Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 1476 to 1500 of 4508 results

Sermon

James McCormick

When the Empire State building was being planned, there were cynics who said that you can’t build a building out of concrete and steel 102 stories high. It is impossible. The whole thing will come crashing down! However, engineers said that there is virtually no limit to how high you can build, providing the foundation is deep enough and strong enough. Jesus was a builder. He understood the impor...

1477. What Is Success?

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

Erma Bombeck wrote, "I can't remember the name of the man who spoke at my high school commencement, but I remember what he said. He told us the future of the world rested on our shoulders and he charged us with finding our destiny and fulfilling it. He went on to say we alone must cure disease, hunger and poverty throughout the world, and above all, we must find success. "I glanced over at Jack, ...

1478. Proper 4

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

Theme: A contrast between the righteousness of obedience and the righteousness of faith. The First Lesson from Deuteronomy presents Moses' instruction to obey God's laws by making them an integral part of their daily lives. The First Lesson, from Genesis, shows how Noah obeyed God by building the Ark. In the Gospel, Jesus teaches that everyone who hears his words and does them is like the person w...

1479. Inner Experience (Wedding Sermon)

Sermon

Mary Lu Warstler

Marriage requires generosity, unselfishness, flexibility, and forbearance from both husband and wife. The reality and happiness of your marriage depends upon the inner experience of your heart and the integrity of your commitment. __________ and __________, today as you celebrate your marriage, you must realize that this ceremony is only an outward sign -- a symbol for the world to know that your ...

1480. Parable of Three Fools and a Wise Man

Illustration

The first man was a hard worker. Always ready to help and with a record of good service to thousands. Wherever he was, he pitched in and gave of himself. Some said, "What a fool! Everyone takes advantage of him." The second man was a friendly, cheerful optimist. Laughter and smiles were always his daily gift. Misfortune came and went and he laughed them off. His friendship was for everyone. He e...

1481. A Sudden Storm that Tests Everything

Illustration

Phil Thrailkill

Back in the year 1174, an Italian architect by the name of Bonnano Pisano began work on what would become his most famous project: a bell tower to beautify the Cathedral of the city of Pisa. The tower was to be a cylindrical, eight-story, 185-foot-tall building with arcaded stories, a fine example of Tuscan Romanesque architecture. There was just one "little" problem. During construction, the buil...

1482. How Could He Say That?

Illustration

Larry Bethune

Horatio G. Spafford was a Chicago attorney who lost everything he had in the great Chicago fire of 1871. Yet he put his best efforts into helping Dwight L. Moody rebuild the Northside Tabernacle, the first building to go back up after that disaster. In 1873 Spafford's wife and four daughters were en route to England aboard the Ville du Havre when it was struck at sea by another ship and sank. Only...

1483. The Sound of Someone Trying to Play

Illustration

Peter Hiett

A violin student came to the great composer Stravinsky and said, "I can't play this piece. I've given it my best and found it too difficult, even unplayable." Stravinsky replied, "I understand that. What I am after is the sound of someone trying to play it." Is that what God wants? Well, Jesus didn't say, "He who hears these words and tries is like a wise man who built his house on the rock"; Jes...

1484. The Silent Bible

Illustration

Donald M. Tuttle

In 1970, James Smart wrote a little book entitled "The Strange Silence of the Bible in the Church." In it he convincingly argued that the Scriptures were falling silent in the teaching and preaching of the church and in the consciousness of the people in the pews. More than 30 years ago—back in what some see as the glory days of the church—vast sections of the Christian faith had already stopped l...

1485. Building According to Code

Illustration

Our Daily Bread

In 1992, Hurricane Andrew destroyed thousands of homes in South Florida. Yet in an area where the wreckage looked like a war zone, one house remained standing, still firmly anchored to its foundation. When a reporter asked the homeowner why his house had not been blown away, he replied, "I built this house myself. I also built it according to the Florida state building code. When the code called ...

1486. Built Upon Love

Illustration

Brett Blair

Lebanon in northern Israel has rocky hillsides, while the valleys, where the rivers run, are sandy because of erosion coming down from higher ground. A village builder in Jesus' day had two choices. They did not excavate foundations. You built a house in the valley on sandy soil or on a rocky hillside. Valley building was easier, but hillside was safer. Hillside builders planned for the worse; val...

1487. Best Advice

Illustration

Brett Blair

Fortune Magazine asked 19 accomplished people what was the best advice they ever got. Here are some of them: (Don't try to preach all 17 excerpts below. We suggest using 3 to 4 examples that mean the most to your community. Then skip down and use the conclusion to this illustration.) Michael Bloomberg, the mayor of New York, got his from his days at Salomon Brothers: "Always ask for the order, a...

1488. Cheap Advice Is Often Hypocritical Advice

Illustration

Brett Blair

In a Peanuts cartoon Lucy is playing her role as psychiatrist. She sits in her booth with the sign that reads: "Psychiatric Help - 5 cents." The sign below says, "The Doctor Is In." Lucy says to Charlie Brown,"Your life is like a house." In the next frame, she says reflectively, "You want your house to have a solid foundation, don't you?" Charlie Brown has a kind of blank look on his face. Lucy s...

