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 901 to 925 of 5000 results

901. Praying With Bloody Knuckles

Isaiah 62:1-12, Isaiah 61:1-11

Sermon

William L. Self

My wife was conducting a prayer workshop recently and a member of the group told her this true story. She had grown up in London and her pastor walked from his home to the church every day. Along the way he had to pass through some rough sections of town, and as he passed one particular bar there was always the same man loitering outside, very drunk and very loudmouthed. The pastor was really angry at the wasted life and annoyed by the obnoxious taunts of the man. He started praying for the man every time ...

902. From A Distance

Exodus 24:1-18

Sermon

Paul E. Robinson

Heroes are a part of the human experience. They motivate, stimulate, encourage, and provide role models. There's something about looking up to the one who did something that is so far beyond most everyone's reach or ability. "Wow! I could never do that!" we say. All through the Olympics my wife and I joked about what we would look like if we tried to jump off the ski jump or leap into the air with skates on! It's remarkable what some people are able to do, and do it with grace and apparent ease. Can you do ...

903. The Scope Of The Spirit

Sermon

John A. Stroman

How is the power of the Holy Spirit within the Christian community related to divine activity in the world as a whole? Does the wind of the Spirit that blows within the church blow elsewhere in the world? There are those who almost instinctively sense that the Spirit is moving about in all levels of human activity seeking to unlock many doors and seeking to resolve many of our human dilemmas. In John 3:8 Jesus talks about the wind (pneuma) as the Spirit and that the wind "blows where it wills." This ...

904. The Heralding Of Advent

Drama

Karren Boehr

Theme: The Four Sundays In Advent Includes Christmas morning and an additional Sunday, if desired, to round out a longer Christmas season. Advent is a time of great expectation, not only as we remember the birth of Christ, but also as a preparation for Christ's coming again. The four candles of Advent are reminders of who Christ truly was and who he is today: the candle of Justice, the candle of Forgiveness, the candle of Love, the candle of Mercy. Advent is a time of celebration, of heralding forth the ...

905. Proper 6

Matthew 9:35-38, Matthew 10:1-42, Genesis 18:1-15, Exodus 19:1-25, Romans 5:1-11

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

Theme: God's people are commissioned for mission. God told Moses, as recorded in Exodus 19, that the Jews were to be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. In the Gospel, the Lord empowers the apostles to go out and proclaim the gospel and minister in his name. That is our calling too. COMMENTARY Lesson 1: Genesis 18:1-15 (C) Three men appear to Abraham as he sits by the entrance of his tent in the heat of the day. Abraham extends gracious hospitality to them and one of the men reveals himself to be the ...

906. Proper 9

Genesis 24:1-67, Romans 8:1-17, Romans 7:7-25, Zechariah 9:9-13, Matthew 11:25-30, Matthew 11:1-19

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

Theme: Freedom from oppression. In the First Lesson (Zechariah 9:9-12), it is freedom from political oppression. In the Second Lesson, it is freedom from our sinful human nature and in the Gospel, we are offered freedom from the oppression of the law and of man-made religious regulations. COMMENTARY Lesson 1: Genesis 24:34-38, 42-49, 58-67 (C) In his old age, Abraham sends his trusted servant back from the land of his origin to secure a wife for his son, Isaac, from his own people. He discovers Rebekah, ...

907. The Strange Tactics Of God

2 Samuel 6:1-23

Sermon

Arthur H. Kolsti

Some of you will remember Indiana Jones And The Raiders Of The Lost Ark, a film released several years ago but still showing up from time to time on cable and satellite television movie channels. Today we are going to trace a bit of the history of the ark as reported in 1 Samuel 4-6. We will not experience any of the dangers faced by Indiana Jones. We will encounter some marvelous Hebrew satire as well as some profound insight into the strange ways of God. But before starting I want to lift up two ...

908. Can Christians Dance?

Sermon

William G. Carter

Mark 2:23--3:6 (C, RC) Mark 2:23-28 (L) A few years ago, I was asked to serve as the worship leader at a regional church conference for teenagers. The enthusiastic recruiter told me about the wonderful experience I could expect from the gathering. "Every summer," she said, "the conference brings together about a hundred or so young people at a camp that has no swimming pool. We gather during the dog days of August. The conference is so much fun, nobody misses the pool!" My assignment was to preach sermons ...

