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 826 to 850 of 5000 results

826. I Am Christ's

2 Corinthians 5:17

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

Two Sundays ago, we began our series of sermons on The Christian Walk. We closed that first sermon with the story of three-year-old Ryan. He and his five-year-old sister, Lisa, were playing on the floor following a family dinner while the adults tried to have a conversation. Lisa opened her new toy nurse's kit and convinced Ryan to be her patient. She took the little stethoscope and placed it on her brother's heart, listened intently -- as good nurses do. Suddenly she announced, "I hear somebody walking ...

827. Try to Be Nice

Philippians 4:2-9

Sermon

Mark Trotter

I remember a cartoon; it showed a middle-aged man, pot-belly, frown on his face, wearing a T-shirt. Across the T-shirt was the message, "Please don't ask me to have a nice day." I first saw that cartoon on our refrigerator door, placed there when our children were still living at home. They thought it captured their father. It probably did. I can identify with W. C. Fields, who said, "I start off each day with a smile, and get it over with." I confess I don't like clichés, especially clichés like "Have a ...

828. How Jesus’ Friendship Makes Your Burdens Light

Matthew 10:1-42

Sermon

Mark Ellingsen

Jesus was teaching about the kind of authority he has. We need authority in our context, because to Jesus' mind we are a very confused, wayward generation. There was nothing to compare the people of his time to, nothing to compare us to.1 They and we are wayward, hardened, confused people. Inappropriate behavior seemed to be the order of the day in Jesus' view. The people of Israel were like children who were playing, but could get none of the other children to celebrate, even when they played music. But ...

829. The Failure

Luke 23:26-43

Sermon

James Merritt

You have ever known one, or you were one, or you still think you are one. You went to school with them. Maybe you grew up with them. Maybe you live with them. Maybe you even think you are married to them. They are easily identified by the labels that we put on them such as: losers, rejects, nerds, geeks, or failures. They get mocked, bullied, ridiculed, and made fun of. They are ostracized and isolated. They are on the outside looking in and nobody ever offers to let them in. You might say they are “On The ...

830. Propriety in Worship

1 Corinthians 11:2-16

Understanding Series

Marion L. Soards

This section of the letter takes up a disruptive situation in the life of the congregation at worship. Paul addresses the men and the women in the congregation concerning their manner of dress, although he comes to that point via a complicated route. While the issues are practical—dress and behavior at worship—Paul frames the matters in genuinely theological terms, not only mentioning God and Christ but also bringing into consideration the meaning and implications of creation and nature. In brief, Paul ...

831. A Restless Spirit

1 Samuel 28:1-25

Sermon

Lori Wagner

It’s Mother’s Day, otherwise known in the liturgical church as the “Festival of the Christian Home.” Today parents remember our baptismal covenant and recommit to bringing up our baptized progeny in the Christian tradition in our homes, churches, and extended family. This is also when we honor mothers in particular and their influence on our lives. In honor of that celebration today, let me remind you of just how awesome it is to be a parent. Here’s a scenario I think we’ll all be familiar with. A little ...

832. Apocalyptic Moments

Galatians 5:1-15

Sermon

Robert R. Kopp

The following sermon comes from a series of devotionals centered around the game of Golf. This is not a full sermon for the pulpit. It's been said wisdom comes from experience and experience comes from messing up. So I guess that means the older the wiser is another way of saying it's always easier to tell others the right way to do things after you've done them the wrong way for a long time. Maybe that's why so many awful players become such good coaches. Lee Trevino, however, isn't convinced. He has said ...

833. Love Over Logic

Luke 13:1-9

Sermon

Carl Jech

Those eighteen upon whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think they were worse offenders than all the others who dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you, No. (Luke 13:4-5a) Reward and punishment! A basic fact of life! In San Francisco there is a chain of pastry stores called "Just Desserts" - a clever name with more than one level of meaning. "You've been good. Treat yourself! You deserve a reward." But many of us would also think: "Too many of these rewards and my just desserts will be obesity and ...

