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

Showing 751 to 775 of 1270 results

751. Jonah 3:1-5, 10

Jonah 3:1-5, 10

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... message to us today than any warning he may have carried to Nineveh. The author of Jonah uses the tale of the spoiled and selfish prophet to speak to a hardened and smug post-exilic Israel. Like Jonah, the Hebrews in exile were increasingly hostile towards all their Gentile neighbors, while nursing a growing self-righteousness about their own status as the chosen people of the Lord. The verses for this week highlight the actions of the citizens of Nineveh, not Jonah's personal impact on them. The prophet ...

752. Mark 12:38-44

Mark 12:38-44

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... relationship with the Pharisees (whom some biblical scholars argue he seldom if ever encountered) and Sadducees (whom he vigorously opposed). With the exception of the exchange between Jesus and the scribe in 12:28-34, the Scribes are uniformly presented as hostile towards Jesus' teachings and treacherously trying to undermine his authority. Jesus' words in 12:38-40 are used to suggest little respect for the scribal office as it was allegedly practiced in those days. Verse 38 opens with an unambiguous ...

753. Genesis 11:1-9

Genesis 11:1-9

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... disciples' fears and anxieties, Jesus once more speaks specifically of the consolation he will leave behind. The indwelling of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit in each believer will result in a special gift - the peace of Christ. While he recognizes the hostile environment in which he leaves the disciples, filled with good reasons to be troubled and fearful, Jesus assures them that his peace is a constant. Trusting in his promise from verse 14, that anything they ask in Christ's name will be given ...

754. Hebrews 12:1-2, 12-17

Hebrews 12:1-2, 12-17

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... ' keepers. In chapters 8-10 the writer carefully explains the promise of the new covenant. Now he urges this church to take this offered grace, to "not fail" to obtain it. The "root of bitterness" alluded to here is not any vague sense of hostility rankling in the community. This phrase comes from Deuteronomy 29:18. It defines the situation wherein any member of the community turns from worshiping God and begins to worship idols. The author is warning these believers to quickly stamp out any splinter groups ...

755. Exodus 17:1-7

Exodus 17:1-7

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... and carefully managed fields and farms. Thus, the Hebrew slaves were themselves used to "civilization" - even if they were not allowed to enjoy all the comforts it had to offer. The Exodus thrust this highly dependent, city-born people into the hostile, frightening, challenging environment of a true wilderness. Even as they celebrated their freedom from their Egyptian masters, a tremendous number of unsettling questions must have crowded their minds. Where do we go now? Who will take care of us? How can ...

756. Luke 9:28-36 (37-43)

Luke 9:28-36 (37-43)

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... is to come _ suffering, death and resurrection. After this disclosure, Jesus, Peter, James and John journey together to a mountaintop for prayer. This is a moment of retreat before Jesus proceeds on the long road toward Jerusalem and to the hostilities that await him there. The Transfiguration also employs opened heavens and the reassurance of a divine voice to legitimate this second phase of Jesus' ministry. Clearly, the approaching date with suffering, death and eternity is more than known and approved of ...

757. Luke 10:25-37

Luke 10:25-37

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... Israel fell to Assyria in 722 B.C. When the Assyrian settlers moved in, these remaining Israelites eventually intermarried with the Assyrians, "diluting" their Jewishness. Samaritans hence- forth were viewed as a "mixed race," impure in blood and soul. Hostility simmered between the Samaritans and the remaining Judean Jews. It came to a violent climax in 109 B.C. when John Hyrcanus, then the Judean king, destroyed the Samaritans' temple. Little wonder that Jesus' messengers were faced with stony rejection ...

758. Luke 11:1-13

Luke 11:1-13

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... must be extended to all. The almost-but-not-yet quality of the coming kingdom is a signal to the disciples that there may yet be moments of "testing," or "temptation," before them. The kingdom will not come into its fullness without encountering the hostility of the world and the opposition of Satan. Even though experiencing "trials" or "tests" may be part of the forward motion of the arriving kingdom, Jesus' words assure his disciples that God is with them even at those times. Jesus' almost comic examples ...