909. We Come to Jesus for Rest

Mark 6:30-44

Bulletin Aid

RobertT D. Ingram

In the first days, people came to Jesus for rest, to hear his teaching, and to be healed. We still do this today, because Jesus is still the greatest of all teachers and healers. Greeting Leader: Jesus said to his disciples, "Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest awhile." People: Jesus, we also need your rest. Leader: Jesus saw the crowds were like sheep without a shepherd, so he began to teach them many things. People: Jesus, be our shepherd and teach us. Leader: Wherever Jesus went ...

910. An Untouchable God?

1 Samuel 6:1-7:1

Sermon

Robert Noblett

The story of the ark’s removal to Jerusalem is vintage Old Testament so far as most of us are concerned. It features a storm-and-battle God, fearful and yet rejoicing believers, and a great deal of religious uncertainty. Reading it from the vantage point of the latter years of the Twentieth Century, we are apt to question its relevance for our day. But let’s not write it off with undue haste. We are never quite as sophisticated as we think we are and, inversely, the pioneers of faith are never quite as ...

911. Investing God's Gift

Luke 19:11-27

Sermon

Larry R. Kalajainen

One of the things that frequently happens when we dream during sleep is that in our dreams we find ourselves in a familiar place or situation. We know where we are, yet for some really frustrating and unknown reason, things are just different enough that we're not really sure. In our dream we're about to open a door only to discover that the door isn't where we know it ought to be. Or perhaps we're about to perform a familiar act, and somehow, we just can't do it, and we can't understand why. We keep ...

912. Good Friday

John 19:28-37, Hebrews 10:1-18, Isaiah 52:13--53:12, John 18:1-11, John 19:38-42, John 19:17-27

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

Theme: Healing and eternal life through the sufferings and death of Jesus Christ, God's suffering servant and our Savior. COMMENTARY Old Testament: Isaiah 52:13--53:12 This is the fourth Servant Song. The usual scholarly interpretation identifies the Servant with the nation of Israel. I must straight out confess that I have real problems with this interpretation. First of all, the images are intimately personal. "He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief..." (v. 3). A ...

913. The Most Important Person

John 1:35, 43-51

Children's Sermon

Object: a wallet-sized picture of Jesus Good morning, boys and girls. Do any of you like to carry around pictures of your good friends? Many people do that. They will put a little book of pictures in their purse, or maybe keep some in their billfold. We don't keep just anybody's picture in there, only people who are special to us. Then when we want to think about them, we can take out their picture and look at it and remember how special they are to us. Here's a picture some people carry around in their ...

914. Two R-Rated Stories

John 7:45--8:11

Sermon

John M. Braaten

We are going to look at two R-rated stories from the life of Christ this morning. I use the term "R-rated" in the sense that when some people observed the behavior of Jesus in these events, they were so morally incensed that in each case they felt he should be censured. The opening scene of the first story begins with a woman who had been dragged out of her house by a couple of her pastors; they had not even given her time to comb her hair or properly dress. She had been caught red-handed, found committing ...

915. Portrait Of A Powerful Servant

John 13:1-17

Sermon

John M. Braaten

Jesus loved to paint portraits for the soul. He did it through his actions as well as his words. Indeed, his whole life was a powerful illustration. On the particular night to which our texts bear witness, the image Jesus will etch into the memories of his disciples will be so powerful that they will never again be able to think of him without reference to this event. Writer Walter Wangerin suggests that the atmosphere of that evening was shrouded in mystery and filled with intrigue. There was the meal ...

916. Redrawing The Landscape

Multiple Scriptures

Sermon

Harold Warlick

One summer's day my wife and I journeyed to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to attend a conference. We packed early in the morning and joined a colleague and his wife for breakfast. The other couple was also attending the Pittsburgh conference. After saying "goodbye" to our friends, we indicated that we would see them at the hotel in Pittsburgh. We were leaving directly from the breakfast while they were not leaving for another two or three hours, after they went home, packed, and took their children to the ...

917. Ka-Chang

Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon

John Jamison

It was a strange sound. Some said it was a kind of "clanging" sound, while others said it was more of a "ka-ching," or more accurately, a "ka-chang!" It sounded like the result of metal hitting metal, which is exactly what it was. In the valley off to the west from the hillside is a steep cliff rising up the face of Mount Arbel. The face of the cliff is covered with hundreds of caves, with no good way to get to them without climbing straight up the cliff. That's why the Zealots liked them. They were safe. ...

