Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 1351 to 1375 of 2665 results

1351. Training the Heart

1 John 1:1-4

Sermon

Paul E. Robinson

... a right spirit within me." It's not easy to develop a clean heart and a right spirit. Martin Luther, the German reformer who tried early in the sixteenth century to reform the Roman Catholic Church, spoke to this issue. He wrote, "The conscience is one drop; the reconciled God is a sea of comfort." In a commentary on 1 John, the writer says this as he quotes these words of Luther: "Our supreme court is not the human heart, whose feelings are fickle and manipulable by fear to self-condemnation. Our court ...

1352. Spelling Doesn't Count

1 John 5:1-12

Sermon

Paul E. Robinson

... he took a sack of grain and dumped it into his single brother's bin. Both men were puzzled for years because their supply of grain never dwindled. Then one dark night the two brothers bumped into each other. Slowly it dawned on them what was happening. They dropped their sacks and embraced one another.3 Those brothers tasted eternal life. Pray that this week you might be led to do some BASE jumping with Jesus, the out of the ordinary, the thing you can only do by God's power, and in the process, find the ...

1353. The Battle of the Wisdoms

James 3:13-18

Sermon

Harold Warlick

... in the Same Direction. The book speaks honestly about the Christian journey. Millions of people all over the world begin it. But as soon as discipleship gets arduous or prayers are not answered the way we wish for them to be, people start to drop out. The attrition rate is dreadful. Few of us have enthusiasm for what Peterson calls "the patient acquisition of Christian virtue."4 The Christian journey, which starts like a sprint, winds up as a lonely, silent marathon. What starts out so beautifully is never ...

1354. Resting at the Mediocre Inn

John 12:20-36

Sermon

King Duncan

... that he endured the pain by focusing on just completing each day’s journey. (2) Can you even imagine that? Hurting so bad that he destroyed eleven teeth from gritting them so hard. That reminds me of Jesus praying in the Garden of Gethsemane while sweat like great drops of blood rolled off of him. Of course, Jesus was not trying to win a bicycle race. He was winning our souls. But we read about such determination as Tyler Hamilton’s, and it says to us this is what it takes to be successful in this world ...

1355. Yes, No, Someone Else

2 Samuel 7:1-17

Sermon

Curtis Lewis

... into his own hands, and with a pair of scissors the boy gently snipped the threads around the opening of the cocoon to make it easier for the moth to emerge. As soon as the threads were snipped, the moth crawled out; however, as it did, it dropped behind it an ugly, distended, shriveled wing which was useless. The exercise the moth would have gotten in the struggle would have animated its wings. In the Old Testament lesson for today, David is much like the little boy who snipped away at the emperor moth's ...

1356. Morning Has Broken

Genesis 1:1-2:3

Sermon

Curtis Lewis

... -year-old in the morning and planned to see the ten-year-old in the afternoon. When the younger boy walked into the clergyman's office, he was seated. The pastor who had a booming voice asked him sternly, "Where is God?" The little guy's mouth dropped open, but he was so frightened he could not respond. The question was repeated a second time by the pastor in a louder, sterner voice, "Where is God?" The boy made no attempt to answer; therefore, the pastor raised his voice even louder and shook his finger ...

1357. Going Down to Look Up

2 Kings 5:1-27

Sermon

Curtis Lewis

... there, waiting outside the gates when they opened." "Whatcha got there?" the toothless man in charge of the landfill asked. "An old life," I said.1 Naaman had a choice to stay a leper or to become whole. He chose to become a whole person. In so doing he dropped his old life. Naaman's choice is ours. It is the choice of being obedient or disobedient. That is always the choice, isn't it? The choice is that of humbling ourselves before God so that God can touch us. This choice might mean washing ourselves in a ...

1358. Excited!

Acts 2:1-13

Sermon

King Duncan

... an impact on our world, we need to have contact with people who are in the world. Rev. Daniel Meyer tells about a boy named Mark who was walking home from school one winter day, when he saw that a kid ahead of him had tripped in the snow and dropped all of his books, two sweaters, a soccer ball, and a small tape recorder. Mark knelt down, helped the kid pick up his articles, and--since they were going the same way--offered to help him carry his burden. Mark discovered that the boy's name was Bill. He loved ...

