Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 1351 to 1375 of 1409 results

1351. The Main Business of the Church

Acts 1:1-11

Sermon

King Duncan

Alice Lee Humphreys in her book Angels in Pinafores tells about her experiences as a first grade teacher. She tells about one little girl who came to school one winter day wearing a beautiful white angora beret with white mittens and a matching muff. As she was coming through the door, a mischievous little boy grabbed the white muff and threw it in the mud. After disciplining the little boy, the teacher sought to comfort the little girl. Brushing the mud off of her soiled muff, the little girl looked up at ...

1352. Proclaiming Death

1 Corinthians 11:26

Sermon

Will Willimon

Do you remember when the Lord's Supper used to be sad? An old Presbyterian Service made clear that Holy Communion was an occasion for penitence, a time to talk about sin: "It is my duty to warn the scandalous and the lewd, and all those indulging in any known sin, that if they come unworthily to the Lord's Table; they do eat and drink damnation to their eternal souls." Aren't you glad that, in recent years, we have recovered the ancient emphasis upon the joy of eating and drinking with Jesus. We are joyful ...

1353. How Does Your Garden Grow?

John 15:1-8

Sermon

Timothy W. Ayers

Our scripture reading from the gospel of John tells of Jesus teaching his disciples about remaining connected to him in order to grow strong in their Christian lives. He used an illustration that people of his day would have understood easily. Grapevines were readily handy and they were most likely grown by most homes as a source of food and drink. The disciples, who were once boys, would have tended to the family’s vines and would know experientially the right ways to trim, groom, prune, and train a vine ...

1354. Will the “Real” Jesus Please Stand Up

Mark 3:20-35

Sermon

Lori Wagner

Who is the “real” Jesus? How hard is it for us to see Jesus as a real person who felt sadness, happiness, grief, joy, who experienced laughter, who joked with his disciplines, who got angry, who could wrestle with his own pain? And yet, if we don’t recognize this Jesus, we lose the gift that God gave to us in the reality of the fully human (not just divine) Son. Watching the way Jesus handles his own struggles, reveals his own humanness, can help us to recognize and accept our own. Today, nearly every ...

1355. Like a Phoenix

Mark 6:1-13

Sermon

Dean Feldmeyer

Almost every culture has, in its foundational mythology, a Phoenix or firebird. The one with which we westerners are most familiar is the Greek Phoenix which, like all such mythological creatures, is said to die in a burst of sparks and fire only to be born anew from its own ashes. Because this mythological creature lives in a constant cycle of birth, death, and rebirth, the Phoenix is, in most cultures, a symbol of renewal. While early Christians rejected any literal interpretation of the Phoenix myth, ...

1356. The Organic Gospel

Mark 4:26-34

Sermon

Lori Wagner

An old story tells of two men climbing a mountain. The one promises the other, who is feeling down and depressed, that it will be worth the effort. Looking forward to the amazing destination, the latter climbs with his friend as they talk and spend time together. When they reach the top, the second man looks around wondering what all the fuss was about. The view is great, but nothing spectacular is waiting at the pinnacle. His friend then explains to him that the journey was not about the destination, but ...

1357. Ordinary People

Ruth 1:1-16

Sermon

Will Willimon

It's Parents' Weekend here and, through some act of divine serendipity, the lectionary has assigned as our first reading a passage from the book of Ruth. The book of Ruth is a family story, an ancient novella which may be three thousand years old. It's an old story, but I'm claiming that it's a true story because it's a story about a family in trouble. Here is a middle-class family that's hit on hard times and has to move, a father who dies leaving his wife and sons poorly provided for, two sons who marry ...

1358. Metaphors Be with You

John 6:35, 41-51

Sermon

Dean Feldmeyer

His name was John Davis, he was my neighbor, and he was a peculiar person. Don’t get me wrong. I liked him but even his wife said John was an “acquired taste.” I sometimes think that, had he been born thirty or forty years later, he would have been correctly diagnosed as having Asperger’s Syndrome or some other condition associated with the higher functioning end of the Autism spectrum. He was a gifted man, to be sure, a tool designer and metallurgist who worked for a big corporation, very smart and very ...

