Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: Levi, disciple, evangelist, tax collector, the 12, the twelve, apostle, sermon on the mount, jewish audience, beatitudes, lord's prayer, great commission, parables, olivet discourse, mount of olives, olivet, synoptic

Showing 1426 to 1450 of 5000 results

1426. Fred and Barney

John 10:11-18

Sermon

John Smylie

... 't have a relationship with the sheep except for his own self-interest. The hired man cares about himself, not the sheep, while the owner personally cares about each member of the flock. The owner is willing to risk his own life for the sheep he serves and in our Lord's case the owner gives his own life for the sheep he loves. The hired hand runs from the wolf, while the good shepherd stays to defend the flock. Who is the wolf? Ultimately, the wolf is the devil and all of the tools of the devil that come to ...

1427. God Is the Hound of Heaven

Jeremiah 31:7-14

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... the ever-present one, and the one who would do anything for his people, hears their cries and answers. God says through Jeremiah that the blind and the lame, all the remnant of the northern kingdom, will be returned to Israel. God will lead the people back; the Lord will not allow his people to stumble. Like a shepherd who gathers his flock, so God will gather the people. God will ransom Jacob and will redeem Israel. In other words, God will do what is necessary to be present and to aid his people, even if ...

1428. Finding the Right House for God

2 Samuel 7:1-14a

Sermon

William J. Carl, III

... . What a nice idea, Nathan must have thought. Now here's a king who has his priorities straight. What a great boss I have! Not some atheistic ingrate, you know the kind — a self-made man who worships his maker. No, David knows he's a servant of the Lord. It's almost as if David and Nathan have peeked into the future and know that later the prophet Haggai will give the people a hard time for allowing God's house to fall apart while they were building mansions for themselves. "In the second year of the King ...

1429. Do Not Forget Your Servant

1 Samuel 1:4-20

Sermon

Robert A. Hausman

... , then I will set him before you as a nazirite until the day of his death. He shall drink neither wine nor intoxicants, and no razor shall touch his head" (1:11). This is a rather detailed way of saying he will be a dedicated priest to the Lord! Hannah goes on weeping and praying silently. Eli the priest is sitting there, watching her. Eli is old, and his faculties aren't that good. He sees Hanna's lips moving, but hears nothing, so he misinterprets what he sees. He scolds Hannah: "How long will you make ...

1430. Are You a King?

2 Samuel 23:1-7

Sermon

Robert A. Hausman

... David, son of Jesse, the oracle of the man whom God exalted, the anointed of the God of Jacob, the favorite of the Strong One of Israel!" (v. 1). What do we understand about kingship through this oracle? David says, in typical poetic repetition, "The spirit of the Lord speaks through me; his word is upon my tongue. The God of Israel has spoken, the Rock of Israel has said to me" (vv. 2-3). God inspired David, so his rule is not to be seen as a tenuous, historical construction, nor as a historical accident ...

1431. Rally or Rail?

John 18:28-40

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... on a cross under the sign installed by Pilate himself. Some have called this sign the first Christian sermon. It read this: “Jesus, King of the Jews.” But like those two thieves on the cross, you can be in the very presence of Jesus, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, and some will rally to him, and some will rail on him. Which will it be today? Rally or Rail? [You can end your sermon here. Or you can continue to provide some “apps” to your sermon. If the latter, here are some ideas of how you can ...

1432. What God Expects From Worship

Isaiah 1:1, 10-20

Sermon

Chrysanne Timm

... they shall be like snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool. If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land; but if you refuse and rebel, you shall be devoured by the sword; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken. — Isaiah 1:18-20 In imagery that prefigures our baptism into the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, the guilt that bloodies our hands is washed away. We are reconciled to God. We are invited into God's presence and gifted with God's provision ...

1433. Sold!

Jeremiah 32:1-3a, 6-15

Sermon

Chrysanne Timm

... ; multiply there, and do not decrease. But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare. — Jeremiah 29:4-7 Can you hear the consolation in these words ... you can hear God's pledge of faithfulness even more clearly in these words: For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope. Then when you call upon me and come and pray ...

1434. On Speaking Terms

Exodus 33:12-23

Sermon

Argile Smith

... foreign land for all of their lives, they would have to grow into their status as God’s chosen people. True to his nature, the Lord didn’t hold a grudge against Moses or the people. He responded favorably to Moses’ request. And he did something else. In a way, he ... always going to let us see what lies ahead, but he’ll point out how he walked with us in the past. That’s what the Lord seemed to be saying to Moses. He told him, and us by inference, “I won’t show you my glory, but I will let you see ...

