Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: thirstiness, dryness, parched, craving, strong desire, longing, yearning, avidity, hunger, voracity, keenness, eagerness, lust, appetite, passion, love, crave, want, covet, desire, hunger for/after, lust for/after, hanker for/after, have one's heart set on

Antonyms: aversion, distaste, apathy, dislike, hatred, antipathy, disgust, disregard, abhorrence, acrimony, wet, animosity, animus, antagonism, bad feeling, bitterness, be averse to, detestation

Showing 751 to 775 of 2173 results

751. Proper 17

James 1:19-27, Song of Songs 2:1-17, Mark 7:1-23

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

Theme: Purity is an inside job. COMMENTARY Old Testament: Song of Solomon 2:8-13 The whole of the Song of Solomon is a love poem. In this passage the bride hears the voice of her lover as he approaches her house, then with desire sees him through the lattice. He joyously announces that the winter rainy season is past and that the earth is in full bloom. He beckons his lover to come and celebrate love and life around them and within them. Old Testament: Deuteronomy 4:1-9 Epistle: James 1:17-27 James ...

752. Proper 21

Mark 9:38-41, Esther 7:1-10, Esther 9:18-32, James 5:13-20, Mark 9:42-50

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

Theme: Providing a preserving and redemptive effect on the world. COMMENTARY Old Testament: Esther 7:1-6, 9-10; 9:20-22 The book of Esther, written about 460 B.C., makes no mention of God, worship, or prayer. It doubtless was included in the canon because it is sort of an Easter story concerning the Jewish people. The wicked Haman had laid plans for the genocide of the Jewish people. Mordecai catches wind of the plot and intercedes with his adopted daughter, Queen Esther, who intercedes with King Ahasuerus ...

753. Proper 26

Hebrews 9:11-28, Ruth 1:1-22, Mark 12:28-34

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

Theme: Getting back to the basics, to love God with one's entire being and to love the neighbor as oneself. COMMENTARY Old Testament: Ruth 1:1-18 This story, known by even the biblically illiterate, finds its setting during the time of the judges. Elimelech and his wife Naomi migrate to Moab, probably for economic reasons, where they settle. Their two sons marry Moabite wives. During the course of time, all of the men in Naomi's family die. She hears that there is food in the land of her origin and decides ...

754. Ascension

Acts 1:1-11, Mark 16:1-20, Luke 24:50-53, Luke 24:36-49

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

It is a great day when a hero returns to his people. We Americans put on a gala reception with a ticker tape parade usually in Manhattan. Hundreds of thousands gather to see the procession of victory. They cheer. The bands play. Banners wave in the wind. Spontaneous shouts are heard blocks away. The hero may be a Charles Lindbergh, a Dwight Eisenhower, a Neil Armstrong, a Pope or a Nelson Mandela. It is a great day of welcome, festivity and victory. But, the greatest day of all occurred not on earth but in ...

755. Christmas 2

Jeremiah 30:1--31:40, Ephesians 1:1-14, Ephesians 1:15-23, John 1:1-18

Bulletin Aid

First Lesson: Jeremiah 31:7-14 Theme: Joy over God's salvation Call to Worship Pastor: Happy are those who have experienced Christ in Christmas! People: Happy indeed, for Christ has brought us back into fellowship with God! Pastor: Exiled by sin, restored by Christ: That is the good news Christmas proclaims.} People: The world will never be the same now that Christ has come. Praise God for our salvation! Collect O God of our salvation, you have dealt with our sin by sending your Son to be our Savior! How ...

756. Epiphany 7

Isaiah 49:8-26, 1 Corinthians 3:1-23, Matthew 5:27-30, Matthew 5:31-32, Matthew 5:33-37

Bulletin Aid

First Lesson: Isaiah 49:8-13 Theme: God does not forget his people Call to Worship Pastor: God has promised us that he will never leave us, or forget that he is our God. People: Even when we think God has deserted us, he is present to give us hope and encouragement. Pastor: God keeps his promises. It is up to us to believe and trust him. People: Our faith is strengthened as we put our trust in God. We know he will be faithful to us. Collect Gracious Father, whose faithfulness to your children never wavers ...

757. Epiphany 8

1 Corinthians 4:1-21, Matthew 5:43-48, Matthew 5:38-42, Leviticus 19:1-37

Bulletin Aid

First Lesson: Leviticus 19:1-2, 9-18 Theme: Love your neighbor as yourself Call to Worship Pastor: We are the children of God; and as his children we are to love one another. People: We deny God as our Father when we are unkind or unfair to each other. Pastor: Therefore we are commanded by God to love our neighbors as ourselves. People: May our attitude in society prove we are children of God. Collect Gracious Father, whose nature to love is a basic requirement for those who would be your children: Empty ...

