Sermon and Worship Resources

Antonyms: keep, claim, continue, stick by, self-control, power through, achieve, defend, bear, hope, acquire, quick visit, adopt, continue along, adhere, remain, pursue, support, take up, keep up, reuse, advocate, stay, persevere, cherish, keep going, carry on

Showing 1126 to 1150 of 2332 results

1126. OUR LORD DELIVERED UP

Sermon

E. Jerry Walker

He walked rapidly, his long robes flowing behind him to be whipped by the brisk, dry east wind. His two servants occasionally quick-stepped to keep pace, their sandals padding softly on the dust of the deserted streets. As they turned eastward from the upper city, the declining, full moon flung their shadows ahead like long moving fingers pointing toward the white limestone buildings of the temple compound. Nicodemus’ mind was thoughtless, yet filled with many thoughts. He had no plan, no course of ...

1127. OUR LORD FORSAKEN

Sermon

E. Jerry Walker

... him who was trying to comfort her. They were at the city gate and Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus deferentially took their leave and the four of them, John the disciple and the three women walked on alone. The streets were nearly deserted, just a few stragglers hurrying toward the temple compound where the noises of the ceremonials already could be heard. "There was something," John began, halted, words choking in his breast. "Something he said. Just before ... before they took him. We were together ...

1128. Blessed With Peace

John 14:15-31

Sermon

O. Garfield Beckstrand, II

... his Resurrection gave peace to those who live with him. Saint Augustine, the great saint of the church, said, "Our hearts are restless until they rest in thee." He spoke from the depths of a deep spiritual experience. As a wild rebellious youth, he deserted God, religion, and faith. The emptiness of his life threatened his very existence. In despair he prayed, "Oh God, forgive me of all my sin - but not yet." And back he went to spend his youthful passions in immorality. Again the hollowness of his unholy ...

1129. Reinforced With Joy

John 15:1-17

Sermon

O. Garfield Beckstrand, II

... with his closest associates. He knew that, before sundown the next day, unless a miracle happened, he would be arrested, killed, and buried. He knew, too, that in the excitement with the tense emotional feelings of the people, that his own men would betray, deny, and desert him. His ministry, the work of his entire life, suddenly appeared to be ending in failure. Yet with all the tragedy facing him, he turned to his disciples and said, "These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that ...

1130. Crowned With Victory

John 14:15-31

Sermon

O. Garfield Beckstrand, II

... , tell us your experience of the Resurrection." Mary answers, "I went to the tomb early in the morning on the first day of the week. We carried spices hoping the soldiers would let us into the tomb to anoint the body of our Lord, but the place was deserted. The stone was rolled away, and the tomb was empty. Believing that someone had stolen the body, I threw myself on the ground and wept. A man approached me and said, ‘Mary,’ and it was Jesus." "John, you were one of those who was closest to Jesus, what ...

1131. Waiting

John 1:6-8, 19-28

Sermon

Brett Blair

... for that which we cannot see. What are you waiting for? II Secondly, there is the waiting of John the Baptist. The people of John’s day experienced a special kind of waiting. When Jesus was a young man in his late 20s, John the Baptist was a desert prophet warning everyone of the wrath of God and the judgment to come. His message was harsh. It was a sharp rebuke especially of the religious leadership. The people had been worked up into such frenzy that they thought that he was the messiah. Many who came ...

1132. Back To Basics: The Three R's of Baptism

Mark 1:1-8, Mark 1:9-13

Sermon

Brett Blair

... Peninsula that juts out north from the island and is separated from the mainland by an almost sheer cliff 2,000-3,000 feet high. The only way to get to that peninsula is to jump off the cliff or go by boat in the open ocean. That deserted peninsula was where the Hawaiians abandoned all their lepers. If you got leprosy in Hawaii, you were taken to this peninsula and abandoned. And Father Damien felt a call to the people there who had been cast off, outcasts removed from society. And he worked there just as ...

1133. House-Building Time

2 Samuel 7:1-17

Sermon

Richard L. Eslinger

... the promise and look for a patriarch, some hero like David. Instead, this conceived-of-the-Holy-Spirit one will be born in a humble place, not in the palace. There will be no mighty men of battle to accompany him to victory, only twelve disciples who will desert and betray. We hear the promise and expect someone who will "lord it over us." But this one growing in Mary’s womb will say to us that he came to serve and not be served. We hear the promise and expect a patriarch and patriarchy. But the privilege ...

