Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: touch, feel, sense of touch, tactile sense, tactility, contact, using one's hands, sensation, sense, suspicion, sneaking suspicion, notion, inkling, hunch, fancy, apprehension, presentiment, premonition, foreboding, love, care, affection, fondness, tenderness, warmth, warmness, emotion, sentiment, emotional state, compassion, sympathy, empathy, fellow feeling, understanding, concern, solicitude, solicitousness, tender-heartedness, brotherly love, sensibilities, sensitivities, self-esteem, ego, pride, opinion, belief, view, impression, intuition, instinct, estimation, guess, theory, hypothesis, thought, way of thinking, point of view, atmosphere, ambience, aura, air, mood, climate, character, overtone, undertone, tenor, spirit, quality, flavour, colour, aptitude, knack, flair, bent, talent, gift, skill, art, trick, faculty, ability, propensity, inclination, sensitive, warm, warm-hearted, tender, tender-hearted, caring, soft-hearted, sympathetic, compassionate, empathetic, responsive, receptive, intuitive, thoughtful

Antonyms: bad feeling, acrimony, animosity, animus, antagonism, antipathy, aversion, bitterness, detestation, disgust, dislike, disrelish, enmity, friction, grievances, grudges, hatred, hostility, loathing, malevolence, malice

Showing 1276 to 1300 of 4340 results

1276. The Two Witnesses

Revelation 11:1-14

Understanding Series

Robert W. Wall

... so, John underscores the prophet’s most important characteristic: a single-minded faithfulness to proclaim and embody the word of the Lord. Surely the courage and power of the witnesses should characterize the church’s current reign on the earth. Yet, the character of their witness is rooted in their faithfulness; faithfulness is the condition for power over sin and for courageous witness in the present dispensation. In this light, then, the two witnesses may well refer only to the portion of the whole ...

1277. The Seven Bowls of God's Wrath

Revelation 16:1-21

Understanding Series

Robert W. Wall

... evil in accord with God’s plan of salvation. The extended narrative of God’s wrath poured from the seventh bowl not only indicates that God’s battle against evil is at long last completed—It is done! It also spells out more fully the character of the anti-Christian kingdom that God has overcome. The setting of this scene is the mythic city-state, Babylon. While a map of ancient Rome may help us recognize the city John envisions, Babylon is actually the “global village” of godless power, which ...

1278. Balaam's Donkey

Numbers 22:21-41

Understanding Series

W.H. Bellinger, Jr.

... way for readers to follow the development. Balaam is a prophet who functions in the Transjordan; Balak is the Moabite king who hires Balaam to curse Israel. God is the one who determines the future by the blessing of Israel. Israel is the final character. 22:21–35 Balaam rises in the morning, saddles his donkey, and goes with the emissaries. Two servants accompany Balaam. Readers are then surprised to find in verse 22 that God was very angry when he went; Balaam appeared to be obedient. God’s opposition ...

1279. Saul's Family

1 Samuel 14:49-52

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

... concerning Saul’s kingship do not give a complete picture of his reign. David is an example of Saul’s co-opting into royal service any mighty or brave man. Merab and Michal, Saul’s daughters, and Abner, his field commander, are introduced. This technique of introducing characters before they play a significant part in the narrative is used also in 2 Samuel 9:1–5 (cf. 2 Sam. 16:1–4; 17:27–29). Additional Notes 14:35 This was the first field altar that Saul built, and his action is seen as ...

1280. David In Saul's Service

1 Samuel 16:14-23

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

... again moves, this time from Saul to David. Saul remains in the picture up to 2 Samuel 1, and his influence is felt after that in the ongoing tensions between the north and the south in Israel. But from this point Saul is a secondary character. Samuel, who had resigned his commission as national leader (ch. 12), is recalled to anoint David. Samuel’s return underlines the portrayal of Saul’s reign as being a pause before the genuine new age arose in Israel with David’s enthronement. The writers convey ...

1281. David's Officials

2 Samuel 8:15-18

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

... may be blameworthy in forgetting about Jonathan’s family for this period of time, but when the thought eventually comes to mind he seeks to make amends and genuinely wants to help Mephibosheth. Chapters 9 through 20 build up the picture of many characters in David’s circle. Mephibosheth, Ziba, and Mephibosheth’s patron Makir all come into the story again later. Ziba, a servant of Saul’s household, acted as the estate manager for Saul’s property. This was an important position, and in the absence ...

