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 1351 to 1375 of 1913 results

1351. The Bethlehem Birth

Drama

I bit my lip to keep from crying out in pain. I was on another road now, traveling with Joseph to Bethlehem. It’s 80 miles from Nazareth to Bethlehem, and as I rode on the back of a small donkey I felt each hoofbeat on that long journey! The journey had been difficult in many ways since the night I was accosted by the light. My parents eventually seemed pleased that God had found favor with me. But, when I told Joseph what had happened he remained silent. He clenched his teeth to keep from accusing me of ...

1352. Len 5

Ezekiel 37:1-14, Psalm 116:1-19

Bulletin Aid

Theme: The life-breathing God Exegetical Note This passage from the early exilic period records the well-known (through song) "dry bones" vision and its interpretation. The vision itself, with its reference to body and breath, seems to key on the creation story in Genesis 2. If the interpretation (vv. 11ff.) is any indication, the death here is a figurative reference to the sorry plight of Israel, so that the vision speaks not to resurrection in the specific sense, but to God's power to breathe life into ...

1353. Easter 5

Acts 7:54--8:1a

Bulletin Aid

Theme: The active, ascended Christ Exegetical note Stephen's vision of the ascended Christ in heaven prior to his own martyrdom is curious for two reasons: 1) his use of the phrase "Son of Man," otherwise used in the New Testament almost exclusively only by Jesus (but cf. Rev. 1:13, also in a vision!) and with eschatological if not apocalyptic overtones; and (2) his image of the Christ standing rather than sitting at God s right hand. What both of these suggest is a Christ not resting on his laurels but ...

1354. Proper 18

Exodus 19:1-25

Bulletin Aid

Theme: The awesome presence of God Exegetical Note Every aspect of this narrative points to the awesomeness of the presence of God. The people's distant encounter with the Almighty is startling enough, affecting almost every sense; yet, they were kept at the foot of the mountain, protected from the direct experience of God that ostensibly they would not have been able to bear. Only Moses and Aaron are given the privilege of hearing God directly and (subsequently) mediating God's word and will. Call to ...

1355. Proper 29

1 Corinthians 15:12-34

Bulletin Aid

Theme: God's ultimate intimacy Exegetical note The "kingship" that Paul projects here for the Christ (vv. 24ff.) is for a limited time (see "until" in v. 25), during which a war is to be waged with evil. Thereafter, the Christ ("Son" here) will be subjected to God, so that God may become "all in all." This final image, like all eschatological (and especially apocalyptic) thought, is open to a wide variety of interpretation, but at least signals a heretofore unknown intimacy between the Creator and Creation ...

1356. Let Yes Be Yes!

Matthew 15:21-28

Sermon

A popular folk song among Christian youth in the 60s went like this: And God said Yes! Yes! Yes! Said Yes to the world once more! Said Yes with a cosmic roar! Said, Open that Other Door! Said Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! In one word, that’s God’s message for this planet. It’s the gospel. It’s the hope we need, the doorway to the future. Each of us has asked ourselves and one another and the silent stars at night: "Must there not be a better world than this? Must our lives not have been meant to be put right, ...

1357. Which Way?

Matthew 16:21-28

Sermon

There is something contradictory and unexpected - inexplicable, in fact - about the way that leads to life. Given the two choices Jesus offers in this text, we on our own would not, not in a million years, make the right choice. Given the options of redemptive suffering on the one hand and, on the other, strongarming the enemy for Jesus’ sake, we’d choose the latter every time. Simon Peter chose plan B even after Jesus gave him all the clues he needed to reject it. It should not surprise us that humanity, ...

1358. Do You Have the Great Pearl?

Matthew 13:47-52, Matthew 13:44-46

Sermon

Dennis Kastens

Jesus said: "The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it. "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net which was thrown into the sea and gathered fish of every kind; when it was full, men drew it ashore and sat down and sorted the ...

