Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 1201 to 1225 of 1354 results

1201. Marrying a Captive Woman

Deuteronomy 21:10-14

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... as far as possible. If we ask whose interests this law serves, the answer is clearly the female captive. If we ask whose power is being restricted, the answer, equally clearly, is the victorious soldier. The law is thus a paradigm case of the OT’s concern to defend the weak against the strong, war being one of the most tragic human expressions of that situation. There are four ways in which this law benefits the captured woman, (a) She is not to be raped or to be enslaved as a concubine, but is to be ...

1202. Gideon's Death

Judges 8:28-35

Understanding Series

Cheryl A. Brown

Gideon’s Ephod and Death: These final episodes in Gideon’s life reveal two sides of Israel’s judge: Gideon the zealous defender of the covenant and Gideon the apostate defector of the covenant, who also led Israel down the same path. This is the first time we have met the idea, although not in the exact words, that Israel did evil in the eyes of the Lord before the judge’s death ( ...

1203. Jehu Kills Joram and Ahaziah

2 Kings 9:14-29

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

... 10), or that “her body will be like refuse . . . so that no one will be able to say ‘This is Jezebel’ ” (9:37), but these things are implicit in the statement that “dogs will devour Jezebel” (1 Kgs. 21:23; 2 Kgs. 9:10, 36). 9:14 Defending Ramoth Gilead: The preceding narrative has not told us about an Israelite recovery of the city. Perhaps we are meant to think that it was abandoned in the course of the general Aramean retreat in 7:3ff. Such “gaps,” which the reader must fill in order fully ...

1204. Jezebel Killed

2 Kings 9:30-37

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

1205. Amon King of Judah

2 Kings 21:19-26

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

... of 2 Sam. 7 (7:14–15). 21:12 Ears . . . will tingle: The expression appears in 1 Sam 3:11 and Jer. 19:3, which also describe human reaction to bad news. The verb (Hb. zll) is rare, and translation requires educated guesswork. It is difficult to defend tingle, however, for all that its history is older than the NIV (cf., e.g., the RSV). If a physiological reaction is in mind, Hab. 3:16 (where zll appears alongside rgz, “be agitated, quiver, quake”) suggests that “quiver” would be better. It is more ...

1206. Sennacherib Threatens Jerusalem

2 Chron 32:1-33

Understanding Series

Louis C. Jonker

... spoke about the God of Jerusalem as if Yahweh, like the gods of the other peoples, were the work of men’s hands (32:19). The Assyrian king, his army, and his messengers are not only a military force against which Hezekiah and his men should defend themselves; they are also foreigners who mock Yahweh, the God of Israel. Hezekiah’s reaction to these mocking tones of the Assyrians is described in 32:20: King Hezekiah and the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz cried out in prayer to heaven about this. And without ...

1207. The Return to Jerusalem

Ezra 8:15-36

Understanding Series

Leslie C. Allen

... , NJB). 8:31 The word protected connotes a lack of anticipated hostility. A more careful translation is “delivered” (NRSV) or “saved” (REB, NJPS), implying that attacks did occur. Similarly in v. 22, “protect” means literally “help from” with the sense of “help in defending against.” 8:33 We weighed out is lit. a passive form, “were weighed” (NRSV), but there is no reason to doubt that Ezra’s memoirs are still being cited at this point (see R. A. Bowman, “The Book of Ezra and the ...

1208. The Completion of the Wall

Nehemiah 6:15-7:3

Understanding Series

Leslie C. Allen

... . The two officials were responsible for the security of the gates, and they were given instructions for the daily procedures. Nehemiah also ordered them to enlist vigilantes from the small pool of city residents—some to guard gates near their homes and others to defend posts assigned to them on a roster. Additional Notes 6:2 One of the villages: The MT has a place name, “Hakkephirim” (REB), which BDB, p. 499, wrongly identified with Kephirah in 7:29 (= Ezra 2:25). The LXX and Vulgate, as well as the ...

