Sermon and Worship Resources

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Mt 22:1-14 · Php 4:1-9 · Ex 32:1-14 · Ps 106

Bulletin Aid

First Lesson: Exodus 32:1-14 Theme: Selfless intercession Exegetical Note Readers may have difficulty with a view of God that allows for the divine wrath to get so out of hand that the deity has to be dissuaded from and repent of the vengeful evil that the divine indignation has threatened. More plausible, perhaps, is the selfless intercession of Moses, who gave up the flattering divine offer to become the new father of a great nation in order to plead on the basis of the old Abramic pact. Call to Worship ...

1477. Advent 2

Matthew 3:1-12

Bulletin Aid

... this: When we united with the church, we made a promise to support the mission and ministry of Jesus Christ throughout this world. How are you responding to that promise with your time, resources, personality, money? Charge to the Congregation One pastor used this illustration: A picture shows Faust playing a game of chess with Satan. James Stewart reminds us of how hopeless the situation seems to be. Faust, who gambled with his soul, has only a few pieces left, among them, a king and knight. Blank despair ...

1478. Easter 6

John 14:15-31

Sermon Aid

... in a new way, through the Counselor, the Spirit of God. Again, they could begin to rejoice. Make sure that the children understand that when they feel all alone, Jesus is present with them. Proclamation of the Word Suggestion: You may want to use this illustration. Walt Whitman wrote of his work with wounded soldiers in Washington hospitals during the Civil War. "I do not give jelly and fruit to the wounded men. I become the wound-ed man myself." Jesus became one of us; and God sent the Counselor to keep ...

1479. Proper 4

Matthew 7:15-23

Sermon Aid

... that we are always "right." 4. Relate ourselves to others in a pesonal way, that is, as persons, not as things. For the assurance of pardon, ask the choir to sing "My Soul Doth Rejoice" Message with the Children of All Ages Try this: Illustrate the Scripture about building something on rock and sand. Maybe some of the children have built sand castles, and remember how quickly they disappeared when the tide came in. Discuss ways by which they can build their lives on a solid foundation. Proclamation of ...

1480. Proper 11

Matthew 13:24-30

Sermon Aid

... Graham George, and then, with the Lord's Prayer. If you use the Lord's Prayer, ask the people to consider what they are praying, so that the Prayer becomes a prayer rather than a recital. Message with the Children of All Ages Try this: Illustrate one, or all three, of the parables. Have some soil in which wheat and weeds grow together, or a mustard seed and plant, or bread and leaven. Apply these to their own life experiences. Proclamation of the Word Suggestion: Compare our impatience with God's patience ...

1481. Proper 18

Matthew 18:15-20

Sermon Aid

... of All Ages Suggestion: Develop the message around the idea "Do you ever think of God and Jesus when you're at school, especially when you're having a bad day and not getting along with your classmates?" Perhaps you can use this illustration. One day my seminary theology professor was watching a baseball game at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh. He wondered if anyone ever thought about God at a baseball game, with people screaming, shouting, and swearing. As he sat there, wrestling with such a deep question ...

1482. Proper 20

Matthew 20:1-16

Sermon Aid

... that we are worth it in God's eyes. "Help us, God, to accept your mercy to us, so that we might be merciful to others." Message with the Children of All Ages Suggestion: Make certain that the children know what the word mercy means. Find an illustration from your life in which someone showed mercy to you, or in which you showed mercy to someone. Perhaps one of the children would share such an experience. Point out how much greater God's mercy is to us. Proclamation of the Word Suggestion: Identical Wages ...

1483. Proper 22

Matthew 21:33-46

Sermon Aid

... . We need to incorporate in our church relationships both acceptance and accountability. Consider how we take the easy way out in our lives, in our homes, communities, and congregations. Jesus did not take the easy way out. Our Scripture points out one illustration of confrontation. Jesus kept saying to people; "Get going and quit sinning!" Luther said, "Cut it out!" I say, "Give it up - anything which separates you from God, from others, from your best self." After several moments of silence, you may want ...

