Sermon and Worship Resources

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Matthew 10:1-42

Sermon

Larry Goodpaster

... the heart of this in what has become one of the great hymns of the church. The final stanza of “Love Divine, All Loves Excelling” calls us to get lost: Finish, then, thy new creation Pure and spotless let us be. Let us see thy great salvation Perfectly restored in thee: Changed from glory into glory, Till in heaven we take our place; Till we cast our crowns before thee, Lost in wonder, love and praise. Like this text from Matthew, Wesley challenges us to lose ourselves in God, to lose ourselves in the ...

802. Dim Visions And Blind Guides

Sermon

Harold Warlick

... aching, we headed the boat back toward the mainland. As we followed the channel toward shallow water we saw a huge commotion speeding out of the channel toward the open water. A group of a dozen or more dolphins was breaking the water in a perfect circle. They were chattering incessantly in their high-pitched voices and swimming and diving at top speed. Many small fishing boats had stopped to watch the spectacle. The dolphins, still in a huge circle, weaved their way among the islands, staying right in the ...

803. The Majesty Of God's Love

John 17:1-11

Sermon

Mark Ellingsen

... love at its best works that way. In any family unit to which you have belonged, the love you have for the other members of that family made you all one with them - one family.) Of course we love that way because God is love. God's love is the perfect love. In him, the many (the three) become one. Here is how Augustine explained it. We begin with the Father. The Father is eternal, with a burning desire to love. The Father cannot help himself. He is so full of love. Yet in eternity, what does he have to love ...

804. Wedding: They Became One Flesh

Genesis 3:1-24

Sermon Aid

O. Garfield Beckstrand, II

... you (even more than any gift, present, token, or tribute) would be a formula for this happiness. A prescription which suggests itself to us on this occasion is one taken from Holy Scripture. It is a prescription with three ingredients. 1. Remember that no one is perfect. No matter how deeply you love your partner, you will at times (in the future) act selfishly, speak out in anger, hurt, and perhaps alienate. The Bible reminds us: “If we say that we have no sin we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in ...

805. The Victory Of The Cross

Sermon

Erskine White

... would be just a set of demands no one could fulfill, since no one is free from the sin which put Jesus Christ to death. "love your neighbor as yourself. Seek first the Kingdom of god. Give up all you have and follow Me. Be perfect as your Father in heaven is perfect." Who among us can do this? These are impossible commandments! But now our sin is on longer a barrier. Now we no longer need rely upon our own devices to bring ourselves to God, since by the grace of the cross, God has brought Himself ...

806. Chosen For Good News

John 15:1-17

Sermon

Jerry L. Schmalemberger

... for ourselves rather than for others, may indicate that we really weren’t chosen for love. But God has chosen us to live the kind of life that shows what is meant by loving other people. Pygmalion labored long and carefully and produced a statue of a perfect woman. He loved the exquisite statue his genius had produced and, embracing it, kissed its cold lips. But he was loving a lifeless thing. Finally, he asked Venus, the goddess of love, to give him a living woman as beautifuil as the one he had carved ...

807. Spirit Full Or Foul?

Isaiah 44:1-5

Sermon

Justin Tull

... s power, she related to us that the piece of chicken dislodged and she was spared the embarrassment upon inspection by the first lieutenant. Now, what do you think? Was she Spirit full or Spirit foul? Is not God more than dental floss? If we are waiting upon perfection before we can be Spirit full, then none of us will make it. But we can move toward deeper spirituality. We can pray more often. We can gather for worship like those people of Pentecost and be open to the blowing of the Spirit. But we also can ...

808. Recollections of Mary -- Dramatic Monologue

Luke 2:1-7, Luke 2:8-20

Drama

Robert A. Morgan

... your grandfather, "Asher, we've got to do something for these people. That girl Mary is no older than our Mary, and her baby is about to come. They just cannot go any farther. Think of our Mary being in such a situation." Father said to Mother, "Leah, I'm perfectly willing to think of our Mary, and I'm willing to be helpful, but I don't know of anything that we can do!" And it was Mother, your grandmother, who said, "Couldn't we let them stay out in the stable? At least there would be shelter there against ...

