Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 4926 to 4950 of 4963 results

4926. I Wonder about the Miracles in the Bible

John 2:1-11

Sermon

Charley Reeb

... happened often! More than half of these miracle stories tell of the healing of the sick. In other cases, Jesus casts demons out of people suffering from physical or mental disorders. Three times we read that Jesus raised people from the dead, and the remaining stories show Jesus’ power over things—changing water into wine, feeding a great crowd with very little food, walking on water, and calming the storm. There is no doubt that miracles are a significant part of the Bible. We must deal with them. As ...

4927. Elephants in the Room: Abuse – I Have a Secret

Matthew 11:28

Sermon

Charley Reeb

... the stairs and broke his arm. When other family members and friends heard of it, they expressed concern, but they were told it was rude and impolite to ask questions. The battered wife went to her priest about it and the priest told her that she needed to remain in the abusive relationship. The son who broke his arm is now a grown man and refuses to hit his wife or children. He insists that his wife discipline the kids because he is worried he will turn into his abusive father. He knows that his abusive ...

4928. The Cost of Discipleship

Mark 9:2-9

Sermon

Charley Reeb

... who ever lived spoke about the most important thing we could ever do, he said that sacrifice is required, a cross is required, and death is required. Why? Jesus put it poignantly, “Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit” (John 12:24). What did Jesus mean by that? What did Jesus mean by all this death business? One of the best illustrations of this for me is seen through an experience of one of my ...

4929. John the Baptist Prepares the Way

Matthew 3:1-12

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

... been shortly after the death of Herod in 4 B.C. Chapter 3 begins with the prophetic ministry of John the Baptist some twenty-five to thirty years later. What had been going on in the life of Jesus during this time? Except for one incident, the Gospels remain silent. They were never intended to be taken as biographies. The only thing we know for sure is that at age twelve Jesus was taken to Jerusalem for the Passover. There he talked with the religious leaders about the things of God (Luke 2:41–50). Luke ...

4930. Lord of the Sabbath

Matthew 12:1-14

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

... religionists rose up against him! So strong is the opposition that some writers have decided that the material belongs to the Jewish-Christian controversies that arose at a later time. However, without such opposition during the lifetime of Jesus, the crucifixion would remain an enigma. 12:1–2 Although Matthew does not mention the return of the Twelve, we find them back with Jesus as the narrative resumes with chapter 12. Walking through the grain fields, they become hungry, so they pick some heads of ...

4931. Clean and Unclean

Matthew 15:1-20

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

... of the violation of the fifth commandment in verses 4–6. The final verse ties together the entire section from verse 1 on. A person is made unclean by what rises out of the heart, not by eating with unwashed hands. The question remains as to whether Matthew understands Jesus as thereby setting aside the entire pentateuchal system of dietary laws. Verse 19 would suggest that Matthew is transmuting dietary taboos into prohibitions in speech and conduct. Additional Notes 15:5 A gift devoted to God: Cf ...

4932. Signs of the End of the Age

Matthew 24:1-35

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

... that an apocalyptic pamphlet circulated during difficult days was wrongly attributed to Jesus), we can no longer hold to the dominical origin of the teaching. One helpful insight notes that verses 15–35 answer the disciples’ question, “When will this happen?” (v. 3a), and the remaining verses of the chapter respond in a general way to the second question, “What will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age? (v. 3b., cf. Tasker, pp. 223–31; esp. p. 228, note on v. 3). It is helpful ...

4933. The Parable of the Ten Virgins

Matthew 25:1-13

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

... their total exclusion from the marriage festivities. The conclusion that Jesus draws is, Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour. In context, keep watch means to be thoroughly prepared and ready for the Parousia. The remaining verses in the chapter suggest that readiness involves using the opportunities provided and responding to the needs of the disadvantaged. Though the parable primarily teaches the necessity of being ready for the return of Christ, it also contains a number of ...

