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Showing 126 to 150 of 4963 results

126. Trust versus Self-Reliance

1 Corinthians 10:1-13

Teach the Text

Preben Vang

... no fewer than four verbal forms/moods and three verbal tenses.10 Translating the grammatical points of Paul’s expression into English would sound something like this: “As a result, the one who continues to think[11] that he/she is able to stand must remain watchful lest he/she may fall.” Paul’s point is not to sow a seed of uncertainty about faith but to warn against taking God’s love for granted without considering his wrath. It is a warning against confusing self-reliance with trust in God ...

127. The Vision of the Great Prostitute

Revelation 17:1-18

Teach the Text

J. Scott Duvall

... exists between the followers of the Lamb and those who give their allegiance to the beast.”1 17:9–11 The seven heads are seven hills . . . also seven kings. Five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; but when he does come, he must remain for only a little while. The beast . . . is an eighth king. He belongs to the seven and is going to his destruction. The beast’s seven heads are identified as seven hills, perhaps a reference to the seven hills of ancient Rome. Yet the Greek term oros ...

128. A Lifestyle of Holiness and Love

Leviticus 19:1-37

Teach the Text

Joe M. Sprinkle

... , since all of them are repeated in some form in the New Testament. So is the command to love our neighbors. The Sabbath law has a ceremonial element that requires adjustment (Saturday), but its principles of rest and setting aside time for God remain applicable (see commentary at Lev. 19:3–4). Laws on helping the poor, treating the disabled and hired workers decently, and applying laws equally to all social classes seem universally valid. Though slavery is not legally practiced today (and should not be ...

129. Samuel Confronts the People

1 Samuel 12:1-25

Teach the Text

Robert B. Chisholm Jr.

... ” echoes the commands of Moses (Deut. 6:13; 10:20) and Joshua (Josh. 24:14). The words are repeated as a double command in verse 24, with added emphasis (see the note below). It is apparent that the Lord, despite granting Israel a king, remains sovereign over his covenant people and expects them to renew their covenantal allegiance to him. and do not rebel. This command recalls the rebellion of Moses, Aaron, and Israel that prevented all the concerned parties from entering the land of promise (Num. 20:24 ...

130. Covenant Exhortations and Renewal

Joshua 23:1-16

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... of her enemies, when Joshua has already become very old (23:1). In fact, Joshua himself suggests that it will not be long before he will pass away (23:14). So, gathering the leaders together as representatives of all Israel, Joshua charges them to remain faithful to the Lord and warns them of the dire consequences of disobedience. Joshua first reminds the people of how the Lord has fought for them against their enemies, and how he will continue to dispossess their enemies for them until they have taken ...

131. Edom’s Judgment Pronounced and Reaffirmed

Obadiah 1:1-21

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... of Canaan as an inheritance, an everlasting possession (Gen. 17:1–8; Exod. 3:8; Josh. 1:1–9; 2 Sam. 7:10; cf. Deut. 1:6–8). The purpose of Obadiah’s appeal to history is to instill hope in the Babylonian exiles (and those who remained in Jerusalem as vassals to Nebuchadnezzar) by reinforcing their faith in Yahweh as a covenant-keeping God. By beginning and ending these verses (vv. 19–20) with the Israelite possession of the Negev, the prophet indicates that the fall of Edom should be viewed as the ...

132. Questions about Marriage, Divorce, and Celibacy

1 Corinthians 7:1-40

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... of the Spirit (Gal. 5:25; 1 Cor. 2:6–16). A final example concerns the slave and the freedman. Here, however, the analogy is incomplete, for Paul admits that the slave should use the chance to gain freedom whenever it comes. Nonetheless, the main point remains intact. The distinction in status between slave and free is irrelevant to those who belong to the Lord, who makes the slave his freedman (Gal. 5:1) and the free one Christ’s slave (Rom. 1:1). All three categories now come back into the argument ...

