Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 651 to 675 of 4508 results

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

COMMENTARY Old Testament: Isaiah 9:1-4 This passage is a portion of the First Lesson for Christmas Day. On that occasion it was employed as a fulfillment of the expectation of the birth of the Messiah. In the context of Epiphany it is used as a fulfillment of the promise that the Messiah would be a light for all the nations. This passage was written during a time of great darkness and gloom. The ...

652. The Call To Follow

Children's Sermon

Robert B. Lantz

Object: Apostles' bookmarks or cards Good morning, boys and girls. Do you know the names of the twelve men who were Jesus' closest friends? Do you know what they were called? (Response.) Yes, we call them the Twelve Apostles! Do you know what the work "apostle" means? (Responses -- Some guesses may be close; allow some expression.) An apostle is a learner. It may also mean "a messenger." So the ...

653. The Secret Of A Great New Year

Sermon

King Duncan

It's a classic Peanuts cartoon. Charlie Brown says to Lucy, “Someone has said that we should live each day as if it were the last day of our life." "Aaugh!" cries Lucy. "This is the last day! This is it!" She dashes away screaming, “I only have 24 hours left! Help me! Help me! This is the last day! Aaugh!" “Some philosophies," says Charlie Brown, “aren't for all people." Living each day as if...

654. Epiphany 3

Sermon Aid

Marion L. Soards, Thomas B. Dozeman, Kendall McCabe

OLD TESTAMENT TEXTS Isaiah 9:1-4 has been chosen as the Old Testament lesson for this Sunday because it is quoted in Matthew 4:15-16. The larger text of Isaiah 9:2-7 was the Old Testament lesson for Christmas Day. Psalm 27:1, 4-9 is the first section of a psalm that presents the prayer of an innocent person who is being falsely accused and persecuted. Isaiah 9:1-4 - "Salvation for Zebulun and Na...

655. Finding Your Dream Job

Sermon

King Duncan & Angela Akers

Just for a second let yourself dream big. What would be your dream job? The one that would even made Mondays exciting. I came across a list of real but unusual jobs. Some of them require unusual skills. Some of them just require patience or a strong stomach. See if any of these fit the criteria for your dream job: The first one is golf ball diver: these folks dive for the golf balls that end up i...

656. A Great Light (Sermon for Candlelight Service)

Sermon

Brett Blair

The Christmas story begins in darkness. There was the darkness of oppression, for God's people were a conquered people. They were a beaten and a defeated people. There was the darkness of persecution. Indeed, it was a despised universal taxation that brought the participants in the story together on that fateful night. There was the darkness of disillusionment. There was an ever-increasing number ...

657. The Big Move!

Sermon

John Jamison

Just so you know, we are going to use our imaginations today. We’re not going to just kind of play around and make things up, but we are going to use our imaginations to see if we find some new meaning in a passage we have probably read or heard many times before. We’re going to try and remember what was going on back in the first century when this story actually took place and see if that might g...

658. Capernaum by the Sea

Sermon

Lori Wagner

In today’s world, when we think of a “hub,” a multi-cultural epicenter, a district of the arts, business, finance, and excitement, filled with diversity and change, multiple voices and traditions with a window to the world, we think of a place like New York, Miami, Los Angeles, or London. Perhaps you know of a neighborhood in your own city –swirling with cultural richness and divergence, the “plac...

659. Jesus Begins His Ministry to Israel

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

Big Idea: Jesus announces the arrival of God’s kingdom by preaching and healing and calls disciples to follow in his mission. Understanding the Text This passage begins a new section of Matthew’s story of Jesus in which Jesus begins to minister to the people of Israel in the area of Galilee (as signaled by the narrative formula at 4:17; 16:21). The inaugural message of Jesus—“Repent, for the kin...

660. The Calling of the First Disciples

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

4:17–16:20 Review · Jesus’s Announcement of the Kingdom to Israel and Resulting Responses: The second major section of Matthew focuses on Jesus’s announcement and enactment of the reign of God and the responses it generates in Israel. The people have been prepared for Jesus’s kingdom inauguration by John’s call to repentance and announcement of the kingdom’s impending arrival (identical to that of...

661. The Calling of the First Disciples

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

4:18–22 The Sea of Galilee (also called Gennesaret, Luke 5:1, and Tiberias, John 21:1) is a pear-shaped lake measuring 13 miles north to south and eight miles east to west. It lies 680 feet below sea level in a very warm climate. The surrounding countryside is fertile. Josephus reports that in the time of Christ nine cities lined its shores and its waters were crowded with fishermen. Walking alon...

662. Questions

Sermon

John Jamison

Have you ever had news to tell someone that you were afraid to tell them because you really didn't know how they would respond? You don't want to tell them, but you know eventually you will have to? In my mind, that is how it happened. All the way back from the well, Mary stewed. Would he be angry or sad, or say nothing at all? Would he go away, or stay here? For months he had been paying close a...

