Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 501 to 525 of 1138 results

Mark 10:35-45

Sermon

Donald B. Strobe

... that they come to us. Nothing is more tragic and cruel than the spiritual tyranny we meet so often. He who has had a rich experience wants to impose it upon others, no holds barred, in order to save them. However, he does not realize the infinite variety of ways by which each person needs to find what he is seeking...” Let’s face it: the world will not be saved by having several hundred million people exactly like us. We are all different, and I think God approves of those differences. Just because we ...

502. Losers Keepers

Mark 8:31--9:1

Sermon

Donald B. Strobe

... us within the sound of my voice this morning, something else may be required, something far more difficult. We may not be called to die for Christ, but to live for Him. The martyr goes out in a blaze of glory; (sometimes literally). But the ordinary garden variety Christian today must live out his/her Christian life in less spectacular circumstances. And that may, in fact, be harder to do. So St. Luke adds this one word to Jesus’ command: “Let him take up his cross daily.” (Luke 9:23) As someone once ...

503. The Unfinished Story

Mark 16:1-20

Sermon

Donald B. Strobe

... a reference to an event in the apocryphal “Acts of John.” The classical word for “any deadly thing” appears only here in Biblical Greek. “Plainly, what we have in the longer ending of Mark is a striking summary of primitive Church tradition gathered from a variety of sources.” (Ibid., p.207) I know, this gives problems to those folks who want an infallible translation of an infallible Bible. But there doesn’t seem to be any. All we have to go on are copies of copies of the original manuscripts ...

504. The Lord's Prayer: Thy Kingdom Come, Thy Will Be Done

Matthew 6:5-15

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... I urge everyone not be carried away by the utopia they are promising. The platform of the Kingdom of God is wider, deeper, longer, and greater than the platform of any political party. Do not ever trade the Kingdom of God for the human-made variety. Since this past year has been an election year, please listen closely to the following illustration I am going to share with you today. The late Senator from North Carolina, Sam Ervin, who became nationally known during the Watergate trial, tells the story of a ...

505. The Lord's Prayer: Lead Us Not Into Temptation

Matthew 6:5-13

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... for success and self-esteem to emerge. However, today this gentleman is now Dr. Duncan and a member of the distinguished faculty at Princeton University. You see, amidst all the voices of the system of segregation shouting he was inferior, he managed to be brought to a variety of small but less than fancy black churches in his life''s journey. It was here that Dr. Duncan testifies that he heard a voice inside of him which he claimed to be the voice of God. This voice, this inside job said, "You can do it ...

506. Brokenness and Bread

2 Corinthians 5:11--6:2

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... hassle. All they had to do was show up, look up, eat up and clean up. Yet for all this, they came to the place where they resented the heavenly-cooked angels'' bread. Already having much, they wanted more. Having plenty, they now wanted variety. Having tired of manna, they wanted meat." The great insights that all three scripture lessons demonstrate is not that the people sinned (which they did)--but that God loved them. Even when the people complained--God confirmed how much God loved them. God is always ...

507. The Third Commandment: God's Last Name Is Not...?

Exodus 20:1-21

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... way of honoring God, who said, "Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord in vain." I believe no person is poor who has in his or her breast and on his or her lips a deep reverence for God. I am told that in Asia Minor resides a variety of bird known as a crane. It is a type of crane indigenous to the landscape. These birds, unfortunately, tend to create a high-pitched noise when they fly in the air. The reason this noise is unfortunate is that it gains the attention of the mighty eagles hovering above ...

508. Whose Servant Are You? (Part II)

Philippians 1:1-11

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... give back to life and be a brother to the world like Jesus Christ. SECONDLY, PAUL CAME TO KNOW THAT BEING A SERVANT MEANS TO BE COMPLETELY LOST IN THE WILL OF ANOTHER. OUR WILL IS SURRENDERED TO THE WILL OF GOD. The word servant has a variety of meanings in the New Testament. It could be translated to mean "one who serves another with complete disregard for themselves." It could also mean one who is bound so tightly to their master that not even death can break this bonding relationship. I believe we see ...

