Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 626 to 650 of 4977 results

626. The Man Born Blind

John 9:1-12

Drama

Jerry Eckert

... Paul's conversion experience on the road to Damascus, but several years after Pentecost and the development of the church in Jerusalem. Daughter: Dad, have you got a minute? Rabbi: Of course, come on in. Daughter: We need to talk. Rabbi: Saul's gone, right? Daughter: Dad, quit trying to read my mind. Rabbi: What else would a lovely sixteen-year-old like you talk about? Daughter: Oh, Dad! Rabbi: I'm sorry. I didn't mean that. Start where you want. Daughter: Well, Dad, I'm sorry Saul is gone. And I'm glad ...

627. Outsiders and Insiders: A Gospel Surprise

Mark 9:38-41

Sermon Aid

Richard A. Jensen

... a child is to receive me," Jesus says. Our second story task would be to tell the story of the alien exorciser. The disciples see him as an outsider. Jesus does not! The story is very brief in the Markan text, but we can expand it quite easily by imagining the disciples eavesdropping on this man, watching what he does, detailing their plans for presenting their case to Jesus. The disciples are diligent! They want to be sure that outsiders remain as outsiders. In fact, the disciples seem to be the experts in ...

628. Holy Friendship

John 6:60-71

Sermon

Donald Macleod

... not work for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life." (v. 27) That did it! They wanted bread, but he was giving them words, words, words about God and some other bread, the bread of life. When no further miracle was forthcoming, they quit, and we read, "Many of his disciples drew back and no longer went about with him." (v. 66) They wanted to make him their type of Messiah. However, Jesus' focus was not on a kingdom of this earth, but of heaven - the rule of God in the human ...

629. Mission Ready!

Mark 6:7-13

Sermon

Charles R. Leary

... on the hour. Three, life has a way of challenging me with urgency. If my roof strikes a leak, or my tooth breaks, it will be quite evident that repair is indicated. But the point is: we are alive now. It is far more important to live life to its fullest now ... similar advice to his men, “Move on slowly!” And the gentle and persuasive boss said to his tired men who were tempted to quit, “Just continue on ...” That is the way life is. You and I are blessed with being inheritors of life and faith. A good ...

630. In Search of a Leader

Sermon

Robert Noblett

... is indeed doing the calling), a blessed sense of redemptive struggle. Not As We Judge In God’s search for a leader, our story also reminds us that in matters of evaluation, God’s criteria are apt to be different from ours. The man I am remembering was quite polished. He found it easy to speak in front of groups; he was able to pray spontaneously whenever asked; he was supportive of church programs; he would often show up at people’s homes at the point of crisis; he had a kind of avuncular way about ...

631. An Untouchable God?

1 Samuel 6:1-7:1

Sermon

Robert Noblett

... . Reading it from the vantage point of the latter years of the Twentieth Century, we are apt to question its relevance for our day. But let’s not write it off with undue haste. We are never quite as sophisticated as we think we are and, inversely, the pioneers of faith are never quite as simple-minded as we might be led to believe. Some Background The ark, you will recall, was a representation of the presence of God. Writes Norman Gottwald, “The ark was a portable box, probably representing an ...

632. God's Math:Lose Life = Save It

Mark 8:31--9:1

Sermon

Robert Salzgeber

... fulfilling life on earth that he had had. "You said nobody loses, but what about my wife, Karen, and my other children?" Trooper Michael spoke softly and tenderly now, "Your engineering business is in good hands with your two oldest sons. Yes, I agree that it is not quite fair for Karen and your one daughter who still lives at home, but remember they will not sorrow too long. Oh yes, they will sorrow for a little while because they will miss you. But let me remind you that you will all be reunited again in ...

633. Giants In Your Way

1 Samuel 17:1-58

Sermon

Charles Curley

... do it, you're just a boy." But David kept talking Saul's fears down, and after awhile some little spark of something Saul hardly recognized any more started to grow in Saul. It had been so long since he had felt any of it in himself, Saul didn't quite recognize that spark for what it was, just a little bit of hope growing inside him. Talking helped. Just like talking helps us, when we're depressed, to get our fears sorted out and to get in touch with reality. There is no greater gift anyone can receive than ...

