Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 901 to 925 of 1409 results

901. Mark 9:2-9

Mark 9:2-9

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

Scholarly discussions of the Transfiguration event whether examined in Matthew, Mark or Luke nearly all begin by admitting that no one is still very sure what this story is all about. Is it trying to tell early Christians about Jesus' unique, exalted position as Messiah? Or should we focus our attention more closely on the disciples and their experience on the mountain- top? Even if we resolve the issue of focus, the event itself remains strange. Elijah and Moses carry such heavy symbolic cargo in Jewish ...

902. John 20:19-31

John 20:19-31

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

This week's lengthy gospel text contains two distinct pericopes and a separate conclusion. The content of each of these two stories may be distinct, but they intentionally mirror each other closely in form. The extreme importance of the Johannine message delivered by these two scenes is evident by their placement. The final two verses read today (vv. 30-31) constitute John's original ending to his gospel before the events in chapter 21 were belatedly added. Thus, the events and reactions described in 20:19 ...

903. Mark 10:17-31

Mark 10:17-31

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

It seems that as Jesus comes closer to Jerusalem, he hits closer to home with some of the most discomforting and disheartening judgments anyone could hear. Last week Jesus spoke about divorce messing around in our regions of relationships, loyalty and integrity. This week Jesus really gets personal moving from marriage to money. His message is so startling and discouraging that he frightens one potential convert away and strikes doubt and despair into the hearts of his own disciples. In verse 17, the ...

904. Mark 13:1-8

Mark 13:1-8

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

The gospel of Mark offers scholars a number of agendas for debate and dissension. Alongside arguments about the role and mission of the disciples, the author's organizational strategy, the perceived audience being addressed, and the relationship to and dependence upon Matthew and Luke, lies the debate over Mark's eschatology and the place of chapter 13. It doesn't take more than a quick read through chapters 11-14 to notice that chapter 13 could easily be dropped from its place and the narrative between 12 ...

905. About Sex

1 Corinthians 6:12-20

Sermon

King Duncan

The mother of two daughters, ages 10 and 12, decided it was time to tell them about the birds and the bees. She sent off for a booklet recommended by the PTA and, having read it, called the girls in for a long chat. When she finished, she said, with her heart in her throat, “You may ask me any question you want to.” The oldest said, “Anything?” The mother said, “Yes, anything,” then she took a deep breath, thinking, “Here it comes.” The little girl asked, “Can we have a new baseball bat? It should not ...

906. No More Static Cling!

John 20:10-18

Sermon

Mike Ripski

Had you entered the sanctuary this morning and seen red poinsettias and heard the greeting, “Merry Christmas,” you might have thought, “Someone has taken my Easter, and I don’t know where they’ve put it.” You would be transported back in time to the experience of those who went to the tomb that first Easter morning. What they found wasn’t what they expected. Now you’re ready to hear the Easter story from the Fourth Gospel. (The Gospel is read dramatically.) A. Predictability, familiarity, and …. Easter has ...

907. The Fork in the Road

Mark 8:31-38

Illustration

Scott Hoezee

According to that great font of wisdom, Yogi Berra, "If you come to a fork in the road, take it." Mark 8 is a kind of theological fork in the road. This chapter is the hinge of Mark's gospel. Not only is this the exact middle of Mark in terms of chapters and verses, it is also theologically the center point at which the ministry of Jesus takes a decisive turn toward the cross. Jesus seems to know what he is doing and also where he is going (or, better said, where he must go whether he wants to go that ...

908. Epiphany 6

2 Kings 5:1-27, 1 Corinthians 9:1-27, Mark 1:40-45

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

COMMENTARY Old Testament: 2 Kings 5:1-14 Elisha was a prophet of Israel in the ninth century. He was known as a miracle worker among prophets. In the cleansing of Naaman, the Syrian general, Elisha is in the background that Yahweh might receive the glory. When Naaman humbles himself and obeys Elisha's directive to wash in the Jordan, he is healed. The passage brings to the forefront the superiority of Yahweh over the gods of Naaman and God's graciousness which is extended to Gentiles. Epistle: 1 ...