1359. Why I Believe In Tithing

Malachi 3:6-18

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... tithing because the Bible teaches eat. Orin Johnson shared with me the other day a funny story which illustrates how ignorant we are concerning the Scripture. The new Baptist preacher in a rural congregation, note I said Baptist, forgive me Baptist friends, dropped in on a Sunday school class and began quizzing the students. “Who knocked down the wall of Jericho,” he asked one boy. “It sure weren’t me, Reverend,” the boy replied. Turning to the embarrassed teacher, the pastor snapped, “I suppose ...

1360. Such A Babe In Such A Place

Luke 2:1-7

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... that as a man, Jesus was not afraid to share his struggles. He was vulnerable, and He was not afraid to let that vulnerability be seen. How else would His disciples have known about His personal faith struggle in the garden of Gethsemane, when he sweated drops of blood, if He had not told them about it? After all, they were asleep when it happened. Jesus shared His struggles and His anguish, His vulnerability throughout his life. Let me tell you something I’ve learned as a preacher, and it’s been a ...

1361. Even Marriages Made In Heaven Require Earthly Care

Mark 10:1-12

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... first eight years of our marriage, I was committed to the institution of marriage. I’m sorry to say that my commitment to the institution overshadowed my commitment to Jeri as a person. My fear during those early years of our marriage was that we might drop a clue that ours wasn’t a flawless marriage, and what would people think of their preacher? That placed added strain on the relationship. First, we had to try to make our marriage flawless. Then that failing, we had to pretend that it was flawless ...

1362. The Family: A Place For Persons

2 Timothy 1:1-2:13

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... the day I realized that the first family was not in the White House but in Bethlehem.” Isn’t that beautiful? I became an optimist the day I realized that the first family was not in the White House but in Bethlehem. Then she added, “when I falter, I drop to my knees and pray – dear heavenly father, (this is a tongue in cheek sort of thing) I thank you for all my blessings. For my wonderful husband who has the thermostat set at 68 and is saving my energy for my trip to the Harvard Medical School. For ...

1363. The Power Of Purpose

2 Timothy 3:10--4:8

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... toil at their present job another single day if only they could be relieved of the burdens and responsibilities of supporting their family; or if they could find another more meaningful way to do it. For some, going to work is a bitter task; leaving work is like dropping a heavy load off their shoulders. I have great sympathy for such people. I’m sorry that I can’t identify with them more than I can, because I don’t know anyone who finds more meaning in what they’re doing than I. There’s another ...

1364. The Eternal Question

Matthew 27:11-26

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... young people today, tired of the discipline required in living together as a family – tired of doing like other people wanted him to do them. Tired of being told to come and when to go, decided that he wanted to cut loose and do his own thing. He decided to drop out, so he did. His father, a responsible parent no doubt, allowed him to do so. Though the scripture doesn’t say, I have an idea, I have an idea that the lamp burned late in that home for many nights, as the father and son talked of the son ...

1365. He Is Not Here He Is Risen

Mark 16:1-20

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... and fall; they had watched as Simon of Cyrene was compelled to carry the cross for Him. On Friday, they heard the ring of the hammer against the nails as the spikes were driven through his wrists and feet. On Friday, they saw the cross lifted up and dropped into the ground. On Friday, they watched as Jesus struggled for every breath of air. On Friday they heard his final words from the cross, until at last He said, “Father, into thy hands I commit my Spirit.” (Luke 23:46). On Friday they watched as his ...

1366. Living Deliberately

John 10:1-21

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... but not really hearing. This is where many of us are. We’re like the American tourist in Paris who rushed into the Louve and shouted, “Quick, where’s the Mona Lisa, I’m double parked outside.” We flip through the pages of the Bible, we drop in on Church now and then, we offer a quickie prayer as we fall asleep at night, and feel that we have performed our religious duties. We become so conditioned and calloused by science and technology, we have so given ourselves an affirmation to the reign of ...

