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 1076 to 1100 of 1225 results

1076. Thanksgiving and Prayer

Philemon 1:1-7

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... faith unto others. Verse 6 is one of the most obscure verses in the epistle and poses many problems for interpreters. Some have understood the phrase “the sharing [koinōnia] of your faith” (NKJV, RSV) as a reference to Philemon’s evangelistic work; however, the phrase more likely refers to Philemon’s sharing of the same faith with other Christ followers. Paul explains that this “active” (or “effective”) shared experience of faith in Christ will lead to the knowledge of every “good” that ...

1077. The Antichrist Has Come! The Secessionists Deny Jesus’s Messiahship

1 John 2:18-27

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... , but keeping the law of Moses was central to being Jewish, and the heart of the law was the worship of one God. (3) As Christian confession of Jesus’s messiahship developed into higher Christologies, both in worship practices and in evangelistic emphases, this evoked accusations of “ditheism.” At Jamnia, on the western coast of Israel, a blessing against the heretics (the Birkat ha-Minim) was codified, which was the twelfth of eighteen benedictions. It cursed the followers of “the Nazarene,” and ...

1078. Concluding Remarks

1 John 5:13-21

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

5:13–15 · The boldness of faithFor the sixth time in this epistle (5:13; see 2:14, 21, 26) the elder declares his purpose in writing, and this time he explicitly echoes the evangelistic purpose of the Fourth Gospel (John 20:31): that his hearers/readers might believe in the name of the Son of God and thereby know that they have eternal life. The elder then reminds them of the promise of Jesus that anything asked in his name will be granted by ...

1079. When Heartbreak Turns to Heartburn

Luke 24:13-35

Sermon

Robert Leslie Holmes

... Amos I am your burden-bearer. In Obadiah I am mighty to save. In Jonah I am swallowed up but alive on the third day. In Micah I am the messenger of beautiful feet. In Nahum I am the avenger of God's elect. In Habakkuk I am God's evangelist, crying, "Revive thy work...." In Zephaniah I am the Savior. In Haggai I am the restorer of God's lost heritage. In Zechariah I am the true king rejected by his own people. In Malachi I am the son of righteousness. The difference is the second word that jumps at ...

1080. I Wonder about The End of the World

Mark 13:32-37

Sermon

Charley Reeb

“On April 3rd, 1843 there were scores of believers in the Northeast who were awaiting the end of the world. They all followed a New York evangelist named William Miller. They were called “Millerites.” Journalists had a field day. Reportedly some disciples were on mountaintops, hoping for a head start to heaven. Others were in graveyards, planning to ascend in union with their departed loved ones. Some high society ladies clustered together outside town to avoid entering ...

1081. A Warning Against Hypocrisy

Matthew 23:1-39

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

... M. Hunter lists as examples of the “astonishing variety of portraits of Jesus which our learned men have given us: Renan’s ‘Amiable Carpenter,’ Tolstoy’s ‘Spiritual Anarchist,’ Schweitzer’s ‘Imminent Cataclysmist,’ Klausner’s ‘Unorthodox Rabbi,’ and Otto’s ‘Charismatic Evangelist’ ” (The Work and Words of Jesus, p. 14). The Old Testament pattern for a series of woes is found in Isaiah 5:8–23. Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees! (v. 13). They slammed the door of ...

1082. Being a True Disciple

John 8:31-36

Sermon

David G. Rogne

... discovered and taught that we are saved by faith. Indeed, before him the apostle Paul indicated that we are saved by God's grace through faith and not from anything we can do to earn it (Ephesians 2:8). A few years ago an evangelistic organization announced their plan to proclaim the gospel to every person in the world who had a telephone listing. Christians everywhere were recruited and urged to take responsibility for several pages of the local telephone directory, calling the people who appeared on those ...

1083. John the Baptist Prepares the Way

Mark 1:1-8

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

... this title elsewhere in the NT (in Mark cf. 5:19; 11:3; also, e.g., 1 Cor. 8:6; Acts 9:1–29). 1:4 A baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins: John’s baptism was the immediate demonstration of repentance, just as responding to an evangelistic invitation is seen in some church circles. 1:5 The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem: Mark of course probably does not mean that everyone from these areas went! 1:6 John’s dress and diet seem to reflect the strict life of a desert ...

