explains that they can ship the body home, but it will cost $5,000 or they can bury her in the Holy Land for $150. The son-in-law says, "Let's just go ahead and ship her home." The undertaker said, "Are you sure? That is an awfully big expense and I can assure you we do a very nice burial here." The son- ...

4892. Will the Real Christian Please Stand Up?

Acts 11:26

Sermon

James Merritt

I’m reminded of the story of a local businessman who was a fourth grade Sunday School teacher. He was really trying to impress the class because his son was a member of the class. So he asked the class this question, “Why do you suppose that people call me a Christian?” Well, there was dead silence. Nobody spoke up. He asked the question again: “Now kids, why do you suppose that people call me a Christian?” Still no response. Finally, the man with an exasperated look said, “Now come on, think about it, ...

4893. Am I a Real Christian?

Acts 11:26

Sermon

James Merritt

How would you answer this question? "Do You Consider Yourself a Christian?" That question was asked recently in a nationwide survey and 77% of men and 86% of women in America answered “Yes.” [[1]] The question remains however, what did these people understand the term “Christian” to mean? The term “Christian” is used more today than any other term to describe a believer, a follower of Jesus Christ. People talk about the Christian church and the Christian faith. There is a debate always raging as to whether ...

4894. Framing Values – Part Two

Daniel 1:1-21

Sermon

James Merritt

We are continuing to make progress on our Extreme Home Makeover as you can see and the framing is coming right along. Last week we talked about framing values for your children. Today, I want to talk about framing values for your teenagers. Have you listened to teenagers talk recently? I want to be honest and tell you that I suffer from TLD - Teenage Language Deficiency. If you have listened to your teenager talk lately, you know that their favorite word now is "like". I counted up one time and Joshua, my ...

4895. A Blast from the Past

Deuteronomy 6:20-25

Sermon

James Merritt

I heard about a man who had retired, and he got up one morning and the first thing he did was read the obituary column to find out who had died. Well, on this particular morning he read that column and the newspaper by mistake had put his name in the column and reported that he was dead. He was not only shaken he was irate. He called the editor of the newspaper and fussed him out. Finally the editor said, "I'll tell you what we'll do. In the morning we'll put your name in the birth column and give you a ...

4896. Total Recall

Deuteronomy 6:20-25

Sermon

James Merritt

On June 24, 1826, Thomas Jefferson sent a letter to Roger C. Weightman, declining an invitation to come to Washington, D.C., to help celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. It was the last letter that Jefferson, who was gravely ill, ever wrote. In it, Jefferson says of this date celebrating America's independence: "May it be to the world, what I believe it will be...the signal of arousing men to burst the chains...and to assume the blessings and security of self-government. That ...

4897. It’s Time to Grow Up

Ephesians 4:14-15

Sermon

James Merritt

I want you to listen again to two lines in this song. Between who you are and who you could be Between how it is and how it should be If that tension is in your life, I am going to dare you to move. I am going to dare you to move to the next level of spiritual growth in your life – to move from where you are now to where you could be on the road to both spiritual life and spiritual maturity. What I want to say to many of you today is something that we all tell our kids (or one day you will tell your kids) ...

4898. Who's Number One?

Exodus 20:1-3

Sermon

James Merritt

9/11 - All of us know that date. Because of that date, another cabinet level department was created to serve the President of the United States - Department of Homeland Security. Note the keyword in that department which is home. The greatest way to protect the homeland is to protect the homes in that land. That is why I am beginning a series of messages I am entitling "Homeland Security." We are going to be dealing with the Ten Commandments, because the greatest way to protect our homes is to teach our ...

4899. Name Dropping

Exodus 20:7

Sermon

James Merritt

God's Name is so important to Him that it makes the "Top Ten" of the commandments He wants his family to live by. Most every one of us here very likely have some type of an alarm system in our home. We have that because we want to make sure our homes are secure. That is why we are in the middle of a series on the Ten Commandments that I have entitled "Homeland Security." Remember that the Ten Commandments are God's rules for His family. The Ten Commandments were not given to establish a relationship with ...

4900. Choose Life

Exodus 20:13

Sermon

James Merritt

If you ever travel to Florida on vacation you don't have to look very long until you will see license plates with the message "Choose Life." Several years ago, Marion County Commissioner, Randy Harris, was driving behind a vehicle with a specialty license plate, when he envisioned a Choose Life specialty license plate. It took a while for this to finally get through the legislature and for a republican governor to sign it into law. When it was approved, the license plate took off. Since November of 1999, ...

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