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Acts 21:27-36

Sermon Aid

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... Gentiles must have felt rebuffed, finding prejudice against them where they might have anticipated brotherly acceptance. While James, the brother of Jesus and the leader of the Jerusalem church, greeted Paul, no other disciples were in evidence. By this time the original Twelve had scattered, but usually at least a few of them were in Jerusalem. And when Paul reported the glorious growth of his ministry among the Gentiles, the elders who heard him "glorified God" but then immediately urged Paul to soft ...

1427. Promises

Illustration

Jurgen Moltman

What then do we mean by a promise? A promise is a pledge that proclaims a reality which is not yet at hand. A promise pledges a new future, and in the promise this new future is already word-present. If a divine promise is involved, it means that this future does not result from those possibilities which are already inherent in the present, but that it originates from God’s creative possibilities.

1428. Let Yes Be Yes!

Matthew 15:21-28

Sermon

... Jesus’ ministry, appears and disappears with breathtaking suddenness. But while she steps, ever so briefly, into the spotlight, she gives us a fascinating glimpse of God’s concern for people of all sorts, including those who don’t seem to have belonged in the original script. Jesus had gone preaching among stubborn Israelites (v. 24), hoping some of them would listen to God’s "Yes!" for them and, hearing it again in a fresh way, would respond with their own "yes." The unnamed woman in this story was ...

1429. It Isn’t Fair!

Matthew 20:1-16

Sermon

... , foolishly so, perhaps. But, of course, it is his right to spend his money as he chooses, especially if he must do it the way he did to get the task completed before all the harvest spoiled. It might well be that in its original setting the parable was intended as a stinging commentary on party spirit and class distinction within the fledgling Christian community. By the time the gospels were assembled (moreso, even, than when Jesus taught), there would have been a line of demarcation between "old-line ...

1430. Opportunism? Or Opportunity?

Matthew 21:33-46

Sermon

... of people or, at least, two kinds of responses to an identical challenge. The parable is one that can more nearly than most others be called allegory. Almost every element within the story can be seen to represent something in real life. In its original context, the message was a withering condemnation of the chosen people whom God had raised up. He nurtured them to be prepared to receive the promised Messiah. But when the Messiah came, they killed him. The words with which Jesus concludes are chilling ...

1431. Mary's Revolutionary Song (Sermon Series No. 3)

Luke 1:39-56

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... . Under the influence of the Holy Spirit, both women sensed that God had chosen them for special tasks and would do great things through their children. Mary was then given by the Holy Spirit insights far too profound for a simple teenager to originate. She declared the impact that her son would have upon the world. She announced three distinct revolutions, which Jesus would instigate and activate. She spoke of these revolutions in the past tense, as if they had already happened. The world has been reeling ...

1432. Bitter-Sweet Recollections

Isaiah 50:1-11

Sermon

Barbara Brokhoff

... AGONY. Forsaken by human friends, he also felt forsaken by God, crying out, "MY God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me?" (Matthew 27:46) It is the only word of the seven from the cross that Matthew gives, and it is the only word given in the original tongue, Aramaic, "Eli, Eli, la’ma sabach-tha’-ni?" As Jesus hung on the cross, many went by and wagged their heads. They laughed at Jesus and scornfully shook their heads, saying, "Why don’t you come down from the cross? Once you could do many miracles ...

1433. Laborers Needed for the Harvest

Matthew 9:35-38, Matthew 10:1-42

Sermon

Dennis Kastens

... the world population numbers well over four billion, leaving over three billion in spiritual darkness yet awaiting the message of Jesus Christ and his salvation. This seems like a great number to evangelize, but compared to the challenge that faced the original twelve disciples, the odds are considerably more favorable for the church today. If each professing Christian were to reach three individuals for Christ, then the Great Commission of Jesus would be fulfilled in one generation. In fact, it wouldn’t ...