634. Investing God's Gift

Luke 19:11-27

Sermon

Larry R. Kalajainen

... we become. Sometimes the frustration becomes so great that we even wake up. Reading this story from Luke's gospel has something of that same familiar and yet strange quality. We know it, or it feels like we do, and yet, as we read it, we're not quite sure that we do know it after all. There are some perplexing and troubling features that make us take a second look. Is this really the story as we remember it? Weren't there three servants instead of ten? Weren't they given talents instead of pounds? (After ...

635. Easter 4

Psalm 23:1-6, Acts 4:1-22, 1 John 3:11-24, John 10:1-21

Sermon Aid

William E. Keeney

... new consideration and vision. The so-called "white man's burden" for inferior cultures and more primitive people no longer gives impetus for missions. Many of the cultures which are not heavily influenced by Christianity are quite sophisticated today. The level of culture in a country such as Japan is quite advanced. The people generally enjoy a high standard of living and longevity of life. Do they still need to be brought to Christianity to know the fullness of life? Is it enough that they are adjusted ...

636. Advent 4

Luke 1:26-38

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

... weak and the undeserving. God grants his favor to all who freely let the gospel conceive new life in their hearts. Holy Fear. When Mary encountered the angel her first impulse was fear, even though the message was one of grace (v. 29). Such a response is quite natural, as we can see from numerous accounts in scripture. When we sinners stand in the presence of the One who is eternal and holy, we are overwhelmed with a sense of our imperfection. However, for those who are open to his grace, God moves quickly ...

637. Is It Better To Catch Or Be Caught?

Luke 5:1-11

Sermon

Richard A. Wing

... she stopped along the road. She would reflect later, "I realized that tonight, like almost every night, I would miss seeing my son because he was already in bed. I realized that life is too short to live like that." She quit her job immediately and became a consultant working out of her home and things worked out quite well. It is so hard for us to be caught by the spirit when we are caught by a job that takes us away from all things important. Scott Turow in his book Pleading Guilty has a passage that most ...

638. Twelfth Night

Luke 2:1-7, Luke 2:8-20

Drama

Jerry Eckert

... or less to everyone who came for the census, it wasn't long before a cousin came forward and invited the young family to his house. That's down this street three blocks, turn left and it's the second house to the left. Sorry I have to quit gabbing. I need to get back to my baking. (Light 4 is turned on.) Studio Announcer: Thank you. We anticipated the story about the shepherd so we sent another field announcer to the site where the shepherds are working. Laurie, are you ready? (Field Announcer 1 hands the ...

639. Reuben: I'm Not A Sandwich

Genesis 37:12-36

Drama

Dr. Raymond Bailey

... as Jacob, I should have been the favored one -- but I was not. I should have received the birthright. I did not. I was never quite sure why. Perhaps it was because I was born to Leah, Jacob's first wife -- fraudulently given to him by my grandfather Laban. When she ... tradition of the birthright, with its leadership provision, was normally given to the firstborn. I don't know. My father never quite viewed me, though, as stable. He never forgot -- he could not forget -- that in a weak moment I slept with one ...

640. The End of Babel

Genesis 11:1-9, Acts 2:1-13

Sermon

Dr. Raymond Bailey

... divine machinery up there that makes the night fall, and the stars come out. He hurls lightning bolts at us. I think we could run things better. We're the best." Then one of them asked, "Who's gonna tell him?" They all scratched their heads. They did that quite often. That Iraqi desert is full of fleas and lice. Then one wise guy said, "Never mind that! How are we going to get to his house?" "Hmmm," they all said. "Let's build a tower," someone posed. "Great idea!" they all exclaimed. "Uhhh, what's a tower ...

641. I Am Zacchaeus

Luke 19:1-10

Drama

Dr. Raymond Bailey

... me as much as you -- but then, who knows -- maybe some will even spit in my face. Actually, you are gracious considering -- Did I get religion, you ask? Well, yes -- in a manner of speaking, I did -- but it isn't quite that simple. Sure -- yes -- I'll come in and sit. Let me tell you my story. I'm not quite sure where to begin. You know my value system. You know the kind of person I am -- that is, I was. I guess I was always greedy. I saw, even as a child, the power that belongs to the wealthy ...

642. A Woman Of Substance · Mary Magdalene

Lk 8:1-3

Sermon

Gordon Pratt Baker

... Jesus." II Where or how Mary attained the means to support the Master in his mission to humanity we are never told. Unlike Salome and Joanna, there is no hint she had a sympathetic husband to underwrite her efforts in the Lord's behalf. It would seem quite logical, therefore, to surmise that, like Lydia of Thyatira, (Acts 16:14) she may have operated a business of her own providing her with a tidy income. After all, Mary came from Magdala which, like Paul's Tarsus, was "no mean city." (cf. Acts 21:39) For ...

