Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 1026 to 1050 of 1185 results

1026. The Kingdom of Righteousness

Isaiah 32:1-8

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... that concerns the prophet is a moral obtuseness that is not incompatible with cleverness. It consumes their whole person, words, thoughts, and actions (v. 5a). It draws people away from Yahweh into ungodliness, godlessness (v. 5b; cf. 10:6). The word denotes the process whereby someone ceases to belong to the people of God and becomes apostate or profane or heathen. The critique of previous chapters has shown how that works (e.g., 28:7; 29:13–15; 30:1–2, 10–11; 31:1, 6–7). They are the fools who say ...

1027. Israel Freed

Isaiah 48:12-22

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... Yahweh to an “if only” before its recalcitrance, like that of parents angry and grieved at their (adult) children’s waywardness and their consequent unhappiness, but unable to force them to live the way the parents would wish, and unable to cease being their parents. 48:20–22 The final three verses repeat the pattern of this chapter a third time, exhorting the people to leave Babylon. It is an unexpected third time, because parallelism by definition works with couplets. Yet OT poetry includes ...

1028. Restoration of Israel

Isaiah 49:8-26

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... :15–21 Yahweh’s first response is to invite her to see him as more like a new man than an old philanderer. Indeed, Yahweh also knows what it is like to be a mother with a child at her breast and knows how a mother’s child can never cease to be her child however old it becomes, so how could Yahweh forget this child? Her portrait stands on Yahweh’s desk all the time, reminding Yahweh of her brokenness (v. 16). Yes, her own children will come back to her and will surround her in such numbers that she ...

1029. A Law Written On Our Hearts

Jeremiah 31:31-34

Sermon

King Duncan

... ’s writing, however, exhibited none of the beliefs his parents tried to instill in him. A letter from his mother written in 1920 illustrates how completely he had divorced himself from their beliefs: “Unless you, my son, Ernest, come to yourself, cease your lazy loafing and pleasure seeking . . . stop trading on your handsome face . . . and neglecting your duties to God and your Savior Jesus Christ . . . there is nothing for you but bankruptcy; you have overdrawn.” Hemingway told a writer for Playboy ...

1030. Faces of Failure: The Disciples

Mark 4:35-41

Sermon

Don Tuttle

... are words which one would say not to the elements but rather a demonic force. And, of course, the wind and sea obey. But it wasn’t the case that the wind slowly began to die down and the swells began to lessen. The wind “ceased,” literally, “chopped off,” and “a great calm” came upon the sea. In fact, so dramatic is the change that the frightened disciples are stunned. “They are filled with great fear,” Mark says. More accurately, “they were greatly awed.” And they begin to ask one ...

1031. Have You Ever Screwed Up?

John 20:1-18

Sermon

John Jamison

... it was something that was known. When someone died, they were buried and someone would perform the anointing ritual and it would then be over. Those left behind would have to fend for themselves and face on their own whatever was to come. Any dreams that had existed would cease to exist. That was how death worked. But in the next few minutes, Mary learned that we can never assume we understand God, and we can never define what God is going to be and do. Any time we attempt to put God in a box and begin to ...

1032. When a Storm Is Raging

Mark 4:35-41

Sermon

King Duncan

... hold on a moment longer, he does care. When the waters threaten to engulf you, he does care. The disciples rouse Jesus from his sleep, and he does what only the Master can do. He speaks to the wind and the waves and says, “Peace! be still!” And the wind ceases and there is a great calm. Then he turns to the disciples and asks, “Why are you afraid? Have you no faith?” The central question in life is not how many storms we encounter. The question is whether we have faith for the storms. All of us will ...

1033. Big Bubba Has Your Back

Revelation 21:1-6a

Sermon

King Duncan

... end, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty. In other words, God is the God of the past, the present and the future. He is the great “I Am.” His kingdom is forever and ever. Before the world was created he was. When all matter ceases to exist, God still will be. Or in John Ortberg’s humorous tale, He is the great, big Bubba who always has our back. Think what it would mean if you and I had an assurance of the permanence and faithfulness of God. The Old Testament writers gloried in that ...