1434. The Sin of Judging

Matthew 13:36-43, Matthew 13:24-30

Sermon

Dennis Kastens

... , not the hundreds of battles they win. This makes many of our judgments not only incorrect but often downright cruel. Leslie Weatherhead tells of a young girl who enjoyed an Atlantic crossing in prewar days on a luxury liner. The chef on this particular ship was an original man who liked to make the ice cream in different shapes each night. One night it was served in the form of a ship; another night it would be like a statue, and so on. One night it was served in an ordinary dish without being shaped ...

1435. No Other Way To Be Happy

Deuteronomy 11:1-32

Sermon

John R. Brokhoff

... God and be happy or disobey and be cursed. Is that really a choice? Who wants to be cursed? So, our problem is obedience. How do I get myself to obey God’s laws? It is not natural for us to obey. Rather, it is natural, because of original sin, to disobey. An English professor assigned her class the reading of the entire Canterbury Tales, with the exception of the Nun’s Priest’s Tale. She warned them not to read it because it was too provocative. She started the next session by announcing, "We will now ...

1436. Out of the Darkness

John 9:1-12

Sermon

Robert Bachelder

... It shall be life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot." This does sound at first like a prescription for vengeance. But that is only because so many modern readers of the Bible do not understand the ancient historical context. Originally, the "eye for an eye" was not a green light for revenge, but it was a stop light to mark the limits of retaliation. This law of an eye for an eye actually showed great concern for the guilty party by limiting retaliation. You see in ancient ...

1437. Claim Your Ministry

Matthew 20:20-28

Sermon

Robert Bachelder

... final authority of discipleship, the ultimate credential of all ministry. It is the proof of the cross, of lives given entirely to their Master in a service. There is no other comparable authority for ministry. There never has been and there never will be. It was the original authority of Jesus who said he had come to give his life as a ransom for many. It is the authority of the humble servant. This is what it means to be a royal priest of the great high priest. "I have given you an example," Jesus said ...

1438. Out of the Barnyard

John 11:38-44

Sermon

Robert Bachelder

... . Instead the churches acquiesced in Hitler’s rise and even supported him at times. They rang their bells to salute Nazi victories until they were taken away to be melted down for the German war effort. In contrast to these barnyard Christians stand Jesus’ original disciples. Jesus said to them: "You shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the end of the earth." The disciples moved far beyond their local barnyard. Their experience of the resurrection sent them forth to an ...

1439. A Week of Prayer for Christian Unity

Acts 9:1-19a

Sermon

George Bass

... on the same day, June 29, one year apart. What is known is that during the persecution of Valerian in 258, a day was set aside - June 29 - to remember and celebrate their martyrdoms. The catacomb of St. Sebastian was the place where the festival originated because, it is argued, the bodies of the two saints were hidden in that catacomb to keep them safe from desecration during that persecution. Later, they were moved to the churches which bear their names - St. Peter’s on the Vatican Hill and St. Paul ...

1440. An Almost Anonymous Apostle

Acts 1:12-26

Sermon

George Bass

... the history of the Church and obliterated any references to his name if he had been unfaithful in his ministry. He is not remembered as a zero but as Matthias, appointed by the eleven disciples after Jesus’ ascension, to the apostolate as it originally existed. And that makes him - even if he is almost anonymous - a person to be remembered by Christians of all ages. The Apostles Were Witnesses to the Resurrection At the Peace Sabbath, Riverside Church, New York, on April 13, 1980, Tazu Shibama delivered ...

1441. Telling the Right Story

2 Timothy 3:10--4:8

Sermon

George Bass

... that the body of St. Mark the Evangelist and the Pope who built the church in the fourth century, Pope St. Mark, lie together under the main altar. It is not a famous pilgrimage church, nor does it attract many tourists, despite its origin, its significance for the faithful, and its architectural evolution and reconstruction down through the centuries. Rome seems to remember little about St. Mark and how much his Gospel must have meant to the early Christian Church - its life and worship - in the hostile ...

1442. A Glimpse of God

John 14:5-14

Sermon

George Bass

... moved to the Church of the Apostles in Rome on May 1; their bodies still lie together in a crypt under the main altar of this church that has been rebuilt and restored many times. Outside of the fact that both were members of the original Twelve whom Jesus selected as disciples, no hard evidence exists which justifies celebrating their martyrdom through remembrance and special worship services. But Philip and Thomas seem to have been cut out of something of the same mold. Both of them had to have tangible ...