1367. Put To Death The Old; Put On The New

Colossians 3:1-17

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... passing years and caused something good to die inside her. Then one Sunday certain words of scripture became a summons with her name and address on it. That afternoon she sat down and wrote her sister a letter of love and reconciliation. She said, "When I dropped that letter in the mailbox, it was like a thousand Easter alleluia's! ringing inside of me. The world was beautiful again, and I felt alive for the first time in years." God was giving her the precious gift of forgiveness and she shared it. That ...

1368. A Christian Style Of Being And Doing

Colossians 3:18-4:1

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... to what's going on. But when Mother Teresa and her nuns came out on the floor of that coliseum, a holy hush descended upon that crowd. I think you could hear the nuns walking on the floor -- had they not been walking, you may could have heard a pin drop. It was a kind of eerie hush that spoke of reverence and awe. This tiny, stoop-backed, wrinkled, dried-up little woman, evoked that holy hush from that mass of people. I know that response is to what people know about her and her mystery -- but I can't help ...

1369. The Gift Of Sleep

Psalm 127:1-5

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... achieve, but something we receive from him. "God made provision for our letting go of life some of the time every day. This is highly symbolic. Every day we come to a point, marked by mounting drowsiness, where we must cut out, relinquish command, drop everything, release control, become totally disengaged, deny the world our brain and brawn, and entrust the management of history to our brethren who have already had their sleep and to God our keeper who slumbers not nor sleeps." (This long quote is from Dr ...

1370. Cheers (communion)

John 16:17-33

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... rocking chair reading. He found this man so intimidating that he really didn't want to go in, but breathing a prayer for extra strength and apostolic wisdom, he knocked on the door. Ingersoll opened the door, and said, "Pastor Thomas, I'm glad you dropped by. I've had some questions for you for a couple of weeks. Sit down." "They visited and Herman Thomas fielded the questions as honestly, faithfully, and clearly as he could. After about an hour and a half of radical openness, Ingersoll said to Rev. Thomas ...

1371. I Am Christ's

2 Corinthians 5:17

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... was the day when the doctors made the transplant. Jerry was in a room down the hall from Randy -- coming out from the anesthesia, as her marrow was being fed into Randy's system. I was back and forth between the room during that six-hour process. When the last drop of the liter of marrow had gone into his system, the nurse took the i.v. bag down and said, "That's it, Randy, this is your new birthday. You've been given a new life." Wow! I can only imagine the joy of Randy and Jerry -- and the special ...

1372. Walk In Newness Of Life

Romans 6:1-14

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... . But, along the way, Mark grew homesick and left them without even a proper farewell. When Paul and Barnabas were ready to start another missionary journey, Barnabas suggested that they give Mark another chance, and Paul said no. At this point, Barnabas could easily have dropped the matter. He could then have gone to Mark and explained to him kindly that he believed in him, that he had tried to get him another chance, and that he was sorry the whole thing hadn't worked out. Not Barnabas. He possessed the ...

1373. God Shaves With A Borrowed Razor

Isaiah 7:1-25

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... him. "Remember me?" the man said to Turski, "You once saved my life in Vienna." And Turski was surprised to discover that it was the man who was almost caught by the Gestapo! "How did you find me?" Turski asked. The man said, "It's a long story. After you dropped me off in the field near the border, I made my way to Warsaw where a friend helped me escape to Scotland. I found that you were in the Royal Air Force." "But how did you even know my name?", Turski asked. "Well," said the man, "I saw it written ...

1374. God Is Like A Mother

Isaiah 66:1-24

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... . It's a picture of the comfort and the care of our mother God. "The Eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms," affirms the Psalmist. Because that is true -- because our mother God carries us on her hips, we know we shall never be dropped. It isn't because we are strong -- it's because we are weak and in need of strengthening that this word of Isaiah is so heartening -- to know that God keeps calling to us, "as one whom his mother comforteth, so I will comfort you." (Johnston, Ibid ...

1375. Don't Mess With Mr. In-between

James 1:1-18

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... 's all he did to earn his fee -- he said "no." "Some people are strong enough to say no for themselves, but they are a minority. If everyone who wanted to say no had the strength to do it, human activity in the United States would probably drop by 90%. The number of weddings would decrease, crime would decline, and Sunday dinner with the whole darn family would be a dying institution. I base this conjecture on the sound supposition that: one, at least one party to most weddings was there because it was just ...

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