834. Clouds and Son-Shine

Ephesians 3:1-13

Sermon

Hubert Beck

Motivation is the key to life. It is not only the key to getting work done, but it is the key to living itself! Once a person loses the will to live, health suffers and death is never more than a step or two away. Motivation is hard to sustain at times, though. The cloudy moments of life cause us to say, "What’s the use of it all?" We want to chuck everything and let come what may without care or concern. That’s when we need to see again the glory of the Lord revealed, for in God’s presence among us we ...

835. The Little Miracle Before The Big One

Luke 22:47-53

Sermon

Barbara Brokhoff

If you were a Miracle-Worker, and you had one final miracle to perform before dying, what would you choose as a big, never-to-be-forgotten climax? Suppose you had already done such things as calm a storm at sea, multiply five loaves and two fishes into enough food to feed 5,000 people, walked on water, opened blind eyes, caused the dumb to speak, the lame to walk, and the deaf to hear, turned water into wine, and even raised the dead - now you are about to do one more miracle before you die - what would it ...

836. I Affirm

Acts 27:13-26

Sermon

TEXT: "Wherefore, sirs, be of good courage, for I believe in God." Acts 27:25 There are two ways to interpret the extraordinary story of adventure at sea which is described in chapter 27 of Acts. We can look at the courage and the faith of Paul. He had been arrested after preaching for several years as a Christian evangel. When he was threatened with death he appealed as a Roman citizen for his trial to be held in the city of Rome which was his right as a citizen. Escorted by heavy guard, he was taken from ...

837. Do I Matter?

Psalm 8:1-9

Sermon

David E. Leininger

Interesting news this week. According to the population clock at the United Nations, there are now six-billion of us on this whirling planet.(1) Someone decided that a baby boy born to refugee parents in Sarajevo, a region returning to life after a decade of death and destruction and war, would be the perfect symbol for the push toward our next billion or so. According to UN Secretary-General Kofi Anan, the birth of little Adnan Nevic "should light a path of tolerance and understanding for all people." We ...

838. If You Get Too Close to the Cross, You Will End Up Carrying It

Mark 15:21-32

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

Listen: “If you get too close to the cross you will end up carrying it.” Let me say that again. “If you get too close to the cross you will end up carrying it.” This liturgical season of Lent is the occasion when we Christians rehearse the passion, suffering and death of our Lord Jesus. We who follow Jesus ought always to live in the shadow of the cross. Yet also there are specific times when we walk the Via Dolorosa as we deliberately choose a cross – or we have thrust upon us a cross not of our choosing ...

839. How to Deal with Friends, Foes, and Fools

Proverbs 27:6

Sermon

James Merritt

"I will pay more for the ability to deal with people than any other ability under the sun." John D. Rockefeller1 Relationships: we all have them. John Donne was right: "No man is an island..."2 I have learned early on that one of the most important lessons a father can teach his children is how to establish and maintain proper relationships with the right people. According to a report by the American Management Association, an overwhelming majority of the two hundred managers who participated in a survey, ...

840. Pour the Salt and Turn on the Light

Matthew 5:13-16

Sermon

James Merritt

I am beginning a brand new series of messages today on the Sermon on the Mount that I have entitled, "The Only Way to Live." The reason I have given it that title is because that is exactly what Jesus tells us in the greatest sermon ever preached in the history of the world—the Sermon on the Mount. A Chinese Christian came to a missionary one time and said, "I have learned to quote the entire Sermon on the Mount by memory." He stood before the missionary and perfectly quoted the sermon word-for-word. The ...

841. A Truly Universal Operating System

Romans 14:1-12

Sermon

Larry Lange

Once upon a time, in a garage in the ancient city of Rome, a man developed a computer operating system that became the digital lingua franca for the ancient world. How his operating system defeated its competitor is one of the great mysteries of all time. There must have been something about its ugly, utilitarian appearance and its proclivity toward redundancy that appealed to the brutal bureaucrats who established the Roman Empire. Even the name of the operating system came from a word butchered beyond ...

842. The Good Life

John 10:11-18

Sermon

James Merritt

I read a story the other day id never heard before about Abraham Lincoln. He was surprised one day when a rough looking man drew a revolver and put it right in his face. Trying to remain as calm as he could Lincoln simply asked the man, “What seems to be the matter?” The stranger replied, “Well some years ago I swore an oath that if I ever came across an uglier man than I am I’d shoot him right on the spot.” Lincoln smiled and said, “Well then please shoot me for if I’m an uglier man than you are I don't ...

