Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 1426 to 1450 of 5000 results

Lk 12:32-48 · Gen 15:1-6 · Jer 18:1-11 · Heb 11:1-3, 8-19

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... not protected by the Passover blood would be put to death. Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-19 True faith is exemplified by Abraham and Sarah. Hebrews 11 is known as the faith chapter of the Bible. At the beginning of the chapter, faith is defined and then illustrated by various characters among whom Abraham and Sarah were chief. Faith is portrayed as trust in God's promises for the future. In the case of the sacrifice of Isaac, faith is seen as obedience. Life is considered a pilgrimage and the faithful look with faith ...

1427. Proper 17

Lk 14:1, 7-14 · Heb 12:18-19, 22-24; 13:1-8 · Eze 18:1-9, 25-29 · Prov 25:6-22

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... 1, 7-14 1. Be Humble and Humiliated. Need: The key verse is 11: "For every one who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted." It is one or the other: be humble or be humiliated. Get down or be put down! This is illustrated often in Archie Bunker in "All in the Family": he is arrogant, bigoted, and dogmatic but in the end he is humiliated. The point is that we are either humble or we will be humbled. The need for humility is universal. We want to avoid false humility as well ...

1428. Proper 19

Lk 15:1-10 · Hos 4:1-3, 5:15--6:6 · 1 Tim 1:12-17 · Ex 32:7-14

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... work of a later author who was a member of the Pauline school. However, this pericope is Paul's theology. In spite of his persecuting the church, Paul was shown mercy in that Christ forgave him and called him to be an apostle. Paul's experience illustrates God's way with sinners. As a Jewish fanatic Paul persecuted the church. Yet, Christ turned his life around and he became God's ambassador and Christ's witness. Luke 15:1-10 In response to criticism that he associates with sinners, Jesus tells the parables ...

1429. Proper 23

Lk 17:11-19 · 2 Tim 2:8-15 · 2 Ki 5:14-17 · Mic 1:2, 2:1-10 · Ru 1:1-19a

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... monopoly on kindness, goodness, love and courtesy. People of other religions or of no religion can have splendid characters with sparkling personalities. Pagans are not necessarily animals, brutes, and savages. The grace of God can work in and with non-Christians also. This is illustrated in the Moabitess, Ruth. Her statement of love and loyalty is still popular as a Scripture reading at a wedding. Outline: Can you match Ruth's A. Love- v. 9 B. Loyalty - v. 18 C. Sharing all - vv. 16, 17 Lesson 1: 2 Kings ...

1430. Proper 25

Lk 18:9-14 · 2 Tim 4:9-18 · Sirach 35:12-18 · Deut 10:12-22 · Zeph 3:1-9

Sermon Aid

... too embarrassed to lift his eyes to heaven, had not a word to say for himself. All he could do was throw himself on the mercy of God. It is the latter who was justified by God - not by works but by grace. The parable further illustrates pride and humility. THOLOGICAL REFLECTION Gospel: Luke 18:9-14 1. Themselves (v. 9). The two men in the parable represent self-centeredness and God-centeredness. The problem is with those who focus on "themselves." They trust in themselves to be acceptable to God. They think ...

1431. Christ the King

Lk 23:35-43 · Jn 12:9-19 · Col 1:11-20 · Jer 23:2-6 · 2 Sam 5:1-5

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... forming to hail Jesus as king of kings. Today's gospel tells us of the welcome Jesus' friends gave him as they met him at the gates of the city. They cut down palm branches and sang praises to him as Messiah and King. He illustrated his understanding of kingship by riding an ass, the fulfillment of Zechariah's prophecy. Everybody seemed to be happy and celebrating except the Pharisees who bitterly complained, "Look, the world has gone after him." Luke 23:35-43 The king of the Jews is crucified. THEOLOGICAL ...

1432. Epiphany 7

Lk 6:27-38 · 1 Cor 15:45-49 · 1 Sam 26:1-25 · Gen 45:3-11, 15

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... and revenge, but Joseph returns good for evil, loves his enemies, and does good to them by bringing his father and family to Egypt to save them from the famine. 1 Samuel 26:2, 7-9, 12-13, 22-23 This episode from the David cycle of stories illustrates the opportunity and temptation to take revenge against those who "have it coming." 1 Corinthians 15:45-49 Paul describes the resurrection body. Last Sunday we learned that since Christ was raised, so the dead in Christ will be raised. If so, what kind of a body ...

