Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 801 to 825 of 4944 results

801. Rise Above It

John 21:15-19

Sermon

James W. Moore

Let me begin with three quick stories. See if you can find the thread that links them together. First… Have you heard about the couple who had been married for over sixty years? As they approached yet another anniversary… they became nostalgic and reflective about their life together. The husband said: “I have always wanted to ask you something. From the night we married, you have always had a box in your closet. I have never looked in it. It’s your private property, but I have always wondered what is in ...

802. 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 ...

803. Spiritual Marines

Luke 9:18-27

Sermon

James Merritt

A few years ago there was an eye-catching commercial on television sponsored by the United States Marine Corps. They had one that shows a young man fighting, and then slaying a fire-breathing dragon with an Excalibur-like sword. At the end of that commercial, with that sword gleaming in the light, decked out in that resplendent dress blue uniform, the commercial ends with these words: “The Few-the Proud-the Marines.” Do you know what the Mission Statement of the Marine Corps is? On their Website that I ...

804. The Surrogate

Matthew 1:1-17

Sermon

Lori Wagner

Props: Ring (engagement ring preferably) or letter from a prior wartime soldier (if you can find such) Have you heard the riddle? Question: In a bacon-and-egg breakfast, what's the difference between the Chicken and the Pig? Answer: The Chicken is involved, but the Pig is committed! Commitment is sometimes a “dirty word” in our culture today. People are wary of making commitments that may not last. Our marriage rates are going down. More people are renting homes than buying. Many are buying gold, fearing ...

805. Good Guys And Bad Guys Alike

Genesis 37:1-11, 12-36

Sermon

Steve Burt

Love your enemies, Jesus says in his Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5). Is he serious? Crazy? Love our enemies? We ask, "Why would we do that?" And Jesus says, "So that you may be children of your Father in heaven." Then he gets crazier. "Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect." What a tall order: Be perfect! The key to being perfect, as God is perfect, it would seem, is to understand that Jesus also says in his Sermon on the Mount that God "makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, ...

806. Who Knows?

Jonah 3:1-10

Sermon

Thomas D. Peterson

Who knows what lies ahead? A widely used saying has it that if we all put our troubles on a pile and then picked out the ones we choose, we would pick out our own. Why? Because we can deal with them. If we actually had an opportunity to do something new, what would we do? Who knows? Most people, most of the time take their troubles with them or else find them waiting when they arrive. We tend to plug away at the same old things. Jonah was fleeing from God. He had every confidence he could escape and be ...

807. Biblical Insights for Being a Christian Father

Deuteronomy 1:1-8

Sermon

Eric Ritz

Bill Cosby has suggested that Father's Day is almost as exciting as Ground Hog Day. Among the many problems that he discloses about this observance is the issue of buying a present for Dad. Among the dumbest gifts that Cosby has received on this day of obligatory recognition is soap-on-a-rope-- a remembrance which ranks slightly higher than the time he received a thousand yards of dental floss. There have been other thoughtful gifts, such as a sweater in June (it was on sale), the hedge cutters, weed ...

808. The Reward

1 Corinthians 3:10-11, 16-23

Sermon

James L. Killen

The Rock opera, Jesus Christ, Superstar, pictures Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, asking God if it is really necessary for him to die on the cross. In deep anguish he prays, among other things, "I'd have to know, I'd have to know, my Lord, if I die, what will be my reward?" We don't think or talk much about the reward of the Christian life. I suppose we feel reluctant to ask because we think that, if we are being Christian just for what we get out of it, we are probably doing it for the wrong reason. ...

809. Repeat After Me

Philippians 3:1-11

Sermon

James Merritt

One thing a good teacher knows is that repetition is one of the best ways to teach, as well as one of the best ways to learn. If you think about it, we learn the alphabet by repetition, by saying the letters over and over. We learn how to count the same way. We learn the multiplication tables by repeating them over and over again until we could do them in our sleep. Paul begins this chapter by saying, "For me to write the same things to you is not tedious, but for you it is safe." (3:1) Paul is about to ...

