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 501 to 525 of 612 results

501. Will the Real Christian Please Stand Up?

Acts 11:26

Sermon

James Merritt

The year was 1995. It was called "Global Mission with Billy Graham." It took over a year to pull off and by the end of the event it would be the largest single evangelistic effort in the history of Christianity. Bob Williams, Director of International Ministries for the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, had set an incredible goal: Through the medium of satellite technology, he wanted to reach the largest audience ever to hear a series of messages by Billy Graham. In order to appreciate the size and ...

502. The Weakest Link

Luke 18:9-14

Sermon

James Merritt

I'm beginning a series of messages that I've always wanted to do on probably my favorite portions of Scripture in the Bible—the parables of Jesus. I'm entitling this series "Virtual Reality—God's Favorite Stories." Did you know that 1/3 of all of the things that Jesus taught, He taught with parables? Someone has defined a parable as an earthly story with a heavenly meaning. That is why I refer to the parables as virtual reality. Because in the parables we learn there is a connection between the visible ...

503. Life on the Rock

Matthew 7:24-29

Sermon

James Merritt

If you could take a world-wide poll and ask this question: Who was the greatest spiritual or religious teacher who ever lived? Without question, hands down, I am convinced the winner would be Jesus Christ. There is almost a universal consensus that Jesus was indeed a great, if not the greatest teacher who ever lived. That is exactly the way people who actually heard Him teach felt. Because as we come to the end of the Sermon on the Mount, we read – "And so it was, when Jesus had ended these sayings, that ...

504. Shoots of Tomorrow

Jeremiah 33:14-16

Sermon

Mary S. Lautensleger

In the parable of The Giving Tree, a young boy would gather his favorite tree's leaves on mild autumn afternoons. He fashioned them into a crown for his head and played king of the forest. The tree was fun to climb, and he loved to eat its delicious apples. The boy enjoyed swinging from the tree's branches, and discovered a shady resting place beneath those same branches on hot summer days. As the boy became a teenager, he visited the tree less frequently. He did stop by once to carve his initials, and ...

505. Hebrews 9:24-28

Hebrews 9:11-28

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

The person who finds a new way to fix an old problem is usually not welcomed with open arms, much less rave endorsements. The new and novel is typically viewed first with suspicion, perhaps even hostility. Take the notion that the earth orbited around the sun, not the other way around. That scientific “advancement” brought Galileo a boatload of trouble - even though it was true. It took 350 years for the Vatican to admit that Galileo was right, and that his 1633 trial as a heretic was a “mistake.” In mid- ...

506. Luke 4:14-21

Luke 4:14-30

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

Jesus doesn’t get a “honeymoon” in Luke’s gospel. In all the other gospels, the first words and actions of Jesus’ ministry are greeted with wonder and excitement. Jesus appears extremely popular in the earliest days of his mission. Only after increasing numbers of confrontations with religious and civil authorities does the tone and tenor of the public begins to turn and the inevitable rejections becomes evident. In Luke’s gospel, from the moment Jesus begins to speak in public, his lot is misunderstanding ...

507. This Is the Day!

Psalm 118:1-29

Sermon

King Duncan

I want to begin with a suggestion. Tomorrow morning when you wake up, I want you to stand up tall in front of your bathroom mirror, give yourself a big smile and declare with great gusto that wonderful verse from Psalms, “This is the day that the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it!” Bio-feedback experts suggest that this single act can do wonders for our mental state. The relation between our body and our mind is an interesting one. We don’t smile because we feel great, these experts tell us; ...

508. Give Yourself

2 Corinthians 8:1-15

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

Some time ago I came across a letter which expressed an idea with which I want to begin the sermon today. The letter was from a college student to her parents. She said: Dear Mom and Dad: I’m sorry that it has been such a long time since my last letter, but I didn’t want to bother you with the fire in the dormitory and the concussion I received falling out the window trying to escape. I want you to know how nice the young service station attendant around the corner was. He provided me comfort all the time ...

