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Showing 1226 to 1250 of 5000 results

1226. Manual Labor Is Not the President of Mexico

Proverbs 6:6-8

Sermon

James Merritt

"It's true hard work never killed anybody, but I figure, why take the chance?" Ronald Reagan1 Two teenagers were talking, and one said to another, "I'm really worried. Dad slaves away at his job so I will never want for anything, pays all of my bills and sends me to college. Mom spends every day washing and ironing and cleaning up after me, and even takes care of me when I am sick." "So, what are you worried about?" He said, "I'm afraid they might try to escape!" That story reflects my belief that ...

1227. You Had Better Get It Right

Matthew 5:17-20

Sermon

James Merritt

Even little children understand that there are some things you had better get right and understand to be true, or you can get yourself into big trouble. For example: I came across a little document entitled "Great truths about life that little children have learned." Here are some of them: No matter how hard you try, you can't baptize cats. When your mom is mad at your dad, don't let her brush your hair. If your sister hits you don't hit her back; they always catch the second person. Never ask your three- ...

1228. Fatal Attraction

Matthew 5:27-30

Sermon

James Merritt

A teacher was working with a grammar lesson and she said to one of her students, "Willie, what is it when I say ‘I love you, you love me, he loves me?'" Willie replied, "That's one of those triangles where somebody gets shot." Well, it used to be a situation where somebody would get shot—with a gun. Today it's a situation that gets shot with a television camera. Television refers to adultery, to sex outside of marriages, 13 times more frequently than it mentions intimacy between a husband and a wife. There ...

1229. O Holy Night

Philippians 2:5-11

Sermon

James Merritt

All of us know the beautiful Christmas hymn "O Holy Night." This carol was written by Adolphe Charles Adam, a French composer. Ironically, it was frowned upon by church authorities who denounced it for poor taste and "total absence of the spirit of religion." In that first stanza the writer invites us to close our eyes and imagine the world before the birth of Jesus. He says it is a world that lay "in sin and error pining." The word pining refers to the wasting away of the human spirit as it grieves and ...

1230. Guilt: How to Keep Your Conscience Clear

Psalm 32:1-11

Sermon

James Merritt

Ogden Nash once wrote this little couplet: There’s only one way to achieve happiness on this terrestrial ball, And that is to have either a clear conscience or none at all.1 Perhaps the most powerful and poisonous of all human emotions is the emotion of guilt. Guilt can make a person afraid of their own shadow. There is a story told of the time when Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the English writer, who created the character Sherlock Holmes, decided to play a practical joke on twelve of his best friends. He sent ...

1231. An Excellent Epitaph

2 Timothy 4:6-8

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

Today is All Saints Sunday, an occasion when we remember with gratitude those Christians who have transferred from the Church Militant (that is, this world) to the Church Triumphant (that is, heaven). We are especially mindful of those who have died in the past year. On such an occasion it is only natural that we consider the fact that one day we will transfer from this world to the next. What will those who know us best say about us when we are gone? Whatever our age may be, how do we evaluate our own ...

1232. In the Upper Room

John 17

Sermon

John E. Harnish

What does it feel like to have someone praying for you? By name, in person, one-on-one? John Indermark remembers a childhood experience of being in the hospital for surgery when he was ten years old. He says he remembers a priest praying for him: "I seem to recall that as he came and stood at the foot of my bed, I felt a mix of wonder and fear. I did not know him, but he prayed. For me. He took time to bring my name and need before God. That I knew. That I still know. That I carry with me in ministry." [1 ...

1233. Worship Like A Wesley

Philippians 4:4-9

Sermon

John E. Harnish

Charles Wesley had returned from the Georgia Colony in complete despair, just like his brother, John—struggling, doubting, longing for a new relationship with God. Then on May 21, 1738, the day he would call his "conversion day," he discovered the amazing gift of God's love in Christ made known for him. He opened his scriptures to Psalm 43 and read: "God hath put a new song in my mouth." He picked up a pen and never put it down. By the time of his death, he had written no fewer than 8,989 poems, including ...