758. Thursday in Holy Week

Exodus 12:1-30

Bulletin Aid

First Lesson: Exodus 12:1-14 Theme: Institution of the Passover Call to Worship Pastor: We share in this sacred feast to celebrate our Lord's redeeming love. People: We rejoice in our deliverance from sin granted by the blood of the Lamb. Pastor: We celebrate as Christians, because our Lord delivers us from sin, just as God delivered the Israelites from Egypt. People: God's deliverance finally brought them to the promised land. God is delivering us, too, to the promised life of redemption in Christ. Praise ...

759. Good Friday

Hebrews 4:14-5:10, John 19:17-27, Isaiah 52:13--53:12

Bulletin Aid

First Lesson: Isaiah 52:13--53:12 Theme: Fourth Servant Song: The redemptive Servant Call to Worship Pastor: The Son of God has died in our place. He lived without sin; but in his death, he bore the sins of all humanity. People: He was despised and rejected, the outcast of society. Yet his sacrifice atones for our sins. Pastor: Jesus' death gives us redemption because God sent him to save us from sin. And Jesus was faithful to that mission. People: Our hearts are heavy because of our Lord's suffering. But ...

760. Easter 3

Luke 24:13-35, Acts 2:14a, 36-41, 1 Peter 1:17-23

Bulletin Aid

First Lesson: Acts 2:14a, 36-41 Theme: Peter preaches repentance and baptism Call to Worship Pastor: If we were to be honest in our confessions, our sins would accuse us of being enemies of Christ. People: Sin has possessed us, but we long to be set free in order to love and serve our Lord. Pastor: The church continues to proclaim God's eternal truth: Repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus. People: We believe in Jesus; and are convinced he will forgive us, and enable us by the Holy Spirit to be ...

761. Ascension

Luke 24:46-53, Acts 1:1-11, Ephesians 1:15-23

Bulletin Aid

First Lesson: Acts 1:1-11 Theme: The ascension of Jesus Call to Worship Pastor: Jesus, whom God raised from the dead, was taken into heaven as his disciples watched. People: The ascension of Jesus was the crowning event in his ministry. Pastor: It was also the beginning of a new ministry for the church. The whole world became a mission field in which the church is sent to be witnesses of the risen Lord. People: God help us accept our mission, that we may prepare our world for our Lord's final triumph when ...

762. First Sunday After Pentecost

Deuteronomy 4:32-40, 2 Corinthians 13:1-10, 2 Corinthians 13:11-14, Matthew 28:16-20

Bulletin Aid

First Lesson: Deuteronomy 4:32-40 Theme: Remember what God has done Call to Worship Pastor: God reveals himself to us, that we may know he is with us. People: God redeems us from sin, that we may know he loves us. Pastor: God calls us to respond with faith and obedience, that he may know we trust him. People: We remember many wonderful experiences God has given us. We give ourselves in sincere devotion to his will. Collect Father in heaven, who created us in your image, and who redeems that image in us ...

763. Proper 9

Matthew 11:25-30, Romans 7:7-25, Exodus 1:1-22

Bulletin Aid

First Lesson: Exodus 1:6-14, 22--2:10 Theme: Divine providence Call to Worship Pastor: Praise be to God for his presence in our past, present, and future! People: We look where we have been, and we see God's hand; we see where we are, and we know God is here. Pastor: Tomorrow is yet to be revealed, but it too, is designed by God to fulfill his plan for us. People: Praise be to God for his presence in our past, present, and future. Collect God of all ages, as your story unfolds, life becomes an exciting ...

764. Proper 14 & Pentecost 12

1 Kings 19:9-18, Psalm 29:1-11, Psalm 106:1-48, Romans 9:1-29, Matthew 14:22-36, Exodus 13:17--14:31, Jonah 2:1-10, Psalm 85:1-13

Sermon Aid

THEOLOGICAL CLUE Little or no help is forthcoming from the church year as a theological clue for a worship/preaching theme for this Sunday. The title of the day - the Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost - is really the only reminder, suggesting how the church got to this point in the year and, for those in the "liturgical know," where we are going, Christ the King Sunday. On this "Pentecost pilgrimage," it is the business of the church to give thanks and to worship the Lord, to seek out the secrets of the ...

765. Epiphany 3

Jonah 3:1-10, 1 Corinthians 7:1-40, Mark 1:1-8, Mark 1:9-13, Mark 1:14-20

Bulletin Aid

Paul A. Laughlin

First Lesson: Jonah 3:1-5, 10 Theme: The universality of God’s mercy Exegetical note After some initial reluctance, and a legendary bout with the digestive system of a large fish, Jonah accedes to the will of God and delivers God’s word of warning to the Gentile city of Nineveh, which promptly repents and believes in God, who in turn mercifully forestalls the threatened judgment. The entire story shows that God’s mercy extends well beyond the boundaries of Israel. Call to Worship Leader: Give thanks, ...

