Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 1051 to 1075 of 1089 results

Genesis 17:1-27

Sermon

King Duncan

... in this world, the achievers, those who enlarge our horizons. But there is one last thing to be said: The greatest acts of faith in this world involve our relationships with others. You may be familiar with the name Philippe Petit. Petit is a French high-wire artist who gained fame when he walked a high-wire strung between the lofty towers of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris in 1971. Some of you may remember that, in 1974, he pulled off the same stunt with a high-wire walk stretched between the Twin Towers of ...

1052. Freedom

Acts 16:16-40

Sermon

Will Willimon

... contest for grades at the university -- this is our freedom. You see, there is freedom, and then there is freedom. And our problem, in this matter of freedom, is that we may not even know what true freedom is. The Book of Acts tells wonderful stories. Luke, master-artist, tells a story, then lets you make up your own mind. Today's lesson from Acts tells some stories about people who were in bondage and people who were free. Listen and tell me who in this story is free. (read Acts 16:16-34) Paul and Silas ...

1053. Survival

Luke 21:5-19

Sermon

Will Willimon

... nuclear madness in the first place. The people who believe-that the bomb is our only hope and the people who believe that doing away with the bomb is our only hope have much in common. As Christopher Lasch said in a recent book, the modern world makes "survival artists" of us all. Fearful about the water we drink, the air we breathe, ecological disaster, the great mushroom cloud looming over us, we get by as best we can and grab hold of what we can. What is our only hope? You tell me. What does it do to ...

1054. Holy Extravagance

Mark 14:3-9

Sermon

Will Willimon

... are being made new. Our worship is not simply a sign of the coming Kingdom but also a manifestation of its presence. Here that Kingdom becomes tangible and visible. After we have wrung our hands over the comparative pennies we spend on festal and artistic "excess" in our churches, we still must explain the extravagance of churches in developing countries. Why do people who are, by our standards, so poor build such fine churches? In one sense, the poorer a person is, the more bleak his or her situation ...

1055. Not Gullible; But Skeptical

John 20:19-31

Sermon

King Duncan

... . A little too trusting. Did you know that some scientific studies claim that there’s a correlation between high intelligence and gullibility? This is no joke. Ricky Jay was a famous magician. He was considered by many magicians to be the best sleight-of-hand artist in the world. In an interview with 60 Minutes, Jay said, “the ideal audience would be [a group of] Nobel Prize winners . . . They often have an ego with them that says, ‘I am really smart so I can’t be fooled.’ No one,” says Ricky ...

1056. This Verse Says It All

John 3:1-17

Sermon

King Duncan

In the late 1980s, artist Jim Sanborn was hired to create a piece of art to be displayed at the CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia. This was a big commission! What an honor to create a unique piece of art for the CIA. Sanborn thought he would have a little fun with this project. He ...

1057. Not Your Lips, but Your Life

Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23

Sermon

King Duncan

... own life, then you won’t need the Law. Instead, your goodness will be replaced by Godliness.” When some of the great medieval cathedrals were built, like Notre Dame in Paris, most of the population of Europe was illiterate. Architects, sculptors and artists created these amazing cathedrals full of carvings and statues and stained glass windows to tell the story of God through art. They assumed that the average citizen may never read a Bible, but they could “read” the story of God through the images ...

1058. Promises to Keep

Mark 6:14-29

Sermon

Dean Feldmeyer

... by the Jewish Roman historian, Josephus who wrote his Antiquities of the Jews in about 93-94 CE. By the mid to late 1800’s the story of the palace intrigue that led to John the Baptist’s execution was the stuff of much fascination for artists and writers in Europe. It was in1891 while visiting France and experimenting with the styles of the symbolist and decadent movements that Oscar Wilde wrote his play, Salome which was loosely based on the biblical account. It was also Wilde’s version of the events ...

1059. For Us Or Against Us?

Mark 9:38-50

Sermon

Frank Ramirez

... . Some appear once. Each victor received plenty of prizes: land, slaves, gold, and in some cases a lifetime pension from the city from which he hailed. They also received a victor’s crown and lasting glory. Poets wrote poems in their honor. Artists and sculptors immortalized their accomplishments. There’s only one thing missing on this piece of papyrus — there are no awards for second or third place. There’s no honorable mention. You are either the champion, or you’re nothing. To the ancient ...