909. A Violent Wind

Acts 2:1-13

Sermon

King Duncan

In May of 1997, a powerful tornado swept through parts of Texas, flattening buildings and overturning cars. Shoppers at the Albertson’s supermarket in Cedar Park, Texas, were in a state of panic. Then a commanding voice come over the intercom, the voice of Larry Fore, the manager of Albertson’s. This is what he said: “Don’t leave the store or you will die . . . Your only chance of survival is to do exactly what I tell you.” Fore then directed the shoppers to enter the nearest meat locker. They did just as ...

910. Heart-Healthy Christians

Romans 8:18-27

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

Beach and bathing suit season has begun. And I’ve noticed something I wonder if you’ll agree with me. The coolest new hot trend is “tiny.” No, not tiny swimsuits those have long been fashionable, at least since Brian Hyland’s 1960 hit single “Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Polka Dot Bikini.” No, the new big thing is small . . . small and smaller portions of food. Worrying over waistlines has encouraged the food industry to re-package their goodies into “100 Calorie” snack bags. Teenie Weenie versions of Oreo, ...

911. All We Really Need to Know

John 3:1-17

Illustration

Robert Fulgum

Robert Fulghum in All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten summed it up best: "ALL I REALLY NEED TO KNOW about how to live and what to do and how to be, I learned in kindergarten. Wisdom was not at the top of the graduate-school mountain, but there in the sandpile of Sunday School. These are the things I learned: Share everything. Play fair. Don't hit people. Put things back where you found them. Clean up your own mess. Don't take things that aren't yours. Say you're sorry when you hurt somebody ...

912. Stilling Storms

Mark 4:35-41

Sermon

King Duncan

A mother was out walking with her 4 year old daughter. The child picked up something off the ground and started to put it into her mouth. The mother took it away and said “Don’t do that!” “Why not?” asked the child. “Because it’s on the ground,” said her mother. “You don’t know where it’s been. It’s dirty, and it’s probably loaded with germs that could make you sick.” The child looked at her mother with total admiration and said, “Mommy, how do you know all this stuff? You’re so smart.” The mother said, “ ...

913. Nobody Is Too Big to Fail. Nobody Is Too Small to Prevail.

Mark 6:1-6

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

Titanic. Say the word, and everyone, everywhere knows the story. Whether you know the name because you saw the movie, or you know the name because you spent the bulk of your life in the twentieth century, you still know the name. “Titanic” means huge, gargantuan, immense. The word “Titanic,” which rhymes with “gigantic,” brings visions of unstoppable power, immovable force, impenetrable resistance. The “Titanic” really set the tone for the next hundred years, when 100 million people would be killed in the ...

914. John 6:1-21

John 6:1-15

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

There are many distinctive aspects of the “Fourth Gospel,” but one of its most unique features was John’s relatively brief focus on Jesus’ Galilean ministry. The Synoptics, on the other hand, spend a great deal of time detailing the teachings Jesus offered, the miraculous works performed, and the crowds that followed him as he crisscrossed the Galilean countryside. Today’s text is the exception to John’s usual Galilean omissions. Because he too recounts the miraculous feeding of the five thousand, this ...

915. Jesus Walking on Water

John 6:1-21; Matt. 14:22-36

Illustration

Johnny Dean

Alexander Solzhenitsyn said that only once during his long imprisonment in a labor camp in the Soviet Union did he become so discouraged that he thought about suicide. He was outdoors, on a work detail, and he had reached a point where he no longer cared whether he lived or died. When he had a break, he sat down, and a stranger sat beside him, someone he had never seen before and would never see again. For no apparent reason, this stranger took a stick and drew a cross on the ground. Solzhenitsyn sat and ...

916. In Search of Jesus

John 6:16-24

Sermon

King Duncan

One day, Marlene Nance’s little daughter, Emma, was playing with her paper dolls. These were special paper dolls. They were all Bible characters. Suddenly Emma realized that the Jesus paper doll was missing. Marlene and Emma looked all over the house, but they couldn’t find Jesus anywhere. Later that afternoon, Emma came running to her mother with some good news. She had found Jesus! He was in one of her Daddy’s magazine. Emma proudly held out her new Jesus. Marlene gasped as she took the picture from Emma ...

917. Go Fly A Kite

John 6:25-59

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

The health care debate is getting intense, and tense. This past week an unnamed congressman was told by another member of Congress to “Go fly a kite.” There is another meaning to that phrase than “Buck Off” or “Go Jump In The Lake.” I think I can count on all of you over 40 having seen a movie named “Mary Poppins.” Am I right? How many of you have never seen that Disney classic? . . . Wow. [React to how few, or how many.] Those of you who have seen this movie know that it’s a story about a magical nanny ...