1484. Proper 25

Matthew 22:34-40

Sermon Aid

... get some candy. Love is a little bit like that. We give it away and it comes back to us. Not always does it work that way, because Jesus gave his love, and some people became angry and killed him. After some additional words, perhaps and illustration from your own life, invite the children and adults to sing "Magic Penny." Then, as the children return to the pews, ask the congregation to sing it again. Proclamation of the Word Consider this: "You Mean, the Whole Thing?" Begin with this prayer: "Holy, holy ...

1485. Three Secrets of A Life Well Lived

2 Timothy 4:6-8

Sermon

Brett Blair

... seeking. All of us are familiar with the former Indiana University basketball coach Bobby Knight and his fits of temper on the court. He is perhaps most famous for choking one of his players. When he was finally replaced, the caricature on the front of Sports Illustrated showed Bobby Knight with both hands around his own neck, choking himself. You could not miss his caustic nature. Knight had become his own worst enemy. When we come to the end of our struggle, all of us can say that we have fought the fight ...

1486. The Precepts of the Lord

Exodus 20:1-21, Psalm 19:7-14

Sermon

... themselves adulterers (which is what they are) because their emotions "got carried away." Of course, nothing can match the passion with which every one of us routinely alters the truth in order to cast ourselves in the best light possible. Such examples illustrate the necessity for an objective, externalized summary of Natural Law, as we have in the Ten Commandments. God knows that internalized natural law can become subjective - meaning that while it is based upon reason, one can never be sure that reason ...

1487. The Fashioning of Christians

Ezekiel 36:1-38

Sermon

... take any alien thing down to the water with them.23 Now why were early Christians told to remove all their clothing and bring absolutely nothing with them into the baptismal waters? Two reasons: 1. It gives modern preachers a nice "R-rated" sermon illustration. 2. Baptismal nudity is a symbol. What does it mean? Saint Paul alludes to the practice and explains its meaning: Put off your old nature which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit ...

1488. Loyalty: Imperative Ingredient

Ruth 1:1-22

Sermon

... the new nation. Thomas Jefferson came up with his own version of the New Testament, entitled The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth. However, there is no record of him even remotely suggesting it should become official for The United States of America. Our illustrations could continue with John Adams, George Washington, etc. No one likes to be referred to as a traitor to his/her country. Men and women have died protecting the USA. To consider, for one moment, they died in vain, is to become impudent and ...

1489. I ... Oh ... U

Luke 18:9-14

Sermon

... his character descriptions, he is setting up two extremes - the very pious, self-centered ... the very penitent, God-centered. And he wants us to keep a mental picture of each as we go about our daily living. Certain thoughts in this parable can be illustrated through two renderings of our sermon title: I ... Oh ... U - a sound of surprise, as though we had been so wrapped up in "I" we hadn’t noticed someone else was there. Here we are, in fastpaced, competitive lives ... sprinkled with folk-sayings like ...

1490. Put Something in Its Place

Matthew 12:38-45, Luke 11:14-28

Illustration

Howard Thurman

... everything clean, fresh, and rearranged, but empty of occupancy. With a flash of insight, he sized up the situation, called friends and cronies, and, together with them, he reestablished himself in his old setting. Jesus adds, "And the last state of the man was worse than the first." The story illustrated a profound truth about the nature of life. That which is left unattended seems to disintegrate. In other words, get the devil out but put something in his place.

1491. Lord of the Dance

Illustration

Robert A. Raines

A dated illustration but adaptable: Is God less pleased by guitar than organ? Does he prefer to be praised by Bach more than by the "Blues?" Does he like "for All the Saints" better than "When the Saints Go Marchin’ In"? Our youth are teaching us that Jesus as the "Lord of the ...

1492. Let Yes Be Yes!

Matthew 15:21-28

Sermon

... who knew how to make sick folk well. God had said "yes" to her by giving her her daughter. Now she had heard God say "yes" through Jesus’ healing power. So she came, believing he would make things right for her. The text which Matthew gives us illustrates a string of barriers the woman had to get around. She got past every one of them. When someone hears a "yes" declared on her behalf, it’s hard to talk that person out of it. This woman showed incredible tenacity because she knew what Israel’s ...