1489. Wedding Sermon - The Solid Rock On Which We Stand!

Sermon

Robert S. Crilley

__________ and __________: The occasion of any wedding always confronts a preacher with the challenge of finding a middle ground between two extremes. On the one hand, it would seem, down through the years, that everything worth saying about a rich and rewarding relationship has, in some way or another, already been said -- most memorably perhaps by the world's poets. On the other hand, the two of...

1490. Jesus, Isaiah’s Servant of the Lord, Heals Many

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

Big Idea: Matthew encourages his readers to trust in Jesus, as he brings the power of God’s kingdom to bear upon human sickness and suffering, both to Israel and as a foreshadowing of Gentile inclusion. Understanding the Text As Matthew’s earlier summary of Jesus’ teaching (4:23–25) indicates, Jesus’ messianic ministry is characterized by preaching (4:17), teaching (5:1–7:29), and healing (8:1–9...

1491. The Man With Leprosy

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

8:1–9:38 Review · Jesus’s enactment of the kingdom:After expressing Jesus’s kingdom ministry in teaching (5:1–7:29), Matthew narrates Jesus’s kingdom ministry in action (8:1–9:38). Matthew demonstrates Jesus’s authority to heal the sick, cast out demons, forgive sins, and calm a storm. Other themes include Jesus’s compassion in his role as Isaiah’s servant of the Lord and the qualities of full all...

1492. The Man With Leprosy

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

A Ministry of Healing: Matthew summarized the public ministry of Jesus as teaching, preaching, and healing in chapter 4 (v. 23; repeated in 9:35). In chapters 5–7 we were introduced to the teaching ministry of Jesus. In chapters 8–9 we will learn of his ministry in deeds. This second main section of the Gospel comprises three series of acts of miraculous power. Each series has three miracles—one i...

1493. We Know Exactly How You Feel, Jesus

Sermon

Frank Luchsinger

Oh, Christmas has come and gone, but its scent lingers: spiced cider, evergreen, bayberry candles, cookies baking, popcorn, ham and scalloped potatoes, chestnuts roasting, and hot chocolate. Christmas has come, and its scent lingers: the aroma of newspaper casually read by a crackling fire or the smell of a new book received as a gift; pungent chemicals of instant pictures developing, or tempera p...

1494. The Master Has Come - And Is Moved With Compassion

Sermon

There lived in India a well-known poet named Tagore. One morning his servant was late coming to work. Tagore became more angry by the minute as he waited for him to arrive. Finally, the servant came in and began his duties. Tagore had already decided to fire him. He said, "Stop what you are doing and get out. You are fired." The man kept sweeping and said, "My little girl died last night." This i...

1495. A Paper Bag Is Worth a Lot

Children's Sermon

Wesley T. Runk

Object: A paper bag and bunch of fruit - a dozen apples or oranges or anything that a child would have trouble holding in his hands. Good morning, boys and girls. How much are you worth? Has anyone ever asked you how much you are worth? [Let them answer.] It isn’t the kind of question that very many people ask one another, but people like to know how much they are worth to other people. Sometimes...

1496. The Centurion’s Faith

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

Capernaum (8:5) was the setting of a customs station and was near a trade route. Given this strategic location, the presence of Roman soldiers was likely. To hear of a centurion, a commander of eighty to one hundred soldiers and a representative of Rome’s great military power, approaching Jesus in an attitude of submission (8:5–6), requesting healing for his servant (the Greek term may possibly be...

1497. The Faith of the Centurion

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

1498. Good Soldiers for Jesus

Children's Sermon

Wesley T. Runk

Object: Sergeant stripes, army hat, policeman's hat or any object or authority Good morning, boy and girls. How do you like that? Every Sunday I say the same thing. Why don't we change it? Do you know what they said in the time when the Bible was written? They said, "Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ," or "Grace be unto you." Wouldn't it be wonderful to say something like that to each other w...

1499. Good Soldiers, Bad Wars

Sermon

Erskine White

It has become commonplace for the church to talk about peace in recent years; indeed, dozens of church statements have been issued for the purpose of condemning war. And this is entirely appropriate, since Christ has charged His people to be peacemakers (Matthew 5:9) in a world which is weary of war. But amid all the verbiage of ecclesiastical pronouncements, the church has been nearly silent abo...

1500. Unreasonable Mercy

Sermon

Lori Wagner

Prop: YouTube Clip from the Emperor’s New Groove (provided below) and Ad for Discover Card. You can also optionally play some of the clip from Abbott and Costello. [Hold up a cell phone.] Technology. We love it. And we hate it. It makes our lives easier, faster, more convenient, for sure. But like any form of mediating communication, it can also confuse, convolute, cause misunderstandings betwee...

Showing 1476 to 1500 of 4508 results