Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 76 to 100 of 127 results

76. A Love Triangle

Matthew 22:34-46

Sermon

David G. Rogne

... is revealed by what we do. The proper response to the claims of God is not "true" or "false," but "yes" or "no." Instead of asking ourselves whether we believe or not, let us ask ourselves whether we have this day done one thing because God said "do it," or abstained from one thing because God said "do not do it." It is meaningless to say we believe in God if we don't do anything he tells us to do. Do not expect that this call to love God is going to be satisfied by one big act of sacrifice. There ...

77. The Nazirite

Numbers 6:1-21

Understanding Series

W.H. Bellinger, Jr.

... and so is a symbol of Israel’s holiness. The chapter concludes with God’s blessing upon the people. All of these rites fall under the supervision of the priests. 6:1–8 The first part of the Nazirite vow (vv. 1–4) is to abstain from wine and other fermented drink. The description of the prohibited substances is comprehensive, including vinegar and juice from the vine as well as grapes or raisins, not even the seeds or skins, that is, the least appetizing products of the vine. The prohibition could be ...

78. Deep Water!

Matthew 14:22-33

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

... of what is coming down upon the world." We read of crime statistics in the papers. We see the ugly snarl of humanity on the evening news. Friends disappoint us. Suddenly, we comprehend the world as a desperate sinking place. I know there are times when I must abstain from television news, the papers, and magazines. They sometimes arrest my gaze and fill me with despair. So I eschew them for a period of time while I restore my faithful gaze at Jesus. If I don't so this, I sink into the world's miseries. The ...

79. Lost? Looking For Happiness

1 Peter 2:9-12

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. [10] Once you were not a people, but now you are God's people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. [11] Beloved, I urge you as aliens and exiles to abstain from the desires of the flesh that wage war against the soul. [12] Conduct yourselves honorably among the Gentiles, so that, though they malign you as evildoers, they may see your honorable deeds and glorify God when he comes to judge. You and I are called to live ...

80. Sacred Pleasures

Romans 14:1--15:13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... in the Lord always, and again I say rejoice”). Everyone wants a Paul love passage at their marriage (“the greatest of these is love”). Here is Paul’s “pleasure principle” for Christians. Whatever Christians do, whether they eat meat or abstain from meats, whether they mark a myriad of days as “special” or consider all days to be equally God-blessed; whatever disciples of Jesus do, they do it “to the honor of the Lord,” or translated differently, “to glory god.” Whatever Christians ...

81. Additional Instructions Regarding Sacrifices and Impurity

Leviticus 17:1-16

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... from which the blood is not drained at the time of slaughter goes back to God’s initial permission to eat meat in the days of Noah (Gen. 9:4), long before Israel existed. So it is not surprising that in the New Testament, abstaining from blood and what has been strangled is treated as timeless moral law (with prohibitions against pollution from idols and immorality) that remains in effect for Gentile Christians (Acts 15:20, 29). Draining blood does not apply to animals that died in other ways, whether ...

82. Gentle Light

1 Corinthians 10:14-22

Sermon

William F. Dunkle

... to me," Dr. Sangster told us. "I learned very humbly," he said, "that I might lead these brothers to Christ, but surely not if I started with their bottles." Is this what Saint Paul is teaching the Corinthian zealots? Should they quietly abstain from eating altar meats "to the glory of God" or to make themselves appear holy? The apostle is sure that for Christians the answer is obvious. Pride cancels Christianity. So also does coercion. Christians cannot force their lifestyle upon others. Saint Paul knew ...

83. Romans 14:1-12

Romans 14:1-12

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... was not viewed as suspect in any way. Indeed, the rituals of temple worship were quite bloodthirsty - Yahweh demanded and received burnt offerings of fat and meat regularly. Still, there were certain minority Jewish groups, such as the Therapeutai of Egypt, who abstained from both meat and wine. Various non-Jewish groups also picked up this trait as well, as signs of their commitment to both a simple asceticism and a life of nonviolence. Still another reason for hesitancy to eat meat among both Jewish and ...

84. Law of Vows

Numbers 30:1-16

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... . 27:1–11, regarding female inheritance). Numbers 30 does not deal with the problem that a man’s vow of physical self-denial could involve sexual abstinence that would deprive his wife. Perhaps males were unlikely to make such vows. But the apostle Paul taught that Christian marriage partners should abstain from sexual relations only temporarily and by mutual agreement (1 Cor. 7:3–5).

85. How Does Jesus Show He Is the Greatest?

John 2:1-11

Illustration

Sigurd Grindheim

... reveal his glory? This story tells me that Jesus' concern is to help individuals and make them happy. How different this is from so many religious ideas about who Jesus is and what he does. Some people have thought that a follower of Jesus should abstain from marriage. Some people seem to think that a good Christian must not be too lighthearted, but that a good Christian must be very serious. How very different the real Jesus is. He comes to a wedding. And he decides to perform his first miracle to help ...