1060. Pulling Our Punches

Mark 10:17-31

Sermon

Frank Ramirez

... we shall see, over the centuries many well-intentioned preachers and teachers have tried to water this down. Maybe the world has a better handle on this than many Christians. Commercials tell us we need more, more, more. Music videos feature artists whose fingers are covered with golden rings. Sober-faced financial advisers assure us that with proper management we can ensure that there will be more — more money for our retirement, and for our children and grandchildren. There’s nothing necessarily evil ...

1061. For The Love Of God Is Biblical

2 Timothy 3:14-17

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... like robots to write the Bible. I don't. God always interacts with people, in relationships. God inspired these writings and God guided their writing. But the character and personality of the author comes through. Just like paintings of Jesus. All different. All by various artists. We know they are Jesus. Why? Because they have been inspired by God. Same with Bible. All comes from God. Therefore it important. 2. OUR BOOK - OUR STORY: A. John Wesley said: "We are a people of the Book." Why? It's our story ...

1062. Not Guessing

Mark 10:46-52

Sermon

Frank Ramirez

... serious about pursuing a career in film after surviving a devastating car crash. His college student films attracted some attention, but initially only a few people recognized that he had the potential to become a great filmmaker. However, after fighting budget constraints and artistic interference his film American Graffiti was not only a runaway hit but made millions of dollars for the studio executives who to the very last thought the movie was going to be a failure. Even then he still had a hard time ...

1063. Long View — Long Haul

Luke 13:31-35

Sermon

Schuyler Rhodes

... momentous decision to leave her job, her home, friends, family and career so she could study medicine so she could go to Central America and work among the poor. Yes, it seemed pretty drastic to us as well. I mean, this woman was an artist. She was a painter, whose work sold in galleries for tens of thousands of dollars. Her life was established, with great social networks, comfortable routine, reputation and even wealth. She knew who and where she was, and her pervasive air of confidence spoke eloquently ...

1064. The Limping Body Of Christ

1 Corinthians 12:1-11

Sermon

Mary Austin

... place where all of the members lean on each other, and benefit from each other’s gifts. It seems simple enough. The community needs everyone’s talents and experiences, or they will be one-sided. He tells them that the lawyers needed to appreciate the artists, and the engineers need to listen to the poets, the extroverts need to wait for the introverts to catch up, the people with disabilities need to teach the rest of us, the athletes need to slow down for the people with walkers, and the teachers need ...

1065. Hold the Candy

1 Corinthians 13:1-13

Sermon

Mary Austin

... of Corinth addresses this wider vision of love. Our passage follows a section where he reminds this whole church community to value each other’s gifts. Without an array of talents and experiences, the community is one-sided. The lawyers needed to appreciate the artists, and the engineers needed to listen to the poets, the extroverts are balanced by the introverts, the people with disabilities have a lot to teach the rest of us, the athletes need to slow down for the people with walkers, and the teachers ...

1066. Beware! Angels

Matthew 1:18-25

Sermon

Will Willimon

... bestselling books testify to our current infatuation with angels. Why does the whole world seem so interested in angels, and at this time in human history? The word ''angel'' means, in the Greek, ''messenger." Angels are messengers of God. That's why artists portrayed them with wings. Angels, messengers from God. But in one Mercedes Benz TV commercial, angels are depicted as cute, hermaphroditic babies, cherubs. In the avalanche of angel books, angels are God's guardians, with one assigned to each and every ...

1067. When the Doors Were Shut

John 20:19-31

Sermon

King Duncan

... But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” You know, there’s a bit of Thomas in me. There are so many scam artists around today. Who can you believe? Remember, most of Thomas’ friends were fishermen. You know the tales that fishermen tell. Just kidding, of course. We have many fine fishermen in this church. Besides, common sense will tell you, people don’t rise from the grave except in ...

