Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 1476 to 1500 of 4490 results

1476. Saved!

Mark 10:17-31

Sermon

Warren Thomas Smith

"Then who can be saved?" (v. 26) We have a sublime vignette before us, a scene in the ministry of Jesus which reveals not only secrets about people, life and values, but the nature of salvation itself. Unhappily, we frequently fail to understand, miss the point, strain at the gnat, and swallow the camel in attempting an explanation. An Honest Soul Our young man is transparently honest. (I call him young because he sounds like a student.) Like Jesus, we love him, and his good qualities are abundant. At ...

1477. There Is Hope (A Christmas Communion Meditation)

Luke 1:67-80

Sermon

Brett Blair

The birth of John the Baptist puts a different spin on the birth of Jesus. We get to see the birth and life of Jesus through the eyes of relatives who were going through the same odd happenings that had surrounded Mary and Joseph. Zechariah and Elizabeth are the proud parent's of John, who would later be called The Baptist, new parents who are allowed to see into the future and understand that there was hope, a great hope coming to the world. Zechariah’s song reminds us that the backdrop of all this hope ...

1478. God and Silence

Psalm 46:1-11

Sermon

David E. Leininger

Perhaps you are familiar with the Quakers, and especially their custom of beginning a meal with a silent grace. A non-Quaker youth was invited for a meal in a strict Quaker household. The youngster was NOT familiar with Quaker piety and in particular, the silent preparation for food. He later reported his response to it: "There was this embarrassing silence when we first sat down at the table, and nobody knew what to say, and everybody looked down, so I told a funny story and that seemed to break the ice ...

1479. There's No Such Thing as Too Much Sugar

Psalm 91:1-16

Sermon

David E. Leininger

The Archangel Michael. We meet him here in Revelation as commanding General of God's forces in heaven. We meet him in the book of Daniel as the guardian of the nation of Israel,(1) who, together with Gabriel, fought against the prince (the angelic patron) of Persia. Then we meet him once more in Jude 9 where we read of a strange dispute between the devil and Michael over Moses' body. We meet him today on the liturgical calendar - in some church traditions, today, September 29th, is the Feast Day of St. ...

1480. It's A Wonderful Life

Isaiah 35:1-10

Sermon

King Duncan

Every year about this time television stations bring out of their vaults an old black and white film that is still speaking to people's lives. It's a film titled It's a Wonderful Life. George Bailey, the lead character in this heartwarming film, never felt like he amounted to much in life. He had dreams of becoming a famous architect, of traveling the world. Instead he feels trapped in a humdrum job in a small town. Then a crisis occurs that strains his every resource. He is faced with unjust criminal ...

1481. When Actions Speak Louder Than Words

Matthew 21:23-27

Sermon

King Duncan

A construction crew was laying a drain line as part of a new building. While excavating, the workers uncovered a power cable directly in the path of their work. The excavation was halted. An electrician was called in. The electrician came and looked at the cable. He assured workers that the cable was dead. "Go ahead and cut it out of the way," the electrician told the workers. The foreman asked, "Are you sure there is no danger?" "Absolutely," was the reply. Then the foreman asked, "Well, then, will you ...

1482. Why We Gather At The Table

Exodus 12:1-30

Sermon

Eric Ritz

A majestic cathedral in Northern Europe was known for its magnificent organ. Unlike the electronic organs of today, these organs depended on a man who would pump by hand the air needed for the organ to produce its great sound. A guest organist was scheduled to play for a 4:00 recital featuring the works of Mozart and Mendelssohn. This brilliant guest organist bowed before the crowd and said, "For my first selection I will play a piece by Mozart." He sat at the organ and began to press the keys but ...

1483. Crossing To A Land Of Hills And Valleys

Deuteronomy 11:1-32

Sermon

King Duncan

You may have heard about the three people who were trying to get into heaven. St. Peter asked the first, "Who's there?" "It's me, Jim Jones," the voice replied. St. Peter let him in. Then St. Peter asked the second one the same question, "Who's there?" "It's me, Sammy Smith," the voice replied. And St. Peter let him in. Finally he turns to the third, asking the same question, "Who's there?" "It is I, Ruth Randolph," answered the third. "Oh, great," muttered St. Peter. "Another one of those English teachers ...