86. Criticism and the Holy Spirit

Romans 8:26-27

Illustration

Oswald Chambers

... one from being a force for anything. That is never the work of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit alone is in the true position of a critic: He is able to show what is wrong, without wounding or hurting. "The counsel of Jesus is to abstain from judging. This sounds strange at first, because the characteristic of the Holy Spirit in a Christian is to reveal the things that are wrong; but the strangeness exists only on the surface. The Holy Spirit does reveal what is wrong in others, but His discernment is ...

87. For Goodness Sake

Mark 10:17-31

Sermon Aid

Clement E. Lewis

... once; any good thing therefore, that I can do, or any goodness that I can show to my fellow creatures, let me do it now; let me not defer or neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again." Paul wrote, "Test everything; hold fast to what is good; abstain from every form of evil." (1 Thessalonians 5:21) Hymn: "Dear Master, In Whose Life I See"(May be either sung or read as a closing prayer.)

88. The Church Living Stones

1 Peter 2:4-12

Bulletin Aid

... . Women: We are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, declaring the praises of him who called us out of darkness into his wonderful light. Leader: Dear friends, I urge you as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us. Congregation: We are living stones built into a ...

Remember that it is not enough to abstain from lying by word of mouth for the worst lies are often conveyed by a false look, smile, or act.

Abraham Cahan

Virtue consists, not in abstaining from vice, but in not desiring it.

George Bernard Shaw

Blessed is the man who, having nothing to say, abstains from giving us wordy evidence of the fact.

George Eliot

Boys should abstain from all use of wine until their eighteenth year, for it is wrong to add fire to fire.

Plato

It is not upon thee to finish the work; neither art thou free to abstain from it.

The Talmud

94. Where do You Live?

Romans 14:1-12

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

In the irreverent comedy Monty Python and the Holy Grail, which is a send up of the King Arthur tales, there is a scene where one of the knights, Sir Bedevere is confronted by a group of villagers. It seems they have gripped one of the local women and claim she is a witch. It's very obvious that her long crooked nose is fake and has been tied on and she's been dressed up to look like a witch. Sir Bedevere questions the evidence and the people confess that they made it all up. But they still want to burn ...

95. How Rich Is Rich?

1 Timothy 6:3-10

Sermon

Charles L. Aaron

We can simply stay away from some of the things that are bad for us. A person who is addicted to drugs or alcohol will be counseled by those with experience to abstain totally from alcohol: no social drinking, no wine every now and then. Just leave it alone. Never touch it. The same principle applies if the addiction is to gambling or pornography and many other kinds of addiction. Overcoming an addiction is hard work. It takes courage, willpower, the support of others, and the grace of God at a minimum. ...

96. Proclamation Appointing a National Fast Day

Illustration

William H. Seward

Washington, D.C. March 30, 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 ...

97. A Truly Universal Operating System

Romans 14:1-12

Sermon

Larry Lange

Once upon a time, in a garage in the ancient city of Rome, a man developed a computer operating system that became the digital lingua franca for the ancient world. How his operating system defeated its competitor is one of the great mysteries of all time. There must have been something about its ugly, utilitarian appearance and its proclivity toward redundancy that appealed to the brutal bureaucrats who established the Roman Empire. Even the name of the operating system came from a word butchered beyond ...

98. Dare to Be Different

Romans 13:11-14

Sermon

John N. Brittain

A true story tells how the two sons of a ninety-year-old Fort Worth, Texas, woman were worried about her safety. "We are going to get you a pistol, mother, so you can take care of yourself. There is too much violence out there." So they bought their mother a gun, which she dutifully packed in her purse. One day, when she left Ridgmar Shopping Center to get into her car she found two young men sitting in the front seat. She took out the pistol, pointed it at them, and said: "Get out of that car or I'll ...

99. Life, Death, and Judgment

Romans 14:1-12

Sermon

Jeff Wedge

In 1741, Jonathan Edwards preached a famous sermon with the title, "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God." In great detail Edwards spoke of the wrath people rightly faced when they confronted the judgment of a God who was angry at the way the people had failed to do what they were called to do. While many people understand only this much about that famous sermon, and hold it up as an example of the worst sort of preaching meant to terrify those who hear what is said, the sermon itself is actually quite ...

100. Whatever He Says - Do It!

John 2:1-11

Sermon

Louis H. Valbracht

Text: John 2:5 - His mother said to the servants, 'Do whatever he tells you.' Talk about hang-ups! All you have to do is read this Gospel narrative that was read today, the narrative of the first miracle that Jesus performed, the changing of the water into wine, and you immediately produce two groups that have hang-ups. The first is, of course, made up of pietistic teetotalers. We're confronted by the fact - the undeniable fact - that Jesus provided alcoholic beverage for a party where the supply was ...

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