810. What a Difference a Day Makes

Exodus 20:8-11

Sermon

James Merritt

I want you to think about something I just recently read. It will make you tired just listening to it, but think about it. There are 365 days in the year, but you take weekends off, so you have to subtract 104 days. That leaves you with 261 working days, but you only work 8 hours a day; the other 16 you are either sleeping or tending to your own business, so you have to subtract 174 days. That leaves 87, but wait, we are not through subtracting yet. You eat lunch every day and although lunch hours vary, it ...

811. Watch!

Matthew 24:36-44

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

A ninety-six year old man won fifty million dollars in the lottery. When his family was notified, they called their pastor for help since they were afraid the news might cause the old fellow to have a heart attack. The pastor agreed to help. He went over to visit the elderly man. They talked about the weather and life in general. Finally the minister asked the old man, “Suppose you won fifty million dollars, how would that change your life?” “It wouldn’t,” said the man, “I would still have arthritis. I ...

812. Paul's Ministry in Thessalonica

1 Thessalonians 2:1-16

Understanding Series

David J. Williams

In the thanksgiving, Paul incidentally touched on their ministry in Thessalonica, but he now speaks of that ministry more directly, defending his own and his colleagues’ conduct against Jewish slanders. The matters touched on include: (1) the circumstances of their coming to Thessalonica and their motives in being there (2:1–6); (2) their conduct towards the Thessalonians (2:7–12); and (3) the response of the Thessalonians to their message and the ensuing hardship caused by that response (2:13–16). Because ...

813. The Power of Persistence

Luke 11:1-13, Luke 18:1-8

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

A hesitant driver, waiting for a traffic jam to clear, came to a stop on the expressway ramp. The traffic thinned, but the timid driver still waited. Finally, an infuriated voice came from behind shouting: “The sign says Yield, not give up.” The primary actors in today’s parables neither yielded nor gave up. In fact, that really is the lesson of these parables: The Power of Persistence. Jesus told two parables with almost identical messages about persistence. The stories are different only in their setting ...

814. God Is Trying to Tell You Something

John 1:(1-9) 10-18

Sermon

James L. Killen

God is trying to tell you something. God must be. Why else would John call Jesus the Word? That is what you use words for, isn't it? Actually, John borrowed some of the most sophisticated concepts from the Greek and Hebrew philosophy of his day to write an introduction to his telling of the story of the life and work of Jesus. He used those concepts to relate that story to the eternal reality of God. When all is said and done, John is telling us that God uses the life and work of Jesus to tell us something ...

815. Praise God! Selah!

Luke 1:67-80, Luke 1:57-66, Luke 1:46-56, Luke 1:39-45, Luke 1:26-38, Luke 1:5-25, Luke 1:1-4

Sermon

Lori Wagner

Animation: Music: To God Be the Glory [You can have it playing just before the sermon. There are a lot of good versions, both old and new. You can also play a YouTube for your people.] To God be the glory! Say it with me: To God be the glory! Now I want you to repeat that phrase after me, like a refrain. Each time I speak a line, I want you to respond with: To God be the glory! Ok? Let’s try it! “The weather is beautiful today!” [To God be the glory!] The beginning of the season of advent has come upon us ...

816. Emergency!

Genesis 11:1-9

Sermon

Lori Wagner

“Do not put your trust in princes, in mortal men who cannot save…” (Psalm 146:3) “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.” (Genesis 9:1) Everyone knows the sound of fire trucks. It used to be the fire bell! Now it’s an ear piercing, unaesthetic, blaring horn, followed by sirens, and ear deafening noise, as the trucks emerge from the station and race to their destination. Every kid is fascinated by firetrucks. Some of us still have our first firetruck. That’s why we watch “Chicago Fire!” But it used to ...

817. God's Bouncer or God's Ambassador?

Acts 11:1-18

Sermon

King Duncan

If I were to start a sentence with the words, “There are two types of people in the world . . .,” how would you finish that sentence? “There are two types of people in the world . . .,” Somebody once said, “There are two types of people in the world—those who divide the world into two types of people and those who do not.” What say you? I think if I were to divide people into two types, I would say, there are rule keepers and rule breakers. Some people just have an internal compulsion to follow the rules, ...