1209. How Beautiful Your Feet

Song of Songs 7:1-13

Understanding Series

Elizabeth Huwiler

... associates with 2:2, where the woman is described as a lily among thorns or brambles. 7:4 Your neck is like an ivory tower: Cf. 4:4 and the image of the nose later in this verse. The tower is a military image. This is a proud woman, well defended, even awe-inspiring. Your eyes are the pools of Heshbon: This image represents a shift in the development of imagery about the woman’s eyes. They were doves in 1:15 and 4:1. In 4:9, something about the woman’s eyes (perhaps a glance from them) is enthralling ...

1210. Promise of Restoration

Jeremiah 33:1-26

Understanding Series

Tremper Longman III

... , in order to provide defenses against the attacking Babylonians who have raised siege ramps to storm the walls. But these drastic defensive measures will not prevail. God’s anger over his people’s sins and his judgment of them will render their attempts to defend themselves futile. Instead, dead bodies will fill up these defensive structures. God has abandoned his people (I will hide my face) and he was their only hope of rescue (see Ezek. 9–11 for a graphic picture of God abandoning his holy place ...

1211. Amos and Amaziah

Amos 7:10-17

Understanding Series

Elizabeth Achtemeier

... prophets both before and after him, he has vigorously exercised the prophetic function of interceding for the good of his nation. We do not often realize that the prophets of the OT not only proclaimed God’s judgment on their sinful folk but also defended that folk in tearful intercession before the throne of God (cf. Jer. 9:1). Moses, the first and greatest of the prophets, undertook strenuous asceticism to turn aside God’s judgment (Deut. 9:17–20, 25–29). Jeremiah pleaded so frequently with God ...

1212. Wimps or Water Walkers

Matthew 14:22-33

Sermon

King Duncan

... for them. Winfred turned them down. These gang members had never before had anyone tell them “no,” and they decided to make an example of Winfred. They roughed up Winfred’s 14-year-old brother and damaged his bicycle. Winfred, only 15 himself, stepped in to defend his brother. One of the gang members drew a gun and shot Winfred in the stomach. Fortunately he survived. Afterward he said if he were in the same situation, he would stand up to the gang again because, and I quote, “You’ve just got to ...

1213. This Woman Was a Fighter

Matthew 15:21-28

Sermon

King Duncan

... from the 1950s titled Twelve Angry Men. It starred Henry Fonda and was based on the stage play of the same name. In it Fonda plays a character on a jury. For the other 11 people on the jury, the case was simple, open and shut. The defendant was guilty and they all voted that way right away. Only Fonda’s character wanted to weigh the evidence and sift through to find a just verdict. Throughout the lengthy deliberations, Fonda held fast to his insistence that the jury owed the young man, who was facing ...

1214. Before You Start Ripping Your Clothing

Joel 2:12-17

Sermon

King Duncan

... a disobedient angel who pleaded for mercy from God. God said, “I shall not punish you. However, in atonement, you must bring back from earth the most precious thing in the world.” The angel began the search. He found a soldier dying of wounds received defending his country. The angel caught the last drop of blood and brought it back. God said, “The courage of one who gives his life is precious, but not the most precious thing in the world.” The angel resumed his quest. Wearily he roamed the earth ...

1215. Of Mice and Men

Hebrews 10:11-18

Sermon

King Duncan

... The Judge of all the universe has decided our sins will never be held against us. Hundreds of years before, Isaiah the prophet wrote, “Wash and make yourselves clean. Take your evil deeds out of my sight; stop doing wrong. Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow. “‘Come now, let us settle the matter,’ says the Lord. ‘Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they ...

1216. Wilderness Work

Luke 3:1-6

Sermon

Susan R. Andrews

... It grew out of a multi-congregational process of gun owners and gun control advocates struggling with what it means to be peacemakers in Christ’s name. The overture focused on education and called for a ban on assault weapons and a limit on ammunition while also defending the second amendment right to own a gun. There was great joy and energy in the room when the overture passed with just one negative vote. But a few days later, I received a well worded but angry letter from a woman in the presbytery who ...

1217. Hard and Soft Hearts

Mark 10:2-16

Sermon

Steven E. Albertin

... always has to justify himself, when a spouse never can say, "I'm sorry," when a spouse always has to win, when a spouse always has to be right, when a spouse insists that her needs are most important, when a spouse can only think of defending his rights, the rights to his fulfillment and happiness, then a marriage is doomed to failure. Then the divorce is not so much the thing that destroys a marriage, but it provides the public recognition that marriage has ended. It reveals the hardness of heart that ...

