Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 76 to 100 of 112 results

76. A Faith that Works

2 Thessalonians 3:6-15

Sermon

King Duncan

... a mission trip to Jamaica. “On their trip they visited one of the local elementary schools, and they spent some time observing in a classroom seriously overcrowded with children, most of them very poor, all of them needy and wiggly and noisy and unruly. It was a difficult, sometimes even chaotic, learning environment; but the youth group marveled to see that the teacher carried herself with great calm and patience, treating all of the children with love and respect, despite the poverty and the chaos. They ...

77. Framed, Changed, Challenged

Acts 2:42-47

Sermon

Tony Everett

... at his desk until the bell rang to indicate the beginning of what looked like a very long history class. When a strong breeze started Harold’s necktie flapping in his face, Harold calmly picked up his desk stapler and stapled the unruly tie to his chest. That little demonstration got everybody’s attention. Harold had no discipline problems that semester. During the next few weeks, students began to look at Harold with new respect. Their grades improved, their attendance increased, and their number of ...

78. I'll Never Forget That Night

John 13:1-17

Sermon

Wayne Brouwer

... the formula for recalling Jesus’ institution of the Lord’s Supper was already a common and ritualized liturgical construct by 53 AD. Paul was in Ephesus on his third mission journey and was carrying on extended correspondence with his unruly former congregation in Corinth. Recently three leaders from that church (Stephanus, Fortunatus, and Achaicus) had carried to Paul a report of the divisions and moral problems in their home congregation, along with a list of theological and practical questions that ...

79. Moses Flees to Midian

Exodus 2:11-25

Understanding Series

James K. Bruckner

... Moses as a stranger in Midian. Moses’ third test on his quest for identity and purpose began as an anticlimax: he sat down by a well. The serenity of a rural well and seven sisters drawing water contrasts with the tumult of Egypt. Unruly shepherds who “bully” the daughters of Reuel briefly interrupt this pastoral peace. Moses defends the sisters, demonstrating that his sense of justice was still intact but that he had learned a more measured use of force. Midian and the Midianites were located in ...

80. Proverbs of Solomon

Proverbs 18:1-24

Understanding Series

Roland E. Murphy

... . 18:4 Antithetic? Juxtapositional. The NIV implies an antithesis between a and b. The disjunctive but, which is not in the MT, is inserted. In that case, deep waters stands for something unreachable (stagnant? obscure? and perhaps the waters of chaos, hence unruly and in need of discipline). In contrast is the availability and freshness of the source of wisdom in verse 4b (cf. NRSV). However, the relationship could be synonymous if deep waters is taken to mean “inexhaustible” and the words are presumed ...

81. Sodom and Gomorrah Destroyed

Genesis 19:30-38, Genesis 19:1-29

Understanding Series

John E. Hartley

... protect his guests from harm. He addressed the men of Sodom as friends, literally “brothers,” showing that he identified himself with them. He pleaded with them not to do this wicked thing. Beside himself as to how to divert the aggression of this unruly crowd, Lot offered them his two virgin daughters to satisfy their lust. That his daughters were betrothed and still virgins offers further testimony to the fact that Lot lived by a higher moral standard than did the citizens of Sodom. Faced with a great ...

82. Atonement for an Unsolved Murder

Deuteronomy 21:1-9

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... the realm of war to all kinds of analogous situations of weakness and power. 21:15–17 The right of the firstborn son. The next two laws balance each other. The first protects a son from an unfair father; the second protects parents from an unruly son. Together they illustrate the balance of rights and responsibilities that exist in a family, and even more so, in wider society. Polygamy was permitted in Israelite society but was probably not very common. It was a sign of wealth and prestige and so was ...

83. Signs, Sayings, and Oracles of Judgment

Ezekiel 12:1-28, Ezekiel 13:1-23, Ezekiel 14:1-11, Ezekiel 14:12-23

Understanding Series

Steven Tuell

... 180–90; see Speiser’s translation in ANET, p. 95). After the flood waters have subsided, Ea god of wisdom chides the storm god Enlil for the wasteful destructiveness of the flood and states that, in the future, the lion, the wolf, famine, and pestilence will keep unruly humanity in check. The Lord brings these severe judgments upon the land because of unfaithfulness (v. 13, Heb. maʿal). This is a priestly term (e.g., Lev. 6:2; 26:40; note in particular its use in Num. 5:12, 27, in the ordeal to test ...

