Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 726 to 750 of 4934 results

726. Singing In The Rain

John 15:1-17

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

A cartoon pictured a man in a doctor's office receiving a physical examination. The doctor came out of his private office with a series of papers and a chart to give the patient the results of all the tests. These were the doctor's words: "Well, I see no reason why you can't live a perfectly normal life as long as you don't try to enjoy it." Then there's the story of a teenager who was overheard to say to a donkey out in the country, "Why, you must be a Christian. You have a long face like Grandpa." All of ...

727. The Client

Zechariah 3:1-7

Sermon

James Merritt

One of the greatest apologists of the Twentieth Century was C. S. Lewis. In a great book he wrote entitled, The Weight of Glory, he makes this salient observation: In the end that Face which is the delight or the terror of the universe, must be turned upon each of us either with one expression or with the other, either conferring glory inexpressible, or inflicting shame that can never be cured or disguised. I read in a periodical the other day that the fundamental thing is how we think of God. By God ...

728. When God Is Gone

Job 23:1-9, 16-17

Sermon

David E. Leininger

Job is a fascinating character with a fascinating story. Scholars tell us it is one of the oldest in scripture. And it wrestles with one of the oldest questions encountered by people of faith: Why? Why me? Why my kids? Why my marriage? Why six million Jews in the Holocaust? Or even those poignant words of Jesus from the cross, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" (Mark 15:34). For the benefit of those who missed that day in Sunday school, the book of Job comprises 42 chapters in the Old Testament, ...

729. Copper Nails Conscience

Illustration

H.A. Ironside

There is nothing that so takes the joy out of life like unconfessed sin on the conscience. I once heard the late Dr. F.E. Marsh tell that on one occasion he was preaching on this question and urging upon his hearers the importance of confession of sin and wherever possible of restitution for wrong done to others. At the close a young man, a member of the church, came up to him with a troubled countenance. "Pastor," he explained, "you have put me in a sad fix. I have wronged another and I am ashamed to ...

730. Jehoahaz King of Israel

2 Kings 13:1-9

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

Jehoahaz and Jehoash: The crisis of 2 Kings 9–11 is past. A descendant of David once more sits on the throne of Judah, and a new house governs Israel, with security of tenure until the fourth generation (10:30). We anticipate a period of relative calm within the two countries, even if not in their relations with other countries (cf. 8:12; 10:32–33; 12:17–18). Chapter 13 unfolds much as expected, updating us on events in Israel during the reigns of the two Israelite kings who acceded during the reign of ...

731. Jehoash King of Israel

2 Kings 13:10-25

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

732. The Hiddenness Of Life’s Truths: Christian Life As Surprise

2 Corinthians 5:20b—6:10

Sermon

Mark Ellingsen

The ashes of Ash Wednesday are icons proclaiming the hiddenness of God’s ways. And God’s ways are hidden. Paul tells us that in our lesson: We are treated as imposters, and yet are true; as unknown, yet are well known; as dying, and see — we are alive; as punished, and yet not killed; as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing everything (6:8b-6:10). It does not make sense, does it? How can we be imposters and yet the real thing, sorrowful but ...

733. Lent 1

1 Peter 3:8-22, Genesis 9:1-17, Mark 1:9-13

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

Theme: God's good news. God shows his graciousness through the covenant he established through Noah. God would never again destroy the world through flood. In the Gospel Jesus announces the kingdom of God. All we have to do is repent and believe the good news. COMMENTARY Old Testament: Genesis 9:8-17 Humans become so corrupt that Yahweh drowns them all in a great flood, except for Noah and his family. Noah, his family and various animals are kept safe on the ark which the Lord told Noah to construct. ...

734. The Healing of the Man with the Withered Hand

Mark 2:23-3:6

Sermon

James W. Moore

A veteran senior angel was giving a brand new freshman angel a tour of the heavens. The freshman angel was wide-eyed and awe-struck as he saw the vastness and majesty and wonder of God’s incredible universe. When they came to the Milky Way, the senior angel said to the freshman angel: “Come over here, son… I want to show you something special… Look down there! That tiny planet is called Earth. It looks rather insignificant from here, doesn’t it? It looks so small, so inconsequential… but something quite ...

