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Showing 776 to 800 of 2561 results

776. Christmas Eve\Christmas Day

Luke 2:1-7, Isaiah 9:1-7, Psalm 96:1-13, Titus 2:1-15, Luke 2:8-20

Sermon Aid

Marion L. Soards, Thomas B. Dozeman, Kendall McCabe

OLD TESTAMENT TEXTS Many of the Advent themes reappear in the Christmas Eve lessons as present realities rather than as future hopes. Isaiah 9:2-9 picks up the imagery of the light of Zion that was hoped for in Isaiah 2:1-5 and turns it into a present time celebration, while Psalm 96 does the same thing with the royal theology of Isaiah 11:1-10. Taken together our Old Testament lessons describe the new reality that God ushers into our world. Isaiah 9:2-7 - "Seeing the Light" Setting. Isaiah 9:2-7 is a ...

777. Proper 23

Psalm 106:1-48, Philippians 4:2-9, Matthew 22:1-14, Exodus 32:1-33:6

Sermon Aid

Marion L. Soards, Thomas B. Dozeman, Kendall McCabe

OLD TESTAMENT TEXTS Exodus 32:1-14 is the story of the golden calf. Psalm 106:6-8, 19-23 is a historical summary that recounts this event in poetic terms. Exodus 32:1-14 - "The Power of Petition: Part 1" Setting. Last week we noted how the account of Israel at Mount Sinai actually lasted for 72 chapters in the Pentateuch (Exodus 19; Numbers 10) . Exodus 19-34 is frequently separated out as a distinct unit within the account of revelation at Mount Sinai, because it presents a self-contained story in three ...

778. The 3 Rs of a Holy Life

2 Corinthians 13:1-14

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

An old adage warns, “bad things always come in threes.” Have you found this true in your own experience? That bad things (and good things) like to happen in community, in bunches? You say: we invent this connection by suddenly realizing that we got a flat tire on the same day that a computer glitch devoured our hard drive, shortly after our last contact lens just slid down the drain. I say: there seems to be something significant about the power of three. Today the church celebrates the Triune God—Father, ...

779. Getting a Grip on Fear

Matthew 10:1-42

Sermon

King Duncan

Black Bart was a professional thief whose very name struck fear as he terrorized the Wells Fargo stage line. From San Francisco to New York, his name became synonymous with the danger of the frontier. Between 1875 and 1883 he robbed 29 different stagecoach crews. Amazingly, Bart did it all without firing a shot. Because a hood hid his face, no victim ever saw his face. He never took a hostage and was never trailed by a sheriff. Instead, Black Bart used fear to paralyze his victims. His sinister presence ...

780. Anyone Feeling Tired?

Matthew 11:25-30

Sermon

King Duncan

Our lesson for today contains a verse that many of us need to take to heart. Jesus says, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” Jesus is describing many of us. He knows our situation. Tired. Stressed out. Battling fatigue. Our nerves on edge. We’re like an old Peanuts comic strip. It shows Linus holding on to his familiar blanket. The caption reads, “Only one yard of flannel stands between me and a nervous breakdown.” Some of you know what Linus is talking about. A ...

781. There's God In Them There Hills

Psalm 19:1-14

Sermon

James Merritt

On September 27, 1998, Philip Ozersky went to a baseball game and saw his life changed forever. With one swing of a bat, and in two twinklings of the eye, he caught not just a baseball, but a gold mine. Now a lot of fans have caught home runs, but this was no ordinary home run. A lot of batters have hit home runs, but this was no ordinary batter. On that day, Mark McGuire came to the plate and hit his record-breaking seventieth home run. The ball was launched over Ozersky's head, hit a wall and bounced ...

782. Whatever It Takes

1 Corinthians 9:19-23

Sermon

James Merritt

A tourist was vacationing on the Island of Malta, a Mediterranean island which is hot every day of the year, and very sunny. He was appalled by the chaotic traffic; cars and buses were darting every which way with no apparent order whatsoever. The tourist asked a policeman why the traffic was so disorderly, and the policeman said, "Well, in some countries they drive on the right side of the road; in other countries they drive on the left side of the road; here we drive in the shade. This world is full of ...

783. A Life to Die For

Acts 6:8-15; Acts 7:54-8:1

Sermon

John E. Harnish

October 31…Halloween. It seems to get bigger every year. On my street, there are more decorations, more lights, more pumpkins, more ghosts and goblins. November 1, on the other hand, passed with little notice. For John Wesley, it was just the opposite. It was his favorite holiday. Reading his journals, you can pass December 25 with hardly a word about Christmas, and you can comb through his entries from February to June any year and hardly determine Ash Wednesday or Good Friday. But on November 1, Wesley ...

