Sermon and Worship Resources

Antonyms: keep, claim, continue, stick by, self-control, power through, achieve, defend, bear, hope, acquire, quick visit, adopt, continue along, adhere, remain, pursue, support, take up, keep up, reuse, advocate, stay, persevere, cherish, keep going, carry on

Showing 676 to 700 of 4490 results

676. Submission to Rulers and Masters

1 Peter 2:13-25

Understanding Series

Norman Hillyer

Respect for Authority 2:13 What living the Christian life entails is now spelled out in some practical detail. Peter applies the admonition Submit yourselves to a series of relationships: to civil government (vv. 13–17), to slavery (vv. 18–20), to Christ himself (vv. 21–25), and to marriage (3:1–7). The relationship of Christians to the state was one which soon became problematic, for in the early centuries of the church all states not only were governed by pagans but included pagan worship within their ...

677. Signs, Sayings, and Oracles of Judgment

Ezekiel 12:1-28, Ezekiel 13:1-23, Ezekiel 14:1-11, Ezekiel 14:12-23

Understanding Series

Steven Tuell

Laying the Blame and Taking Responsibility: The typical Ezekielian expression “the word of the Lord came to me” recurs throughout the chapters between the second vision of the Glory in chapters 8–11 and the oracles against the foreign nations in chapters 25–32—except in chapter 19. Indeed, in the twenty-six chapters between Ezekiel 11 and 38, this is the only chapter in which that characteristic phrase does not appear. This chapter stands out, therefore, in the larger structure of Ezekiel. Further, after ...

678. Daniel’s Vision of a Man

Daniel 10:1--11:1

Understanding Series

William Nelson

The Final Revelation: Prologue: Chapters 10 through 12 form one long unit containing the last apocalypse of the book. This unit can be subdivided into three smaller sections: the prologue (10:1–11:1), the body (11:2–12:4), and the epilogue (12:5–13). The proper divisions do not line up with the chapter breaks in our modern Bibles because those chapter breaks are not original; they were inserted long after the Bible was completed and not always in the most helpful places. The prologue sets the stage for the ...

679. The True Story Wins

Matthew 28:11-15

Sermon

Lori Wagner

Prop: a stone or rock, some scissors, and paper; a basket of stones or rocks that can be handed out Participation: During the sermon, all can participate using the hand motions of “rock, paper, scissors” Are you a liar? That might be a question asked of you if you live in the mountains of West Virginia, where the art of storytelling is called “lying.” It is every artist’s desire to become a “great liar.” To be a great “liar” meant that you could not only write a crafty short story, but you could “tell” the ...

680. The Sweet Fragrance of Brokenness

Luke 7:36-50

Sermon

Lori Wagner

Prop: A mortar and pestle. Assorted spices (such as cinnamon sticks, cedar, aloe, pomegranate seeds, saffron). Pine nuts, garlic, basil, salt and olive oil (the ingredients for pesto). Rose petals. A rosary (you can find a true rosary online). Anointing oil (such as spikenard). Candles and/or incense (frankincense and/or myrrh). [You may want to have scents/fragrances in the sanctuary for your service, ie incense and candles. If desired, you may have roses on the altar and/or an olive tree standing nearby ...

681. Adam And Eve And God

Genesis 1:1-2:3, Genesis 2:4-25, Genesis 3:1-24

Drama

Jerry Eckert

Comment: Narrative depends on imagination. Imagination can be triggered by vivid words, by the conversational tone that frees it to flow naturally, by dramatic intonations lending emotion to the intellectual content being offered, and by specific directions to the listeners. The following sermon was done using the device of directing the congregation to imagine a specific setting, a stage with scenery and props described. The device was reinforced by having the people in the congregation close their eyes ...

682. The Flame, The Wind, And The Walk

Acts 2:1-13

Drama

Marion Fairman

A Trialogue For Pentecost (The man and the woman are seated in the audience near the front, one to the right, one to the left of the leader, who is standing, facing the audience. Leader reads Acts 2:1-13. When finished, he or she makes preparatory small actions as if about to teach or speak.) Man: (Stands in place looking a bit awkward but determined) Uh, say, is it all right to ask a question? Leader: (Shocked) On Pentecost? (Incredulous) Just when I'm about to begin? (Trying to recover) Well, well, let's ...