509. Tired of Trying?

James 5:7-12

Sermon

Eric Ritz

I have had the privilege of seeing the play, Fiddler on the Roof--both on Broadway and in a variety of other settings. It is a very moving and memorable play. The play begins with the "fiddler" balancing on a steep rooftop in the village playing his fiddle. The main character, Tevye, points to him and suggests that the fiddler symbolizes all the people of the village. Yes, that does ...

510. The Tender Touch (Part 1)

James 5:13-20

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... James mentioned prayer. The mature Christian is prayerful in the troubles of life. Instead of complaining about his situation, he talks to God about it and God hears and answers his prayer." (1) We have also learned from James that the tongue can be used for a variety of reasons--not all of them holy and honorable. Praying to God is the correct use of the tongue. The promise of the Bible is that prayer provides power in the Christian life. So why do so few of us experience that power? It is because of ...

511. Still Waters

Psalm 23:1-6

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... somewhere on a mountain trail. Occasionally, the shepherd will literally need to build a small dam in a stream in which a pool of quiet water will collect. The sheep will then feel secure in drinking. The shepherd works and provides in a variety of circumstances but always with the same goal--care for the sheep. The words suggest that God knows our every need. God knows our limitations. God takes the initiative in providing for us. God will not lead us into destruction--but restoration. Immediately after ...

512. The Bible: The Book No Other Can Match!

2 Timothy 3:16

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... roots. The discovery of the book in the Temple--and the people’s new-found allegiance to it--restored the nation to true greatness in the eyes of God. Please notice the book was found in the Temple. The goal of this sermon was to share a variety of voices, both from the past and present, from persons cutting across the theological spectrum, from critics and committed Christians alike, to testify why the Bible is the book no other can match and why we should spend more time with the Book of all books. I ...

513. Feasting and Fasting for Lent (Part I)

Luke 4:1-13

Sermon

Eric Ritz

Many of you sitting in the congregation today often ask me where do I find the material and ideas for sermons. I must confess that 75% of the time the ideas find me. The ideas come from a variety of sources. I recently shared how a splendid quote from St. Frances de Sales helped create the sermon "The Measure of Love." I get ideas from the conversations I share with you at weddings, anniversary parties, hospital rooms, nursing homes. I get them from the many books I read. I ...

514. Mother's Day

Proverbs 1:1-7

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... Biblical role of mothers and motherhood. I know the struggle that many of the young mothers of our church have shared with me--of returning back to the work-force soon after the birth of their child. Many women must work and labor outside the home for a variety of reasons. Many mothers feel they are put down if they do not work outside the home. In a sense--we create a marketplace that offers and needs the valuable contributions of women--but then make them feel guilty if they do. It is a no-win situation ...

515. A Memorial Forever - Memorial Day

Proverbs 1:1-7

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... ." If God has an incredible sense of timing--God knows we have little sense of timing. So often like the Egyptians, we can only declare, "God, what have you done for us lately?" On this Monday, we Americans will observe Memorial Day. Tomorrow, a variety of public and private rituals and ceremonies will take place to keep alive a memory. We set aside a day to prevent past experiences, people and moments in history from being forgotten. We are called to honor and remember those who have given their lives ...

516. Our Hope for Years to Come

John 1:1-18

Sermon

Paul E. Flesner

... Day is the significance we attach to the arrival of a new millennium. It must be significant, for I have never before in my life celebrated New Year's Day every hour on the hour throughout the world. Through television, we were treated to a variety of celebrations from New Zealand to Paris to New York to Chicago to Honolulu. Regardless of the different customs used to mark the new millennium, and regardless of the warnings or predictions associated with the day, they all have in common humanity's search for ...

517. Heaven's Applause

Matthew 6:1-4

Sermon

Robert Noblett

... from Latin roots that mean dutifulness and dutiful. Synonyms would include devoutness, devotion, godliness, reverence, and humility. So a person of piety, or a pious person, is one who is dedicated to the things of God. We get a flavor for the essence of piety, in contrast to a besmirched variety, in some lines from Wordsworth: My heart leaps up when I behold a rainbow in the sky; So it was when my life began; So it is now I am a man; So be it when I shall grow old, or let me die! The Child is father of the ...

