Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: Levi, disciple, evangelist, tax collector, the 12, the twelve, apostle, sermon on the mount, jewish audience, beatitudes, lord's prayer, great commission, parables, olivet discourse, mount of olives, olivet, synoptic

Showing 476 to 500 of 3314 results

476. The Saint without a Name

Luke 6:12-16

Sermon

Donald B. Strobe

... years, Hollywood seems to have gotten over this fear of ethnic names, and most stars today bear the names they were born with in all of their rich ethnic diversity. Why all this talk about names? Because this morning we are considering one of the twelve apostles who doesn’t seem to have a name. II. BARTHOLOMEW IS “THE SAINT WITHOUT A NAME.” How is that possible? You and I may know someone named “Bartholomew.” How can I say that he has no name? Well, it’s this way: “Bar” in Aramaic means ...

477. The Importance of the Second Violin

Philippians 2:1-11

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... Christ to a needy world. He was willing to be used by God in whatever form was strategic to the missionary enterprise of the church. His life was lived to the honor and glory of God as an associate pastor to be used by the senior pastor, the Apostle Paul. ONE OF THE GREATEST PROBLEMS IN THE MODERN-DAY CHRISTIAN CHURCH IS THAT SO MANY CHRISTIAN PEOPLE WHO ARE MEMBERS OF A LOCAL CHURCH REFUSE TO SHARE THEIR SPIRITUAL GIFTS WITH THE BODY OF CHRIST UNLESS THEY ARE FIRST-VIOLIN OR FIRST-STRING. Let me share from ...

478. Staying Focused--Traveling Light

Hebrews 12:1-13

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... , let us run with perseverance, the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith." It is important to understand that we are the contestants of whom Paul speaks; the runners of this race are you and me. I can almost hear the Apostle Paul shout out like a track coach, "Runners, take your mark." As in his letter in I Corinthians 9:24-27, Paul instructs us to "run the good race." So if there is a good race, I suspect there is a wrong race, or side road that should not be ...

479. King Forever!

John 6:56-69

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

... the resurrection, the disciples lifted up their eyes to see Jesus lifted up into heaven and they returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and were "continually in the temple blessing God" (Luke 24:53). I wonder: Can you and I glimpse the ascension the same way the apostles did on that hillside near Bethany? Can the ascension make the same difference to us that it made to them? Can we lift up our eyes, witness Christ at the right hand of God, and return to our homes rejoicing and praising God for his salvation ...

480. God Shows No Partiality

Acts 10:23b-48

Sermon

Elizabeth Achtemeier

... for him. Moreover, they told him, "We are all here present in the sight of God, to hear all that you have been commanded by the Lord" (v. 33). In short, those Gentiles wanted to hear a sermon. It was an amazing request of Peter, because that apostle had always preached to Jews throughout Jerusalem and Judea and Galilee, in strictly Jewish territory. The gospel had been sent to the Jews, and that was Peter's usual audience. And now he was being asked to preach to non-Jews and strangers, just as the church ...

481. Peter's Vision

Acts 11:1-18

Sermon

Elizabeth Achtemeier

... on today. God is on the move, advancing toward his kingdom, and in all of our difficulties and sufferings, we need to keep that in mind. Let us say two more things about those who are converted in the stories of the Acts of the Apostles. First of all, they are converted into the church. Entering the Christian life is not an individualistic occurrence. Rather, all of those early Jewish and Gentile Christians of whom we read in Acts, immediately were incorporated into a fellowship. No one is ever a Christian ...

482. Message from a Cloud

Acts 1:1-11

Sermon

King Duncan

... if Jesus would now restore the kingdom to Israel, but he told them to leave that to God. He instructed them not to leave Jerusalem until they received a very special gift--the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Receiving the Holy Spirit meant receiving power. The apostles would now be Jesus’ witnesses in Jerusalem and all Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth. In Christ’s final appearance to them, they stood watching as Jesus was taken up into Heaven in a cloud. That is the event we celebrate today ...

483. No Shame

Romans 1:16-17; 3:22b-28 (29-31)

Sermon

William G. Carter

... ought to be ashamed of yourself." My friend said it took ten years before his daughter would even consider going back to a church. It is painful to have shame rubbed in your face. But Paul says, "I'm not ashamed." What a remarkable thing for him to say! The Apostle Paul grew up in a culture where shame was a way of creating order. It still happens in many corners of the Middle East. Woe to you, if you bring shame to your family! One of the members of our men's Bible study brought in a news clipping. It ...

