Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 51 to 75 of 2561 results

51. Tear On the Dotted Line

Humor Illustration

... to the fuselage. The engineers were baffled as to how to solve this problem. Finally they listened to a janitor in the building who said he knew how to solve the problem. "Drill a line of little holes," he said, across the wing where it breaks off. The engineers had tried everything else, so they thought to themselves, "Why not?" They drilled the holes and the plane few perfectly. They went to the janitor and asked him, "How did you know?" He replied wisely, "One of the lessons life teaches you is - nothing ...

52. How Can I Know God's Will?

Acts 1:12-26

Sermon

King Duncan

... could not resolve it any other way, he cast lots. Yes, just as the disciples did in choosing a successor to Judas, Wesley cast lots. One lot had on it “not to marry.” One lot had on it “to marry.” And a third lot said to break off the relationship altogether, which is what he eventually did. Some of you may know the rest of the story. Sophia turned around and married someone else, and young Mr. Wesley refused to serve them communion. The matter ultimately ended up in court and Wesley made the wise ...

53. Jesus Our Rock

1 Corinthians 10:4

Children's Sermon

Wesley T. Runk

... .) Yes, they needed food. They grumbled and complained because they were hungry. So God sent them a special kind of bread that looked like this. (Hold up the matzo cracker.) It fell from heaven and was called "manna." Would you like to taste this kind of food? (Break off small pieces of the matzo and let them try it.) Don't you think that God was good to the chosen people, boys and girls? He sent them Moses to free them. Then he sent them food and water to get them through the desert. Today, Paul reminds ...

54. Reversing The Flow

Isaiah 2:1-5

Sermon

Paul E. Robinson

... when you think of icebergs? The Titanic, perhaps? Or, if you've been on a cruise in Alaska or have seen it as I have on television, you may picture huge walls of ice on the edge of the sea "calving," that is, giving birth to icebergs as they break off and plunge with a spectacular splash into the ocean. I read something interesting about icebergs some time ago. I read that if you were to fly over the North Atlantic in a blimp and were to stare at a large pack of icebergs, you would begin to notice something ...

55. And Then Came The Angel

Matthew 1:18-25

Sermon

William B. Kincaid, III

... then. First came the engagement in which the marriage partner was selected. This often was done by the families. The second stage was the betrothal which lasted about a year and required total faithfulness to one another. As a matter of fact, in order to break off the betrothal one had to secure a writ of divorce. The third stage was that of marriage to one another, actually living with one another. It was during that second stage that we find Joseph faced with this monumental decision. It was during the ...

56. Grapes And Donuts

John 6:1-15

Children's Sermon

B. Kathleen Fannin

... count of noses) ... ten of you! What are we going to do?" "We can share the donut," the children suggest. "That's a great idea!" I answer. I ask one of the children to pass out napkins; then we pass the food around, each child taking a few grapes and breaking off a piece of the donut. I am pleased to note that everyone is very careful to take only a small piece to ensure there is enough for everyone. Consequently, more than half of the donut is left when it comes back to me. I take another piece and pass it ...

57. John Prepares the Way

Mark 1:1-8

Sermon Aid

Richard A. Jensen

... of Mark never seem to end! John recognizes in his preaching that he is not the One who is to come. "I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit" (Mark 1:8). Such is John's promise. But the story breaks off before Jesus baptizes anyone. This story lays before us a promise that is not fulfilled with any immediacy. Perhaps it is the very ministry of Jesus that is the fulfillment of this promise. It does happen with immediacy that the Spirit descends upon Jesus in the form ...

58. Epiphany 7

2 Corinthians 1:12--2:4, Isaiah 43:14-28, Mark 2:1-12

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

... ? That's what happened with God and his people in today's text. Puny attempts at worship highlighted the problem. 2. We also become tired of one another when there is a breakdown of communication and love (the marriage relationship and friendships). 3. We often break off the relationship that becomes stale but God doesn't; he shows forgiveness and grace. 4. God has time and again done a new thing (v. 19) to restore his relationship with his people. What new thing does God want for you in your relationships ...