918. The Vine And The Branches

John 15:1-17

Sermon

Jerry L. Schmalemberger

Just outside Nazareth where Jesus grew up you can see them on both sides of the road. They grow everywhere out of that dry, rocky soil. They are the grapevines mentioned in John 15. When I stepped off the tourist bus to take pictures, I was amazed to see these short stumps of vines lying over close to the ground and propped up with a rock to keep them off the hot red soil. I had pictured in my mind all these years, grape arbors like grandpa’s that ran from the house to the garage in the backyard and which ...

919. Step Twelve - Responsibility

Lk 19:1-10 · Gal 6:1-10 · Is 61:1-4

Sermon

John A. Terry

Step 12: "Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to others, and to practice these principles in all our affairs." This is not a step inward in our own journey of life and faith. It is a step outward which we take after we have recognized where God has led us in this journey. It is, in religious language, the call of the missionary. It is the call to share the good news. For some it is the good news found in sobriety. But it is a step for anyone caught ...

920. The Stranger in the Manger

John 1:1-18, John 1:19-28

Sermon

Johnny Dean

What do you do at your house to get ready for Christmas? Over the years I've noticed that family customs vary from household to household. Some like to decorate the house inside and out, while some only put up a few modest decorations in the living room. Some like to put the Christmas tree up the day after Thanksgiving, while others wait until Christmas Eve and make the decorating of the tree the last order of business for the season especially if the tree is a LIVE one! (How many needles does this thing ...

921. Nobody - Simon of Cyrene

Sermon

Ron Lavin

My purpose is to ask you to look again at the way of the cross and to examine the anemic thing that has come to be called Christianity. Perhaps we can see these things from a different perspective. I speak to you from my time - nearly 2,000 years ago. Yet what I have to say to you will have a contemporary ring to it for those who have ears to hear. I speak here about the way of the cross. That is always a timely subject. My name as given in the Gospel of Mark is Simon of Cyrene (Mark 15:21). My name as ...

922. A House Or A Home?

Joshua 24:1-27

Sermon

R. E. Lybrand

"Now then," Joshua continued, "honor the Lord and serve him sincerely and faithfully. Get rid of the gods which your ancestors used to worship in Mesopotamia and in Egypt, and serve only the Lord. If you are not willing to serve him, decide today whom you will serve, the gods your ancestors worshiped in Mesopotamia or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are now living. As for my family and me, we will serve the Lord." A family moved to a new city where the father's company had transferred him. This ...

923. "Crown Him Lord of all!"

Sermon

William Luoma

According to the three-year ecumenical lectionary, developed in recent years, the Sunday before Easter is primarily known as the Sunday of the Passion, instead of Palm Sunday. The procession with palm branches is still recommended, but the emphasis of the day has shifted to the Passion of Christ, as seen in the suggested lengthy Gospel readings appointed. In this worship service, however, we have chosen to lift up the Palm Sunday theme, and to focus on the kingship of Christ and his triumphal entry into ...

924. Monologue: Silent Silas

Acts 15:22-35

Drama

Robert F. Scott

There was a man named Silas. We read of him in Acts and in several of the Epistles. Yet in the whole of the New Testament there is not one word from Silas himself: not a word that he said, not a scrap of a letter in his own name. Was he silent? We know he was not. He was a prophet for Christ; he exhorted, taught, preached, prayed, and sang. Of all that Silas said, what was it and what was it worth? The First Epistle of Peter was written by the hand of Silas. If we were to ask Peter, what might he say? ...

925. Monologues: Disciples Redeemed

John 20:10-18, John 20:19-23, John 20:24-31

Drama

Raymond I. Keffer

Saul Of Tarsus "I am Saul of Tarsus. Like my fellow Jews, I am a true believer in the God of Abraham, Issac, and Jacob. I have a commission from the leaders of the one true church to eliminate a troublesome group known as Christians, the followers of Jesus of Nazareth; the same Jesus who was crucified for His false teachings. I intend to give these Christians the same punishment for blasphemy Stephen got: death by stoning. This threat to the one true religion and to the one true God, Jehovah, cannot be ...

Showing results