1134. Standing in Awe

Isaiah 6:1-13

Sermon

Roger Prescott

... capable of seeing." - Joseph Wood Krutch** "It is when we mistakenly pursue the unusual and sensational in our quest for fulfillment that we rush past the true meaning of life." - Gerhard Frost*** *The Christian Century, January 4-11, 1984, p. 15. **The Desert Year. ***Blessed is the Ordinary, Winston Press, 1980, p. 1. God is revealed in the small, entrancing surprises of nature. Somewhere Helen Keller says: "Occasionally, if I am very fortunate, I place my hand gently on a small tree and feel the happy ...

1135. A Royal Lament

2 Samuel 1:1-16

Sermon

Roger Prescott

... gonna play one helluva second half I told this to some kids in the court next to mine and they laughed but I don’t think they understood how could they playing in the first quarter only one point behind* (*"The Second Half," in The Deserted Rooster, Sunflower Ink, 1982.) We, like David, can recognize our human weakness also. We have seen that David’s elegy speaks of admiration and of vulnerability. It also speaks of ... 3. Friendship Except for one verse (26), Jonathan’s name is less prominent than ...

1136. An Unusual Legacy

2 Samuel 23:1-7

Sermon

Roger Prescott

... house stand so with God? For he has made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things and secure. - 2 Samuel 23:5 With all the trouble we humans have with relationships (read that "covenants") these words fall on us like water in a desert. They are refreshing and life-giving. God’s everlasting covenant with us, culminating in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus the Christ, is a "base" for all our other covenants/relationships in this life. As my mom approached her death, she continued to ...

1137. Childs of Center Point

Drama

Michael L. Sherer

... me last night while you were at the Stewardship Committee meeting at church. Tom hasn’t delivered for a week. In fact, Mrs. Sullivan has done it since Monday. This morning I can imagine she’s just running behind, what with her husband having deserted her, and she having one still in diapers and everything. BILL CHILDS: Why, that ungrateful little imp, putting his mother to all that trouble. EVIE CHILDS: Bill! (She stares angrily at him) BILL CHILDS: (surprised and a little sheepish) I’m sorry. What ...

1138. This Is Water

John 7:25-44

Sermon

Ron Lavin

... has always been important for Christians. Many of the apostles earned their living on water, as fishermen. Many of Jesus’ most famous sayings were spoken and many of his miracles were performed near or on the Sea of Galilee. Christianity began in the desert of Israel - where water means life. Most importantly, the Kingdom of God begins in a person through the Sacrament of water - Holy Baptism. Here we focus on Jesus’ words about living water, which is interpreted by the Gospel writer as the Holy Spirit ...

1139. The Healing Community

Mark 5:21-43

Sermon

Ron Lavin

... into a gimmick." Jesus was compassionate. He entered into fellowship with people. They knew that he knew how they felt. That’s the task of the healing community. The great illusion of leadership is to think that man can be led out of the desert by someone who has never been there. The world needs wounded healers: Wounded healers - who suffer themselves; Wounded healers - who are willing to pay the price of entering into others’ lives, instead of just giving advice; Wounded healers - who are aware of the ...

1140. A Good God and the Problem of Suffering

Sermon

Robert G. Tuttle

... them away, and have slain your camel drivers, and I alone am left." Another cloud of dust, another messenger, another message of woe: "Thy sons and thy daughters ..." - Job held his breath - "They were all feasting in your eldest son’s house and a great wind from the desert has destroyed the house and all your sons and daughters with it." For a moment the shock was too great for Job. But as he came to himself he whispered, "The Lord has given, the Lord has taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord." Job ...

1141. Thomas

John 20:24-31

Sermon

Brett Blair

... us true reality. These moments of spiritual light are so very important, because they allow us to get through many dark nights of doubt and despair, that come into the lives of every single one of us. In moments of light, God has told you that he will never desert you. Don’t ever doubt that. In moments of light, God has told you that resurrection is reality. Don’t ever let the darkness cause you to doubt that. In moments of light, God has told you that the very hairs on your head are numbered. Don’t ...