84. Failing the Test and Spiritual Failure—Hardness of Heart

Mark 6:45-56

Teach the Text

Grant R. Osborne

... that he knows what is to happen, and that he functions like the Spirit, who “drove” Jesus out to be tested in the wilderness (1:12; note the amount of wilderness imagery in 6:31–44). This is to be the disciples’ test. It is also possible that there are unruly elements in the crowd, and Jesus does not want his disciples caught up in any messianic fervor (in John 6:14–15 we are told the crowd tried to make Jesus “king by force”), but there is no hint of that in Mark. 6:46 he went up on a ...

85. Christian Success and Christlikeness

1 Corinthians 4:1-21

Teach the Text

Preben Vang

... and teaching aids. Whatever their function in a child’s life, they were not to be confused with the teacher (didaskalos) or the father himself.5 What Paul does not say directly, but clearly implies, is that the Corinthians are not mature but children—even unruly children who apparently need many guides. 4:16 I urge you to imitate me. Paul’s language here allows him to bring the discussion he has carried since 1:10 to a conclusion. After urging the Corinthians in 1:10 to end their cliquish behavior ...

86. Barren No More

1 Sam 1:1-20–2:11

Teach the Text

Robert B. Chisholm Jr.

... the elements of the storm. They counted Baal as responsible for both agricultural and human fertility. Baal’s quest for kingship, under the ultimate authority of the high god El, is the main theme of their mythological texts. He defeats Yamm, the god of the unruly, threatening sea, but must then face the challenge of Mot, the god of the underworld and death. Mot initially defeats Baal, much to the dismay of El and the other gods. But then Baal returns to life and eventually engages in a violent conflict ...

87. Yahweh Speaks as the Master Teacher

Job 38:1--41:34

Teach the Text

Daniel J. Estes

... its creator. If Yahweh is Lord over Leviathan, then he certainly is Lord over Job’s life as well. Just as Job must acknowledge his inferiority before Leviathan, so he must accept his subordinate status before Yahweh. Yahweh’s ordered world includes even unruly creatures, like Leviathan, that Job cannot control. Yahweh, however, is fully in control, so Job must accept humbly his subordinate place before God. 41:34 It looks down on all that are haughty; it is king over all that are proud. Leviathan has ...

88. Jesus and John the Baptist

Luke 7:18-35

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... God’s purpose leads nicely into the topic of the fickleness of the present generation (7:31). Jesus compares the religious leaders to sulking children, for they think something demonic distinguishes the asceticism of John the Baptist, and something wild and unruly underscores Jesus’s eating and drinking, not to mention his association with the lower class. Jesus’s exaggerated description of John and himself makes the point that nothing will satisfy these people, and yet God’s wisdom (7:35)—that is ...

89. The Disorderly

2 Thessalonians 3:6-15

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... 11. Here the disorderly person remains a member of the community of salvation: “Yet do not regard them as an enemy, but warn them as you would a fellow believer” (3:15). Enemies were not simply tolerated during this era but rather became the object of ill will and action. Unruly members should be admonished (1 Thess. 5:12, 14) as those who are part of the family of God. Such counsel and warning aims to change the conduct of a person (Acts 20:31; Rom. 15:14; 1 Cor. 4:14; Eph. 6:4; Col. 1:28). There was a ...

90. Elephants in the Room: Depression

Lamentations 3:17-26

Sermon

Charley Reeb

... actors was Paul Newman. He played some of the best roles in motion picture history. Here is picture of Newman in one of his most famous roles, Cool Hand Luke. Cool Hand Luke is an important film with layers of meaning. Newman plays an unruly prisoner in a Southern chain gang during the 1930’s. Some folks have suggested that Newman’s character is somewhat of a Christ figure. For example, Luke surrounds himself with a band of followers. He also performs miracles, like a death defying escape during ...

91. Eliphaz's Second Speech to Job

Job 15:1-35

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

... be wise in his own eyes” (Prov. 26:5). In the Hebrew, the opening phrase begins with Eliphaz’s intent to explain his point to Job, followed by the imperative demand that Job “listen.” It is almost as if he must grab the attention of an unruly and inattentive child and coerce his participation: “I will explain to you, so listen!” What Eliphaz proceeds to declare is something he has “seen.” He may be referring again to the vision he reported in 4:12–16—a vision of the essentially sinful ...