1068. God's Bouncer or God's Ambassador?

Acts 11:1-18

Sermon

King Duncan

... .com/blogs/joe-mckeever/how-legalism-betrays-christ-violates-the-gospel-and-destroys-people.html. 2. Cal and Rose Samra, Holy Humor, p. 140. 3. St. Paul’s Letters to the Philippians by The Reverend Eric S. Ritz. 4. “Leonard Knight, artist at Salvation Mountain, dies at age 82” by Tony Perry, February 10, 2014, Los Angeles Times, https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-leonard-mountain-20140210-story.html. 5. “Salvation Mountain,” Atlas Obscura, https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/salvation ...

1069. The Green-Eyed Monster

Luke 15:1-3, 11-32

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... batting an eyelash. But the phrase “green-eyed monster” actually comes from Shakespeare![1]In his plays, Shakespeare uses the phrase to warn of the dangers and power of envy and jealousy to ruin relationships. In the Renaissance period, artists, particularly painters, began to depict emotions and virtues of their subjects by employing various colors. For example, yellow tended to exhibit someone with an impatient temper, a volatile personality, while white represented peace or calm. Black tended toward ...

1070. Good Luck?

Psalm 23:1-6

Sermon

Will Willimon

... Gould, great writer, though bad speaker, offers an engaging image of God's eviction from the world. Gould writes: ''Two scenes from Florence ... illustrate the power of the scientific revolution to alter our view of ... existence. A painting by the Fifteenth Century artist Michelino hangs in the great cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore...It shows the entire universe on a single canvas. The earth occupies the center, symbolized by the city of Florence...At Dante's right, the souls of the damned move downward ...

1071. The Joy of Being Found

Luke 15:1-10

Sermon

King Duncan

... to Jesus, the religious leaders and teachers of the law were grumbling about him. “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” Let that sink in for a minute: Jesus, God in the flesh, welcomed sinners and ate with them. Marc Horowitz is an artist and photographer based in Los Angeles. He was doing a photo shoot for the home decor store Crate & Barrel. There was a whiteboard in the photo shoot, and it needed something on it. Horowitz scribbled “Dinner with Marc” and his own cell phone number on ...

1072. Overflowing Joy and Rich Generosity

2 Corinthians 8:7-15

Sermon

King Duncan

... together that are complete opposites. They contradict each other. Some of my favorite oxymorons are “clearly confused,” “act naturally,” “open secret,” and “jumbo shrimp.” (1) What’s even better than an oxymoron phrase is an oxymoron statement. Artist Andy Warhol was famous for the statement, “I am a deeply superficial person.” Samuel Goldwyn, a famous movie producer from the early 20th century, was also famous for his totally contradictory statements. He said things like, “Give me ...

1073. We Have Waited

Isaiah 25:1-12

Sermon

Will Willimon

... your life? I heard Paul Tillich say that Matthias Grunewald's Crucifixion was the only truly religious painting he had ever seen. The excruciating realism, the bold, horrid expressionism with which Grunewald painted that thing, is breathtaking in its intensity. Never has an artist so captured the horror, the agony of the dead, decaying, gangrenous body hanging from the tree. But I had to see it for myself, to get the whole picture, the part that Tillich overlooks because it did not fit into his enlightened ...

1074. The Complete Picture

John 11:1-45

Sermon

King Duncan & Angela Akers

... look at it. Don’t worry, this isn’t my sneaky way of taking up a special offering. If you don’t have one on you, you may want to look up an image of one on your phone. The man who painted Washington’s portrait was a famous artist named Gilbert Stuart. He painted a life-size portrait of Washington in 1795. It is 8 feet tall, 5 feet wide, very detailed. The painting was so well-received that Martha Washington asked him to paint a second portrait in 1796. But the second painting was very different from ...

1075. Places That Have a Memory

Matthew 21:1-11

Sermon

King Duncan & Angela Akers

... him into the village and find a donkey and a colt and bring them to him, he was clearly announcing that he is the King of Peace, the promised Messiah Zechariah had envisioned more than 500 years earlier. In 1944 at the end of World War II, Dutch artist Piet Mondrian began a new painting to celebrate the end of the war. He titled it “Victory Boogie-Woogie,” after the lively piano music he loved so much. It was an abstract painting made up of squares and rectangles of bright blue, yellow and red. Mondrian ...

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