Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 901 to 925 of 1249 results

901. Proclamation Appointing a National Fast Day

Illustration

William H. Seward

... 1863 Senator James Harlan of Iowa, whose daughter later married President Lincoln's son Robert, introduced this Resolution in the Senate on March 2, 1863. The Resolution asked President Lincoln to proclaim a national day of prayer and fasting. The Resolution was adopted on March 3, and signed by Lincoln on March 30, one month before the fast day was observed. By the President of the United States of America. A Proclamation. Whereas, the Senate of the United States, devoutly recognizing the Supreme Authority ...

902. Disease of the Soul

Illustration

James Packer

... it for granted that when they've learned, they'll become tough inside too. Once upon a time these leather-souled people were keen, hopeful, and expectant. But nothing happened, or they got hurt, and now they protect themselves against pain by adopting cynical, world-weary attitudes. If these people are ministers of churches, they work mechanically, merely going through the motions because their light has really gone out and they're no longer expecting anything exciting to happen. They feel that they know ...

903. The Old Medallion

Humor Illustration

... on a trip to China, bought an old medallion which she liked so well she began to wear it almost constantly about her neck. It's bizarre and striking design always gave rise to interested conversation; and the woman became so fond of it she adopted it as her good-luck charm. At a diplomatic dinner in Washington she met the Chinese ambassador who, she noticed, was observing the medallion with a faint smile upon his lips. "Have you seen one of these before, Ambassador?" the lady inquired. He admitted that ...

904. The Lord’s Prayer: A Walking Prayer

Matthew 6:5-15

Illustration

Kenneth W. Collins

... nature, and I want to be able to hear the cars honk before they run me over.) Sometimes I devote the time to prayer, and I have found that the Lord’s Prayer makes a good outline. Here’s how I do it: I address God as my Father by adoption through the grace of Jesus Christ and give thanks for His salvation. I pledge to keep His name holy in all my conduct. I remind Him of ways I have done this in the past, and ask Him forgiveness for all the ways I have failed to do so as ...

905. Whistling Jesus

John 15:1-17

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... church as our mother. We don’t worship the church, and we do worship Christ. But as access to God is primarily thru Christ, and the body of Christ is the church, so the old ship of Zion is our Mothership. If we are all “adopted children of God through Christ,” we have our spiritual re‑birth through the ongoing presence and witness of the church. All who gather in Christ’s name and in loving obedience to his commandments establish a womb for gestating discipleship and for birthing new generations ...

906. Baseball Will Be Fine

Illustration

King Duncan

... the minors, he was finally given a chance to play in the big leagues. And he quickly proved to be worth his salt setting a record for the most relief appearances by a rookie player. Along the way, however, Tim and his wife, Christine, adopted four children with very special needs two daughters from South Korea, a handicapped son from Guatemala, and another son from Vietnam. All of the children were born with very serious illnesses or defects. Neither Tim nor Christine was prepared for the tremendous demands ...

907. Fit the Picture

Luke 4:21-30

Sermon

Cynthia Cowen

... him. A prophet does not do God's work under his own initiative; it is God who sends him and empowers him. The prophet's words were affirmed by signs and wonders. In this gospel scenario, the people didn't ask Jesus for a sign, they "demanded" one! When we adopt a demanding attitude toward God, we are trying to usurp his power. In this case, it wasn't that Jesus lacked the power; the people lacked the faith to let him use it. Too often we define how God is to work in our lives, so that when he wants ...

908. Mark 7:24-37

Mark 7:24-30

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... distance without a word, pokes his fingers in ears, smears on spittle, and utters “magic” words, in order to meet this man’s need for healing. The physicality in this healing — touching the ears, touching the tongue, seems to be specially adopted for a hearing impaired individual. Jesus lets the man know exactly what he is focused upon in basic, first century, “sign language.” Ironically once the man regains his hearing and speech the whole crowd fails to “hear” Jesus’ directive to silence ...

