Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 1201 to 1225 of 3852 results

Acts 2:1-13

Drama

Jerry Eckert

... to Rabbi, who is still seated near the front. Then Pastor turns to Mary, seated somewhere in first five rows on the aisle. At the end of that interview, Pastor turns to Man where he is seated in the front for interview. As Man returns to original seat, Pastor turns to Youth for final interview. Youth is seated near the front. As Pastor makes the concluding statement, Studio Announcer returns to pulpit, takes mike from Pastor, and concludes. Pastor: In the book of Genesis, we found the story of the Tower of ...

1202. Number One Mother

Genesis 2:4-25

Drama

Dr. Raymond Bailey

THEME: Adam and Eve speak of our origins. Not only have we all eaten of the "fruit of the tree of good and evil," but we are usually drawn to members of the opposite sex. Yet, while drawn to our opposites, we are also confused by them. They act and communicate differently. SETTING FOR THE SERMON MONOLOGUE: This ...

1203. The Son Makes Us Free

John 8:31-41

Sermon

Larry R. Kalajainen

... acts of wrongdoing, is the attempt to define ourselves in relationship to someone or something other than God. Whatever it is around which we orientate our very existence becomes god for us. It may be money, it may be family, it may be our racial group or national origin, or it may simply be our godlike self. If I define myself primarily as an American, so that my American-ness is my primary point of reference, then I am a slave to sin. If I define my "whiteness" as my primary point of reference, then I am ...

1204. Remembering The Saints

Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon

Larry R. Kalajainen

There was a column in the New York Times on Wednesday, October 28, 1992, by Robertson Davies titled "Haunted By Halloween." After tracing the origins of Halloween to the ancient Celtic festival of the Death of the Year, and showing how the Christian church piggybacked the Feast of All Saints onto this pagan festival which marked both the death of the sun at the beginning of winter and the remembrance of their dead ancestors, Davies ...

1205. An Outcast · The Woman Of Samaria

John 4:1-26

Sermon

Gordon Pratt Baker

... seems more likely, however, that she was raising a question which, by both its tone and its nature, indicated the first sign of a readiness to be taught. Child of her people, the woman had been told from her earliest days that Gerizim was the original site of Paradise. It was here, according to her Samaritan traditions, that God had fashioned Adam in his image, that Noah had beached the Ark, and that Abraham had prepared Isaac for sacrifice. Nor had her elders ever tired of forecasting the day when Gerizim ...

1206. A Mother · A Canaanite Woman

Mt 15:21-28 · Mk 7:24-30

Sermon

Gordon Pratt Baker

... is your faith: be it unto you as you will." (Matthew 15:28) And the girl was whole again. Unwavering faith had prevailed. Moreover, it had done so in a very important way. For one thing it had broken down the barrier of a specified point of origin. From now on what mattered was not where one came from but what one needed to experience the fullness of life. For another thing it had broken down distinctions of race and class, giving new emphasis to Ezekiel's affirmation that all souls are God's. (Ezekiel ...

1207. A Big Fisherman · Peter

Mt 16:13-20 · Jn 1:35-42

Sermon

Gordon Pratt Baker

... did whose side God was on. Otherwise, he cautioned, they may run afoul of the Almighty himself and thus suffer severe consequences at his hands. Such counsel was enough to stir up second thoughts, and those in power speedily drew back from their original intent, deciding instead to settle for administering a beating to Peter and his companions. Then they turned the group loose with a mandate never to mention Jesus' name again. (Acts 5:17-40) The mandate was, of course, futile, and even as the authorities ...

1208. Life As An Investment

Matthew 25:14-30

Sermon

Donald Dotterer

... money. The word used here is talent, which meant in Jesus' time a specific weight of silver or gold. Each talent might have been worth about $1,000 in today's dollars. The modern use of the word talent with regard to skill or ability originated with this parable. So the rich man gives the first servant five talents, the second servant two talents, and the third servant one talent. We are told that each servant is given an amount which is proportionate to his ability to handle the responsibility. Apparently ...

