Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 1126 to 1150 of 4977 results

1126. God's Way or the Highway

Matthew 7:13-14

Sermon

James Merritt

... He is the only gate that leads to Heaven, that does sound very narrow. The reason why it does sound narrow is because it is narrow. We are being criticized more and more as Christians for being "narrow-minded." Quite frankly, that doesn't bother me because narrowness could be a great virtue. I fly quite a bit and when a pilot is approaching an airfield there are ground lights that tell that pilot where the runway is. Now that pilot can approach that runway from 360º all the way around the horizon. He can ...

1127. Slaying the Green-Eyed Monster

Proverbs 27:4

Sermon

James Merritt

... for the button that would bring the night nurse running, but he couldn't find it. The other man could have helped him, but he didn't make a move, he just watched. The coughing racked the darkness—on and on—choked the man off and then stopped. The man quit breathing and died while the other man just continued to stare at the ceiling. The next morning the day nurse came in with water for their baths and found the other man dead. They took away his body and as soon as they came back, the man asked if he ...

1128. A Bridge over Troubled Waters

Psalm 23:2

Sermon

James Merritt

... in any other time during your day. That’s why God sometimes “makes us lie down.” My dear friend, Dr. Jerry Vines, was out jogging on Labor Day and was attacked by a dog and fell backwards and broke his left wrist. Because of that he’s had to cancel quite a few speaking engagements and basically stay home. He told me the other day that even though it has been very painful, he realizes that God has forced him to get off of the road and spend more time with Him; and he has already seen how it is going ...

1129. Final Destination

Psalm 23:6

Sermon

James Merritt

... just one more thing.” He said, “What’s that?” She said, “Well, this is very important. I want to be buried with a fork in my right hand.” Well the pastor looked at her for a moment like she had lost her mind, and he didn’t know quite what to say. The woman said, “I know you think it’s strange, but in all of my years of attending church socials and potluck dinners, I always remember that when the dishes of the main course were being cleared, someone would always lean over and say, “Keep ...

1130. In Love with Howard

Matthew 13:44-46

Sermon

King Duncan

... for the well-being of those we love, but that’s about it. Nothing else that I can think of has that big of a hold on us. Yet Jesus said the kingdom of heaven is worth everything we have. Our money. Our time. Our energy. Everything. That’s quite a statement. Everything we own. So, what is this kingdom of heaven or kingdom of God? Slide 2 THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS ANYWHERE THAT GOD REIGNS. For some people, this means that getting into heaven when we die is worth everything we possess. And certainly that is ...

1131. A Time for Penance and a Time for Partridge

Ps 100, Col 2:1-7

Sermon

... will find out how we are doing on the character test. Namely, have the events of autumn left us hardened or humbled….bitter over what we have lost, or grateful for all that we have left (which we, until recently, took for granted)?" On one hand, the Bible commands gratitude, quite apart from whether we feel it or not. I remember once telling my mother that I shouldn't have to write a thank-you note for a shirt I didn't like and wouldn't wear….even if hell froze over and I had to face its icy blasts bare ...

1132. The Grasshopper Mentality

Numbers 13:26-33

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... close with one of my favorite Zig Ziegler stories. As you know, Ziegler is a magnificent salesman and motivational speaker. There was once a balloon salesman who was selling his balloons in a park. He had balloons of all different colors. They were quite large and helium-filled. Occasionally he would release a balloon for crowd effect. He released a white balloon and a crowd began to gather. He released a red balloon, and more people gathered. He released a yellow balloon, and still more people came. Then ...

1133. The Lost And Found Collection

Luke 15:1-7

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... angry with the shepherd or the other sheep. The sheep was just interested in the business at hand, which was eating grass. He ate a little bit here, then a little bit there; then he eased around a hillside and past a little valley. This went on for quite a while. The grass was good. The sheep never thought to check on the shepherd or the other sheep. Then suddenly it occurred to the sheep that darkness was falling. He looked up…no shepherd or other sheep was in sight. He was lost. Folks stray away from ...

