Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: touch, feel, sense of touch, tactile sense, tactility, contact, using one's hands, sensation, sense, suspicion, sneaking suspicion, notion, inkling, hunch, fancy, apprehension, presentiment, premonition, foreboding, love, care, affection, fondness, tenderness, warmth, warmness, emotion, sentiment, emotional state, compassion, sympathy, empathy, fellow feeling, understanding, concern, solicitude, solicitousness, tender-heartedness, brotherly love, sensibilities, sensitivities, self-esteem, ego, pride, opinion, belief, view, impression, intuition, instinct, estimation, guess, theory, hypothesis, thought, way of thinking, point of view, atmosphere, ambience, aura, air, mood, climate, character, overtone, undertone, tenor, spirit, quality, flavour, colour, aptitude, knack, flair, bent, talent, gift, skill, art, trick, faculty, ability, propensity, inclination, sensitive, warm, warm-hearted, tender, tender-hearted, caring, soft-hearted, sympathetic, compassionate, empathetic, responsive, receptive, intuitive, thoughtful

Antonyms: bad feeling, acrimony, animosity, animus, antagonism, antipathy, aversion, bitterness, detestation, disgust, dislike, disrelish, enmity, friction, grievances, grudges, hatred, hostility, loathing, malevolence, malice

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676. The Sawdust Trail

Colossians 3:1-4

Sermon

Dr. Ronald Love

... pleasure shall have an end, the wicked shall not live half their days.” With these words Sunday began a litany against every carnal sin known to humanity. We need to take seriously Billy Sunday’s condemnation of sin and perhaps be a bit more receptive to his descriptive language of judgment if we are to surrender our earthly ways of living. Paul, being an established theologian, also informs us in Colossians what it means to set our minds on those things which are above. Paul lists these as: “clothe ...

677. The Well

John 4:5-42

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... ” them. The water Jesus provides will become within them a spring of water that gushes up to eternal life. Just as the waters of life gushed up out from the ground in the Creation story, here too, the Living Water of Jesus’ Spirit will transform the receptive heart, resulting in a gushing forth of life –eternal life. If we hear anything within this story, I hope we hear the messages Jesus is giving, not only to the Samaritan woman, but to us as well: It’s not about “where” or “how” or the ...

678. More Fully Understanding Christ

Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23

Sermon

King Duncan & Angela Akers

... , where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. Whoever has ears, let them hear.” We, of course, are the soil that receives the seed which the farmer has sown. And to paraphrase Jesus’ teaching, some of the soil is fertile and quite receptive to the seed. But some soil is rocky or shallow and resists the efforts of the farmer. And some of the soil is packed so hard it is practically hopeless as a place to grow crops. How do we know that we are those who properly heard Christ ...

679. The Fringe

Matthew 9:9-13, 18-26

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... an unnamed woman touched the fringe of Jesus’ garment and moved from fringe to fore in God’s and everyone else’s eyes. The fringe is the power. The fringe is the witness. The fringe is the proof that God is not only present and powerful, but merciful and receptive to each and every one of us. It doesn’t matter if you come from the fringes of society. It doesn’t matter if you come from the highest eschelons. It doesn’t matter if you’ve fallen in the past. It doesn’t matter if you’ve lived ...

680. Welcoming Jesus

Matthew 10:40-42

Sermon

William G. Carter

... challenges me to care more deeply. They may come from a set of different life experiences, which presses me beyond my assumptions and privileges. As Henri Nouwen writes, “If we expect any salvation, redemption, healing and new life, the first thing we need is an open receptive place where something can happen to us.”17 The change comes, not merely to the stranger, but to all of us, for all of us in some sense are strangers too. The good news of the gospel is that Jesus, who is also a stranger, comes ...

681. Mind Your Manners

Luke 14:1, 7-14

Sermon

Will Willimon

... other campus acronym tries to orient you to life at Duke, tries to put you in your place, so to speak. If you are a Freshman, you have already been subjected to long hours of sitting in auditoriums, listening to speeches, and standing in lines at receptions. I also know that there is a good chance that you've had just about as much advice as you can take. Upperclassmen have told you which professors to meet and which to avoid. Fraternities and Sororities have given you their opinion on social life here ...

682. Catholic

Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52

Sermon

William G. Carter

... on the largest possible screen, “All things work together for God for those who love God.” It was meant to be. God’s will is predestined. The kingdom is going to happen. It grows with us or without us. The good seed sprouts up in receptive soil. The good crop lasts among the weeds. Like an otherwise insignificant mustard seed, it digs deep roots and extends wide and hospitable branches. And all of this happens because of God. God makes it grow. Or to put it another way, wherever there is growth ...

683. Ready!

Mark 13:24-37

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... all fluent in Chinese, we knew that our options were limited, to say the least. So God spoke to us there in that park. China and the West have been at political odds for a long time, but you would never have known that by the reception we received that day. Smiling faces, outstretched hands, folks wanting to have their photographs taken with us. All of us, in our own languages, belting out “Jingle Bells” in the summer sun. What came to mind was that quote frequently (but inaccurately) credited to Saint ...