1234. The Paradoxical Power of Weakness

2 Corinthians 12:1-10

Sermon

Maurice A. Fetty

There are people who speak to us more powerfully out of their weakness than out of their strength. Brian Piccolo was a powerful, professional football player who entertained thousands with his feats of muscular strength and stamina. But cancer attacked, and out of weakness he spoke more powerfully than before. Whenever they show the movie, Brian's Song, we think of him and his faith and courage. Paul experienced a similar fall from glory. He had seen powerful visions of God, had entered into the third ...

1235. Let God Do the Rest

Ephesians 3:14-21

Sermon

Richard Gribble

Once there was a boy who loved to look at the birds of the air, the flowers of the field, and the clear blue sky. These delighted him and he spent the majority of his time outside wandering about the countryside. One day he saw a crowd of people gathered and as he drew closer he saw that they were listening to a man. He was not sure what it was, but there was something magnetic about this man that drew the boy closer. He sat down on the grass and listened to what the man said. Never in his life had he ...

1236. Blue Christmas

Isaiah 40:1-31

Sermon

King Duncan

Just for the fun of it, we are beginning each of our Advent messages by recalling a Christmas song. Some of these songs are secular, some are sacred. Our song for this Sunday is several decades old. It was first sung by a young rock-and-roller named Elvis Presley. I don’t know if you remember him or not. Of course Elvis sang, “I’ll have a blue, blue, blue, blue Christmas without you.” I hope I put in a sufficient number of “blue, blues,” in case there is a die hard Presley fan in the room. However, I felt ...

1237. 2 Timothy 3:14-4:5

2 Timothy 3:14-4:5

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

Paul's words in 3:14-17 erect a strong, protective fence around the first tender shoots of the Christian faith communities. Planting his faith firmly in the rich soil of Scripture and tradition, Paul offers Timothy sure guidelines and positive perimeters as protection against wrong ideas and dangerous theologies. Focusing on the strength and faithfulness that come from tradition and Scripture, Paul urges Timothy to remember the sound teaching he has received from his devoted teachers and family members. ...

1238. Matthew 3:13-17

Matthew 3:13-17

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

With immense care Matthew records the first dramatic action of Jesus' ministry - his baptism at the hands of John. An approaching change of venue is telegraphed by 3:11, where John the Baptist's words predict Jesus' impending appearance on the scene. While Matthew continues to use his unobtrusive third-person voice to describe these events, he vividly colors the story of Jesus' baptism by switching the underlying theme of these verses from one of rejection (the theme which deepened the hue of Matthew's ...

1239. Remember Me

Luke 22:7-38, John 13:18-30

Sermon

King Duncan

There is an absolutely corny joke that I picked up somewhere. It’s about a bill collector in Georgia who knocked on the door of a client who lived out in a rural area. This client owed the bill collector’s company money. “Is Fred home?” he asked the woman who answered the door. “Sorry,” the woman replied. “Fred’s gone for cotton.” The next day the collector tried again. “Is Fred here today?” “No, sir,” she said, “I’m afraid Fred has gone for cotton.” When he returned the third day, he said sarcastically, “ ...

1240. God’s Tattoos

Isaiah 49:8-26

Sermon

Mike Ripski

I. The Power of Memory A book of conversations with World War II bomber pilots was recently published. One of the conversations is with one of our own, Bob Elliott. While we were playing together in the Edward Barksdale Golf Tournament, Rodney Gilbert told me about a friend of his, another bomber pilot who was shot down and wounded. The pilot spent time in a German hospital being treated for his wounds. Then he was sent to a prison camp. Go figure. The Germans provide medical attention to save a man’s life ...

1241. You Must Start Over!

John 3:1-21

Sermon

Mike Ripski

I. A personal confession My first appointment was as the Associate Pastor of Grace UMC in the Graceland area of south Memphis. It was 1975. Racial transition had begun in that part of the city. Overnight young adult Sunday school classes moved east. Older adult classes moved to Mississippi. People of a different race and culture moved in. Grace Church’s future depended on its reaching out to its new neighbors. The community had changed. Could the church change too? Things have changed since Belle Meade UMC ...

1242. Proper 10

2 Samuel 6:1-23, Ephesians 1:1-14, Mark 6:14-29

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

COMMENTARY Old Testament: 2 Samuel 6:1-5, 12b-19 David is situated in Jerusalem with his government and he defeated the Philistines. It is time for David to make his capital also the religious center of the nation. With his people he arranges to bring the ark of the covenant which is 10 miles away in Kirjath-jearim. On the way the oxen stumble. To prevent the ark from falling from the new cart, Uzzah steadies the ark and is killed by God. David becomes angry with Yahweh for killing Uzzah, and in fear of ...