509. Singing With the Saints of Glory

Revelation 5:11-14

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

Sing with all the saints of glory, Sing the resurrection song. Death and sorrow, earth’s dark story, To the former days belong. All around the clouds are breaking, Soon the storms of time shall cease. In God’s likeness we awaking, Know the everlasting peace. Easter people have a song in their hearts that the world never gave. They have a peace it cannot take away. At least that’s the way the Apostle John perceived it as he unveils a glimpse of heaven for all to see. Come, let us take a closer look. I. WE ...

510. Showing Up

Ephesians 3:1-12

Sermon

John N. Brittain

We lived in Florida for a while in the 1980s and it was then that we learned about Tarpon Springs. Not a large city, it has the highest percentage of Greek Americans of any place in the US. This dates back to the 1880s, when Greek immigrants moving into the area were hired as sponge divers, a trade they had plied back in the old country. Today Tarpon Springs' main claim to fame is the Greek Orthodox Church's Epiphany celebration, which is held every January 6, with the blessing of the waters and the boats ...

511. 1 Timothy 2:1-7

1 Timothy 2:1-15

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

The Pauline epistle of First Timothy is usually described as being about establishing a kind of “household order” within the fledgling first century church. Many commentaries suggest that as time went by and the number of faithful increased, yet the expected parousia still did not come, there was a need to establish a definitive set of rules and roles for the new “Christian” churches. Furthermore, there was the need for these faith communities to survive in the midst of the suspicion and hostility their ...

512. Luke 6:20-31

Luke 6:17-26

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

If you were raised in a small town or a rural setting, moving to a big city can be a big deal. The intense, fast pace of urban life can seem disorienting and overwhelming. But the reverse is also true. If you are a born and bred city dweller, and move to a scarcely populated, yet closely knit small town or rural community, the rhythms of that lifestyle can appear utterly foreign. For an urban dweller, small town life runs on the rails of a mysterious train of relationships. In both cases the newcomer must ...

513. Matthew 11:2-11

Matthew 11:1-19

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

This week we continue in the season of Advent, the season of preparation for the Incarnation. The gospel text for this week reminds us of all the divinely-laid groundwork that paved the road to redemption. Matthew concludes with Jesus’ words to his own disciples as he sends them out on their missionary travels. But surprisingly, Matthew’s text returns to the figure of John the Baptist. For those of us already longing to hear the familiar Bethlehem narrative donkeys and oxen, sheep and shepherds, stars and ...

514. When to Take the Shirt off Your Back

Matthew 21:1-11

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

One of the most gruesome, hopeless places in early nineteenth century England was “debtor’s prison.” Charles Dickens described it, but thousands of England’s poor lived it first-hand. Everything the debtor owned was confiscated. Nothing was left. If any debts still remained, debtors were imprisoned until the balance owed could be paid. Which, of course, could never be, because the debtor was locked up. It was a situation without hope. That was “civilized” nineteenth century England. But according to ...

515. Romans 8:12-25

Romans 8:1-17

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

Just as Jesus used familiar images, activities, and relationships in a new way in his unique parables of the kingdom, in today’s epistle text Paul uses the familiar practice of adoption to describe a wholly new possibility that is now available to those who are “in Christ Jesus” (8:1). We focus our exegesis on the first part of this week’s text in order to explore how Paul uses this well-known term as a way to describe the totally new status in which those who follow Christ find themselves. The first ...

516. A Christmas Program

Luke 2:21-40

Drama

Arley K. Fadness

Narration: We begin our Christmas worship and pageant tonight with the wondrous images of Luke, chapter 2, dancing in our eyes and warming our hearts. We gather to worship. We gather to honor. We gather to celebrate the birthday of Jesus at Bethlehem, the Messiah, our Christ. Christmas Puppet Play (skit provided below) Narration: Jesus Christ is the gift of gifts. How amazing when the prophets Isaiah, Micah, and others foretold of the coming of the one who would bring deliverance to the people of Israel. ...

517. Troubled Waters

Genesis 9:8-17

Sermon

Ken Lentz

A man from Johnstown, Pennsylvania, died and went to heaven. Saint Peter was directing the activities and explained to him, "Each Friday we have a get-together for the new members. To break the ice, every new member must make a speech to all the others here, on any subject desired." The man from Johnstown said, "I think I'll talk on the Johnstown flood." Saint Peter replied, "I think it's all right but I'd better warn you; Noah will be in the audience." The story of Noah's ark has its origins in ancient ...

