Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 101 to 125 of 747 results

101. Proper 20

Exodus 16:1-36, Matthew 20:1-16, Philippians 1:12-30, Psalm 105:1-45

Sermon Aid

Marion L. Soards, Thomas B. Dozeman, Kendall McCabe

... did the most for those who did the least for him, and he did the least for those who did the most for him. And all the logic or rationalization in the world doesn't remove the offense. Commentators prefer to point out that Jesus is not advocating pay scales; he is doing theology not economics. But the logic, economic or theological, escapes us and offends us. In this parable we seem to be looking at both bad business and, at best, peculiar religion. At heart what bothers us most about this parable is the ...

102. We Need Help

John 14:15-31

Illustration

Brett Blair

... : "You're on your own now, you great American hero." I don't know if Daly learned anything at that moment. With his great ego perhaps he did not. But he should have learned that all of us, no matter how great we think we are, need help. We need advocates who work behind the scenes to make us who we are. God has an ...

103. Tongues, Ears, or Too Much to Drink

Acts 2:1-13

Sermon

John E. Harnish

... was the assumption of the folks on the street—"These guys have had too much to drink"—to the point that Peter had to address it directly in his sermon, "These are not drunk as you suppose, since it's only 9:00 a.m." Now I am obviously not advocating public drunkenness or rowdy worship, but let me ask: what if the world, looking in on our life together, was simply befuddled and the only way they could explain it was to say, "They must be out of their minds!" What if the world, hearing our word of witness ...

104. The World's Fittest Human

Mark 12:28-34

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... Routines: To look at Mark Allen and other Ironman/Ironwoman triathletes, you wouldn't know it, but the point of strength training is not to get bigger muscles, but to get better muscles. The issue for these athletes is performance, not bulk. When the Shema advocates loving God with all our strength, it recognizes that a big part of human existence is sheer physical. We have bodies we must feed, clothe and care for. We are subject to injury, sickness and death. It takes a certain amount of brute strength ...

105. And Again I Say...Amen!

Luke 6:27-36

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... and cracking and causing pain to others around them. When Jesus urged those listening to his lengthy sermon at that "level place" to do good, bless and pray for their enemies, he wasn't advocating some "kill them with kindness" tactic. Jesus was not suggesting that loving your enemies was a type of insidious torture for them. The love Jesus was advocating was to be genuine. Let me suggest three ways we can both love our enemies and do it genuinely. 1. Be a Take-It-on-the-Chin Christian We all can learn from ...

106. Galatians 2:15-21

Galatians 2:15-21

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... right relationship with God. Nowhere here does Paul dismiss the law as useless. He only denies that it serves any purpose in justifying anyone before God. In verse 17, Paul addresses what must have been one of the primary arguments of those who advocated that Gentile Christians must become Jews, people of the law, before they are qualified to be Christians, people of Christ. Remember that in this discussion a "sinner" is equivalent to anyone outside the law i.e., a Gentile. Paul asks: If one follows Christ ...

107. Galatians 3:23-29

Galatians 3:23-29

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... and thus, are united in a bond of fellowship stronger than any other existing force. Paul's excitement over the power of this baptismal unity becomes evident in verse 28. There is evidence that one of the legal requirements Paul's opponents were advocating among Gentile Christians was the rite of circumcision. This was a rite that obviously symbolized the difference between Jew and Gentile that held groups apart. Now Paul triumphantly holds up baptism into Christ as the act that breaks down all barriers and ...

108. Luke 12:13-21

Luke 12:13-21

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... famine or drought. The congratulatory sentence this rich man pronounces upon himself in verse 19 smacks of Epicureanism a philosophy Judaism had quarreled with repeatedly. Epicurus (342-270 B.C.) articulated a philosophy that advocated increasing personal pleasure while avoiding pain as its primary motives. Although advocating hedonism was not Epicurus' intention, it did not take long for devotees to define Epicureanism as the license to "eat, drink and be merry." These are the exact words, and that is the ...

