Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 501 to 525 of 747 results

501. The Man in the Middle

Luke 23:26-43

Illustration

Jerry Goebel

... at the vulnerable Jesus and says, "If you are to mock anyone, mock me, for I deserve this death." What can I do to help me become that man? What can I do to become less self-centric, cynical, demanding and hateful? What can I do to become an advocate for the vulnerable, aware of my own selfishness and sin, absent of judgment and spite? Finally, what can I do to make sure that my last words ask for forgiveness and love and not be demanding words of spite and condemnation? Two men, meters apart, with Jesus in ...

502. Christmas 1

Psalm 148:1-14, Isaiah 63:7-9, Matthew 2:13-18, Hebrews 2:10-18

Bulletin Aid

Amy C. Schifrin

... and brothers, let us pray for the lives of the young: Silence Leader: Gracious God, may your birth in our lives empower us to seek your will in new ways. May we hear your voice in the voices of this world’s children. May we protect them, advocate for them, nourish them, honor them, and teach them your ways. Lord in your mercy, All: hear our prayer. Leader: Let us pray for the healing of the nations: Silence Leader: O Giver of Peace, you were born defenseless in an occupied territory. Grant us vision to ...

503. Full Body Scans or Re-spect Spectacles

Romans 13:8-14

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... of the same sex, no less. Since body-cavities are not revealed in either the body scan or the pat down, one wonders what voyeurist thought this up. But ours is not to reason why; ours is but to do and die. Some groups are advocating an organized protest against full body scans over this Thanksgiving holiday weekend — the single busiest flying days of the year. The hope was that by opting for the more time consuming “pat-down” procedure, security checkpoints would become clogged to the point of being ...

504. Forgiveness Should Be the First Response

Matthew 5:38-42

Illustration

James Merritt

... to my critics." He said the reason is simple. "My friends don't need an explanation and my enemies wouldn't believe it." Now that is wise advice, but having said that I think it is worth noting that Jesus suggested two cheeks, not dozens of them. He was not advocating we become a doormat to people who try to abuse us or walk all over us. Paul went on to say in that 12th chapter of Romans and verse 18, "If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men." Now sometimes that is not ...

505. Will You Dance the Metanoia with Me?

Acts 2:14-41

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... the gift of the Holy Spirit. God’s truth moved beyond words and into incarnate flesh. The story of Amazing Grace is the story of truth becoming a living, breathing reality for our sake and our salvation. When Jesus declared he was “the Truth,” he was not advocating a study of his philosophy. He was inviting us to walk with him and to talk with him in the Way of Life. Jesus as The Life: Behaving Jesus was seen as a troublemaker. During the years of his earthly ministry Jesus was often in trouble with ...

506. Matthew 14:13-21

Matthew 14:13-21

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... need that concerns the disciples, however. They take it upon themselves to confront Jesus with the facts that it is growing late and there is no food in sight. Although the disciples stress that they are in a “deserted place,” they advocate the dismissal of the crowd so they may “go into the villages and buy food.” Considering it will shortly be revealed that this crowd numbers “five thousand,” the disciples’ suggestion that whatever small settlements might be within close walking distance ...

507. The Family Album

1 John 3:1-7

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... St. Patrick's Cathedral, he warned the congregation, "Please do not believe for a moment that you would be defending the church or advancing church teachings by expressions of hatred." O'Conner campaigned against the death penalty. He was a prominent advocate for disabled people and those living in poverty. He personally intervened to help settle industrial disputes by pressing for workers' rights. He once told friend and biographer, Nat Hentoff, "If I were simply saying mass and going through the ordinary ...

508. Due for Renewal

Mark 2:13-22

Sermon

Robert J. Elder

... that we have to be renewed, to return to God — we have to shift our lives toward life in the kingdom. A half-century ago, many churches in America recognized a need to turn toward what was new, to step out of complacency and advocate an end to racial discrimination. Doing this, religious people helped transform a nation. The late Clinton Marsh, an African American and leader in the old United Presbyterian Church, once wrote movingly about the church's so-called meddling in social issues. He recalled times ...

