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Showing 1101 to 1125 of 2561 results

1101. The Infinite Becomes An Infant

Matthew 1:18-25

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

The Miracle Of The Nativity Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child of the Holy Spirit; 19and her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. 20But as he considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is ...

1102. A Seeking Savior

Luke 10:1-24

Sermon

W. Robert McClelland

Christian thinking about salvation has divided itself into two main streams which I like to think of as: "Monkey-hold" salvation or "Cat-hold" salvation. The difference in theological viewpoint is seen in how monkeys and cats protect their young. A mother monkey will sound the alarm when danger lurks. The baby monkeys come running to her and hold tightly to her fur as she runs to safety. A mother cat, on the other hand, picks her kittens up by the nape of the neck and carries them in her mouth out of harm' ...

1103. Fish Miracle

1 Corinthians 15:1-11, Isaiah 6:1-13, Luke 5:1-11

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

While the people pressed upon him to hear the word of God, he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret. 2 And he saw two boats by the lake; but the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. 3 Getting into one of the boats, which was Simon's, he asked him to put out a little from the land. And he sat down and taught the people from the boat. 4 And when he had ceased speaking, he said to Simon, "Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch." 5 And Simon answered, "Master, we ...

1104. Walking The Familiar

Mark 6:1-6

Sermon

Leonard H. Budd

There was still a slick of morning moisture covering the path into the town as Eli and Samuel walked by Nathan's orchard, crossed the small stream, and finished the prescribed sabbath day's journey to the synagogue: in length, 2,000 cubits. By our modern standard of travel it was not far. It was about 1,000 yards. They walked at hurried pace. Their prayer shawls were pulled tightly around them, which helped protect them from the morning chill. Sabbath. The day of rest. In Nazareth the gathering was a ...

1105. Lent 2

Philippians 3:12-4:1, Jeremiah 26:1-24, Genesis 15:1-18, Luke 13:31-35, Psalm 27:1-14, Psalm 42:1-11

Sermon Aid

George Bass

THEOLOGICAL CLUE The Second Sunday in Lent reminds the people of God, who gather for worship this day, that they are following Jesus to Jerusalem, according to the Roman Catholic ORDO, or, in the other lectionaries, are given a preview of what is going to happen in the Holy City. Almost any Gospel for the Day that is selected from St. Luke, which would fit into the liturgical/theological scheme of Lent, will have some sort of orientation to Jerusalem; Luke's whole gospel makes it absolutely clear that ...

1106. Breakfast on the Beach

John 21:1-14

Sermon

Steven Burt

There is a handful of narratives about Jesus’ appearance after the empty tomb. Several center around the empty tomb itself, like the one in which the angels say Jesus is risen, or the one where Jesus himself appears and says to Mary Magdalene, “Do not touch me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father.” And there’s an appearance to the disciples when he says to doubting Thomas, “Go ahead, stick your hand in my wound and be sure it’s really me.” Another time Jesus walks along the road to Emmaus with two ...

1107. An Overwhelming Promise

Eulogy

Joe Barone

Isaiah 55:6-13, Jeremiah 31:31-33 Hebrews 9:24-28 and Romans 8:1-4 Sometimes the sweep and power of God’s promises in the Bible almost overwhelm me. Just stop and think about some of them. First there’s the rainbow. “This is the sign of the covenant which I have established between me and all flesh that is upon the earth,” God tells Noah in Genesis 9:17. When we look at the rainbow, we are to know that God is God, and God is faithful. From there the promise goes to Abraham and his descendants, then to ...

1108. Is Anybody There? Does Anybody Care?

Isaiah 49:8-26

Sermon

Robert Beringer

In 1976 when our nation was celebrating its bicentennial, there was a delightful musical produced about those uneasy weeks in Philadelphia more than 200 years ago when our Declaration of Independence was being written and signed. Throughout the whole production of "1776," a courier from General Washington keeps breaking in on the proceedings of the Continental Congress with increasingly disheartening news from the New Jersey encampments. The seemingly endless debate drags on ... 85 changes are made in the ...