109. Luke 18:1-8

Luke 18:1-8

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... Testament Studies 18 (January 1972)], 178-191.) This widow was not content to wait for God to grant her justice and vengeance at some unspecified day in the future. She therefore pursues the matter in the administrative courts. Usually such a woman has an advocate who will act on her behalf. Not this woman, however. Poor and alone, she dares pester the judge into looking into her case. Derrett thinks the judge gives in because the widow's hectoring makes him vulnerable to public gossip relative to both the ...

110. Divorce and Swearing

Matthew 5:31-32

Sermon

Mike Ripski

... for Christ.” He then goes on to tell wives to be subject to their husbands and he tells husbands to love their wives as their own bodies. Much as been made of his telling husbands to be head of the wife. This language has led some Christians to advocate a subservient, lesser role for wives. Husbands are given the ultimate veto power over wives who must obey, regardless of whether the husband is right or wrong. What you’ve got to do is go back to the Greek to appreciate what Paul is doing here. What he ...

111. Proper 13

2 Samuel 11:26–12:13a, Psalm 51:1-19, John 6:24-35, Ephesians 4:1-16

Bulletin Aid

B. David Hostetter

... Psalter—Psalm 51:1-12 First Lesson—The prophet’s parable traps King David’s conscience. 2 Samuel 11:26–12:13a Second Lesson—The unity of the church can be maintained only by the exercise of the best gifts that God gives. Ephesians 4:1-6 Gospel—Jesus advocates a higher vocation than the pursuit of a free lunch. John 6:24-35 CALL TO WORSHIP Leader: The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. People: And also with you. Leader: Come into God’s presence with a clean heart, with a new and ...

112. Proper 23

Job 23:19, 16-17, Psalm 22:1-31, Mark 10:17-31, Hebrews 4:12-16

Bulletin Aid

B. David Hostetter

... ’s love when morning breaks. People: We will sing for joy and be glad all our days. INVOCATION Awesome God, Incarnate God, Sovereign Spirit, we come to worship in the humble confidence your Spirit inspires as we are in the company of our advocate, Jesus Christ. Receive our hymns and prayers and instruct us through your spokesperson before us. We approach you through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen PRAYER OF CONFESSION God of all possibilities, Gatekeeper of heaven, Assayer of Eternal values, you only are good ...

113. Ephesians 4:25-5:2

Ephesians 4:17--5:21

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... 28). Working with one’s own hands was certainly the well-known trademark of Paul’s own apostleship (1 Corinthians 4:12; 1 Thessalonians 2:9; 2 Thessalonians 3:6-11) and was strongly advocated by Paul as a community ideal. But it is not just honest labor for its own sake that this Ephesians’ author advocates. The fruits of that labor were the true goal, for those fruits could be “shared with the needy.” The thief who before had only “taken” from others could, through hard work, now “give back ...

114. When I’m In Trouble

2 Timothy 4:16-18

Sermon

James Merritt

... the appearance of one person who would speak up in a court of law on behalf of another one. Back then it was called an advocate. Today, it would be called an attorney. The judge had called for someone to stand up in Paul's defense, but no one would do ... to say so sadly, "All deserted me." This is even worse, because in Roman law the defendant could not only employ an advocate, he could also call witnesses. Here was the world's greatest missionary, the world's greatest preacher, the world's greatest theologian ...

115. The Clone Zone: The Bible and Cloning

Genesis 1:26-28

Sermon

James Merritt

... requires the destruction of embryos for the purpose of harvesting stem cells, and destroys innocent human life. But there is a deeper issue in all of this, and it goes all the way back to the Garden of Eden and the Tower of Babel. Scientist, Richard Seed, an advocate of cloning, and one who would like to be in the pioneer movement, said, "God made man in His own image. God intended for man to become one with God. We're going to become one with God. We're going to have almost as much knowledge and almost ...

116. Leap Of Faith

John 8:12

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." B. Derek Jeter Not only has Jesus overcome the world, but He also promised us a companion, the Counselor or Advocate who would go with us. Do you remember the very last thing Jesus told the Disciples as recorded in Matthew 28:20 "Remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age." The Derek Jeter commercial for GatorAde reminded me of that. (CLIP) I loved the ...

