Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: Levi, disciple, evangelist, tax collector, the 12, the twelve, apostle, sermon on the mount, jewish audience, beatitudes, lord's prayer, great commission, parables, olivet discourse, mount of olives, olivet, synoptic

Showing 1251 to 1275 of 2815 results

1251. It's Everybody's Business

John 1:35-51

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... anyone to dance. There we were all dressed up and ready to dance. We all had invitations to the dance. But nobody asked us to dance and we were too scared to ask any of the girls to dance with us. B. As I think about it, that's a parable of the Church. You see, Jesus told the disciples, "You are witnesses." And he instructed them to go out and share their message, their Good News of redemption, forgiveness, and eternal life with others. We're called to do the same. We're called to share our message and ...

1252. Overcoming Obstacles - Together

Luke 2:1-7, Psalm 107:1-9

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... 't just for Christmas. They are an example for marriage and families everywhere. They are examples of how Faith, Love, Trust and Prayer can help us face and overcome any obstacle that might happen to face. They are examples of how we can do it, together. 1. Parables, Etc. (Saratoga Press, P.O. Box 8,Platteville, CO, 80651; 970-785-2990), July 2000 2. The Pastor's Story File (Saratoga Press, P.O. Box 8, Platteville, CO,80651; 970-785-2990), March 1997 adapted 3. The Pastor's Story File (Saratoga Press, P.O ...

1253. Never Too Old For God: Abraham And Sarah

Genesis 18:1-15

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... your family doesn't matter. "You're Never To Old For God." All God wants is faith and trust in God like Abraham and Sarah. And that's why Jesus came, to lead us back into that faithful trusting relationship with God. "You're Never To Old For God." 1. Parables, Etc. (Saratoga Press, P.O. Box 8, Platteville, CO, 80651; 970-785-2990) June 1996 Adapted from What about Tomorrow? by J. Wallace Hamilton. 2. The American Heritage Dictionary, Third Edtion Version 3.6a, Houghton Mifflin Co., 1992. 3 ...

1254. Harvesting What We Plant

Mark 4:26-34

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... , Love for God and a relationship with Jesus our Savior. If we reflect the love of God in Christ for them, then they will reflect the love God in Christ for others. We Harvest What We Plant. Plant well. Let the little things matter. 1. Parables, Etc. (Saratoga Press, P.O. Box 8, Platteville, CO, 80651; 970-785-2990), June 1995 The Pastor's Story File (Saratoga Press, P.O. Box 8, Platteville, CO, 80651; 970-785-2990), August 2000 2. Excerpted from "Wisdom of Our Fathers: Lessons and Letters from Daughters ...

1255. The Adventure Begins

Ephesians 1:15-23, Acts 1:1-11

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... every time we open it. To our third graders with their new Bibles I say, "Welcome to the Adventure." And to each of you, Let the Adventure Begin Again In Your Heart, through Christ. Let God's Story impact Your Story. 1. Leadership Vol.19, #4 2. Parables, Etc. (Saratoga Press, P.O. Box 8, Platteville, CO, 80651; 970-785-2990), Feb 2002 Dave Werner, Crossroads United Methodist Church 3. Adapted from The Pastor's Story File (Saratoga Press, P.O. Box 8, Platteville, CO, 80651; 970-785-2990), April 1997 4 ...

1256. Not Nearly as Big a Man

Luke 13:1-9

Illustration

Maxie Dunnam

... even make one suit out of this bolt of cloth." The tailor said, "Coach, here in Tuscaloosa, you are not nearly as big a man as you are in Knoxville." I tell the story to make the point that things are not always what they seem. Our Scripture lesson the parable of the fig tree is clearly a parable of judgment. But at the very heart of it is a marvelous word of grace.

1257. Familiarity Breeds Contempt

Luke 15:11-32

Illustration

... the Prodigal Son as there were changes in the day." It is difficult for us to see something new in the parable of the Prodigal son. We have heard the story so many times we believe that we have squeezed it dry of meaning. Not only that, but, as ... the saying goes, familiarity breeds contempt. When we hear the opening words of the parable once again, "And there was a Father who had two sons," we greet the words with ho-hum. Heard it. Heard it. Heard it. ...

