Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: touch, feel, sense of touch, tactile sense, tactility, contact, using one's hands, sensation, sense, suspicion, sneaking suspicion, notion, inkling, hunch, fancy, apprehension, presentiment, premonition, foreboding, love, care, affection, fondness, tenderness, warmth, warmness, emotion, sentiment, emotional state, compassion, sympathy, empathy, fellow feeling, understanding, concern, solicitude, solicitousness, tender-heartedness, brotherly love, sensibilities, sensitivities, self-esteem, ego, pride, opinion, belief, view, impression, intuition, instinct, estimation, guess, theory, hypothesis, thought, way of thinking, point of view, atmosphere, ambience, aura, air, mood, climate, character, overtone, undertone, tenor, spirit, quality, flavour, colour, aptitude, knack, flair, bent, talent, gift, skill, art, trick, faculty, ability, propensity, inclination, sensitive, warm, warm-hearted, tender, tender-hearted, caring, soft-hearted, sympathetic, compassionate, empathetic, responsive, receptive, intuitive, thoughtful

Antonyms: bad feeling, acrimony, animosity, animus, antagonism, antipathy, aversion, bitterness, detestation, disgust, dislike, disrelish, enmity, friction, grievances, grudges, hatred, hostility, loathing, malevolence, malice

Showing 1051 to 1075 of 4340 results

1051. Daring Thomas

John 11:1-16

Sermon

King Duncan

... Today’s lesson takes place earlier in that same Gospel. It has only a brief mention of him as well, but this passage clearly shows Thomas as more daring rather than doubting. I suppose the reason we so rarely notice this more positive picture of Thomas’ character is because it is contained in the story of the raising of Lazarus, a story that is so powerful that a brief mention of the disciple Thomas is barely worth noting. When our story opens Jesus has just learned that his close friend Lazarus is sick ...

1052. Those Kissing Christians

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... kiss; and Peter, with a kiss of charity.” (Catechetical Lecture, XXIII, 3. From The Catechetical Lectures of Saint Cyril [Oxford, 1839], 273-74. See PG 33, 1112.) Jesus inaugurated a “kissing culture.” He accepted kisses and touches from all sorts of disreputable characters. He drew dirty, sticky children into his lap and kissed and held them. He welcomed the kisses he received from his disciples. He scolded Simon the Pharisee for not offering him a kiss (Luke 7:45). He was betrayed by Judas’ kiss ...

1053. A Gospel for Losers

Jonah 3:1-5, 10

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... A loser! There are loads of them out there. Ever watch Seinfeld? The hit show owed a lot of its success to a twisted sense of humor and a charming cast that could make even horrible behavior seem amusing. The character of George Costanza is the "loveable loser" in the bunch. George's character is based on the real-life cocreator of the show, Larry David. Larry has the same pessimistic attitude toward life as George does. In 1993, when Larry won an Emmy for best writing in a comedy series, the opening line ...

1054. The Ear, the Tongue, and the Temper: A Lesson in Spiritual Anatomy

James 1:17-27

Sermon

Thomas Lentz

... real power. Our feelings have been hurt, our rights have been encroached upon, someone has nosed into our parking place and in a rage we become as babies again, screaming, "Somebody took my teddy bear!" What makes you angry? The answers to that question will reveal your character. As the proverb says, "You can tell the size of the man by the size of the thing that makes him mad." Certainly to boil up inside, to lose control because of some trivial personal hurt, to allow the wild forces of our being to run ...

1055. Prepare: An Advent Play

Matthew 24:36-51

Drama

Arley K. Fadness

... , they experience an exciting joy and freedom they’ve never had before. You can just see it in their faces. And it shows in their lives. Do you want to be baptized Santa? Santa: Uh, er — I believe I was baptized — at least my historical character Saint Nicholas was. Is that valid? John: Oh yes — as long as you believe and trust God’s promises. Repent daily and follow Christ with all your heart. (exits singing “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” or “Baptized” by Jay Beech) Santa: (reflective) What a ...

1056. The Test of Goodness

Illustration

F.B. Meyer

The supreme test of goodness is not in the greater but in the smaller incidents of our character and practice; not what we are when standing in the searchlight of public scrutiny, but when we reach the firelight flicker of our homes; not what we are when some ... when we are called to sentry-duty in the grey morning, when the watch-fire is burning low. It is impossible to be our best at the supreme moment if character is corroded and eaten into by daily inconsistency, unfaithfulness, and besetting sin.