1443. A Person Approved by Christ

John 1:43-51

Sermon

George Bass

... , Alsing said, "It was kind of like recruiting for a suicide mission. You’re gonna die, but you’re gonna die in glory." Jesus might have said that when he began recruiting his disciples, but if he had, he might not have signed up many of the original Twelve. But there can be little doubt that Jesus heard what he wanted to hear when Bartholomew replied to Jesus, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!" This man was obviously enthusiastic about the as yet mysterious mission on which ...

1444. Lift High the Christ!

John 12:20-36

Sermon

George Bass

... later than the climactic events of Lent and Holy Week? Holy Cross Day seems totally out of place in September, doesn’t it? Why was it put back in our calendar? Well, for one thing, it has nothing to do with any of the original reasons for celebrating Holy Cross Day on September 14. As early as the third century, Ember Days were celebrated. These were Christian fasts connected to the harvest (Penetecost), the vintage, or new wine (September), and sowing (December). Later, there were four embertides that ...

1445. Pardon for Sin

Romans 5:12-21

Sermon

Dennis Kastens

... unconsciously wish his employer’s demise. By defense stratagem he may manage to conceal the death wish and to obscure the full magnitude of the hatred which gives rise to it. He feels extremely guilty, but the feeling of guilt is detached from the original idea - displaced - and it appears in his consciousness in the company of a different idea. Perhaps the patient cannot drive his automobile anymore, because he is haunted by the idea that he may drive over someone without knowing it. His feeling of guilt ...

1446. No Condemnation!

Romans 8:1-17

Sermon

Dennis Kastens

... is that your God is too small. You have belittled God by cutting him down below the size of your sin. Remember this word of St. Paul: "Where sin abounded, grace did much more abound." (And that is a very weak translation of the Greek original.) What the Apostle actually says is this: "Where sin existed in abundance, grace existed in superabundance and then more grace added to this superabundance." Learn to know God and the staggering magnitude of his grace, and you will learn to sing: Plenteous grace with ...

1447. Clouds and Son-Shine

Ephesians 3:1-13

Sermon

Hubert Beck

... the difficulties of life through faith, but one can see them from a different angle. Thus, one not only feels them at the moment, but sees through them into another dimension to which they are leading. This leads us, then, to the second subdivision of our original question. We have been asking how one becomes enthusiastic about doing a difficult task, and now we must ask the question that comes out of it, "How does one sustain enthusiasm for the task?" On occasion one can whip up a fury of enthusiasm over ...

1448. The Impartiality of God

Acts 10:23b-48

Sermon

Hubert Beck

... his will? He was not to be denied so easily and simply as the fall may lead us to think, for even the yawning separation between humanity and God that came about because of sin was bridged by him in order to return his creation to its original intention. It is certainly not a matter that God would cease to exist when and where his creation permanently estranged itself. He had existed before the creation and could again live unto himself. But there is something in his heart that yearns for his creation, a ...

1449. Called to Be Saints

1 Corinthians 1:1-9

Sermon

Hubert Beck

... ? The very routineness of everyday life gnaws at any sense we may have of being chosen people, called to be saints. Can this be what it means to "salt the earth"? Yes, it is! If Paul had not found purpose and meaning in the year and a half he originally spent at Corinth, the church would not even have been there to which a letter could have been sent! Had Isaiah not continued his thankless task, saying, as though to himself, "Yet surely my right is with the Lord and my recompense with my God," (Isaiah 49:4b ...

1450. The Strength of Poverty

1 Corinthians 1:18--2:5

Sermon

Hubert Beck

... places in the Scripture about how important our possessions are to us. The Bible does not place God in opposition to the created world - after all, he made it, did he not, and even though humanity has fallen and dragged all creation down from its original perfection, God still honors his own work! Rather, the Bible poses the question before us constantly about whether we have become so attached to the creation that we have forgotten the Creator. For where we have become too attached to the creation, thereby ...

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