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 876 to 900 of 1232 results

876. What's in a Name?

Deuteronomy 26:1-11

Sermon

Frank Ramirez

What's in a name? Does a name matter? Does it really matter if you're named Tom, Dick, or Harry — or Sharon, Sue, or Maggie? Hard to say. Consider the case of Gerald Ford, a former president of the United States. He was sixteen years old when a strange man sat down next to him at a soda fountain, introduced himself as his father, and told Gerald his name was really Leslie King, Jr. President Ford sounds very American, but in our democratic society, would we really want a person named King to be president? ...

877. Gateway to Grace

Joshua 5:9-12

Sermon

Frank Ramirez

When you visit a church camp you're aware that you're separated from civilization. When you take a walk late at night, for whatever reason, and it's usually for whatever reason, you can't help but wonder what that rustling in the darkness might be. It's probably a raccoon, or a smaller animal, as frightened of you as you are pretending that you're not frightened of it. But it could be a bear. It's an unnerving experience to see a bear close up. Bears in the wild are the epitome of untamed nature. They don' ...

878. Essentials

Isaiah 50:4-9a

Sermon

Frank Ramirez

D. L. Miller of Mount Morris, Illinois, was a world traveler among a people who didn't travel much. He was a Dunker, one of the Plain People, who lived in the late nineteenth century. He wore a dark coat and dark pants and a long beard without a mustache. When others bought cars, the Dunkers kept their horses and buggies. If you were a believer, then you dressed like everyone else in your church, and acted like everyone in your church, and made a point of never standing out. His people made a point of ...

879. Jailhouse Rock

Acts 16:16-34

Sermon

Frank Ramirez

Do you remember the old folk tune that went something like this? (sing or recite) The bear went over the mountain. The bear went over the mountain. The bear went over the mountain — To see what he could see. And all that he could see, and all that he could see, Was the other side of the mountain, the other side of the mountain The other side of the mountain was all that he could see! Maybe the only thing you can see from a high place is the other side of that high place, but still, the view can be worth it ...

880. Choosing to Believe

1 Kings 18:20-39

Sermon

Stan Purdum

Perhaps you recall recently when a burial box from the first century A.D. had come to light, on which was inscribed the words "James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus." This revelation caused quite a stir in the world of Christian scholarship because, if authentic, it would be the oldest tangible link to the historical Jesus — evidence of his actual existence. While even many non-Christians agree that Jesus was a real person, no physical evidence from the first century has ever been conclusively tied with ...

881. As Seen from the Solitary Broom Tree

1 Kings 19:1-18

Sermon

Stan Purdum

I'm not sure when the term "burn out" ceased being only a description of what happened to a campfire when you ran out of firewood to a term describing the experience of long-term exhaustion and diminished interest, usually coming immediately after an extended period of overwork, but the expression seems to fit that later situation, doesn't it? Exhaustion, deep weariness, all used up, nothing more to give, wiped out, burned out — call it what we will, its symptoms are all too familiar to many of us. A study ...

882. Have We Been "Slicked"?

Jeremiah 2:4-13

Sermon

Lee Ann Dunlap

In many small towns across America the annual Volunteer Fireman's Fair is the social event of the year, or at least it used to be. In days gone by, a typical carnival might have the usual carousel or Ferris Wheel, sometimes pony rides, and always there were the games of chance. (Today we might frown upon these as "gambling" — but back then it was just small-town fun for a good cause.) Bingo was usually preferred by the adults; but the youngsters had other ideas. For a boy named David in Freeport, Ohio, the ...

883. Song Sung Blue

Lamentations 1:1-6

Sermon

Lee Ann Dunlap

Some records are made to be broken — like Olympic speed skating; Cal Ripkin, Jr.'s, most consecutive baseball game appearances; and North Dakota's longest cow chip toss. Other records we'd prefer to let stand — the world's deadliest disaster, or the most active hurricane season, for instance. Years 2004 and 2005 will probably make the books as among the most dramatic in weather history. Hurricanes pounded the southern coast of the USA. Floods and blizzards battered the Midwest. Earthquakes devastated parts ...