1209. Happy Fear - A Wedding Homily

Psalm 128:1-6

Sermon

John V. Carrier

... the same which you will give in the future. So, I ask you now, do you promise __________ and __________ your guidance, help, support and prayers in their life together. If so, answer "Yes, with the help of God." Response: Yes, with the help of God. (If you are the original purchaser of this material you have permission to print this in a wedding bulletin for use as it was intended.) Ann K. Larson, Bloomington, Indiana, is an interim pastor in the Indiana-Kentucky Synod of the ELCA.

1210. Wedding Sermon - The Solid Rock On Which We Stand!

Matthew 7:24-29

Sermon

Robert S. Crilley

... 's marriage might be made in heaven, it remains a partnership to be worked out here on earth. Like these two builders, the two of you will want to choose carefully that upon which your life together will be founded. Such, at least, was my original purpose in selecting this passage, because I had always believed that the fundamental difference between the wise builder and the foolish builder was where each decided to construct his house -- one on rock, the other on sand. In fact, for the longest time, I was ...

1211. God Said It. I Accept It. That Settles It.

2 Timothy 3:10--4:8

Sermon

Carl B. Rife

... faith and the range of our theological [understanding] are expanded and developed" ("Our Theological Task" in the The Book of Discipline of the United Methodist Church). Tradition is the on going understanding and interpretation by the community of faith of the original revelation. When we sit down to read scripture we are not without a great cloud of witnesses who share with us their insights and understandings of the text. What an accumulation of insights and understandings! We have a rich heritage from ...

1212. "The Scandal Of Disloyalty"

Psalm 62:1-12, Mark 14:66-72

Sermon

R. Sheldon MacKenzie

... worked, had not his accent betrayed him. He was a man from Galilee with a Galilean accent. He had a soft "r" and a hard "g" sound in his speech. How terribly unfair when, despite every effort to the contrary, one cannot shed his/her national or local origins. To be identified solely by the giveaway in one's accent is rarely helpful or complimentary. By this time the bystanders had heard him speak. They might have been slow enough in other ways, but not so slow that they were mistaken about Peter. He was a ...

1213. The TV Audience

Sermon

Michael Rogness

... send most viewers to the refrigerator. The suitable way to convey it on television would be to portray visually a person whose life and experience conveys what justification is and does. It does not work well to explain the doctrine of original sin on camera, even though various television dramas portray it very clearly! Most of us preachers, however, are accustomed to preach by exposition, that is, we explain concepts and ideas. The television audience, however, understands ideas when they are not only ...

1214. Words As Images

Sermon

Michael Rogness

... stand in Nathan's tradition. He, the rest of the prophets, and in fact all the sacred writers ... thought and wrote in terms of stories.22 Take any psalm and "translate" it into the clear but abstract prose we usually use. Then compare how bland it is compared to the original. Look at some well-known verses from Psalm 139 for example: Plain ProseHow can I get away from God? Can I get away from his presence?No matter where I go, you are there.You will always guide me and take care of me, no matter how far I ...

1215. For Freedom

Galatians 5:1-15

Illustration

John E. Sumwalt

... eyes look down at the flag and he says, "This is not what it's about. It's what it stands for. Freedom. Freedom to choose. Freedom to be." Then he lowers himself back into his seat, and as the crowd parts he wheels away back to his original spot. The picnickers go quietly and quickly back to their families. The young people continue their meal around the flag, and the old veteran watches and waits. Soon it is dusk and the fireworks begin. The dark sky explodes with color as rockets go up, one after another ...

1216. The Wonderful Mystery Of The Christian Religion

1 Timothy 3:1-16

Sermon Aid

Clement E. Lewis

... of the wonderful mystery of the Christian faith. The hymn that we often sing in parting, "God Be With You Till We Meet Again," illustrates our confidence in the wonderful mystery of the Christian religion. Its author, Jeremiah Eames Rankin, told this story of its origin. "Written in 1882 as a Christian's goodbye, it was called forth by no person or occasion, but was deliberately composed as a Christian hymn on the basis of the etymology of 'goodbye,' which is 'God be with you.' It was set to music composed ...

1217. Managing Disappointment

Romans 5:1-11

Sermon

Clement E. Lewis

... triumph of righteousness and fulfillment in life. He was bound to have been disappointed when the rich young ruler, with such great potential, was turned away because his large possessions hampered him. He was terribly disappointed when Judas Iscariot, one of the original 12 disciples, was found to be an embezzler, then betrayed him for a price; yet he never allowed his disappointment to divert his obligation to become the Savior, or lessen his sense of compassion, even for his betrayer. He must have been ...