1084. The Transfiguration

Mark 9:2-13

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

... death and resurrection, and that any Christian preaching and devotion that is not centered on the meaning of these events is shallow and confused. Additional Notes 9:2 A high mountain: Mark gives no location for this mountain, nor do the other evangelists. Early tradition placed the event at Mount Tabor, a prominent site in Galilee southwest of Lake Galilee, but this is impossible to verify. (See, e.g., MBA, 233.) Peter, James and John: These same three accompany Jesus at the raising of Jairus’ daughter ...

1085. Signs of the End of the Age

Mark 13:1-31

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

... ; 17:20–21, 31) suggests that the present form of the discourse is a composite of sayings of Jesus strung together by Mark and/or those upon whom he drew for his material. In addition, the variations among the three main parallel accounts show that each evangelist has shaped this body of teaching material with the needs of his own readers in mind. But, of course, all this means that this material was considered very important and instructive in the early church and was used and re-used in its teaching and ...

1086. Jesus Anointed at Bethany

Mark 14:1-11

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

... the Gospels says anything more than that the act was wicked and that Judas was influenced by Satan. It may be that Judas became disillusioned with Jesus and was swayed by the accusations that Jesus was a lawbreaker and blasphemer. The evangelists were uninterested in the reasons for Judas’ action. Their narration of Judas’ betrayal mainly supplies the readers with a warning example from which they are to distinguish themselves by unbroken devotion and loyalty to Jesus. Additional Notes 14:1 The Passover ...

1087. Introduction

Luke 1:1-4

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... this general theme see Charles H. Talbert, Luke and the Gnostics: An Examination of the Lucan Purpose (Nashville: Abingdon, 1966). 1:1 Account literally may be translated, “narrative,” a word possibly suggested to Luke by its verbal form in LXX Hab. 1:5, which the evangelist will later record Paul quoting in Acts 13:41 as an OT text that is vital to the Christian explanation of Jewish unbelief (see Introduction above). LXX Hab. 1:5, as quoted in Acts, reads in part: “I am going to do something in your ...

1088. The Birth of John the Baptist Foretold

Luke 1:5-25

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... in rabbinic writings as well: m. ‘Eduyyot 8.7; Pesiqta Rabbati 4.2; 33.8; Seder Eliyyahu Zuta 1 (169); Sipre Deut. 342 (on 33:2); Midrash Psalms 3.7 (on 3:6). Talbert (pp. 27–30) suggests that Luke presents the Baptist as a “prototype of the Christian evangelist.” He cites Luke 1:14–17, 57–80; 3:1–20; 7:24–35. 1:15 He is never to take wine or other fermented drink: Abstinence from alcoholic beverages is the main requirement of the Nazirite vow (see Num. 6:3; Judg. 13:7; LXX 1 Sam. 1 ...

1089. The Baptism and Genealogy of Jesus

Luke 3:21-38

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... 7 may represent Luke’s attempt at reconciling the Baptists and Christians.) However, because Jesus is anointed with the Spirit at the time of his baptism (and because of the close association of baptism with the Spirit in early Christianity, see 1 Cor. 12:13), the evangelists are reluctant to set it aside. It is probable that as part of his preparation for ministry, Jesus himself had been an actual follower of John. Prior to his anointing he was still in training (as he was as a young boy listening to and ...

1090. The Temptation of Jesus

Luke 4:1-13

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... to eat (fruit in the case of Adam; bread in the case of Jesus) corresponds, at least superficially, the other temptations do not. The temptations of the Gospel tradition reflect the ideas found in Deuteronomy 6 and 8, not those found in Genesis 3. The evangelist offers no more than a general comparison of Jesus and Adam, “sons of God” through whom the destiny of the human race is so drastically affected. Luke saw in the temptation a foreshadowing of what lay ahead for Jesus in Jerusalem. This is obvious ...

1091. Jesus' Teaching on Prayer

Luke 11:1-13

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... with Luke’s version closer to the original wording. (Matthew has in all probability expanded his version of the Lord’s Prayer; see Gundry, pp. 105–9; Marshall, pp. 456–57.) The original setting of the prayer was probably not known to the evangelists, although this cannot be categorically ruled out. Matthew placed it in his Sermon on the Mount in order to illustrate the correct way to pray, as opposed to the ostentatious prayers of the hypocrites (Matt. 6:5) and the meaningless repetitions of the ...