1282. David and Mephibosheth

2 Samuel 9:1-13

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

1283. Absalom's Conspiracy

2 Samuel 15:1-12

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

... had some hopes of taking over from his grandfather or at least of working toward that end. His summons to return must have given him the impression that he might take his place as heir to his father’s throne. For a man of his character, life under the new conditions must have been intensely irritating and frustrating. It is likely that he resented his father for what he saw as unjust treatment, particularly because Amnon had not been punished. For two years, parallel to the two years when his bitterness ...

1284. The Disciples Rejoin Jesus

John 4:27-38, John 4:1-26, John 4:39-42

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

... , they are left speechless in its wake (cf. their hesitation to ask him questions in 16:5, 19 and 21:12). As soon as the disciples arrive from the town, the woman returns to town, and the narrative divides itself into two scenes centering on two sets of characters: the woman and the townspeople (vv. 28–30, 39–42), and the disciples and Jesus (vv. 31–38). When the disciples offer Jesus some of the food they have bought in Sychar (see v. 8), Jesus tells them he has food of his own that they know nothing ...

1285. Faith or Observance of the Law

Galatians 3:1-14, Galatians 3:15-25

Understanding Series

L. Ann Jervis

... of the Spirit. To remind the Galatians that they have received the Spirit is to remind them that their experience marks them as those who are partaking in the fulfillment of God’s promise. Paul refers to the Spirit also when speaking positively about the character of the Christian life. The Spirit is in the hearts of believers (4:6); the Spirit accompanies, encourages, and undergirds our faith as we wait for the hope of righteousness (5:5). In fact, the Spirit is the life and guide of the Christian (5 ...

1286. Two Kinds of Wisdom

James 3:13-18, James 3:1-12

Understanding Series

Peter H. Davids

... connected wisdom to the gift or presence of God’s Spirit (e.g., Gen. 41:38–39; Exod. 31:3–4; Prov. 2:6; 8:22–31). Thus one could paraphrase James as “this behavior is not inspired by God’s Spirit.” What, then, is the source and character of this “wisdom” that inspires them? First, it is earthly. On the surface, to say that something belongs to the earth is not bad, but it is bad if the something is claimed to come from God (1 Cor. 15:40). Thus James already argues that their inspiration ...

1287. Wives and Husbands

1 Peter 3:1-7

Understanding Series

Norman Hillyer

... in Christ. Gentle (praüs): mild, benevolent, not pushing or insisting on one’s own rights; elsewhere in the NT the term depicts the Christ-character (Matt. 5:5; 11:29; 21:5). Quiet: the Greek word hēsychios (tranquil, calm) is found only here and in 1 Tim. 2:2. ... converted from Judaism, Peter is in effect saying that they truly reveal a spiritual family likeness to Sarah only when they reproduce her character (Rom. 4:12). Do what is right and do not give way to fear alludes to Prov. 3:25 LXX, where both ...

1288. The Fall of Man

Genesis 3:1-24

Understanding Series

John E. Hartley

... in order to live in a harsher environment, the first couple keenly felt the sting of these penalties in daily living. That is, outside the garden the couple continually experienced a foretaste of death. God’s manner of executing this penalty illustrates his character. God acted in mercy, allowing the humans to continue to live. God was true to his word in initiating punishments that led to the eventual execution of the penalty as well as providing a foretaste of death. Thus God carried out the penalty ...

1289. Jacob Flees to Laban

Genesis 27:41--28:9

Understanding Series

John E. Hartley

... given her during her troubled pregnancy (25:23). Each son obediently carries out his parent’s instructions. The key figure is Rebekah, whose plans direct the drama. In hearing this story we should not classify the characters as good versus bad. All the characters have both admirable and deplorable traits. Esau is cast as genuine, simple, and accepting. Carefree, he does not protect himself from unforeseen obstacles. Thus he receives sympathy for his naive vulnerability. Jacob, dominated by his mother ...

1290. Jerusalem’s Deliverance Foretold

Isaiah 37:1-13

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... 33 with their implicit critique of Hezekiah as the king responsible for the policies that Isaiah attacks in those chapters. There is an ambiguity about the OT’s account of Hezekiah’s character and about his achievements. Perhaps that reflects an ambiguity about Hezekiah’s actual character and achievements. Different accounts, therefore, can be illuminating in their selectivity for different audiences in different situations with different needs. 37:1–4 Again there is some ambiguity about the outward ...

1291. Excuses! Excuses!

Matthew 25:14-30

Sermon

King Duncan

... in general. And we give God thanks for them. Jesus told a parable about a man who was given a gift and he buried it in the ground. What gift has God given you? You and I are responsible for our lives. Circumstances rarely determine our destiny. Our character determines our destiny. Are you a “pebble-picker,” as Casey Stengel put it? Are you constantly looking for excuses why you are not doing what God has called you to do? Most of us can do better, and the Master will be pleased if we do. 1. Hoover ...

