Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 4926 to 4950 of 4999 results

4926. Family Re:Union - Great Expectations

Ephesians 5:22-33

Sermon

James Merritt

... a husband has in a marriage is not the relationship he has with his wife, but the relationship he has to Christ. The single greatest relationship a wife has in a marriage is not her relationship to her husband, but her relationship to Christ. The kind of husband you are going to be and the kind of wife that you are going to be and the way you are going to relate to your husband or to your wife all comes down to your understanding two things: (1) What Christ did for you (2) What Christ is to you God wants ...

4927. Family Re:Union - (PG) Parental Guidance Required

Psalm 127:1-5

Sermon

James Merritt

... am talking about is most useful with toddlers and preschoolers between 18 months and 6 years of age. I am not talking about physical abuse. There are some differences. A spanking is one or two spanks to the buttocks with some kind of an object that will not do any kind of deep physical harm. Spanking also has the intent of simply correcting a behavioral problem. Abuse has the intensity to do physical harm by a violent action. The attitude is different. Spanking is done in love and concern. Physical abuse is ...

4928. The Gift That Keeps On Giving

Acts 20:13-38

Sermon

James Merritt

... hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life.” (Matthew 19:29, NIV) Do you know what one hundred times an investment turns out to be? You do the math. That is 10,000% interest. There is not a mutual fund, a hedge fund or any kind of fund that would give you that kind of return. I wish someday that many of you would wake up and realize the reason why I talk about giving and the reason why Jesus talks so much about giving and the reason why we encourage you to give is not because we are trying to ...

4929. Flip the Switch

Psalm 119:105

Sermon

James Merritt

... if the ball is traveling in slow motion just before they hit it. Basketball players say they literally can’t miss no matter what kind of shot they try. God wants us to live our life “in the zone”, not just occasionally, not just randomly, but daily. That ... wrong time, with the wrong person, doing the wrong thing. I know what some of you are thinking. You are already coming up with all kinds of reasons why you don’t already read your Bible on a daily basis. I am going to share with you next week the ...

4930. Follow the Directions

Psalm 119:9, 18, 89

Sermon

James Merritt

... key verses that speak to your heart. They are verses that you know you need to keep in your memory bank. You can do it. We memorize a lot of things: our social security number, other people’s birthdays, stories, jokes, and you can also memorize scripture. There are all kinds of ways to do it. The best way I’ve learned is to get a card, write it down, put it before you and go over it every week until you have it. Why is it important to memorize scripture? You can then take the Bible with you wherever you ...

4931. God Is Not Dead

Exodus 20:1-21

Sermon

James Merritt

... an image is local, God is universal; an image is temporal, God is eternal; an image is material, God is spiritual; an image is impotent, God is omnipotent. But not only is it impossible, it is also improper to represent God through some image. There are only two kinds of gods you can worship. You will either worship the God who made you, or you will worship a god you have made. You will either worship the creator God, or you will worship a created god. Jeremiah said, “Are there any among the idols of the ...

4932. Ignite: Man on Fire

Acts 9:1-19a

Sermon

James Merritt

... The Life Of God’s Spirit Now Saul has been blinded by this light. That is where we get the phrase, “Blinded by the light.” Paul’s companions take him by the hand and bring him into Damascus to the house of a person named “Judas” which is kind of ironic if you think about it. He lives on a street called “Straight.” I went back and did my research and found out the reason why called the street “Straight” is because it was a straight street! God tells a disciple in Damascus by the name of ...

4933. Envision: The Great Commitment

Matthew 20:20-28

Sermon

James Merritt

... Johnny, what do you do to help out at home?” He said, “I stay out of the way.” There are far too many church members in the church who just stay out of the way. A Gallup poll discovered that only 10% of church members are active in any kind of personal ministry in their church. What is even more amazing is that 50% of all church members said they have no interest in serving in any ministry of the church. I am going to make a statement that may offend some people listening and we actually might lose ...

4934. Up Close & Personal: Seeing Clearly

Isaiah 6:1-13

Sermon

James Merritt

... raises a question, “How do you view God?” When I talk to people and I listen to people I find out there are all kinds of god’s out there that we believe in. Here are just a few. There is the “mean old man god” who is angry ... that is so far different and so far distinct from every creature that the only way He can be described is “holy.” He is one of a kind. He cannot be compared with anyone else or anything else, because there is no one and nothing else like Him. There is no one like this God. He ...

