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 901 to 925 of 1400 results

901. Why We Need the Pledge of Allegiance

Matthew 13:31-35, Matthew 13:44-46, Matthew 13:47-52

Sermon

Wayne Brouwer

... community, Matthew honors the devout tradition of minimizing public use of the name of God by using the term "kingdom of heaven." Elsewhere among the gospels and throughout the New Testament the equivalent idea, "kingdom of God," is dominant. Some of us have the notion that the kingdom of God is primarily a secret and personal rule of God in individual hearts. God is no earthly ruler whose fortunes are dictated by the latest research poll. His name won't appear on the ballots when we vote in November ...

902. Mistaken Identity

Matthew 16:13-20

Sermon

Wayne Brouwer

... the deceptive one — the young woman whose photos won the "Ugliest Girl" contest, or the young woman who waltzed in beauty? School On The Run Faith is a matter of appearances as well. It is important that we understand who Jesus is, not just in our sometimes mistaken notions of who we would like him to be, but who he is by his own testimony and actions. That seems to be why Jesus challenges his disciples to read the appearances well as they walk one day in the north country of Palestine. "Who do people say ...

903. The Road No One Wants to Travel

Matthew 16:21-28

Sermon

Wayne Brouwer

... stops. As he looked for a seat, he saw my face and beamed at me with great joy. "Hi, Will!" he said brightly, in a wonderful British accent. Unfortunately, I'm not Will. When he sat next to me and I opened my mouth to protest his mistaken notion of who I was, my flat American English paved the way for his embarrassment. Obviously, I was not the person he expected. Nevertheless, we got along "brilliantly," as the British put it, and I am no longer either Will or a stranger to the man. Mistaken identity is ...

904. I Love a Parade

Isaiah 50:4-9a

Sermon

Schuyler Rhodes

... absorb. We bristle at the thought. We rebel. Most of us don't like the idea of anyone being "the boss of us." We'd rather go our own way and make our own decisions. In fact, our nation is the product of a rebellion, and we hold dear the notion that we are free to pursue our own happiness pretty much anyway we want. Yet that freedom, for we who claim Christ, is tempered by the radical obedience that leads this parade into Jerusalem and to the cross. The truth is that this freedom to do whatever we wish is ...

905. Being a Witness

Acts 2:14, 22-32

Sermon

Schuyler Rhodes

... resurrection? Not likely. And it's not likely that this was his reference point. Our time could be used to sort out the historical context of Peter's remark here. References to the wider Jewish community would have to be explored, as well as notions of the early church community that was being addressed in this writing. Whichever way the scholarship goes, it's clear that the writer here means to expand the concept of witness beyond its normative definition. Certainly, not everyone in Peter's hearing was an ...

906. Converting to Christianity

Acts 2:14, 36-41

Sermon

Schuyler Rhodes

... it was too judgmental. Who among us, after all, has a monopoly on goodness? Who are we to point a finger? We have pretty much abandoned the idea that we are all sinful as well, and in its place we tried to plant the pop-psychological notion that we're all in good shape. No judgment, no real boundaries, and finally, no real clarity about belief. When conservative folk in the church charge liberals with shallow theology, friends, they have a point. Now, before the mob attacks, let me say that there is good ...

907. This Is In the Bible?

Acts 2:42-47

Sermon

Schuyler Rhodes

... that such things wouldn't work in "today's world," and that there's nothing wrong with making a "profit." It's hard to confront the truth that scripture, it seems, wants us to share so well with others that we divest ourselves of the notion of private property altogether. The idea is that in Christian community the welfare of the individual is found in the welfare of the community. Thus, everyone gives everything they have to the community to be distributed according to need. Wait. What's that? According to ...

908. Martyrdom Chic

Acts 7:55-60

Sermon

Schuyler Rhodes

... a new vision of what it means to go all the way for our faith. In a time where the concept of self-giving love is viewed as unhealthy by the therapeutic community, we step with clarity into lives of self-giving love. In a day when the notion of martyrdom snaps our attention to the evening news to see the shattered lives of a sacrifice that can only bring only more death, we must build a living consensus that speaks to the power of a living faith. Together, in Christian community, we are called to go ...