1484. Any Friendly Bears Out There?

Matthew 22:34-40

Sermon

King Duncan

They were on a military training exercise and they were getting bored. Still, it was surprising when the radio operators of the British divisional command heard a voice one quiet night breaking the silence. The voice asked over the air, "Are there any friendly bears listening?" After a moment, another voice replied, "Yes, I'm a friendly bear," and then another voice-- "I'm a friendly bear too!" At this point, the Officer at Divisional Command Headquarters grabbed his microphone and let loose a blistering ...

1485. When Did We See You?

Ezekiel 34:1-31

Sermon

King Duncan

(Thanksgiving) The juxtaposition is startling--the Thanksgiving feast we have just enjoyed and our text for the day: " . . . I was hungry and you fed me; I was thirsty and you gave me water; I was a stranger and you invited me into your homes; naked and you clothed me, sick and in prison and you visited me." (Mt. 25: 35-36 The Living Bible). And yet what better day is there than this one--between the celebration of Thanksgiving, the one day when gluttony is transformed from a sin to a sacrament and Advent ...

1486. Living the Ten Commandments

Exodus 20:1-21

Sermon

Eric Ritz

A rabbi and a pompous woman who were attending a luncheon were conversing. "One of my ancestors," boasted the woman, "signed the Declaration of Independence." "Is that so?" asked the rabbi. "One of mine wrote the Ten Commandments." It was on Mount Sinai that Moses received the Ten Commandments. He didn''t write them. He received them from God, and these commandments have become a reliable guide to behavior for millions of people on this earth. The great preacher, Dr. Phillips Brooks, tells the story of a ...

1487. Things That Make Jesus Angry

John 2:12-25

Sermon

King Duncan

Jesus was a very gentle man. Right? We sing “Fairest Lord Jesus . . .” Or “Gentle Savior Meek and Mild . . .” Jesus was Mr. Nice Guy, the prototype sensitive male. Respectful of women. Loved little children. Kind to his mother. What is he doing, then, in the temple courts during the holiest season of the Jewish year, overturning tables and scattering coins and using a whip, of all things, to drive both people and cattle out of the courtyard? Imagine if someone came into our church and disturbed our service ...

1488. The Face that Launched a Thousand Lives

2 Corinthians 4:1-18

Sermon

Fredrick R. Harm

You will recall the ancient myth that lies behind our sermon theme for today. Helen, the wife of Sparta's king Menelaus, was acclaimed the most beautiful woman of Greece. The Greeks fought the Trojan War in order to get her back from Troy, where Paris, the son of King Priam, had taken her. In Christopher Marlowe's Dr. Faustus, the question is asked concerning Helen, "Was this the face that launched a thousand ships and burned the topless towers of Ilium?" Today's text speaks of a far greater face, a face ...

1489. Signs of the Times

Luke 21:5-38

Sermon

John P. Jewell

In his award winning book, The Education of Little Tree, writer Forest Carter writes of life with his Cherokee grandparents. He tells of sitting with his grandfather watching the morning sun rise over a mountain one winter morning. "... we watched the mountain while we ate. The sun hit the top like an explosion, sending showers of glitter and sparkle into the air. The sparkling of the icy trees hurt the eyes to look, and it moved down the mountain like a wave as the sun backed the night shadow down and ...

1490. On the Road Again

Luke 24:13-35

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

Blue eyes crying in the rain! Who knows where that sentence comes from? It’s from Psalm 14 verse…no, you know better. It’s from a haunting country ballad and no one sings it better than Willie Nelson. I’m not a country music buff but I like some of it – especially Willie. Recently I had to spend about three hours driving, and I tuned in to a good country music station. I recommend that experience, even though you may not like country music. It will contribute to your theological education. Now some of the ...

1491. To the Mountain

Luke 9:28-36

Sermon

Charles Curley

The story of the transfiguration of Jesus often seems like a way-station in Lent - a surprising oasis that catches us off guard after the sun-parched desolation of the temptation in the wilderness. Yet this story of God’s glory poured out on Jesus on the mountain is only a brief respite on the weary way to the cross. We never seem to fully grasp what it is all about, and it is soon forgotten as we journey on through the more familiar pathways of Lent. We, after all, know that Lent is not about glory, Lent ...

1492. God's Say-So

Hebrews 13:1-8, 15-16

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

I don’t know how many times I have used Oswald Chambers’ devotional classic, My Utmost for His Highest. At least every three or four years I go back to it for resourcing my daily spiritual reading and always -- without fail -- I am ministered to, receiving challenge and insight not received before. I remember the experience I had the last time I used it. The meditation began with this sentence from Hebrews 13, verses 5-6: “He hath said . . . so that we may boldly say.” Then came these two sentences: “My ...