884. The Bedrock of Faith - Sermon Starter

Mk 13:1-8; Lk 21:5-38

Illustration

Brett Blair

Have you ever tried to make a prediction? Here are some predictions from the past. All from people who were trusted individuals: "We don't like their sound, and guitar music is on the way out." Decca Recording Co. rejecting the Beatles, 1962. Popular Mechanics magazine in 1949 made this prediction: "Where a calculator on the ENIAC is equipped with 18,000 vacuum tubes and weighs 30 tons, computers in the future may have only 1,000 vacuum tubes and weigh only 1.5 tons." There was an inventor by the name of ...

885. There Is a Price for Everything, Part 2

Matthew 13:44-46

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

There is an old adage which has God saying: “Take what you wish - take it and pay for it.” That puts us immediately into the heart of our theme today: There is a Price For Everything. There is truth in that saying that the best things in life are free but we have to be careful about that. It isn’t absolute truth. Certainly we can’t buy love, but isn’t there really a price tag on love? How can we appropriate the love of a husband or a wife without paying the price of attention and tenderness, caring and the ...

886. In the House of the Lord

Psalm 23:1-6

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

If you saw the “Places in the Heart,” starring Sally Field, you will probably never forget the closing scene. Many in the audience and most critics could not believe what they were seeing. The scene is set in a small and simple sanctuary lit Texas. Everyone who figures in the movie drama is seated there in the pews. The camera moves in on the preacher at the pulpit, and he reads the moving cadences of the apostle Paul’s great hymn on love from 1 Corinthians 13.-We hear again how faith, hope and love ...

887. How To Handle Criticism? Keep Moving

Luke 9:51-56

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

How do you like it when people criticize you? The person who first said “Sticks and stones can break my bones, but words can never hurt me” either lived as a hermit or was an out-and-out liar. Words can hurt. Words do hurt. Words can hurt a lot. Words can hurt a lot more and do a lot more long-term damage than any puny stick or stone. Studies have shown how lasting an impression, how lifetime an impact, words can have on children. Children who receive constant criticisms about their looks, or their brains ...

888. I Don't Do Windows

Deuteronomy 11:18-21, 26-28

Sermon

Tony Everett

For months, members of the parish property team had been having difficulty finding volunteers to clean the many windows of the new education building. No one signed up to do this when the annual "time and talent" sheets were distributed the previous fall. No one responded to the requests for volunteers placed in bulletins and newsletters. No one answered their "fuss and beg" pleas for help during Sunday morning announcements. Finally, committee members decided to make individual and personal pleas to ...

889. Reversal and Victory

Judges 4:1-7

Sermon

Timothy J. Smith

"When God is going to do something wonderful," author Anne Lamott claims, "God always starts with a hardship; when God is going to do something amazing, God starts with an impossibility."1 All of those ingredients are present in our lesson from the book of Judges. The people were experiencing a crisis, a time of great stress thinking doom was all but inevitable. The situation appeared hopeless and impossible until God raised up the right person to meet the challenge head on. Time and time again, the ...

890. Step into Your 'Adjacent Possibility'

Luke 17:11-19

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

Ever get overwhelmed? When my Gramma would get overwhelmed with work, anger, excitement, whatever she would exclaim: “I am just beside myself!” What she meant was that there was just too much of what she was feeling to be contained by one person. To be “beside yourself” was not a good thing. But what if where you are starting from is not the best place to be? What if where your life stands right now is not a good place? Maybe if you could get outside yourself if you could get out of the space your heart ...

891. Whose Wife Will She Be?

Luke 20:27-40

Sermon

King Duncan

A little girl walked into a pet shop. She went up to the shopkeeper and asked in a sweet little lisp, “Excuthe me, mithter, do you have any wittle wabbits?” The shopkeeper bent way down and put his hands on his knees so he would be on her level, and asked, “Do you want a wittle white wabbit or a wittle bwack wabbit? Or maybe that cute wittle bwown wabbit over there?” The little girl thought for a moment, put her hands on her knees, leaned forward and said in a quiet little voice, “Mr., I don’t fink my ...

892. Act Quickly - Catch It Early

Matthew 5:21-26

Sermon

King Duncan

Some of you may be familiar with the Darwin Awards. People are nominated for the Darwin Awards when they do something really stupid that costs them their lives. The reason that they are called the Darwin Awards is that by offing themselves in such an absurd way, it is suggested that these misguided folks have inadvertently improved the gene pool for rest of humanity. It’s a cynical view of life, but it has led to a collection of stories that are both true and bizarre. For example, there is the story of a ...

