Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 1351 to 1375 of 3852 results

2 Kings 5:1-27

Sermon

... and went. He washed seven times in the Jordan and his flesh was restored like that of a little child! This was an amazing cure! Who would have thought a prescription like this would take away leprosy? This was a treatment that called for faith. The faith originated in the little servant girl who innocently assumed the power of God. Because of the girl’s faith, the wife told her husband, and he told the king. Naaman may have had doubts, but he went. His servants seemed to have more faith than their master ...

1352. Let God Be God

John 3:1-21

Sermon

Dean Lueking

... what God's Kingdom means - his active ruling in the lives of those who are his children by faith. The Mystery of the Spirit's Work Then Jesus tells Nicodemus of the mystery of God's Spirit. Like the wind, which no one of us perceives as to its origin and outcome, so the Spirit of God moves and works. The Spirit makes it possible for that which is born as flesh to be born anew as spiritually alive. The Spirit of God is God's presence, creating interest and awareness of the spiritual base for life. The Spirit ...

1353. Parable of the Flame and the Spirit

1 Corinthians 15:35-58

Illustration

... as God itself, does reveal something of what God in His marvelous power continues to do in so many ways. The refiner's fire or the purger's fire, which Jesus mentioned, was to cleanse the soul and remove the dross. While the fire burns, the original fuel disintegrates and the material takes on new form, though perhaps unseen. Physicists tell us that no energy, nothing is ever lost. It merely changes from solid to liquid or gas and new growth and development is the reverse process. So, too, we may also see ...

1354. The Miracle Of an Opened Mind

Luke 24:36-49

Sermon

Dean Lueking

... connections within it, imparting via chemical and electrical transmission all our thought, all our feelings, all our motives, all our drives, all our sensations. Think of it: nothing is ever said or done in all the world on any given day but that it does not first originate in a brain. What a miracle the mind is! Open to Christ Through the Scriptures But more than that - what a miracle takes place when a mind is opened to the scriptures. And even more than that - what a supreme work of God it is when the ...

1355. Parable of the Garden Hose

Matthew 7:1-2

Illustration

Staff

... pound bag or get an extra bag of strawberries out of a crate by repacking them. The steel industry and others also have their ways. The automotive business with its extra charge for accessories all scheme to make things look different than the original measurement. Many church goers also report their giving in relationship to income tax by a different standard than that which appears in the reports of church treasurers. We cheat ourselves out of the Kingdom of Heaven by dishonest measurements. It was good ...

1356. ADVENT 1

Jeremiah 33:1-26, Luke 21:5-38, 1 Thessalonians 3:6-13

Sermon Aid

COMMENTARY Old Testament: Jeremiah 33:14-16 The days are coming when Yahweh will fulfill his promise to send a son of David who will save his people. This prophecy by a post-exilic author is a repetition of Jeremiah's original promise in 23:5-6. Jeremiah predicted that the Davidic kingdom would be restored soon after the fall of Jerusalem in 586 B.C. when Judah was carried captive to Babylon. During the exile the people lost hope of the restoration of their nation. The unknown author repeated Jeremiah's ...

1357. Corpus Christi

Lk 9:11-17 · 1 Cor 11:23-26 · Gen 14:18-20

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... the letter. Had he not been so provoked, we might not have received this classic text: Paul's telling of the tradition by which the report and practice of Eucharist was handed on from one believer and believing community to another. The original disciples shared with Paul what he here shared with the Corinthians: something happened in an upper room at Passover one year in Jerusalem - that New Passover has now become normative for Christians. PREACHING POSSIBILITIES A Corpus Christi Homily (All Three Lessons ...

1358. Proper 15

Lk 12:49-56 · Jer 20:7-13; 23:23-29; 38:4-10

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... . A Christian takes off the clothing of sin. C. Run with perseverance - "Let us run with perseverance." Keep the faith no matter how weary you get or how fierce the competition. D. Look to the goal - "Looking to Jesus." Jesus is the "pioneer," the originator of our faith. Jesus is the "perfecter," the fulfillment of our faith. 2. Having Someone to Look To. 12:2. Need: We all look to someone for something, because we are not all-sufficient. Children look to parents for examples. Students look to teachers ...

