Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 1201 to 1225 of 2157 results

Romans 7:7-25

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... s a prayer that Wesley stole from the Moravians. He translated it from the German, and used it in his own household. Many Methodists over the years have sung it in four-part harmony to the tune of the Doxology. Here is the most recent version that substitutes “mercies” for “creatures” Be present at our Table, Lord, Be here and everywhere adored. Thy [mercies] bless and grant that we may feast in fellowship with thee. The lesser known last verse is as follows: We thank thee, Lord, for this our food ...

1202. Anyone Feeling Tired?

Matthew 11:25-30

Sermon

King Duncan

... of quiet classical music, and take what they call a “power nap” for about a half hour. “Their club tee‑shirts are decorated with a cardinal (the school mascot) wearing a little nightcap on his head. Inscribed on the tee‑shirt is a new version of an old Latin motto, ‘Veni, vidi, dormivi: I came, I saw, I slept!’ “The club was formed not because these are lazy high school students, but exactly the reverse. These kids are going to school all day, participating in sports, volunteering in the ...

1203. The Sword of the Lord

Hebrews 4:12-13

Sermon

James Merritt

... sure, he cast a pink bead. If he didn't say it, but it represented something he may have thought, he cast a gray bead. If he definitely didn't say it, or would even have thought it, he cast a black bead. They have now published their own version of the gospels entitled The Five Gospels color-coating every saying attributed to Jesus.5 Now I have only one thing to say about these scholars and their methodology. The Bible isn't running for election, and they don't get a vote. You don't criticize the Bible ...

1204. Better To Be a Loner than a Loser

Daniel 1:1-21

Sermon

James Merritt

... party. In 1960 one vote change in each precinct in Illinois would have denied John F. Kennedy the presidency of the United States. Never underestimate the power of just one decision. b. A Determined Conviction That word purpose literally means "to set aside." Another version translates it this way: "Daniel made up his mind that he would not defile himself." You could change Daniel's home, but you could not change Daniel's heart. You could change Daniel's name, but you could not change Daniel's nature. You ...

1205. www.Salvation.com

Ephesians 2:8-10

Sermon

James Merritt

... yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." (vv.8-10) There are three words in my version (the New King James) which, taken together, explain salvation completely and totally. They are the words "by," "through," "for." Those three simple prepositions will keep you straight on this whole matter of exactly how a person is saved, and how a person can go ...

1206. Never Let Them See You Sweat (Fruit of the Spirit: Self-Control)

Galatians 5:23

Sermon

James Merritt

... venues. What is wrong with this play you ask? It depicts Jesus as a homosexual with the twelve disciples as his traveling lovers. A group of homosexual men begins the play by drawing lots for the different roles they will play. One plays "Joshua" the Hebrew version of "Jesus," while the others adopt the role of the various disciples and the Virgin Mary is in drag. When they come to the passion scene, they give it a homosexual twist. Pontius Pilate asked, "Art thou the king of the queers?" To which Joshua ...

1207. The Surety of Security

Jude 1:1-2

Sermon

James Merritt

... He was the Author of my faith, and so the whole doctrine of grace opened up to me....I desire to make this constant confession: "I ascribe my change wholly to God."4 II. We Are Governed by a Sovereign Love Now the next phrase in some versions says "sanctified by God the Father." But that's an unfortunate translation because the best manuscripts have the word "beloved." We are God's beloved. Now someone may object and say "God loves everybody." That is true, but there is a difference. The sinner is loved by ...

1208. Seeing the End from the Beginning

Numbers 13:1-2, 17-33

Sermon

James Merritt

... has astutely observed that the blindest person in the world is not the person with no sight, but the person with no vision. The word vision occurs thirty-one times in the Old Testament. It denotes God's communication with man through inspired revelation. One version of Proverbs 29:18 says, "Where there is no vision, the people perish." The reason for that is, God wants his people to accomplish not their plans, but His vision. The people of Israel were literally at the brink of seeing a century's old ...

1209. How to Handle the Mess of Stress

Exodus 18:23-27

Sermon

James Merritt

One of the most famous psalms in all of the Bible, and one of the most well known passages, is the 23rd Psalm. It is a psalm that has given rest, refreshment, and even revival to untold numbers of people. But someone has written another version of this psalm that I believe is a great reflection of the day and age in which we live. The clock is my dictator, I shall not rest. It makes me lie down only when exhausted. It leads me to deep depression. It hounds my soul. It leads me in ...

