Sermon and Worship Resources

Antonyms: keep, claim, continue, stick by, self-control, power through, achieve, defend, bear, hope, acquire, quick visit, adopt, continue along, adhere, remain, pursue, support, take up, keep up, reuse, advocate, stay, persevere, cherish, keep going, carry on

Showing 851 to 875 of 1185 results

851. Naaman Healed of Leprosy

2 Kings 5:1-27

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

... he is found in Rimmon’s temple in the course of official duties (v. 18; cf. 2 Kgs. 7:2, 17). 5:20–27 Gehazi, on the other hand, has not grasped the meaning of what has happened, or does not care. His “grasping” is of a baser sort. He pursues profit (vv. 20–21). He concocts a story that is designed to explain Elisha’s change of heart (he has two new arrivals to provide for, v. 22). It is a clever ploy, for the amount requested is not excessive in relation to the massive sum Naaman was originally ...

852. Hoshea Last King of Israel

2 Kings 17:1-6

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

... the beginning demanded Do not worship any other gods (vv. 35, 37–38). What is clear by the end of the chapter, then, is that the exile of Israel has not led to any improvement in the religion of the people who dwell in the land. They pursue their path of “worshiping” the LORD while serving their idols. Nothing has changed. Additional Notes 17:4 So king of Egypt: It is much more likely, given the form of the Hb. and the normal practice of the authors elsewhere in Kings of referring to foreign kings ...

853. Hezekiah King of Judah

2 Kings 18:1-16

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

... king of Assyria (Hb. ʿḇḏ; contrast Ahaz’s description of himself as “servant” in 2 Kgs. 16:7) but rebelled against him. Foreign influence or domination, of whatever kind, was rejected. 18:9–12 To remind us of the kind of environment in which Hezekiah pursued this bold policy and to prepare us for the story in 18:13–19:37, the fate of the northern kingdom is now reiterated (cf. 2 Kgs. 17:1–6). This was a time when rebellion against the Assyrian king evoked an aggressive, devastating response ...

854. A Prophecy Against Babylon

Isaiah 13:1--14:23

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... that are at least partly designed to fulfill their own desires while they claim to be fighting in the name of God. The OT’s implication is that God takes the risk of being involved in that process, in which nations use God’s name as they seek to pursue their own ends. In this way God is involved in battles that do put down oppressors and free the oppressed—rather than doing nothing at all, or acting directly from heaven in a way that does not involve human beings at all. War thus becomes one of the ...

855. Jerusalem to Be Inhabited

Isaiah 44:24--45:25

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... word comes from the same root as that in verse 15. If there have been times when Yahweh has been inaccessible, there were special reasons (such as Israel’s wrongdoing). Yahweh is not elusive by nature and Yahweh has shown Jacob-Israel quite clearly the true purpose Yahweh is pursuing for them: truth is tsedeq (see on 41:2), while right (mesharim) is a variant on the word for making a level or smooth path for the journeys of Yahweh and the exiles in 40:4 and 42:16 (cf. the parent verb, yashar, in 45:2, 13 ...

856. Signs, Sayings, and Oracles of Judgment

Ezekiel 12:1-28, Ezekiel 13:1-23, Ezekiel 14:1-11, Ezekiel 14:12-23

Understanding Series

Steven Tuell

... him to Babylonia, the land of the Chaldeans, but he will not see it, and there he will die” (v. 13). Nor will the king’s cronies evade their fate—his staff and all his troops, the prophet says, the Lord will scatter to the winds, and the Lord will pursue them with drawn sword (v. 14; compare 5:2; 11:8–10). Ezekiel well knew the temper of Jerusalem’s leaders. In 2 Kings 25:4–5, we learn that Zedekiah and his guards did try to flee the city once Babylon had breached its walls; however, as Ezekiel ...

857. A Prophecy Against Gog

Ezekiel 38:1-39:29

Understanding Series

Steven Tuell

... mine among them that you may tell your children and grandchildren how I dealt harshly with the Egyptians and how I performed my signs among them, and that you may know that I am the LORD” (Exod. 10:1–2). It is the Lord, then, who prompts Pharaoh to pursue the Israelites to the sea (Exod. 14:8–9), where God destroys Pharaoh and his armies. Just so, in the Gog material, it is the Lord’s hand that both prompts Gog of Magog and his armies to attack and destroys them. Verse 8 describes the mustering of ...

858. Jesus Tempted in the Wilderness

Matthew 4:1-11

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... during their wilderness journey (Deut. 6; 8). Matthew displays Jesus as representative Israel who is faithful and true to God’s covenant. Later, in the Passion Narrative, Matthew will highlight Jesus’ faithfulness at Gethsemane (26:36–46), when Jesus resists the temptation to pursue his own will and remains faithful to God’s missional plan for him. Interpretive Insights 4:1–2 Jesus was led by the Spirit. This is the third time in Matthew that the Spirit has had an active role in the early life ...