735. A Real Solution For Real Problems

Acts 9:1-19a

Sermon

King Duncan

There is a silly story about a man who went to his doctor complaining about terrible neck pains, throbbing headaches and recurring dizzy spells. The doctor examined him and said, "I’m afraid I have some bad news for you. You have only six months to live." The doomed man decided he would spend his remaining time on earth enjoying himself. He quit his job, bought a sports car, and a closet full of new suits and shoes. Then he went to get himself a dozen tailored shirts. He went to the finest shirt shop he ...

736. I Can Have Anything?

John 14:5-14

Sermon

King Duncan

It is said that Gen. George Patton had great respect for Army Chaplains. He always had them at staff meetings when important decisions were to be made. He was always calling on the Chaplains to "get a hot line to God!" During the Battle of the Bulge when the weather was so terrible, Gen. Patton ordered the Chaplain to write a prayer that would change the weather. The resulting prayer went something like this, "Restrain these immoderate storms, [O Lord], grant us fair weather for battle, graciously hearken ...

737. Through The Storm, Through The Night

Luke 18:1-8

Sermon

Frank Lyman

Two twelve-year-old boys, Bob and Mike, broke a window while playing baseball. They looked around to see if anyone had seen them. No one was in sight, except for Mike's little brother. They went over and offered him a piece of candy not to tell. He refused it. "I'll give you my baseball," Mike said. "No," said his little brother. "Then what about my new glove?" Bob added. "No!" said the little brother. "Well, what do you want?" they pleaded. With resoluteness, the little fellow said, "I wanna tell." It's ...

738. Have You Gone Far Enough?

Mark 8:27-30

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

When I was in divinity school some student had written graffiti on the bathroom wall. And I've never forgotten the humor of it. It went something like this: "And Jesus spake unto Peter saying 'Who do men say that I am?' And Peter answered, 'Thou art, according to Paul Tillich, the very ground of our being. Thou art Emmanuel Kant's deontological categorical imperative. Thou art the man of the Eschaton, the ultimately determinative one!' And Jesus looked at Peter and saith, 'What?' " Seriously, in the text, ...

739. Strategic Kindness

Ephesians 4:17--5:21

Sermon

King Duncan

A woman sued her husband for divorce. She told the judge she had nagged and nagged, but she couldn't get him to do right. The judge wondered if she had tried using kindness. Referring to the biblical passage, which says that when we show kindness to our enemy it is like heaping "burning coals on his head," he asked her if she had tried heaping coals on his head. She answered, "No, but I don't think it will work. I already tried scalding water and that didn't do any good." I'm not sure this woman understood ...

740. He's Here Somewhere

John 1:6-8, 19-28

Sermon

Mark Trotter

To understand the gospels you must remember that they were written some generations after the Resurrection, and written to answer the questions being raised in that generation. In the case of the Gospel of John, which is the lesson for the sermon this morning, it was written at least sixty years after the Resurrection, three or four generations after. So the question being asked in our text is, "Where is he?" "If he has been resurrected, then where is he?" It is a particularly critical question for that ...

741. Honoring the Fathers

Hebrews 11:17-22

Sermon

Mark Trotter

742. Celebrating Generosity

Mark 12:38-44

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

A number of years I read a newspaper article from Indianapolis about a wealthy widow, Mrs. Marjorie Jackson, was found dead in her home. She was dressed in flannel pajamas and a housecoat, was found on the kitchen floor. There was no foul play involved. But the strange part of the story is that the police discovered over 5 million dollars in cash stuffed in trash cans, shoe boxes, drawers, tool boxes, paper bags, the pockets of clothing and even in a vacuum cleaner bag. Most of the money was in $100 bills ...

