Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 751 to 775 of 813 results

1 Corinthians 11:23-26

Sermon

King Duncan

... a poverty-stricken home to the glory of a royal throne. When he became king he sent his servants to the old shack where he was reared with orders to gather every relic of those days. The returning soldiers brought fragments of his home; many broken toys, his patched pantaloons, an old torn and tattered shirt, a crude wooden bowl from which he ate, and numerous worthless mementoes of his childhood. All these the king arranged in a special room of his palace, and each day he spent one whole hour sitting among ...

752. One Heaven of a Party

Deuteronomy 26:1-11

Sermon

Charley Reeb

... people are converted to it daily. Since childhood, the words, “That’s mine, not yours,” have shot from our mouths in one form or another. Ownership and possession seem to be what everyone is selling their souls for these days. “The one with the most toys wins.” Is this not right? But there is a price to be paid when living a life governed by having and not giving. And the price is having an unbearable itch that is never scratched. The price is realizing that all our possessions will never bring ...

753. The Invitation

Isaiah 55:1-9

Sermon

Charley Reeb

... trying to kid? Men in fancy garments doing yard work with not a drop of sweat on them and huge smiles on their faces, as if wearing that jacket makes you euphoric over yard work. Then there are the catalogs advertising all those cutting-edge gadgets and toys which are so essential to our existence on earth. For instance, I saw one catalog advertising a gizmo that will put “Caller ID” on your television screen so that you don’t have to strain yourself getting out of the recliner to see who is calling ...

754. Nothing Is Impossible with God!

Luke 1:26-38

Sermon

Charley Reeb

... would. God does not bless us because of our ability; God blesses us because of our availability. We see this confirmed through-out the Bible. Have you ever taken a look at the people God uses? Most of them belong on the island of the “Lost and Misfit Toys” yet God did powerful things through all of them simply because they were available. Are you available? God blesses and uses us to the fullest when we say, “Lord, I make myself available to you. Use me however you want to use me. Do your will in my ...

755. Unstoppable Love

Mark 1:40-45

Sermon

Charley Reeb

... stay young and do everything you can to impress others.” It is amazing to me how many folks will continue to look for love in all the wrong places. As a minister I have a front row seat to people’s lives and I have never seen a job, a toy, a house, or a romance bring the kind of joy, healing, and power that comes through a relationship with Jesus Christ. I have never had anyone come back to me and say, “I tried a relationship with Jesus and it just does not do it for me.” But I have ...

756. Death, Risk, and Confidence

Matthew 10:24-39

Sermon

Tom Garrison

... instruments, and I had real trouble mediating any real comfort to this person, for you see, all her life she had been pampered and protected and shielded from risk. She had come from a wealthy family and had a husband who treated her more like a doll or a toy than a sturdy human being, and as a result she was totally unprepared for the great venture in trust that is the essence of dying. The more we avoid risk and venture in the days of our living, the less prepared we are to face death with confidence. It ...

757. Eliphaz

Job 4:1-5:27

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

... frailty is simply an explanation of the experience of divine punishment—and thus a means of justifying God (theodicy). 4:20–21 The dream report concludes with several additional images of human frailty. Humans are quickly broken to pieces (like a defective toy that expires on the day it is received). Particularly poignant is the description of humans as unnoticed with the result that they perish forever. The sense seems to be that no one really sees the destruction, although the masculine singular form ...

758. Elihu

Job 32:1--37:24

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

... the only possible choice would be the marvelous comedic actor John Cleese in his Basil Fawlty incarnation, spouting his righteous indignation with an exaggerated posh accent and rolling eyes.) I am about to open my mouth. Surely the author of this material is toying humorously with the reader. Clearly Elihu’s “mouth” has been “open” for some time now. The Hebrew for my words are on the tip of my tongue says, literally, “my tongue speaks in my palate.” This refers perhaps to shaping words in ...

