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 1401 to 1425 of 1913 results

1401. Joseph

Drama

Charles L. Koester

INTRODUCTION: [This portion is read from the lecturn by the introducer or narrator.] Of all the persons involved and related to the Advent, the coming, of Christ, there is one who is the "forgotten man" of the Nativity. Even the great artists of the world, many of whom have lavished their imagination upon the scene of the Nativity, have been content to make him part of the dark backgrounds of their paintings. Yet, this man was much more than just a piece of fleshly furniture. As his wife, Mary, was chosen ...

1402. HERE O MY LORD, I SEE THEE FACE TO FACE

John 6:1-15

Sermon Aid

John W. Rilling

Jesus then took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated; so also the fish, as much as they wanted. There is a story that comes from Scotland out of the old, sad days when men killed one another because their faith was divided by bitter loyalties which seemed irreconcilable. On pain of death persecuted sects were forbidden to gather on the Lord’s Day to worship except in places that were authorized. But there were resolute souls who said to unjust laws and ...

1403. Confrontation in the Temple

John 2:12-25

Sermon

George Bass

Jesus laid claim to a special relationship with God the Father. He demonstrated an all-consuming love for the Temple (where formal business with God was done in worship and study) when, according to Saint Luke, he was twelve years old. Neither Matthew, Mark, nor John includes that account in their gospels. But Luke evidently considered the incident to be a true story that was important enough to be included in the gospel that bears his name; he was interested, as his Acts of the Apostles affirms, in ...

1404. My Soul Is Glad - Because of God

Luke 1:46-56

Sermon

There is in this sermon a gentleness that belies what it asks us to see, "That life does not change, but the way I experience it does." Moving, as it does, through a revision of the popular picture of Mary, now seen in clearer light than that of positive or negative speculation, but rather in the light of faith and praise of God; through that of an unlikely contemporary, "Who also experienced hunger so that he knew only God could help him," the sermon reminds those who believe, and invites those who do not ...

1405. Where’s the Power?

Mark 1:40-45

Sermon

Daniel G. Mueller

The purveyors of "positive thinking" like to tell us that if we want something badly enough we can get it, no matter what it is. All we need is the desire, the hunger, the commitment, and if we have these three things, we can accomplish whatever we want. If we fail to achieve our goal, it is only because we didn’t want it badly enough. Positive thinking has much to recommend it, but it has its limitations. One such limitation is this: we cannot always have what we want "just because we want it." All the ...

1406. Faith As Healing Energy

Sermon

Robert G. Tuttle

Most doctors would agree with Norman Cousins, who wrote recently in a national magazine, "The belief system is often activator of the healing system."1 Faith actually affects the chemistry of the body. It can be so specific that it has been called "Spiritual energy injection." Faith makes a difference in health. Through faith (trust), energy channels are opened between the Creator and the created and our bodies begin to function as they are designed to. Even when we feel as though we’re cornered, we are ...

1407. Life After Life

Sermon

Robert G. Tuttle

An author writing in Vogue magazine says that he believes America’s loss of values, and her moral and ethical breakdown, arise from the fact that for the first time in history most of the people of America do not believe in life after death. When we lose our faith we lose our focus on a dependable structure of life. If life has no meaning, if it is going nowhere, then we can summarize history and the future, - "So What?" Eat, drink, and be merry - if you can! If life after death is not, I don’t want to ...

1408. Thomas

John 20:24-31

Sermon

Brett Blair

If I were to mention the names of certain disciples to you and ask you to write down the first word that comes into your mind, it is unlikely you would come up with the same words. If I were to mention the name of Judas many of you would write down the word betray but not all of you. If I were to mention Simon Peter, some of you would write down the word faith, but not all of you. If I were to mention the names of James and John, some of you would write down the phrase Sons of Thunder, but not all of you. ...

1409. The Reality Of The Resurrection

Luke 24:36-49

Sermon

Brett Blair

Here we are in the year 2003. It still fills me with a bit of awe that I witnessed the turn of the millennium. We are looking back this year and celebrating some amazing things that happened, things that seemed impossible in their day. There are three major celebrations. Perhaps you are aware of them: We are celebrating a centennial: 100 years ago few people thought it possible that man could fly. No one except the two sons of Rev. Milton Wright who at 10:35 on the morning of Dec. 17, 1903 made their first ...