909. Are We There Yet?

Acts 1:6-14

Sermon

Schuyler Rhodes

... return the way he came, but candidly, it's been a long time now, hasn't it? I may be going out on a limb here, but I want to make a suggestion. Could it be that 2,000 years down the road, it might be appropriate to revisit the notion of Jesus' return? While I embrace the idea of the return of Jesus as an article of my faith, I have been moved to explore the possibility that we might have misunderstood the concept. It's certainly worth exploring, don't you think? Think with me now. What is one ...

910. Show Me What’s Real

Exodus 33:12-23

Sermon

Timothy J. Smith

... angel would lead the people from that moment until they arrived at the promised land, Moses took exception. He knew that God was still angry with the people and wanted God to continue to take an active a part in their sojourn. Moses would not stand for the notion that God would be absent but insisted that the Lord God resume God's role. Where in the previous chapter God referred to the people as Moses' people, in our lesson Moses subtly reminded God that the people were in fact God's own people. "Now if I ...

911. Forward March

Joshua 3:1-17

Sermon

Timothy J. Smith

... people currently living on the land. Crossing the river would not be easy as is often the case with most major transitions in our lives. The people had spent forty years in the desert, dealing with sandstorms and scorpions. They were frightened at the notion that they would have to cross the river. The Jordan was neither deep nor wide, except when it floods. The river was only ninety to 100 feet wide and about three to twelve feet deep. However, when the river flooded, it expanded considerably — anywhere ...

912. Are We There Yet?

James 5:7-10

Sermon

John N. Brittain

... your hearts" (NIV "stand firm") Christian patience is much more than waiting for "this to pass." It is confidence that all of history, including our individual lives, are providentially in God's control. Because Christian patience hinges so directly on the notion that God is truly in control of things, Tertullian, the second-century African theologian, saw patience as foundational to Christian morality and the lack of patience as key to the fall and sin. How? Satan, Tertullian wrote, became impatient with ...

913. Not What You Expected

Hebrews 2:10-18

Sermon

John N. Brittain

... in the next. Or maybe we become humanists, focusing all our time and effort on the overwhelming needs at hand. We know that doesn't work. Some years ago, when the topic "burn-out" was all the rage, there were many, including many Christians, who pooh-poohed the notion of burning out. Their motto became, "I'd rather flame out than burn out." Sounds dynamic and Type-A, doesn't it? But some sage pointed out the fallacy. Whether you flame out, they wrote, or burn out, you are still out. God calls us to stay in ...

914. The Vastness of Relationships

Ephesians 1:3-14

Sermon

John N. Brittain

... places. As amazing as the deliverance at the Red Sea may have been, as awe-inspiring as David's mighty conquests extending the boundaries of Israel to their greatest extent may have been, this cosmic work in Jesus is truly mind-bending. It expands the notion of God working in history — the Old Testament narratives, the miracles of Jesus, and the missionary journeys of Paul, God reaching out to you or me in a moment of particular need — to a galactic scale. Stop for a moment and consider this: Paul's ...

915. By Whose Standards?

1 Corinthians 4:1-5

Sermon

John N. Brittain

... if he is accountable to his master, the oikonomos is more skilled and more highly valued than the huperetes. If there is one thing that pop psychology has taught us, it is that how we feel about ourselves, having a "positive self-image" is terribly important, a notion Paul seems to dismiss in 4b: "I am not thereby acquitted." Paul says it is faithfulness that is most crucial in the long run. Maybe that is why we are so attracted to people like Francis of Assisi, Mother Teresa, and Henri Nouwen. Each of them ...

916. In Spite of Evidence to the Contrary

Romans 4:13-25

Sermon

Steven E. Albertin

The scriptures talk about "faith" in many different ways. One of my favorites is the letter to the Hebrews (11:1) where "faith" is described as "the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen." A similar notion of "faith" is utilized by Saint Paul in today's second reading from Romans (4:18). Paul calls it "hoping against hope." Or as I would like to paraphrase it, "in spite of evidence to the contrary." Paul draws on the ancient story of Abraham and Sarah to illustrate what ...

