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 751 to 775 of 4957 results

751. Matthew 1:18-25

Matthew 1:18-25

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... :1-17 had so carefully proven. In order for the several Old Testament messianic birth prophecies to be fulfilled, the Messiah must be born of the line of David. According to Matthew, Joseph must become Jesus' legal father in order for him to be able to lay claim to a Davidic heritage. Matthew's text so focuses on Joseph and his role that it is wholly unclear what Mary actually knew about her unexpected condition or about the identity of the child she was carrying. In verse 21, the angelic messenger gives to ...

752. 1 Corinthians 12:1-11

1 Corinthians 12:1-11

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... proclaim, "Jesus is Lord." Listen, Paul advises his readers, for the Spirit of God will always make itself known through its words. If Paul's first point is that not all ecstatic speech is a product of God's Spirit, then his next insistent claim suggests that God's spirit is not always manifested ecstatically. This is the part of Paul's text that the mainline church loves to cite. Verses 4-6 form a tightly woven message of carefully crafted construction. Through his parallel sentences, Paul structurally ...

753. Exodus 34:29-35

Exodus 34:29-35

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... qeren, in English translation "horn." Another verb form of this term, maqrin is found in Psalm 69:31, where it is understood to mean "to grow horns." From this derivation there comes the literalistic translations of Exodus 34:29 by Aquila the Jew and St. Jerome which claim that the skin of Moses' face either "grew horns" or "was horned." Thus began the ancient anti-Semitic claim that since the time of Moses, Jews grew horns. Some modern scholars have tried to redeem the honor of this horned Moses image by ...

754. 1 Timothy 1:12-17

1 Timothy 1:12-17

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... and disbelief acted as both the reason for Paul's destructive behavior and his reason for receiving God's mercy. In his classic commentary, John Wesley questions this logic, then clarifies how such ignorance might have worked in Paul's favor. Ignorance, Wesley claims, was no excuse. But it "left him capable of mercy, which he would hardly have been, had he acted contrary to his own conviction" (as quoted in Oden, 41). Verses 15 and 16 work together to demonstrate the vast disparity between the sinless ...

755. The Last Parable

Mark 12:1-12

Sermon

James McCormick

... not free to make bad choices turn out well. That won’t happen, because God is God! The greatest tragedy is not Jesus’ crucifixion, as great a tragedy as that was. The greatest tragedy of all is what happens in the lives of those who reject God’s claim upon our lives. God has made the world to function in a God centered way, and when we reject that, it all begins to go wrong. As John wrote in his gospel: “This is judgment, that the light has come into the world and people loved the darkness rather ...

756. Romans 4:13-25

Romans 4:13-25

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... Of course this cannot be the logical conclusion, as Paul triumphantly proclaims in verse 16. The divine promise is not earned by toeing some legal line it is a result of the outpouring of God's grace. As such, Paul is now able to make a remarkable claim. Since faith, not the law, is God's criterion for extending the promise, the promise can be extended outside the pale of Abraham's biological offspring to any and all who "share the faith of Abraham," "the father of all of us." The rather disjointed text in ...

757. Sunday Of The Passion (Palm Sunday)

Isaiah 50:1-11

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... help. God was near and ready to help. Though God allows suffering, he sustains the sufferer who suffers for his sake. When Jesus cried, "My God, why?" we sense the trauma and tragedy of God's apparent withdrawal. Epistle: Philippians 2:5-11 1. Equality (v. 6). Paul claims that Jesus before the incarnation was on an equality with God "very God of very God," as the Creed says. If he were equal with God, there was no need for Jesus to grasp any honor, authority or power. This is a confession of the deity of ...

758. Baptism Of Our Lord

Mark 1:9-13, Mark 1:1-8, Acts 19:1-22, Genesis 1:1-2:3

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... ? (19:1-7). Need: Christians are not agreed that all baptisms are valid. One church insists one is not truly baptized unless one is immersed in water. Another church does not consider any baptism valid unless it is administered by that church. Some claim that one needs two baptisms: water and Spirit baptisms. In Ephesus, Paul found church people who were inadequately baptized because they received only John the Baptist's baptism. What is a true baptism? Were you baptized with that kind of baptism? Outline ...