1359. Reformation Sunday

Jn 8:31-36 · Rom 3:19-28 · Jer 31:31-34

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... the truth. B. What truth does - "the truth will make you free" - v. 32 2. Made free - Not Born Free. 8:34-36. Need: A popular song claims we are "born free." This is a widespread opinion. The truth is we are born slaves to sin, born in original sin. We are in bondage to the power of the Devil. This bondage was broken by the cross. Christians are now slaves of Christ, but in Christ slaves are free, The Reformation was the event that called for religious freedom - freedom of conscience, freedom from the false ...

1360. Epiphany 3

Lk 4:14-21 · 1 Cor 12:12-30 · Neh 8:1-10 · Isa 61:1-6

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... Church; Church of Christ, Scientist; Church of Latter Day Saints? Moreover, is the church a certain liturgy or policy or hierarchy or program? This confusion can be cleared up by the text. Outline: The truth about the church - A. Her identity - "the body of Christ" - v. 27 B. Her origin - the Spirit - v. 13 C. Her variety 1. Variety of members - v. 14 2. Variety of leaders - v. 28 3. Variety of gifts - v. 30 2. Marks of Christ's Church. 12:12-26. Need: Would you be able to tell a church if you saw one? What ...

1361. Lent 2

Lk 9:18-36; 13:31-35 · Php 3:17--4:1 · Jer 26:8-15 · Gen 15:1-12, 17-18

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... focus in this pericope is the making of a covenant. It is a religious term which in the secular world is a contract or an agreement. Yet, a covenant is more than that. It is not an arrangement between two equal parties, and it does not originate as a cooperative project. A covenant is a relationship based upon promises to each party of the covenant. Another word for covenant is "sacrament." The sacrament of baptism, for example, is a covenant between God and the believer. Lesson 2: Philippians 3:17--4:1 1 ...

1362. Fourth Sunday in Advent

Matthew 1:18-25

Bulletin Aid

... reality. People: God revealed to Joseph in a dream that Mary's son was to be that Messiah. Pastor: Jesus' birth is divine, because God intervened in history to send his Son. People: God continues to give himself through his Son; that all who recognize his divine origin may find him to be their Emmanuel. Collect Almighty God, whose order in creation makes every birth a miracle; but who ordered Jesus' birth to be uniquely divine: Become real in our lives as we put our faith in Jesus your Son; that we may know ...

1363. The Gospel is God's Message, Not Man's

1 Thessalonians 2:1-16

Bulletin Aid

... 's word, carried by human messengers. Collect Eternal God, whose word is spoken to each generation with the lips of persons called to speak on your behalf: Give us hearts receptive to the gospel; that we may know we have heard your word, and not that of human origin. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Prayer of Confession We need your word, O God, but much of what we hear, we give little thought to, because it comes with human voice. Forgive us when you have used your servants to speak to us, and we have turned ...

1364. Never Forgotten

Isaiah 49:8-26

Sermon

... Protestant influence passed on to her children and her grandchildren, especially to her grandson Henry, the first Bourbon king of France. Henry had been raised a Protestant. Though he gave up his Protestantism to become king of France, he did not forget his origins or the strong influence of his grandmother. He issued the Edict of Nantes, assuring freedom of worship to Protestants in more than 3,000 castles in the realm, as well as full civil rights and admission to all schools, universities, and hospitals ...

1365. Pilgrimage of Faith John M. Cobb

Exodus 3:1-22

Sermon

... of [the town of] Schluchter in Wuerttemberg"3 (i.e., in Southwest Germany) to emigrate to the Caucasus region of Central Russia. From studies in the Book of Daniel and the Revelation, they were convinced that somewhere there in the east, " ‘near the original cradle of the human race’ ... the Savior would [return and] commence his personal reign."4 It was the era of the Napoleonic wars in Germany - a time economically and personally stressful if not disastrous; and thus many were open to the idea of ...

1366. Forgiveness Forever

Matthew 18:21-35

Sermon

... myself thinking is, that even if you forgive him, there will be days when your anger over what happened will sneak back into your life and make you miserable again. You'll think, "But I have forgiven him! Why can't I forget?" Those repercussions from the original hurt are frustrating, but a very human experience. I once read a book by a Lewis Smedes, Forgive and Forget. I remember he wrote that forgiving is a process. We actually may have to do it many times for the same hurt before we are able to forget ...