1435. Choosing

Joshua 24:1-27

Sermon

Argile Smith

... live out the choice we have made. That’s probably why Joshua said he didn’t think that God’s people would live out the decision they had registered in his presence. He remembered a time a generation ago when God’s people made a similar decision. After the Lord had shown the people his power by delivering them from Egypt and enabling them to walk on dry land to the freedom side of the Red Sea, he called them to join him at Mount Sinai. There they heard from Moses the good news about the covenant that ...

1436. Timothy’s Encouraging Report

1 Thessalonians 3:6-13

Understanding Series

David J. Williams

... similar construction elsewhere, Bruce may be right to see it as an echo of “the language of the synagogue liturgy, where the address would be in the second person; this goes back in turn to the language of the Psalter, as for example in Ps. 22:19, ‘But thou, O Lord.’ ” Particularly striking is the coupling of Jesus with the Father both in the address and in the ascription of the right to determine in what way they should go (cf. 1:1 and Ps. 32:8; 37:23; 40:2; Prov. 3:6; 4:26; 16:9). Nowhere more ...

1437. Request for Prayer

2 Thessalonians 3:1-5

Understanding Series

David J. Williams

... in NIV). Either way it amounts to the same thing: namely, that the maintenance of the good work begun in them (cf. 1:3; 1 Thess. 1:6–8; 2:13f.; 4:9f.) depended on God’s faithfulness, specifically as expressed in the previous verse. Again we understand the Lord of this verse and the next to be the Father (see note on 1 Thess. 1:1). The things we command includes earlier teaching whether by word or by letter (cf. 1 Thess. 4:1 and see disc. on 1 Thess. 4:11 for parangellō, “to command”). This teaching ...

1438. Encouragement to Be Faithful

2 Timothy 1:1-2:13

Understanding Series

Gordon D. Fee

... his churches). The gar is probably explanatory—and thus intentional—but does not refer to this is a trustworthy saying. Rather it goes back to all of the appeal in verses 1–10. “Take your share of suffering,” Paul says; “keep in mind your risen Lord,” he further reminds him, “because if we have died with him, we shall also live with him,” and so on. The poetic nature of the saying can be easily seen. It is a quatrain of conditional sentences. Each protasis (“if”-clause) deals with the ...

1439. Crossing the Jordan

Joshua 3:1-4:24

Understanding Series

J. Gordon Harris

... through a motivational speech from Joshua. In this speech Joshua first calls the people to gather and listen to the words of the LORD your God (3:9). He then directs the people to expect victory. You will know that the living God is among you and ... with the cherubim throne of God (R. E. Clements, God and Temple [Philadelphia: Fortress, 1965], pp. 28–35). The ark assures the people that the Lord is present (Num. 10:33, 35) and so leads the people into battle as a war palladium (Num. 14:44; 1 Sam. 4:2–9 ...

1440. Wives for the Benjamites

Judges 21:1-25

Understanding Series

Cheryl A. Brown

... , 1984], p. 83) comments, “The kidnapped women were as good as raped also.” This is not to justify what the men of Gibeah did or to minimize it, but only to point out how low the downward spiral has reached by this point. 21:3 O LORD, the God of Israel . . . why has this happened to Israel? This all too accurately reflects the human propensity for denial, which goes back to the garden of Eden story and causes people to blame God for everything, from natural disasters to children dying of starvation. The ...

1441. Ruth Meets Boaz

Ruth 2:1-23

Understanding Series

Michael S. Moore

... comes along (Judg. 17:7–13; 18:20). The Danites are dutifully labeled “noble” men (bene khayil, Judg. 18:2), but are more interested in enticing employees than in helping widows (Judg. 18:1–31). The Ephraimite Levite says he is “going to the house of the LORD” (Judg. 19:18) but soon surrenders his own wife to a gang of murderers (Judg. 19:1–30). Boaz stands head and shoulders above all the men in the canonical-historical context. 2:10 At this, she bowed down with her face to the ground. Ruth ...

1442. Israel Forsakes God

Jeremiah 2:1-3:5

Understanding Series

Tremper Longman III

... a witness to the covenant promises that the people made to God (Deut. 32:1; Isa. 1:2), will be horrified. The Way of the Lord or the Way of the Nations (2:14-19): The previous oracle commented on the nature of Judah’s sin; the present text draws out ... argument that verse 13 ought to be part of this oracle). In other words, they should have all the water they need from the Lord who is the spring of living water. Additional Notes 2:14 Israel has become the plunder (baz) of the nations. Perhaps the word should ...