759. Hebrews 12:18-29

Hebrews 12:18-29

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... associated with God's majesty and power. But here they all carry a dark and foreboding sense darkness encircling, gloom engulfing, fire blazing, tempests blowing and trumpets blaring. Little wonder that the writer records that, in response to this experience of hostile weather, deafening noises and terrifying darkness, the Israelites begged that "not another word be spoken to them" (v.19). There is no opportunity for sitting and learning at God's feet here hands-over-head cowering is the only credible ...

760. Genesis 9:8-17

Genesis 9:8-17

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... than an invitation to sin. While these first two units of verse 13 are fairly straightforward, the next two units of the verse are much cloudier in meaning. The wild beasts, which are Jesus' only earthly contacts during these forty days, are usually interpreted as hostile forces, almost as though they are teamed with Satan to make this period of time all the more perilous for Jesus. But while this has been the traditional view of these wild beasts, there is nothing in the text itself to paint the creatures ...

761. Mark 12:38-44

Mark 12:38-44

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

762. Philippians 3:17-4:1

Philippians 3:17-4:1

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... by their lives and their witness turn away from the cross as enemies. These enemies (see 3:2) are characterized in three ways: their destiny is destruction, their deity is Bacchanalian desire, and their debauchery of choice is degradation (v. 19). The tone here is less hostile as it is regretful. These who were apostles are now apostate, those who were friends are now enemies. And their behavior, the apostle warns, is a pattern into which we all may fall if we do not follow the "example you have in us" (v ...

763. Colossians 1:15-28

Colossians 1:15-28

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... the blood of his cross." Likewise, this moral action necessitates a moral reaction from believers. The alienated relationship that existed before the Gentile believers' confession of faith is described in verse 21. Living pagan lives, they were "estranged" from God, hostile to those who believed, and thoughtlessly doing "evil deeds." The sacrifice made by Christ made it possible for these same Gentiles to become "holy and blameless and irreproachable" (v.22) once they confess Christ. But and there is a big ...

764. Hebrews 13:1-8, 15-16

Hebrews 13:1-8, 15-16

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... suggesting that the ability both to extend love and to receive love are marks of true discipleship and the reciprocating glue that helps hold the church together. It was the early church's ability to practice mutual love in the midst of a hostile pagan environment that prompted Tertullian's oft-cited observation, "See how these Christians love one another." The author's second directive is for an attitude of perpetual "hospitality to strangers" (v.2). Again this command is understood within the fold of the ...

765. Jeremiah 32:1-3a, 6-15

Jeremiah 32:1-3a, 6-15

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... Jeremiah is the chosen family member to act as "redeemer" (other than divine design). In light of the animosity between Jeremiah and some of his kinsmen in Anathoth (see Jeremiah 11:18-12:6 for details), it is evident that both messenger and message were viewed as hostile to the best interests of his family. It may even be that Hanamel's offer of land is not intended by him as a courteous gesture at all. It could have been an attempt to humiliate him further and an occasion to gloat over Jeremiah's status ...

766. Isaiah 11:1-10

Isaiah 11:1-10

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... Thus, the gifts of the coming ruler are identified (v.2) and then illustrated (vv.3-5). The future king places little stock in rank or station in life: He judges impartially and in fairness for the lowly and marginalized of society. He is fiercely hostile to the wicked. So strong is his spiritual presence that he is said to wear righteousness and faithfulness like a belt, keeping him in a constant state of battle readiness against the enemies of justice. Clearly, expectations run high for this new king as ...

767. Learning to Love Ourselves

Matthew 22:34-40

Sermon

James McCormick

... ’t do it – that they will never measure up! That’s hell! Do you remember the beautiful Scandinavian girl I mentioned earlier? During the counseling session, she confessed that she had difficulty getting along with anyone. She was full of criticism, and anger, and hostility. She thought that the problem messing up her life was that she loved herself too much. In fact, the opposite was true. She could not love others because she had never learned to love herself. Let’s not make the same mistake. It is ...