766. Lent 1

Genesis 9:1-17, 1 Peter 3:8-22, Mark 1:9-13, Mark 1:14-20

Bulletin Aid

Paul A. Laughlin

First Lesson: Genesis 9:8-17 Theme: God’s first universal covenant Exegetical note: The covenant depicted in this priestly version of the flood story is unprecedented in the Old Testament with respect to its universal scope: it is made with "every living creature that is of all flesh upon the earth," which makes it to that extent a type for the New Covenant in Christ. (That aspect is more productive thematically than either the apparent overkill of the preceding flood, which presumably drowned some babies ...

767. Man's Plans and God's

Micah 2:1-5

Understanding Series

Elizabeth Achtemeier

“You Shall Not Covet” (2:1-3): The arrangement of Micah’s oracles continues to show a careful logic. In chapter 1, Micah has announced that Yahweh’s judgment, which will destroy Samaria, will reach also to the gate of Jerusalem (1:9). And he has portrayed the march of a foreign conqueror who captures the towns west of Jerusalem one by one and deports their populations (1:10–16). That conqueror too comes as Yahweh’s instrument of judgment against Jerusalem (v.12), and this oracle now shows why such judgment ...

768. Israel's Sin and the Servant's Obedience

Isaiah 50:1-11

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

Four Wake-up Calls and a Departure Call: In 50:4 the subject suddenly changes again—in two senses. The grammatical subject is once again a human “I” rather than a divine “I,” and the thematic subject is the pressure upon this human “I.” In both respects the passage parallels 49:1–6, and it will emerge that 50:4–52:12 forms a sequence parallel to 49:1–50:4, analogous to double sequences we have noted earlier in chapters 40–55. The arrangement of sections is not as tightly parallel as in earlier instances, ...

769. Samuel Rebukes Saul

1 Samuel 13:1-15

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

Saul’s Initial Problems: The relationship between chapters 10 and 11 and what is described in chapters 13 through 15 is obscure. First Samuel 13:8 appears to indicate that these events are related to Samuel’s call to Saul to meet him at Gilgal (10:8). But if this is seen as an imminent appointment, it is hard to connect it with the events in the second half of chapter 10, the battle and further ceremony described in chapter 11, or the military activity found in 13:1–7a. The problem is solved if there was a ...

770. The Parable of the Talents

Matthew 25:14-30

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

Parables of Judgment: Chapter 24 closed with a parable warning what will happen to servants who are unfaithful while the master is away. The same general theme continues throughout chapter 25. Like the foolish young women of verses 1–13, they will be excluded from the marriage feast; like the worthless servant who buries his talent, they will be thrown outside into the darkness (vv. 14–30); and like the “goats” who do not respond to the needy, they will suffer the fate of the devil and his angels (vv. 31– ...

771. Israel Without Weapons

1 Samuel 13:16-22

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

772. All Saints

Psalm 149:1-9, Ephesians 1:15-23, Ephesians 1:1-14, Luke 6:27-36, Luke 6:17-26, Daniel 7:1-14

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

COMMENTARY Old Testament: Daniel 7:1-3, 15-18 God is sovereign over the kingdoms of the world. As Revelation is the last book of the Bible, Daniel can qualify as the last book of the Old Testament because most biblical scholars say it is the last book to be written in the Old Testament, circa 165 B.C. It is, like Revelation, apocalyptic literature consisting of dreams and visions of the fall of world powers and the success of God's Kingdom. It was written at a time of persecution under Antiochus Epiphanes ...

773. Proper 7

1 Ki 19:1-18 · Lk 8:26-39 · Gal 3:23-29

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

COMMENTARY Old Testament: 1 Kings 19:1-4 (5-7), 8-15a Threatened by Jezebel, Elijah flees for his life and is fed by an angel on his way to Mount Horeb. To understand this pericope, we need to get the background in chapter 18. On Mount Carmel, Elijah calls down fire from heaven to prove that Yahweh is the only true God. This is followed by his slaughter of the 450 prophets of Baal supported by King Ahab and Queen Jezebel who sends a messenger to Elijah to tell him that within 24 hours she will have his ...

774. Epiphany 2

Jn 1:29-42 · 1 Cor 1:1-9 · Is 49:1-7 · Ps 27

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

COMMENTARY Old Testament: Isaiah 49:1-7 The prophet of second Isaiah shares his strong sense of being called by the Lord; he was set aside for his prophetic/servant role while he was still in his mother's womb. He was called to relay some painful truths and feels as if his efforts have met with futility, but then the Spirit of God gives him hope and strength for his mission of restoring the wounded and scattered sheep of the defeated flock of Israel. The Spirit gently chides him for his constricted view of ...

775. Epiphany 4

1 Corinthians 1:18--2:5, Micah 6:1-8, Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

COMMENTARY Old Testament: Micah 6:1-8 God brings his chosen people to a cosmic court where even the mountains and hills bear witness. The charge: the people had forgotten the Lord's mighty works of redemption and the wealth of past blessings. In verse three he puts them on the witness stand to make their case but they apparently have nothing to say. Therefore, God presents his case, detailing his acts of mercy and deliverance as he brought them out of Egypt and into the promised land. Though guilt is ...

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