759. Proper 24

Hebrews 4:14-5:10, Job 38:1--41:34, Mark 10:35-45

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... perfect sacrifice v. 9. 2. The model pray-er (5:7). Need: We commonly refer to the Lord's Prayer as the "model prayer." Seldom do we ever look to Jesus as the model pray-er. How did Jesus pray? We need to imitate him in his praying. Some scholars claim that verse 7, our text, is Hebrews' account of Gethsemane. We now go to Gethsemane to learn how to pray as we watch and study the Master in the act of praying. Who does not need to learn how to pray more effectively? Outline: How Jesus prayed – a. As a ...

760. Proper 27

Hebrews 9:11-28, Ruth 3:1-18, Ruth 4:13-22, Mark 12:35-40, Mark 12:41-44

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... felt today. This sermon is to show that all that happened to Jesus was for us. Outline: It was all for us – a. He intercedes for us v. 24. b. He gained our salvation v. 26. c. He guarantees life after death v. 27. d. He is coming again to claim us v. 28. 2. Once is enough! (9:26-28). Need: Jesus is not a repeatable event in history. He is not reincarnated in other prophets or messiahs. The revelation and atonement accomplished by Jesus is a once-for-all-time phenomenon. There is no need for the church to ...

761. Epiphany 2

Psalm 40:1-17, Isaiah 49:1-7, John 1:29-42, 1 Corinthians 1:1-9

Bulletin Aid

B. David Hostetter

... sin of the world. Having been assured of the forgiveness of our sins, we seek the Spirit's blessing in full measure that we may live in a way pleasing to you; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen Declaration of God's Forgiveness Pastor: Hear the Good News. You are claimed as Christ's own along with everyone who invokes the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Friends, believe the Good News. People: In Jesus Christ, we are forgiven. Declaration of Pardon Pastor: Friends, hear the Good News! You are ...

762. Full Devotion

John 6:51-58

Illustration

Edwin D. Peterman

... -by who were shaking their fists at them and calling them subversive Communists who ought to be thrown in jail. What the experiment demonstrated is what we already know. Many citizens of the United States pay lip service to their country and its heritage. They claim to be loyal and patriotic in every way. They say they are proud to belong to a country as great as ours. And yet at the same time they haven't the vaguest notion what the United States Constitution actually says, and they consider the Bill ...

763. Get Real

John 15:1-11, 16

Sermon

James Merritt

... you realize what Jesus said here may be the most unique emphasis among every religion in the world? No other religion offers its followers a personal union and connection with its founder. The Buddhists does not claim to be joined to Buddha. The Confuciusionist doesn't claim to be joined to Confucius. The Muslim does not claim to be joined to Mohammed, but a follower of Christ is joined to Jesus Christ. He is connected to Jesus Christ, just like a branch is connected to a vine. This is where so many people ...

764. God Where Are You? - The Problem of Evil

Genesis 3:1-6, Judges 6:13

Sermon

James Merritt

... the problem comes—how can the last statement be reconciled with the other four? If God made no claims to being totally good, then the existence of evil would be easy to explain, but God claims to be totally good. If God were limited in power so that He was not strong enough to withstand evil, evil ... would be easy to explain, but God claims to be all-powerful. If evil were just an illusion that had no reality, then the problem wouldn't really ...

765. Finishing Strong

Nehemiah 9:38--10:39

Sermon

James Merritt

... our God." (Nehemiah 10: 32-33, NKJV) Now the money the people gave was to be used for the work of the house of God. The reason is simple - the way God finances His work is through His people. Do you notice the extent of the Lord's claim on their lives touched everything that they had - their children, their cattle, their produce, their wine, their oil? In fact, their giving was to go deep. "And we made ordinances to bring the firstfruits of our ground and the firstfruits of all fruit of all trees, year by ...

766. Good for the Soul

Proverbs 28:13

Sermon

James Merritt

... saying something along these lines, "Well my answers were legally accurate", "I smoked, but I didn't inhale" or "Based on the definition of the act as I understood it, I was not guilty" and we just lie to ourselves. Finally, we lie to God. Verse 10 says, "If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts." (I John 1:10, NLT) This is the most horrible part of all, because when you start living a lie, you leave the point where you will not tell ...

767. Mary Magdalene’s Day

John 20:1-18

Sermon

Donald Charles Lacy

... was weeping and for whom she was looking by supposing he was the gardener. She wanted to know where they had laid him. Then, she iterated words which bring about a multitude of questions. She says she will take him away. What right did she have to claim the body? Obviously, at that moment Mary thought he was dead. Was it because no one else wanted his broken body? Crucifixion leaves a body most ugly and, in his case, his side had been pierced. Who would want such a deformed, haggard, and discredited corpse ...