759. The Plague of Flies

Exodus 8:20-32

Understanding Series

James K. Bruckner

... the desert to offer sacrifices” (5:3). After Pharaoh increased the workload and oppression, Moses repeatedly stated the Lord’s message more directly: “Let my people go, that they might worship/serve me in the wilderness” (7:16; 8:1, 20). Pharaoh was toying with words when he said “offer sacrifices” instead of “worship/serve.” God’s own repeated request in the midst of each plague was that the people worship or “serve” the Lord, rather than “serving” Pharaoh (7:16; 8:1, 20; 9:1, 13 ...

760. Can a Christian Brag?

Ephesians 2:1-10

Children's Sermon

King Duncan

... . That's the only way that you can win a game of basketball. You know, some people think that obeying God is like a game of basketball. They think that every time they do a good deed, they get a point. Every time they clean their room, or share their toys, or give some of their allowance to the church, they get a point with God. And the more points they get, the more God loves them. But that's not how God works. We can't earn points with God. God says, "I love you no matter what. You don ...

761. How to Have a Rich Future

Mark 13:24-37

Sermon

King Duncan

... asked the usual question: “And what would you like for Christmas?” The child stared at him open-mouthed, horrified. Then he gasped, “Didn’t you get my Snapchat?” Well, let’s hope Santa consults his Snapchat account while he is deciding which toys he will be bringing this Christmas. We adults hopefully will be awaiting the celebration of God’s greatest gift to humanity--the gift of God’s Son. The next few weeks will be a time of exhausting activity--buying presents, attending parties, mailing ...

762. Getting It Right in the Coming Year

Galatians 4:4-7

Sermon

King Duncan

... was engrossed with the old gentleman’s story. “See Tom, this thought hit me when I was 56 years, meaning I had spent 2,912 Saturdays with 1,000 left if I am lucky enough to live to 75.” “One day, I dressed up and headed over to a toy store where I bought 1000 marbles and placed them in a transparent container. Ever since then, I have been taking away one marble every Saturday. As the marbles diminished, I got to see how short life is, and was forced to get my priorities right. Watching these marbles ...

763. Some Things I've Learned Since I Knew It All

Mark 4:26-34

Sermon

Ron Lavin

... spiritual growth and fulfillment. Adam thought that bigger is always better, so he tried to get more and more things of the world. On the back of his big, beautiful motor home he placed a bumper sticker that read: "At the end, the one with the most toys wins." On the back bumper of one of his big, beautiful sport cars he had another bumper sticker: "Number one drives here." Adam's father warned him that he was flirting with disaster, but he paid no attention. His dad had frequently said, "Unless that which ...

764. Hope for People Who Are Angry

Ephesians 4:30-5:2

Sermon

King Duncan

... pretty dumb things, don’t we? You may have heard about the man who spent 3‑1/2 hours enduring the long lines, surly clerks and insane regulations at the Department of Motor Vehicles. On his way home he remembered he needed to stop at a toy store to pick up a gift for his son. He brought his selection, a baseball bat, to the cash register. “Cash or charge?” the clerk asked. “Cash,” the man snapped. Then apologizing for his rudeness, he explained, “I’ve spent the afternoon at the motor-vehicle ...

765. A Difficult but Joyous Journey

Luke 1:39-55

Sermon

King Duncan

... , and then went on. The father and son never got the names of their two ministering angels. In a week’s time the truck was repaired and the boy’s injury healed. On Christmas Eve, the pastor asked this same man if he would deliver a basket of food and toys to the needy family he had set out to bring the tree to earlier on. He was glad to. They loaded up the truck and drove to the address they were given and rang the doorbell. Who should answer the door but the humble couple who had stopped to help ...

766. A Word to Busy Parents

Luke 2:41-52

Sermon

King Duncan

... valuable ways to interact with your child. Periodically get down on the floor and play with your child. As you do, show by example how to play, how to share, how to interact, how to cooperate or compete in a friendly manner, and how to put away toys or organize a play space. What you do, your child will do!” (4) Good families are always there for each other. And good parents take time to be sensitive to their children’s needs. Many of you remember what it was like to have small children. You mothers ...