1359. We Are Driven!

Jeremiah 20:7-18

Sermon

John R. Brokhoff

O Lord, thou hast deceived me, and I was deceived; thou art stronger than I, and thou hast prevailed. I have become a laughingstock all the day; every one mocks me. For whenever I speak, I cry out, I shout, "Violence and destruction!" For the word of the Lord has become for me a reproach and derision all day long. If I say, "I will not mention him, or speak any more in his name," there is in my heart as it were a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I am weary with holding it in, and I cannot. For I hear ...

1360. Two Bodies for Two Worlds

Isaiah 26:1-21

Sermon

John R. Brokhoff

Thy dead shall live, their bodies shall rise, O dwellers of the dust, awake and sing for joy! But some one will ask, "How are the dead raised? With what kind of body do they come?" (1 Corinthians 15:35) "Body Shop," "Body Control," "Body Power," "Body Wisdom," "Body Glow" - so say the newspaper ads urging us to do something about our bodies. Today we are a body-conscious people. We believe in body building through exercise. In America, there are 10,000,000 joggers, 15,000,000 serious swimmers, 25,000,000 ...

1361. A Book Which Reads Us

John 4:1-26

Sermon

Robert Bachelder

Hans-Ruedi Weber relates a story which is often told in East Africa. A simple woman always walked around with her bulky Bible. She never was parted from it. So the villagers began to tease her: "Why always the Bible?" they asked. "There are so many other books you could read." Yet the woman kept on living with her Bible, neither disturbed nor angered by all the teasing. But finally one day, she knelt down in the midst of those who laughed at her. She held up the Bible, high above her head, and said with a ...

1362. "Two Men in White Suits"

Matthew 25:31-46

Sermon

Peter Rudowski

This morning’s Gospel lesson is a very difficult one for me. The lesson is a story or a saying concerning the coming of the end - the judgment. Jesus is laying out before his disciples what will happen when he comes for the second time. He tells us the questions that are going to be asked of each of us: "Did you feed the hungry, clothe the naked, did you visit the sick, did you make the stranger welcome?" Basically what he is asking us is, how did we relate with each other? How did we relate with our ...

1363. A Week of Prayer for Christian Unity

Acts 9:1-19a

Sermon

George Bass

This week, falling as it does between two minor festivals - the Confession of St. Peter and the Conversion of St. Paul - might best be observed by a pilgrimage to one of the ancient "station" churches common to the liturgical heritage of Rome, the Church of St. Sebastian. It is located south of Rome on the Appian Way, not too far from where the Apostle Paul was supposed to have been beheaded, and it is situated over an ancient catacomb which bears Sebastian’s name. Tradition has it that both Peter and Paul ...

1364. Faith A New Potential for Life

Romans 4:1-25

Sermon

Robert G. Tuttle

"(Abraham) staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith ... and therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness" (Romans 4:20, 22). Faith was the only thing that made Abraham different from the other inhabitants of Ur of the Chaldees. They continued in their blindness and unreality. Abraham left home because he was sure there was a real God somewhere, not one of wood and stone. Believing, Abraham left all, determined to find this God who was real. You and I, also, stand ...

1365. Shepherding One Another in a Collapsing World

Romans 9:1-29

Sermon

Robert G. Tuttle

In the Scripture for this Sunday, Paul reveals an almost violent concern for his people. He is thinking about the Jews who have rejected Christ and the ultimate step in their history of being the people of God. Note Paul’s concern: "I have great heaviness and continual sorrow in my heart. For I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh." Paul was not mad at his people. He was heartbroken. He must have felt like Jesus felt when he cried out over ...

1366. Discerning the Way of God

1 Corinthians 2:6-16

Sermon

Hubert Beck

How do we know what God wants us to do? It must be assumed that anybody claiming in any way to be godly must ask oneself that question regularly. One need not be Christian to ask the question, for it is a larger question than what kind of activity can be called Christian. It has to do with what is right and what is wrong, what is good and what is evil, and many people outside Christendom are concerned about the same kinds of questions. It is a bigger question than the everyday kinds of questions about ...

1367. "I Don’t Want to Be Perfect - Or Do I?"