683. Proper 4

2 Corinthians 4:1-18, 1 Samuel 3:1--4:1, Mark 2:23-3:6

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

COMMENTARY Old Testament: 1 Samuel 3:1-10 (11-20) Samuel was a special gift of Yahweh to his mother, Hannah, who was barren for many years. She went to the tabernacle and fervently prayed for a child. If the child was a male, she promised to give him back to the Lord. After weaning him, she took him to Eli, the high priest, to be a servant in the temple. Three times Samuel mistook Yahweh's call for Eli's. Upon Eli's direction, Samuel said, "Speak, for your servant is listening." Then Yahweh disclosed to ...

684. Our Defense In A Stone-littered World

Acts 7:54--8:1a

Sermon

Gerald Whetstone

"Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so. Little ones to him belong. They are weak, but he is strong." The children will sing their hearts out, joining in this beloved song. But stand in the midst of a bunch of young children and ask, "Who here is weak?" You'll be barraged with denials, protests, and muscle flexings. The bravado of children is difficult to exaggerate. An image endures for me. Once a group of young boys from an inner city congregation was spending the weekend in my rural ...

685. God's Bag of Cookies

Matthew 21:33-46

Sermon

Johnny Dean

Bertrand Russell once said, "It is preoccupation with possession, more than anything else, that prevents men from living freely and nobly." Since Russell was an atheist, I’m very careful how and when to express agreement with his philosophy of life. But this is one area where I’m tempted to say the same thing when it comes to people’s possession of religion and politics (and I know I’m not supposed to use those two words in the same sentence from the pulpit, but its done now and I can’t take it back). We ...

686. Mary: The Promise Conceived

Luke 1:26-55

Sermon

James Merritt

Promises, Promises. Every time someone breaks a promise, they just blame it on the old saying "Promises were meant to be broken." It is very hard not to believe that and accept that as a way of life. The world's three most famous promises are promises that are never kept. Do you know what they are? The check is in the mail I'll love you in the morning I'm from the government and I'm here to help you Let's face it. Politicians are famous for making promises they don't keep. In the 20th century these are ...

687. Framed, Changed, Challenged

Acts 2:42-47

Sermon

Tony Everett

The week before classes began, Harold, a high school history teacher, fell off a step ladder and injured his back. For the next three months he was forced to wear a plaster cast around the entire upper part of his body. The cast fit so well underneath his shirt and sport coat that it was not at all noticeable. On the first day of class, with the cast under his shirt, Harold discovered that he had been assigned the rowdiest and most rebellious students in the whole school. Walking confidently into his ...

688. The Silver Trumpets

Numbers 10:1-10

Understanding Series

W.H. Bellinger, Jr.

The Departure: Preparations for the journey from Sinai are almost complete. Chapter 10 concludes the first section of Numbers with final attention to the exact means of breaking camp and the departure. 10:1–7 This first part of the chapter deals with the human side of leading the journey. The signals of the silver trumpets complement the divine leadership of the tabernacle cloud. According to verse 2, the trumpets function both as a way to gather the community and as a signal to break camp. The whole ...

689. The Alabaster Jar

Mark 14:27-31, Mark 14:12-26, Mark 14:1-11

Sermon

Lori Wagner

“Your fragrance is sweet; your very name is perfume. That's why the young women love you.” (Song of Songs 1:3) “While the king sat at his table, my spikenard sent forth its fragrance.” (Song of Songs 1:12 Tanakh) “May my prayer be like special perfume before You. May the lifting up of my hands be like the evening gift given on the altar in worship. O Lord, put a watch over my mouth. Keep watch over the door of my lips. Do not let my heart turn to any sinful thing, to do wrong with men who sin. And do not ...

690. The Word Of The Lord Came To The Prophet Haggai

Haggai 1:1-15

Sermon

Frank Ramirez

In the second year of King Darius, in the sixth month, on the first day of the month, the word of the LORD came by the prophet Haggai to Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest.... -- Haggai 1:1 Now the prophets, Haggai and Zechariah son of Iddo, prophesied to the Jews who were in Judah and Jerusalem, in the name of the God of Israel who was over them. Then Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and Jeshua son of Jozadak set out to rebuild the house of God in ...

691. Real Security

Luke 12:13-21

Sermon

One of the multitude said to him, "Teacher, bid my brother divide the inheritance with me." But he said to him, "Man, who made me a judge or divider over you?" And he said to them, "Take heed, and beware of all covetousness; for a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions." And he told them a parable, saying, "The land of a rich man brought forth plentifully; and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ And he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down ...