767. Folly and Pleasure

Illustration

Benjamin Franklin

When I was a child of seven years old, my friends, on a holiday, filled my pockets with coppers. I went directly to a shop where they sold toys for children, and, being charmed with the sound of a whistle that I met by the way in the hands of another boy, I voluntarily offered and gave all my money for one. I then came home and went whistling all over the house, much pleased with my whistle, but ...

768. Empty or Full

Illustration

Editor James S. Hewett

I gave them to Him, All the things I'd valued so Until I stood there empty-handed. Every glittering toy did go. And I walked earth's lonely highways In my rags and poverty; Till I heard His voice entreating, "Lift your empty hands to Me." Empty hands I lifted to Him, And He filled them with a store Of His own transcendent riches Till my hands could hold no more. And at last I comprehended, With my mind so slow and dull, That God could not pour His riches Into hands already full.

769. About Unclaimed Luggage

Luke 15:1-7, Luke 15:8-10, Luke 15:11-32

Sermon

King Duncan

... been said, the church is not so much a refuge for saints as much as it is a hospital for sinners. Or maybe we have distanced ourselves from God because it is too much bother to fit God into our busy lives. We’ve found what we need in the toys and gadgets of the secular world. We’re here in worship because this is where we have established ties with people who mean much to us, not because we have a fresh and lively relationship with God. The idea that God really could be the kind of personal, living ...

770. The Case Against Consumerism

Illustration

Mike Magee

... and one piece of scrawny chicken leg or wing every day, one meal a day. And contaminated water from an open pond shared with animals. How do they cook their food? Over an open fire. They do not have game boys or cell phones. They have toys made out of sticks and stones. Can you imagine no television or internet? Transportation? All they have is their two feet. Work? There is none except raising corn for their families, and maintaining their thatch roof huts. Money, bank accounts, and credit cards? They have ...

771. Surprised by Joy

Luke 2:8-14

Sermon

Dean Feldmeyer

... commodity that is sold in television commercials. Buy this and you’ll be happy. Buy her this and she’ll be happy. We have, we are told, the ability to make other people happy by the things we give them and the things we do for them. This ring, that toy, this car, that gift card. These are the things of happiness. And no one is saying they aren’t. I have things and there are other things that I would like to have and, I won’t lie, I would be happy to get them. I even wrote a list ...

772. Playpen Pleading

Illustration

King Duncan

... a hug, Davy,” said the grandfather. And with that, the old man reached out to his grandson and scooped him up out of the playpen, snuggling the boy in his strong arms. After a big hug, the grandfather set the boy down outside the playpen, among his toys, and they began to play together. Minutes later, the boy’s mother walked into the room. “Davy!” she said sternly. “You know I put you in the playpen because you’ve been naughty! You shouldn’t have told Grampa to take you out!” Davy’s eyes ...

773. Whose Hands?

John 6:1-15

Illustration

Source Unknown

... ’s worth 100s of millions. It depends whose hands it’s in. A rod in my hands will keep away a wild animal. A rod in Moses’ hands will part the mighty sea. It depends whose hands it’s in. A sling shot in my hands is a kid’s toy. A sling shot in David’s hand is a mighty weapon. It depends whose hands it’s in. Two fish and 5 loaves of bread in my hands is a couple of fish sandwiches. Two fish and 5 loaves of bread in God’s hands will feed thousands. It depends ...

774. Jesus Destroys the Power of Sin

Mark 2:1-12

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... had been wrecked in that place. "I tried to find all the pieces and put them together, but it was not possible, so I kept only the largest piece. This one. And by scratching it on a stone I made it round. I began to play with it as a toy and became fascinated by the fact that I could reflect light into dark places where the sun would never shine ‑‑ in deep holes and crevices and dark closets. It became a game for me to get light into the most inaccessible places I could find. "I kept the little mirror ...

775. What's Worth More?

Matthew 13:44-46

Children's Sermon

Brett Blair

... pearl of great price. After you go through the items discuss that the teachings of the Bible are of greater value than all the money in the world because it tells us how to live our lives. Discuss with them that issues of honesty and kindness are more important than toys, games, and money.

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