893. When to Take the Shirt off Your Back

Matthew 21:1-11

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

One of the most gruesome, hopeless places in early nineteenth century England was “debtor’s prison.” Charles Dickens described it, but thousands of England’s poor lived it first-hand. Everything the debtor owned was confiscated. Nothing was left. If any debts still remained, debtors were imprisoned until the balance owed could be paid. Which, of course, could never be, because the debtor was locked up. It was a situation without hope. That was “civilized” nineteenth century England. But according to ...

894. Because I Live (Memorial Day)

John 14:15-31

Sermon

King Duncan

Actor Martin Sheen is known for his deep religious and social convictions. Some of you will remember him best for his role as President Bartlett in the television show “The West Wing.” Sheen shared with motivational speaker Tony Robbins an interesting story about something that happened to him while he was making the movie Apocalypse Now. The cast had been filming under a grueling schedule deep in the jungles of the Philippines. After a restless night, Sheen woke up the next morning and realized he was ...

895. The Missing Piece

Titus 2:11-14

Sermon

Scott Suskovic

During this Christmas season, we usually get together with some other families and spend a couple of days together. Someone always brings out a jigsaw puzzle. We set up the card table and scatter the pieces. It's not like we spend all day huddled around the puzzle. We walk by, we eat, we grab a piece, connect it, eat, and finally, after much fanfare, celebration, and food, the puzzle is completed when that last piece is slipped into place. Then we eat. What a life! Except those times when you come down to ...

896. The Faithfulness of God

2 Samuel 7:1-11, 16

Sermon

Richard Gribble

Mrs. Dowson stood in the doorway of Arthur's room and buttoned the cuff on the sleeve of her pink blouse. There had been a button missing but Marie had replaced it despite all the work she had to do: the cooking, cleaning, and all the other housework. Marie was a treasure — that is how Mrs. Dowson's mother would have described her. Mrs. Dowson crossed Arthur's room to the mantel where the Seth Thomas clock was located. She tried to set the time; the clock had stopped at two o'clock, but it was a lost ...

897. The Last Compact

Jeremiah 31:31-34

Sermon

Ken Lentz

A man, seriously ill in the hospital, requested a visit from his pastor. "Pastor," he said, "if you pray for me and I recover, I will give $25,000 to the building fund." The pastor prayed and the patient recovered completely. The pastor tactfully tried to remind his parishioner about the promise. Stonewalled, the minister put it on the line, "Jim, you promised to give $25,000 to the building fund when you became well." "Did I?" answered the newly recovered man. "Well, that should give you some idea of how ...

898. Thanks for the Memories!

Exodus 12:1-4 (5-10) 11-14

Sermon

Ken Lentz

The dark of the night began to turn to the gray of morning. In the clouded distance could be heard the cries of mothers and fathers discovering the lifeless forms of their firstborn sons. The elders rushed from one adobe structure to another. "Quick!" they whispered, "pack the unleavened dough! Finish the lamb! Grab what you can! Now is the moment! Follow Moses to the sea while the Egyptians are preoccupied with their tragedy." Hurriedly and silently, the dark shapes of men, women, and children passed ...

899. The Many Faces of God

Isaiah 6:1-8

Sermon

William J. Carl, III

Think of all the faces we show the world every day. We scrub up every morning and put our game face on. We never show our real face except to those who know us best, the ones who see through the game face to the real you and me. But with everyone else we change our faces. The doorbell rings. You're working on something, so you grimace over the interruption. Watch the contours of your face change, depending on who's at the door. Perhaps it's a door-to-door salesman and now you're stuck listening to his ...

900. The Real Underdog!

1 Samuel 17:1, 4-11, 19-23, 32-49

Sermon

William J. Carl, III

Every boy I knew growing up in the Midwest loved this story. We acted it out. We imagined ourselves as David, the shepherd boy, with nothing but a sling and a few smooth stones. Goliath represented for us every neighborhood bully who had ever picked on us. Of course, we only had dime-store slingshots. You know the kind where you pulled back the bungee cord-like launcher with the little patch in the middle and tried to nail your target. The idea that David pegged Goliath with nothing but a leather strap and ...

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