Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 1426 to 1450 of 2962 results

Romans 8:14-25

Sermon

Mark Trotter

... think that fairy tales are simply fantasies for children. But fairy tales come out of a world that was like the biblical world, with a few people at the top, and a great number of people at the bottom. The rules and the customs of society were designed to keep it that way. So fairy tales were tales told by the people at the bottom as a literature of hope, telling the stories of the lowly being exalted, the poor becoming rich, the innocent and the naive outwitting the wise of the world. The most famous ...

1427. Uses of the Past

Philippians 3:4b-16

Sermon

Mark Trotter

... help in discussing that question. Paul is writing to the Philippians because he has received a letter from them. In the letter they ask a number of questions, specifically, "What about these Judaizers?" That's what they called them. "Judaizers" we could designate as conservative Christians, who wanted to keep Christianity the way it was, keep it tied to Judaism. They reasoned that Jesus was the Messiah. The Messiah came for the Jews. Therefore to be a Christian, you had to first become a Jew. Paul ...

1428. What Kind of Name Is That?

Luke 1:26-31

Sermon

Mark Trotter

... Mary: "Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus." Last Sunday, reading in the Gospel of Matthew, we heard about an angel who came to Joseph in a dream. He said, "You shall name him Jesus," then added this explicit designation of what he was to do, his vocation, "You shall name him Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sins." So Jesus is a savior. That's what his name means. He is the one who has come to save us. But what does it mean to save ...

1429. Willibald Krautman's Trip To Heaven

Matthew 11:2-11

Drama

Matthew Powell

... . Willibald: But I always did a little bit. Saint Peter: Yes, a little bit, but it was too little. Last year, for example, on Christmas Eve, you turned away a widow with three hungry children from your door. Willibald: Last year I had to make a new design for the three kings and new figures for the flight to Egypt. And the kings needed to be gold-leafed. Those things cost money. My wood and art supplies were terribly expensive. Saint Peter: Just the same, after you bought your wood and paint, you still had ...

1430. Advent 1

Isaiah 2:1-5, Matthew 24:36-44, Romans 13:8-14

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... the Day: The Day Of The Lord Gospel - The unexpected day of Jesus' return - Matthew 24:36-44 Lesson 1 - The day of world peace - Isaiah 2:1-5 Lesson 2 - The approaching day of salvation - Romans 13:11-14 Advent begins a new church year and is designed to prepare us for Christ's coming both personally and cosmically. Advent 1 deals with Jesus' Second Coming. It is the one Sunday of the year that is totally given to the doctrine, although Lesson 2 in Advent 3 urges us to patiently wait for the Parousia. The ...

1431. Epiphany 3

Isaiah 9:1-7, 1 Corinthians 1:10-17, Matthew 4:12-17, Matthew 4:18-22

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... ! (9:1-4). Need: When we are in the midst of trouble, we cannot imagine things will so improve that the sorrow, pain, fear, and anxiety will change to joy. Here is the promise of God to a people living in the oppression of darkness. This sermon is designed to encourage and uplift those who may have reason to despair their condition. Outline: Our text says to you in trouble – a. God promises you'll be glad some day - v. 3. b. There are good reasons for your hope. 1. Light will replace darkness - v. 2. 2 ...

1432. Proper 15

Genesis 45:1-28, Isaiah 56:1-8, Romans 11:11-24, Romans 11:25-32, Matthew 15:1-20, Matthew 15:21-28

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... that since Adam, all are disobedient. Consequently, all have need of mercy received in Christ. PREACHING POSSIBILITIES Three Lessons: Genesis 45:1-15; Romans 11:1-2a, 29-32; Matthew 15:(10-20) 21-28 1. A God For All People. Need: This sermon is designed to give the congregation a universal perspective of God's love and concern. God does not limit his interest in one particular segment of humanity according to race, nationality, or geographical location. He is a God for all peoples. God is God of the Jews ...

1433. Proper 19

Exodus 13:17--14:31, Romans 14:1--15:13, Matthew 18:21-35

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... adopted children of God, members of God's kingdom. Each Christian can say, "I am a child of God because I belong to God." But how is this so? How does this happen? Am I a child of God by virtue of being born a human being? This sermon is designed to explain the means of becoming God's child and the implications thereof. Outline: In this text we learn – a. Who we are - the Lord's - v. 8. 1. We live to the Lord. 2. We die to the Lord. b. Whose we are - the Lord's - v. 9. 1 ...