1292. We've Got a Friend in High Places

1 Corinthians 15:20-26, 28, Ephesians 1:15-23

Sermon

King Duncan

... called upon to offer some explanation in defense of God. She said: “That happened before God became a Christian.” (4) I like that. If we could discern in the Old Testament a perfect representation of God’s character, there would have been no need for Christ. But the representation of God’s character in the Old Testament is a mixed bag. In some places, He is a tender shepherd, but, in other places, He calls for innocent people to be slaughtered. Christ’s life and teachings present a different kind ...

1293. You Are God's Handiwork

Ephesians 2:10

Sermon

King Duncan

... you’ve done. It doesn’t matter how many strikes are against you. You are His work of art. With His help you can turn your mess into a masterpiece. In one of his books Max Lucado tells us about a woman named Madam Fauna. Madam Fauna is a character in a John Steinbeck novel titled Sweet Thursday. Madam Fauna runs a brothel. In spite of her occupation Madam Fauna takes a liking to a prostitute by the name of Suzy and she sincerely desires a better life for this young woman. One day Madam Fauna decides to ...

1294. Of Mice and Men

Hebrews 10:11-18

Sermon

King Duncan

... do no harm and can sometimes be good. But there is only one way you can blot out your sin as if it had never happened. And that is to turn it over to God. It is to confess that you have done wrong and to pray for strength of character so that sin never gains hold of you again. Martin Luther’s great discovery that did so much to initiate the Protestant reformation was this. He discovered that righteousness is a gift from God and not a human achievement. God is the only one who can cleanse us of our ...

1295. Hard and Soft Hearts

Mark 10:2-16

Sermon

Steven E. Albertin

... ourselves again and again that in the eyes of the common people the Pharisees were the good guys. They were the ones who took their religion seriously. They were first century Judaism's version of "Dr. Laura." They valued morality. They believed in character and integrity. They were serious about right and wrong. In the case of divorce, they had developed a complicated system of rules and regulations defining under what conditions divorce was right and wrong. They came to test Jesus. They came to check him ...

1296. Blessed Among Women

Luke 1:39-56

Sermon

Charles H. Bayer

... mother of Jesus, and other women. Luke reports that when they told the disciples about the empty tomb these men assumed it was an idle tale and did not believe them. And mind you, all of this from a culture in which women didn't count. The central character in the birth narrative, a story only told by Luke, is the person closest to the event, Mary. There are two ways over the years I have imagined this virgin queen. I have seen her as a frightened little girl, overwhelmed by events far beyond her control ...

1297. It Is Always the Third Day

Luke 13:31-35

Sermon

R. Robert Cueni

... is Celia Coplestone. An accomplished person, Celia longs for happiness and meaning in her life. She has tried the social attractions: theatre, receptions, cocktail parties, even an affair with Edward, another character in the play. Cecilia has tried it all, yet something is missing. She goes to a psychiatrist. In time, Celia has an insight. The source of her existential anxiety lies not in the world around her, but as T.S. Eliot causes her to say, “There is something wrong with ...

1298. The Nine Tests of Confucius

Illustration

Editor James S. Hewett

... treacherous than mounts and rivers, and more difficult to know than the sky. For with the sky you know what to expect in respect of the coming of spring, summer, autumn, and winter, and the alternation of day and night. But man hides his character behind an inscrutable appearance. There are those who appear tame and self-effacing, but conceal a terrible pride. There are those who have some special ability but appear to be stupid. There are those who are compliant and yielding but always get their objective ...

1299. The Ravaged Life

Illustration

Editor James S. Hewett

... of the Christ a young man, Pietro Bandinelli by name, connected with the Milan Cathedral as chorister. Years passed before the great picture was completed, and when one character only—that of Judas Iscariot—was wanting, the great painter noticed a man in the streets of Rome whom he selected as his model. With shoulders far bent toward the ground, having an expression of cold, hardened, evil, saturnine, the man seemed to afford the opportunities of a model terribly ...

1300. A Hall of Fame Dad

John 16:12-15

Sermon

King Duncan

... and honor, people who know the difference between right and wrong, people who tell the truth. We’re not going to get role models for such upright behavior out of Hollywood or Washington, D.C., are we? If they don’t see models of character and morality in their own home, then heaven help them. There was an interesting story on television’s “60 Minutes” a few years ago. The park rangers at a South African wildlife preserve were concerned about the slaughter of 39 rare white rhinos in their park ...

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