1443. The Charge Against Israel

Hosea 4:1-19

Understanding Series

Elizabeth Achtemeier

... to ensure fertility in their subsequent marriages (cf. Jer. 2:20, 25). The women were given a gift of money at the time, a “harlot’s hire” (Deut. 23:18 and Deut. 22:13–21 were probably directed at this Canaanite practice). 4:14–16 Surprisingly, however, the Lord says in Hosea 4:14 that he will not punish the women. Rather, he lays the blame on the men who go to the cult sites to ravish such young women. If the men did not participate, the women would not be violated and harlotrous! The verse forms ...

1444. An Invasion of Locusts

Joel 1:1-12

Understanding Series

Elizabeth Achtemeier

... makes clear, all of us are sinners, and all of us deserve God’s judgment. But the Bible’s view of the natural world and of God’s working in it should lead us always to ask the question when we suffer a natural catastrophe, “Is the Lord God trying to tell me something? Do I myself have need of repentance?” And Joel is saying that with the locust plague God is indeed delivering a message. The locust plague is God’s judgment on an apostate people, and they have need of repentance. Our difficulty ...

1445. A Call to Repentance

Joel 1:13-20

Understanding Series

Elizabeth Achtemeier

... . Isa. 28:13; Hos. 5:12; Rom.1:28–32). It also tells us that we face a final judgment of our ways in the day of the Lord. Both Jesus and Paul refer to that day (Mark 13 and parallels; Matt. 25:31–46; Rom. 2:5; 1 Cor. 1:8; 3:13; 5:5; 2 ... for our love and trust and obedience or lack thereof (Matt. 12:36; Rom. 14:10–12; 2 Cor. 5:10; 1 Pet. 4:5). The day of the Lord is near and is coming. The entire Bible affirms Joel’s message. 1:17–18 Joel then returns to the evidence of the first hints of the coming ...

1446. The Third Appearance

John 21:1-14

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

... literal description of what the disciples were doing, and second, as a metaphor. This means that the story must be read on two levels. First, the story purports to be a literal account of a miraculous catch of fish made possible by an appearance of the risen Lord in Galilee. It is not so strange that the disciples are back in Galilee and engaged in the secular task of fishing if one remembers Jesus’ warning to them that “you will be scattered, each to his own home. You will leave me all alone” (16:32 ...

1447. Thanksgiving and Prayer

Philippians 1:1-11

Understanding Series

F. F. Bruce

... of someone whom God uses for a special ministry or through whom he speaks, like Moses (Neh. 10:29), Joshua (Josh. 24:29), David (Ps. 89:20 [LXX: 88:21]), Jonah (2 Kings [LXX: 4 Kingdoms] 14:25), each of whom is called “the servant (Gk. doulos) of the LORD.” The readers of Paul’s letters, however, would more readily have taken him to mean that he was the “slave” of Christ in the humble sense that the word normally had among them. No doubt Paul did esteem it a high honor to be the servant of Christ ...

1448. Paul's Chains Advance the Gospel

Philippians 1:12-30

Understanding Series

F. F. Bruce

... put to shame are mutually exclusive (cf. Rom. 5:5). The only thing that could put Paul to shame would be failure to win his Lord’s approval; that is why he kept “the day of Christ” before him in all that he planned and did. The declaration of the ... he grew older: whereas in his earlier letters he tends to identify himself with those who will survive to the coming of the Lord, in his later letters he tends to identify himself with those who will be raised from the dead then. The change of perspective ...

1449. Manasseh King of Judah

2 Kings 21:1-18

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

... Kgs. 2:32; cf. Deut. 19:10, 13; 21:8–9). A story that began with the house of David claiming freedom from such blood-guilt (1 Kgs. 2:5–9, 31–33, 37) is to end with guilt fully imputed. David’s descendants are not going to know “the LORD’s peace forever” (1 Kgs. 2:33). 21:18 The garden of Uzza: Hitherto we have read in the regnal formulas for Judean kings only of burials “in the city of David.” From Hezekiah onwards the notices are more varied, and there is no reference to the city of David ...

1450. Preparations for Worship (Part 2)

Num 8:1-26

Teach the Text

Joe M. Sprinkle

... of the Levites that avert God’s wrath and allow a sinful people to dwell with the holy God. Numbers 16:41–50 narrates a specific case where atonement by Aaron averts a plague caused by God’s wrath against the people. 8:22 just as the Lord commanded Moses. An emphasis on exact obedience is underscored by this phrase near the beginning (v. 3) and the end of this section. 8:23–26 This, then, is how you are to assign the responsibilities of the Levites. Levites begin their formal service at age ...

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