Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 626 to 650 of 1089 results

Psalm 14:1-7

Sermon

James Merritt

... ." This world is full of brilliant fools. There are PhD's in leading universities who can intellectually understand E = MC2, but spiritually they don't know their ABCs. They see a car and they believe in a manufacturer, they see a portrait and they believe in an artist, they see a book and they believe in an author; but they see a creation and refuse to believe in a Creator. I heard about an atheist who was complaining to a fellow he worked with, and he said, "You know the Christians have all the holidays ...

627. The Lion King

Revelation 5:1-14

Sermon

James Merritt

... Lamb as though it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent out into all the earth." (v.6) One of the blessings of reading the book of the Revelation is you see Jesus as He really is; not as some artist has portrayed Him, but as He really is. John takes his camera and uses the zoom lens to zero in on the Lord Jesus Christ and describes him uniquely and yet accurately: a. As a Lion, He Is Powerful Jesus is called "the Lion of the tribe of Judah." In ...

628. Your Word is Your Bond

Matthew 5:33-37

Sermon

James Merritt

... the name of a one-hit wonder called Milli Vanilli. From 1988 to 1989 they sold 30 million singles and 14 million albums. In January of 1990 they won a Grammy award for the album, "Girl, You Know It's True," and were recognized as the best new artist of that year. The only problem was it wasn't true. They had lip-synced the entire recording, and had to return the Grammy award. Jimmy Bowen, President of Capitol Records, their record company, said: You have to remember that music is a mirror of the times, and ...

629. Great Is Your Faith - Sermon Starter

Matthew 15:21-28

Illustration

Brett Blair

... interest. She awakens in us a feeling of admiration, perhaps even envy, because she stands where most of us would like to stand. What faithful Christian would not like it said of him or her: Great is your faith? Think of what it would mean if an aspiring young artist had Picasso place his hand on his shoulder and say: You have a great talent. How wonderful it would be then to a believer in God, if Jesus would place his hand on our shoulder and say: You have a remarkable talent for faith. But how does one ...

630. Do I Really Matter To God?

Psalm 139:1-24

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... to the specifications of their Maker. If I had to vote for the greatest work of art in the world, I would vote for Michelangelo’s “David,” that 17-foot-tall statue in Florence, Italy. This was the masterpiece of Renaissance sculpture. The artist portrays David at the moment he decides to do battle with the giant Goliath. Michelangelo created David from a huge block of marble that had been quarried 25 years earlier in northern Italy. Two other sculptors, di Duccio and Rossellino, had attempted to work ...

631. I Believe In Jesus Christ

Colossians 1:15-23

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... to ask, “Who in the world are these folks in the portrait?” I’m reminded of the woman who paid $1000 to have her portrait painted. She went by the studio on the day it was to be ready. When she saw it, she was horrified. She said to the artist, “I’m not going to pay you for that painting. It does not do me justice.” He replied, “What you need, madam, is not justice but mercy.” St. Paul and the Apostles Creed tell us that in Jesus we see an exact picture of God the Father. Jesus is as ...

632. Why Not Now?

Acts 8:26-40

Sermon

John E. Harnish

... community. Well, the story goes that a visiting athlete went into an Atlanta jewelry shop hoping to add to his collection. And in the shop there was a glass display case full of crosses. Some were on chains, some in gold or silver, some with jewels or artistically painted. The sales clerk began showing him the various crosses, and when she came to one with a crucifix, the Body of Christ, she lifted it up and said, "Oh, look. Here's one with a little athlete on it"…totally oblivious to the message of the ...

633. What Ever Happened to Norman Rockwell?

Colossians 3:1-17

Sermon

John E. Harnish

For those of a certain age, Norman Rockwell was the artist who captured our American way of life. Beginning in 1916, he painted over 300 covers for the Saturday Evening Post which have become classics in American art—everything from childhood adventures in the old swimming hole to moving tributes to war heroes, gentle laughter and deep sentiments. He imaged what ...

634. Precious and Privileged Children

Galatians 4:4-7

Sermon

Donald Charles Lacy

... our Bibles. Its thrust is invariably the same as disciple and Christ visit: We are to imitate our Master and Friend. World history has been influenced and perhaps shaped by those who have imitated others. Kings, queens, presidents, popes, prime ministers, ayatollahs, writers, artists, and scientists all learned from those they sought to imitate. On the more down-to-earth side of life, many of us found Harry Emerson Fosdick a homiletician worthy of imitation. In fact, go to any walk of life and we discover ...

635. Being Single-minded

1 Corinthians 7:29-31

Sermon

Donald Charles Lacy

... and friends assuredly say he/she was a genuinely good person whose destiny was unquestionably tied to the ever-living Christ. The here and now meets eternity. Our witness is given and preserved because of his love for us and our response of giving ourselves unconditionally. Any artist would be hard-pressed to show this on a canvas or writer in a book. On our knees in silence or with heads high, shouting his praises, we are going to our real home. 4. We are to stay focused and live accordingly. Anyone in the ...

636. Where Is Love?

Hebrews 9:1-28

Sermon

Lee Ann Dunlap

... was laid out legally in the holiness code, as well as architecturally and symbolically in the tabernacle (and later the Jerusalem temple). Although the exact details and specifications have been lost in antiquity, enough remains in the Old Testament for a good artistic rendering. In the days when Moses and the Hebrews traveled the desert the tabernacle served as a kind of divine "mobile home" in which the holy and transcendent God could travel with the chosen people, a "visual parable" to use Eugene ...