909. You're a Treasure!

Mark 7:24-30

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

910. Easter 2

Psalm 118:14-29, Psalm 150:1-6, John 20:19-31, Acts 5:27-32, Revelation 1:4-8

Bulletin Aid

Julia Ross Strope

... , and each stage of human development — self-knowledge that acknowledges inner darkness and welcomes light coming from within and from the Holy. The “Easter Bunny” is an image of prolific life. Though it is not a Christian image, it has been adopted by our culture as a symbol of sweetness, youthful/spring, and generosity. What in our daily living and in our celebrations carries such satiation and contented anticipation? How can we be disciples of Jesus and not unwittingly accelerate terrorism? If the ...

911. Born in Bethlehem — Light

Isaiah 9:1-7

Sermon

Derl G. Keefer

... brings more satisfaction than selfishness. When the light of God develops through an experience with Christ, a deep joy invades us. What moves us to joy? freedom from sin that has separated us from God reconciliation with God recovery from our lost state with God adoption into the family of God making spiritual progress in our relationship with God life’s blessings that come from God All of these areas bring joy to the heart of the person who has discovered the joy of knowing and experiencing God. In God ...

912. Responsibility Comes with Privilege

Acts 8:4-8

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... brave men and women of that early Christian community, the message has been preached throughout the world. The Christian community has taken its responsibility seriously. Baptism, the common denominator for all Christians, is a rare privilege. We have the privilege of being adopted children of God. Too often we brush over this significant prize of being children of God. However, only a few moments of reflection will show us how great a privilege God has bestowed upon all of us. We have the privilege of ...

913. Endurance

2 Corinthians 11:24-27, 2 Timothy 4:6-8

Sermon

Scott Suskovic

... and greed. Those are not good fights. What is? I'm thinking about an alcoholic I know who struggles each day wanting a drink but has not taken one for the past nineteen years — he fights the good fight. I'm thinking about the lawyer in our church who adopted some children. To give them the time they need, she gave up her practice — she fights the good fight. I know a couple who have reasons to go their separate ways but choose to do the hard job of making it work, every day — they fight the good fight ...

914. Neutered Cat?

Humor Illustration

A girl adopted a stray cat and took him to the vet to be neutered. "I'm about 90 percent certain he's been fixed," the vet said. "How can I be 100 percent sure?" the girl asked. "Watch to see if he does any 'male' things," replied the vet. "He already lies on the couch all day," she said. "If he starts hogging the remote, I'll bring him in."

915. To God Be The Glory!

Isaiah 60:1-6

Sermon

Derl G. Keefer

... heart — a redeemed heart — a pure heart — a clean heart! In 1907, Kate Byron wrote the song, "He's Everything To Me" (sometimes attributed to Kate Ulmer) and the words are so meaningful. In sin I once had wandered, all weary, sad, and lone, till Jesus through his mercy, adopted me his own. E'er since I learned to trust him, his grace doth make me free, and now I feel his pardon. He's everything to me. Refrain: He's everything to me; from sin he sets me free. His peace and love my portion through all ...

916. Parenting — Not For The Faint Of Heart

Hosea 11:1-11

Sermon

Chrysanne Timm

... over Israel's rejection of God. "When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son" (Hosea 11:1.) The prophet's testimony begins like that of a parent delighting over the memory of a child, perhaps a child who has been adopted — delivered from suffering and death into joy and safety in God's house. It is as if God is leafing through a photo album, remembering the days of dandling a precious child on the knee. "The more I called them, the more they went from me; they kept sacrificing ...

917. The Keys to Effective Praying

Luke 11:1-13

Sermon

King Duncan

... brown eyes. Because of his business, he lived in a city apartment, not a big house with a garden, and he took cabs, and rode subways, not a sleek, expensive Ferrari. He had three loving daughters, not three sons a nurse, an artist, and a music teacher. They adopted, not two St. Bernards, but a fluffy cat. One morning the man awoke and remembered his boyhood dream. He became extremely depressed. He called out to God, “Remember when I was a boy and told You all the things I wanted? Why didn’t You give me ...