1210. A Call to Arms

Exodus 17:8-16

Sermon

James Merritt

... today how a call to arms can make all the difference in the world in being victorious over the enemy. I. The Lord Is Our Blesser In v.8 there is a little word you cannot miss and that is the word "now" or it may read in your particular version "then." Up until now several things had happened to the Jewish people. First of all, the wall of the Red Sea had tripped them. But God pushed that wall down and turned it into a bridge and delivered the people from Egyptian bondage. Then they came to a place in ...

1211. Come On Baby, Light My Fire

Matthew 3:11-12

Sermon

James Merritt

... and chest, making him look big and strong, and said, "I'm Samson." One little girl came in with nothing but a sheet over her head with the eyes cut out. The teacher said, "Who are you?" She said, "Boo! I'm the Holy Ghost." Well, in the King James Version He is called "the Holy Ghost." We sometimes think of Him as something like "the force" in Star Wars, or a power like electricity. But the Holy Spirit is not just an invisible force, not just a godly influence, nor is He just a heavenly power. Now He is all ...

1212. Deal with It, Get over it, and Get Help

Romans 8:18-27

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... our lives, chains draining our time, our attention, our money, our love. Our “Stockholm Syndrome” is in part a “stock-up” sickness — convincing us to “stock-up” with yet another pair of designer shoes, or “stock-up” with a newer version of a video game, or “stock-up” with the latest cell phone, or “stock-up” with the latest experience. Our “Stockholm Syndrome” deludes us into thinking that once we get “stocked–up” enough, we will finally enjoy the happiness, fulfillment ...

1213. The Compassionate Christ

Matthew 14:13-21

Sermon

King Duncan

... the amount available seems to multiply. You know, if you have ever been to a church covered dish supper, why there was food left over. It is significant that all four gospels tell variations of this story of the feeding of the multitude. Matthew and Mark tell some version of it twice (Matt 14:13‑21; 15:32‑39; Mark 6:32‑44; 8:1‑10; Luke 9:10‑17; John 6:1‑15). There are very few miracles that have that level of reporting. That this event occurred can scarcely be denied. The scriptural evidence is ...

1214. An All-Night Wrestling Match

Genesis 32:22-32

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... of the week he had prevailed, or rather he had surrendered. He really had prevailed by surrendering. He prayed, “Lord Jesus, I believe you. I accept you. Please come into my life. I commit it to you.” (1) Now, let me take you back to an earlier version of Colson named Jacob. In Genesis, chapter 32, we find Jacob in deep trouble and scared to death. Earlier in his life he had cheated his brother Esau out of his birthright. Esau was furious and wanted to kill him. Jacob fled to another country and worked ...

1215. Almost Persuaded

Matthew 19:16-30

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... claimed Jesus as the Lord of his life. But "almost" is not good enough. I call your attention to Matthew's gospel, chapter nineteen, beginning with verse 16. The story of the rich young ruler is in three of the four gospels Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Each version is slightly different. We tend to blend the three into one composite story. All three tell us that the man was rich. Only Matthew mentions that he was young. Only Luke notes that he was a ruler. Verse 16 OF Matthew 19 reads as follows: “Now a ...

1216. The Treasure Principles

Matthew 6:19-24

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... . The world’s attitude is this—every dollar I give away makes me poorer. I hate to part with my money. Patrick Morley, author, businessman, president of a charitable organization, has dealt with wealthy business people for decades. His insight in a condensed version goes something like this—“The greater proportion of a person’s income that he gives, the happier he is. Happiness is not what you keep. That’s a deception. It’s what you give.” St. Paul helped us understand why a giver feels ...

1217. An Excellent Epitaph

2 Timothy 4:6-8

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... death penalty. But he would not. Dear friends, there are intelligent, educated people in your work places who will try to persuade you that the Bible is an antiquated book that must be corrected by modern wisdom. They will tell you that all religions are just different versions of the same song, and that if there is a heaven, all people are going there whether they believe anything or not. Dear friends, those are lies. At the core of our faith is the belief that the Bible is God’s inspired word. It is the ...