859. Jesus as God’s Wisdom Is a Hidden Reality

Matthew 11:20-24, Matthew 11:25-30

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... Charles Dickens. In Dickens’s famous story, Ebenezer Scrooge is warned about his miserly way of life by three visiting ghosts: the Ghost of Christmas Past, the Ghost of Christmas Present, and the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come. Scrooge has spent his whole life pursuing and hoarding money rather than caring for others, and these ghosts come to warn him of the dire future that awaits him for living this way. Yet the warnings are intended to change Scrooge—to stop him in his tracks and cause him to change ...

860. Parables Discourse: The “Already and Not Yet” of the Kingdom

Matthew 13:24-30, Matthew 13:31-35, Matthew 13:36-43, Matthew 13:44-46, Matthew 13:47-52

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... appearance suggests. In one episode, a man with a passion for collecting Chinese rhinoceros-horn cups discovers that the set that he spent about $5,000 to acquire—a large amount of money to him—is worth at least $1 million. The appraiser notes how, simply by pursuing something he loves, the man has gained a fortune.2 Quotations: If the kingdom is in a real sense hidden in the present, then there continues to be a sense of mystery or ambiguity to our walking by faith and not by sight. Luke Johnson speaks ...

861. Jesus Announces His Impending Suffering and Death

Matthew 16:21-28

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... up one’s cross is embodied communally in the early chapters of Acts, as the members of the church, from its inception, live life together with the needs of others in view. We see them leave behind comfort, security, and individual needs to pursue authentic worship and growth, ministry and mission, and the common good. This vision of communal cruciformity is portrayed in Acts 2:42–47: They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone ...

862. Community Discourse: Care for Others in the Kingdom

Matthew 18:1-9, Matthew 18:10-14, Matthew 18:15-20

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... to the parable in 18:12–14. 18:12 If a man owns a hundred sheep. The parable of the wandering sheep receives a similar rehearsal in Luke 15:3–7, though there with an emphasis on a lost sheep. In Matthew, the parable highlights the value of pursuing a single sheep that has wandered away, fitting nicely between teachings on those vulnerable to stumbling (18:6–7) and on restoration of those who have sinned in the community (18:15–20). 18:15 If your brother or sister sins. The focal point of Jesus ...

863. Community Discourse: Lavish Forgiveness in the Kingdom

Matthew 18:21-35

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... details of the parable heighten the callous and casual nature of the servant’s disregard for mercy received. The thrust of the parable in its metaphor is to question how someone who has truly experienced and received God’s overflowing forgiveness could pursue a life of retribution and revenge for wrongs that he or she has suffered. The reality of God’s forgiveness changes our perspective on wrongs that we experience. Part of preaching this theme is about helping our audience understand the extravagant ...

864. Three Parables about the Unfaithfulness of the Jewish Leaders

Matthew 22:1-14, Matthew 21:33-46, Matthew 21:28-32, Matthew 21:23-27

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... preceding reference to people producing fruit who will inherit the kingdom (21:43), it is likely that the wedding clothes represent obedience or covenant faithfulness (see 25:1–46, where the way for Jesus’ followers to prepare for final judgment is by pursuing acts of justice and mercy). 22:14 For many are invited, but few are chosen. This concluding aphorism derives its meaning from the parable. The many who are invited are portrayed as expected and unexpected, good and bad (22:10), so the “many ...

865. Eschatological Discourse: Being Faithful and Merciful

Matthew 25:14-30, Matthew 25:31-46

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

Big Idea: Jesus tells two more parables that demonstrate how his followers should be ready for his return: they should pursue covenant faithfulness and show mercy to the most vulnerable, who are hungry, poor, sick, and imprisoned. Understanding the Text Chapter 24 concludes and chapter 25 begins with a call to be prepared, since there will be no precursor signs for Jesus’ reappearing (24:36–51). Matthew 25:14–46 continues ...

866. The Resurrected Jesus Is Vindicated by God and Given All Authority

Matthew 28:1-10, Matthew 28:11-15, Matthew 28:16-20

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... The metaphor of following lends itself to understand Christian faith as a journey. Learning from Jesus, or what Luke Johnson calls “learning Jesus,” is a lifelong endeavor and commitment based on God’s initiative in our lives. As Johnson expresses it, We are pursuing the implications of a strong belief in the resurrection for knowledge of Jesus. If we are dealing not with a dead person of the past but with a person whose life continues, however mysteriously, in the present, then it is better to speak ...