92. Bildad's Second Speech to Job

Job 18:1-21

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

... than allow Job’s perceptions to reorder their world, they push him away with anger and cling to the comfort of the familiar. 18:4 Bildad concludes his opening critique by describing the self-destructive consequences of Job’s anger. Like an unruly child’s tantrum, Job is to be ignored. Bildad does not validate Job’s arguments as the logical conclusions of sagely wisdom—he has already called him unreasonable in verse 2. Job’s words are instead, Bildad insists, the heated and chaotic outpourings ...

93. Job's Third Reply to Bildad

Job 26:1--31:40

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

... concern with the details of creation. One can almost see God holding up an anemometer into the wind or pouring out the oceans in five gallon buckets! This sort of involvement confirms his intimate knowledge of the whole of creation. Even the seemingly unruly elements of the natural world, rain and thunderstorm, turn out to be under the orderly authority of God, who oversees their progress. What animals cannot see and humans cannot find, God knows from the inside out—because he made it all. Then he ...

94. The Lord’s King and Rebellious Peoples

Psalm 2:1-12

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

... his emotions. In response to their defiance, Yahweh experiences the extremes of emotions: laughter (of a scoffing nature) and anger. Again, we must note that these are not presented as his characteristic emotions—he has been provoked. His wrath is only toward unruly rulers. His sole action to this point, though “terrifying,” is to speak: I have installed my King on Zion, my holy hill. What is “terrifying” in these words is not the enthronement of Jerusalem’s king but “I have installed” him ...

95. Daniel’s Dream of Four Beasts

Daniel 7:1-14

Understanding Series

William Nelson

... God, resembling a man, wrestled with Jacob (Gen. 32:22–32). Although the one Daniel sees appears to be human, it is in fact a heavenly being, for it was coming with the clouds of heaven (7:13). Unlike the beasts, which come from the unruly chaos waters of the abyss, this humanlike figure comes from above. The cultural background to this is clearly the Canaanite myth of Baal, the warrior god and storm god, who rode through heaven on his cloudy chariot. The Israelites appropriated this imagery for their ...

96. Marrying a Captive Woman

Deuteronomy 21:10-14

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

97. The Right of the Firstborn

Deuteronomy 21:15-17

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... actions that involve removing pollution from the sight of God and from the land. 21:15–17 The right of the firstborn son. The next two laws balance each other. The first protects a son from an unfair father; the second protects parents from an unruly son. Together they illustrate the balance of rights and responsibilities that exist in a family, and even more so, in wider society. Polygamy was permitted in Israelite society but was probably not very common. It was a sign of wealth and prestige and so was ...

98. Pop Star Madonna and the Cross

Mark 8:31-38

Sermon

King Duncan

... BMW. She took it to an auto mechanic. He said, regardless of how hard he tried, he could not repair it. “Oh well,” she said, “this is just my cross, and I will have to bear it!” (2) Friends. Bearing a cross has nothing to do with uncooperative nails, unruly children, a snoring husband or a rattle in your new BMW. Denying ourselves and taking up a cross is a choice we make--not something that is forced upon us. It has to do with discipline and hard work. It has to do with unselfishness and committing ...

99. Jesus: The Original Superhero?

John 18:33-37

Sermon

April Yamasaki

... high priests. Then early the next morning, Jesus appeared before Pilate as governor of Judea. Their exchange was brief -- Pilate asked Jesus just three questions before he was ready to dismiss the case. But on the insistence of the people who became more and more unruly, in the next chapter of John's gospel, Pilate eventually gave in and handed Jesus over to be crucified. But all that is still to come. In the portion of scripture before us today, the attention is focused on the dialogue between Pilate and ...

100. What Does It Mean to Be Blessed?

Ephesians 1:3-14

Sermon

King Duncan

... covering and runs away when he’s called‑‑antics that have earned him the name “Devil Dog.” It’s so bad that she was asking for a little divine intervention. “He looks so sweet,” the owner said after the priest sprinkled holy water on the unruly 11‑month‑old pooch. “It’s totally deceptive. When he was blessed, I was really happy that his head didn’t start spinning and green stuff didn’t spray out of his mouth.” (1) Well, I hope the blessing worked. I hope Rusty the cat gained ...

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