692. Unwrapping Presents ... and People

Sermon

James Bjorge

A profusion of gifts stacked neatly under a green tree is one of the visions of Christmas. To young and old alike the fancy wrappings keep the real gifts hidden from the eyes of the would-be-beholders. If only the gifts could jump forth from the wrappings they would be free for us to enjoy! However that burst of freedom must wait until the signal is given; whether it be on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day morning. Then they are unwrapped, unbound, set loose. And what a grand time it is when that which is ...

693. Trouble Brewing In The Kitchen

Luke 10:38-42

Sermon

Graham M. Bingham

A distraught woman tried many times to contact her minister only to discover that it was his day off. She made contact with him the next day and scolded him severely. "Pastor, I needed you yesterday," she said, "and you were not there for me. You have let me down. I cannot believe you would take a day off when so many people like me need you." Then she added, "The devil never takes a day off." The minister, a little irritated and with tongue in cheek, responded, "And if I didn't take a day off I would be ...

694. Getting Your Politics Right

Matthew 6:5-15

Sermon

Phil Thrailkill

I grew up with the myth, universally absorbed but rarely argued for except by extremists with bad manners, that whites were superior. Exceptions were acknowledged, but only as exceptions that did not change the rule. Racism was one of the unspoken beliefs of my childhood culture before the Civil Rights movement rose up to challenge the great lie with the potent rhetoric of our founding documents, as in The Declaration of Independence: “We hold these truths to be self evident: that all men are created equal ...

695. Easter Heart Burn

Luke 24:13-35

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

I'm dating myself here, but how many of you remember Speedy Alka-Seltzer or the Alka-Seltzer commercials. Now we have all kinds of antacid commercials and products. It seems Americans are consumed with heartburn. It might be the huge portions we eat. But whatever the case we probably have more acid indigestion than any other country in the world. As a result we have Tums, Rolaids, Maalox, Pepcid, Tagamet, Zantac, Prilosec and my favorite Nexium. And those are only the ones I've seen. For years, all I ever ...

696. Finger Food

Matthew 14:13-21

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

Sticks, forks, fingers: the three ways people of the world eat their food. The majority today still use fingers, as has been the case throughout history. In fact, forks were unknown until the 10th century. Knives and spoons only appear in 5th the century. Jesus ate with his fingers. We all still love to eat with our fingers. Ever notice that the first food to disappear on a buffet table is always the “finger food?” The first to go are those little bites and nibbles we can pick up, pop in, and chow down, ...

697. All Mine To Give!

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

Do you ever get tired of giving? Have you ever seriously considered dropping out of the ranks of tithers? I have. Sometimes I get so overwhelmed by those computer generated appeal letters that come into my office, three or four a day, from ministries in urgent need. Then a man raising his support calls and wants to drop by for an hour to solicit financial backing. After him follows a brother in dire straits who wants an extra 500 dollars for unexpected ministry expenses. Driving across town one sees a ...

698. Last Ditch Stand

Drama

Sarah Walton Miller

This is actually a brief play. It is planned for discussion afterward, preferably in small groups so that all will share. It is a play about conviction. For more impact, let adults play the adults. The cast: Dr. John Whitney, a surgeon; Helen, his wife; Nancy, their fifteen-year-old daughter; Rod, her seventeen-year-old boyfriend. The play takes place in the living room of the Whitney home. However, all you really need is some folding chairs, two put together as a sofa. Props needed are an ashtray and a ...

699. Walk Wisely

Ephesians 4:17--5:21

Sermon

King Duncan

It was a beautiful summer day and Clarence was enjoying a row in the boat with his lovely girlfriend, anticipating the picnic they would have when they got to the island in the center of the lake. These were days when young men and young ladies wore more than shorts and tshirts when out in public. Clarence had donned a spiffy suit with a high collar, and his female companion had on a long dress with billowing petticoats underneath. Clarence masculinely pulled on the wooden oars as his date sat cooly under ...

700. If the Confession Doesn't Fit You Cannot Acquit

Proverbs 28:13

Sermon

James Merritt

Joe Gibbs, the former Head Coach of the Washington Redskins, tells a true story about a friend of his who owned a fine Labrador retriever. The friend, whom we will call John, looked out his window one morning and saw his faithful obedient dog sitting on his haunches near the front porch. John thought he saw something hanging from the dog's jaws. Sure enough, a closer look revealed it was his neighbor's pet rabbit that was now dead. Well, John was not only stunned, he was scared. Not exactly sure what to do ...

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