Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: touch, feel, sense of touch, tactile sense, tactility, contact, using one's hands, sensation, sense, suspicion, sneaking suspicion, notion, inkling, hunch, fancy, apprehension, presentiment, premonition, foreboding, love, care, affection, fondness, tenderness, warmth, warmness, emotion, sentiment, emotional state, compassion, sympathy, empathy, fellow feeling, understanding, concern, solicitude, solicitousness, tender-heartedness, brotherly love, sensibilities, sensitivities, self-esteem, ego, pride, opinion, belief, view, impression, intuition, instinct, estimation, guess, theory, hypothesis, thought, way of thinking, point of view, atmosphere, ambience, aura, air, mood, climate, character, overtone, undertone, tenor, spirit, quality, flavour, colour, aptitude, knack, flair, bent, talent, gift, skill, art, trick, faculty, ability, propensity, inclination, sensitive, warm, warm-hearted, tender, tender-hearted, caring, soft-hearted, sympathetic, compassionate, empathetic, responsive, receptive, intuitive, thoughtful

Antonyms: bad feeling, acrimony, animosity, animus, antagonism, antipathy, aversion, bitterness, detestation, disgust, dislike, disrelish, enmity, friction, grievances, grudges, hatred, hostility, loathing, malevolence, malice

Showing 576 to 600 of 4339 results

576. God's Sovereign Choice

Romans 9:1-29

Understanding Series

James R. Edwards

... the law. In saying that he will have mercy on whom he will have mercy, God is not, like a mad dictator, saying he can do whatever he pleases. It is rather a promise that in his behavior towards humanity God will be true to his character of love and justice. God’s character guarantees his actions. I will have mercy on whom I have mercy is simply the experiential form of “I am who I am” (Exod. 3:14). We can hear the pious rejoinder of Jews—and of all morally upright peoples—in verse 16. Does man’s ...

577. Thanksgiving

1 Corinthians 1:1-9

Understanding Series

Marion L. Soards

... in Paul’s declaration here, he has in mind God’s faithfulness as he and the Corinthians know it specifically through Jesus Christ. God had begun and was continuing a work among the Corinthians that had an assured outcome because of God’s own character. The declaration of God’s faithfulness will be repeated at 10:13, where Paul recognizes the reality of the temptation that the Corinthians must face and tells them that God’s own faithfulness assures that they will not be tempted beyond what they can ...

578. Wisdom from the Spirit

1 Corinthians 2:6-16

Understanding Series

Marion L. Soards

... constitution. Here, 2:13 echoes the lines of 2:1–5. Having been taught by the Spirit about God’s will and work, by the power of the Spirit Paul explained these things to others. Implicit in Paul’s remarks is an understanding of the missional character of the presence and the power of the Spirit. The Spirit and the truths about God are not grasped and possessed by humans, rather, they themselves grasp humanity and direct persons toward others as the agents of God’s saving work. 2:14 With the words ...

579. Prologue

Revelation 1:1-3

Understanding Series

Robert W. Wall

... , because his subject matter is derived from divine revelation, John expects his audience to recognize his composition as the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ: it is the gospel of God, given to and witnessed by Jesus Christ. Given the apocalyptic character of his composition, such an expectation is intensified because the time is near. What John has written down intends to unveil the mysteries of God’s salvation for those who live at the end of time. Of course, the purpose of any epistolary ...

580. Balak Summons Balaam

Numbers 22:1-20

Understanding Series

W.H. Bellinger, Jr.

... but joins in God’s blessing of the people before Israel enters the land. The story derives from earlier narratives that have been included in the Priestly accounts. Because the story is composite, it reveals some tensions. Olson has described the four main characters in the story (Numbers, pp. 140–41); attention to these may provide a way for readers to follow the development. Balaam is a prophet who functions in the Transjordan; Balak is the Moabite king who hires Balaam to curse Israel. God is the ...

581. The Birth of Samuel

1 Samuel 1:1-20

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

... at many sites, Shiloh appears to have been a significant shrine at that time. It was a fairly substantial structure, served by appointed priests and housing the central religious object of the Yahwistic faith, the ark of God. As so often in OT narratives, characters who will later play an important role are introduced almost in passing. So we are informed here that Hophni and Phinehas served as priests alongside their father, Eli. It is not clear, and it does not affect the point of the story, whether the ...

