Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: Levi, disciple, evangelist, tax collector, the 12, the twelve, apostle, sermon on the mount, jewish audience, beatitudes, lord's prayer, great commission, parables, olivet discourse, mount of olives, olivet, synoptic

Showing 801 to 825 of 4968 results

801. Acts 2:1-21

Acts 2:1-21

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... for being impressed with how powerful the Holy Spirit once seemed in the life of the church, how strong the witness of the new church once appeared. But in Acts, Luke's version of the Holy Spirit's dramatic descent into the midst of the disciples was not intended as some vain vaunting of the church's erstwhile power or importance. In actuality, details of the Holy Spirit's arrival however impressive constitute the smallest part of today's lectionary reading. Luke is far less concerned with the Holy Spirit's ...

802. Easter Day

Isaiah 25:1-12, Mark 16:1-20, 1 Corinthians 15:12-34, 1 Corinthians 15:1-11, John 20:1-9

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... tomb" v. 8. b. Fear the women were "afraid" v. 8. c. Frozen the women "said nothing to anyone" v. 8. 3. A personal invitation to the resurrection (16:7). Need: It is unique in Mark's account of Easter that only he mentions Peter by name "tell his disciples and Peter." Easter is associated with crowds overflowing churches. The individual may get lost in the mass. In this huge crowd of people the risen Jesus asks for you as he asked for Peter. Why would he do this ask for you by name to come to him? Outline ...

803. Explore the Evidence

Acts 1:1-3

Sermon

James Merritt

... to offer. They were the "special forces" if you will. Sixteen well trained and highly disciplined men each carrying a 6 foot spear, a 3 foot sword, a dagger on one side and a shield on the other side. It is a far stretch to think that these disciples, who just three days earlier with yellow streaks down their backs a mile wide, ran from Jesus like cowards, would now come back and attempt to overpower these Roman guards to take the body of Jesus. Beyond the soldiers, there was the stone. A stone was rolled ...

804. No Doubt about It

John 20:24-29

Sermon

James Merritt

... my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.'" (John 20:25, NASB) This was not the first time that Thomas had communicated his doubt. In Chapter 14 of John, Jesus talked about heaven for the first time to His disciples. He gave those famous words that read like this, "Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father's house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for ...

805. Why Must We Carry a Cross? - Sermon Starter

Mark 8:27-38

Illustration

Brett Blair

... can be obtained instantly by force. Peter has a worldly view of the Kingdom and Jesus is speaking about a heavenly kingdom. For a moment I would like you to listen to this story with new ears and see Jesus through the eyes of Peter and the rest of the disciples. Get rid of all your notions about who Jesus is. Take away from your mind Jesus as the Son of God. Strip from your memory that he died on the Cross and that he did that for your sins. Forget that Jesus ever said love your enemies or love your ...

806. Back to the Future

Luke 9:28-36 (37-43)

Sermon

Gary L. Carver

... 's future, he has a present responsibility to act upon that knowledge. A stockbroker gets advance knowledge that a company is about to be bought over by another company and he or she has to act responsibly. In light of that future knowledge in the present, the disciples had seen the future. They knew what was going to happen. They knew that Jesus was going to be victorious over death, hell, and the grave. They knew that Jesus was the only begotten Son of God, full of the glory of God. They had seen the ...

807. Guided by the Spirit

John 16:12-15

Sermon

David R. Cartwright

... would never use that skill again. But you never know. You may be the very one the church needs to do that. In this morning's Gospel Lesson, we see Jesus using a combination of both of these educational approaches, and maybe even another one in addition. Jesus tells his disciples, "I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now." Up to this point in his ministry, Jesus has told them a lot of things. He has taught them all kinds of things about who he is and how much God loves them and ...

808. Reactions to Rejection

Luke 9:51-62

Sermon

David R. Cartwright

... you wherever you go" (Luke 9:57b). Jesus was never one to attract followers on false pretenses. Jesus always made sure from day one that anyone wanting to take part in his mission would know what they were getting into. So he said to this eager, would-be disciple, "Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head" (Luke 9:58). There's a possibility that Jesus may have been speaking on more than one level. "Fox" was a derogatory word used for Gentiles. Jesus ...