59. Getting Ready for Advent

Isaiah 40:1-31

Sermon

Curtis Lewis

... a group of exiles that the message of comfort comes. This message of comfort simply states that God's people no longer have to do the "prison shuffle" because the period of their forced labor is ended, and they have more than paid for the sin of breaking off their personal relationship with God. Hence, God now speaks tenderly to their hearts inviting them to respond to his love. This same comfort is at the heart of Advent. As the chapter 40 of Isaiah suggests, Advent offers us the good news that we can find ...

60. After Good Friday

Hebrews 10:16-25

Sermon

Richard W. Ferris

Obsolete. Superceded. Null and void. Those are words that could be used in a court of law to describe legal contracts or agreements that are no longer in effect. Stipulations become obsolete with the passing of time or when two partners break off their partnership, whether it's a business or a marriage. Procedures can be superceded by new practices when old stipulations become obsolete. Whole contracts can become null and void when one side or the other fails to live up to the agreement. Now the happiest ...

61. The CatWalk Church and the CrossLove Church

John 15:1-17

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... geese in flight, look up in the sky. Rarely will you see a perfect "V" overhead. One side of the formation might lag and droop a bit. One or two birds might appear to be completely out of alignment. Even as you watch one "V" might break off into two separate formations, with new individuals taking over the lead roles. Geese use each other to determine the strongest, best position to take at any given moment. They travel together not in step but rather in sync, sharing an internal and external rhythm that ...

62. Tremendous Trifles

Exodus 20:1-4, 7-9, 12-20

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... misdeeds, but through lapses in "tremendous trifles." Have you ever tried quickly to pull a dangling thread from the hem of a pant-leg or skirt or jacket, only to find you've got hold of one of those dreaded running stitches? Instead of breaking off, the thread continues to unstitch itself until the entire hem falls out. Instead of freeing yourself from one annoying little thread, you now have a major clothing catastrophe. It is always the little things that end up getting us in the biggest trouble. G ...

63. The Kingdom of God Has Come Close

Luke 10:1-11, 16-20

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... "Charlie Brown" comic strip, Lucy and her brother Linus have just finished a chicken dinner, and Lucy is explaining to Linus how to make a wish on the wishbone: "This is a wishbone, Linus," she says. "We both make our wishes and then pull it apart. Whoever breaks off the biggest part gets his wish." Lucy begins the wishing: "Let's see now. I wish for a new doll, a new bicycle, four new sweaters, some new saddle shoes, a wristwatch and about one hundred dollars." Then Linus gets his turn: "I wish for long ...

64. Why Christmas Is So Dangerous

Luke 1:26-38

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... You know one level of danger. You ever tried to gather together a fractious, far-flung family into one Christmas moment? You know another level of danger. You ever tried buying a toy for the kids or grandkids, a toy where levers don’t break off, where there are no hidden, choky bits, where glitches galore don’t make the toy “unsafe?” You know another whole kind of threat. But the real “danger” of Christmas is not about parking spaces or perilous toys or dysfunctional families, but is the danger ...

65. The Trial Before Felix

Acts 24:1-27

Understanding Series

David J. Williams

... place? There was no crowd … nor … any disturbance, none, that is, of his own making. He had simply been going about his legitimate business. 24:19 But some Jews from the province of Asia—NIV supplies the verb are to complete the sentence; Paul breaks off with the sentence unfinished (a characteristic of his writing). There was no need for him to make direct reference to the events of 21:27ff. He only commented that his original accusers ought to have been present to make their own accusations, if in ...

66. Esther's Request to the King

Esther 5:1-8

Understanding Series

Timothy S. Laniak

... to ask for a second banquet has given rise to a great deal of speculation. It is possible that the syntax of v. 7 reflects hesitancy and indeterminacy on Esther’s part. Some commentators follow the Masoretic division, assuming that the sentence intentionally breaks off after “My petition and my request is . . .” Esther does not, with this reading, state that her request is for him to come to another banquet. Rather, she is saying that at the next banquet she will answer the king’s question. Bush ...