1142. Christian Thanksgiving

Philippians 1:1-7

Sermon

T. A. Kantonen

... , lonely in an inscrutable wilderness, facing the dark unknown with a faith born of their dedication to God and a fortitude drawn from their sense that all men were brothers. Let us renew that spirit by offering our thanks for uncovenanted mercies, beyond our desert or merit, and by resolving to meet the responsibilities placed upon us. Let us renew that spirit by sharing the abundance of this day with those less fortunate, in our own land and abroad. Let us renew that spirit by seeking always to establish ...

1143. How Life’s Pressures Affect Good Judgment

Mark 6:14-29

Sermon

Brett Blair

... law. He said, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.” So this was the king’s egregious sin. He had stolen his brother’s wife, Herodias. Now, it would be understandable if this were where the story ended. The king didn’t like a desert preacher calling him a sinner so he had him beheaded. Simple enough. But life is not always simple. There is usually more to a story than meets the eye. And in this case we learn that Herod actually liked to listen to John, thought he was a holy man ...

1144. Like Trees Walking

Isaiah 6:1-13

Sermon

Gregory J. Johanson

... he touched their partially-healed blindness once more to give them a God’s-eye view. We need the living Christ to touch us, not just once but many times, because as fast as the scales fall from our eyes, it seems new visual afflictions appear. But he will not desert us while every one who wants to see can see clearly. Only our Lord can make us see the right relationship of man to man and man to God. It was God who commanded that we love him and each other without reservation, and it was Jesus who showed ...

1145. A Little Child Shall Lead Them

Isaiah 11:1-16

Sermon

Gregory J. Johanson

... was another verse of the book of Isaiah which spoke to the very depth of him and gave him the courage and the insight to go on. It was chapter 35 which tells of a way of holiness which shall lead men through every difficulty to the place where the desert blossoms as the rose. There is a strange power in this old prophet and his words. He touches the heart. So few people, however, know how to read the Bible or religious books. They do not listen to these writings with the heart. There was no doubt that this ...

1146. Backsliding

John 6:60-71

Sermon

Brett Blair

... seems to have changed. Luke is mentioned first, rather than Demas. Not only that, there are words of praise for Luke, but Demas is mentioned only by name. Apparently he is beginning to slow down. Later, in Paul’s letter to Timothy, he writes: “Demas deserted me, having loved this present age.” There in a few words you have the story of a man’s life. What started out with so much promise ended in disappointment. Backsliding is not merely a problem for Biblical characters; it is an issue for the ...

1147. Touchable

2 Samuel 23:1-7

Bulletin Aid

Dallas A. Brauninger

... . People: When we are with God, we become touchable and kind. People sense an invitation and approach us. Collect Gracious God, we yearn to be in a right relationship with you, with ourselves, and with those around us. In a rebirth of connecting, let the deserts of our relationships burst into soft flower and dance in the wind. Amen. Prayer of Confession Dear God, when we become so overwhelmed by our loads of work, life, and family that we present our thorny side, draw us nearer to you. Quiet our weariness ...

1148. Good News for Bad Times

Isaiah 40:1-31

Sermon

John R. Brokhoff

... Promise God's Christmas-card message this Advent has another bit of good news for those bad times. It is news of warning and promise that he is coming to us. Isaiah is told to cry, "In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God." When a people is in distress, God in concern comes to the people. When the Israelites were captive in Egypt, God heard their cries of misery. Now again, God hears the groaning of the people in Babylon. God knows the plight we are ...

1149. The Long Lonliness

Romans 13:8-14

Sermon

Maurice A. Fetty

... out there? Does anyone care?" Ancient humans built their altars on mountaintops in an effort to get close to the gods up there, just beyond the solid arch of heaven, behind the blue firmament. The Tower of Babel was only one of the ziggurats pyramiding above the desert sky to probe the domain of the deities. If the gods wouldn't come down to us, we would climb up to them, because we were tired of this long loneliness of the human race. We longed for divine companionship. In more recent times, expressing an ...

1150. The Second Naiveté: Babies, Angels, Shepherds, And God

Sermon

Maurice A. Fetty

... by those with eyes to see and ears to hear. And who are these of the second naivete? In the Christmas story they are the shepherd and the astrologer, both of them stargazers, both of them spending long nights absorbing the brilliant desert sky, both of them contemplating mysteries and wonders beyond the ordinary and beyond our control. We city- dwellers find the nighttime sky blocked by our own city lights. Our own minimal brilliance blocks the transcendent galaxies and the splendor of an infinite space ...

Showing results