637. Looking in All the Wrong Places

Romans 3:19-28

Sermon

Lee Ann Dunlap

... the female place in the world. For centuries, women have been told by their cultural and religious leaders that the way to fulfillment was through homemaking and motherhood — a kind of "Stand By Your Man" mentality (to quote another female music artist of the era). But World War II and its production demands brought economic independence to thousands of women who entered the workforce. And after that "the Pill" brought reproductive choices to millions more. Yet with those choices also came consequences ...

638. Fuel for Our Faith

Matthew 20:25-28

Sermon

Shirley Gupton Lynn

... I'm told in Nashville hundreds of talented singers come to town every month. Armed with only one poor song, a burning dream, and the guitar on their backs, they stride into town in tattered jeans and assault Music City, USA. They go from record company to producer to artist and back again trying to get someone to listen to their song. Because their songs are not good, the begging hopefuls are known in the music trade as "squirrels." But there are no "squirrels" in God's eyes. We don't have to beat on God's ...

639. Blue Christmas

Isaiah 40:1-31

Sermon

King Duncan

... older people in mind. With each assignment she would ask herself, could my grandfather whom Pattie loved greatly manage this with his aging eyes and hands? Then one day Pattie decided to go even further. With the help of a friend who was a makeup artist for NBC, Pattie decided to spend several months disguised as an old woman. She wanted to discover for herself how America treated the elderly. Her friend fitted pieces of latex to Pattie’s face to instantly age her. She wrapped her legs with Ace bandages ...

640. Accepting the Lord Once Again

John 1:1-18

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... of the gift of ourselves that we present to the newborn king of Jews. Yet, as we know, in order to share the light, we must first open the door and allow Christ to enter, permeate our being, and become one with us. The initial challenge is depicted artistically through a powerful painting in the British National Gallery in London. It describes in art a passage from the book of Revelation (3:20), "Listen! I am standing at the door knocking; if you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in to you and ...

641. Power Failures and Power Surges

Matthew 25:1-13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... potholes that our cancer-causing, creosote lives still fall into. Economists battle with political scientists and diplomats over which of them holds the “real” key to “power.” Presidents and prime ministers posture in front of terrorists, criminals, and armageddon artists over who has the real “power.” Is power generated by kilowatts or killing scores? Is power wielded by nation-states or anti-statist terrorists? Is power measured in dollars and cents, body counts, bad dreams, or the ability to ...

642. Multiple Intelligences

Matthew 25:14-30

Illustration

King Duncan

... . Some people are gifted with linguistic intelligence, he says. These are our writers and poets. Others have what he calls logical/mathematical intelligence. They make good accountants and scientists. Some people are gifted spatially. These are our artists and architects. Some are gifted kinesthetically. Their bodies are unusually graceful and coordinated. These are our athletes and dancers. Others are gifted interpersonally. They know instinctively how to get along well with the people around them. These ...

643. The First Christmas Card

Philippians 4:4-9

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... sentimentalization obscuring its essence, not even the church is always clear about the content of God's first Christmas card. What should the Church put on its own Christmas greeting? The first Christmas card, as we know it, was designed in1843 by the artist J.C. Horsley. It measured about the size of a postcard. From this design, one thousand cards were lithographed and hand-colored three years later for Sir Henry Cole, first director of the South Kensington Museum, London. The first Christmas card shows ...

644. Back to School

Luke 2:41-52

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... Carlos Fuentes makes this profound connection between aging and youth: "I really think youth is something you win from age. You are rather old and stupid when you are young." He then goes on to cite filmmaker Luis Bunuel, conductor Arthur Rubenstein, artist Pablo Picasso. "These are men who earned their youth. It took them 80 years to become young. " (as cited in Warren Bennis, On Becoming a Leader [Reading, Mass.: Addison Wesley, 1989], 137). Princeton Professor Richard Robert Osmer's important A Teachable ...

645. Rags and Robes

Micah 1:1-7; 2:1-11

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... on their way. Most of these people didn't give Rivers any money or food. Instead they gave him a much-needed sense of dignity and worth by treating him as they would anyone else they might meet along a busy street. American artist LuAnn Barrows has made a name for herself through her paintings that put traditional biblical themes into everyday rural American life. She paints Jesus in rustic farm settings, wearing old faded overalls, preaching to crowds of overalled and gingham-dressed disciples. Reviewing ...

646. Keep the Stars in Your Eyes

Ephesians 1:3-14

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... not out there; the truth is in here, right here, right now (lift up the Bible and point to it). The culture says that "the truth is out there," and that is why God is "hot" with musicians, with Jars of Clay and Kirk Franklin named Top Billboard 200 Album Artists in 1996. Christian music sales alone topped $550 million in 1996. It's time for the church to say, "The truth is not out there; the truth is in here, right here, right now (lift up the Bible and point to it). The culture says that "the truth is out ...

647. Holy Hocus-Pocus!

Mark 13:1-31

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

648. Hear the Vision?

1 Samuel 3:1-10 (11-20)

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

649. The One and Only Original Sin

1 Peter 3:18-22

Sermon

Leonard Sweet