484. At War with Myself

Romans 7:15-25a

Sermon

William G. Carter

... in my body another law at war with the law of my mind. Wretched man that I am!" A lot of people don't like the Apostle Paul. They think he ought to act more like a twenty-first century person. But the truth is, he understands us better that we understand ... right thing, but it doesn't always work out that way. He knows he has been claimed by Jesus Christ, called to live as God's apostle, and filled with the gifts of the Holy Spirit. He knows this; yet it is one thing to know it, it is another to live it ...

485. Speaking of the Spirit

Romans 8:12-17

Sermon

William G. Carter

... charged up." That's what he said. A few months after he said it, the congregation had problems with its fuse box, and needed to have the whole building rewired. Perhaps the amperage was too high. As we heard in the short section from his letter to the Romans, the Apostle Paul took a quieter approach. He struggles to define what he means by the Holy Spirit. A few verses before our text, he said the Holy Spirit is God dwelling in us (8:9). Then he claims the Holy Spirit is "Christ in (all of) you" (8:10). He ...

486. Where Can I Find the Church?

Acts 2:1-8; 4:32-37

Sermon

Mark Trotter

... . This is Pentecost Sunday. It is called the "birthday" of the Church because it is the day on which the Church was founded, some 2,000 years ago. We heard Luke's version of that event this morning. Luke wrote the book of The Acts of the Apostles, so this is Luke's version of the founding of the Church. The other three gospels have their own versions. They differ from Luke mainly in describing when it happened. Matthew, Mark and John say that it happened on the night of the Resurrection, or shortly there ...

487. Epiphany 2

Isaiah 49:1-7, 1 Corinthians 1:1-9, John 1:29-34

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... the call in repentance and faith. We are made Christians; we are not born or self-made Christians. The need is for people to see the grace of God working in their behalf by calling them to the kingdom. Outline: Consider your calling a. Called to be an apostle (one sent forth) - v. 1. b. Called to be saints (believers) - v. 2. c. Called into the fellowship of Christ (church) - v. 9. 2. Look At The Good You Can Do! "Even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed among you" (1:7). Need: Witnessing, when put on ...

488. Transfiguration

Exodus 24:1-18, Matthew 17:1-13, 2 Peter 1:12-21

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... the writer of 2 Peter claimed to do. The Transfiguration is not a spectacle to observe, but an experience to share. Outline: We, too, can experience the Transfiguration. a. We can be eyewitnesses of his majesty - v. 16. 1. We can see his glory through the eyes of the apostles. 2. Others can see his glory in our eyes of faith. b. We can be ear-witnesses of God's approval - vv. 17, 18. 1. We can hear God's approval today through the Word. 2. Others can hear God's approval of Jesus through our words of witness ...

489. Easter 4

John 10:1-21, Acts 6:1-7, Acts 7:54--8:1a, 1 Peter 2:13-25

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... The Prayer refers to Jesus as our "great shepherd." The Hymn deals with the Shepherd's love. In the Gospel, Jesus is both shepherd and the door of salvation for the sheep. We see in Lesson 1 the life of the sheep under their shepherds, the apostles. Because of exemplary and redemptive suffering of the Shepherd, the sheep repent their waywardness and return to him. Easter 4 and the Easter Season What does Easter 4's theme of sheep and shepherd have to do with the Easter season's message of the resurrection ...

490. Enduring the Trials of Faith

John 20:19-31

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... trials of faith. The familiar story of Thomas' encounter with the resurrected Lord is, like the events in the life of Jean Marie Barette, a classic tale of a significant trial of faith. Thomas is not present when Jesus appears, breathing the Holy Spirit upon the apostles and commissioning them to go forward to complete his work in this world. Thomas seems to be a realist; if he doesn't see, he will not believe. Even after having walked with the Lord in his public ministry for three years, if Saint John's ...