1359. Abiding by the Word

John 6:51-58

Sermon

Lori Wagner

Language is a fascinating medium. Without it, we cannot effectively communicate with each other. Language is our means for connection with the world, with each other, and also with God. For Christians and many other religions, sacred writings, for us the scriptures, not only give us a history of our faith and the people who came before us, but they also give us a window into what we believe about God, a measuring stick for truth, and a basis for how we wish to live. That said, language is an imperfect ...

1360. Call It Like You See It

Mark 7:24-37

Sermon

Frank Ramirez

In Tobit, one of the books of the Apocrypha, the hero Tobias sets out on a journey to call in a loan owed to his father, who has gone blind. He will return with a bride and a cure for his father’s blindness. But he sets out on the journey with a young man — who he does not recognize as an angel — and a faithful dog. Well, sort of. There are several versions of this apocryphal book. In the version that was current among Greek-speaking Jews, there is a dog. In the versions that circulated among Jews closer ...

1361. Why Did Jesus Come?

Luke 2:21-52

Sermon

Derl G. Keefer

My parents did not attend church when I was a child. A godly aunt and uncle asked my parents if I could attend church with them in 1951 when I was four. Fast forward to Christmas 2018 and I could probably count on one hand the number of times I have missed church. I entered pastoral ministry in 1970 while in seminary and have preached dozens of Christmas sermons. Each time I preach an Advent message I have to ask myself the same question, “Why did Jesus come to earth?” The ending story of our text tells of ...

1362. Briny Faith

Mark 9:38-50

Sermon

Lori Wagner

When the heart malfunctions it sometimes needs a regulator. It’s called a “pacemaker,” a cardiac pacing device that keeps the rhythm of the heart steady and sure. For those who have heart failure or heartbeat issues, the pacemaker resynchronizes the heart and makes the heartbeat more efficiently. The heart’s electrical system controls the heartbeat. But aging, muscle damage from a heart attack, or some kinds of genetic conditions can cause the heart to beat abnormally. It can get sludgy, therefore not ...

1363. For the Love Of God is Forgiving

Luke 7:36-50

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

The headlines, news reports and newspaper stories all make it very clear that there is something out of kilter in our world. Whether you agree with its content or not, the crime bill is the biggest of its kind. It's because dealing with crime is on everyone's mind. Who'll be the next victim of a drive by shooting or a drug problem. Who'll be the next victim of gang violence or a drunk driver. While the Peace Talks are going on in the Middle East between Israel and Jordan and the Palestinians, the fighting ...

1364. They Should Have Fired That Shepherd

Luke 15:1-3 (8-32)

Sermon

Schuyler Rhodes

Not too long ago I had the privilege of being invited to preach at a conference in a different part of the country. I had a great conversation with the organizer of the conference, bought my plane ticket, and headed to my destination. After landing safely, I retrieved my luggage and went to meet my host. I had seen her photo before, and she gave me a description of her and what she would be wearing. No sweat,right? Then, after a few minutes I saw her. I stuck up my arm and waved, calling her name. Her face ...

1365. Jesus In Ministry — Us In Ministry

Luke 4:14-21

Sermon

Derl G. Keefer

Chuck Swindoll illustrates how ministry concerns all of us in his “Saving Lives” parable (https://www.insight.org of October 2, 2015). On a rugged section of seacoast many decades ago a crude lifesaving station was built. Only a few volunteers manned the station to watch for ships that were in danger of the rocks. On the occasion of a shipwreck the handful of volunteers took their one and only boat out to bring others to shore safely. The number of saved sailors soared as the lifesaving station gained in ...

1366. Unto Us

Luke 1:26-38

Sermon

Will Willimon

John says, ''The Word (the eternal Logos, the Christ) became flesh and dwelt among us." Flesh. Meat. Incarnation, which me.ans ''in the flesh," ''in the body." That's Christmas, ''The Feast of the Incarnation." Our God didn't stay up on Cloud Nine, aloof, unscathed by what troubles us in this world. In the flesh. Sometimes well meaning folk say, ''After all, when you get down to it, all religions are fairly much the same. Right?'' Wrong. When you get down to it, and today, on the Eve of the Feast of the ...

1367. When What You Signed Up For...

Acts 16:9-15

Sermon

King Duncan

I want to ask you a question this morning: how do you respond when God—or life itself—changes your plans? This question is relevant for everyone in the congregation because at some point in your life, God or life, if you will, will suddenly and unexpectedly change your plans for your day, maybe even for your life. There is an old “Peanuts” cartoon strip that I suspect we all can relate to. In the first panel Charlie Brown says, “I learned something in school today, I signed up for folk guitar, computer ...