1433. Sunday of the Passion

Lk 22:14--23:56 · Isa 50:4-7 · Php 2:6-11

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... . When we do something senseless, we say we were not in our right minds. Paul felt that way about members of his Philippian church - they were haughty and proud. This resulted in divisions. The solution was a change of mind to one of humility as illustrated by Jesus. "Have this mind among yourselves" - what mind? Outline: Marks of being in your right mind - A. A mind of humility - "he humbled himself. - v. 8 B. A mind of obedience - "became obedient unto death. - v. 8 C. A mind of consecration - "every knee ...

1434. Proper 13

Matthew 14:13-21

Bulletin Aid

Call to Worship Pastor: The feeding of the five thousand illustrates Jesus' willingness, and ability, to satisfy man's hunger. People: The hunger we experience in our souls is also satisfied by our Lord. Pastor: Jesus' disciples helped him feed the crowd. And Jesus needs his church today to help satisfy our world's deepest hunger. People: We give ourselves to ...

1435. Saddam Hussein's Mistake

Luke 14:25-35

Illustration

Donald Dotterer

In the scripture lesson, Jesus makes a point about preparedness with an illustration. He asks his audience, "What king, preparing to go to battle against another king, would not first sit down and consider whether or not his army of 10,000 men would be able to fight successfully against 20,000?" This is the mistake that Saddam Hussein made against the Coalition of Nations, which opposed his invasion of Kuwait. Hussein was crushed, because he did not carefully count the cost of his aggression.

1436. God's Wrath for Man's Sin

Zephaniah 1:4-13, Zephaniah 1:14--2:3

Bulletin Aid

... : God has empowered us with his Spirit to speak with honest conviction his will concerning the Christian life. Leader: The responsibility to speak is not with words only, but by example, that others may be inspired to live righteous lives. People: May the words we speak be illustrated by the life we live! Collect: Almighty God, who has called your pastors to speak the truth, and to live by the truth they speak: Consecrate us in our service, that we may give honor to you in all we do. In our Savior's name we ...

1437. Christmas Eve or Day

Isaiah 51:17--52:12, John 1:1-18, Hebrews 1:1-14

Bulletin Aid

... s a Song in the Air" "What Child Is This?" Second Lesson: Hebrews 1:1-12 Theme: Christ's unique superiority Call to Worship Pastor: Come, celebrate the birth of Jesus, God's greatest revelation of himself. People: Of all that God has done, Jesus most fully illustrates the true nature of God. Pastor: We celebrate our Savior's birth, because through him, we are born into the glory of God. People: Praise be to God for the birth of his Son! Praise be to Jesus for our rebirth into God's kingdom! Collect Glorious ...

1438. A Noble Patriotism John D. Mauney, Jr.

Exodus 2:11-25

Sermon

... mission; discipline he would develop in forty years of wilderness wanderings as he and his people remained in prolonged exile. Now we are beginning to understand something of the character of Moses, who was to become the Lawgiver of Israel. These verses illustrate his passion for justice, his impatience with wrong, his hot temper (of which there will be many examples in the future), and his prudence in avoiding unnecessary danger. Perhaps the most influential men of the Bible are Abraham, Moses, and Paul ...

1439. Beyond Good Intentions

Matthew 21:28-32

Sermon

... are or you are very stupid. I mean it. Perfect, because you have always been right in the first place. Or stupid, because you are going to live with the consequences of a wrong decision no matter how miserable you are. Those are horns of a dilemma illustrating that there are times in life when a change of mind is exactly what is needed. A few years ago a major theological journal featured a series of articles on the theme, "How I Have Changed My Mind." I remember reading them avidly, because these articles ...

1440. Weightlifting

Matthew 11:25-30

Sermon

he eleventh and twelfth chapters of Matthew illustrate again and again the authority of Jesus. In today's text, for example, Jesus claims that he is the Son of God who alone knows the Father and who alone is known by him. Only I, Jesus says, can reveal God to you - and I choose to do so. What ...

1441. God of the Ordinary

Exodus 13:17--14:31

Sermon

... saved. Remember, for every person with an authentic, spectacular conversion, there are thousands of others, just as authentic, who have had no striking experiences, but are no less Christians than those who have had unique transformations. The story of Naaman the leper illustrates this. Naaman was sent, for a cure for his leprosy, to the prophet Elisha. (2 Kings 5) As Naaman drove up to the house of the man of God, with horses, chariots, and servants, he fully expected the treatment usually given to ...

