Sermon and Worship Resources

Antonyms: keep, claim, continue, stick by, self-control, power through, achieve, defend, bear, hope, acquire, quick visit, adopt, continue along, adhere, remain, pursue, support, take up, keep up, reuse, advocate, stay, persevere, cherish, keep going, carry on

Showing 26 to 50 of 1185 results

26. The Invitation

Matthew 20:1-15

Sermon

Will Willimon

... to you this is an Easter parable. That's why I’m telling it to you today. It's a story (you can think of others) about a God who refused to leave us alone, refused to leave things with just what's right, a God who came out and pursued us, sought us, found us, sometimes early, sometimes late. You are here this morning, not because you have been given ''what you deserve," (who would want that from God?) but because you have been invited. Some of you came early, some late. And if you are not here this ...

27. Plumb Line Prophecy

Amos 7:1-9, Amos 7:10-17

Sermon

Robert Leslie Holmes

... sword, and your land shall be parceled out by line; you yourself shall die in an unclean land, and Israel shall surely go into exile away from its land.’ ” — Amos 7:14-17 This was one major difference between Amaziah and Amos. Amaziah pursued position, while Amos was in a position that pursued him. “I am no prophet, nor a prophet’s son; but I am a herdsman, and a dresser of sycamore trees, and the Lord took me from following the flock, and the Lord said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to my people Israel ...

28. "Before" and "After"

Psalm 31:1-24

Sermon

King Duncan

... cannot have the last word. That’s what the psalmist believed. Listen again to his words in verses 14-16: 14 But I trust in you, O LORD; I say, “You are my God.” 15 My times are in your hands; deliver me from my enemies and from those who pursue me. 16 Let your face shine on your servant; save me in your unfailing love. Notice what the psalmist is not saying in these verses. He is not denying the existence of God. He is not accusing God of abandonment or failure. He is not demanding that God leave him ...

29. Zebah and Zalmunna

Judges 8:1-21

Understanding Series

Cheryl A. Brown

... my troops some bread. Gideon is once again associated with bread, which was a symbol of Israel’s experience of both enslavement and liberation. But in this context, it will represent something quite different (see pp. 187, 196). Gideon added that he was still pursuing Zebah and Zalmunna, the kings of Midian. Up to this point, we have not been told why Gideon was relentlessly trailing the Midianites so far from the scene of the battle. Now we know: he had a personal interest in capturing the two Midianite ...

30. Proverbs of Solomon

Proberbs 10:1--22:16

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... good person who gains God’s approval (cf. 11:1, 20, 27) and thus is established as righteous, unlike those who futilely pursue success through evil (12:3). Verse 4 introduces a domestic context with the virtuous wife (cf. Prov. 31:10), who contributes to ... proud bringing down their house (15:25), the plans of the wicked provoking God’s displeasure (15:26), the deeds of one who pursues illicit gain troubling their family (15:27; cf. Josh. 6:18; 7:25), and the careful words of the righteous being heard by ...

31. The Weak and the Strong

Romans 14:1--15:13

Understanding Series

James R. Edwards

... a single soul to perish from Israel Scripture imputes it to him as though he has caused the whole world to perish” (m. Sanh. 4.5). 14:19–21 A significant textual variant occurs in the Greek text of v. 19 (make every effort [Gk. diōkein, “pursue”]). The oldest and best manuscripts report the indicative mood (Gk. diōkōmen), which would mean that since we are members of God’s kingdom we do in fact make every effort for peace and edification. In terms of manuscript evidence this reading has the ...

32. Gifts of Prophecy and Tongues

1 Corinthians 14:1-25

Understanding Series

Marion L. Soards

... s teaching, there is a clear point and a clear audience for tongues, but other humans are not the intended recipients of the message and so they do not comprehend the substance of the speech in tongues or benefit from it. 14:3 Paul pursues the same objective from another point of view. By contrast to the tongue speakers, those who prophesy speak to humans for the edification, encouragement, and consolation of their hearers. As one can see from nearly everything that Paul writes in this letter, the building ...

33. Job's Third Reply to Eliphaz

Job 23:1--24:25

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

... phrase of in the night . . . like a thief forms a sort of merismus, in which the whole of a matter is suggested by the listing of its parts, with the initial reference to “daylight” at the beginning of verse 14. The wicked get up early to pursue their evil plans and they continue their ways into the darkness of night. There is no time—day or night—that is free from their oppression. The eye of the adulterer. It is unlikely that Job is primarily concerned with adultery here, but—building on the ...