1218. Mary, Did You Know?

Luke 1:26-38

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... ominous prediction to Mary: “…a sword will pierce your own soul too.” (Luke 2:35). He was predicting that day on Calvary when Mary’s heart would break. The cross has been the symbol of Christianity even since Jesus died on a crude, wooden, Roman version. Jesus transformed the cross from a symbol of torture to the sign of forgiveness, salvation, and hope. Mary knew Jesus would save many people from their sins, but she did not know how he would do it. All mothers sacrifice for their children, but was ...

1219. Is Jesus The Only Way?

Matthew 22:1-14

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... the poor, a wedding called for a weeklong party. This was the one occasion in life when the poor splurged, even if on borrowed funds. So, if the king with all his resources was throwing a party, it’s probably going to be a Middle Eastern version of Mardi Gras. Therefore, you would assume that everybody would want to come to such a party. Wrong! Lots of specially invited guests refused to come. Jesus was clearly referring to the Jewish people who had been invited to be God’s chosen people. They were ...

1220. Great Joy

Isaiah 35:1-10

Sermon

John E. Harnish

... for ostriches. Wild beasts shall meet with hyenas; And there shall the night hag alight and the vultures shall gather. (Isaiah 34:9-14) I'll bet you didn't know there were porcupines and hyenas and night hags in the Bible, did you? The King James Version says "the screech owl," but I kind of like the dark mystery and graphic impact of the "night hag." This is powerful stuff. Isaiah uses graphic imagery to capture the feeling of darkness and destruction, the recompense for evil and sin. The Welsh poet R. S ...

1221. Ministry By Faith: Does She or Doesn't She?

I Corinthians 16:14, James 2:14-26

Sermon

John E. Harnish

... God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength; and love your neighbor in the same way you love yourself. "But Jesus, don't we need to know where people stand on scripture—inerrancy, infallibility, inspiration? What if they don't like the King James Version? Can they still be a real Christian?" And Jesus said: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength; and care about your neighbor as much as you care for yourself. "But Jesus, what about abortion, or creationism, or ...

1222. The Lord's Song in a Foreign Land

Psalm 137:1-9

Sermon

John E. Harnish

... OF LOVE IN A WORLD OF HATE It is so basic to our Christian faith that it ought to be nothing more than restating the obvious, but it isn't. Jesus' central teaching is: Love one another. Love your neighbor. Love your enemy. When asked for the shorthand version of his message, he said the greatest law was "Love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, and the second is like unto it, love your neighbor as you love yourself." (Matthew 22:37) There is an excellent article by Bill McKibben in the ...

1223. The Song of an Awe-Filled Life

Psalm 138:1-8

Sermon

John E. Harnish

... OF GRATITUDE FOR THE GOODNESS OF GOD. Eugene Peterson's recent translation of the Bible called The Message has become quite popular lately. I wouldn't recommend it for accuracy, but it does catch the spirit of the text in our common language. Listen to his version of this Psalm: Thank you! Everything in me says, "Thank you!" Thank you for your love. Thank you for your faithfulness. I kneel in worship facing your holy temple and say it again thank you. [3] When we are captured by the "awe factor," the only ...

1224. Zechariah II: Thy Prayer is Heard

Luke 1:5-25

Sermon

John E. Harnish

... to offer the incense, lifting the people's prayers to God. Can you imagine the joy, the pride, the humbling experience when the day came and the lot fell to him? Maybe only once in a lifetime, maybe never, but now it happens. So begins Luke's version of the Gospel. It begins with Zechariah…let's call him Zechariah II, since we heard from the first Zechariah last week. Zechariah of the Old Testament, Prophet of the sixth century BC, Prophet of the rebuilding of the city, Prophet and Prisoner of Hope. Now ...

1225. The Twenty-Ninth Chapter of Acts

2 Timothy 4:1-22

Sermon

John E. Harnish

... . NOTES: Clarence Edward MacCartney's classic sermon has been quoted and used by a multitude of preachers, sometimes with or without proper recognition. It was published in Christianity Today on Oct. 22, 1976, and the quotations I have used come from that version. It was originally preached at the First Presbyterian Church in Pittsburgh, and the congregation requested that he preach it every autumn, which he did for many years. You can find it in volumes of MacCartney's sermons available through our virtual ...

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