1493. It’s How It Ends That Matters

Matthew 21:28-32

Sermon

... their shoes try to keep them from the Great reunion, nor force them to keep far to the rear of the parade, nor (God forbid) waylay them or just force them off the road. Two more examples, from the ranks of English Church History, will illustrate this type. The great wit, C. S. Lewis, started out a doubter. He saw British Christianity a pale and bloodless business. It did not excite him. In fact, to his reasoned, calculating way of thinking, Christianity made very little sense. It smelled of superstition and ...

1494. Naming the Divine Baby

Matthew 1:18-25

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... Son, when I was a boy I worked three months in the fields to repay my father for buying me this thing. I wanted it badly. So, you see, when you came to me asking for a record player, I understood immediately. I had been there.” That homely illustration has a message in it. Because Jesus was an authentic human being like us, he understands us. Jesus has walked the paths we walk. He is truly Emmanuel, God with us. As the author of Hebrews declares, “Because Jesus himself was tested.. .he is able to help ...

1495. No Longer Spectators - But Participants!

Acts 2:14-41

Sermon

Barbara Brokhoff

... the unbelief. Faith comes to Thomas, and he responds, "My Lord and my God!" There are side benefits to this kind of participation. Our own faith is bolstered, and we are left with new confidence for ourselves. John McKay of the NFL tells a story illustrating the supreme confidence of Bear Bryant, University of Alabama football coach. McKay and Bryant had been out shooting ducks for about three hours, and after a while, one lonely duck flew by. The Bear fired, and that duck is still flying today. But as Bear ...

1496. The Stiller of Storms

Matthew 14:22-36

Sermon

Dennis Kastens

... another child’s toy; the school boy cheating in an examination; the grown man seeking greater possessions and honors than those about him; the mother coveting special privileges for her children; one nation seeking dominance over another nation. Such examples illustrate the pervading and perennial power of this subtle sin of selfishness. The multitudes in Jesus’ day, seeking a king who would provide bread for them, were not essentially different from the multitudes of today who want the government to ...

1497. Who Are God’s People?

Exodus 19:1-25

Sermon

John R. Brokhoff

... by our sins. Disobedience displeases the Father in heaven. He does not wink at sin nor turn his head to our wrongs. In Amos, Hosea, and Micah as well as in Isaiah, God threatens to punish evil-doers. In the history of Israel, time after time it is illustrated that God’s people suffer to the point of defeat and captivity as a result of faithlessness to God’s covenant. The word from Christ to us today is, "Except you repent, you will all likewise perish." What does the Lord require of us his people? "To ...

1498. Separation of God and State?

Isaiah 44:24--45:25

Sermon

John R. Brokhoff

... Gandhi’s leadership and in America under Martin Luther King, Jr.’s, emphasis on civil rights. If God is to be the ruler of a nation, does this call for a theocracy - that is, a government run by church or religious leaders? We have an illustration of theocracy in today’s Iran which is governed by a Muslim religious primate and other lesser religious leaders as subordinate officials. God forbid that the church should ever be over the state! Church leaders are not equipped to rule a nation. They may ...

1499. As Good As God

Leviticus 19:1-37

Sermon

John R. Brokhoff

... Justice for All." Why the word, "equal"? If justice is justice, is it not necessary for it to be equal? Doesn’t the inscription indicate that Justice may not be justice for some? Some laws are unjust for some people. This is well illustrated in segregation laws whether they are in America, India, or South Africa. These laws are unjust by forcibly keeping races separate, by making some people second-class citizens, and by refusing them equal service. The Apostles faced an unjust decision by the Jerusalem ...

1500. Victim or Visionary

John 19:28-37

Sermon

Robert Bachelder

... nature mine, That were a present far too small; Love so amazing, so divine, Demands my soul, my life, my all. Only by love "so amazing" could God win our hearts and minds. What I am saying here about the necessity and power of the cross was illustrated beautifully some years ago in the movie called "The Pawnbroker." The protagonist is an immigrant named Sol Nazerman who is a pawn merchant in a little shop in Harlem. Having lost his wife and children in a Nazi deathcamp, he is determined never to be injured ...

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