1109. What Christmas Is About

Isaiah 9:1-7

Sermon

Robert Beringer

Charlie Brown isn't the only one who asks, "What's Christmas all about?" Real people also ask that same question. Several years ago there was an exchange student from Indonesia, spending his first December in America. The crowds of shoppers in the stores, the Santa Clauses, the bright lights, the trees, the manger scenes, the parties, and the growing sense of excitement and revelry - it was all more than a little confusing to him. Then one night as he satwatching television with his host family, the ...

1110. Under The Wings Of The Almighty

Ruth 2:1-23

Sermon

Sims Robert

The people of God are strong people. We are not weaklings who tremble and quake every time a new threat comes into our lives. We stand with boldness to face whatever life has to offer. Ruth, the daughter-in-law of Naomi, the woman from the land of Moab, was not a weakling. The death of her husband broke her heart but not her spirit. She was determined to make a new life in a new land. Somehow, the text does not tell us how, Ruth learned to believe in the God of her husband and of her mother-in-law. She ...

1111. Ludwig Nommensen Missionary To The Bataks

Drama

Thomas A. Renquist

Reader 1: In the Pacific Ocean of southeastern Asia lies the country known as Indonesia. You may remember some of the Indonesian islands from your geography class back in grade school: Borneo, Java, Sumatra. It is on the island of Sumatra, specifically the northern part, where the Batak people live. For centuries the Bataks lived in isolation from the world; not too many foreigners wanted to penetrate that mountainous tropical jungle region. As far back as Marco Polo, the Batak people were characterized as ...

1112. The Spear

John 19:31-35

Children's Sermon

Wesley T. Runk

Object: A spear Perhaps you remember the moment that we spoke of when the soldier came up to Jesus, climbed the ladder and put a sponge with sour wine to Jesus' lips. Jesus died very shortly after that moment. I don't know how many people who were there that day heard Jesus say it, but after the soldier lifted the sponge to His lips Jesus said, "It is finished." He was dead. It seemed impossible that only a few hours before He was eating with His disciples and now He was dead. This was a Friday and only a ...

1113. Giving Away the Store

Luke 22:7-38, John 13:1-17

Sermon

Carl Jech

He will show you a large upper room furnished. (Luke 22:12) If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. (John 13:14) A friend of mine once had a job briefly at a car rental agency. The job didn't last for long because the owner of the agency complained that my friend was too nice, too diplomatic with the customers. He felt that if my friend were left alone he would probably end up giving the cars away - "giving away the store!" The idea behind this ...

1114. No Grey Area

Acts 15:1-21

Sermon

Carl Hoefler

Our text this morning is about one of the greatest spiritual and theological events in the history of the Christian church. Interestingly enough, it was not a dramatic martyrdom, nor a mass miracle, or even a crusade. It was not a worship service, a great sermon preached, or a crowd conversion. It was a church convention - a convention held about fifty years after the death of our Lord. For those of you who have ever attended a convention of the church, it may sound unbelievable that it could be a ...

1115. Epilogue: Some Early Witnesses to Christ

Luke 8:26-39

Sermon

Robert V. Dodd

Epilogue: Some Early Witnesses to Christ Joseph and Mary were the initial human witnesses to Christ. They had experienced angel visitations concerning their first-born son. And they knew for certain that he was God's special Child - unlike any other person who ever walked the face of the earth. They were privileged to watch him grow and to help him grow in his own understanding of who he was and what he was to accomplish on this earth. Other early witnesses were the shepherds on the night of our Lord's ...

1116. Is It Well With Your Family? (Mother's Day)

2 Kings 4:8-26

Sermon

Brett Blair

[Read up to verse 26b and end with "Is it well with you? Is it well with your husband? Is it well with your child?"] I am going to read a quote to you first and then tell you who said it: A small child waits, with impatience, the arrival home of a parent. She wishes to relate some sandbox experience. She is excited to share the thrill that she has known that day. The time comes; the parent arrives. Beaten down by the stresses of the workplace the parent often replies: “Not now, honey, I’m busy, go watch ...

1117. The Passion of Our Lord

2 Corinthians 5:21

Sermon

A prose layout for preaching: Lent is that season of the Church's year when we as Christians dwell on the Mystery of the Crucifixion. And what the Crucifixion tells us is this: God Himself died upon a cross, to pour out His love for us, to forgive us our sins, to share His life with us now, and eternally. Most of us associate this as the theme of Lent, and yet, we also associate Lent with other things: as a time of solemnity in the Church, as a time when we should be especially more aware of our sins, as a ...