1410. Nicodemus

John 3:1-21

Sermon

Brett Blair

For years, the opening of "The Wide World of Sports" television program illustrated "the agony of defeat" with a painful ending to an attempted ski jump. The skier appeared in good form as he headed down the jump, but then, for no apparent reason, he tumbled head over heels off the side of the jump, bouncing off the supporting structure down to the snow below. What viewers didn't know was that he chose to fall rather than finish the jump. Why? As he explained later, the jump surface had become too fast, ...

1411. Christmas Every Day

John 1:1-18

Sermon

T. A. Kantonen

In the midst of a crowd of people jostling one another during the Christmas rush at Upper Valley Mall, a man remarked to me, "I’m glad that Christmas comes only once a year. It leaves my pocketbook pretty thin." If all that Christmas means is a seasonal shopping spree, it leaves only a bitter taste in the mouth. To be sure, there is a sweet sentimentality about the candlelight service on Christmas Eve, and Christmas Day itself is joyfully observed in our homes. But then what? Suddenly the long awaited ...

1412. Christ and Time

Galatians 3:26--4:7

Sermon

T. A. Kantonen

At the beginning of a new year we are confronted with the mystery of time. The familiar old year has passed away, and an unknown segment of the future, which we call the new year, has taken its place. "Time, like an ever-rolling stream, bears all its sons away." Where did this stream originate and where does it finally end? What is this invisible something that we call time? What is this mysterious series of hours and days and years and centuries that moves steadily on and carries us to the end of our ...

1413. The Priesthood of All Believers

1 Peter 2:4-12

Sermon

T. A. Kantonen

"We are all priests." These are the words of Martin Luther. But he did not invent this revolutionary idea. He discovered it in the Bible. When the Bible says, "You are a royal priesthood" and "He made us to be priests," it is not speaking about ordination but about every Christian man and woman. In rediscovering the gospel, Luther also rediscovered the principal means by which the gospel operates, the priesthood of all believers. What does it mean to be a priest? It means to be consecrated to serve. That ...

1414. As We Remember - Memorial Day

1 Chronicles 11:10-25

Sermon

T. A. Kantonen

Memorial Day is primarily a national holiday on which we remember and honor the men and women who have given their lives for our country. In the words of Abraham Lincoln, "it is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this." It is fitting and proper for us to observe Memorial Day not only as Americans but also as Christians. There should be no conflict between our loyalty to our God and our loyalty to our country. These loyalties reinforce each other. For God has not set us to live our lives in ...

1415. The Courage to Be Me

Sermon

Gregory J. Johanson

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." There is a certain courage to be who we are built into the dynamics of Christian faith and grace. DONALD C. HOUTS (see biographical note preceding Smart, Wise, and Foolish) relates this courage to three common debilitating fears in his sermon The Courage to Be Me: The fears of doubt, self-disclosure, and failure. There is a sense in which vitality in human life is a product of the tension between fear and faith. If all were certain, then our concept ...

1416. When the Word Comes to the Wilderness

Luke 3:1-20

Sermon

William G. Carter

You can tell Christmas is on the way when the catalogs start arriving in the mail. Long before the first snowflake falls, there is an avalanche of slick paper flyers. They come as gifts from merchants with toll-free phone numbers, all in the hope that we will buy what they have to offer. Last year the first catalog came from a company that specializes in Christian home decorations. Like other catalogs, there were smiling snowman doormats and weatherproof gift-wrap for covering the mailbox. On page three, ...

1417. Good News for Good Living

1 Corinthians 15:1-11

Sermon

Harold Warlick

The weather that Sunday was beautiful in Augusta, Georgia. The middle-aged minister and his wife, after being away eleven years, returned to their perch by the sixth tee at the Masters Golf Tournament on the Augusta National Golf Course. It was their spot. They’d sat there in former times, when they were younger, healthier, and, perhaps, less wise. Sitting beside them were two young college students. The young man was blonde and well-built. He was holding hands with a pretty coed. She was well-tanned, and ...