67. Jesus and the High Priest

John 18:15-18, John 18:25-27, John 18:19-24

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

... in Mark (14:54, 66–72) and Matthew (26:58, 69–75; Luke on the other hand, puts the material in one continuous narrative, 22:54–62). As in Mark, the vivid picture of Peter warming himself by the enemy’s fire is the point at which the narrative breaks off (v. 18) and later resumes. But unlike Mark and Matthew, which use the first scene only to set the stage for the three denials, John’s Gospel assigns the first denial to his first scene (vv. 16–18) and the other two to the second (vv. 25–27 ...

68. The Ark in Ashdod and Ekron

1 Samuel 5:1-12

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... have meant that Dagon was more powerful than the Lord, but the ensuing events illustrate for the audience the power of Israel’s deity, the Lord. Twice the image topples to the ground before the ark, and the second time Dagon’s head and hands break off. Meanwhile, the Lord afflicts the people of Ashdod with tumors of some sort, and the disease follows the ark to Gath, a city several miles to the east. Death comes to many, and the people panic, as do the residents of Ekron, about eleven miles northeast ...

69. The Resurrection

Mark 16:1-20

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... that Mark, who begins his Gospel with a direct and bold declaration of Jesus as God’s Son and promised Messiah, would end his Gospel on a note of bewilderment (16:8). Very few ancient texts end as inconclusively as 16:8, which breaks off in mid-sentence. The addition of the longer ending at a later date is certain if artless evidence that the early church considered 16:8 a defective ending. It seems probable, therefore, that the Gospel of Mark originally concluded with a resurrection narrative, similar ...

70. The Resurrection

Luke 24:1-12

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... . Where the Gospels come the closest is in the telling of the discovery of the empty tomb (Luke 24:1–12). The reason for this is that this is the part of the narrative that Mark preserves (16:1–8). Since Mark breaks off rather abruptly with the frightened women at the tomb speaking to no one, the other evangelists have no common guide; hence they diverge. (Matthean and Lucan divergence in their respective infancy narratives is analogous.) Unlike the account of Jesus’ arrest, trial, and crucifixion ...

71. Propriety in Worship

1 Corinthians 11:2-16

Understanding Series

Marion L. Soards

... it sounds so contradictory to the point of the argument to this point” (p. 520). 11:11 This verse begins in Gk. with the strong conjunction, “nevertheless” (Gk. plēn), which the NIV renders as the postpositive, “however.” In fact, this conjunction often breaks off one line of discussion and passes on to another subject (LSJ 1419). Moreover, Paul actually holds the words “in the Lord” (Gk. en kyriō) until the end of his clause to create strong emphasis on the phrase: in the Lord! 11:12 The ...

72. The Birth of Jesus Christ

Matthew 1:18-25

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

... want to expose Mary openly. Mosaic law called upon a man to divorce his wife if he “finds something indecent about her” (Deut. 24:1). Such was Joseph’s duty, and he realized it. Yet compassion for his bride led him to make plans to break off the engagement privately, that is, before the minimum number of witnesses (two) and without pressing charges (cf. m. Sotah 1.5). While he was considering this, an angel appeared to Joseph telling him to follow through with the marriage plans. The child Mary would ...

73. The High Priest Questions Jesus

John 18:19-24, John 18:15-18, John 18:25-27

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

74. Haman's Rage Against Mordecai

Esther 5:9-14

Understanding Series

Timothy S. Laniak

75. Message to Shemaiah

Jeremiah 29:24-32

Understanding Series

Tremper Longman III

... 3). It is interesting and perhaps a sign that we are getting only part of Jeremiah’s letter to Shemaiah that this report only includes a reprise of what Shemaiah wrote to Zephaniah. We expect the letter to go on and condemn him. Rather it breaks off, and, after reporting that the priest shared the letter with Jeremiah, recounts a second letter he wrote to all the exiles. This letter does condemn Shemaiah. Because he has falsely prophesied, God will punish him and his descendants. He will not live to see ...

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