809. Counting the Cost of Discipleship

Luke 14:25-33

Sermon

Ron Lavin

... be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth" (Matthew 6:24). In both cases, the sense of disciples loving one thing more and one thing less is the point Jesus is making by using the word miseo. In Luke 14:25-26, ... to be Salty Christians, and help others grow in the faith. This third use may be the one Jesus had in mind when he told his disciples not to lose their saltiness. "Salt is good; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is fit neither for ...

810. A Stone’s Throw From: Temptation

Luke 4:1-13

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... after the Test of Temptations: "I passed." One of the greatest tests and temptations of our faith deals with integrity. II. Right But Wrong A. Sometimes the Temptation is to do the Right thing but for the Wrong reason. There's a fictional story about Jesus and the disciples. It seems they were walking along a rocky road one day when Jesus asked each of them to pick up a stone and carry it for him. According to the story, John chose a large stone while Peter chose one that he could easily carry in his pocket ...

811. Cross Eyed: Triumph

John 20:1-18

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... that day. We've been trying for 2,000 years. Imagine that, 2,000 Sundays to try and explain what happened that first Easter day. Think of all the pulpits from which that message has been proclaimed. And yet, it still astounds us. It still amazes us. When the disciples heard Mary's incredible story, they ran as fast as they could to the tomb. They stooped down and looked in. And there they saw the burial clothes lying there and the cloth that had been on Jesus' head rolled up in a place by itself. And they ...

812. The Real GPS: Gospel Positioning System

John 21:15-25

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... , Simon Peter did not hesitate to run back to the beached boat and single-handedly drag an enormous net full of fish to his Lord’s breakfast fire. And when, after their meal together, Jesus asked Simon Peter three times, “Do you love me,” the least-heroic disciple plainly confessed his love three times. But that was not all Jesus asked of Simon Peter. Jesus insisted that “love” was a verb, not a noun. Loving Jesus is not a state of being, it is a state of doing. And Jesus does not ask Simon Peter ...

813. Behind Closed Doors

John 20:19-31

Sermon

Lee Griess

... , frightened group of followers. Everything has happened too fast for them. One moment the crowd is welcoming Jesus. And then just a few days later, he is arrested, put on trial, and crucified on a cross. The picture the Bible gives us is of a shell-shocked bunch of disciples who gather in hiding to mourn the death of their leader. They are living in fear of the dreaded knock on the door that will signal that they are next. Fear shut them out and anxiety locked them up. A few years ago, W. H. Auden wrote a ...

814. Fresh Grilled Forgiveness

John 21:1-19

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... I want us to do that this morning through a Prayer of Confession and then through actually partaking of FISH AND BREAD. Conclusion We have all had those Peter moments in our lives. We've all had those moments when we have denied Christ or denied being a Disciple of Christ. We've all had those same selfish moments. But the Good News is that, like Peter, we too can experience FORGIVENESS. In the Name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven. The next time you smell a charcoal fire, the next time you have a piece of ...

815. Daring Thomas

John 11:1-16

Sermon

King Duncan

... him.” It was our friend Thomas who spoke out with so much boldness. This is the very same Thomas who would later get the reputation as a doubter. And yet, in this passage Thomas was willing to die for Christ and this was before he and the other disciples were even certain who Christ was. “Let us also go, that we may die with him.” Why do we insist on calling him Doubting Thomas? Well, we’ll deal with that after Easter. But today let’s exult in our new friend, Daring Thomas. It is always thrilling ...

816. The Four Sacred Chords of Home

Mark 13:24-37

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... what we need to be truly “at home” is something different? What if “coming home” is the indwelling and ingathering of the presence of God? What if “coming home” is to be gift-wrapped in the God of love? In this week’s gospel text Jesus assures his disciples that after the hard times comes a holiday, that there will be a “welcome home” party. The triumphant return in “great power and glory” of the Son of Man ushers in a new era, ushers in the fullness of the kingdom of God. It is a dual ...