643. Which Ones Were Lost?

Luke 15:1-7, Luke 15:8-10

Sermon

Merle G. Franke

... 's car, so the two of us casually made our way around the empty building. He was a synod president, and I was a churchwide senior staff person on an official visit to his synod. The beautiful old building was locked tighter than a drum. There were quite obviously no meetings taking place in it that evening, which my host regretted because he was eager to show me the inside of the church. "No problem," I said. I had gotten into enough locked churches before with my trusty pocket knife, and with a few twists ...

644. Uncle Hilbert

1 Corinthians 12:12-31, Psalm 19:1-14

Illustration

John E. Sumwalt

... altar under those circumstances. It must have been a long three years for Hilbert, until that preacher finally left and we got one who wasn't quite so particular. It was about a year after that when Hilbert's mother died and he came to live with us on the farm. We ... from the back and get it stopped before it crashed into the barn. I'll never forget how mad he was. He yelled at Hilbert for quite a while, and when he was done with him he yelled at us for allowing it to happen. That was the last straw. Dad said ...

645. Fleshing Out The Word

Luke 10:1-24

Sermon

Larry Powell

... was not the one of whom the Scriptures spoke, but he was important to the one of whom the Scriptures spoke, soon to come. The Billy Graham Crusade came to Little Rock this past September. Besides being spiritually rewarding, it was quite impressive strictly because of the manner in which organizational details were carried out. Night after night, things moved along without the slightest hitch, so far as one could tell. Vehicles moved smoothly upon city streets, parking was uncomplicated and orderly. Getting ...

646. Living The Alternatives

Luke 17:1-10

Sermon

W. Robert McClelland

... in the valley of dried bones contemplating the future of his people, he saw no hope. It was as if the Jewish people had been scattered like so many bones lying bleached in the sun. Not only were they dead, they were scattered. The situation was quite hopeless. In precisely that unlikely cradle, faith was born. The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel bringing with it a new vision of the possible. "Behold," God declared, "I will cause breath to enter these bones and they shall live. They shall be joined together ...

647. Alone

Genesis 2:4-25

Sermon

George Paul Mocko

... who are offended by this concreteness, in philosophical terminology, by these anthropomorphic pictures of God walking in the garden in the cool of the evening and talking to his creatures. But do not dismiss that picture too quickly. In this primitive form comes some theology quite profound. Note first, why does God enter this dialog with us? Answer: because we live in a world incomplete and still in process, on its way to what it will yet be: animals that need to be ruled, a garden that needs to be tended ...

648. Christ the King

Jeremiah 23:1-8

Sermon

George Paul Mocko

... is the direct hand of God himself. Shortly after his death in a plane crash, there was the posthumous publication of a book called Markings, the inner thoughts of U.N. Secretary General Dag Hammarskjold. Many were quite surprised, and it is not unfair to say that quite a few secularists had a definite feeling of betrayal when that book revealed that Hammarskjold, through his greatest years, had been moved by profound religious sensitivities. That Hammarskjold sensed the presence of God equally and deeply in ...

649. Reformation Sunday

Jeremiah 30:1--31:40

Sermon

George Paul Mocko

... but if God's going to choose who is trying the hardest, that's got to be us. Not a perfect game, but the best one going, that's us." And even after the doom fell, they couldn't believe it, and pride continued to show itself. "God's been quite unfair in this," they said. "Events have proved our case. Look at the brutality of those horrible Babylonians. Doesn't it prove that we are better people than they are? God will correct this injustice. We can count on it." This whole idea that we climb up to and reach ...

650. Are You A Basket Case?

Deuteronomy 26:1-15

Sermon

Barbara Brokhoff

... fire, and failed. Then state, and finally federal, mine officials tried to put it out. But nothing seems to do it, it still will not quit burning. Every now and then a puff of smoke will seep through the surface and no one can forget that the fire is still ... but somehow no matter what he had done, they could not kill the love in his mother's heart. We don't think our own sins were quite of that magnitude; but then we have no real idea of how offensive sin is to a holy God, or we would bow our heads in shame ...

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