1057. It Takes Two

Illustration

Staff

... you are saying. The great movie maker, Cecil B. DeMille would agree. DeMille was making one of his great epic movies. He had six cameras at various points to pick up the overall action and five other cameras set up to film plot developments involving the major characters. The large cast had begun rehearsing their scene at 6 a.m. They went through it four times and now it was late afternoon. The sun was setting and there was just enough light to get the shot done. DeMille looked over the panorama, saw that ...

1058. Outward Appearance

Illustration

Paul Borthwick

... while treating leniently our flaws. The Bible calls this tendency hypocrisy. We consciously or subconsciously put forward a better image of ourselves than really exists. The outward appearance of our character and the inner reality (that only God, we, and perhaps our family members know) do not match. C.S. Lewis explains the conflict in The Four Loves: Those like myself, whose imagination far exceeds their obedience, are subject to a just penalty; we easily imagine conditions far higher than any ...

1059. The Four Authorities

Illustration

... can snap many an office or shop into action. 3. The Authority of Personality: The easier it is for the other fellow to talk to you, to listen to you, or to work with you, the easier he will find it to respond to your wishes. 4. The Authority of Character: This component is your "credit rating" with other people as to your integrity, reliability, honesty, loyalty, sincerity, personal morals, and ethics. Obviously you will get more and better from a man who has respect for your ...

1060. Rally the Troops

Illustration

J.O. Sanders

... to get others to do what they don't want to do, and like it." Lord Montgomery defines it in these terms: "Leadership is the capacity and will to rally men and women to a common purpose, and the character which inspires confidence." I like that: The capacity to rally and the character to inspire. Montgomery enunciated seven ingredients necessary in a leader in war, each of which is appropriate to the spiritual warfare: He should be able to sit back and avoid getting immersed in detail. He must not be petty ...

1061. All That God Intends

Illustration

James Packer

... mean that God can literally do anything? No, that is not the meaning. There are many things God cannot do. God cannot do what is self-contradictory or nonsensical, like squaring the circle. Nor (and this is vital) can God act out of character. God has a perfect moral character, and it is not in him to deny it. God cannot be capricious, unloving, random, unjust, or inconsistent. Just as God cannot pardon sin without atonement, because that would not be right, so God cannot fail to be faithful and just in ...

1062. Finish the Lord's Work

Illustration

... ; let editors publish; let the devil do his worst. But see to it that nothing hinders you from fulfilling the work God has given you. He had not sent you to make money; He has not commanded you to get rich. He has never bidden you to defend your character nor has He bidden you to contradict falsehoods about yourself which Satan and his servants may start to peddle. If you do these things you will do nothing else; you will be at work for yourself and not for the Lord. Keep about your work. Let your aim be ...

1063. Reduced In Value

Illustration

Staff

... SOILED GREATLY REDUCED IN PRICE. "That's it exactly," he continued. "We get soiled by gazing at a vulgar picture, reading a course book, or allowing ourselves a little indulgence in dishonest or lustful thoughts; and so when the time comes for our character to be appraised, we are greatly reduced in value. Our purity, our strength is gone. We are just part and parcel of the general, shopworn stock of the world." Yes, continual slight deviations from the path of right may greatly reduce our usefulness ...

1064. Watch Your Thoughts

Illustration

Frank Outlaw

Watch your thoughts; they become words. Watch your words; they become actions. Watch your actions; they become habits. Watch your habits; they become character. Watch your character; it becomes your destiny.

1065. Christmas Is a God-Thing

Luke 1:26-38

Sermon

King Duncan

... ’s perfect,” we say at such times. And, of course, it’s true. But sometimes when we give in to our imperfections, sad things happen. Dr. Samuel Massey tells of watching a World War II movie once. In this particular movie one character is giving lessons to another character about how to destroy a dam. The pupil anticipated that, if you packed the dam with enough dynamite you could send the entire dam skyward. But the teacher explained that far less explosive power was needed. “Place a few sticks in ...