663. A New Calling

Sermon

King Duncan

Comedian Garry Shandling once commented on the phenomenon of wake-up calls in hotels. He says: “Here’s a little tip from me to you as an experienced traveler: Wake-up calls--one of the worst ways to wake up. The phone rings; it’s loud; you can’t turn it down.” Then with impeccable timing Shandling adds, “I leave the number of the room next to me, and then it just rings kind of quiet, and you hear ...

664. Fans or Followers

Sermon

King Duncan

Someone named Kyle Idleman has written a very thoughtful essay titled “Why I’m Not a ‘Fan’ of Jesus.” He begins by noting that, according to a recent survey, the percentage of Americans who claim to be Christian is somewhere north of 75 percent. “Really?” he asks, “three out of four people are followers of Christ? “Let’s see, if the population of the United States is about 311 million and 75 pe...

665. Beginning a Ministry

Sermon

Matthew and John, the two evangelists, seem to be at odds about the beginning of Jesus’ ministry; they tell a rather different story. John picks up the story after Jesus’ baptism and describes how two of John’s disciples, one of whom was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, spoke to Jesus, asking him where he lived. Jesus said, "Come and see," and, immediately, Andrew became a disciple of Jesus. Then he...

666. Seeing God

Sermon

King Duncan

Series: Seeing God More Clearly in 2020 Fans of the Green Bay Packers football team are considered some of the most rabidly loyal and enthusiastic fans in any sport. In 2012, the Packers were supposed to play the New York Giants for the NFC Championship. A huge snow storm came through Green Bay and covered the playing field, and game officials considered postponing the game. But Green Bay officia...

667. Only A Phone Call Away

Children's Sermon

Thomas A. Pilgrim

Object: Cell phone Good morning. I'm so glad to see you today. And I'm so glad you have come to church. I want to show you a telephone today. Actually we call this a cell phone. With this phone you can call anyone in the world from anywhere in the world. You can use this phone in your car, which is what many people do with these phones. I remember seeing a television commercial one time which had...

668. Fishers Of Men

Children's Sermon

Mark A. Hultquist

Object: A stick with a string and fishing hook attached and a regular fishing pole and tackle box filled with supplies. Do any of you want to go fishing? When I was growing up my dad would take me fishing in two different places. The first was a lake where my uncle had a cabin. We would fish on Saturday mornings and catch little sunfish and other kinds of fish, all very small. But in the summers ...

669. An Invitation to Christian Discipleship

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

Day by day they arrive in the mail. We call them invitations. A new store is opening for business and you are invited to see. A friend is getting married and you are invited to share in the celebration. Your class is having a reunion and you are invited to attend. Hardly a day passes, but someone requests the honor of your presence. There is an invitation of a divine kind that cuts through histor...

670. When Fishermen Don't Fish

Sermon

King Duncan

In his book In the Eye of the Storm, Max Lucado tells about something that happened to him while he was in high school. Every year, he and his family used to go fishing during spring break. But one year, his brother and his mom couldn’t go, so his dad let him invite a friend. Max and his Dad looked forward to this vacation with great anticipation. They pictured the sun shining down on them as the...

671. Letting Go of Our Nets

Sermon

Charles L. Aaron

Did they have any idea what they were getting themselves into? Peter, Andrew, James, and John had no crystal ball that day when Jesus called them. When the call came, they were going about business as usual: casting nets, pulling them back in, sorting and salting the fish, taking them to market, and maintaining their equipment. However it was that they became fishermen, they had not chosen an easy...

672. Have You Heard?

Sermon

Mark Trotter

This is the day of our Charge Conference, the annual meeting of this congregation when we evaluate and celebrate the past year. And indeed, we can give thanks to God for all that has happened during this past year, and look forward to the future to what God has in store for us, particularly as we look forward to a new millennium. So it is appropriate that on this Sunday the gospel lesson be Matth...

673. Essential Personnel!

Sermon

William B. Kincaid, III

In some parts of the country it doesn't matter, but in many areas the snow which falls during this time of the year can bring things to a decisive halt. Schools close. Events are canceled. Travel becomes tricky. If the conditions become severe enough, the decision may be made that not everybody should try to get to work. Only those who are absolutely necessary should report. For those occasions we...

674. The Man From Galilee II: The Transformation Of His Call

Sermon

Thomas A. Pilgrim

In preparation for our mission trip to Puerto Rico in the summer, several of us went there in the spring to see the camp where we would be working. When we got there we met some people from several churches in Alabama who were working at the camp that week. They shared their food with us that evening, and then after the meal we met for a time of singing and devotion. Between the meal and the devot...

675. The Called Ones

Sermon

Joe Pennel

The Gospel lesson for today makes me want to fuss at Jesus. It makes me want to fuss at Jesus because the message of the text is so radical! It is radical to believe that people would actually leave their place of business to follow after a teacher who said, "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." After Jesus had finished preaching a sermon in Capernaum, he took a stroll along the banks ...

Showing 651 to 675 of 4508 results