4935. Up Close & Personal: Drawing Near

Hebrews 4:14-5:10

Sermon

James Merritt

... HD and hearing Him in surround-sound. We are in a series we are calling “Up Close & Personal,” because that is the kind of relationship we can have with God. God sent His son to remove every barrier, tear down every wall, bridge every gulf, and ... and talk to God all you want to, but He will not speak to you unless He does it through His word. There are all kinds of Bible reading plans out there. Online you can visit www.youversion.com and find literally dozens of different reading plans that you can get ...

4936. Up Close & Personal: Open the Doors

Psalm 100:1-5

Sermon

James Merritt

... He is. You may know that the Hebrew word for “praise” is the word “halal.” It literally means, “to be excited with great joy.” The single half of this verse totally changed my view even about music. I know there are some people who criticize praise choruses and kind of talk down about praise choruses, but I believe our entire life ought to be a praise chorus. When you think about a God who created you when He didn’t have to, who loves you even though you don’t deserve it, who sent His son to ...

4937. Lost Baggage: Empty Your Suitcase

Matthew 18:10-14

Sermon

James Merritt

... you grew up in what you would consider a perfect environment, that environment itself may have loaded you with baggage. What kind of baggage do people carry? Many times it’s relationships baggage. Maybe a failed marriage in your past. Maybe you had ... one is no longer a part of the flock and he leaves the ninety-nine and goes in search of the one. On the surface, that seems kind of strange that you would leave ninety-nine sheep to go after one lost one and yet we are the same way. Have you ever noticed that ...

4938. Do You Have Any Leftovers?

John 6:1-15

Sermon

James Merritt

... enough faith. Now we come to the second part of the Law of the Leftovers – II. We Should Give Jesus What He Asks Philip did what we so often do when God asks us for something that we don’t think we can do. We come up with all kinds of reasons why we can’t do it. “Philip answered him, ‘Two hundred denarii worth of bread would not be enough for each of them to get a little.’” (John 6:7, ESV) Jesus didn’t ask “How?” He simply asked, “Where?” Here is another thing to remember whenever ...

4939. Supernatural: Taken By Storm

Mark 4:35-41

Sermon

James Merritt

... . This was an eruption of the sea below and the sky above. That word is only used on two other occasions. Once, at Jesus’ death, when the whole earth shook and again at His resurrection when the whole graveyard trembled. In other words, this was definitely the kind of storm that could break that boat into little toothpicks. At this point, most people fail to ask an important question. Why were they out there in the middle of that lake to begin with? Because Jesus had told them to get into that boat and to ...

4940. The Knot: Frayed (Part 1)

1 Peter 3:1-7

Sermon

James Merritt

... or jewelry then if you read the rest of the verse women shouldn’t wear clothes either (I better not hear one man say, “Amen!” either.) No, Peter’s point is simply real beauty is not what is on the outside, but what is on the inside. There are two kinds of beauty. There is the physical beauty of the body and the spiritual beauty of the heart. I don’t care how much plastic surgery you have. I don’t care how much you exercise. I don’t care how well you take care of yourself. Ultimately for all of ...

4941. The Runner

Romans 9:30--10:21

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... husband replied, "Please come, pastor. She may not live until morning." Dr. Lee went to the hospital room and stood with the man by his wife’s bedside. The lady looked up at the famous preacher and said, "Dr. Lee, I heard you preach . . . " He responded with kind words and tried to read a Scripture to her when she gripped his hand and said again, "Dr. Lee, I heard you preach . . ." The pastor thanked her and started to lead into prayer as the woman looked deeply into his eyes, holding his hand, and said ...

4942. The Ice Bucket Challenge

Romans 13:8-14

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... was in large caps in the "Ice Bucket Challenge." In fact, the ritual of being doused with cold water became a kind of "baptismal rite" for initiation into ALS awareness. The "Ice Bucket Challenge" showed all those who were invited, enticed, or ... brother Lucas with love. He offered love that was not even an effort, just a natural outpouring of an indwelling love. It is the same kind of love that is offered up in a short form by Paul in this week’s epistle text when the apostle reminds Christians to "Love ...