743. Conflict Resolution (Series: Fundamentals of Family)

Colossians 3:1-17

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

To live above with those we love, Well, that will be glory. To live below with those we know, Well, that’s another story. Wherever two or more people gather in the close quarters of family, church, work, or community, conflict is bound to happen. The Bible affirms that from cover to cover. Jacob did not get along with Esau. King Saul tried to kill David. St. Paul wanted nothing to do with his former traveling companion Mark. The letters of the New Testament are full of advice on resolving difficulties. So ...

744. The View From Jesus’ Pew

Mark 12:38-44

Sermon

David E. Leininger

There is an old story of a father going to church with his three daughters and giving them each two quarters to put in the offering. When the offering came around, the oldest put in her two quarters, the next did the same, but the last held onto hers. When she was going out of church, she pulled the pastor down to her level. "Sir, my daddy gave each of us two quarters to put in the offering. Sally put hers in the offering plate, and Julie put hers in, but I wanted to give mine to you." When the pastor ...

745. God as a Consuming Fire

Hebrews 12:18-29

Sermon

Charles L. Aaron

Every pastor sees the damage that is done to people by too heavy an emphasis on God's judgment. The damage often begins in childhood. Because children can be rambunctious, adults too often try to frighten them into obedience. The church is no exception to this practice. Parents sometimes report that their children have come home from Sunday school or vacation Bible school in tears and trembling because some misguided adult had tried to frighten them into faith with horrifying images of the punishment that ...

746. A Lament and Call to Repentance

Amos 5:1-17

Understanding Series

Elizabeth Achtemeier

The Sentence of Death: This section is only arbitrarily broken into subunits for the purpose of convenience. Actually it constitutes a whole in the form of a funerary lament, and it begins (v. 2) and ends (vv. 16–17) with wailing over the dead. In addition, the proclamation of the divine name begins (v. 3, Adonai Yahweh), divides (v. 8, Yahweh), and ends (v. 16, Yahweh Elohim Sebaoth Adonai) the lament. But the theme is the same throughout: Israel’s death, brought on by its failure to honor Yahweh by true ...

747. God's GPS

Genesis 28:10-22

Sermon

Lori Wagner

Prop: Shepherd’s Staff You all know and probably have seen at one time or another the bumper sticker, “God is my co-pilot.” Well, I’m here to tell you, “If God is your co-pilot, someone is in the wrong seat!” Trust me, when we are in relationship with God, God always needs to be driving. Can I get an “amen” to that? The bumper sticker may have gotten it skewed, but the metaphor is a good one. Because when God is driving, when we are together with God at the wheel of our cars, buses, planes, or golf carts – ...

748. Thankful Living

Joel 2:18-27

Sermon

John A. Stroman

Joel informs the people of Judah that God has willed that humankind should have abundant life. This abundant life is characterized by good relationships with others, with all of God's creation, as well as the land and all its creatures. He points out that this abundant life of relationships is possible by first having a harmonious relationship with God. The prophet warns Judah if they desert God, making God unnecessary, and turn to other sources for life, then Judah is faced with hopelessness and the ...

749. The Man Who Came to Dinner

Luke 14:1-14

Sermon

Carveth Mitchell

To the thoughtful reader of this Gospel two questions jump out at once: Why was Jesus invited to a dinner with the Pharisees on the Sabbath? And why did he accept? In answer to that, there are three key sentences in this Gospel, and all three come across the centuries and speak Jesus’ word to us. I "They were watching him." (verse 1) Lo! Our two questions are answered. He was invited so they could watch him. What further evidence could they gather to feed the fire of their animosity toward him? Obviously ...

750. If Only We Would Confess ...

Ezekiel 18:1-32

Sermon

Wallace H. Kirby

Someone had slipped a church bulletin under the study door. When I spotted it after the morning worship service and saw some notations on it, I assumed that the writer had jotted down an announcement or a date to be included in the newsletter that was to go to press Monday morning. Reading the note scrawled across the ritual, I knew it was meant, not for the newsletter, but for me. "Garbage!" the note read. "This is garbage and we will not tolerate any more of it." That note of judgment was not aimed at ...

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