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 776 to 800 of 885 results

776. The Faith of the Canaanite Woman

Matthew 15:29-39

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

Matthew provides another summary of Jesus’s compassionate healing ministry at 15:29–31 (cf. earlier summaries at 12:15–21; 14:13–14; 14:34–36). The crowds respond with amazement, praising “the God of Israel” (a commonplace Old Testament phrase; e.g., Judg. 5:3). Matthew narrates next the feeding of the four thousand (15:32– ...

777. The Parable of the Unmerciful Servant

Matthew 18:21-35

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... –15). Jesus’s call to his messianic community is to live out a reversal of escalating vengeance through unlimited forgiveness. To illustrate, Jesus tells a parable of a servant who is released from an astronomical debt of ten thousand talents by a compassionate king (with a talent being roughly equivalent to six thousand denarii) only to refuse release of a debt of one hundred denarii for a fellow servant (with a denarius representing about a day’s wage). The king’s reversal of debt forgiveness and ...

778. Apostles of Christ

1 Corinthians 4:1-21

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... have stung the Corinthians’ pride. But in spite of this, Paul’s intention is not to exalt himself or humiliate them. Rather, as one who “in Christ Jesus . . . became your father through the gospel” (4:15), he has written in a fatherly act of compassionate correction to warn them of the dangers inherent in their self-centered attitudes and to urge them, as his children, to grow out of their immaturity by imitating their father. In order that they might learn to imitate in the way their father intends ...

779. Jesus Made Like His Brothers

Hebrews 2:5-18

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... 2:11; 10:10, 14, 29). What makes Christ one with the beneficiaries of his sacrifice is not that they have the same Father (both being sons of God) but that they share a common humanity. “Is not ashamed” (2:11) is an affirmation of the compassionate identification of Christ with his unworthy people, which led him to empty himself. It closely approximates Paul’s statement in Philippians 2:6–8. Three citations are now offered to demonstrate the Son’s solidarity with the people of God (2:12–13). The ...

780. You Are a Child of God…Uh-Oh

Matthew 3:13-17

Sermon

King Duncan

... John as hard on sin and Jesus as soft on the same subject. Everyone associates John with the need for repentance; few of us associate Jesus with the same word. Check the Gospels. Jesus’ teachings were as uncompromising as John’s. Jesus was compassionate with sinners, but not with sin. Jesus, having the heart of the Father, understood in a way John could not just why sin must be rooted out of our lives. Sin destroys. It destroys individuals. It destroys marriages. It destroys churches. It destroys ...

781. The Biggest Prayer Ever Prayed Under Heaven

John 17:1-11

Sermon

Robert Leslie Holmes

Come with me to Christ's last night on earth and the greatest prayer ever prayed under heaven! It is also the longest prayer we have from Jesus. As we read the gospel of John, we see Jesus' grace demonstrated in saving sinners. We see his compassionate heart as he brings healing to sick people and food to the hungry. We meet his power revealed in raising the dead. There is no more heartening book in all scripture than this gospel. Every chapter is given for our benefit. In this book we find the love of God ...

782. Called to Bigness

Isaiah 58:1-12, Matthew 5:13-20

Sermon

James L. Killen

... of masculine camaraderie and had a good time doing what they did. The impact of their work made a meaningful witness to the love of God, both to those who benefited from it and to those who saw it. In that same church, there were some compassionate people who took a fifty-hour training course and made themselves available to help with the church's caring ministry to people who were going through grief and other personal crises. There is another group of men who venture beyond their comfort zones to go into ...

783. The Beatitudes

Matthew 5:1-12

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

... religions) once observed that we can never get enough of what we really do not want. We were created for God and nothing short of his presence satisfies. 5:7–8 The fifth beatitude describes the follower of Christ as merciful and compassionate. Behind the Greek word is the rich Hebrew term ḥesed, “loving-kindness” (Coverdale’s translation used regularly in the RV), or “steadfast love” (RSV). To be merciful means to maintain the fidelity of a covenant relationship. It is not a surge of emotion ...

