Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: Levi, disciple, evangelist, tax collector, the 12, the twelve, apostle, sermon on the mount, jewish audience, beatitudes, lord's prayer, great commission, parables, olivet discourse, mount of olives, olivet, synoptic

Showing 976 to 1000 of 4968 results

976. Future Perfect

John 20:1-18

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... Jesus brings into our lives, through the Resurrection. Today we celebrate because Jesus Christ brings love into a love-starved world. Strangely enough, the Gospel says, "the apostles didn't understand." Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and found it empty. Like the disciples, who got there before her, she was confused, bewildered, frightened, filled with questions: Where is Jesus/ None of them understood, that Jesus "had to rise from the dead" so He could be with us. And when the Risen Christ is with us, we ...

977. John 17:20-26

John 17:20-26

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... community. Rather it is the divinely offered gift of fully, “complete” participation in the glory the presence of the Father in the Son and the Son within them. As Jesus expresses it, the ”doxa” is experienced by the Son, and by all present and future disciples, as divine love. And divine love is the knowledge that the Father has “sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me” (v.23). It is not theology or conviction or obedience that unites believers. It is the experience and expression ...

978. Being and Doing as the People of God

1 Peter 1:13-2:3

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... be and do and a way to be and do there is also the power to be and do as the people of God. I received a letter not long ago from a dear friend in another city – a woman who for a long time had been a dynamic disciple. But she fell away. She moved to another state, and a strange city. Failure to find quickly a vital Christian congregation, gradually getting away from the vital spiritual disciplines of scripture study, prayer, and small group sharing, resulting in the loss of the vitality of her faith. She ...

979. Our Father...

Luke 11:1-13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... all of these — they are all part of the “daily bread” we require. Not tending to the basic needs, the physical, emotional basics of our children, is letting “the enemy,” the powers of evil, gain a foothold in our families. In Luke 10:19 Jesus reminded his disciples that he had given them “authority to tread on snakes and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy.” Now he contrasts the goodness of a loving father with one who “if your child asks for a fish, will give a snake instead of a ...

980. Scaring the Church, So It Will Be the Church

Matthew 5:13-20

Sermon

Charles L. Aaron

... , operating out of fear, unleashes a cruel and brutal force that ends in grief and anguish. The world needs salt and light because the world is callous, fearful, and violent. It needs salt and light because it is full of grief, frustration, and powerlessness. Jesus calls disciples out of the world to be the salt and the light. Jesus gives us these evocative images of salt and light, but never quite explains them. How is the church the salt of the earth? What does salt do for the earth? We can start with ...

981. A God Who Suffers with Us

John 9:1-41

Sermon

Lee Griess

... matters to us is God's almighty power of enduring love." If God is in Jesus, if we believe that God was present in the sufferings and death of Christ, then we must believe that God is present with us in our suffering, as well. Remember how Jesus answered the disciples? Who sinned, he was asked. "Neither this man nor his parent sinned; he was born blind so that God's works might be revealed in him" (John 9:3). Somehow there is a purpose in this. Somehow God's mercy will be revealed. Now I don't know if the ...

982. Hope to Carry On

Luke 24:13-35

Sermon

Lee Griess

... the dead. This risen Savior alone can say, "I died and behold I am forevermore; I am the resurrection and the life. If anyone believes in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. And whoever lives and believes in me, shall never die." The story of those two disciples on the Road to Emmaus is the story of faith reborn. It is the record of hope restored. That's what makes it so lovely. That's what makes it one of the greatest stories ever told. For it reminds us that we have a pledge and promise from our ...

983. Step By Step

Acts 11:1-18

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... out "God told me to." He took them one step at a time: Step By Step. And that's how we have to live as modern day disciples. That's how we have to raise our children too. STEP BY STEP. So, in honoring mothers this morning, I want to look at some of those ... Life. The first line in the book is: "IT'S NOT ABOUT YOU." I think Rick Warren has hit it on the head in both being a disciple and in parenting. The First Step Is To Realize "IT'S NOT ABOUT YOU." That's hard for some of us to realize. I've heard more ...