4934. Death, Risk, and Confidence

Matthew 10:24-39

Sermon

Tom Garrison

... look straight at the basic issue involved in this phenomenon. What happens to a person when that one experiences physical death and passes from this realm of earthly existence? Obviously, we can describe the physical and material dimensions of the experience. The body remains here as well as all of one's material possessions. "There are no pockets in a shroud," as the Arab proverb puts it. We do not take anything physical or material with us on this journey. It represents a stripping away of these aspects ...

4935. Gratitude and Coping

Matthew 14:13-21

Sermon

Tom Garrison

... -solving and that problem-solving is life has been difficult indeed, and yet this is the attitude that Jesus assumed. The truth is, we could grow up like that too, if we would. We do not have to go on forever looking for a "bed of roses," or remain in a childish world of fantasy and escapism. Jesus grew in "wisdom and in stature," and the truth is, so could I, if I would. Another difference in attitude between Jesus' way of coping and my own was his recognition that resources are always present in problem ...

4936. An Uppity Woman

Matthew 15:21-28

Sermon

Kristin Borsgard Wee

... thousands with a few loaves of bread and a couple of fish. Then there is a storm at sea and Peter's walking on the water, which is sabotaged by his fear and doubt. Everywhere Jesus looks he finds people who want what he can do for them but who remain blind to who he is. He is tired and at the end of his rope. Then a foreign woman shows up, one more person with needs, and Jesus draws the line. Enough is enough. He's tired and cranky, so he rudely dismisses her. But she will not stay on ...

4937. Throwing Away the Calculator

Matthew 18:21-25

Sermon

Kristin Borsgard Wee

... all your good points and your bad ones. This someone has examined your credit rating and knows the chances for repayment are next to nil, so he took your stack of IOUs and tore them to shreds for one reason and one reason only. This someone wants to remain in relationship with you. When someone like that has stopped keeping score on you, you feel sort of foolish keeping score on the people in your own life. How often should we forgive? Will seven times take care of it? "Not seven times," Jesus said, "but, I ...

4938. To Drown Hell and Burn Heaven

Matthew 20:1-16

Sermon

Kristin Borsgard Wee

... full days' work. They agree and head back to the vineyard. Before long, it is apparent that more workers are needed, so three more times the manager goes back to the marketplace for more workers. Finally, at 5:00 in the afternoon, with just one hour of daylight remaining, he goes back one more time. He finds another handful of men he can hire and back to the vineyard they go. Just one hour later comes the moment they have all been waiting for — the handing out of the wages. The steward begins by going to ...

4939. Being a True Disciple

John 8:31-36

Sermon

David G. Rogne

... who desires nothing more than just an ordinary chance to live exactly as he likes and do precisely what he wants." In reality, there is no such absolute freedom. Even if we could do what we wanted, it would involve choices, and those choices would then limit the remaining options, for if you do this, you can't do that at the same time; if you take this road, you cannot also take that road. A few years ago I served a church in Lancaster, California, a self-contained community up on the high desert. Most of ...

4940. Hallelujah! Come On, Get Happy

Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon

David G. Rogne

... he was depressed and filled with remorse that he did not have the strength to get rid of his fat. He says he prayed asking Jesus to help him. As long as he felt that he could safely eat a little here and a little there and still remain in control, he was doomed. But when he cried out for help and admitted that he couldn't control his appetite by himself, he was freed from his addiction. Alcoholics Anonymous operates on the same premise. Persons addicted to alcohol find help only when they acknowledge their ...

4941. The Real Thing

Matthew 23:1-12

Sermon

David G. Rogne

... Wesley would come away from the prisons he and the others had visited holding his nose because of the smell and thinking to himself, "God must be very proud of me for visiting these derelicts." In spite of Wesley's satisfaction with himself, God remained strangely remote. It wasn't until Wesley himself experienced God's acceptance that he could get over focusing on himself and challenge England to do something about the inhumane treatment of prisoners. The time came when he was no longer concerned about how ...

4942. Crowds Follow Jesus

Mark 3:7-12

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

... ) in the time of Jesus, roughly corresponding to the Gilead of the OT. In the early first century, the area was part of Herod Antipas’ domain and was occupied by Jews. Tyre and Sidon: Both of these cities were originally Phoenician seaports and remained essentially gentile cities in Jesus’ time, though Jews were living in them. The mention of the region around these cities suggests that non-Jews are presented here as coming to see Jesus, and elsewhere (7:24–31) we read of Jesus healing the daughter ...