4943. How to Forgive

Matthew 18:21-35

Sermon

King Duncan

... the incident in her mind and it kept her awake at night. Finally Corrie cried out to God for help in putting the problem to rest. And God answered her prayer. God sent her a kindly Lutheran pastor. Corrie confessed to this pastor that for two weeks she had gone without sleep hashing and rehashing this incident in her mind. The kindly pastor made a simple suggestion. “Up in the church tower,” he said, “is a bell which is rung by pulling on a rope. But you know what? After the sexton lets go of the rope ...

4944. Prison Theology: Bait and Bail

Philippians 1:12-30

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... , corner-cutters, corrupt operatives, and just plain cruel and crude individuals to receive the forgiveness and new life that Jesus offered all of humanity—not just the "good guys," but "good news" to the "bad guys" too. This kind of behavior rarely rates Christians merit points with others. This kind of behavior puts all Christians on the "radar" for the ruthless who practice injustice and cruelty. In today’s Philippian’s text Paul is writing while he is in prison. He is facing the possibility of a ...

4945. That's Not Fair

Matthew 20:1-16

Sermon

King Duncan

... ’s grace is free. We know that we did nothing to deserve it. But we also know it cost Christ his life. And we hunger in our hearts to think that our lives lived in response to his act of self-giving love are proving worthy of that act. What kind of people would we be otherwise? Amazing grace. It’s not fair. It’s not just. It’s simply unbelievably generous. And it is all ours for the taking today. Amen. 1. WITandWISDOM(tm) ‑ November 17, 2004. 2. (New York: Gotham Books, 2004), pp. 179-180. 3. http ...

4946. Learning to Live Like Jesus

Philippians 2:1-11

Sermon

King Duncan

... s a very hard time.” And she said, “I know it’s hard. It’s already hard, but you see, this is my church, and they’re going to see that my children and I are okay.” (2) That is the way a church ought to function. That’s the kind of church I hope we are trying to be. I like something that Ronald L. Nickelson once wrote. “What is the quickest way to identify a great city?” he asked. “Almost everyone knows that Paris is the home of the Eiffel Tower. Rome has its Coliseum; London has Big Ben ...

4947. The Landlord's Dilemma - World Communion Sunday

Matthew 21:33-46

Sermon

King Duncan

... be the cornerstone for a new way of living. Why have we not understood that this world was created for love, for compassion, for sharing, for jumping off a railroad platform to save a stranger in distress? What would it take for us to understand that this is the kind of world that God desires, a world where those who live in abundance share with those who have so little? What would God need to do to get that truth through to us? Send His own innocent Son? Have him die? Would that do it? Around a table one ...

4948. A Lesson from Jay Leno's Mom

Matthew 22:34-40

Sermon

King Duncan

... the note and passed it back. At recess that day Sherri came up to him with a big smile on her face and said, “Say it.” By this time he had no idea what she was talking about. “Say what?” he replied. “Say that you love me,” she said. It kind of embarrassed him, but he went ahead and said, “I love you.” The next day Sherri came up to him and said, “Do you really love me?” “Yes,” he replied. “Do you mean it?” she asked seriously. “A lot of the boys tell me they love me, but some ...

4949. About that Salesman

Matthew 23:1-39

Sermon

King Duncan

... Christ,” Scott said. Scott goes on to say this about Roy: “Today he is a sweet loving man.” (5) Evidently, Roy began to see that the people of that church as a whole were nothing like his abusive father. Roy’s father was a hypocrite, to be sure. The worst kind of hypocrite. I would hate to think there is such a monster lurking in this congregation. But I will say this at least he took Roy to church. At least, as a child Roy was exposed to the message of God’s love. Don’t you imagine that is part ...

4950. We Are Not The Light

Sermon

Craig MacCreary

... darkness for what will seem an eternity? On the other hand, perhaps we have just a minor problem that is susceptible to a little jiggling and jury-rigging. Things will be up and running in no time. Often in church the problems seem of the latter kind, amenable to a reassignment here or there, a shuffle of agenda, a more severe application of the appropriate muscle power. I shudder at the inventiveness and circuitous methods I have used over the years to keep the Christmas tree lit. Candles would have been ...

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