1218. Good-Bye Mardi Gras, Hello Lent

Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21

Sermon

R. Robert Cueni

... charity. But every year each Walmart store would hand out a thousand-dollar college scholarship to a local high school senior, and somehow that bought better publicity than generous corporate philanthropy.”[2] Maximizing the impact of every dollar spent can be defended as a good business practice. On the other hand, giving for the purpose of maximizing publicity runs contrary to the biblical standard. Admittedly, an accusation can be made that the church talks too much about money. There is truth in that ...

1219. The Awesome Power of FUD

John 21:1-19

Sermon

R. Robert Cueni

... we did not subscribe to magazines with color photographs. And yes, those lines were people. I admit they were not very good people, but I was only six years old. I got tired of drawing stick figures, so I just used lines. As much as I wanted to defend myself, I didn’t. I was too overwhelmed by the teacher’s criticism. On that day, I decided to give up drawing boats. In fact, I decided never again to submit my drawings to public scrutiny. Please don’t misunderstand. I do not blame the teacher. She was ...

1220. VALS

Illustration

Editor James S. Hewett

... (Values and Life-Styles). This divides people into five basic groups, as follows: Belongers: The typical traditionalist, the cautious and conforming conservative. Archie Bunker is a Belonger; he believes in God, country and family. These are those who are the staunch defenders of the status quo (33 percent of the population). Emulators: Not so set in their ways, a small but impressionable group of young people in desperate search of an identity and a place in the adult working world. They will do almost ...

1221. Looking Out for Mom

Illustration

Marvin Crow

A penny-pinching miser defended himself against criticism aimed at his parsimonious ways. He said, in his own defense, "Why, I couldn't stand for my mother to go on year after year working every night scrubbing and cleaning office floors, so I just bought the office building." The listener asked, "Well, what did you do for your dear mother then?" The miser smiled proudly and said, "Well, she was immediately moved to the day shift."

1222. C. S. Lewis—Cost of a Public Faith

Illustration

Kathryn Lindskoog

C. S. Lewis fell into grace. But instead of simply entering a monastery, he did worse. He ended up publicly explaining and openly defending his personal God to millions of listeners and readers. Such undignified behavior embarrassed the hierarchy at his college at Oxford and cost Lewis his chance of ever advancing to a higher position on the faculty—there. Lewis learned that if you speak about beauty, truth or goodness, and about God ...

1223. Are You Suffering from FOMO?

Luke 10:38-42

Sermon

King Duncan

... ’s dad was introducing the President to the crowd. Imagine his teacher’s surprise when Tyler presented her with a note the next day, written on presidential letterhead. It read, “Please excuse Tyler. He was with me. Barack Obama, the president.” (4) Jesus defends Mary’s neglect of her hosting duties by saying, “Please excuse Mary. She was with me. Jesus, the Messiah.” Please don’t misunderstand. He isn’t trying to pile more guilt on Martha’s shoulders. But he’s trying to teach both ...

1224. A Prayer to a Good, Good Father

Luke 11:1-13

Sermon

King Duncan

... me go the distance, hello God, hello, hello.” She continues: “This whole world has gone to pieces. Can we fix it? Is there time? “Hate and violence just increases. We’re so selfish, cruel and blind. “We fight and kill each other in your name defending you “Do you love some more than others, we’re so lost and confused? “Hello God, are you out there, can you hear us?” (2) Speculation about prayer often leaves us with more questions than answers. No wonder the disciples came to Jesus one day ...

1225. About Unclaimed Luggage

Luke 15:1-7, Luke 15:8-10, Luke 15:11-32

Sermon

King Duncan

... . The great tragedy of our lives is that along with our declining faith in people and institutions, there has been a corresponding decline in our faith in God. Even many of us who are faithful in church, who are tithers and who would fight to defend the major tenets of our faith have put some distance between ourselves and God. For some of us, the distance is intellectual. We have been intimidated by the scientific advances of our time and have allowed our faith to be weakened by the seeming contradictions ...

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