4943. Divorce

Mark 10:1-12

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

... what the OT law allows and what is commanded by Jesus. In ancient Jewish marriage custom, when a woman married she was given a dowry by her father that might consist of money, slaves, or other property, depending on her father’s wealth. This dowry remained her property (and her only true property) in the marriage, and if she were divorced it had to be given to her by her husband, unless she were found guilty of sexual misconduct. A divorce document had to be written by the husband and given properly ...

4944. The Greatest Commandment

Mark 12:28-34

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

... that his grasp of what the law really represented was quite profound. To make this point, Mark has the scribe respond favorably to Jesus’ reply to his question (v. 32–33), and he shows Jesus commenting favorably on the scribe’s response (v. 34). Differences remain between the scribe and Jesus at the end, for the scribe is not said to have become a follower, but he and Jesus recognize that they are not totally at odds. Thus, Mark gives the impression that the rejection of Jesus by the Jewish leaders ...

4945. Signs of the End of the Age

Mark 13:1-31

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

... assurance like an oath (see note on 3:28). This generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. The term generation is used elsewhere in Mark to refer to those who did not accept Jesus and to the period of time in which the disciples must remain true to him (cf. 8:12, 38; 9:19), but it is probably used here to mean that the events of vv. 5–23 (these things) will happen within the lifetime of Jesus’ contemporaries (cf. 9:1).

4946. The Lord's Supper

Mark 14:12-26

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

... to arrest him away from the large public gatherings. On other nights Jesus went to Bethany, but on Passover night Jewish men were required to eat the evening meal within the city of Jerusalem; and this meant that Jesus would have had to remain within the jurisdiction of the priestly authorities late into the night (Passover usually lasted until nearly midnight). The note of intrigue finds further emphasis in Jesus’ warning that he would be betrayed by someone from within his own circle (vv. 18–20). As ...

4947. John the Baptist Prepares the Way

Luke 3:1-20

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... . 15 to 30 was found containing a reference to “Lysanius the tetrarch” (Fitzmyer, pp. 457–58; Ellis, p. 88; Marshall, p. 134). Nevertheless, why Luke mentions this particular ruler, one who would play no role whatsoever in the history of Jesus and the early church, remains unclear. the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas: Although during the ministry of John and of Jesus Caiaphas was actually the high priest (A.D. 18–36)—for there was only one high priest at a time—Annas had been a high priest ...

4948. The Temptation of Jesus

Luke 4:1-13

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... see note below) a parallel to the temptation of Adam, the first “son of God” (see commentary on 3:38 above). Whereas the first son of God fell into sin because of his failure to obey the command of God, the second Son of God remained faithful to God’s commands. The three temptations, however, are probably not meant to correspond to the temptations that were presented to Adam, as one interpreter (J. Neyrey) has recently suggested. Whereas the temptation to eat (fruit in the case of Adam; bread in the ...

4949. The Twelve Apostles

Luke 6:12-16

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... Aramaic for “zealous”) our list of sixteen names is reduced to fourteen. It is also assumed that the “Judas, not Iscariot” of John 14:22 is the same as “Judas, son of James” in Luke 6:16 and Acts 1:13. Other names among the remaining fourteen may refer to one individual, but we have no sure way of knowing. Some efforts have been undertaken in the past to reduce the list to twelve, but ingenuity and desperation have been more in evidence than actual fact. For example, the suggestion put forward ...

4950. Jesus and Beelzebub

Luke 11:14-28

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... finger. In both cases, the “finger of God” reveals God at work, advancing his kingdom. Tiede (p. 217) suggests that Luke’s phrase may parallel Exod. 8:19, where the Egyptian magicians, despite the evidence of the power of the finger of God, remain hardened. Later Jewish exegesis (as seen in the midrash) concluded that the magicians were able to perform their miracles through demonic power (see Leaney, p. 189). 11:23 he who does not gather with me, scatters: Lachs (p. 213) notes the following relevant ...

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