768. Back To Basics: The Three R's of Baptism - Sermon Starter

Mark 1:4-11

Illustration

Brett Blair

... recognizing that we have the ability to change. These things are terribly hard to do. But unless we turn, we will be trapped forever in yesterday's ways." Clinton's quote ended with this prayer: "Lord help us to turn, from callousness to sensitivity, from hostility to love, from pettiness to purpose, from envy to contentment, from carelessness to discipline, from fear to faith. Turn us around, O Lord, and bring us back toward you. Revive our lives as at the beginning and turn us toward each other, Lord, for ...

769. Matthew 10:40-42

Matthew 10:40-42

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... are entrusted with power and authority. Verses 40-42 suggest that there were significant risks incurred by both disciple-missionaries and ordinary lay people who might spontaneously offer their hospitality. Jesus takes care to praise all believers equally. Hostility and hospitality await all members of the Christian community. Finally, verse 42 reveals the eschatological nature of the "rewards" awaiting the ones sent and those who receive them. These rewards will not be immediate, physical or economic. Not ...

770. Matthew 23:1-12

Matthew 23:1-12

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... as the public starting gate for Jesus' ministry. Yet little attention has been given to the contents and concerns contained in his last great public discourse recorded in Matthew 23-25. Speaking to both his disciples and a crowd of curious yet passively hostile followers, Jesus, in his final sermon, picks up and emphasizes many of his earlier themes. As in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus urges his disciples towards a righteousness greater than that of the scribes and Pharisees. He also warns them against ...

771. Mark 1:29-39

Mark 1:29-39

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... from the previous evening's round of miraculous healings and exorcisms. The tone of verse 36 intimates that Jesus' new disciples might have suspected that moving on was in Jesus' mind. The verb katedioxen (v.36) literally means "to track down," carrying a rather hostile sense to it. Simon and his three companions haven't simply come out to join Jesus in contemplative prayer they have been beating the bushes for him ever since they wakened to the sight of his empty bed. Simon scolds that "everyone" wants ...

772. John 20:19-31

John 20:19-31

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... of Jesus. The first pericope expands the astounding events of Easter Sunday "evening on that same day." Despite the fact that Mary Magdalene has reported to the disciples her encounter with the risen Jesus, they continue hiding out fearing the hatred and hostility of those who would destroy Jesus' followers. If the disciples believed Mary's testimony, they also still believed with equal fervor that "lying low" was their best strategy. Demonstrating that his resurrected form was not simply his old human body ...

773. Ephesians 2:11-22

Ephesians 2:11-22

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... church (see 1:22-23), where the "far" and the "near" are now brought together. Note that in verse 16 the Greek is more graphic than what the NRSV translates as "put to death." The original text insists that through the cross, Christ actively killed hostility. The conclusion of this theme sounds an early trinitarian note i.e., "in one Spirit to the Father." The one who controls this "access" to the Father is Christ, and Christ and the Father are of "one Spirit." The final verses suggest what this new unified ...

774. Jesus Baptism and Ours

Isaiah 42:1-9

Sermon

Mike Ripski

... cannot be extinguished is lit within us that shines through us. One of our United Methodist historically Black Colleges, Wiley College in Marshall, Texas, is the setting for the movie, “The Debaters.” It’s about the black college’s debate team which enters a hostile, segregated, white world. What propels the movie’s plot is that the black college debaters knew they were children of God. And God’s truth trumps all human lies. There are voices and there is The Voice. And once we have heard it and ...

775. Evangelism is Holy Communion

John 4:1-26

Sermon

Mike Ripski

... entails. 1. First, Jesus crosses boundaries that separate, exclude, and demean. He ventures into Samaria, aware that he is not welcome there. His religion holds that he will be contaminated by the unclean, mixed-race people there. Jesus sees beyond labels, ancient hostilities, even beyond what his religion said was truth. “He had to go through Samaria.” 2. Second, he practices what he preaches. Recall the good news we heard last week: “God so loved the world….Indeed, God did not send the son into ...

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