491. Defeat Transformed into Victory

John 20:19-23

Sermon

Richard Gribble

492. Things to Come!

Matthew 13:47-52, Matthew 13:44-46, Matthew 13:1-23

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

... into them and see what light there is for the living of our days. Mustard Seed This parable is found in verses 31-32. The kingdom of heaven is like that tiniest of seeds, the mustard seed that is planted and grows into a shrub. Up until this point, the apostles are with him. But when Jesus said the shrub grows into a tree, they must have done a double take. "Say what!" It'd be like saying an azalea bush grew into a forest giant. The mustard shrub is the kardah plant. It is never bigger than six to ten ...

493. Will You Give Christ Your Supper?

Matthew 14:13-21

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

... Ah, but the wee lad saw not the multitude, nor even his own small dinner. He saw Jesus. And somehow he understood as Paul the Apostle was to write, "For he is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we ask or think." So I inquire of you as Jesus ... or the resources of the almighty God? Do you have faith? Suffering Yet another crust of bread we all carry is our pain. The Apostle Paul wrote, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts ...

494. Choose Four

Acts 2:14-41

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... love again. In today's lesson from Acts, Peter called upon his audience to make changes. This wasn't a friendly crowd. This was a hostile crowd. Those listening to Peter were also those who had accused the Spirit-filled apostle of being drunk and out-of-control. The crowd had accused the apostles of being influenced by alcohol, not moved by the Holy Spirit. Yet in his new Pentecost power and his new Spirit-filled voice, Peter had the audacity to ask this hostile audience to make a choice. Choose to remain ...

495. Night Vision

2 Peter 1:12-21

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... the dead. Think of how many things we miss in life because we aren't accessible to the world of early and dark. We aren't awake to the early and dark moments of life. It was only those two disciples (Peter and John) and the apostle to the apostles (Mary) who lived the experience of Easter morning because they didn't sleep through the most early and dark experience in their lives. Maybe as a preparation for Valentine's Day you could try some early and dark experiences, and discover some surprising things. I ...

496. Soren's Heart

2 Timothy 3:10--4:8

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... of the gospel give Paul all the consolation and companionship he needs. He isn't alone, abandoned, imprisoned. He's loved, saved, and soon to be made whole. Whatever his circumstance, the Lord has been always by his side. Now facing imminent death, there's no tremor in the apostle's trust that "the Lord will rescue me from every evil." I have a nine-year-old daughter, Soren. She and I have an amulet ritual that's as life-sustaining for me as it is enjoyable for her. Since I'm on the road quite a bit, I ...

497. The Weakest Link

1 Timothy 1:12-20

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... worst sins, washes clean even the most worthless sinner. Not only does Christ's salvation recreate Paul from Saul. It has so much superabundance that there is unlimited love and faith available to pour back INTO the redeemed Paul, transforming him from assassin to apostle, from persecutor to servant of the most High God. The same man who held the robes that clothed those who killed the first Christian martyr would become the one clothed in the robes of righteousness. In a society that has no place for the ...

498. The Oneness of Twoness

Romans 14:1--15:13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... person of Christ as the ultimate example of one who did not “please himself” but “pleased” God by identifying with the weakness of all humanity, even to his death on the cross. The lectionary reading beginning at verse 4 reveals the apostle’s theology of the Scriptures. For Paul all Scripture, everything written (that is “written beforehand”) must now be read in light of Christ’s life, death and resurrection. Because Scripture provides instruction for those who follow Christ, it also serves ...

499. Weak Sauce

1 Corinthians 9:1-27

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... a Gentile, a qualification that suggests he is really only momentarily assuming these identities in order to proclaim the gospel to these Jews and these Gentiles. But Paul admits that, "To the weak I became weak, so that I might win the weak" (verse 22). Note how the apostle doesn't become "AS" the weak. He himself IS weak. He himself IS frail. He himself IS faulty. He himself IS substandard. Paul isn't number one material. He is weak. Or as our kids would put it, Paul is weak sauce. It's in this weakness ...

500. Acts 19:1-7

Acts 19:1-22

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... 's Acts text is, in fact, the only case of "re-baptism" recorded in the New Testament. Paul is moved to offer these disciples, who like Apollos had already received John's baptism, an additional baptismal experience because they present to the apostle an obvious spiritual deficiency: they may be believers but they aren't Spirit-filled believers. The text notes that Paul laid his hands upon these spiritually-deficient believers, a detail that recalls Peter's earlier hands-on ministrations among the Samaritan ...

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