984. LENT: The Passion of Christ: "Exalted"

Luke 19:28-40, John 19:14-30

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... . Let's look at the first passage of Scripture: Luke 19:28-40 (NRSV) [28] After he had said this, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. [29] When he had come near Bethphage and Bethany, at the place called the Mount of Olives, he sent two of the disciples, [30] saying, "Go into the village ahead of you, and as you enter it you will find tied there a colt that has never been ridden. Untie it and bring it here. [31] If anyone asks you, 'Why are you untying it?' just say this, 'The Lord needs it.' " [32 ...

985. Beneath The Shadow Of The Cross

Mark 15:16-37

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... very strange. He got a basin of water and a towel; then hitching up his robe like a slave, he began to wash the disciples' feet. At first Peter was offended, but when Jesus said, "Unless I wash you, you have no share with me." Peter said, "Lord, not ... do. The more Peter thought about it, the angrier he got. That was when he stuck his foot in his mouth, big time. Jesus told the disciples he was going away and Peter wanted to go with him. John couldn't forget the pained look in Peter's eyes when he thought ...

986. Good News about Hair

Luke 21:5-38

Sermon

King Duncan

... Well, there’s no reason to be that pessimistic. Let’s just say life is unpredictable. But there is another thing to be said. God is with us. In good times and bad, there is Someone who never forgets us nor forsakes us. When Jesus warned his disciples that they would be persecuted, he made an interesting promise that I left out a few moments ago. He said, “They will deliver you to synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors, and all on account of my name. This will result ...

987. Acts 2:14a, 36-41

Acts 2:14-41

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... confused and clueless gaggle of followers, then a terrified remnant of traumatized, heartbroken believers hiding from the world, and then they are reborn as powerful, articulate, Spirit-filled witnesses to Jesus’ resurrection and messianic identity. Jesus rose from the dead, but his disciples also rose . . . from the ashes of despair to a new life of purpose and power. In this week’s text from Acts the reading begins with v.14a before skipping forward to v.36. It is that brief half-sentence “But Peter ...

988. The Miegakure Messiah

Matthew 16:13-20

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... was revealed in suffering and sacrifice, not just for Israel but for all people. It was a new and shocking “reveal” Jesus offered. Much of God’s design to bring us back into the garden would still remain hidden from the hearts and minds of the disciples. Until Easter morning. Until the risen Christ’s visits with his followers. Until the Ascension. Until the gift of the Holy Spirit. Are you one of those people that flip to the back of the book to check out the ending before reading your way through ...

989. When the Impossible Becomes Imminently Possible!

John 6:1-21

Sermon

Robert Leslie Holmes

... out, "I wish I could get away from them" (cf. Jeremiah 9:2). Jonah fled in the opposite direction to avoid God's call to proclaim his message to the great heathen city of Nineveh, whose citizens he regarded with disdain. In our reading, the disciples complained because the large crowd was an inconvenience by their estimation. Philip, according to the text, griped, "eight months wages" would not be enough to feed the crowd. Philip's was the stunted faith of the bottom line that will forever come up short. We ...

990. The Unbelievable Truth

1 Corinthians 15:1-11

Sermon

Nancy Kraft

... for real or is it just some fairy tale that we've been taught so that we can face the grim reality of death? It's all rather unbelievable, and it's only natural to question it. That's been the case ever since the very beginning. Even Jesus' own disciples were in disbelief. The women who took spices and perfumes to the tomb that first Easter morning didn't go to witness a resurrection; they went to anoint a corpse. When Mary Magdalene saw that the tomb was empty, she didn't say to herself, "Oh, it looks like ...

991. Oops! I Did It Again

Matthew 16:21-28

Sermon

King Duncan

... you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church...” Today’s lesson follows that rapturous scene. Matthew tells us that from that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life. At this, says Matthew, Simon Peter took Christ aside and ...