509. Actions Speak Louder than Words

John 17:6-19

Sermon

John Smylie

... of his faithfulness. We have a Lord who was crowned with thorns, pierced with a spear, and nailed to a cross. We have a Lord who anticipated the needs of his followers and prayed for them. We have a Lord who has been true to his promise to send an advocate — the Holy Spirit — to lead us and to guide us into all truth. We have a Lord who continues to nurture his church through his word and through his presence in bread and wine, and in the people of God who share in his life because they know him as ...

510. King Me!

John 18:33-37

Sermon

... themselves from this embarrassment of a president. Out of the limelight, he began to quietly work on issues that were important to him as a follower of Jesus Christ. He gave time and energy to a struggling organization called Habitat for Humanity. He advocated for people of poverty. He continued to teach Sunday school each week at Maranatha Baptist Church. To this day, he takes his turn mowing the church lawn, while his wife, Rosalynn, cleans the church bathrooms. He continues to be a voice that speaks ...

511. Romans 12:9-21

Romans 12:9-21

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... 32:35: “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” The body of Christ has been called to emulate God’s “genuine love” for the world, not God’s divine power for meting out eschatological judgments. As its alternative Paul advocates a proverbial plan (Proverbs 25:21-22a) of offering food and water to the enemy. The problematic “burning coals” reference, which seems to encourage doing “the good” in order to ultimately bring down more dire judgment upon the enemy, is slightly less ...

512. Philippians 3:4b-14

Philippians 3:1-11

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... , a better college, a successful career, a position of power and influence, how far we’ve climbed from where we started. In today’s epistle text Paul covers all that bragging territory and then some as he argues against those who were advocating the prerequisite of Jewishness for Gentile Christians. These “Judaizers” were insisting that those not born Jewish must become Jews through the rite of circumcision and obedience to Torah law in order to be full members of the Christian community of faith ...

513. Rephrasing the Question

Matthew 22:15-22

Illustration

Tom Long

Homiletics professor and Matthew commentator Tom Long rephrases the Caesar and Tax question to Jesus like this. "In effect," he writes, the opponents of Jesus ask, "Are you a foolish, uncompromising revolutionary whose allegiance to the kingdom of heaven is actually a political revolution in disguise, or are you a smooth-talking street preacher who stirs up people with glib talk of God's majesty but who underneath advocates a get-along-go-along policy with the Roman, Gentile pigs?"

514. What Is Our City?

Acts 4:32-35

Sermon

Ken Lentz

... (the end of the four gospels and 1 Corinthians 15). He discovered that his friends had not done the same and had not, for example, read the latest material written by Wolfhart Pannenberg, the popular New Testament scholar who advocated the historicity of the resurrection of Jesus. Pannenberg and other contemporary scholars applied the tools of historical research in their examination of the resurrection accounts and concluded, "If Washington crossed the Delaware to surprise the Hessians at Trenton on ...

515. Living to Please God

1 Thessalonians 2:1-16

Sermon

King Duncan

... should have been elated. Exactly the opposite was true, however. Historians believe that this case affected Stevens deeply. He knew that he had been successful in an unjust cause. This didn’t cause him elation, but shame. As a result, he became a passionate advocate against slavery. He went on to serve seven terms in U.S. Congress, and was the driving force behind the 14th and 15th Amendments to the Constitution, guaranteeing equal protection under the law and giving slaves who had been set free the right ...

516. Mary Had the Little Lamb

John 1:1-18

Illustration

Marv & Marbeth Rosenthal

... to set men free. 1 Peter 1:18 Mary had the little Lamb men placed Him in the grave, Thinking they were done with Him; to death He was no slave! Matthew 28:6 Mary had the little Lamb, ascended now is He; All work on Earth is ended, our Advocate to be. Hebrews 4:14-16 Mary had the little Lame mystery to behold! From the Lamb of Calvary, a Lion will unfold. Revelation 5: 5,6 When the Day Star comes again, of this be very sure: It won't be Lamb-like silence, but with the Lion's ...