1418. While He May Be Found

Isaiah 55:1-13

Sermon

Carlyle Fielding Stewart

Isaiah issues a four-part injunction to the people of Judah to return to God, to renounce their iniquities, and to reaffirm the promises of the Davidic Covenant: come (55:1), listen (55:2), seek, and call on God while he is near and can be found (55:6). This plea is pertinent to Christians during this season of Lent, a season of exile and return, renewal and restoration, affliction and comfort, and death and resurrection. The prophet exhorts us to come unto the Lord. The prophet urges them to “come” and ...

1419. Deformed, Disfigured, and Despised: A Marred but Magnificent Messiah

Isaiah 52:13--53:12

Sermon

Carlyle Fielding Stewart

The prophet gives the report, but who will believe it? The servant will act wisely. He will be lifted up and exalted. The problem is the new Messiah does not fit the description of the Holy One of Israel, the gallant one, the defiant and courageous who shall lift God’s people out of the dregs of despair. He shall not come as one standing upright, but one who is disfigured and deformed, despised and rejected; a man of sorrows acquainted with grief. Who would believe such a report? That God would choose a ...

1420. The Child of Promise

Isaiah 9:1-7

Sermon

Harry N. Huxhold

Benjamin Britten’s cantata “St. Nicholas” is based on the legendary figure of Nicolas, Bishop of Myra. If Nicolas was truly an historical figure and the Bishop of Myra in Asia Minor, he would have been bishop in the latter part of the fourth century or the early part of the fifth century. Traditionally, Nicolas is the patron saint of sailors and children. The legends built around him are especially attentive to his care for the poor and helpless. He is noted for having spent his fortune on the poor and ...

1421. The Fruit of the Word

Isaiah 55:1-13

Sermon

Harry N. Huxhold

Andrew Goldfinger, a physicist working with the Space Department at the applied physics laboratory at John Hopkin’s University, has explored a theological understanding of creation. His work is titled Thinking about Creation: Eternal Torah and Modern Physics. The book is a fascinating study of how the scientific theories of the origin of the creation and the maintenance of the creation gravitate more and more to compatibility with the description of the theological understanding of the universe in Genesis ...

1422. The Healing Power of the Resurrection

Mark 16:1-20

Sermon

James W. Moore

IMPORTANT NOTE: The illustration that opens this sermon about Mel Gibson is not true. It is an urban legend. It has no bases in fact. Some years ago, a hard-working man took his family from New York State to Australia so he could take advantage of a job opportunity there. One member of this man’s family was a handsome young son who dreamed of joining the circus. He wanted to become a trapeze artist or actor in the circus. This young man, biding his time until a circus job or even one as a stagehand came ...

1423. Do I Matter?

Psalm 8:1-9

Sermon

David E. Leininger

Interesting news this week. According to the population clock at the United Nations, there are now six-billion of us on this whirling planet.(1) Someone decided that a baby boy born to refugee parents in Sarajevo, a region returning to life after a decade of death and destruction and war, would be the perfect symbol for the push toward our next billion or so. According to UN Secretary-General Kofi Anan, the birth of little Adnan Nevic "should light a path of tolerance and understanding for all people." We ...

1424. Beyond Despair

Psalm 43:1-5, Psalm 42:1-11

Sermon

David E. Leininger

"Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me?" I'll tell you why. It is a depressing world out there. You pick up a paper or turn on the evening news and encounter death, disaster, pain, misery, despair. Whether the stories are of the wars in Iraq or Afghanistan, outsourcing of jobs overseas, daily obituary notices or those private, personal stories that never come to public attention, life can be a burden. Fathers' Day today? How about the challenges of raising children in this day and age ...

1425. Theology in Snow

Psalm 147:1-20

Sermon

David E. Leininger

Snow, snow, snow. Had enough? I bet. A quiet week this past week, but FIVE TIMES in the previous two weeks? Enough already. Schools and businesses shut down; airports closed stranding travelers; icy highways like bumper-car rinks...boom, bang, bam. No church on Sunday for two weeks in a row - the few people who could get out of their driveways could not safely venture on to the streets. We were reduced to joining the congregation of the Church of the All-Seeing Eye. The words of the Psalmist came to mind ...

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