Sermon and Worship Resources

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1 Kings 11:26-40

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

Opposition and Death: A divided heart will lead to a divided kingdom: that was effectively God’s promise to Solomon in 11:9–13. This last section on the great king pursues this theme of division. It tells us of still further seeds of destruction that were planted in the earlier part of his reign and have now grown into plants whose shadow looms darkly over the kingdom. It tells of opposition on the edges of the empire, and it introduces for the first time the man who will be the focal point of that same ...

577. Solomon's Death

1 Kings 11:41-43

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

578. How to Have a Rich Future

Mark 13:24-37

Sermon

King Duncan

We have officially begun that wonderful season of waiting and watching known as Advent. Small children, of course, are waiting for Christmas Eve and the coming of jolly old St. Nicholas. I heard about one little boy who climbed onto Santa’s lap. Santa asked the usual question: “And what would you like for Christmas?” The child stared at him open-mouthed, horrified. Then he gasped, “Didn’t you get my Snapchat?” Well, let’s hope Santa consults his Snapchat account while he is deciding which toys he will be ...

579. From Fear to Overflowing Joy

John 20:19-31

Sermon

King Duncan

Psychologist Wayne Dyer, author of many self-help books, tells of attending his twenty-year high school reunion. At that reunion he met a former classmate on whom he’d had a secret crush. She was beautiful and confident even in high school, and Dyer could never muster up the courage to ask her out. To his surprise, at the reunion this woman whom he had yearned to date confessed to Dyer that she’d had a secret crush on him all through high school, and she would have been thrilled to go out with him if only ...

580. In Need of a "Rally Monkey"

Luke 17:5-10

Sermon

King Duncan

What do you do when you need a little extra motivation? When your strength or your spirits are depleted, and you’re facing a big challenge—how do you kick up your energy a notch? In June of 2000, a couple of video board operators for the Los Angeles Angels baseball team decided that their team needed some extra motivation. They were playing the San Francisco Giants and they were behind. So the guys on the video board threw up a video clip on the stadium’s giant video screen—a video clip from the movie “Ace ...

581. The Surrogate

Matthew 1:1-17

Sermon

Lori Wagner

Props: Ring (engagement ring preferably) or letter from a prior wartime soldier (if you can find such) Have you heard the riddle? Question: In a bacon-and-egg breakfast, what's the difference between the Chicken and the Pig? Answer: The Chicken is involved, but the Pig is committed! Commitment is sometimes a “dirty word” in our culture today. People are wary of making commitments that may not last. Our marriage rates are going down. More people are renting homes than buying. Many are buying gold, fearing ...

582. The Olfactory Sense of Prayer

Exodus 30:34-38, Exodus 30:22-33, John 12:1-11

Sermon

Lori Wagner

“Another angel, who had a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense to offer with the prayers of all God’s people on the golden altar in front of the throne. The smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of God’s people, went up before God from the angel’s hand.” Revelation 8:3 Props: Several strong-smelling ingredients (such as onion, garlic, cilantro, horseradish, ramps), incense or anointing oils and/or candles Those of you who love cooking know how important your sense ...

583. Sheep? Seriously?

John 10:1-21

Sermon

David & Marian Plant

From Handel’s Messiah: “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned, everyone, to his own way.”1 From Psalm 23 (KJV): “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.” From a hymn: Savior, like a shepherd lead us, much we need thy tender care; in thy pleasant pastures feed us, for our use thy folds prepare. Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus! Thou hast bought us, thine we are. Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus! Thou hast bought us, thine we are.2 From John 10:3-4 (NRSV): “The gatekeeper opens the gate for [the ...

584. Cross Choices

Matthew 10:1-42

Sermon

R. Kevin Mohr

A man once told his friends of a system he had invented to preserve domestic peace. “The day we married ten years ago,” he said, “we decided that all important decisions should be made by me. Small decisions were left to my wife.” When his friends asked him how it had worked out, he replied, “Perfectly, there hasn’t been a single hitch in the entire ten years. Of course,” he added, “no important decision has come up yet.” The challenge of human existence is that life is made up of decisions, insignificant ...