34. Elihu

Job 32:1--37:24

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

... !” 33:10 Yet God has found fault with me. The Hebrew does not name God, but God seems to be the logical subject of the phrase. Elihu does appear to capture Job’s essential complaint at this point. Although legally innocent, Job still experiences God pursuing him like a criminal. The Hebrew actually says, “he has found opposition to me”—the point being not that God has declared Job guilty or declared his sin, but that he considers Job his enemy by heaping up undeserved punishment on him. This is an ...

35. Deliverance

Isaiah 49:8-26, Isaiah 44:24--45:25, Exodus 15:22-27, Exodus 13:17--14:31

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... all that night the Lord drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left. The Egyptians pursued them, and all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots and horsemen followed them into the sea. During the last watch of the night the Lord looked down from the pillar of fire and cloud at the Egyptian army and threw it into confusion. He jammed the wheels of their ...

36. Prayers for the Sundays After Easter

Bulletin Aid

Rolland R. Reece

... away, you are no longer. Now we know that you are closer than the beating of our hearts. Your Son has provided this intimacy that even now -- 2000 years later -- we can scarcely believe. All your children have great need of you, but many of us unthinkingly pursue ways that take us further away from you. In our fear of what is now known, we take foolish chances. Knowing so little about love and understanding, we strike out against what we perceive to be our enemy. And the more we strike out in opposition to ...

37. Need Help Removing That Roadblock?

Exodus 13:17--14:31

Sermon

Steve Burt

... recover it. We must honor it and ask God to help us achieve it. We must seek the help of others and assist them as they pursue God's plan for them. Some of us can be the backpacker who offered to walk with the man seeking to claim his inheritance. Others ... on my self. It may be a convenient excuse. But freeing the angels, the true selves within, that's the primary task. We'll be pursued by self-doubts like snakes and wolves. Negative memories will claw at us and wail, "You'll fail; you can't do it. Give up ...

38. When Imagination Replaces Memory

Isaiah 42:18-25

Sermon

Harold Warlick

... , from AIDS to cancer. But is it not true that at our base level we, like the Israelites, are harassed not so much by the enemies we must one day meet as by the Egyptians we have already met? This is what makes life so difficult. We have these ghosts pursuing us. We think we have escaped, then we hear the clatter of their horses and see the dust of their chariots! These things harass us because we leave the doors of our memory partly open to them. At some point we must set the Lord our God not only before ...

39. Double Image

Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon

William G. Carter

... to name him as a saint, few people who knew Father Damien called him "happy" or "blessed." There is no simple assurance that living the beatitudes will make somebody's life a blessed bed of roses. We can claim them as values to teach our children and virtues to pursue in daily life, but they are not stepping stones for success, at least not in this age. As someone said, "Blessed are the meek? Try being meek tomorrow when you go to work and see how far you get. Meekness is fine for church, but in the real ...

40. Jesus: The Ultimate Ordinary

John 18:28-40

Sermon

Thomas Peterson

... others but upgraded all he met. To be ordinary like Jesus we must rid ourselves of prejudice; we do not fawn over the rich or powerful; we give special treatment to all alike. We do what we say we believe: we undergird life, liberty and the option to pursue happiness for all persons. Perhaps we cannot define this common quality that bonds us but we live as though we do. We accept as an ordinary component of life together the precious worth of all we meet. 6. In Britain a meal served to all comers at a ...

41. Trial-and-Error or Grace

Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon

Thomas Peterson

... and that it is founded upon justice. Without justice there is no peace, as the current worldwide revolution testifies. Imagine, if you will, that the present international storm and stress is for the sole purpose that in the long run all people will be free to pursue happiness. The idea that I learned from Scripture is also part of my life-testimony: justice is the cog-wheel of democracy, and justice is God’s other name, love being his first. St. Francis’ prayer for peace comes to mind: Lord, make me an ...

42. A Taste of God's Tomorrow

Matthew 14:13-21

Sermon

Glenn L. Borreson

... yet, this meal was different. It was satisfying. It filled stomachs, yes, and it did more. It drew people into a new realm of the coming kingdom where God's will is done. It gave them a taste of God's tomorrow. In that lonely place where they had pursued Jesus, he gave them a sampling, a wonderful taste, of the new world he was bringing to be. The satisfaction was that here was not more of the same, but here was God's promised Messiah. Here was God's promised future actually taking its beginning shape right ...