133. David Flees

2 Samuel 15:13-37

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

... to support David. Any hope that Absalom might have had of a bloodless coup was destroyed from the start. David may have kept himself away from the public in recent times, but the great personal loyalty that he had inspired in those who served him in the past remained firm. David’s offer to Ittai that he should go back and serve Absalom may indicate that David expected to be in exile, roaming around much as he had done in the latter years of Saul’s reign. The Gittites were not under threat of death and ...

134. David and Ziba

2 Samuel 16:1-4

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

135. Shimei Curses David

2 Samuel 16:5-14

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

136. Listening and Doing

James 1:19-27, James 1:1-18

Understanding Series

Peter H. Davids

... times. But James is not trying to encourage believers to stuff their doubts deep within and to drum up an emotional feeling of certainty, but to commit themselves. Faith for James is a single-minded commitment to God that trusts in God because God is God. Thus faith remains resting in God despite doubt and holds on through testing. Faith is the “but if not” of Daniel’s friends (Dan. 3:18); the “though he slay me yet will I trust him” of Job (Job 13:15). It is a confident trust in God or a resting ...

137. Have You Been Pruned?

John 15:1-8

Sermon

King Duncan

... . That’s our job. Now how do we go about doing that? First of all, we produce fruit by staying connected to the vine. Later in this passage Christ says, “Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing . . .” Again, the message is clear. The secret to bearing fruit is ...

138. The Promise of Prayer

Luke 1:5-25

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... in our story for today. Zechariah is a priest. He’s a Temple priest in Jerusalem, and he’s up for “incense duty” this week. It’s his turn to light the incense on that special altar. So, on that day, he goes inside, and everyone else remains outside praying. As always, Zechariah prays for a son. He and his wife Elizabeth had been praying for a son ….for years. Years and years! But Elizabeth had never become pregnant. Now they were aging, and Zechariah had pretty much given up on it. But out of ...

139. Sweet Vine

John 15:1-17

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... ? God has been loyal in covenant, in love. God gave good soil, sun, pruning to create the sweetest of grapes. And yet Israel’s identity strayed. In a sense, they developed “genetic errors” that prevented them from seeding good vines….from remaining pure in their “original-al” form (in relationship with God).* But this DNA is not a biological issue, but an issue of “identity” –an issue of relationship!** The “wine” itself that emerges from the “fruit” is the sacramental wine of the ...

140. Dusted

Mark 6:7-13, Matthew 10:1-42, Luke 9:1-9, Luke 10:1-24

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... thrown upon them (note Shimei who throws stones and dirt at David and who accepts that dust in humility recognizing his deeds), one is faced with a choice. One can turn (repent) and seek the heavenly “sprinkling” or baptism of the Holy Spirit. Or one can remain confined “to the dust.” *chaimbentorrah.com **See also Acts 13:51 and 18:6 as Paul shakes off dust. The word is also used in the Exodus, as the Lord “shook off” (eketinaksen) the Egyptians in the middle of the sea. In prophets, such as ...

141. Rise Up

Ezekiel 37:1-14

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... Spanish flu, and the great depression, we live in a time when faith is needed now more than ever. As we view the world from our television sets, as we oversee a global panorama of death and fear, as people rush the markets for toilet paper and food, as we remain locked inside of our doors for fear of an uncontrollable viral invader over which we have no control, we need to know that God sees our plight and will be there to lift us from it, or provide us peace and comfort through it. Today is the time for ...

142. All Wrapped Up

John 20:1-18

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... burial. It was considered a desecration of the body if a grave were opened after burial. For this reason the grave would be often watched to make sure it would not be disturbed. The open tomb therefore would have been immediately traumatic for the disciples. The remaining gravecloths and sudarium therefore were key to their understanding that this was not a removal of the body but a vanishing of the body, not a desecration but a miracle! The word for the head garment lying in a different place was the Greek ...