809. Washed By Water: The Jordan

Matthew 3:13-17

Sermon

Steve Swanson

... the Baptist had the same question. John was one of the first to recognize Jesus as the Christ of God and he thought it was very strange, in fact absolutely crazy, that he, an ordinary, sinful man, was asked to baptize the chosen one of God, the sinless and perfect Christ Jesus. "I need to be baptized by you," John said. Why "... do you come to me?" Jesus had an answer. Jesus always had an answer. "To fulfill all righteousness," he said. I don't know what that means exactly, but I think it was a part of his ...

810. Forgive and Go Forward

Romans 8:18-27

Eulogy

Richard F. Bansemer

... know how he grieved after she died. We know how many of you tried to comfort him and console him.We know that ____________ was not perfect, but if he ~u1d speak now, he could remind us that "neither are we." From what you have told me, ____________ was a family man with ... been better parents. They think that they shouldn't have been asleep that night; that they did something wrong, though they had been perfect parents.So, in the name of the God who is love, I say to all who suffer guilt today, accept God's ...

811. Oh, Lord, It's Hard To Be Humble

Luke 18:9-14

Children's Sermon

Brett Blair

... . God will forgive those who are humble, but he will not forgive those who are proud. Thanks for helping me with my prayers. I'll try to be humble so God will forgive me. Let's Pray: Oh, Lord, it's hard to be humble, but none of us are perfect. Only you are perfect. Teach us to be humble. Amen.

812. See the Light, Be the Light

Matthew 5:13-16

Sermon

Johnny Dean

... what we have to offer – namely, that sometimes we have little to offer, and can only stand, in fear and trembling, before the deep human questions with the hope that God will be able to speak and act out of our honest weakness. You don’t have to be perfect to be salt and light. You just have to be faithful. And you don’t have to be a Dale Carnegie graduate to deliver an invitation to your neighbor to come to church with you. You can do it faithfully, in weakness and in fear and trembling. You don ...

813. Use It or Lose It

Matthew 25:14-30

Sermon

Johnny Dean

... clear. They thought they were saying exactly what they meant to say. But, as we can easily see, there was lots of room for misunderstanding in what they actually said. Jesus must have thought he was being perfectly clear also. In this section of Matthew’s gospel we find Jesus repeatedly warning, "Stay on your toes, now! Keep alert! You don’t know when the Master will come. You don’t know, I don’t know, NOBODY knows except God." In spite of the fact that these words, ...

814. Some Assembly Required

Luke 2:21-40

Sermon

Johnny Dean

... any hope of accomplishing the task successfully. And by successfully, I mean that the finished product looks like the picture on the outside of box and does not fall apart the first time it’s used. In a perfect world, all would go well as long as you followed the directions. But, since we live in a world where nothing is perfect, one of two things usually happens in these cases, at least to me. Either you end up with parts left over that don’t seem to fit anywhere, or at least one of the 4,175 parts ...

815. What's So Good About Feeling Bad?

Exodus 17:1-7

Sermon

Joann Hary

... was the victim of a diving accident that left her paralyzed. She lives in a wheelchair, and proclaims the love of Jesus Christ in every way she can, even by painting with a paint brush held in her mouth. So often as I am working on a sermon, the most perfect examples surface during the week; but even scarier than that, so often what the humans in the Scripture that week are doing, so also am I. That, too, happened as I was hurt and humiliated by an incident where I really felt used, and it didn't take me ...

816. In the Beginning, God

Genesis 1:1-2:3

Sermon

Johnny Dean

... There’s been an accident. Dad’s dead." You stand there for a moment, paralyzed, in shock. You place the phone back on the receiver. You stagger toward the window and look out and now there is no more sunny, summer day. What seemed to be an orderly, nearly perfect world has, in the blink of an eye, turned into chaos, a formless void. How could life have seemed so good only minutes ago? Chaos in your life, the formless void, is only a phone call away. Trust me on this one. I’ve been there. That’s what ...

817. St. Jim, Your Halo Is Tipped

Sermon

Ron Lavin

... to turn. Then you heard the good news, "Jesus is alive. He has risen just like he said he would." You gained heart and overcame your selfish tendencies. St. James, your halo was tipped. But you are an encouragement to us because we remember that you weren't perfect. You aren't so different from followers of the Way today. James, you died the death of a martyr, the first apostle to die for Christ. Your head was cut off by the sword of the Roman state. We probably won't have to face that kind of persecution ...

