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 2815 results

501. The Fruitful Vine

John 15:1-17

Sermon Aid

William E. Keeney

... If we fail to bring forth the fruits because of the life of Christ flowing into us through the activity of the Holy Spirit, we are as dead wood that is to be discarded. 4. Pruning the Vine. The church has usually found discipline a difficult problem. This parable with its image of the pruning of the vine and the cutting away of dead branches suggests the need for some discipline. The issue is not whether discipline is needed, but who exercises it, how it is done, and for what end. It is clear that with the ...

502. The Good, The Bad, And The Justified

Luke 18:9-14

Sermon

Larry R. Kalajainen

... before the bar of God's justice which is the court of ultimate consequence. We hasten to add, however, that this does not mean that the Pharisee was a bad person and the tax collector really a good person. There's no suggestion of that in this parable. The Pharisee was probably every bit as good and moral and generous as he claimed to be. When he gives that little speech about how he fasts and tithes and gives alms and prays frequently, he's not guilty of false advertising. There's no suggestion that ...

503. The Condition Of Mercy

Matthew 18:21-35

Sermon

Donald Dotterer

... Therefore you might say that our faith offers something to live for, and something to die for. There is, I think, one more contribution which faith has to offer us in our search for happiness in human life. It is that condition which Jesus talked about in his parable of the "Two Debtors." It is about what we might call "the condition of mercy." Jesus tells the story of a king who was settling his accounts with his slaves. He called before him one slave who owed him 10,000 talents. Now in those days this was ...

504. Surprised By Joy

Matthew 13:31-35, Matthew 13:44-46, Matthew 13:47-52

Sermon

Donald Dotterer

... is to experience personally the living Spirit of God Almighty in one's heart and soul. In our gospel lesson, Jesus tells a parable that illustrated for his audience the meaning of joy. Jesus says that the kingdom of heaven, which we all are seeking, is ... just as the finder of buried treasure will sell all that he has in order to buy the field in which he made the discovery. This parable then is good news for those of us who search for depth and meaning in our lives. We need this word of hope which tells us ...

505. Words As Images

Sermon

Michael Rogness

... never be explained, but should be allowed to speak for itself. That's not the real issue. One can tell a story with no further explanation. One can also give the story a context at the beginning, as with the parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:1-2), add an explanation at the end, or both, as with the parable of the Good Samaritan. (Luke 10:25-29, 36-37) One tells a story to convey a message, and the test of its effectiveness is if the story works to convey that message. On the other hand, one can kill ...

506. Two Doors; One Choice

Luke 13:22-30

Sermon

W. Robert McClelland

... lose it - was because he knew there was no short cut to his son's finding himself. If he had insisted on the boy's staying at home and toeing the mark as the elder brother did, the lad would have remained undefiled but hopelessly lost. In the parable it is clear that defilement and sin are useless categories for understanding what Jesus means by salvation. To be saved is to discover who we are and feel at home with ourselves. We are saved when we come to ourselves, whether that be by staying at home or ...

507. Oh, Lord, It's Hard To Be Humble

Luke 18:9-14

Sermon

Johnny Dean

... of getting public recognition, not to seek fellowship with God. In fact, the Pharisee stops just short of congratulating God on what a great job God did in creating him! He sets himself apart, not just from the tax collector, but from all other men! Every time I read this parable, that old song comes to mind, "Oh, Lord, it’s hard to be humble, when you’re perfect in every way." But have you ever TRIED to be humble? You can’t be humble on purpose. I mean, you either are or you aren’t! Two men went to ...

508. The Demanding Word

Matthew 13:1-23

Sermon

... , "The lion hath roared, who will not fear? The Lord God hath spoken, who can but prophesy?" A Word like that demands our attention, wouldn't you agree? It requires that we sit up and listen. That's the point of Jesus mentioning the different types of soil in this parable, isn't it? He's trying to say that the Word will not do its work in shoddy soil. A beat-down path will not do. Rocky soil that doesn't allow roots to go deep will be unacceptable. Soil already seeded with thorns will be no good. The Word ...