918. Unwise and Wise Living

Ephesians 5:15-20

Illustration

William R. Baker

Jewish rabbis tell a poignant story that drives home the point of Proverbs 18:21. As the story goes (and five versions of this appear in Greek literature), Rabbi Simeon ben Gamaliel one day asked his servant to go to buy some good food for him in the market. When the servant returned home, he presented the rabbi with a tongue. The next day, the rabbi told the servant to go to the market to buy some bad food. Again, the servant returned with a tongue. When the rabbi asked the servant why he returned with a ...

919. Can The Church Count On Me?

1 Chronicles 29:3

Sermon

James Merritt

An article came out not too many years ago entitled, "What The World Needs Now" and it reported the results of a Gallup Poll which reported the seven basic needs the average American said he or she had. Here they are: The need for shelter and food The need to believe life is meaningful and has a purpose The need for a sense of community and deeper relationships The need to be appreciated and respected The need to be listened to and to be heard The need to feel one is growing in their faith The need for ...

920. Belling the Cat

John 6:60-71

Sermon

King Duncan

Aesop once told a fable about a group of mice who lived in a barn. Life was wonderful, except for a sneaky cat. Hardly a day went by without a poor mouse being chased or even eaten by the cat. Finally, the head mouse called a meeting. “Ladies and gentlemen, youngsters and baby mice,” he stated. “The time is now come to resolve our problems with the cat. Does anyone have any solutions?” The mice were abuzz with ideas and suggestions, but none seemed to solve the problem. Then a young mouse got up, took the ...

921. The Paralysis of Analysis – The Fear of Failure

2 Corinthians 4:8-9

Sermon

James Merritt

I am beginning a series of messages today that I am entitling - fear factor. I would say practically all of us today will remember this picture which has been shown thousands of times and is seared into our memory. If it is true that, "A picture is worth a thousand words" you will never see a more graphic picture of fear than this one. Psychologists and sociologists agree that since 9/11, fear has been at an all time high in America. Indeed, the entire world at times is paralyzed by fear. There is a word ...

922. When I’m In Trouble

2 Timothy 4:16-18

Sermon

James Merritt

Everybody at one time or another has read the comic strip "Peanuts" by Charles Schulz. If you have, you can't help but love Charlie Brown. In one of the classic cartoons, Charlie Brown is at the beach building a beautiful sandcastle. He has worked on it all day long and as he stands back to admire his finished work, it is suddenly consumed by a huge wave. Looking at the smooth sand mound that had been his creation just a moment before, with that forlorn look, Charlie Brown says, "There must be a lesson ...

923. Picture Perfect Close Up: Children - Get Under The Umbrella

Colossians 3:21

Sermon

James Merritt

We are concluding a series that we've entitled, "Picture Perfect". It is a series on the family. We have said for the last several weeks, "God desires for the family to show His love for His glory." We have seen how God has given each family member a specific role to play and a specific responsibility to fulfill. Husbands - Love As they relate to their wives, husbands are to always ask this question, "What is the loving thing to do?" Wives - Submit The question wives are to ask as they relate to their ...

924. What Do I Do When The Load Is Too Heavy?

Exodus 18:13-27

Sermon

James Merritt

I had just been elected the President of the Southern Baptist Convention about two months before and already I was having trouble sleeping. I was waking up many times at 3:30am and 4:00am in the morning. Why? I might have up to ninety-plus emails to respond to, a mountain of correspondence that I had to answer and you never knew when the media was going to come calling. I had agreed to travel all over the world to visit the fourteen different regions where we had missionaries. I had to prepare two messages ...

925. Workaholics Anonymous

Genesis 2:1-3

Sermon

James Merritt

Are you a workaholic? See how many of these questions you answered yes to: Do you get more excited about your work than about family or anything else? Are there times when you can charge through work and other times when you can't get anything done? Do you take with you to bed, on weekends, on vacation? Is work the activity you enjoy most and talk about most? Do you work more than 40 hours a week? Do you turn your hobbies into money making ventures? Do you take complete responsibility for the outcome of ...

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