1368. Moving Heaven and Earth

Acts 16:16-34

Sermon

King Duncan

The story’s told about a Chinese gentleman who was visiting the United States. His hosts took him to play golf. This was a new experience for him. When he returned to China, a friend asked what he had done in the United States. He replied, “I played most interesting game. I hit a little white ball with a long stick in a large cow pasture. “What’s this game called?” asked his friend. The Chinese gentleman thought for a minute and replied, “I think it’s called, ‘Oh, no!’” Some of us may have played the game ...

1369. Acres of Diamonds

1 Timothy 6:10

Sermon

Russell Conwell

I am astonished that so many people should care to hear this story over again. Indeed, this lecture has become a study in psychology; it often breaks all rules of oratory, departs from the precepts of rhetoric, and yet remains the most popular of any lecture I have delivered in the fifty-seven years of my public life. I have sometimes studied for a year upon a lecture and made careful research, and then presented the lecture just once -- never delivered it again. I put too much work on it. But this had no ...

1370. The Gift

Luke 2:1-20

Sermon

Will Willimon

“A few years ago, someone near and dear gave me a Polo shirt for Christmas, and I said thank you, of course, and put it on, and tried to look pleased, but what I was thinking was, 'Burgundy?' In my experience, burgundy shirts are worn by guys who smoke cigarillos, drive Buick LeSabres, sit in the dark corners of cocktail lounges and place large wages on basketball games. I'm more of a wheat type of person. Wheat or antique blue. But did I turn to the giver and say, 'Sorry, I'm an English major and we don't ...

1371. Show Us the Father

John 14:8-17, 25-27

Sermon

Dave Zuchelli

Philip put forth what seemed like a really good request. “Show us the Father.” He added, “That will be enough for us” (John 14:8). Yes, that would be great. If we can just see the Father, we’ll be cool. We’ll have all the inspiration we need to keep plugging away. We’ll be set for life. We’ll be good. This reminds me of the old Steve Martin movie, “The Jerk.” There’s a scene in which Navin (Steve Martin) is breaking up with his wife, Marie (Bernadette Peters). She tells him to leave, so he begins to walk ...

1372. What's a Human Book?

Luke 13:10-17

Sermon

King Duncan

Have you ever wanted to trade lives with someone else for a day or two? I don’t know if you’re familiar with the Freaky Friday series of movies. The first one came out in 1976. Since then, three more versions of the movie have been made. Freaky Friday is about a mother and daughter who wake up one morning to discover they have magically traded lives. For one day, mother and daughter get a rare opportunity to see life through the other’s eyes. In the span of that one day, they each develop a sense of ...

1373. The Steady March Forward

Luke 9:51-62

Sermon

Dave Zuchelli

Some people get distracted by almost anything. As focused as I can often be, I’m also one of those guys who can walk from one room to another and forget why I went in there. I remember once, when I was about twelve years old, my Dad gave me some money to go pick up a loaf of bread. I hopped on my trusty bike with the basket on the handlebars and set out for the convenience store a mile or two down the road. When I got there, I looked around to grab the… Uh oh! I couldn’t remember what my Dad had sent me to ...

1374. Christmas Is Out of Control

Matthew 24:36-44

Sermon

John Jamison

After hearing the scripture reading, the thought going through your head may be, “What the heck does that have to do with Christmas? Isn’t this the first Sunday of Advent? Why are you talking about Noah? And didn’t Jesus say those things during holy week, like on Palm Sunday? Where is the Christmas story?” Let me try to explain. There is a thing called the lectionary; some of you are probably familiar with it. The lectionary is a list of scriptures for each Sunday of the year, and other special days as ...

1375. Much Love. Hope Sent.

Matthew 3:1-12

Sermon

King Duncan

I would like to ask you a question this morning: what brings you hope this Advent season? I pray that you have a reason to hope today. And I pray that you will find this place to be a community of hope that celebrates the presence and the love of God in every season of the year. But this is the Sunday each year when we light the Hope candle on the Advent wreath. And our Bible story for today is usually read as a message of judgement, but I think it is overwhelmingly a message of hope. I read this week an ...

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