1118. The God Who Doesn’t Give Up

Hosea 11:1-11

Sermon

"How can I give you up, O Ephraim!" (v. 8) Prayer: Dear Father, we cannot fool you or pretend to be something we’re not; you know us too well. Open our minds and our understanding to know you as best we can, and to grow in appreciation of your great mercy. Amen "I’ve given him a chance three times now. Three times he let me down. I’m not going to be generous any more. I’ve had it. I don’t want to get burned again." This was Douglas, a man usually willing to go the second mile. He was known for his good ...

1119. Proper 18

Lk 14:25-33 · Eze 33:1-11 · Phm 1-20 · Prov 9:8-12

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

COMMENTARY Ezekiel 33:1-11 The watchman saves his life by giving God's warning to the wicked in the hope that the wicked will repent and live. The setting for this pericope is the defense alarm system of Ezekiel's day. A watchman was posted on a hill to warn the city by blowing a trumpet when an enemy approached. This gave the people in the fields an opportunity to come into the walled city for protection. If the watchman failed to warn, he was responsible for the death of those killed by the invaders. On ...

1120. The Master Has Come - To Proclaim God’s Kingdom

Mark 1:9-13

Sermon

In the novel Barabbas there is a scene where a woman who lives with the outcasts in the valley of Ge-Hinnom, outside the gates of the city of Jerusalem, waits for sleep at night. She hears the groanings of the sick. She thinks about Jesus and the kingdom he is always talking about. She thinks the next day will bring an end to suffering. Later on in the story, after the death of Jesus, many of his followers are persecuted. This woman is led out to the place where people are put to death. A yelling crowd ...

1121. At Table With The Lord

Drama

Production Notes The drama may be presented either as a reader's theater presentation, with all parts read, or as a dramatic presentation with parts memorized. If produced as reader's theater, be certain that all parts are read with animation, in a mood appropriate in each case to capture the character of the person and the part. If offered as a dramatic presentation, characters may want to consider costumes and some simple props and staging. At those places where action is suggested (such as Jesus washing ...

1122. The Sermon in the Supper

1 Corinthians 11:17-34

Sermon

Edward Chinn

For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. Several years ago in England, a man wrote to the editor of the British Weekly. In his letter, the writer reported that he could not remember any sermons preached in any of the churches he had attended. Because of that, the man questioned whether sermons were really as important as preachers thought they were. "I have been attending a church service for the past 30 years and I have heard probably 3,000 ...

1123. Repentance

Matthew 3:1-12

Sermon

One of the towering marks of this age is the absence of guilt. Not many people would deny that startling fact. Some are pleased that guilt has been dethroned; others see it as a bad sign. The absence of guilt is one of the reasons that it is difficult to talk about repentance. If there is no feeling of guilt, the need for repentance is greatly minimized, if not extinct. A few years ago, I was involved in experimental worship. I tried many innovative ways to enable worship to be more experiential and less ...

1124. Proper 24 & Pentecost 22

Matthew 22:15-22, 1 Thessalonians 1:1-10, Ruth 1:1-22, Psalm 96:1-13, Isaiah 44:24--45:25

Sermon Aid

THEOLOGICAL CLUE Since this Sunday will fall on the first Sunday in November in 1990 - and it doesn't really matter whether it is celebrated as the Twenty-second Sunday after Pentecost or All Saints Sunday, or even as one of the Sundays in the annual stewardship campaign in many congregations - the eschatological framework of the church year will be obvious for those who are liturgically informed. The climax of the church year - Christ the King Sunday - is only three weeks away; on that Sunday and on into ...

1125. Proper 14

Matthew 14:22-36

Sermon Aid

Liturgical Color: Green Gospel: Matthew 14:22-33 Theme: Peter walks on water. Worship Headings You may want to change the bulletin worship heading for several weeks. Here is a suggestion: THE GATHERING TAKING RESPONSIBILITY FOR OURSELVES TAKING RESPONSIBILITY FOR WHAT WE HEAR The Ancient Word The Traditional Word The Contemporary Word TAKING RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE WORD THE SCATTERING Pastoral Invitation to the Celebration One congregation did this (and followed this format for several weeks): Acknowledging ...

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