1066. It's Anybody's Ballgame

Humor Illustration

... to the World Series. I'm proud of all of you. I'm proud of the way we've fought to get this far. I will simply quote from the Holy Bible, from Romans: 'From tribulation comes strength, and from the depths of strength comes character...and from the depths of character comes hope.''" Then Lasorda raised his voice to a shout: "And I hope all of you jackasses realize that if we don't win this game, we go home!" The Dodgers won. (From Joe Garagiola, IT''S ANYBODY''S BALLGAME, Chicago: Contemporary Books, 1988)

1067. Matthew 2:1-12

Matthew 2:1-12

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... of Jesus’ birth, there is perhaps none so startling as Matthew’s tale of the “magi.” Little surprise to learn that “The Adoration of the Magi” is one of the most portrayed moments in the history of Christian art. The Magi are such familiar characters to us now that we fail to register how truly strange they are to be on the scene at all. They are strangers from the far East. Magicians. Astrologers. Persian pagan priests perhaps. Not kings. Not all that “wise.” The term “magi” is believed ...

1068. Prophesy Your Way Forward

Matthew 2:1-12

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

1069. Mark 1:40-45

Mark 1:40-45

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... . This scene between Jesus and the leper is not specifically tied by geography or timing to the other acts of healing and exorcism that are described in this section. Instead, the entire focus of this encounter is on the dramatic interaction of the characters. The leper’s initial approach to Jesus is astonishing in its boldness and in its humility. As one of the “unclean,” this leper breaks all the rules of ostracism that surround him. He walks directly up to Jesus and addresses him. Instead of ...

1070. Practicing the Presence

Acts 8:26-40

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... the day when all sensible people would be off the road and waiting for a cooler time to travel. Yet Philip does exactly as he was told. Following those strange instructions to an estranged place puts Philip directly in the path of danger. The key character is an exotic individual known as the “Ethiopian eunuch.” The place “Ethiopia” was the region referred to as “Cush” in Old Testament texts. It was south of Egypt in what today is part of Sudan. For Luke’s Jewish readers this man’s ethnicity ...

1071. Go, Johnny, Go, Go, Go!

Luke 3:1-6

Sermon

Cynthia Cowen

... the Baptist. As John entered clothed in the prophet's clothing, a reader announced: "Prepare the way of the Lord. Make his paths straight" (Luke 3:4b). Recently, there had been some problems. Another station had been broadcasting over WMIQ's airwaves. As the character playing John introduced himself to the congregation, the words of a golden oldie spilled out, "Go, Johnny, go, go, go!" Laughter went up reminding those listening that God has a sense of humor. He seemed to be saying, "Go, Johnny, go, go, go ...

1072. The Speed Bump On the Road to Bethlehem

Luke 3:1-6

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... deposits us annually at his desert camp, we would probably barrel right on toward the manger without ever noticing him at all. But here he is again, a speed bump on the road to Bethlehem. The gospel writers apparently think John is a pretty important character in this Jesus narrative. All four talk about him, while just two mention the Lord's birth. Luke is particularly insistent that we take him seriously because he goes to some lengths in noting the historical context of his ministry. But "the word of God ...

1073. Trouble In the Parsonage

Hosea 1:2-10

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... , to the fellows anyway. Gomer's vocabulary seemed to lack the word "no." And if her vocabulary did not lack it, her character did. Sure enough, she ended up pregnant again. This time there was not much question about who the father was not - Hosea ... : She did not have to give it away - she could sell it. Gomer became a prostitute. Finally, she got tied up with a really unscrupulous character, a pimp. All he cared about Gomer for was the amount of money she could turn in a night. When she was no longer of ...

1074. Rich Man, Poor Man

James 2:1-13

Sermon

King Duncan

... as well. Our hearts will make a pitiful offering to Christ someday, because we have not exercised them in acts of kindness and compassion for all people. One day, Marlene Nance’s little daughter, Emma, was playing with her Bible character paper dolls when she realized that the Jesus character was missing. Marlene and Emma looked all over the house, but they couldn’t find Jesus anywhere. Later that afternoon, Emma came running to her mother with some good news. She had found Jesus! He was in one of her ...

1075. Proper 11

Genesis 18:1-10a, Psalm 15:1-5; 52:1-9, Amos 8:1-12, Luke 10:38-42, Colossians 1:15-28

Bulletin Aid

Julia Ross Strope

... in today’s Bible stories are you identifying with: the poet-psalmist? Amos? Sarah? Abraham? Paul? Mary? Martha? Jesus? Our faith family needs to pay our bills, to offer help, and to enrich our journeys. You will have a response to the inner voice just as the Bible characters did to the situations they ran into. As you respond, may your psyche be satisfied. Doxology "The Lone, Wild Bird" The ends of earth are in God’s hand, The sea’s dark deep and far-off land. And I am yours! I rest in you. Great ...

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