1034. Four Magic Words

Psalm 126:1-6, Psalm 145:2-11

Sermon

King Duncan

... give thanks for the gift of life. Both men were blessed by that simple act. Of course, the most important words of gratitude are those we give to God. “I thank thee Lord.” That remarkable woman Helen Keller was deaf and blind and yet she never ceased giving God thanks for the gift of life. She was not only grateful; she devoted her life to assisting those who shared her disabilities. She toured the world to promote the education of both deaf and blind persons. “For three things I thank God every day ...

1035. What to Do With Human Failing

Luke 13:1-9

Sermon

R. Robert Cueni

... ’t produce figs, the option of cutting it down will still be available. Rather than offering a benign smile and nod and moving to the next question, Jesus turned the focus, content, and tone of this conversation upside down and inside out. This ceased being a chat about whether or not total strangers had been killed as punishment for their sinfulness. Now it was a conversation about how God dealt with all sinners — including and, perhaps especially, the sinners in his audience. What Jesus said is that ...

1036. The Larger Perspective

Illustration

Editor James S. Hewett

... center of the city. There I looked at the river and the mountain that I loved, and then-as the twilight deepened-at the stars glimmering in the sky. I said to them, ‘I may not see you many times more. But, river, I shall be alive when you have ceased your running to the sea. Mountain, I shall be alive when you have sunk down into the plain. Stars, I shall be alive when you have fallen to the sea."'

1037. Plutarch's Consolatory Letter to His Wife

Illustration

Editor James S. Hewett

... bitter. For not only was she kind and generous to other children, but even to her very playthings. But should the sweet remembrance of those things which so delighted us when she was alive only afflict us now, when she is dead? Or is there danger that, if we cease to mourn, we shall forget her? But since she gave us so much pleasure while we had her, so ought we to cherish her memory, and make that memory a glad rather than a sorrowful one. And such reasons as we would use with others, let us try to ...

1038. No More Fear

Illustration

Karl Barth

The Easter message tells us that our enemies, sin, the curse, and death, are beaten. Ultimately, they can no longer start mischief. They still behave as though the game were not decided, the battle not fought; we must still reckon with them, but fundamentally we must cease to fear them anymore.

1039. Praise and Thanksgiving

Illustration

Alice Williams Brotherton

Heap high the board with plenteous cheer And gather to the feast And toast the sturdy pilgrim band Whose courage never ceased. Give praise to that All-Gracious One By whom their steps were led; And thanks unto the harvest's Lord Who sends our daily bread. Note: Alice Williams Brotherton was an American author of poetry, essays, reviews, children's stories, and lyrics. Many of her poems were set to music in the United States and in England.

1040. Inspired by the Best

Illustration

Editor James S. Hewett

Leonardo da Vinci had started work on a large canvas in his studio. For awhile he worked at it—choosing the subject, planning the perspective, sketching the outline, applying the colors, with his own inimitable genius. Then suddenly he ceased, the painting still unfinished, and, summoning one of his students, invited him to complete the work. The student protested that he was both unworthy and unable to complete the great painting which his master had begun. But da Vinci silenced him. "Will not what I ...

1041. Getting Rid of the Rodent

Matthew 6:25-34

Illustration

Clovis G. Chappell

... rodent. It is not made for the heights; it is made to live on the ground and under the ground. Therefore the pilot began to climb. He went up a thousand feet, then another thousand and another until he was more than twenty thousand feet up. The gnawing ceased. The rat was dead. He could not survive in the atmosphere of those heights. More than two hours later the pilot brought the plane safely to the next landing field and found the dead rat. Brothers and sisters in Christ, worry is a rodent. It cannot live ...

1042. The High Cost of Wisdom

Illustration

Sara Teasdale

When I have ceased to break my wings Against the faultiness of things And learned that compromises wait Behind each hardly opened gate. When I can look life in the eyes, Grown calm and very coldly wise, Life will have given me the Truth And taken in exchange—my youth.