518. Easter for Thomas, Too

John 20:24-31

Sermon

Robert Noblett

... become increasingly visible. So much of the time, the signs of resurrection are so slight as to be imperceptible. But God's resurrecting activity is ongoing. It's timetable may vary, but God's intent does not. While people naturally experience God in a wide variety of ways, there is an Old Testament notion that it is life-threatening to behold God face-to-face. You may remember the story of Jacob's nocturnal wrestle with an unknown man. The battle continues, but the dawn is coming and the man with ...

519. A Tireless and Timeless Image

John 10:1-21

Sermon

Robert Noblett

... have never heard of shepherds and sheep, it is an easy matter to acquaint folks with both. To understand matters that attend to being shepherded sheep is to acquaint ourselves with the language of intimacy. Shepherded sheep certainly were the beneficiaries of security. Shepherds, in a variety of ways, saw to the security of the sheep. They did that with rods and staffs. A rod was a stout piece of wood, around three feet long, with a lump of wood at the end about the size of an orange. With it, the shepherd ...

520. A Higher Calling

Mark 1:14-20

Sermon

King Duncan

... life of the church. Another twenty percent are relatively faithful in worship, but can’t truly be counted on for anything else. Another twenty percent are sporadic attenders. And then there are about forty percent who are of the hatched, matched and dispatched variety. That is, they are here when they need to be baptized, married and finally buried--hatched, matched and dispatched--but they couldn’t be much more nominal in their devotion. So the fact that these first disciples were willing to not only ...

521. The Amazing Holy Week Equation

Philippians 2:1-11

Sermon

Paul E. Robinson

... way. And he went, not knowing where he was going, totally depending on the Lord. The prophet Isaiah had an overwhelming experience of the power and majesty and glory of God while worshiping. At the end of that experience he uttered those words which have been said in a variety of ways by countless faithful people of God over the centuries. "And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, 'Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?' Then I said, 'Here am I! Send me' " (Isaiah 6:8 RSV). And he went. For him, it was ...

522. Grace in the Midst of Exasperation

Romans 8:1-17

Sermon

Glenn McDonald

Spiritual storytelling (a.k.a. "my testimony") is often an inspiring experience for a gathered group of Christians. It is also inherently risky. The risk is that the story will sound wonderful. Whenever the overwhelming number of details of someone's garden-variety life are squeezed down to a significant few, it can seem that that four-minute abridged version of existence is fabulously more exciting or meaningful than anything the rest of us have experienced in the previous forty years. We may say to each ...

523. Grace in the Midst of Limited Resources

2 Corinthians 8:1-15

Sermon

Glenn McDonald

... single-handedly opened a school for the little girls of his town. His faithfulness and persistence made the difference. Americans traveling overseas frequently delight in the phenomenon of foreign currency. Paper money from other nations is frequently colorful and comes in variety of interesting sizes. Coins are of different colors and textures and don't "jingle" in one's pocket in quite the same way. Foreign currency may even be said to be fun -- but is completely worthless in an American store. You can ...

524. And When You Pray

Matthew 6:5-15

Sermon

Brett Blair

... have received their reward. But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. (Matthew 6:5-6). Prayer just the word elicits a wide variety of responses and feelings. Everything from the most pious of responses to the most piteous of excuses, the concept and practice of prayer has evoked much writing and discussion in Christian circles down through the ages. Most of us would profess fairly easily that we ...

525. Sowing Good Seed - Father's Day

Mark 4:26-29

Sermon

King Duncan

Today we honor our fathers. And that's good. Dads don't get much respect nowadays. A doting father used to sing his little children to sleep. He even learned a few lullabies to lend some variety to the task. This was something he could do at night to help his wife out. And he kept up this task until one night he overheard his four-year-old give her younger sibling this advice, "If you pretend you're asleep," she said, "he stops." That was the ...

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