1134. An Excellent Epitaph

2 Timothy 4:6-8

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... life that is so tiresome, so demanding, so draining that you wonder how long can you keep going? If it is a worthwhile struggle, a God-glorifying struggle, God is challenging you, “Don’t give up! Don’t surrender! I’ll help you. Just don’t quit on me.” I have a slogan framed and resting on my desk. It was written by the late great Secretary-General of the United Nations, Dag Hammerskjold. It reads, “Life only demands the strength you possess. Only one feat is possible—not to have run away ...

1135. I Believe In The Holy Spirit

John 16:5-16

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... had not met Kemmons Wilson at that time, I subscribed to his philosophy. Kemmons used to say that you can be a great success and work only half a day. Either the first 12 hours or the second, take your choice. I remember one occasion when it snowed, which was quite rare in Columbia. I was thrilled, but not for normal reasons, not because I could have fun in the snow. I was thrilled because I knew that all of our church families would be at home. On that one day I made over 20 pastoral calls. And then the ...

1136. The Triumph of Jesus

Matthew 16: 13-20

Illustration

Sermons For Sundays

... hills near his flock. When the race started, Louis was far back in the pack of marathoners. But as the miles passed he moved up steadily. One by one the leaders began to falter. The Frenchman fell in agony. The hero from the United States had to quit the race. Soon, word reached the stadium that a lone runner was approaching the arena, and the emblem of Greece was on his chest! As the excitement grew, Prince George of Greece hurried to the stadium entrance where he met Louis and ran with him to the finish ...

1137. Where Earth and Heaven Meet

John 1:14

Sermon

John E. Harnish

... the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God; all things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of humankind. And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us. Not quite as poetic, the Eugene Peterson translation of the verse does give it a "down-to-earth" flair: The Word became flesh and blood and moved into the neighborhood. We saw the glory with our own eyes, the one-of-a-kind glory; like Father, like Son; generous inside ...

1138. High Noon

Psalm 91:1-16

Sermon

John E. Harnish

... that can waste our spiritual life at the noonday. If you drive down to Adrian on M-52, you will pass a barn on the west side of the road which is painted with a large sign: "Jesus Is Lord Over Lenawee County." I never know quite what to make of that. Either it is quite a bold assertion to make or else you have to ask if that isn't an awfully tiny territory for the Lord of the Universe. At noontime, it is easy to think we have the boundaries in place, that we know just where Jesus sits and ...

1139. From the Tomb

John 20:1-18

Sermon

John E. Harnish

... The same greeting she had heard a hundred times, now more precious than all the gold in the world. He called her by name—"Mary"—and that was all it took! Now she is off running again. Remember, this is her fourth time to make this trip. She's becoming quite a sprinter this morning! Somebody clock up her miles in the CLC! She runs back to the house with the word: "I have seen the Lord." What a difference! She came to bury a dead Christ…she leaves to proclaim a Risen Lord. She came weeping for her dead ...

1140. Whose Side Are You On?

Matthew 16:21-28

Sermon

King Duncan

... didn’t mean it. Jesus wasn’t being funny. This was a rebuke of the first order. “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.” Then Jesus said to his disciples something quite stark, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.” What did he mean? Does it have anything to do with ...

1141. Precious and Privileged Children

Galatians 4:4-7

Sermon

Donald Charles Lacy

... to tell others of God's presence. When pushed to describe this experience, I usually acquiesce into trying to say that I know beyond all doubt he is present. There is a sense that someone far bigger and better than yourself is there. It may be for quite sometime, perhaps minutes or even hours, or it may be only for a brief moment. The treasure is one that neither money nor self-help books can bring about. His image as a faraway God, maybe perceived in a deistic fashion, does not exist. There is the Spirit ...

1142. Deep Calling to Deep

Ephesians 1:3-14

Sermon

Donald Charles Lacy

... can take difficult passages, after just becoming thoroughly acquainted with Holy Scripture, and be blessed many times over. In view of the fact large numbers of church members have blocks of time and financial resources, we are brought face-to-face with something quite unpleasant. Well, let's go ahead and ask the question. Are we ignorant of large areas of the spiritual life because we want to be? Perhaps it is because we simply — by design — have other priorities more pressing. Since we "were marked ...