1493. Where Do You Abide?

John 15:1-8

Sermon

Mark Trotter

Both our scriptures this morning come from the same hand. Or perhaps we could say, they come from the same community of faith, those who followed the Apostle John in his interpretation of Jesus, and what Jesus means for us. One clue to that common authorship is the word "abide." You find it in both passages read to us this morning, in the Gospel of John and in the First Letter of John. In the Gospel of John, Jesus says, "Abide in me, as I abide in you." In the First Letter of John it says, "By this we know ...

1494. Lent 3

Exodus 17:1-7, Romans 5:1-11, John 4:1-26, John 4:27-38, John 4:39-42

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

COMMENTARY Old Testament: Exodus 17:1-7 Upon Yahweh's direction, Moses brings water out of a rock for the wilderness people. God's people are in the wilderness and are thirsty. This is one of a series of complaints of the Israelites during their forty-year stay in the wilderness. This episode follows the pattern of the others: The people complain to Moses, Moses takes the complaint to Yahweh, and Yahweh graciously answers the need. In this case, Moses is directed to strike a rock out of which comes water ...

1495. Roll out the Green Carpet

Matthew 21:1-11

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

Before every “feast day” on the calendar—-Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, etc—-the local newspaper runs a reminder to its readers: Don’t include your pets in your over-indulgence! For Thanksgiving and Christmas the cautions are against letting Fido chow down on rich turkey skin, ham fat, giblets, gravies, and other greasy goodies. Your vet will tell you that there is always a huge spike in pets needing treatment for painful pancreatitis as a result of gobbling down all those rich human handouts. The ...

1496. The Church of Your Dreams

Acts 2:1-21

Sermon

John E. Harnish

The new St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church in Beulah, Michigan is built on a site of which dreams are made. It sits perched high on a ridge, overlooking rolling hills and orchards and Platte Lake. You can see Lake Michigan and the Empire Dunes in the distance. On a clear day, you can see all the way to the Manitou Islands. (And if you look closely, you can even see our cottage on Platte Lake.) The new church has beautiful open beams arching overhead, and on three sides it is solid glass, floor to ceiling, so ...

1497. Practicing God’s Presence

Hebrews 10:11-25

Sermon

Lee Ann Dunlap

In the early years of the sixteenth century, a young adventurer named Nicolas Herman left his parents' home near Loraine, France, to join the French army. Wounded in war, he returned home to recuperate and thus began a process of soul searching that led to Christian commitment. His quest for closeness to God first led him to life as a hermit. He found that unfulfilling, so he eventually joined a Carmelite monastery where he was assigned to menial duties in the kitchen. Kneading bread might truly seem an ...

1498. Scissors, Paper, Rock

1 Corinthians 10:1-13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

"Tough as nails." "Hard as a rock." "Solid as a brick." Those are our metaphors for strength and sturdiness. God, however, hardly ever seems to agree. The divine preference is for security in fluidity and victory in vulnerability, defying our concrete convictions. Do you remember as a kid playing the ancient game "scissors, paper, rock?" You and a friend would beat three counts into your palm with a fist, and on the third count would reshape your fist into either "scissors" (two fingers extended), "paper ...

1499. Proper 4

Mark 2:23-3:6, Psalm 139:1-24, 1 Samuel 3:1--4:1, 2 Corinthians 4:1-18

Bulletin Aid

B. David Hostetter

READINGS Psalter—Psalm 139:1-6, 13-18 First Lesson—Young Samuel responds to the call of God to serve in succession to Eli. 1 Samuel 3:1-10 (11-20) Second Lesson—Extraordinary gifts can be found in human vessels. 2 Corinthians 4:5-12 Gospel—Jesus exercises healing powers and does this work of compassion on the day of rest. Mark 2:23–3:6 CALL TO WORSHIP Leader: The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. People: And also with you. Leader: Jesus Christ is Lord and the Light of God. Come to the Light. ...

1500. Did You Know...You Can Be Forgiven For Anything?

1 John 1:8-10

Sermon

James Merritt

OK, let's see how you do on this question: Who would be considered the most evil dictator of the last century? a. Saddam Hussein b. Adolph Hitler c. Ivan the Terrible d. Joseph Stalin And the answer is…d) Joseph Stalin Many people would think Adolph Hitler to be the answer with the horrific actions committed against Jews, but the truth is Joseph Stalin was responsible for over 30 million deaths beginning in the 1930's as the Soviet Union massacred 8 million in the Ukrainian Holocaust and then proceeded to ...

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