117. “Your Honor:” Jesus’ Honor Code of Turning the Other Cheek

Matthew 5:38-42

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... cultural concerns of social “honor.” Outface your attacker in a way that forces a human face onto the laws we live by. Do you hear it? Jesus isn’t asking us to “lose face.” Jesus isn’t looking for a way we can “save face.” Jesus isn’t advocating we “face off” in battle or “about face” and run in retreat. No, Jesus asks us to look our “neighbor” in the face and outface our enemies with God’s perfect law of love. It is easy for us to get on a moral high horse when confronted ...

118. Your Honor: Jesus' Honor Code of Turning the Other Cheek

Matthew 5:38-42

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

119. Contemporary Prophets Speak the Truth

Deuteronomy 18:14-22

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... discussions on the important social issues of the day, led by some recognized expert in the field. The second part was to establish houses of hospitality to shelter and feed the homeless. Lastly, in support of the back-to-the-land movement, he advocated the foundation of farming communes for work and study. Thus in December 1932, an articulate women searching for answers, Dorothy Day, met a man with a vision and plan, Peter Maurin. The result of their relationship was the Catholic Worker movement, which ...

120. Thank You for Coming

Hebrews 1:1-14

Sermon

King Duncan

... with the Father Jesus Christ, the Righteous One . . .” That’s amazing good news. Jesus sits at the right hand of God. He knows what we’re going through. He’s been here, and now he is an advocate in our behalf. “They done took Him from the manger and done carried him to a throne.” This is the meaning of Christmas day. God’s plan for humankind has been fulfilled. The Savior of the world has come. He is the perfect representation of God, and now he reigns ...

121. Duuuh!

John 14:15-31

Sermon

David O. Bales

... the slaves and aliens in Israel. We also, having been loved and freed by Christ, should be able to figure out how to love and obey him. Jesus gives us what we need in order to do both. In John 14 he promises to grant us another Advocate, the Spirit of truth, so that through the Spirit we’ll again encounter the living Jesus without his being present bodily. In order for us to grasp Jesus’ immediate and intimate presence in his Spirit, consider this translation of Jesus’ words, “I will ask the Father ...

122. The Fall of Jerusalem

2 Chronicles 36:15-23

Understanding Series

Louis C. Jonker

... not being buried with the royal fathers. Between these two extremes of the spectrum, there are no alternatives. e. The seeking of Yahweh is not a generalized category ascribed to certain kings and not to others. The basic religious inclination advocated by the Chronicler is something manifested in the realities of the kings’ lives. This is particularly illustrated in the Chronicler keeping to the Deuteronomist’s evaluation of the kings but not refraining from altering those depictions. Good kings can go ...

123. Paul Opposes Peter

Galatians 2:11-21

Understanding Series

L. Ann Jervis

... s shift to the first person may be for rhetorical purposes, in order to bring home the force of his argument by encouraging his readers to identify personally with the consequences of their view. The shift may also indicate that Paul is responding to the charge that he had advocated the law at one point but has now changed his mind. Note that the words what I destroyed may be read in parallelism to those in verse 19, “for through the law I died to the law.” At other places in the letter Paul seems to be ...

124. The People's Confession of Sin

Ezra 10:1-17

Understanding Series

Leslie C. Allen

... of Elam acted as their spokesperson in backing the earlier teaching of Ezra and the policy of his support group. He admitted that marriage to women from “the peoples of the land” (NRSV) constituted a serious breach of the covenant, and he advocated a communal “pledge” (REB) to expel the wives and children of the illicit unions. Dealing with the offense opened a window of hope for the community to survive despite the fact that they had offended God. They would regularize the situation and restore ...

125. Nehemiah Helps the Poor

Nehemiah 5:1-19

Understanding Series

Leslie C. Allen

... interest played a minor role according to v. 11, and the major concerns were loss of pledges and debt slavery. 5:8 For foreign slave trading, esp. in prisoners of war, see Ezek. 27:13; Joel 3:3–7. The redemption of Israelite slaves from foreigners is advocated in Lev. 25:47–48. Only for them to be sold back to us: Nehemiah’s complaint that another, internal program to free Judean slaves would need to be instituted objects to the notion of Judean enslavement. We may compare the tone of Lev. 25:39–43 ...

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