1442. Trouble on the Mountain

Exodus 32:1-33:6

Sermon

... . None of the faithful spoke for God or remembered his laws, especially the first two; "Thou shalt have no other gods before me," and "Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image." Theirs is an ingratitude of the worst sort. I heard a humorous story which illustrated thanklessness. A man from the city went to visit his country cousin, a farmer. The first thing the city dude saw was a pig with a wooden leg. "Why," asked the man from the city, "does that pig have a wooden leg?" "Let me tell you about ...

1443. Communion Is Rejoicing In Christ's Return

1 Thessalonians 3:6-13

Sermon

... until we ate. Inevitably she would say, "Be patient son. We'll eat when all is ready." To help me wait, she would pinch off a little piece of turkey or bread as a foretaste of the delicious banquet that was soon to be enjoyed by our whole family. That illustrates for me how it is in God's family as we wait for the heavenly banquet. In a similar way, we ask, "How long, O Lord? How much longer do we have to wait for your return. How long do we have to endure the pains, burdens, sorrows and temptations ...

1444. The Trifocal Festival

Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon

... world but must press on toward the kingdom. They are a living judgment upon our small and satisfied lives. And because they are not after all so different from us, they urge us to follow their path."4 I: From Carl Braaten: "We need saints, not as illustrations of how far a single Christian can go in getting to heaven by climbing a ladder of Personal Spirituality, but as interpretations of Christ stooping to serve in the fellowship of human sin and suffering."5 II: The stars of the church, the heroes of the ...

1445. The Keeper of the Covenant

Exodus 31:1-11

Sermon

... least, real reconciliation, like that, which God works in Jesus Christ, had taken place. That is the sort of God we see speaking to Moses on Mount Sinai, and that is the God who loves us, forgives us, and receives us as his own - forever - in Christ Jesus. (Note: This illustration also appears, as part of a sermon ideasuggestion in The Lectionary Preaching Workbook III, A. It is used here to demonstrate how this preacher might use it in another sermon.)

1446. Healing And Forgiveness

Luke 5:17-26

Sermon

... this is not characteristic of most healings, this is what we want and expect. When healings do not occur in this way, then we and our loved ones are disappointed. Agnes Sanford uses the example of Thomas Edison's invention of the incandescent light bulb to illustrate how it is that God's healing energy comes into our lives. Edison had tried and failed hundreds of times to find the right wire to transmit electricity. When he failed, he did not say, "It is not the will of electricity to shine continuously in ...

1447. Let Christ Speak The Word

Luke 7:1-10

Sermon

... . 2. Edward Witten, in K. C. Cole, "A Theory of Everything," New York Times Magazine, October 18, 1987, p. 21. 3. Cole, "A Theory," Times Magazine, October 18, 1987, p. 22. 4. Agnes Sanford, The Healing Light (St. Paul: Macalester Park Publishing Co., 1955), p. 147. 5. The Preacher's Illustration Service, Bonus Issue, 1988, p. 2. 6. St. Teresa of Avila in A Guide to Prayer for Ministers and Other Servants, ed. Rueben P. Job and Norman Shawchuck (Nashville: The Upper Room, 1983), pp. 22-23.

1448. Repairing Your Broken Dreams

Luke 24:13-35

Sermon

Harold Warlick

... a tube to reach from his mouth to his feet so that his breath would keep his feet warm as he slept. There was an adjustable pulpit which could be raised or lowered. You could hit a button and make the pulpit descend or ascend to dramatically illustrate a point. Obviously, at one time somebody had high hopes for each of those designs which did not make it.1 Some died in poverty, having spent all of their money trying to sell their dream. One hundred fifty thousand broken dreams! Is there anything sadder? If ...

1449. Consecration Upon Our Hearts

Deuteronomy 6:1-25

Bulletin Aid

... we show our children your goodness and your ways as we go about the daily chores. Keep us from failing to tell them about you because there just isn’t time. Men: May we not neglect to teach our children in word and in actions. Help us to be illustrations of your unconditional love. Leader: Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates. All: Bind us to you with cords of love so that our hands and our heads accurately reflect ...

1450. The Miracle Comes at the Breaking

Luke 24:13-35

Sermon

Various Authors

... restaurant; or even in the midst of a rabid crowd at a sports event. But without a doubt there are circumstances and settings where we are more likely to meet our Lord, or where his presence is more intimately experienced. Our Scripture lesson for this day illustrates what I'm trying to say. It was late afternoon and evening of the first Easter. Two followers of Jesus were walking a slow and sorrowing seven miles from Jerusalem to the village of Emmaus. By our usual view of things, they were not famous or ...

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