1258. Do You Have Beautiful Feet?

Romans 10:5-15

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... your faith. That's all it takes and a willingness to talk about your faith when asked. And that shouldn't be a problem because the Holy Spirit promised to guide you. 1. Pastor's Story File (Platteville, Colorado: Saratoga Press) October 1996 Adapted from Better Families, August, 1995 2. Parables, Etc. (Platteville, Colorado: Saratoga Press) December 1993 3. Parables, Etc. (Platteville, Colorado: Saratoga Press), May 1984

1259. Stewardship of the Earth (Series: Stewardship: Discover This Word and Love It!)

Psalm 8:1-9

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... , it’s my investments; I will do with them as I please. We become so engrossed in our appointments, our accomplishments, our accolades, our assessments that we have little time to consider alternatives. Jesus told a sobering parable about such self-possessed persons. We call it the parable of the rich fool. “The ground of a certain rich man produced much.” The bountiful harvest presented a perplexing problem. “What shall I do? Where can I store my crops?” The self-centeredness of this successful ...

1260. Why Should I Read The Bible? (Series: Real Faith for Real People)

2 Timothy 3:10--4:8

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... will all stand before God’s judgment seat!” The Bible is full of all kinds of literature: history, poetry, parables, commandments, metaphors, hyperboles. We do a lot of damage by interpreting poetry as prose, metaphors as facts and commandments as suggestions. The ... story of the Good Samaritan never happened, yet it always happens. The parable of the Prodigal Son never happened, yet it happens in some form in every family. Jesus said it is easier ...

1261. Am I My Brother’s Keeper? (Series: Real Faith for Real People)

Matthew 25:31-46

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... Methodists, “Give none that asks relief either an ill word or ill look. Do not hurt them if you cannot help them. And expect no thanks from anyone.” I. We Need New Eyes Through Which to See the Least of These As Jesus says so eloquently in this troubling parable of Matthew 25, “I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these, ...you did for me.” Do you see Jesus in the faces of the poor, the prisoner, the sick, the stranger? A. As you serve the POOR, you serve Jesus. A couple ...

1262. Touch and Feel, Taste and See

John 20:19-31

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... . 1. The Pastor's Story File (Saratoga Press, P.O. Box 8, Platteville, CO, 80651;970-785-2990), April 2000 2. The Pastor's Story File (Saratoga Press, P.O. Box 8, Platteville, CO, 80651;970-785-2990), November 1995 3. Parables, Etc. (Saratoga Press, P.O. Box 8, Platteville, CO, 80651;970-785-2990), January 2001 4. Parables, Etc. (Saratoga Press, P.O. Box 8, Platteville, CO, 80651; 970-785-2990),July 1998 5. Jamie Buckingham, LOOK OUT, WORLD (Altamonte Springs, FL: Strang Communications Company, 1993).

1263. Thanks, But No Thanks

Luke 18:9-14

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... . But he didn't have a ruler. So he made one. And then he measured himself. "Nine feet! Mommy!" he shouted, "I'm nine feet tall!" We laugh, but that's how it is when you measure yourself by your own ruler. That's the mistake the Pharisee in the parable made. And that's the mistake some of the Pharisees who Jesus confronted were making. They were the good guys but they were blinded by their own self-righteousness. They couldn't take their eyes off of their own selves long enough to see God's grace working in ...

1264. Where Love Comes From

John 13:31-38

Sermon

King Duncan

... . That is why we must forever proclaim God’s love. God loves us, even if the world rejects us. Only when we understand that are we able to love others. We love because God first loved us. That’s the good news. In his book, Many Things in Parables, Frederick Borsch says that when his wife became pregnant with their first child, he discovered that he strongly wanted a son. Growing up he had two sisters and no brothers. He badly wanted to have a brother. Now he wanted to have a son. And he did! Benjamin ...

1265. Chosen by God

Ephesians 1:1-14

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... neurotic drive to seeking entertainment. To be holy is to be distinctly different, to be a sign of contradiction which does not allow the world around us to squeeze us into its mold. It is to be open to the ongoing process of renewal that makes us parables of a New Creation, persons being brought to wholeness and maturity after the image and into the stature of the fullness of Christ. And that brings forth the next picture: the holy person, the Christian, is to be a sign of hope. IV One of the very poignant ...

1266. On the Road with Zacchaeus

Luke 19:1-10

Sermon

James W. Moore

... about me… that just hearing my voice was the happiest moment of his life… that they’re coming to get me… they’re coming to take me home.” Now… wait a minute… we’ve heard this story before, haven’t we? It’s a modern-day version of The Parable of the Prodigal Son… a story Jesus told long ago to show us how loving and gracious and forgiving God is! When we turn to Him in penitence… When we say to Him, “I’m sorry,”… He is there for us. He runs to greet us… anxious to wrap ...