1092. Jesus' Sorrow for Jerusalem

Luke 13:31-35

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... the third one, although somewhat parallel to and dependent upon Mark 13:14–23 (=Matt. 24:15–28), affords many distinctive features. It is clear from these passages that the fate of the city of Jerusalem is of major interest to the evangelist Luke (see Charles Homer Giblin, The Destruction of Jerusalem according to Luke’s Gospel, Analecta Biblica 107 [Rome: Biblical Institute, 1985]). The main point seems to be that because the city has rejected God’s messenger (Jesus), God will abandon the city ...

1093. The Parable of the Lost Sheep

Luke 15:1-7

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... in his father’s heart. If Luke freely composed the second part of this parable (vv. 25–32), as Sanders claims, and did so as a polemic against the Pharisees of his day (who were bitterly opposed to Christianity), it seems strange that the evangelist did not take the opportunity to paint a much more unambiguously negative picture of the older son. The same point may be raised against Luise Schottroff’s view that Luke himself wrote the entire parable (vv. 11–32), not just the second part, as polemic ...

1094. The Rich Man and Lazarus

Luke 16:19-31

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... words he warned them [or witnessed to them], ‘Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.’ ” 16:29 Moses and the Prophets: The resurrected Jesus will later tell his disciples that “Moses and all the Prophets” spoke of him (Luke 24:27, 44). 16:31 they will not be convinced: For the evangelist Luke this word implied conversion and salvation, as seen in Acts 17:4: “Some of the Jews were persuaded [or convinced] and joined Paul”; and in Acts 28:24: “Some were convinced by what he said.”

1095. The Coming of the Kingdom of God

Luke 17:20-37

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... vv. 22–37 may more appropriately be regarded as material concerned with the return of the “Son of Man” and should be viewed, as Fitzmyer (p. 1158) has contended, as “something different” from the kingdom material in vv. 20–21. Nevertheless, because the evangelist has lumped the materials together, they are here treated as a unified discourse that has something to contribute to the general theme of the kingdom of God. Elsewhere in Luke we have been told that the kingdom of God is something that ...

1096. The Little Children and Jesus

Luke 18:15-17

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... a kingdom connotation here as well, since the glorious return of the Son of Man, at which time the kingdom of God is established in its fulness, can take place only after he has first suffered and been rejected (vv. 31–32; see 17:25). With 18:15 the evangelist Luke has resumed following his text of the Gospel of Mark. All three parts of this section are taken from Mark, and in the Marcan order (Mark 10:13–16, 17–31, 32–34). 18:15–17 With respect to the people who were also bringing babies to Jesus ...

1097. The Parable of the Ten Minas

Luke 19:11-27

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... likely that Luke would have added the part about the man going away to become king, rather than that Matthew would have dropped it (why should Matthew omit this component?), Fitzmyer’s reconstruction is to be preferred. The distinctive features found in the Lucan version fit the evangelist’s theology. The part about the man of noble birth who is to have himself appointed king but has to go to a distant country (v. 12), and while he is absent is hated by his subjects who do not want him to be their king ...

1098. The Widow's Offering

Luke 21:1-4

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... of Jerusalem (vv. 20–24); (5) the Coming of the Son of Man (vv. 25–28); (6) the Parable of the Fig Tree (vv. 29–33); and (7) the Admonition to Watch (vv. 34–38). With the exception of the last part, which is found only in Luke, the evangelist has derived his materials from Mark 12:41–13:31. 21:1–4 The episode of the poor widow who gave to the temple treasury only two very small copper coins (see note below) stands in contrast to the nature of the religious piety and practice of the teachers ...

1099. Paul the Minister to the Gentiles

Romans 15:14-22

Understanding Series

James R. Edwards

... as recorded in Acts, let alone the physical impossibility of one person’s saturating several nations with the gospel, exclude a literal interpretation here. The key to these statements must be found in the apostle’s missionary consciousness. As a pioneer evangelist who desired to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, Paul determined his strategy, which was to establish Christianity in urban centers and to allow his converts to evangelize outlying areas. A classic example of this was his ministry ...

1100. The Lord's Supper

1 Corinthians 11:17-34

Understanding Series

Marion L. Soards

... the Corinthians that they are proclaiming the Lord’s death until he comes, Paul highlights the essentially missional nature of even so congregationally oriented a ritual as the celebration of the Lord’s Supper. The participation in the Supper was to have an evangelistic cast, for one was not merely receiving the elements for one’s own sake (or the sake of the community). The believers gave themselves to the celebration as a means of proclaiming the death of the Lord, a death that yielded mysterious ...

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