518. Who Is Isaiah’s Servant?

Isaiah 50:4-9a

Sermon

Ken Lentz

A man had three small children, all three old enough to enjoy the activities of Halloween. A coworker at the office of the father volunteered to visit his home on trick or treat night and bring sweets for the kids. The father's colleague appeared at the door dressed up as "the little green man," with an ugly green face and long, knotted, twisted hands protruding from a long coat that effectively disguised the identity of Daddy's friend. At the appearance of the mysterious stranger in the entryway of the ...

519. Remember the Lord

Deuteronomy 8:1-20

Sermon

King Duncan

Debbie Farmer, in her book Don’t Put Lipstick on the Cat! shares a hilarious essay which she calls “What a Mother Is Thankful For.” She lists many things a Mother learns to be thankful for after she has children. I want to read just a few of them. I believe that some of you will relate to her words. She writes, BEFORE CHILDREN: I was thankful to have been born in the USA, the most powerful free democracy in the world. AFTER CHILDREN: I am thankful for Velcro tennis shoes. As well as saving valuable time, ...

520. Christmas Is a God-Thing

Luke 1:26-38

Sermon

King Duncan

There was a story years ago in the Canadian version of the Reader’s Digest of a large moose that wandered into a residential area in Calgary, Canada. The moose ended up on the lawn of a lady named Lorna Cade. A Fish and Wildlife officer was dispatched to try to coax the magnificent animal back into the wild. After two hours of absolutely no progress, the officer finally shot the moose with a tranquilizer dart. The moose bolted down a lane and eventually collapsed on another nearby lawn. The reporters who ...

521. Doing Your Own Thing

1 Corinthians 6:12-20

Sermon

King Duncan

Have you ever had the urge to simply do your own thing without any regard to how the world may view your actions? If you have ever had that urge, you would not be the first to feel that longing . . . or to act on it. In the late 1960s, a group of hippies remember them? living in the Haight Ashbury District of San Francisco decided that personal hygiene taking baths and showers and washing your hair, etc. was a middle class hang up they could do without. So, they quit indulging in these bourgeois activities ...

522. Do You Know Your Place?

Mark 8:31--9:1

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

The world of sled dog racing is famous for a truism: “If you aren’t the lead dog, the scenery never changes.” In other words, only the lead dog gets to see what is up ahead. Only the lead dog gets to sniff out new possibilities, gets to choose a new path. For the rest of the pack, there is nothing but a view of bushy backsides. No wonder in life we are all constantly striving to be “lead dogs.” Across the political spectrum, there is one common refrain. As the 2012 political races heat up every candidate, ...

523. The 4 Spiritual Flaws

John 6:1-15

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

Want to attract young, floundering, post-high school people to a life of faith, fulfillment, and commitment? Would your first thought be to offer that age group a solid set of "divine directives" aka "Four Spiritual Laws?" Probably not. Unless you were Bill Bright in 1952, when he offered that gleaming, golden nugget of insight to a new generation of spiritual seekers. But the "laws" Bill Bright proposed were far from rude and reactionary. Instead they were redeeming and revealing. And they have touched ...

524. A Concert of Praise

Luke 1:46-56

Sermon

Cynthia Cowen

The Christmas concert was about to begin. The professional musicians were ready. All eyes were on the band director as he brought down his baton. Softly, flutes began weaving a magical introduction, capturing the audience's spirit. An instrumental duet formed with clarinets adding their voices. Then more wind instruments came in. Finally, brass and percussion entered and volume and tempo increased. Each section's contribution melded into a harmonious voice. The rehearsals had been worth it; the time and ...

525. Liberating the Possessed

Luke 8:26-39

Sermon

Arley K. Fadness

He is a tortured man! His hair is tossed and tousled. His beard appears shaggy and matted with debris. His eyes stare saucer-like and hypnotic, betraying his clueless and clotheless dilemma. He beats and cuts himself with sharp rocks until blood flows, clots, and flows again. Blue bruises dot his skin like a leopard's spots. He lives in the cemetery. Imagined or real zombies are his friends. Gerasene citizens try to contain him, but their shackles and chains crack and break by his strange and superior ...

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