843. Welcome Home

Luke 15:11-32

Sermon

James Merritt

A picture is worth a thousand words. Sometimes they should be because certain pictures can leave you speechless. I have often thought that if my house were burning down and I could only grab a few things as I ran out the door, I would bypass the jewelry, the clothes, and any furniture. I would take some pictures because pictures matter to me. And they matter to us all. We’ve now entered what might be called “The age of the snapshot.” 82% of Americans say they take pictures with their cell phones, up from a ...

844. Everything Counts

Luke 16:1-15

Sermon

James Merritt

When the man heard the phone ring, his stomach began to turn. Something told him this was the call he had been dreading, “Sir, I’m calling from the bank to let you know we are foreclosing on your home. You are going to be evicted in one week.” The man began to beg, “You can’t do this. I haven’t been able to find work since I was laid off and I have nowhere to take my wife and children.” But the banker replied, “Sir, I am sorry there is nothing I can do.” For a moment the man sat there stunned, but he then ...

845. Church Divisions and Confusion of Allegiance

1 Corinthians 1:10-17

Teach the Text

Preben Vang

Big Idea: Schisms and splits have no place in God’s community. Paul says, “Forget what you know from the world around you. Christians are followers not of various patrons and human leaders but of Christ alone.” Understanding the Text Paul’s introduction continues. Verse 10 is his summarizing thesis for the rest of the letter, a thesis he will return to throughout the letter (e.g., 3:1–15). Whether Paul thinks of verse 10 in formal rhetorical terms as a propositio1or simply as a strong reminder to Christian ...

846. Pop Verses: John 3:16

John 3:16

Sermon

Charley Reeb

Today I continue our series “Pop Verses.” We are taking a closer look at some of the most popular Bible verses. We are going to find out why they are so popular and how they apply to our lives. What you might discover is that some of these verses don’t mean what you think they mean or they mean a lot more than you think they mean. You see, quite often our favorites verses are just that – they’re verses. They’re not read in light of the passage in which they appear. This can lead to a misunderstanding about ...

847. Lazarus

Luke 16:19-31

Sermon

Lori Wagner

Animation: a skunk (if you dare) or a stuffed animal that looks like a skunk [don’t show them what’s in the cage until they come up to see] I have here a friend I’ve brought with me today. He’s here in this cage, and I’m going to take him out for a bit. Come on up some of you. Here he is. His name is Sandy. [Take the skunk out of the cage ….make sure it’s a de-fumed one J….and hold him out to those gathered] What! You are backing away. You don’t want to hold this skunk? [Walk down the aisles with him ...

848. The Challenge Of Simplicity

Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon

John Jamison

The crowds had grown. Jesus had been in Galilee for a while now, speaking, healing, and calling his disciples to follow him. The leaders from Jerusalem certainly had their spies keeping an eye on him, but with the crowds he was gathering, all they could do right now was watch and listen. Wherever Jesus went, there were always a few Pharisees and Sadducees in the crowd looking for things he might do or say they could use against him when they did finally get the chance. His disciples occasionally reminded ...

849. A Violent Week

Mark 14:1-2 · Luke 22:14-23:56

Sermon

Will Willimon

“And the chief priests and the scribes were seeking how to arrest him by stealth, and kill him...” Only a few minutes from where we worship, nuclear warheads are pointed in our direction. All this could be obliterated in a nuclear moment. We don't think about that much. We can't think about it much. Robert J. Lifton named it "nuclear numbness." If you're exposed to violence or the threat of it for very long, eventually a kind of numbness sets in. I suppose it can be explained as a kind of psychic defense ...

850. God Is Like...Fire

Malachi 3:1-4 · Luke 3:1-6, 9,16-17

Sermon

Kenneth L. Gibble

What is God like? We’ve been exploring that question, each time with a different image for an answer. So far, we’ve thought about how God is like the words “I Am,” how God is like a potter and how God is like bread. Today we turn to an image that is probably more familiar than any other for most Christians ― God as parent. The religion of the Hebrews was not the first to regard God as father. Do you remember your Greek mythology, where Zeus was the father of the gods? And though we have no written records ...

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