143. The Seventy “Sevens”

Daniel 9:20-27

Understanding Series

William Nelson

... Jeremiah), multiplied it by the number 7, which is also symbolic, to get 490 years. Then he carved out the first period of 49 years (7 weeks × 7 years) to highlight Jeshua, and the last period of 1 week (7 years) to expose the tyranny of Epiphanes. What remains is the middle block of 62 weeks, which possibly is not meant to be taken literally. It is all about the sevens! If the author of Daniel reduced the number of years for the middle period, it would not fit the pattern. In short, even if the numbers ...

144. Look How You Listen

Mark 6:14-29

Sermon

George W. Hoyer

... Are some even today not doing any better than Herod at really understanding? This is about your hearing. As earnestly as I am able I say to any of you on the fringes of this congregation, who like to listen on occasional Sundays but are content to remain perplexed: Do not let John's message today fall short of your understanding. Let Herod be a warning. Perplexed, not persuaded, he let a foolish oath and a silly dancing girl destroy him. One cannot be saved even by much listening. He cut John off short and ...

145. Heaven's Wait

Joshua 24:1-27

Sermon

Robert S. Crilley

... my world will ever be the same again. He was my very best friend." Life entails change. Sometimes it is welcomed, other times it is not. But in every instance, it serves as a silent testimony that even that to which we fervently cling can never remain constant for very long. It is, I think, a truth of which the Israelites were already aware. Obviously, they had seen more than a few changes over the course of their tumultuous journey. In fact, in the opening verses of chapter 24, Joshua actually reminds them ...

146. Wedding: Older Couple, Previously Married

Bulletin Aid

Derl G. Keefer

... : (Groom), please place on (Bride's) finger the ring you give her as a symbol of your devotion to her, and continuing to look into her eyes, repeat after me: Pastor (Groom Repeats): (Bride), I give you this ring as a symbol of my love. May it remain always to you and to others a symbol of my fidelity, and may God graciously bless our marriage. Pastor: (Bride), please repeat after me your words of acceptance. Pastor (Bride Repeats): (Groom), I accept your ring and will wear it as a symbol of my fidelity, and ...

147. I Am The Real Vine

Sermon

Ronald Lavin

... away; and every fruiting branch he cleans, to make it more fruitful still. You have already been cleansed by the word that I spoke to you. Dwell in me, as I in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself, but only if it remains united with the vine; no more can you bear fruit, unless you remain united with me. I am the vine, and you are the branches. He who dwells in me, as I dwell in him, bears much fruit; for apart from me you can do nothing. -- John 15:1-5 (NEB) ____________ In chapter four where we ...

148. Advent 2

2 Peter 3:1-18, Isaiah 40:1-31, Mark 1:1-8

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

... everybody in the state, am an avid Nebraska Cornhusker football fan. Every year we are one of the top-rated and most successful teams. Yet the gold crown of number oneness had eluded us for 22 years and we had lost the last seven bowl games. Tom Osborne remains the most winning coach in college football but had not been able to lay his hand on the vaunted trophy. But on New Year's Day, 1995, the miracle happened! We overcame the Miami Hurricanes in the last quarter to lay claim to the grand prize. What we ...

149. Advent 4

Luke 1:26-38

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

... not the other way around, a house not made of wood and stone but flesh and blood. Is there a home in your house for the Lord to dwell in? How to build a secure house. In verse 16 God promises David that his house and kingdom would remain secure forever. That promise only has reality through the kingdom of Christ. We inhabit an age where crime and the fear of crime have led to a siege mentality. Americans are buying guns and security systems as never before. Women crowd into courses teaching self-defense. In ...

150. Easter 6

John 15:18--16:4, Acts 10:23b-48, 1 John 5:1-12

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

... Spirit can and does work in the lives of the unbaptized. On the other side of the coin, many times one can discern very little sense of the Spirit's presence in the lives of those who are baptized, because they have cut themselves off from the Word. The Spirit remains free to go where he wills. My intent is not to disparage baptism (God forbid!) but to keep us open to the Spirit's visitation. Lesson 2: 1 John 5:1-6 Who does God claim as his child? Sometimes we refer to all humans as children of God. This ...

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