784. Out of Solitude

Luke 4:1-13

Sermon

John E. Harnish

"HELP!!! I'VE LOST MY FOCUS!" That's the title of an article in the January Time Magazine with the subtitle: "E-mail and cell phones help us multitask, but they also drive us to distraction." The authors begin: "Spend a few hours with Hollywood producer Jennifer Klein and you might want to pop a valium. Or slip her one. From the moment she rises at 7:00 a.m., she's a fidgety, demanding, chattering whirling dervish of a task juggler. Motto: never do just two things at once if you can possibly do four or ...

785. Worship Like A Wesley

Philippians 4:4-9

Sermon

John E. Harnish

Charles Wesley had returned from the Georgia Colony in complete despair, just like his brother, John—struggling, doubting, longing for a new relationship with God. Then on May 21, 1738, the day he would call his "conversion day," he discovered the amazing gift of God's love in Christ made known for him. He opened his scriptures to Psalm 43 and read: "God hath put a new song in my mouth." He picked up a pen and never put it down. By the time of his death, he had written no fewer than 8,989 poems, including ...

786. CSI: Jerusalem

Luke 24:36-48

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

Judy Meyers, of Johnston, Rhode Island writes that she always enjoys asking her children what they learned in their Sunday School class. When her oldest daughter was five years old, she came up to Mom after an Easter Sunday service and Mom began to quiz her. The little girl was excited and willing to tell Mom the whole story in great detail. She told of the death of Jesus on the cross and how he was buried in a tomb. Later an angel came and looked in the tomb and asked Jesus what He wanted. In the little ...

787. Design for Discipleship

Acts 2:14-41

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

Dr. John Foster tells how an inquirer from Hinduism came to an Indian bishop. All alone, and unaided by any Christian teacher, this Indian had read the New Testament, the story had fascinated him. In the way that is always true, Christ had laid his spell upon him. “As he read on…and felt he had entered into a new world.” In the gospels, it was Jesus, his words and his suffering. In the book of Acts…what the disciples did and thought and taught had taken the place in the world that Christ had occupied. The ...

788. Freedom and Slavery

Romans 6:15-23

Sermon

Steven E. Albertin

Freedom is the defining value of American culture. The Declaration of Independence was signed on July 4, 1776, and the Revolutionary War was fought against England for the sake of freedom. The bloodiest and costliest war in our nation's history, the Civil War, was fought largely for the sake of the freedom of slaves. Our modern society has seen a proliferation of "rights" and, if you violate one of them, you will probably get sued. This is the land where you dare not violate anyone's "First Amendment ...

789. Handling Freedom

Exodus 20:1-17

Sermon

David E. Leininger

Have you seen those billboards that have popped up next to major thoroughfares that say things like, "If you keep taking my name in vain, I'll make rush hour longer," or "What part of ‘Thou shalt not' don't you understand?" and signed simply, "God"? It is interesting stuff. No doubt you are familiar with the political controversies concerning public displays of the Decalogue on government property. Most folks just shake their heads at the hoopla — they say that the commandments are certainly still valid ...

790. Disintegration and Reintegration

Mark 14:1-15:47

Sermon

John Smylie

Today's reading is the longest assigned reading that we have the entire year. Many churches break the reading up into several parts, assigning individuals and groups to particular lines and sections. Perhaps we do this so we can keep the interest of the listener. Perhaps we do this so we can engage the drama of the reading. It seems to me the reason we have such a long reading today is because we have come to the heart and center of our faith. We need to hear the whole story. We need to be reminded not in ...

791. Rich Man, Poor Man

James 2:1-13

Sermon

King Duncan

It is said that in Hollywood there is an exclusive school attended by children of movie stars, producers and directors. One day a teacher in that school asked her very privileged pupils to write a composition on the subject of poverty. One little girl started her literary piece like this: “Once there was a poor little girl. Her father was poor, her mother was poor, her nanny was poor, her chauffer was poor, her butler was poor. In fact, everybody in the house was very, very poor.” I don’t think that little ...

792. Supernatural: Taken By Storm

Mark 4:35-41

Sermon

James Merritt

One of the most life changing things you can ever do as a believer is to go on a mission trip. Not only do you get to share Jesus with people who are hungry for the gospel, see lives transformed by the power of Christ, you also get to see and experience a lot of things you wouldn’t otherwise. But, there is only one country in the world that I encourage everyone to visit whose very geographical landscape can change your life and that is the land of Israel. To know that you are walking where Jesus walked, to ...