917. Luke 14:25-33

Luke 14:25-35

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... . Jesus wanted his disciples to know this final cost before they make a decision to follow him so that none should bail out from mediocrity and half-heartedness midway through their faith journey. Jesus’ second illustration uses a military image, highlighting both notions of cost and conflict. The “cost” the king must consider before engaging an approaching enemy army is the cost in lives. Like the tower builder, the king must assess the long-term costs of the pending battle. In this case the greater ...

918. Jesus the Toxicologist

Luke 16:19-31

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... the sick, house the homeless. He so hoarded his wealth for his own personal use and power that he allowed Lazarus, who was poor, sick, and homeless, to lie right at the gates to his estate, without even considering offering him care, without even entertaining the notion of extending a helping hand to him. In late August of this year 67 year old Billie Jean James, who had been missing for four months, was finally found. Her husband found her dead in their own home, buried under one of the mountains of trash ...

919. Acquired Taste

2 Timothy 1:1-2:13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... and reignite the power of the Holy Spirit in his day-to-day faithfulness. This Spirit was not a “spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power, and of love, and of self discipline”(v.7). Timothy was called to give up a notion of faith that earned him universal approval and unqualified triumphs wherever he went. Timothy had to acquire a taste for a faith that saw suffering and rejection, even imprisonment and death, as expressions of his “holy calling” and in full accordance with God’s ...

920. Don’t Blow Off What Is God-Breathed!

2 Timothy 3:10--4:8

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... from the words of scripture he had studied all his life. Jesus’ work may have been wholly new. But God’s presence was wholly recognizable to anyone who knew the stories of God’s covenant with creation in the Hebrew Bible. What has happened to us that the notion of a Bible study is about as appealing as a root canal? First of all, we are reading the Bible all wrong. We have an acute case of versitis. The Bible wasn’t written in chapter and verse, but in letters and songs and stories. But we aren ...

921. There Will Be Singing

Isaiah 35:1-10

Sermon

King Duncan

... on her front stoop. Out of the small, sleek iPod comes the tinny sounds and tiny pictures of children singing “Hark, the Herald Angels Sing.” Next door the kids are waving from a window. According to Maria Puente of USA Today, it’s an appealing notion: Spread cheer without leaving the warmth (and the giant‑screen TV) of your own home. Virtual caroling. Must be why YouTube boasts more than 300 caroling videos. We can enjoy the carolers without even going to the trouble of opening our front door. (3 ...

922. Luke 18: 9-14

Luke 18:9-14

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... indicator to examine the internal motivators guiding a life. Jesus’ example finds that prayer what people pray for, how they pray, where they pray reveals more about the state of our soul, the focus of our life, than any dietary choices. This is a radical notion for our culture, a culture that fixates on and films, that deifies and demonizes, every food choice out there. In this week’s parable Jesus urges us to take our eyes off our plates, and listen instead to the words of our prayers. Although the ...

923. What the Future Holds

Matthew 3:1-12

Illustration

Leonard Mann

... beyond, the unexplored lands and the uncrossed seas? Maps from before the adventures of Marco Polo and Christopher Columbus and Ferdinand Magellan? How grotesquely inaccurate those maps were! How vastly they differed from what the explorer eventually found! How fantastic were the notions the ancients had about what was out there - a dropping-off-place, mammoth sea serpents to swallow up ships. But as things turned out, it wasn't that way at all. You know, if Columbus had believed half the maps and legends ...

924. Jesus the Sin Stealer

John 1:29-34

Illustration

Michael L. Cobbler

... bag anyway.) On the next day, I saw Junebug at the end of school. I walked up to him and said, "Junebug, here are...." He took one look at that bag of cookies and turned running and screaming all the way down Quincy Street. I haven't even had the notion of taking someone's life ever since. Because Jesus is a sin stealer, My mom stole my intention to sin.

925. John 9:1-41

John 9:1-12

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... The text seems to assume the continuation of the same time frame and place from 8:59 the temple area during the Feast of Tabernacles. Their encounter with “a man blind from birth” sparks the question of “who sinned” from the disciples. Jesus rejects any notion of specific sin as the “cause” for the blind man’s condition. Instead, he declares that this blind man’s life will serve as a canvas for “God’s work.” Jesus even invites his disciples to join him in revealing this divine activity ...

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