582. Introducing Job

Job 1:1-5

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

... sacrificial precautions to even a hint of a possible curse (in their hearts). Verse 5 concludes with the assurance that such scrupulousness characterized Job’s regular custom. Additional Notes 1:1 The Hebrew word order in Esther (2:5) gives similar weight to the central character, Mordecai. Lit.: “a man, a Jew, there was in Susa the capital.” See also Nathan’s rebuke of David (2 Sam. 12:1). Lit.: “Two men there were in a single city.” The land of Uz occurs elsewhere only in Jer. 25:20, in a ...

583. Eliphaz

Job 4:1-5:27

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

... , Eliphaz seems to say, why is he so anxious under suffering, when he ought to be full of confidence and hope? Rather than attempting to comfort Job by encouraging him to trust in God’s merciful response to his righteous character, Eliphaz seems, by these words (and those that immediately follow), to admonish Job to acknowledge the presence of some sin—however minor or unintentional—to account for the divinely instigated punishment he is experiencing. Aphoristic Support 4:7 Following the customary ...

584. Job's Reply to Eliphaz

Job 6:1–7:21

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

... to God, who has now determined to remove him from existence in the harshest manner possible. On the other hand, Job wonders why God is unwilling to forgive any sins of which Job may be unaware. Job does not admit any guilt, but he directs the question at the character of God himself. If God is a God of grace, where is that grace in relation to Job? Job is no gross sinner in rebellion against God. He is a pious man who has always taken scrupulous care to go above and beyond the expectations of faith. How is ...

585. Bildad

Job 8:1-22

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

... which he began. With the unambiguous assertion that surely God does not reject a blameless man—employing the same term (Heb. tam) used to affirm Job in chapters 1 and 2—Bildad opens a cautious door to confirming Job’s character. Bildad’s statement answers positively the question he himself raised in verse 3: “Does God pervert justice? Does the Almighty pervert what is right?” Although delayed, Bildad is confident that retribution will ultimately work. A righteous Job can consequently anticipate ...

586. Job's Third Reply to Eliphaz

Job 23:1--24:25

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

... such exploitation. Similarly, the term “marginalized” reflects how the poor are pushed to the periphery where they are less visible and can be more easily ignored. 24:5–8 Like wild donkeys in the desert. The wild donkey, or onager, was known for its untamable character and occupation of remote, uninhabited wilderness areas (Job 11:12; 39:5–8; Hos. 8:19; Jer. 2:24). In Job 39:5–8, God will describe the onager as one of his precious creatures that continues to elude the exploitation of human utility ...

587. Blessed Are Those Who Meditate on the Lord’s Instruction

Psalm 1:1-6

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

... to aspects of reality that are not so obvious (e.g., that the wicked will ultimately be judged). It does not describe mere observable reality; instead, it teaches God’s prescribed ordering of life. And it does so by presenting us with two character profiles: the righteous and the wicked (see further the Introduction on temple entry psalms). We are thus challenged to ask ourselves which model we follow. Closer examination of the psalm, in fact, reveals that it contains a temporal tension. In verse 1 it ...

588. The King’s Thanksgiving for Military Victories

Psalm 18:1-50

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

... also striking that here the king judges his own experience (vv. 20–24) by the experience of others (vv. 25–27). He has invoked no special privilege either here or in the preceding thanksgiving. 18:28–45 Now the psalm shifts from a testimony of one’s character to a military victory song. Implicit here is the moral responsibility of those who bear the sword. Key terms in verses 30–31 link this section to others (Yahweh’s “way” is first mentioned in v. 21; perfect [Hb. tāmîm] is the same term ...

589. Walking in Integrity and Loving the Lord’s House

Psalm 26:1-12

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

... heart and my mind (lit. “my kidneys and my heart”), that is, the innermost and secret parts of human personality. The issue is not mere behavior (i.e., one’s walk and speech) but “what makes one tick.” (This invitation contrasts with the character of “hypocrites,” lit. “the hidden ones,” from whom the speaker dissociates himself.) 26:3–8 In verses 3–8 the speaker presents his case. Verse 3 begins with the divine attributes that define his guiding goal (your love is ever before me) and ...

590. The Trustworthy Lord Over Nature, Nations, and Armies

Psalm 33:1-22

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

... fighting men in 2 Sam. 24). This is the issue facing the congregation: will they choose to grasp for power or to hope in Yahweh? Now the purpose of the general theological claims becomes plain. They give the rationale for choosing Yahweh by describing his character and power. He alone has the all-seeing perspective from heaven and is the maker of all (vv. 13–15). 33:20–22 The clearest clues about the psalm’s specific purpose lie in these last three verses, where we first hear the congregation speaking ...