793. Can One Become Two?

Matthew 19:1-12

Sermon

James Merritt

A couple in Sweetwater Texas had a lot of potted plants, and while watching TV the weatherman predicted a cold front coming through. The husband suggests that they bring in the potted plants. The wife goes outside to bring them indoors to protect them from freezing. It turned out that a little garden grass snake was hidden in one of the plants and after it got warm, it crawled out on the floor. The wife saw it just as it went under the couch and she begins screaming hysterically. Her husband who had gotten ...

794. Submission to Rulers and Masters

1 Peter 2:13-25

Understanding Series

Norman Hillyer

Respect for Authority 2:13 What living the Christian life entails is now spelled out in some practical detail. Peter applies the admonition Submit yourselves to a series of relationships: to civil government (vv. 13–17), to slavery (vv. 18–20), to Christ himself (vv. 21–25), and to marriage (3:1–7). The relationship of Christians to the state was one which soon became problematic, for in the early centuries of the church all states not only were governed by pagans but included pagan worship within their ...

795. The Risen Jesus Revealed

Luke 24:13-35

Teach the Text

R.T. France

Big Idea: Luke’s first record of an appearance by the risen Jesus is to two otherwise unknown disciples outside Jerusalem who do not recognize him until he breaks bread with them. Understanding the Text Following the discovery of the empty tomb, Luke’s Gospel records only two occasions (and hints at another one [24:34]) when the risen Jesus appeared to his disciples, both on the evening of Easter day itself, and chapter 24 taken alone would suggest that Jesus’s ascension followed immediately that same ...

796. Freedom from the Law through Christ, Enslavement to the Law through Adam

Romans 7:7-25, Romans 7:1-6

Teach the Text

C. Marvin Pate

Big Idea: Paul focuses on the Mosaic law’s relationship to new dominion in Christ. A stark contrast emerges: freedom from the law because of union with Christ versus enslavement to the law because of union with Adam. This relationship is paradoxical: union with Christ and with Adam both pertain to the Christian (7:13–25 will expound on this). Understanding the Text Romans 6:23 pronounces that the Christian is in union with Christ and therefore free from the law. This is illustrated in 7:1–6. But things are ...

797. Marriage, Sexual Intimacy, and Spiritual Devotion

1 Corinthians 7:1-40

Teach the Text

Preben Vang

Big Idea: Husbands and wives must protect each other from sexual temptation and recognize their obligation to take care of each other’s sexual needs. They are co-owners of each other’s bodies. Understanding the Text Although Paul’s discussion on sexual immorality in chapter 6 makes the transition to his discussion on sexual obligations in marriage smooth, chapter 7 introduces a new section that continues through 11:1. After his extended discussion of the Corinthian Christ followers’ troublesome allegiance ...

798. Worship and Humility

1 Corinthians 11:17-34

Teach the Text

Preben Vang

Big Idea: Christian worship must happen in an atmosphere of humility and self-giving. Self-promoting pride desecrates Christ and brings devastation to his community. Understanding the Text The danger of an amalgamation between pagan and Christian worship loomed in the Corinthian setting. After pointing out how clothing (veiling) blurred what should have been a clear distinction between pagan and Christian worship practices (11:2–16), Paul now turns to the issue of the Lord’s Supper itself. The very rooms ...

799. “In Your Heart You Devise Injustice”

Psalm 58:1-11

Teach the Text

C. Hassell Bullock

Big Idea: As one thinks in one’s heart, so one does, and that explains many of the tragedies of history. Understanding the Text Psalm 58 is usually identified as a community lament, although Gerstenberger is probably more accurate when he says it is “neither complaint nor thanksgiving nor hymn” but closer to the prophetic invective against the ruling classes.1 Except for the historical note in the title of Psalm 57, the terms of the title of Psalm 58 are the same. Further, the two psalms share the metaphor ...

800. Widows and Their Worries: Back to Bethlehem

Ruth 1:1-22

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

Setting: Famine and Family Tragedy (1:1–5) · The grim opening of this story grips the reader on three counts. First, it is neither a prosperous nor a fruitful time in the nation’s life (1:1). Second, and not unrelated, the people of Israel face famine (1:1). The fact that a famine prevails in Bethlehem, in Judah’s “house of bread,” together with the religious crisis dominating the landscape indicates an unpleasant visitation by the Lord on the land. The Lord promised famine as one among many of his acts of ...

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