509. Proper 19

Lk 15:1-10 · Hos 4:1-3, 5:15--6:6 · 1 Tim 1:12-17 · Ex 32:7-14

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... alone in the wilderness. The coin was at a place it should not have been. Because the lost do not know they are lost, we must seek and find them to bring them back to God. That return to God is being "saved." 3. One (vv. 7, 10). In these parables the emphasis is upon "one." One sheep is worth leaving ninety-nine to care for themselves while the shepherd looks for the one animal. There is more rejoicing over the one found that the ninety-nine that did not get lost. In a family of children, the favorite one ...

510. Proper 25

Lk 18:9-14 · 2 Tim 4:9-18 · Sirach 35:12-18 · Deut 10:12-22 · Zeph 3:1-9

Sermon Aid

... ." To be Christians, we think we should be nobodies and confess that in us there is no merit or worthiness. We want to be somebody and we want to feel good about ourselves. Can one feel this way and still be a genuine Christian? This issue is involved in the parable of the Pharisee and Publican. Outline: It is OK to feel good about yourself A. Like the Pharisee, feel good about yourself - vv. 11-12 1. You believe in God. 2. You go to church. 3. You do good. B. Like the Publican, do not feel too good about ...

511. It Takes More than Sun to Grow

Matthew 13:1-23

Sermon

... really be explained - or the joke loses its point. You either get it or you don’t. You can not explain a joke. The same goes for a parable. That being said, let us now explain a parable. A parable has, first of all, several layers of meaning, but it strikes each given hearer in a certain way. We may all hear a parable, but we do not all hear it the same way. The parable of the sower has many meanings, not only one. First, let us take a different twist and look at the failure on the part of the sower. He ...

512. The Twenty-first Sunday after Pentecost

Isaiah 25:1-12, Psalm 23:1-6, Psalm 135:1-21, Deuteronomy 34:1-12, Philippians 4:2-9, Philippians 4:10-20

Sermon Aid

... God alone will make all of this possible, and that all human beings can do is wait in hope: "We have waited for him; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation." Jesus might have had Isaiah's "banquet prophecy" in mind when he constructed and delivered the parable of the wedding feast given by a king for his son. At any rate, the reading from Isaiah is compatible with the Gospel for the Day and may well be combined with it in a sermon. Deuteronomy 34:1-12 (C) The story of the Exodus, especially the part ...

513. Let’s Face It

Matthew 25:1-13

Sermon

Michael L. Sherer

... of heart seizure or stroke. There’s no way to be ready, is there? Yes, there is. A. We Can Live in the Promises of God Regardless of how suddenly death may come on us, we can still be ready for it. Just as half of the nightwatchers in this parable took measures to be ready for a sudden coming, which, they guessed, could take longer than they had first supposed, we can prepare by living in the promises of God. That means, of course, that we must first be aware of what they are. God promises that death will ...

514. "American Express Traveler’s Cheques ..."

Luke 24:13-35

Sermon

Peter Rudowski

... is clear. The use of short stories to make a point should not be surprising to us. Our own society uses short stories continually to make a point. If you watch any commercial television, you continually see twenty- and thirty-second parables. Each of these parables is used to make a point and to sell a product. Each parable makes it a point to relate to where we live and to experience what we feel so that we can relate to the product being sold. The point is made. Let me give you an example of a modern day ...

515. THIS MAN NAMED JESUS

Drama

Marcia Miller

... . QUOTER: There was a certain creditor who had two debtors: the one owed five thousand dollars and the other five hundred. And when they had nothing to pay he frankly forgave them both. Tell me therefore which of them will love him most? INTERPRETER: These parables were prophetic. QUOTER: A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came and sought fruit thereon, and found none. Then he said to the dresser of his vineyard, Behold, these three years I come seeking fruit on this fig tree ...

516. It Takes Two to Preach!

Matthew 13:1-23

Sermon

John R. Brokhoff

... to hear him preach. To avoid getting pushed into the water, he borrows a boat, sits down, and begins to preach by telling the parable of the sower. The seed falls on four different kinds of ground, but only one produces results. Later he explains that this is ... a part of preaching must take the Word into his mind and heart. This is a problem of the soil that Jesus mentioned in the parable. Only one of the four kinds of soil received the seed. The other three kinds of soil did not take the seed or, if they ...