817. Why Are You So Afraid?

Mark 4:35-41

Sermon

King Duncan

... she had prayed for Jesus to take her fear away and help her fall asleep. “Oh yes,” Abby assured her. “He told me to come and get you!” (1) In our lesson for the day Jesus has been teaching by the lake. When evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let’s go over to the other side.” Leaving the crowd behind, they got in their boat and headed to the other side. Suddenly a furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. Jesus was in the stern, the back of ...

818. Mark 13:1-8

Mark 13:1-31

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... deception, being led “astray” by pretenders, by those who claim to have all the answers and God’s identity (or at least God’s ear). Mark’s text may reflect more of his audience’s later first century life than the experience of the disciples. The ”wars” were certainly part of Mark’s audience’s experience, as the Zealot revolt in 66 CE brought the wrath of Rome down upon Jerusalem. But Jesus’ council to his followers is not to assume an apocalyptic “there is nothing we can do” stance ...

819. The Faith of a Saint

Luke 6:17-26

Sermon

King Duncan

... equal aggressiveness, who responds to the acid tongue with a well worded put-down, who responds to the cruel antagonist with a firm determination not to be defeated. However, Christ is saying to us, there is a more excellent way. If you love Jesus, if you want to be his disciple, if you want to be saint-like, ask yourself how he would have responded. He is not saying to you to be a door-mat. He was certainly not a door-mat when he drove the money changers out of the temple. He was not wishy-washy when he ...

820. In the Shadow of His Brother

John 1:35-42

Sermon

King Duncan

... of those who follow a different path, regardless of where we are in our Christian life. John the Baptist had his faults, but he pointed people toward Jesus. And that, of course, is what Andrew did as well. Andrew was not one of the more prominent disciples. He is better known in the New Testament simply as Simon Peter’s brother. Simon was the rock star; Andrew was the one who carried the instruments. I like how one speaker described his own brother who was always in the spotlight. He said his brother ...

821. God Will Provide the Resources

Matthew 14:13-21

Sermon

King Duncan

... the least and the lowest in our community. That is the first lesson we as a church learn from this amazing story: Jesus had compassion for the crowd. Here’s the second: it’s never a question of resources. It’s a question of commitment. When Jesus instructed the disciples to feed the crowd of thousands, they only had five loaves of bread and two tiny fish. And yet in the Master’s hands, that was enough. Some of you may know the story of Dorothy Day. Day was a Roman Catholic lay person and a person of ...

822. For Those Who Are Auditing the Class

Matthew 16:21-28

Sermon

King Duncan

... be no divine recognition, and there will be no experience of your calling.” (1) Our text for the day is addressed to anyone who might be auditing the class called “Christian Faith.” It is a continuation of last week’s text in which Jesus asked his disciples, “Who do you say that I am?” And Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” When Simon said this, Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but ...

823. Spiritual Marines

Luke 9:18-27

Sermon

James Merritt

... not willing to die to self to spend time with God. Learn it and learn it well. The first obstacle to following Jesus and becoming His disciple is not sin, it is self. Because the root of all sin is self. One man describes his life before he met the Lord Jesus ... so many people nothing matters to you, but you. Well, if you are going to be a spiritual marine, if you are going to be a disciple, if you are going to be a true follower of Jesus Christ, you must deny self. That means you are going to have to put ...

824. Moving On Up

Mark 9:33-37

Sermon

King Duncan

... situation. That’s a misunderstanding of Jesus’ teachings. Notice how the verse reads, “Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, ‘Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all.’” In other words, Jesus is not saying to his disciples that it is wrong to want to be the greatest. He is saying, “If you want to be first, if you want to be great, here is what you must do . . . be willing to serve.” He is not condemning their ambition. Ambition is an impulse given ...

825. What Did Jesus Do?

1 Corinthians 11:23-26

Sermon

King Duncan

... , after supper he took the cup, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.’” This is such a beautiful story. On the last evening before his death, notice what our Lord did. In the presence of his disciples he took bread and he gave thanks. In other words, he held the bread in his hands and said grace. We don’t know the exact words of Jesus’ prayer, but a traditional Jewish prayer over a meal goes like this: [“Ba-ruch a-tah A-do-nai E ...

Showing results