992. How Can I Know God's Will?

Acts 1:12-26

Sermon

King Duncan

... wood, etc., and put them in an urn. The names were then drawn at random and this settled the case. It’s certainly not a sinful way to go about making a decision. It’s not much different from flipping a coin. However, it seems a strange way for the disciples of Christ to choose a successor to carry on his work. I guess they couldn’t find any other way to choose. Both men were equally qualified and this was a quick, easy way to make a decision. So we should not be too critical. It just seems strange ...

993. Low-Carb Christians

John 21:1-19

Sermon

Frank Ramirez

... world, so in our spiritual lives we can't stay on the mountaintop but have to learn how to cherish Jesus in our everyday lives. The disciples have gone back to work and work isn't going well. After coming up empty all night they must be exhausted, and that's when ... life is peace, not as the world gives us, but as God intends. How could we have failed to see it? That's what the disciples asked who walked with Jesus for seven miles and never knew it was him, until the breaking of the bread. Why does it take ...

994. Big Men in Little Planes

Mark 9:33-37

Sermon

King Duncan

... is difficult. And he wants followers who will set an example for other people in how to live victoriously. He wants followers who are up to the rigors of facing the evils of this world and preparing this world for the coming of his kingdom. So he said to his disciples, “Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all.” In other words, he doesn’t ask us to give up our strong egos. Rather he wants us to discipline those egos to serve him and to serve all those for whom he died ...

995. Mark 10:17-31

Mark 10:17-31

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... better and our financial security will be assured. It is a safe bet that if today’s gospel reading were a stump speech, Jesus wouldn’t get elected dog-catcher. As Jesus is continuing on his journey to Jerusalem, he suddenly encounters a potential disciple. While Matthew and Luke identify this individual as “young” and “a ruler,” Mark does not provide any descriptive details about the man at this time. That the man runs to Jesus and then kneels before him suggests a sincere earnestness in the man ...

996. Peace Be With You

John 20:19-23

Sermon

King Duncan

... tend to perform and produce at a higher level. (2) That’s interesting, don’t you think? In the absence of fear, people perform better. We have noted before how often biblical characters are told, “Don’t be afraid.” In Luke’s telling of this same story, the disciples are terrified when Jesus suddenly appears in their midst. They think he is a ghost (Luke 24:36-39). No wonder he has to say to them, “Peace be with you!” That’s what peace is, the absence of fear, or at least it is fear under ...

997. Second Nature through Spirit Nurture

Matthew 10:1-42

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... unannounced” in Genesis 18:9, a promise of something more in the face of nothingness. Sarah was ninety years old and was suddenly told she was to have a child. This was a commitment to life in spite of apparent biological lifelessness. The disciples were told that despite the most horrible encounters they might meet up with in following Jesus, that life eternal was a promise. They could face the most dismissive, cruel and barbarous treatment because of realities of possibility no one else dreamed of. The ...

998. Do You Have Any Leftovers?

John 6:1-15

Sermon

James Merritt

... him, because they saw the signs that he was doing on the sick. Jesus went up on the mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was at hand.” (John 6:1-4, ESV) Matthew tells us that it was evening time when ... the waiters and He is the baker. Philip flunks his test. It looks like all is lost and then this happens… “One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to him, ‘There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are ...

999. Don’t Be a Trender - Be a Trendsetter

Matthew 15:21-28

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... a new reality, for those who believe in the Messiah. In this week’s story Jesus doesn’t do what anyone wants him to do. He goes against all the grains. He does not respond to the Canaanite woman immediately. He does not respond to his disciple’s complaints. He does not take any real “action” until he had a real “interaction” with the woman who is seeking his presence in her life. It is only after they connect, after they engage in a spirited sparring match, that Jesus proclaims “Woman, great ...

1000. Get Out the Ticker Tape - Palm Sunday

Mark 11:1-11

Sermon

King Duncan

... desire to know God’s will for our life. Others are still seeking a workable faith. Still others come because their family expects it. If I were to ask you today why are you here, what would your answer be? In Matthew 16:15-17, Jesus questioned his disciples. He said to them, “And who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him, “You are blessed, Simon son of Jonah, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but my ...

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