591. Jesus and Beelzebub

Matthew 12:22-37

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

... the unwillingness to accept forgiveness. Thus the “unforgivable sin” is a state of moral insensitivity caused by continuous refusal to respond to the overtures of the Spirit of God. 12:33–37 Four centuries before Christ the Greek dramatist Menander noted that a person’s character reveals itself in the spoken word. Jesus put the same truth in the image of a tree and its fruit. A good tree bears good fruit, but a diseased tree bears unusable fruit. The quality of the fruit tells you what kind of tree ...

592. The Death of Jesus

Mark 15:33-41

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

... Jesus felt on the cross. Mark’s purpose in giving this statement is to make the allusion to Ps 22:1, so as to portray Jesus as the righteous sufferer who is beset unjustly by his enemies and appeals to God. This allusion reveals Jesus’ true character in the face of the ridicule and false charges on the lips of the bystanders. Interestingly, the statement does not appear in the Lucan parallel in 23:44–46. 15:35 Elijah: On ancient Jewish expectation about the appearance of Elijah, the OT prophet, or one ...

593. Hannah Dedicates Samuel

1 Samuel 1:21-28

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

594. Paul's Vision and His Thorn

2 Corinthians 12:1-10

Understanding Series

James M. Scott

... Rom. 1:5; 12:3; 15:15). The risen Lord goes on to state the reason his grace is sufficient for Paul in his physical distress: Christ’s power is made perfect in Paul’s weakness. The contrast of terms is striking. Ultimately, the quality and character of the revelatory mediator is inconsequential, a lesson that is abundantly reinforced by the example of the OT prophets (cf., e.g., 1 Kgs. 18:4–18). Moses is the prime example of divine power being made perfect in weakness of the human revelatory mediator ...

595. Faith and Deeds

James 2:14-26, James 2:1-13

Understanding Series

Peter H. Davids

... of gospel obedience (2:14–26). 2:1 My brothers recognizes the readers’ status as church members. Don’t show favoritism: Despite the fact that God shows no partiality (Deut. 10:17; Gal. 2:6), human beings who serve under his authority and supposedly copy his character must be continually warned against being partial (e.g., Deut. 1:17; Lev. 19:15; Ps. 82:2; Prov. 6:35; 18:5). A glance at who is elected to office in the church and who sits on denominational committees would quickly indicate that despite ...

596. Be Holy

1 Peter 1:13-2:3

Understanding Series

Norman Hillyer

... told to repudiate any pagan lifestyle, whether Egyptian (behind them) or Canaanite (ahead of them), and to obey their Lord’s summons to a life of holiness (Lev. 18:2–4). 1:15 But … as he who has called you is holy, so be holy in all you do. The character of believers is to be radically different from what it was in their pre-conversion days, for the new spiritual life bestowed upon them as a consequence of their new birth (1:3) is of God—and he is the Holy One. The new people of God have been called ...

597. Faith in the Son of God

1 John 5:1-12, 1 John 4:7-21

Understanding Series

Thomas F. Johnson

... in Jesus Christ and to love one another (3:23). There is also a certain circularity in the Johannine thinking about love and obedience (cf. 2 John 5–6). Those who truly love their comrades in the community will evidence this by a morally consistent and Christ-like character, one of the signs of which is love. 5:3 In v. 3 the author gives a reason for connecting loving God and keeping God’s commands, as he did in v. 2. He argues that love for God is expressed in obedience; that is how it is demonstrated ...

598. The Song of Moses

Deuteronomy 31:30--32:47

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... of Canaanite religion); but Yahweh is greater than any or all other deities who claim to be “rocks” (cf. v. 31). And what makes God distinctive is not merely God’s power as the refuge and deliverer of God’s people, but God’s moral character and absolute justice—precisely the Sinai attributes affirmed in this verse. Cf. Knowles, “The Rock.” 32:6 Is he not your Father?: The fatherhood of God is not a NT invention, but has deep roots in the relationship between God and Israel (cf. Exod. 4 ...

599. Elijah Taken Up to Heaven

2 Kings 2:1-18

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

... by the authors that this is common knowledge—which is why this extraordinary event is introduced in verse 1 in such a matter-of-fact way. When it actually occurs, the reader is again told what is happening (Hb. ʿlh haššāmayîm, v. 11). Of the characters in the narrative, however, only Elisha “sees” that this is so (v. 12). The prophets are merely bystanders (cf. at a distance, v. 7). They are aware, no doubt, that whirlwind and fire are signs of the LORD’s appearing (Exod. 3:2; 19:18; Ezek. 1 ...

600. Healing of the Water

2 Kings 2:19-22

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

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