784. Why Are Christians So Judgmental?

Matthew 6:2, 5, 16, Matthew 23:1-39

Sermon

Charley Reeb

... didn’t want to answer all the questions from others and was just going through a difficult time. This man worked with a judgmental Christian co-worker who observed what was going on in his life. She started hounding him to attend her church. She wasn’t really compassionate or empathetic to his struggles. She just wanted to be sure he got saved and didn’t go to hell. Truthfully, she was obnoxious, but he did his best to be nice to her. Finally she wore him down. One day she asked, “Don’t you want ...

785. Hallelujah! Come On, Get Happy

Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon

David G. Rogne

... Happy are those who mourn." It seems unlikely to us that happiness and mourning go together. Certainly we would not expect one who is mourning a loss to feel happy, but mourning touches the deepest that is within us and helps us to identify with others, to be compassionate. In The Human Comedy (New York: Harcourt Brace and Company, 1966), William Saroyan wrote: "Unless a man has pity he is inhuman and not yet truly a man, for out of pity comes the balm which heals. Only good men weep. If a man has not yet ...

786. A Dead Girl and A Sick Woman

Mark 5:21-43

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

... the two incidents is the number twelve. The woman has a twelve-year ailment (v. 25) and the girl is twelve years old (v. 42). The point of linking these two stories includes the “double-barreled” impact they have in showing the compassionate power of Jesus. Perhaps especially in ancient settings, where women were regarded as less important than men, Jesus’ interest in the welfare of these two needy women must be seen as very significant. Like the (probably gentile) demoniac in the previous passage ...

787. Peace and Joy

Romans 5:1-11

Understanding Series

James R. Edwards

... . 5). The original Greek reads “in our hearts” (not into our hearts), implying that the Holy Spirit is already active in the hearts of believers. God is not a big brother dispensing miserly increments of goodwill to his minions. God is a compassionate Father who literally pours out his love within us. The Greek word for poured out, ekchein, suggests a lavishness on God’s part, reminiscent, perhaps, of the occasional torrential rains in arid eastern regions. The verb is in the perfect tense, indicating ...

788. Living Sacrifices

Romans 12:1-8

Understanding Series

James R. Edwards

... as living sacrifices (v. 1). This sacrifice is holy and pleasing to God and our spiritual … worship. If “God is for us” (8:31) then God is free from the charge of being arbitrary or even vindictive. We may be assured that, as our compassionate and merciful Father, God has our eternal good ever before him. The finality of Paul’s appeal, therefore, rests entirely in God’s mercy. The imagery here—offer, holy, pleasing, sacrifice—stems from animal sacrifice in Israel. The gift which was brought to ...

789. Job's Second Reply to Bildad

Job 19:1-29

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

... his friends’ compassion (have pity . . . have pity). The Hebrew makes clear the tension between friendship and compassion when Job ironically says, literally: “Be gracious to me, be gracious to me. You are my friends [after all]” (emphasis added). Friendship entails compassionately taking the part of the suffering comrade and supporting him sympathetically in his trials. The friends of Job have steadfastly failed to do this. In their rush to judgment in order to shore up the shaky foundations of their ...

790. Eliphaz's Third Speech to Job

Job 22:1-30

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

... act of stripping is an extreme form of taking a pledge to secure a loan. Job is described as being so concerned to secure his investment that he takes the very clothes off the debtor’s back to provide security. Exodus 22:25–27 exhorts Israel to compassionate lending to those in need. Usury (the charging of interest) is prohibited among fellow Israelites. A person’s cloak may be taken as a pledge to secure a loan, but it must be returned to the debtor every evening by sunset so that he may wrap himself ...

791.

Psalm 77:1-20

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

... most haunting about them is that they probe the ultimate and final cessation of all that is good in God (forever, never . . . again, forever, for all time). The attributes mentioned are those confessed repeatedly in the OT to be central to Yahweh’s character: “the LORD, the compassionate and gracious (= merciful in Ps. 77:9) God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness” (Exod. 34:6; cf. Num. 14:18; Neh. 9:17; Joel 2:13; Jonah 4:2; Pss. 86:15; 103:8; 111:4; 145:8). 77:10–20 Then I thought ...

792. A Servant Appeals to His Lord for Protection

Psalm 86:1-17

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

... its desired effect. The fourth motif on which the psalm is founded is that of historical precedents. As noted above, the psalm quotes confessions well rooted in Israel’s historical experience of Yahweh, especially from the exodus period. As Yahweh has been compassionate and gracious and abounding in love in the past, so he should do in the present. The fifth motif is related to the fourth. The psalm incorporates individual experience with corporate experience. As the nation has received God’s mercy, so ...