1143. Getting It Straight

1 Corinthians 6:12-20

Sermon

Donald Charles Lacy

... to us? Suppose we shut down the industry for a year, except for certain basics like soap and water. Would this greatly hinder the cause of the Christian faith? Perhaps the chief argument would be that such a move would put numerous people out of work. Well, that becomes quite a dilemma, doesn't it? In complete seriousness, I wonder why it is essential for many Christians to do what they do in order to appear attractive. You may want to ask me what rock I crawled out from under, but hear me out. There is a ...

1144. Looking Out for Others

1 Corinthians 8:1-13

Sermon

Donald Charles Lacy

... may be good reasons. Perhaps you have let a person into your life and been used. Perhaps you have confided in someone, only to learn the confidence was broken. We have records of hermits who lived isolated lives and rarely saw anyone. This can be something quite different! There are those who take vows and spend years in seclusion on behalf of the kingdom of God. It is an extraordinary person who can do this. For you and me, plus virtually everyone we know, such an experience and way of life is foreign ...

1145. No-fault Religion

2 Corinthians 5:6-10 (11-13), 14-17

Sermon

Maurice A. Fetty

... it, but later quoted Groucho Marx's self-deprecating line that he wasn't sure he wanted to belong to a club that would have him for a member! Private clubs need to have their membership rules, of course, but belonging to the people of God is quite different. God doesn't sniff out our qualifications, scrutinize our credentials, review our accomplishments, or weigh our merits. He includes us not on the basis of our merits, but on the basis of his grace. We can be reconciled to God and therefore to one another ...

1146. When Life Isn't Fair

Matthew 20:1-16

Sermon

King Duncan

... market place and hired some more. About noon he again found it necessary to hire more workers, then again at three o’clock, then again at five. Quitting time was six o’clock. At six o’clock he had his foreman line up the laborers to be paid. He began with those who had ... We wouldn’t use the same language today, exactly, but here is the powerful little secret that the world simply doesn’t quite get living for Jesus is the best way in this world to live. And the question isn’t, why not wait until ...

1147. Oh, You'd Better Watch Out!

Mark 13:32-37

Sermon

King Duncan

... in 1988. I’m sure these books were written by well-meaning individuals, but their attempts at biblical scholarship are quite lacking. The scriptures provide us with very few details about the nature of Christ’s return, and much of what we ... Frontline carried a list of prominent figures who have been labeled the anti-Christ at one time or the other. Some are quite predictable, ranging from Yasser Arafat and Saddam Hussein to former Russian President Mikhail Gorbachev, because of the strange mark on his ...

1148. This Little Light of Mine

John 1:1-18

Sermon

King Duncan

... has not overcome it. That’s the second thing we need to see in this Advent season. Try as it might the world cannot extinguish Christ’s light. It’s like a nativity pageant that the Rev. Bill Adams tells about. This pageant didn’t go quite as planned. The pageant was being performed by the church’s youth group. Joseph and Mary and all the other characters did their parts with appropriately pious expressions, at least they tried. It was a shepherd who turned the pageant into a circus. The shepherds ...

1149. Baptism: The Common Call To Holiness

Mark 1:4-11

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... tired and hungry invited him in to stay. The hermit was given a hearty meal and a clean place to sleep. The hermit stayed with the shoemaker and his family for three days. The two men talked quite a bit and the hermit learned much about the shoemaker, but he revealed little about himself, even though the family was quite curious about him. Then after three days the hermit said good-bye to the shoemaker and his family and walked back across the desert to his cave, wondering all the while why God had sent him ...

1150. God Is Amazing

John 1:43-51

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... with each other. In 1900, people were pleased to take a "modern" train to a distant location. After completion of the transcontinental railroad in May 1869, it was possible for one to traverse the continent in a few days. People thought that was quite amazing, especially when they remembered how their forebears had taken the trip via covered wagon, a slow and at times highly dangerous journey. Today, thousands of people will fly across the nation and the world on planes, for business and recreation, and ...

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