684. Be Near, Ye Faithful

1 Thessalonians 5:16-24

Sermon

Ronald Love

... extreme of celibacy, which is an acceptable path for those who choose it, but we must heed the instructions provided by the apostle Paul. The Christian should be one that is always giving thanks, even in the harshest situations. The Christian must be receptive to the guidance of the Holy Spirit. The Christian must be attentive to the prophets. The Christian must be respectful and obedient to their leaders. The Christian must have the spiritual strength and discipline to “hold on to what is good, reject ...

685. Dynamic Preaching January 2024 Sermons

Sermon

King Duncan

... : I'm Listening New Title: The Power of Listening 1 Samuel 3:1--4:1 January 14, 2024 (Epiphany 2) Legend has it that President Franklin D. Roosevelt got tired of smiling that big smile and saying the usual things at all those White House receptions. So, one evening he decided to find out whether anybody was paying attention to what he was saying. As each person came up to him with extended hand, he flashed that big smile and said, "I murdered my grandmother this morning." People would automatically respond ...

686. Seeing What We Don’t Want To See

John 12:20-33

Sermon

Mary Austin

... came to see Jesus. The story calls them “Greeks,” probably meaning Jews who lived outside the area and had come for the Passover. The Greeks came to Phillip and Andrew, who had the most Greek sounding names of the disciples, maybe hoping they would get the best reception from fellow countrymen. But Jesus says no. He has never turned anyone away who came for help, that I can recall. But this time his mind was set on something ahead. He could have had a quick chat with the Greeks and moved on...but he was ...

687. That Mountaintop Moment

Mark 9:2-9

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... or falling in love. But these are nothing compared to a true, life-changing God encounter with our divine creator. Today, I invite you to step outside of your comfort zone and to open your heart and mind in a new way, to pray with a truly receptive heart, and to engage in whatever “means of grace” will connect you with God in an intimate, powerful, transcendent way. Then ask God to move you and change you as God will. Prayer is more powerful than you think. To pray that prayer takes courage. But I ...

688. Kiss the Ring

Illustration

Maxie Dunnam

When John the 23rd had his first audience after becoming pope, among his first visitors was his own mother -- a true Italian woman who had lived most of her life on the edge of poverty. Outside Pope John's reception area, she marveled at the elaborate decor of the building. When her group was ushered inside, she noted how each person knelt to kiss the pope's ring. When her time came, she knelt also, acknowledging his spiritual authority in her life. Then she held out her hand. "Now son, ...

689. The Great Reveal

John 12:20-33

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... -287; and Jessica Moss, “The Birth of Belief,” Journal of the History of Philosophy, Faculty Papers, NYU. [2] See Daniel Napier, “Why Philosophy,” January 18, 2024, for a discussion of Socrates, who believed that the mind must be properly prepared for reception and nourishment of good seed (sperma). Note Jesus’ similar message of the Kingdom of God, which preferably falls upon fertile soil, and his message of the prolific mustard seed. We must remember that no one lives and thinks within a vacuum ...

690. The Propriety of Praise

Psalm 84:1-12

Sermon

Will Willimon

... the father and his older son as recorded in Luke 15. The father had two sons. The younger one returned home smelling of pigs and cheap perfume of harlots, wearing rags. Now watch how many verses Luke expends in telling the extravagance of the father's reception: The father rushed to meet him crying, “Bring the rings, get the good robe, bring the shoes, kill the fatted calf, go get some good musicians, dancers too. There will be a party tonight such as this town has never seen. My son is home!” Now ...

691. Bread and Call

John 6:35, 41-51

Sermon

David Coffin

... all share with Jesus the Christ as our bread in life. Amen. Sources: 1. Walter Brueggemann, Theology of the Old Testament: Testimony, Dispute, Advocacy, (Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Fortress Press, 2012). 2. Ruth B. Edwards, Discovering John: Content, Interpretation, Reception, (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Erdmann’s, 2003). 3. Daniel J. Harrington, S.J., Sacra Pagina: The Gospel of John, (Collegeville, MN: The Liturgical Press, 1998). 4. D. Moody Smith, Abingdon New Testament Commentaries: John, (Nashville, TN ...

692. Choice, Chance, or the Hand of God?

Genesis 50:15-21

Sermon

Will Willimon

“You meant evil against me; but God meant it for good,...” In the last few weeks, at the round of receptions, convocations, and introductory gatherings for our new students I've enjoyed asking people, “What led you to Duke?” My mother went to Duke. I like ACC basketball. I want to get in a good graduate school in four years. I couldn't get in Stanford. I'll tell you faculty, ...

693. Excuses, Excuses

Matthew 22:1-14

Illustration

Bruce Goettsche

Have you heard (or used) these excuses? We need our Sunday recreational times We have to work Sunday is the only time we have to spend with our family (and apparently we don't want to spend it in worship) Sunday is the only day we have to sleep in I would get up early to pray, but I have a busy day ahead and need my rest My spouse is not supportive of my faith I know I should read the Bible, but television is more entertaining I can't serve the Lord because my kids are active and I want to share all these ...

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