1043. The Man of No Sorrows

Illustration

John Bishop

... . The people eagerly accepted this teaching, as you might imagine, and tears and sorrow were banished from human society. Years passed. All suffering was repressed; all sorrow was denied. But an interesting result occurred--human beings gradually became more selfish. Sympathy ceased to exist; the very word was deleted from the dictionary. No poets were born. Poets, you see, are the children of pain, who learn by suffering what they teach in song. Music and painting were no longer practiced, for they, too ...

1044. Aha! I See It Now!

John 1:29-42

Sermon

King Duncan

... , John saw just how far sin has taken us from the presence of God. Now I know, respectable people don’t talk about sin anymore. I wonder why not? After all, sin separates us from God. Why doesn’t that terrify us? God is life. Without God, life ceases to exist. If you were separated from air, you would die. If you were separated from food or water, you would die. Air, food and water are necessary for human life. God is the source of spirit-life, soul-life, eternal life. Separation from God is spiritual ...

1045. Same Ol’, Same Ol’

Matthew 2:13-18

Sermon

Dean Feldmeyer

... which is from everlasting to everlasting. Compare this king, our king, with that last king who dared to call himself, “the Great.” And then lift up your voice and sing to this new king — Lead on, O king eternal, till sin’s fierce war shall cease, And holiness shall whisper the sweet Amen of peace. For not with swords loud clashing, nor roll of stirring drums; With deeds of love and mercy the heavenly kingdom comes. Amen. (“Lead On, O King, Eternal.” Words by Ernest W. Shurtleff. Music by Henry T ...

1046. Sitting Shiva Behind Closed Doors

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... and observed meticulously. A group of at least 10 would gather and stay in the same house for the entire 7 day period. The shiva (which means 7) was not focused upon the dead, but focused upon the living. It was a time when all else would cease and the living would be cared for, so that they could honor the dead and experience a renewal of life. The shiva also holds overtones of “resurrection” in that God will raise His people up from the depths of sheol in a bodily resurrection. Therefore, the dead ...

1047. A Taxing Encounter

Matthew 9:9-13, Mark 2:13-17, Luke 5:27-32

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... will say, ‘I am ill,’ and the sins of those who dwell there will be forgiven.” Both the healing of the paralytic and the following call of Matthew realize this prophecy. Ancient Jewish rabbis taught that “in the age to come all sacrifices will cease, except the ‘todah,’” the sacrifice of thanksgiving. Jesus calls only for the sacrifice of thanksgiving. His sacrifice will obliterate all others. The metaphor of taxes is a wonderful one too. A tax is a portion of one’s goods given up to the ...

1048. Moving On

Luke 6:12-16, Luke 9:1-9, Luke 10:1-24

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... closest apostles were in hiding, in fear, when several had betrayed him in one way or another, Jesus sang a victory song, completed his mission, and looked to the day of resurrection! (Psalm 22) Jesus never forgot who he was, never forgot his mission, never ceased to attribute his power and authority to the One and Only God. Jesus’ only pauses in his ministry were in prayer, in dining with his disciples, in teaching them and sending them, in rejoicing in their victories. The rest of the time, Jesus was ...

1049. Praise God! Selah!

Luke 1:67-80, Luke 1:57-66, Luke 1:46-56, Luke 1:39-45, Luke 1:26-38, Luke 1:5-25, Luke 1:1-4

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... what you are to speak.” (Exodus 4:11-12) Jesus himself had the power of God to silence or to give speech –one of the signs that he is indeed the messiah! “And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.” (Mark 4:39) “And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him. And when the devil had thrown him in the midst, he came out of him, and hurt him not.” (Luke 4:35) The selah is a time when ...

1050. The Curse of the Tongue

James 3:1-12, James 3:13-18, 2 Timothy 2:14-26, Psalm 34:1-22

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... 's praise, the glories of my God and King, the triumphs of his grace! 2. My gracious Master and my God, assist me to proclaim, to spread thro' all the earth abroad the honors of your name. 3. Jesus! the name that charms our fears, that bids our sorrows cease, 'tis music in the sinner's ears, 'tis life and health and peace. 4. He breaks the power of cancelled sin, he sets the prisoner free; his blood can make the foulest clean; his blood availed for me. 5. To God all glory, praise, and love be now and ...

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