Matthew 13:1-23

Sermon

Robert G. Tuttle

"I don’t want to be perfect" - but I do want to be better than am. I do want to be as good as I can be. I will never be mathematically perfect, everything just right, fixed. But as long as I live, I am going to be yearning after something that I have not yet achieved, and I am going to be responding to a pull that ever tugs me to a higher level of life. I don’t want to be a semi-Christian. I don’t want to be a "born again" Christian whose "conversion turns him around ninety degrees instead of one hundred ...

1368. What Is Your Holy Week Address?

Matthew 27:45-56

Sermon

Robert Noblett

One of the earliest accomplishments of a child that brings plaudits from Mom and Dad is the ability to recite one’s address and telephone number. Should the child become lost, there is at least a small measure of comfort in the prospect that the child just might spew forth what has been committed to memory. This address is a geographical one. Later on, another address becomes evident, an address that reveals the location of one’s presence spiritually. Often we assign people such spiritual locations and do ...

1369. Phoebe

Joel 2:28-32

Sermon

Warren Thomas Smith

"Sir, a woman’s preaching is like a dog’s walking on his hind legs," scoffed Samuel Johnson. "It is not done well; but you are surprised to find it done at all."1 Had the celebrated man of letters known Phoebe, he would never have made that unfortunate statement; he also would have escaped the wrath of thousands of effective, dedicated preachers. Who is Phoebe? Only a single sentence in the New Testament reveals any information. Her appearance on life’s stage is all too brief, but appear she does - a woman ...

1370. Nicodemus

John 3:1-21

Sermon

The Chevy Nova was a relatively successful American car for many years. Encouraged by U.S. sales, Chevrolet began to market the American Nova throughout the world. Un-fortunately, the Nova did not sell well in Mexico and other Latin American countries. Additional ads were ordered, marketing efforts were stepped up, but sales remained stagnant. Sales directors were baffled. The car had sold well in the American market; why wasn’t it selling now? When they discovered the answer, it was rather embarrassing: ...

1371. A Matter of Life and Breath

John 20:19-23

Sermon

John R. Brokhoff

Pentecost I On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, "Peace be with you." When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you." And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. If ...

1372. The Deeper Meanings of The Christian Faith by Dr. Bryant M. Kirkland

Romans 8:18-27

Sermon

Leonard Mann

I would like to talk with you about the meaning of Christianity. I took seriously the assignment that was given to me. I studied about Paul’s sermon at Mars Hill where he stood up in the great place of debate and spoke so eloquently that the people said, "Tell us what is the meaning of this Jesus and the resurrection that you proclaim." I have tried to work out this message mindful of what I imagine are your thoughts, my own thoughts, and the troubled thoughts that are characteristic in this modern period ...

1373. God Is No Gentleman

Luke 1:67-80

Sermon

Allan J. Weenink

There is a lovely and true story of Edward of Windsor, when, as Prince of Wales, he went to India. He was the son of the Supreme power, the King of England, and to the outcaste people, almost divine. As he drew near the Delhi Gate on one of his journeys, 25,000 outcastes awaited his coming. They only expected to see a car flash past, and with luck, to catch a glimpse of him. But Edward, Prince of Wales, stopped the car, stepped out, and heard a spokesman for the sixty million outcastes beg that they might ...

1374. Only the Wounded Can Serve

Hebrews 4:14-5:10

Sermon

Allan J. Weenink

When war casualty figures are announced, the list usually includes both the dead and wounded. For all practical purposes an injury is almost as useful as a fatality. The cold logic of such devilish grim business classes both in the same category ... loss of retaliatory potential. There is no place in this horror called war for the wounded. They have nothing more to offer to the immediate needs. They have been reduced from possibility to impotency. Thus, those who use statistics as part of strategy take ...

1375. God Made Me Do It!

Genesis 45:1-28

Sermon

Barbara Brokhoff

"God sent me," "God made me" - strange words for most people to say! We say instead, "The devil made me do it!" It is almost remarkable then, that in a few short verses in the text, Joseph says four times: "God sent me," "God made me." Joseph feels that all of his life is under the guiding hand of God. Since God is his master, Joseph feels that no matter what happens - of good or bad - sadness or joy - God is in it and nothing can touch him but that God will ultimately work it out for the best. Things did ...

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