1367. Victory and Protest

John 6:25-59

Sermon

Richard L. Thulin

... Christ who now lives beyond rejection, we can demand that rejection cease. The celebration of Corpus Christi is not a part of my liturgical tradition. I have experienced it only through reading. I am most intrigued, I suppose, with the Corpus Christi procession, which originated in the last part of the thirteenth century, and in which the eucharistic host is carried through the places where people live and work. Karl Rahner may not have the last word on such processions, but I like what he says. It is a ...

1368. Weightlifting

Matthew 11:25-30

Sermon

... refreshing waterfall. "Come to me ... and you will find rest for your soul." I don't even want to think about it. I just want the beauty and power of the words to penetrate and soothe. Leslie Weatherhead once made a fanciful guess as to the experiential origin of Jesus' words. He pictures Jesus working in the carpenter shop long after his father Joseph is dead. One day, right at closing time, after the shavings have been swept and the door is ready to be locked, a farmer appears. He is leading an ox whose ...

1369. Mi Casa, Su Casa

Matthew 21:33-46

Sermon

Mark Radecke

... ’ younger daughter begged - no, she positively importuned - her parents for a pastel colored bedroom. They relented, and asked permission of their landlord, offering to buy the paint, provide the labor and, before they moved, return the room to its original hue. The landlord, wearied by the unkept promises of former tenants and therefore wary of this proposal, refused. And so the color of the room remains symbolic of their relationship: off-white, colorless, cautious, dull. Landlords and tenants engage ...

1370. The Shepherd King

Revelation 7:9-17

Sermon

... it completely, they discovered that they could not put it back together again. The bridge was put back together successfully, but they had to use nails and bolts to achieve this result. The mystery of how the building of the bridge was originally accomplished, like that of the resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ, remains to this day, and will probably always be, a mystery. In both cases, the best people can do is affirm and accept by faith the mysteries they represent. Our chancel painting ...

1371. Compassion

Luke 10:25-37

Sermon

Harold Warlick

... go and have compassion. It is a charge that causes us to shiver. Deep down, I think most of us know that in spite of our achievements in technology and medicine, our society is no better off morally and spiritually than those people who heard the original version of this story so long ago. We still haven't found a way to educate people in compassion. We grant more degrees than the world has ever seen before. We also have more casual but painful divorces, more child abuse, more wife and husband abuse, more ...

1372. The Sermon in the Supper

1 Corinthians 11:17-34

Sermon

Edward Chinn

... sufferings of Christ which had happened in the past. On the contrary, the sign of the cross was placed on that particular wall to mark the East from which Christ was expected to come again in power and great glory. Christians in later times would forget the original reason why the cross was placed on the east wall. They did not know that it was an emblem of the future from which "the bright Star of Dawn" (Revelation 22:16, NEB) would appear. Because they had lost this sense of the forward look, they made ...

1373. The Gathering, The Scattering

Hebrews 10:19-39

Sermon

Various Authors

... room in here. It’s cozy as it is. Don’t spoil it!" Now the party host climbs up to pool-side. To the gate he goes. He whispers in the ear of the gatekeeper. In ten seconds the pool is wide open. Everybody may come in. Among the original guests, there’s confusion. Some leave in a huff. Some scowl, but stay. Some welcome strangers to their midst. Before an hour is past, a grand time is enjoyed by all. For weary bodies, hearts and souls, the Lord Christ opens his refreshing swimming pool, his holy meal ...

1374. The Message of Christmas

Luke 2:1-7

Sermon

... time of the year, makes us want to put into practice the principle by which Jesus lived and for which he died. It is a principle which is universal and proven true. Anyone can live by it. Anyone regardless of his or her skin pigmentation, speech, or national origin can live by this principle of love, if he or she so chooses. This principle of love, as lived out in the life of Jesus, can be as easily understood by a PhD from Vanderbilt as a poor and illiterate person from the slums of North Nashville. This ...

1375. Moving Mountains

Luke 17:1-10

Illustration

... pay you for the dirt we remove and pave all the exposed area free of charge if we can have it right away. We can't do anything else until we get the dirt in and allow it to settle properly." The little church was dedicated the next Sunday as originally planned and there were far more members with "mountain moving faith" on opening Sunday than there had been the previous week!

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