1434. Proper 23

Exodus 32:1-33:6, Isaiah 25:1-12, Philippians 4:2-9, Philippians 4:10-20, Matthew 22:1-14

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... faces, solemnity, and severity. For many, Christianity is a killjoy, filled with "Thou shall not." Going to church is something you have to do rather than get to do. The congregation needs to see Christianity as Jesus saw it - a king's wedding banquet. The sermon is designed to convince people that the most exciting thing, the most fun, is to be a Christian. Outline: What it means to be a Christian. a. Fellowship - v. 2. It is a wedding reception for a king's son. You will meet royalty and talk to the best ...

1435. In the Darkness of Uncertainty, There Is the Light of Wonder

Luke 2:8-20

Sermon

Thomas A. Pilgrim

... William around. They went inside the village church. The mayor pointed to a beautiful stained-glass window that depicted the 82nd Division parachuting into the town. On the window above the paratroopers, was the Virgin Mary with the Christ Child. The mayor said, “We designed the window like this so we might never forget that night.”1 When I read that, I remembered seeing that scene in the movie, The Longest Day. I remember how one parachute caught on the steeple of the church and one soldier was hanging ...

1436. Lite - Or Light?

Matthew 5:13-16

Sermon

Susan R. Andrews

... of how light works, each particle of matter becomes a miniature sun. Likewise, in the Christian faith, the light of God's love is dispersed and reflected off each one of us, so that we become miniature gods in the world. When our two new windows were being designed, the artist made it clear that the beauty of the windows would be dependent upon the whim of the light - the sun hitting the color and angle of the glass and dispersing it into our midst. And so the message, the power of these windows cannot be ...

1437. Things to Come!

Matthew 13:47-52, Matthew 13:44-46, Matthew 13:1-23

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

... of Jesus Christ. Why the birds of humanism, institutionalism, materialism, liberalism, and pride have literally pecked the church seed bare! Read for yourself Revelation 18:15! There you'll find the birds pecking away! This is the abortion of the divine design. Leaven Jesus then told four more parables which he leaves for us to interpret ourselves. So, how are we doing? Rather poorly, to be frank. For these last five parables suffer from gross misinterpretation. For instance, the parable found in verse ...

1438. The Greatest Gift

Matthew 1:1-17

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... of memories were made visible in the following fashion. As each person walked into the chapel, they were given a paper cross which could be folded into a box by folding along printed diagram lines. Each cross-box was unique, with original designs and favorite Christmas quotes hand-written on side panels days before by members of the class. Some students drew pictures (some simple, some elaborate) on the crosses. Others pasted stickers on the crosses. But all crosses bore hand-penned sayings and biblical ...

1439. The Spirit of...Winter?

Luke 1:26-38

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... , or a package of food. Part of the St. Nicholas ritual was then going along to donate it to a suitable shelter that would give it to someone who would welcome it. Gifts given in this way came to be called a present from Santa. Such a designation enabled the child to understand that this is another name for an anonymous gift given to someone whom we don't know, but whom we love anyway because God does. (Presents within the family can be "From Santa" or "From Santa and . . .") This was the original ritual ...

1440. The Great I Am

John 14:5-14

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... dancing, all betray the fact that the Israelites were more than happy to accept this human construct as their deity. It was so much easier to SEE God and worship a God one could see. In Exodus 3:14, at the beginning of Moses' journey as Yahweh's designated spokesman, Moses has an uncomfortable definition handed down to him. When Moses asks the burning bush about the divine identity, the divine power before him declares that God's name is, "I am who I am. Thus you shall say to the Israelites, 'I am' has sent ...

1441. Don't Fit In, Fit Together

Philippians 3:1-11

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... Donald Trump's beloved "You're fired!" But "You just don't fit in" reveals that for Martha--and many others--there are only two options in life, "MY way or the highway." "You just don't fit in" means there's only one carefully cut-out, pre-designed, cast-in-concrete way to do something, only one was to fit, and if your contours don't align perfectly, you are out. Fitting in is what every anxious adolescent wants to do. Fitting in allows for no creativity or spontaneity or adaptability. Fitting in takes pre ...