1218. Epiphany 2

John 1:43-51, John 1:35-42

Bulletin Aid

Richard F. Bansemer

... Jesus at the beginning of these disciples' discipleship is that they will see great things, and he refers to himself as "the Son of Man." Prayer Lamb of God, Son of Man, how quickly you enlisted disciples. I wonder why John the Baptist wasn't one of the originals? Perhaps his own calling as preparer was every bit as sacred as the call to the twelve who followed. Lord, I often feel like I'm tagging along behind you, like Andrew and friend, seeing where you're going, before showing too much interest. I am a ...

1219. I Am The Bread Of Life

John 6:24-35

Sermon

Brett Blair

... work. Jesus meets these expectations by saying that they had misinterpreted the Moses event. First of all, he reminded them that the bread had not come from Moses but from God. They were putting the emphasis in the wrong place. Moses was the facilitator, but not the originator. Secondly, said Jesus, they failed to see that the real bread from heaven was not manna at all. That was only meant to be a symbol of the true bread. The real bread from heaven comes down and feeds not only man's physical needs but ...

1220. Bearing The Mark Of Christ

Mark 8:31--9:1, Mark 8:27-30

Bulletin Aid

Dennis Koch

... another interpretation worth exploring. Some exegetes suggest that in the pre-Easter version of the saying, stauros meant not a ''cross'' but a ''cross mark'' (a tau or chi, perhaps), such as was used to mark livestock. If that is the case, Jesus' original reference was to the Christian's taking on a mark of identification rather than martyrdom, which became the post-Easter meaning. Liturgical Color Green Suggested Hymns Where Cross The Crowded Ways Of Life The Church Of Christ, In Every Age By All Your ...

1221. Proper 6

Mark 4:30-34, Mark 4:26-29

Bulletin Aid

Dennis Koch

Gospel Note Mark probably connected these two originally independent "seed parables" because of the similarity of subject and metaphor. Each speaks to the nature of the Kingdom, but with a particular nuance: the secretly growing seed suggests that the Kingdom's growth on earth is beyond human comprehension or control; while the mustard seed emphasizes the contrast between ...

1222. Fleshing Out The Word

Luke 10:1-24

Sermon

Larry Powell

... our main meat dish for the next six weeks was to be lamb, they served lamb and sauce to acquaint us with a food unfamiliar to our palates. But the really special thing they did was to invite another guest, a Presbyterian minister friend, originally from Scotland. Enjoyment of the meal was exceeded only by our fascination with the good brother's spell-binding dialect. We all asked questions just to hear him speak. Following the meal, he referred to a world map, pointing out his birthplace, the birthplace ...

1223. So Close ... But Yet So Far

Luke 9:10-17

Sermon

Larry Powell

... the case, isn't it? I remember reading somewhere that it is difficult to determine whether a ship's deck is in disarray due to neglect or because of a storm. We have received the sacrament of holy communion many times. We know that it originated in the upper room on the night that Jesus was betrayed. We are familiar with the symbolic nature of the elements, and understand the significance of the words spoken in the ritual. Because we have received the sacrament and know something about historical and ...

1224. Ten Broken Pencils

Luke 17:17-18

Children's Sermon

Wesley T. Runk

... . Excuse me, that isn't true. There was one that said thank you. The one that I found on the floor under the refrigerator. It came back to tell me how grateful it was for what I had done for it. You know the story of my pencils is not original. Jesus told a similar story about something even more important. He told about healing ten men, only one of whom thanked God for what happened. I hope that you remember the story, but I hope even more that you remember to thank God every day for the wonderful things ...

1225. A Seeking Savior

Luke 10:1-24

Sermon

W. Robert McClelland

... on Christ - can boast, "If God be for us, who is against us (Romans 8:31)?" Predestination is credited to John Calvin, that dour reformer of Geneva. But the idea that God seeks out sinners and takes full responsibility for their salvation did not originate with him. Thomas Aquinas writes of the doctrine. Indeed, long before Calvin was a gleam in his father's eye, Augustine spoke of our election to salvation, as did also the apostle Paul. The doctrine, has of course, raised many questions for logically ...

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