1267. God's Chosen People: Partners

John 15:1-17

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... an emotion-laden image to picture God’s love: “Can a mother forget her own baby and not love the child she bore? Even if a mother should forget her child, I will not forget you.” (Isaiah 49:15 TEV). Jesus pictured that love over and over in symbol and parable the most unforgettable one about a prodigal son. The grandeur of the story is revealed when the son, from the sheer motive of survival, decides to return home. The father is there, waiting and ready to receive him. When we seriously consider this ...

1268. It's Tough to Be God

Exodus 32:1-33:6

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... tall, athletic, hard-working Black man that was his fantasy daddy. Roderick kept coming to class, but he didn’t do any better. No matter how often Dr. Laycock talk to him, he never did any better. They were studying parables that and quarter, and covered the parable of a waiting father. And Roderick intensified his effort at Christianity. They have required Chapel at Hiawassee and even had fantastic chapel programs Roderick would ridicule. He took his wrath out on two of the ministerial students. One was ...

1269. Not a Servant, but a Son

Galatians 4:6-7

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... her eyes and her face. Then it dawned on him. Her deep spirituality and dedication to service had transformed her in the eyes of those who knew her. So caught up was she in loving service that no one ever noticed her appearance. That’s a parable. When we serve not as servants but as sons, even our appearance is transformed. Have I told you that story of Mother Theresa? A brother in a Catholic religious order came to her complaining about a superior whose rules, he felt, were interfering with his ministry ...

1270. Characteristics of the Church, Part 2

Acts 2:42-47

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... will not reach out beyond that tight circle of blood. That’s not generosity. One of the dominant Jesus used was that of the anger “I was a stranger and you took me in.” One of his best known parables was that of the Good Samaritan. The question that evoked that parable was, “Who is my neighbor?” Here the “stranger motif” becomes dominant. The outcast Samaritan, scorned by the Jew, the strangest of strangers, became the epitome of who a neighbor is. This image of stranger was at the heart of ...

1271. Building Boats That Float

Genesis 6:1

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... jobs end and hope fails and despair dawns, life gets messy. What I need to tell you today from this ancient story is that when life gets messy, don’t abandon the ship. There is a flood out there. You need to stay inside. Jewish author, Elie Wiesel, tells the parable about a man in a boat. The man is not alone although he acts as if he were. One night without warning, the man decides to cut a hole under his seat. Other people on the boat are totally alarmed. “What on earth are you doing? You are going to ...

1272. Is There More Than One Way to Heaven?

John 4:19-26

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... of Man coming in all of His glory will finally sit on the throne and all nations will be gathered before Him. He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. If the parable is right, the final Judgment is going to be full of surprises. The ultimate question in the parable in Matthew 25 is, “When?" I do not remember when I welcomed strangers, fed the hungry … and when I failed to do so. I have news for you, you are not the final judge and neither am I. For that ...

1273. The Uniting Peace of Christ

Ephesians 2:11-22

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... single weapon. On that memorial they made this pledge: “Rest in Peace. We promise it will never happen again.” I wonder if we are so resolved. We promise it will never happen again. May the Peace of Christ be with you. Jewish author, Elie Wiesel, tells the parable of a man in a boat. The man is not alone, though he acts as if he were. One night without warning, the man decides to cut a hole under his seat. Other people onboard were naturally alarmed. “What on earth are you doing?” they exclaimed ...

1274. The Greatest Story Ever Told

Luke 15:11-32

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... you will examine your basic assumptions. From age to age the question is the same, WHAT IS GOD LIKE? People in Jesus’ day needed an answer to the God question, too; so Jesus gave us the greatest story ever told. A certain man had two sons. We call it the Parable of the Prodigal Son, but really it’s a story about a loving father who is so full of grace that he lavishes love on his wayward boys. The Bible never gets better than here in Luke 15. If you ever wonder about the true nature of Deity; if life ...

1275. Loosening Up for Better Production

Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... told a story just for you. In it He drove home a truth essential for the rest of us, too. We call it the Parable of the Sower, though Jesus interpreted it as an allegory of the soils, which poses no problem for ordinary readers, only for Biblical critics ... God's grace, a sermon for another day. As for now, let's consider the soils on which Jesus elaborated when he tried to explain this parable. What kind of soil are we? In Verse 4 we read, “Some seed fell along the path and the birds came and ate it up." Let ...

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