517. The Forgotten Virtue

Philippians 2:1-11

Sermon

Louis H. Valbracht

... came first, and the whole Word of God is filled with one statement after another, one narrative after another, which points up the fact that proud virtue is the worst vice. Pride is the most basic and deadly of all sins. In, for instance, the Gospel of the Parable of the 99 and the One, there is joy in the presence of the angels over one sinner who repented, more than over 99 persons who NEED no repentance. Well, that is cutting sarcasm on the part of the Savior, a pungent, biting way of saying that there ...

518. The Gospel for Labor Day

Matthew 20:1-16

Sermon

T. A. Kantonen

... ordinary daily activity. The hymn writer John Ellerton caught this emphasis and taught us to sing: "Work shall be prayer, if all be wrought As thou wouldst have it done; And prayer, by thee inspired and taught, Itself with work be one." The keynote of the parable before us is the central theme of the gospel, "by grace alone." Our Lord turns our usual procedures in dealing with labor problems upside down: "The last shall be first, and the first last." In the kingdom of God the call to work, the privilege of ...

519. The Greatest Discovery Of All

Matthew 13:44-46, Matthew 13:31-35

Sermon

King Duncan

... teacher "was a far wiser man than I appreciated at the time." (3) When he least expected it, Ron made a great discovery. That discovery brought great joy. Such joy is a continuing possibility for those who open themselves to the kingdom of God. But there is a third parable, "The kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls; on finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it." In the ancient world a fine pearl was as valuable as gold is in our day. Unlike the ...

520. A Niche For Every Itch

Matthew 13:1-23

Sermon

King Duncan

... rose, they were scorched; and since they had no root, they withered away. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and brought forth grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty." Later Jesus interpreted this parable for his disciples: "When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it," he said "the evil one comes and snatches away what is sown in the heart; this is what was sown on the path. As for what was sown on rocky ...

521. Generous Religion

Luke 6:27-36

Sermon

King Duncan

... t know about the heart of the adulterous woman, we do know Jesus' heart. Generosity is the mark of a redeemed heart. YOU SEE, THE PERSON WHO KNOWS HE OR SHE HAS BEEN REDEEMED BY THE GENEROSITY OF GOD IS ABLE TO BE GENEROUS TOWARD OTHERS. Jesus told another parable about a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. A servant who owed the king about a million dollars was brought to him. Since the servant was not able to repay such a vast sum, the master ordered that the servant and his wife and his ...

522. Like Everest Without Oxygen And Wimbledon Without A Racquet

Luke 10:25-37

Sermon

Frank Lyman

... and parch one's throat. Jerusalem is the City Set on a Hill, nearly 3,000 feet above sea level while Jericho at 840 feet below sea level, is the lowest city on Planet Earth. Nobody lingers on the road between Jerusalem and Jericho. Jesus begins his parable by saying, "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho." (Luke 10:30a) No further identification is given. Jesus wants this man to be Every Man. Whoever stops to help him will do so not because of the man's status but because of his simple humanity ...

523. Great Feast or Sad Fast

Luke 14:1-14, Luke 14:15-24

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... it got boring, so I stopped. 5. I still wash on special occasions, like Christmas and Easter. 6. None of my friends wash. 7. I''m still young--when I''m older and dirtier, I might start washing. 8. People who make soap are only after your money. This parable is a revealing story of how folks in all generations refuse God''s invitation to the feast of salvation and eternal life. It is a tragic story of persons so caught up in their own make-believe feast that they are too blind and busy to accept the real ...

524. The Road Less Traveled

Luke 13:22-30

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... to enter by the narrow door; for many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able.” That sounds like a parable of exclusion, doesn’t it? A narrow door so narrow that only those who are righteous can pass through. That’s what it means, isn ... them, are going to be in the Kingdom. And some who, on the surface, seem to be most deserving, are going to be left out. This is a parable of surprise. It’s not going to be the way some of us think it is. In fact, none of us really knows how it is going to ...

525. Come To The Party!

Luke 14:15-24

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... buzzed and whirred, and spit out the message. "Your name is Bill Jones, you are 35 years of age, you are from Athens, Georgia, and while you were fooling around, you missed the bus to Greenville, South Carolina." (Brian K. Bauknight, "I Hate to Miss the Party") A parable! We can miss the bus, messing around. That's what our Scripture lesson is about - - missing the bus. That's not the image Jesus used, but the truth is the same. Jesus' image is that of a banquet - - a party that none of us should miss. I ...

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