1243. Friends

1 Samuel 18:1-4

Sermon

James Merritt

Friends - It was one of the most watched television shows in the nineties. It was in effect, the twenty-first century version of what friendship is all about. That one word, perfectly describes the relationship between two men named, David and Jonathan, who had, what one could argue is the most famous friendship in the history of the world. As we have just seen in the previous chapter, David had just pulled off one of the greatest upsets in history when, as a nineteen year old shepherd boy, who couldn't ...

1244. Me - A - Missionary?

Acts 1:8

Sermon

James Merritt

It is probably the most well known Bible verse in the world. It has probably been preached on more by the greatest evangelist of modern times, Billy Graham, than any other single verse. Of course, I am referring to John 3:16. There may be some of you who do not know it, so here is what it says, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life." (John 3:16, NASB) I want you particularly to pay attention to three key words in ...

1245. Houston We Have a Problem

Nehemiah 1:1-11

Sermon

James Merritt

"Houston, we have a problem." They are the most famous words ever uttered in the history of space travel. One single sentence, five small words, but they signal what could have been the greatest disaster in the history of NASA. It was April 13, 1970; astronauts Jim Lovell, John Swigert, and Fred Haise were in the lunar module - Apollo 13. They were two hundred thousand miles from Earth, 5/6th of the way to the moon, 55 hours into their flight when disaster struck. A mysterious explosion rocked the ship and ...

1246. Working Together with One Heart and One Mind

Illustration

Staff

I've never lifted a barn, but Herman Ostry, a farmer in Bruno, Nebraska has. Shortly after buying a piece of land and a barn, a nearby creek rose, and the barn was under twenty nine inches of water. He half-jokingly said to his family, "I bet if we had enough people, we could pick up that barn and carry it to higher ground." To his surprise, one of his sons, Mike, started thinking about it, and by counting the number of boards, timbers, and nails, he estimated that the barn weighed about 19,000 pounds. ...

1247. Triumphing over Obstacles

2 Corinthians 5:20-6:10

Sermon

Richard Gribble

Rabbi Moshe took a trip to a strange land. He took with him a donkey, a rooster, and a lamp. Since he was a Jew he was refused hospitality in the village inns, so he decided to sleep in the woods. One night he lit his lamp to study the holy books before going to sleep, but a fierce wind came up, knocking over the lamp and breaking it. The rabbi decided to go to sleep saying, "All that God does, he does well." During the night some wild animals came and drove away the rooster and thieves stole the donkey. ...

1248. Be Reconciled — To Christ and Others

2 Corinthians 5:16-21

Sermon

Richard Gribble

The train clanked and rattled down the tracks one lazy summer afternoon as I traveled from Kyoto to Tokyo. My car was relatively empty — a few housewives with children in tow and a few older folks going to or returning from shopping. At one station the doors opened and suddenly the quiet of the afternoon was shattered by a man who began to bellow violence and incomprehensible curses. The man was big, drunk, and filthy. As he yelled, he swung at a woman carrying a baby. The blow sent the woman into the lap ...

1249. Whose Inheritance Is It?

Ephesians 1:11-23

Sermon

Donna Schaper

The Holy Spirit gives us our inheritance. It does not come from our parents or grandparents, our nation or our race. Our inheritance is a gift from God. We have it as a dominion and domination. Domination — when we get first things absolutely first — is not a bad thing! Once we know the source of our inheritance, no other gods can rule us. Saints are the people who know this. Saints know who gave them what they have — and they don't imagine that they are like the used car dealer who, having inherited the ...

1250. What's in a Name?

Isaiah 43:1-7

Sermon

Mary S. Lautensleger

"What's in a name? A rose by any other name smells as sweet." Or does it? This well-known line from Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet is true, but only up to a point. A rose named hydrogen sulfide might remind us of that unmistakable rotten-egg odor, causing us to avoid an otherwise lovely flower that emits a delicate fragrance. The names we are given carry a tremendous influence throughout our lives. The names we are called frequently become synonymous with our identity. A nineteenth-century governor of ...

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