1442. Why Not a Christian Live 8 for the Environment?

Romans 8:18-27

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... males the vote), the 19th Amendment (giving women the right to vote), the Civil Rights Acts - all came about to some extent because of the UNITED work and the committed actions taken by people whose doctrinal faiths were quite different. Live 8 - which was ingeniously designed to be more of a world wide "People's Summit on Poverty" than it was a musical event - should remind the church of her activist heritage. Yet in the 21st century it seems that the church has lost its interest in the "service unites ...

1443. A Talent for Life

Romans 8:1-17

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... deep enough, our fragile lungs need the pressurized protection of a ship's hull. The deep sea environment is hostile to our human physiology. Likewise anytime human beings try to go HIGHER in altitude than that for which our bodies were designed, technological assistance is required. Scientists studying the upper arboreal region of the rainforests get about on a system of pulleys and slides, which enable them to navigate the tree tops without ever getting a foothold. Likewise, those who trek up the highest ...

1444. From Real Life to Resurrection Life

Matthew 28:1-10

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... . We buy into this unreal reality every time we buy up a batch of short-cuts to fulfilled dreams. " Kids trapped in substandard run-down, crime-ridden housing projects might have holes in their walls and gangs terrorizing the hallways, but they have designer sneakers on their feet. " " Suburban moms and dads who spend all their car time on crowded interstates, snarled school parking lots, fast food drive-thrus, or cruising for a parking place at the mall, yet we buy the biggest, toughest, four-wheel drive ...

1445. Boxing Day

Matthew 2:13-18

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... in Canada) this day-after-Christmas is celebrated as Boxing Day. Before the days of artificial trees, covered with insulated strands of cool-burning electric twinkle lights, it used to be that Christmas decorations had a much shorter annual life span. December 26 was designated as Boxing Day, the day of UN-decorating. Boxing Day was when you safely stowed away the fragile, flammable finery that had made the tree so beautiful (and so likely to burst into flame). Using real candles on the branches of a cut ...

1446. The FUD Club: Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt

2 Thessalonians 2:13-17

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... ,” which means an intentional sinful opposition to all law. Though this “Lawless One” will set himself up in opposition to God, and will even ultimately challenge God in “God’s own temple,” the first description of this eschatological figure is designed to be reassuring to the readers: the ultimate fate of this evil one is “doomed to destruction” (v.3). This “Lawless One” will set himself up against, and over, “everything that is called God or is worshiped” suggesting that even the ...

1447. Thanks for Nothing!

Luke 21:5-38

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... for nothing, Jesus! No one could possibly accuse Jesus of sugarcoating and frosting the future for his followers. [You might want to hold up here or pass out some sample Testamints – breath mints you can purchase at Christian book stores that are designed for witnessing.] Yet it's in the face of all these apocalyptic events, all these life-altering, death-dealing moments, that Jesus offers his disciples the unyielding, unswerving promise of his constant presence. The trials of mind and heart and soul ...

1448. To Be a Pilgrim (Thanksgiving)

Hebrews 11:1-40

Sermon

Alex Gondola

... , landed on Cape Cod, and settled in Plymouth. We hear "Pilgrim" and think "Thanksgiving." But, when you think of that kind of Pilgrim, what do you think? Some consider the Pilgrims stained-glass saints. A church in Utica, New York, was designed as a shrine to the Pilgrims. Three tall stained-glass windows behind the altar, the center of worship, depict the Pilgrims landing at Plymouth Rock. Another entire wall is covered with magnificent Tiffany windows, thirty feet high. They portray William Brewster ...

1449. Eleven Plus One

Acts 2:1-13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... and his simple, loving heart. The bug is an endearing little car, easy to love, and easy to forgive. What you see is what you get. People who own them are sentimental and nostalgic about them. They're models of engineering excellence and design simplicity: easy to park, low maintenance, good in snow without snow tires (engine in rear), fuel efficient, and easy to handle. 8. Matthew: Lexus Matthew, the sinner/tax collector, finally chose to follow Jesus, the Teacher. His sins included caring more about money ...

1450. From Ha-Ha's to Ah-ha's

John 16:5-16

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... with some long dry spells. Life has droughts of little delights. We easily fall into daily routines, grinding ruts, which keep us wedged into the pre-recorded and predictable. This is not just a postmodern problem. In fact in the eighteenth century some road designers and path-way providers took it upon themselves to inject a little diversity, a little spice, into the daily drudgery of getting form Point A to Point B. Along common walk-ways, built along the fields and hedge-rows of busy village-to-village ...

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