918. Signed, Sealed, and Delivered

Ephesians 1:1-14

Sermon

Timothy J. Smith

... Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28). All distinctions of time and culture are erased. We are all God’s children. God, “destined us for adoption as his children through Jesus Christ” before the creation of the world. God loves us that much. The Ephesians and other first-century believers might have felt marginalized and unimportant, put down and ignored, but they found themselves at the center of God’s ...

919. A One Sentence Legacy

Luke 14:25-35

Sermon

King Duncan

... stage of “Generativity vs. Stagnation.” This is when people become aware of the need to live beyond themselves and begin the difficult task of leading a meaningful and useful life. Of course, we don’t have to wait until we are a boomer or beyond to adopt this perspective on life. It is the kind of worldview that Jesus encouraged among his followers. What kind of legacy do you hope to leave to those you love and to the world? In 1962, Clare Boothe Luce, one of the first women to serve in the ...

920. The Door of the Cross

John 10:1-21

Sermon

David O. Bales

... us, but to attract us. Our Lord Jesus is a completely open door, not one that only swings open with an arrogant, patronizing glee. And no one else controls that door. In the middle ages when trade guilds passed on the knowledge of craftsmen, carpenters adopted the motto: “I am the door.” When they made doors, they deliberately created the door’s two small upper panels and the larger lower panels to form raised crosses. Most people have a door somewhere in the house with the sign of the cross on ...

921. The Lifesaver App

1 Corinthians 1:10-17

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... bank is a never completed project. Best-selling author Bill O’Reilly even has a vocab test every night on his #1 Cable News show, “The O’Reilly Factor.” The great thing about a truly “living language”, like English, is that it is always changing, adopting, adapting, and adding new words, new concepts, new elements. How many words do you use in everyday discussions in 2014 that a few years ago would have had no meaning whatsoever? When did you first learn to speak “coffee,” so that you could ...

922. The Woman at the Well

John 4:1-26

Sermon

King Duncan

... opposite direction. Surprised, the woman cried out, “Augustine, it is I.” But Augustine, proceeding on his way, cried back to her, “Yes, but it is not I.” (3) An amazing change had taken place in Augustine’s life. We’re not talking about adopting a few new resolutions. We are talking about the conversion that accompanies a changed heart. As someone has wisely said, “If you were to see a butterfly, it would never occur to you to say, ‘Hey, everybody! Come look at this good-looking converted ...

923. Breaking News: The Middle East

Genesis 12:1-8

Sermon

James Merritt

... to be God’s prophet to the Arab people. At this time in his mind, there was no conflict between Christianity and Judaism, because they both worshipped one God. All Mohammed originally wanted for his people was to give up their paganism and their idols and to adopt the belief in one single God. Early on as his following began to grow, he had all his followers kneel as they prayed towards Jerusalem. He originally was not trying to find a new religion. He actually felt like that he had now found the direct ...

924. Family Re:Union - Great Expectations

Ephesians 5:22-33

Sermon

James Merritt

... concept. The truth of the matter is practically everybody submits to someone or to something. We simply decide when we are going to do it, where we are going to do it and to whom we are going to do it. There is even a posture that we adopt almost naturally, almost as a reflex, when we sense the need to submit. For example, when we are contrite or broken, we will fall to our knees, physically expressing what we are feeling emotionally. When a subject comes before a king what does he do to submit? He kneels ...

925. Up Close & Personal: Drawing Near

Hebrews 4:14-5:10

Sermon

James Merritt

... people. I know that to be true for this reason. Have you ever noticed the more you spend time with other people the more you become just like them? You will find yourself using phrases they use, seeing things the same way they seem them, and adopting the same idiosyncrasies. Likewise, the more time you spend with Jesus the more you become like Jesus. When you read the New Testament one thing is clear – people were drawn to Jesus (rich people, poor people, good people, bad people). The more you are like ...

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