585. The Complex Human

Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43

Sermon

Lori Wagner

If you look at a strand of DNA, you will notice what scientists call a “double helix,” two strands winding around each other with connectors in between that contain the make-up of each biological person. If Jesus were a biologist today, I imagine that’s how he might describe the human spirit. For his example of the human spirit as explained by Matthew in chapter 13 is a complex entanglement of roots –namely two plants growing side by side whose roots are entwined together. They are rooted together so much ...

586. More Than a Popularity Contest

Luke 12:49-53, Luke 12:54-59

Sermon

King Duncan

How do you measure popularity? These days most people measure popularity by social media followers and likes. But that’s not always an authentic measure. There are companies that will sell large blocks of fake followers to those who want to look more popular than they really are. And this isn’t a new thing. Back in 300 B.C., a performer named Philemon hired audience members to laugh loudly at his jokes. The paid laughers were so effective that Philemon routinely beat out his competitors in local comedy ...

587. We Need Another Miracle

Mark 1:21-28

Sermon

David E. Leininger

Do you believe in miracles? Psychology Today reports of a study that surveyed almost 36,000 Americans, aged eighteen to seventy-plus- years-old, and found that 78% of people under the age of thirty believed in miracles versus 79% among those older than thirty (Pew Research Center, 2010). With respect to religious affiliation, 83% of those who were affiliated believed in miracles in contrast to 55% of respondents who were unaffiliated. Although people from all religions believe in miracles, over 80% of ...

588. The Seventy “Sevens”

Daniel 9:20-27

Understanding Series

William Nelson

Daniel’s Prayer and the Seventy Weeks: Chapter 9 is unique for three reasons. First, it starts with Daniel reading a prophetic text rather than receiving a vision as in the surrounding chapters (chs. 7, 8, and 10). Second, the particular name of Israel’s God, Yahweh, is only found in this chapter (vv. 2, 4, 8, 10, 13, 14, 20). Third, most of the chapter is taken up with a prayer. Elsewhere, the author makes clear that Daniel believed in talking to God (2:18; 6:10), but only here does he record the lengthy ...

589. A Living Memorial

Exodus 12:1-30

Sermon

Douglas J. Deuel

Maundy Thursday can and should be one of the most meaningful days on the Christian calendar. It brings us face-to-face with the heart of the matter -- our sin, the estrangement from God it causes, and the cost of reconciliation. For much of the year, even faithful and good Christians can avoid facing the painful reality of sin in our lives and our need for a dramatic remedy for that sin. On this special day, we see clearly the pain and agony of what Christ faced. The suffering of Christ was essential ...

590. God Needs To Save This Family

Hosea 1:1-2:1

Sermon

James McLemore

There are many reasons why God needs to save the families described in this message. There are countless reasons why God needs to save any family. The primary reason is that we are unable to save our families ourselves. Let me illustrate a few scenes from modern American family life. In the first scene, we see a white house on a corner with a picket fence all around it. A typical family event is occurring. The father slams the front door as he storms out of the house. The mother slams the bedroom door and ...

591. Lent 4

Psalm 32:1-11, Joshua 5:1-12, 2 Corinthians 5:11--6:2, Luke 15:1-7

Sermon Aid

William E. Keeney

A Father And Two Sons Jesus never discussed abstract and systematic theology as far as we have reported. He did communicate profound insights about the nature of God, human nature, and the relationship between God and people. The parable in today's passage is one of those instances where he did so very graphically. The parable is frequently called "The Prodigal Son." It is sometimes referred to as "The Lost Son" or "The Two Lost Sons." The parable does focus on the attitudes and behavior of the two sons. ...

592. Weather Signs

Luke 12:49-53

Sermon Aid

William E. Keeney

The government spends millions of dollars to launch weather satellites. They observe the patterns of weather systems around the world. Meteorologists use the data to try to predict what the weather will be so as to plan for what may be coming. The predictions are fairly reliable in the short term. They prove to be less reliable for the long term. Even in the short term the weather produces surprises. Tornadoes show up unexpectedly. A few years ago flash floods killed people and destroyed property with ...