867. Jesus Inaugurates the Disciple Band and Conquers the Unclean Spirits

Mark 1:14-20, Mark 1:21-28

Teach the Text

Grant R. Osborne

... fresh water, a key to successful fishing is the choice of bait. Show examples of natural bait (dead or alive), lures, artificial flies, and cut bait, and how each one might be used. The bait you choose depends on variables such as the type of fish you are pursuing, the water, the time of year, even the time of day. God calls us to join him in the privilege of bringing his gospel to the world. To fish for people requires a willingness to adjust to the needs of the people with whom we are sharing the gospel ...

868. Spiritual Hypocrisy—Living by the Rules, Not by the Heart

Mark 7:1-23

Teach the Text

Grant R. Osborne

... ” by the Holy Spirit and by a godly mind-set. If we spend our time on pornographic websites, immoral actions will always result. If instead we meditate on God’s Word and on the thoughts of the great men and women of the faith, we will pursue actions that please God. The principle is simple: what we think is who we are, and that will determine what we do. Illustrating the Text Lip service rather than heart worship Literature/Film: The Stepford Wives, by Ira Levin. This novel was twice made into a movie ...

869. Jesus Proclaims Judgment on the Temple and the Nation

Mark 13:1-31

Teach the Text

Grant R. Osborne

... Christ returns) and 1 John 2:18 (the expectation of the antichrist) show that the early church did indeed expect such a figure. At the end of history a “son of Satan” will arise and lead the world astray into worshiping him and the dragon, pursuing and killing the followers of Christ and establishing a worldwide, one-religion empire of evil. He will reign for forty-two months, fulfilling Daniel 9:27. The dragon, the beast, and the false prophet (Rev. 16:13) will become the false trinity, but their reign ...

870. Luke the Historian

Luke 1:1-4

Teach the Text

R.T. France

... as a serious research project rather than a random collection of reminiscences. If Luke was in Palestine during the two years or so that Paul was in prison before his transfer to Rome (see above on the “we passages”), he had plenty of opportunity to pursue this research by contacting the eyewitnesses both in Jerusalem and in Galilee. The remarkable insights into the private world of Mary and her family in chapters 1–2 suggest that Mary herself may have been among those he interviewed (see on 2:19). In ...

871. Jesus and Women

Luke 7:36--8:3

Teach the Text

R.T. France

... the evidence of her (antecedent) forgiveness rather than the basis for it. 7:48 Your sins are forgiven. Jesus speaks directly to the woman for the first time. As in 5:20, his declaration provokes theological questions (7:49), but this time the issue is not pursued. Following the logic of the parable in 7:41–43, we must suppose that the woman’s loving actions show that she is already aware of being forgiven, and that Jesus here simply makes it explicit. (The verb is in the perfect tense, lit., “have ...

872. A Sick Woman and a Dead Girl

Luke 8:40-56

Teach the Text

R.T. France

... happened. Even though only five people were allowed to see the miracle (8:51), the reappearance of a girl previously known to be dead could hardly be kept quiet. As in 5:14, Luke records Jesus’s demand for silence but does not pursue the theme. See on 4:41. Theological Insights These two intertwined miracles are very different, but in each a hopeless situation (an incurable and isolating illness, and death itself) is overcome by the life-restoring power of Jesus, exercised in response to “faith” (8 ...

873. The Messiah and His Glory

Luke 9:28-36, Luke 9:18-27

Teach the Text

R.T. France

... works. In it, the protagonist, Orual, has a lifelong battle with the gods (God). She tries to meet the longings of her troubled soul through a series of people in her life, claiming to love them, but using them for the sake of her own needs. The gods pursue her relentlessly. Finally, having lost many of those around her and unable any longer to fill the God-shaped vacuum, she begins to submit. She says, “But when the craving went, nearly all that I called myself went with it. It is as if my whole soul had ...

874. Interpreting the Times

Luke 12:54-59, Luke 12:49-53, Luke 12:35-48

Teach the Text

R.T. France

... the focus should be on the necessity for believers to live a life of watchful readiness and service to the Lord, recognizing that this loyalty places us in opposition to the values and goals of the world. If taught separately, the following themes may be pursued: 1. 12:35–48 (including the last section of the previous passage). Consider the relationship between master and slave in a wealthy household, and reflect on why Jesus thought it suitable as a model for teaching about his return. Pick up the issues ...

875. The Cost of Discipleship

Luke 14:25-35, Luke 14:15-24

Teach the Text

R.T. France

... he and his wife made to practice a principle of “graduated tithe, which means that as [their] annual gross income increase[ed] above and beyond any simple cost of living increase,” their giving went up as well. Besides that, he notes, he decided to pursue a theological career instead of one in mathematics, even though that meant a great difference in salary, because he wanted to “affect people’s lives for eternity,” and for him (he is careful to emphasize this), the math career would not have done ...

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