793. The Divine King and His Universal Kingdom

Psalm 145:1-21

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

... is a testimony (as evident from the citation of Exod. 34:6), is open to all. His kingdom has no boundaries: “all flesh” is to “bless his holy name” (v. 21). This is a theme Jesus and the NT writers develop over and over. Additional Note 145:8 Gracious and compassionate: As in Ps. 111:4, these terms are reversed from their original order in Exod. 34:6 for the sake of the acrostic. And “great of love” appears instead of “abundant of love” to echo the terms “great” used in vv. 3 and 6.

794. The Sheep and the Goats

Matthew 25:31-46

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

... in such straits and would not help. The answer is that when they refused help to the least important of Christ’s followers they refused help to Christ. Their judgment rests not on acts of wickedness but on their failure to respond compassionately when faced with human despair. Their destiny is eternal punishment, whereas that of the upright is eternal life. Although aiōnios (eternal) is primarily a qualitative word, its temporal aspect should not be overlooked. Verse 46 offers little support for those ...

795. Daniel in the Den of Lions

Daniel 6:1-28

Understanding Series

William Nelson

... retribution. If so, it does not mean that readers today must agree; it is appropriate to be outraged at the slaughter of the innocents. Some Christians would go even further to argue that in the light of Jesus Christ, we should have a more sympathetic and compassionate attitude toward the enemies (Matt. 5:44–45; Luke 6:27–28, 35–36). While this is true, even the NT supports the notions of justice and retribution. We should not take justice into our own hands to seek vengeance on others, but we should ...

796. Daniel’s Prayer

Daniel 9:1-19

Understanding Series

William Nelson

... that our righteousness exceed that of the scribes and the Pharisees (Matt. 5:20). When Daniel confesses his sin and the sin of his people Israel (Dan. 9:20; cf. vv. 15, 16), he expects that although they deserve judgment, God will forgive (9:19) because he is compassionate. The prayer manifests a special interest in Jerusalem (9:7, 12, 16 [twice]), God’s city (9:16, 18, 19) and holy hill (9:16), and also for the people (9:16, 19), who have become an object of scorn to their neighbors (9:16). Both the city ...

797. Faith and Deeds

James 2:14-26, James 2:1-13

Understanding Series

Peter H. Davids

... mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. God is merciful, as any reader of the Old Testament should know. Exodus 34:5–6 states that when God revealed to Moses his nature and pronounced his name he described himself as “the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness” (cf. Deut. 4:31; Ps. 103:8–14, which connects this to his judging “in favor of the oppressed”). If this is God’s personal standard of righteousness, then it follows that his ...

798. Hagar and Ishmael Sent Away

Genesis 21:8-21

Understanding Series

John E. Hartley

... the heir of the great Abrahamic promises. In addition, God promised to make Hagar’s son into a nation, for he was Abraham’s offspring (seed). 21:14–21 Early the next morning Abraham acted on Sarah’s demand in light of God’s instructions. Compassionately he took some food and a skin of water and gave them to Hagar. Then, entrusting the boy to her, Abraham sent them off. Hagar wandered about in the desert of Beersheba, apparently lacking direction. After the water in the skin had been consumed, she ...

799. Moses Returns to Egypt

Exodus 4:18-31

Understanding Series

James K. Bruckner

... “toughen” or “strengthen” (khazaq). The hardening of Pharaoh’s heart is sometimes a red herring for interpreters. Pharaoh’s heart was already “hard” enough—he had harshly enslaved a whole people. The theological problem is not that Pharaoh was compassionate and the Lord made him “hard.” The more difficult issues arise from the fact that the hardening prolongs the enslavement of the children of Israel and eventually requires that the Lord kill the firstborn of Egypt. These verses also ...

800. Idolatry Forbidden

Deuteronomy 4:15-31

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... it by God’s own forgiving grace and unswerving commitment to the ancestral promise and oath. God would not forget God’s word. And since that same event, Israel had known that remarkable statement of divine self-identity: “The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness . . . ” (Exod. 34:6). The basis of their future hope, then, was the definitive character of God; the LORD your God is a merciful God (v. 31). But the condition of their finding ...

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