517. A Life of Despair

Mt 5:1-12; 22:36-40; Deut 30:11-20

Illustration

Brett Blair

... lost. His wife left him twice, but returned. When she died, he didn't attend her funeral. His correspondence with Engels was full of obscenities. His favorite daughter, Eleanor, with her father's approval, married Edward Eveling, a man who advocated blasphemy and worshiped Satan. Daughter Eleanor committed suicide, poisoning herself with cyanide. Karl Marx died in despair. Laura Marx, Karl's other daughter committed suicide together with her husband on 25 November 1911. The couple decided they had nothing ...

518. An Expert's Opinion

Matthew 10:16

Illustration

Charles Bonner

... the wolves humanely, neuter the males, and release them." One grizzled old sheep farmer rose to his feet. "Ma'am," he said in a gruff voice, "no disrespect meant, you bein' an expert and all, but them wolves is killin' my sheep, not makin' love to 'em." Jesus does not advocate for a milk-toast Christianity. Sometimes, life calls for an assertive response: "Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves. Be therefore wise as serpents and harmless as doves."

519. The Want to Believe

Illustration

Staff

T.H. Huxley, an English biologist and anthropologist and advocate of Darwin's theory of evolution, was a well-known agnostic. He was with a group of men at a weekend house party. On Sunday morning, while most of them were preparing to go to church, he approached a man known for his Christian character and said, "Suppose you stay ...

520. Life Is Yours

Matthew 25:1-13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... preparedness.” Our pre-party behavior should demonstrate that we are anticipating with joy and hope the continued, and ever stronger presence of Christ in our lives and in our faith communities. How is that faithful reality not something worth advocating and celebrating? Instead of stoically stockpiling cans of food and bottles of water, what if Christians were known for planting gardens, new seeds for the new future? Instead of storing blankets and juicing up generators, what if Christians were known ...

521. Be Prudent or Productive?

Matthew 25:14-30

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... a “return” on that which he “invests” with his three servants. The master expects these servants to risk what he has given them in the hope that they will be able to increase its value, add to its numbers. The master advocates risky behavior, and rejects the “safe” approach that is offered by the third servant. America considers itself the kingpin of capitalism. Our economy is built on the give-and-take between supply and demand, entrepreneurial endeavors and market responses. But, truth ...

522. Matthew 25:14-30

Matthew 25:14-30

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... to the moneychangers and lenders who set up their tables near the Temple. There were no high yield IRA’s available for building interest. Plus the questionable antics and ethics of moneychangers hardly qualified them as a trustworthy investment source. The master is still advocating that this third servant should have taken a risk with that which he had been given. The failure of the third servant is also more than monetary. He is stripped of the talent he had safe guarded, and then is stripped of any ...

523. Wholesome Image

Humor Illustration

Some people are famous for their positive attitude. The late Dr. Robert Schuller was the zealous advocate of possibility thinking. He had Pat Boone make an appearance on his weekly television broadcast. Pat Boone is best known for his wholesome, boyish image and his trademark white shoes. As he was introducing Boone, Schuller remarked that sometimes Boone wanted to rebel against the squeaky-clean image that he ...

524. I Saw the Face of God

Matthew 25:31-46

Illustration

Johnny Dean

A man named John Jackson, who is an advocate for the poor in Orlando, Florida, tells of an event that happened one day outside a food distribution center where he was working. Jackson describes the event: "The line was long that day, but moving quickly. And in that line, at the very end of the line, stood a young ...

525. The 4 Spiritual Flaws

John 6:1-15

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... impressing them with his feats of power. Not show-casing show-stopping miraculous healings. Not convincing anyone in the crowd of anything. Jesus was concerned for their shrunken bellies as much as he was for their shrunken souls. But his actions, accepted and advocated, would feed both. Instead of "pie in the sky bye and bye" Jesus offered fish and bread in the here and now, simple and sustaining food for today. There is a very significant difference between the biblical phrases "heavenly host" and "hosts ...

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