43. Clouds and Son-Shine

Ephesians 3:1-13

Sermon

Hubert Beck

... the image, the first time you try your hand at painting, you do everything so carefully, read up about how to do it, take great pains at every turn to be very correct. It takes much time and perhaps is agonizingly difficult. However, if you pursue the task regularly, you stop reading the directions, go straightforwardly to the task with little thought, and laugh at the amateur who is trying his first hand at the effort. Your "gift," once developed, becomes "ordinary." Of course, that is not only true of ...

44. IN SEARCH OF HAPPINESS AND SUCCESS

Illustration

John H. Krahn

... to the shore? Of course, you’ve moved the boat to the shore. The purpose of prayer, likewise, is not to move God and heaven to you, but to move you until you want what God wants. Our third P is pursuit. To know God and his will we must pursue our Christianity as we pursue any other worthwhile endeavor. We must be disciplined as Christians, not only in weekly worship, but also in studying his Word, and in taking the opportunity to touch others with his love. We do not ...

45. Bad News, Good News

Luke 24:13-35

Sermon

King Duncan

... with blood on his hands go by. They were in hot pursuit of him. "Who is he?" the traveler asked. "An evil-doer," said the leader of the crowd. "And you pursue him in order to bring him to justice?" asked the traveler. "No," said the leader, "we pursue him in order to show him the way." (3) The picture we have in the New Testament is of a God who pursues us so that God may show us the way. Christ comes to the two disciples. They do not recognize him, but it is he who takes the initiative. He walks with ...

46. Proper 19

Exodus 13:17--14:31, Romans 14:1--15:13, Matthew 18:21-35

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... is not only a God of mercy, but also of justice. Old Testament: Exodus 14:19-31 1. Clogging (v. 25). The chariot wheels of the Egyptians were clogged in the muddy bottom of the Red Sea. The Egyptian army was stopped in its tracks and could not pursue God's people. To save his people, God uses both the extraordinary and the ordinary. The extraordinary means was the miraculous parting of the waters; what a terrific wind it must have been to have separated the waters. It is just as marvelous to see God using ...

47. Bitterness: How to Overcome What You Undergo

Hebrews 12:14-15

Sermon

James Merritt

... s love for you in Jesus Christ, forgiveness will be a natural outflow from your heart. Finally forsake it. It is not enough just to forgive and to forget. Verse 14 says, "Pursue peace with all men, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord." The word pursue means "to go after in an aggressive fashion." We are to actively pursue peace. That is, we are to take the initiative to end the war, pull down defenses, rebuild the bridges, and restore broken relationships. Edwin Markham was a great poet who ...

48. Freedom in Bondedness

Galatians 5:1-15

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... ourselves. The love Christ calls us to is agape love, a sacrificial love bonded to Christ, and therefore cannot be self-directed. Only when offering ourselves in sacrificial service for others will we run headlong into the "happiness" we thought we had to pursue. The movement of the Christian life is from self-centeredness to centeredness in self to centeredness in God. Try this test. When do you feel better about yourself? Do you feel better about yourself after a long, admittedly restful afternoon as a ...

49. A "Somebody Done Somebody Wrong" Song

Hosea 1:2-10

Sermon

Lee Ann Dunlap

... living as though God were not God and as if the covenant made at Sinai had no claim on their actions. Hosea is not the only biblical writer to use the marital relationship as a metaphor for God's relationship with Israel, but he certainly pursues that image with maximum emotional intensity. Stories of the deities of many of Israel's neighbors also ascribed to their gods' personal characteristics like jealousy or anger or fury in the face of betrayal, but no other nation's gods relate so directly with human ...

50. How Rich Is Rich?

1 Timothy 6:3-10

Sermon

Charles L. Aaron

... . Often, the more money a couple has, the more they argue about money. Such arguments show the wisdom of the passage that we pierce ourselves, we inflict our own pain. The more money we have invested, the more we fret when the stock market takes a downturn. Pursuing money can become a kind of trap. We never completely escape from that trap. As we have said, we have to have money. Nevertheless, the passage offers us some relief. It shows us some ways to think that give us room to move within that trap. The ...

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