818. Recovering From the Blahs

1 Kings 19:9-18

Sermon

John R. Brokhoff

There he came to a cave, and lodged there; and, behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and he said to him, "What are you doing here, Elijah?" He said, "I have been very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts; for the people of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thy altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away." And he said, "Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the Lord." And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great ...

819. Embalmed Alive

John 14:5-14

Sermon

Louis H. Valbracht

The words are probably the most plain, the most authoritarian, the most all-inclusive of the great "I am" statements made by Jesus Christ. In Chapter 14 of the Gospel According to St. John, verse 6: "I am the way, the truth, and the life." In unmistakable, explicit words, our Lord is saying that the human being cannot have life without him. I suppose that our culture can be divided into two types of persons - those who say in whatever comfortable and luxurious situations they find themselves in: "This is ...

820. A Call to Arms

Exodus 17:8-16

Sermon

James Merritt

Whether or not you are a boxing fan, names like Muhammad Ali, George Foreman, Mike Tyson, and Evander Holyfield will certainly conjure up pictures of big-fisted gladiators. C. D. Blalock is not as well known, but he did something in the ring that should make him the most famous boxer of all time. In the 1930s Blalock stepped into the ring to fight another boxer, but he didn't really need another opponent. Because in one of the strangest moments in boxing history, Blalock took a huge uppercut at his rival, ...

821. A Glory Revealed by Abiding

John 8:31-41

Sermon

Jesus said unto the Jews who believed on him, "If you abide in my word, you will really be my disciples, and ... the truth will keep you free."1 - John 8:31f In one of his great hymns, Charles Wesley writes: Long my imprisoned spirit lay, Fast bound in sin and nature’s night. Thine eye diffused a quick’ning ray - I woke; the dungeon blazed with light. My chains fell off; my heart was free. I rose, went forth, and followed thee. The words by Wesley serve well as a bridge between the message of last week’s ...

822. The Subject Is Salvation

Genesis 6:9-22; 7:24; 8:14-19

Sermon

James L. Killen

A pastor was talking one day with some men whom he knew were not actively involved in any religion. He was surprised to learn that all of the men believed in God. But when they gave their reasons for believing, they all told stories of some narrow escape in which they assumed that God had miraculously interceded to save them or someone they knew from disaster. One told about a narrow escape in a traffic accident, another told of a day when, if he had not been late leaving for work, he might have been ...

823. Secret Savior

Matthew 6:5-15, Matthew 6:16-18

Sermon

Lori Wagner

"For the sake of His great name the LORD will not reject His people, because the LORD was pleased to make you His own." (1 Samuel 12:22) They call him (or her) “Benny” for the $100 bills that bear the photo of his namesake Benjamin Franklin. In Salem, Oregon, a mysterious philanthropist has been placing $100 bills (Bennys) inside of packages of diapers and cereal boxes, clothing and toilet paper. Each of the bills contains a simple signature –“Benny.” The unknown giver has been donating money well over the ...

824. Trial-and-Error or Grace

Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon

Thomas Peterson

(This sermon was preached at the Windsor, N.J. United Methodist Church on the occasion of its 150th Anniversary.) Sometime ago I discovered that God wants us to be happy. Happiness, I already knew, is no simple matter. The Bible teaches much about it, but the Beatitudes, to me more than any other text strike to the heart of the working ground for true happiness. “Blessed are those who….” is translated into “Happy are those who….” Now, a great deal has been said and written about the Beatitudes. So I ...

825. Good Works Will Not Save You!

John 14:15-31

Sermon

Mark Ellingsen

Jesus was still in the middle of his farewell discourse to his disciples. He was trying to comfort the despair that they were feeling when they had first heard the news (during the last supper) that Jesus would be leaving them (John 13:21, 33; 14:1). He had comforted them with the good news that he was on the way to God the Father, that in associating with Jesus, the disciples had been in fellowship with the Father (John 14:6-11). Whoever believed in him, Jesus said, would be able to do the works that he ...

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