593. Proper 25

Psalm 65:1-13, Luke 18:9-14, Joel 2:28-32, 2 Timothy 4:9-18, 2 Timothy 3:10--4:8

Sermon Aid

William E. Keeney

TWO MEN PRAYING The parable about two men praying would have shocked the people to whom Jesus told it. He drew upon two well-known and widely accepted stereotypes. First is the Pharisee, who was generally regarded as the epitome of the religious person. Most Jewish families would have been proud to have their son grow up to be a Pharisee. The second was a publican. He was the epitome of the sinner. He was regarded as a traitor because he worked for the Roman occupying government. Most tax collectors were ...

594. Just What The Doctor Ordered

Numbers 21:4-9

Sermon

Paul W. Kummer

A wealthy entrepreneur was consternated to find a fisherman sitting lazily beside his boat. "Why aren't you out there fishing?" he asked. "Because I've caught enough fish for today," said the fisherman. "Why not catch more than you need?" the rich man asked. "What would I do with them?" "You could earn more money," came the impatient reply, "and buy a bigger boat so you could go deeper and catch more fish. You could purchase nylon nets, catch even more fish, and make more money. Soon you'd have a fleet of ...

595. An Unfamiliar Place For God

Jeremiah 29:1-23

Sermon

Thomas G. Rogers

They looked over their shoulders one final time to see what was left of their city and their homes. The prisoners searched the rubble with their eyes hoping to find a familiar sight. They longed to see something familiar that might bring comfort to their unsettled hearts and minds. But when the smoke from the fires cleared enough for them to see, they saw only empty spaces where their houses had stood. They felt anger toward the soldiers who had replaced their homes with sky, but their anger turned to ...

596. Unconditional Love

Romans 4:1-25

Sermon

Sandra Hefter Herrma

Have you ever stood at the side of a baby's crib, just watching the little chest go up and down, the tiny fingers curl and twitch just a bit, the tiny mouth make sucking movements? At such times, the heart just melts, doesn't it? We cannot help but love this little bundle. What has that baby done to deserve such love, such an upwelling of protective feelings? Nothing, really -- it just was lucky enough to be born your baby! Maybe just an hour ago, you were struggling to get some cereal in her mouth, ...

597. Recalling, Remembering, And Rejoicing

Deuteronomy 8:1-20

Sermon

Robert S. Crilley

For all of his charisma as a leader, his skills as a diplomat, his savvy as a politician, Moses was not the sort for whom making speeches ever came easily. Rhetoric simply wasn't included on his resume, public speaking never being one of his fortes. And of course, back at Sinai before this improbable pilgrimage began, he had admitted as much to Yahweh: "O my Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor now that you have spoken to your servant; but I am slow of speech and slow of tongue" ( ...

598. Details

Matthew 9:35-38, Matthew 10:1-42

Sermon

Marc Kolden

It's probably not a good idea to speed-read the Bible. You might get the overall story and you might even improve your comprehension but you would be likely to miss the little details. And in our passage today from Matthew 9-10 the details are at least as important as the story of the events themselves -- and the details may be more interesting. The story has to do with Jesus seeing all the people in need of God's blessings and commissioning the twelve disciples to do something about it. All the disciples ...

599. Jesus: The Ultimate Ordinary

John 18:28-40

Sermon

Thomas Peterson

Once again Jesus gives a curious, cryptic teaching that leaves us wondering. “I have come into the world to bear witness to the truth. Every one who is of the truth hears my voice.” These remarks are hard to interpret. Yet, as with all he says, we are inclined to believe they hold great value for us. Not long ago in a study group a man asked me if Jesus were “ordinary.” The question was unusual. On the spur of the moment I replied, “Of course, Jesus is ordinary.” His reply, “Jesus is the ultimate ordinary ...

600. Proper 17

James 1:19-27, Song of Songs 2:1-17, Mark 7:1-23

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

Theme: Purity is an inside job. COMMENTARY Old Testament: Song of Solomon 2:8-13 The whole of the Song of Solomon is a love poem. In this passage the bride hears the voice of her lover as he approaches her house, then with desire sees him through the lattice. He joyously announces that the winter rainy season is past and that the earth is in full bloom. He beckons his lover to come and celebrate love and life around them and within them. Old Testament: Deuteronomy 4:1-9 Epistle: James 1:17-27 James ...

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