818. Divorce-Proofing Your Marriage

Genesis 2:4-25

Sermon

R. E. Lybrand

... for all human relationships, and certainly it is essential for the supreme human relationship between husbands and wives. Every marriage is composed of two sinners. Regardless of how spiritual and how committed to Christ you are, you are still not the perfect husband or perfect wife. Our imperfections can oftentimes lead us into periods of struggle and conflicts. Our sins can tempt us into demanding more than we are willing to give. We become cross and short-tempered; we fail in our roles as husband and ...

819. The Ambiguity of Life, Deciding for Christ

John 10:22-42

Sermon

Carl Jech

... speech sound something like this: "Thanks, Lord, for not making my entrance into these gates dependent upon the adequacy of either my faith or my deeds. I know that even when I have managed to do my best it hasn't been good enough to make myself or the world perfect. No merit of my own I claim, but wholly lean on Jesus' name." "When I come to die, give me Jesus!" Give me the name that means "God will save." Give me the simple, blessed assurance that my destiny is in the hand of a loving and gracious God and ...

820. Love Leads to Knowledge

Philippians 1:1-11

Bulletin Aid

Carl Hoefler

... more as our love abounds; especially our knowledge of the way God wants us to live. People: May our love grow in knowledge and obedience, that we may live the life God calls us to live. Collect O God our Father, whose ways are perfect, and who shares your perfection with us through Christ: Increase our love that we may grow in knowledge and ability to live the life that enjoys the righteousness which comes through Christ our Lord. In his name we pray. Amen. Prayer of Confession Dear God, we are not pure ...

821. God's People are Forever Secure In His Presence

Isaiah 26:1-21

Bulletin Aid

Carl Hoefler

... rejoice in the faith that is ours as we look forward to eternity! Collect Eternal God our Father, who is the everlasting refuge and strength of those who put their trust in you: Bring us into a closer fellowship with you, that we may enjoy the perfect peace which assures us of your eternal blessings. In our Redeemer's name we pray. Amen. Prayer of Confession Every generation has known your divine protection and fatherly kindness, O God; and now we are the generation that is lifted up by the strength of your ...

822. Love is Greater Than the Law

Luke 13:10-17

Bulletin Aid

James Wilson

Call to Worship Leader: Let all who would know the freedom of God's grace come together! People: Must we know all the Laws and must we be perfect in our hearts? Leader: Jesus fulfilled the Law, and in Christ we are perfected before God. People: What if our clothes are not fine or our bodies imperfect and worn? Leader: Sing praises unto the Lord! In the cross, God's love came to us all! All: Blessed be the name of the Lord! Collect Most loving and merciful God, You saw that we ...

823. Confessional Services

1 Corinthians 11:17-34

Bulletin Aid

G. William Genszler

... the Holy Ghost. Congregation: Amen. Minister: Let us pray. Almighty God, unto whom all hearts are open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hid: Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of thy Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love thee, and worthily magnify thy Holy Name; through Jesus Christ, thy Son, our Lord. Amen. Minister: Let us humbly kneel, and make confession unto God, imploring his forgiveness, through Jesus Christ our Lord. (then shall all kneel) Commandment: I am the ...

824. The Messiah For All

Ephesians 3:4-6

Sermon

Louis H. Valbracht

... the first symbol of the early church, not just because I was born in that period of the year. The sign of the fish! This portion of the sky in which this juxtaposition occurred was known as the House of the Hebrews. And so, it was perfectly readable to the Magi as they studied the stars, as those planets came together in that grouping that had never before occurred in their experience, and it occurred in the House of the Hebrews; it was obvious that something important was happening to the Jews. And since ...

825. Whatever He Says - Do It!

John 2:1-11

Sermon

Louis H. Valbracht

... was the first of the miracles that Jesus performed. Oriented as he is in scientism, the mind of contemporary man revolts at the thought that God is making some unusual intervention into a lawful and an orderly universe. This they can't see as a possibility. They're perfectly willing to accept Jesus as a great prophet, as a great moral teacher, as a great leader in social reform, or as one of the great human beings of history. Some, indeed, are even willing to admit that he is the Christ, the Son of God. But ...

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