768. Recognizing His Disciples

John 13:31-35

Sermon

Donald Charles Lacy

... Father/Son relationship at the spiritual and eternal level interlocked in love is one thing. At the human level it can be a vast wasteland. Jesus lays before them a new standard for all the world to see. There is a sure sign for all of us to lay our claims, as Christians, before others. It is to be above and beyond everything the world has to offer. You and I may still be at a point in our lives where we accept this new commandment as strictly an ideal. But is that what Christ had in mind? We can talk ...

769. We Are One in Christ

Sermon

Clayton A. Lord

... of a slave owner and fellow Christian. Paul doesn't suggest to Philemon that he free Onesimus. He simply asks him to be who he claims to be, a disciple of Christ and a Christian brother. It must have been hard for Paul to look in Onesimus' eyes and tell him ... estate. The last thing he wanted was to return to the past and the old life. Paul knew that the only way Onesimus could really claim his new life was to face his past and go from there. He sent him back and told him to treat his master with respect ...

770. Gateway to Grace

Joshua 5:9-12

Sermon

Frank Ramirez

... lost in the slavery of sin, and how we were reclaimed, renamed, and restored to our heritage. The manna of the law, the belief that everything can be divided into a clear right and wrong without our having to make any mature decisions as believers, will cease. Instead we will claim the grace that saves us, and allows us to view others whose faults are no worse than our own, to be seen with the eyes of grace as well. We'll understand that our God is in charge, not us. That there's no telling what God will do ...

771. Past, Present, Future

Isaiah 43:16-21

Sermon

Frank Ramirez

... us? Do they think we are self-righteous hypocrites who look down on others, judgmental, impossible to please, closed minded? Do they have reason to believe that way? What is true? Have we looked to our past, our Old and New Testament roots, so that we claim our glorious future, not to hoard it to ourselves but to share it with all humanity? Will we practice the same selfless love that Jesus outlined in the Sermon on the Mount and which he himself practiced, loving and forgiving his executioners even as they ...

772. The Hard Task of Truth-telling

Jeremiah 1:4-10

Sermon

Lee Ann Dunlap

... some adjustments — like, "Hey! umm, you got the wrong person to carry this off. I haven't even started speech class, yet!" In the presence of such a holy and awesome God, and given the cosmic nature of the message, which of us would not claim to be vocally impaired, if not totally tongue-tied? Notice how unimpressed God seems to be with Jeremiah's logical objections. No lightning bolts or angry thunder are emitted from heaven, no "how dare you defy me!" No divine anger, but not much sympathy, either ...

773. Open Talk about Truth

John 18:33-37

Illustration

Will Willimon

... killing each other—than we are with truth. Pilate himself was trying to deal with this problem of pluralism. It was difficult enough keeping Jews in their place—with their Sadducees, Pharisees and Essenes—without a young Nazarene claiming to be the truth. Pilate’s response to Jesus’ claim was to try to get him into a philosophical discussion about truth. And then, when this rabbi refused to enter the discussion—refused to be rational—he had him killed. I’m not sure that we’ve gotten ...

774. Advent 3

Lk 3:7-18 · Phil 4:4-7 · Zeph 3:14-20 · Isa 12:2-6

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... minds as well as with all our hearts. When some go to worship, they park their minds along with their cars outside the church in a parking lot. The mind is important, for as a person thinks, so is he. What we say and do result from our thinking. Paul claims that the peace of God keeps our minds in Christ. He suggests what we are to think about v. 8. We are to have the mind of Christ so that we will think clearly, accurately, and nobly. PREACHING POSSIBILITIES Zephaniah 3:14-20; Philippians 4:4-7; Luke 3:7 ...

775. Abysmal Heights

Philippians 3:1-11

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... co-worker who always has a “better way” to do things. The naysayer who “just knows” that your new idea is doomed to failure. The clueless who claim they “know” just how you feel. The powerful who “know” what is best for the powerless. The relative who is the resident know-it-all of the family. The claim of “knowing it all,” of having “absolute knowledge” guarantees the same results as “absolute power” . . . absolute disaster. In the first few centuries after Christ, there were ...

Showing results