Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: thirstiness, dryness, parched, craving, strong desire, longing, yearning, avidity, hunger, voracity, keenness, eagerness, lust, appetite, passion, love, crave, want, covet, desire, hunger for/after, lust for/after, hanker for/after, have one's heart set on

Antonyms: aversion, distaste, apathy, dislike, hatred, antipathy, disgust, disregard, abhorrence, acrimony, wet, animosity, animus, antagonism, bad feeling, bitterness, be averse to, detestation

Showing 1501 to 1525 of 4961 results

1501. Freedom In Christ

Galatians 5:1-15, Galatians 5:16-26

Understanding Series

L. Ann Jervis

Paul’s Direct Warning: To Become Circumcised Is to Be Divorced from Christ 5:2 Now Paul turns up the heat with a direct address—Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you. No longer using Scripture, Paul states forthrightly: if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. The options are clearly laid out: either circumcision without Christ or Christ without circumcision. While Paul has referred to the “circumcision group” (2:12) as those who are opposed to the “truth of the gospel” ...

1502. Scandal

Matthew 16:21-28, Matthew 17:14-23, Matthew 20:17-19, Matthew 26:1-5

Sermon

Lori Wagner

Prop (Animation): large mouse trap with “prop” piece; stone or rock; basket of river rocks People I know are hooked to two tv shows right now. One they admit right away: “Empire.” The other is more a “guilty pleasure” they admit to only when pressed: “Scandal.” Back for its fifth season, “Scandal” is the story of a president’s mistress. A married US President, Fitzgerald Grant, has fallen in love and is having an affair with crisis management professional, Olivia Pope. While her job is usually to “handle” ...

1503. Spiritual Blessings in Christ

Ephesians 1:1-14

Understanding Series

Arthur G. Patzia

The Opening Greeting 1:1 Except for the omission of Timothy, the opening of this greeting is quite similar to Colossians 1:1. The letter claims to be from Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus. This term was one that Paul used frequently to indicate that he was “one who was sent” (apostellō, “to send”) as a missionary or special envoy of God. It is used of the twelve disciples as well as for others who fulfill an apostolic function, such as Andronicus and Junias (Rom. 16:7). At times, it is applied to ...

1504. The Jesus Connection

John 15:1-17

Sermon

Donald B. Strobe

Some years ago in the city of Belfast in Northern Ireland, the members of one of the large Presbyterian churches decided to undertake a religious census among some 2000 homes in their district. When the results were in, the pastor of the church found himself seated at his desk, confronted with a huge heap of reports, and he began to note the visitors’ findings and especially any comments made by the visitors at the bottom of the page. One remark that occurred again and again was, “Used to be a Presbyterian ...

1505. The Lord Speaks

Job 38:1--41:34

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

God’s Appearance and Examination of Job Excursus: It should be clear from the outset that the fact God that appears in response to Job’s plea for a meeting immediately puts the lie to any claims to the contrary that Elihu and the other friends have made. God does appear in response to Job. His very appearance, therefore, proves Elihu’s earlier claim false—that God will not respond to Job because he has already spoken his final word of judgment in Job’s suffering. Deciding how to characterize this divine ...

1506. Paul, Phoebe, Patronage, and Spain

Romans 16:1-27

Teach the Text

C. Marvin Pate

Big Idea: Phoebe, Paul’s patron, will deliver Paul’s covenant letter and have it read to the Roman Christians. Phoebe’s authority as patron and deaconess will reinforce the reading’s solemnity. The Roman Christians should respond to Paul’s letter by providing hospitality for Phoebe and joining their resources with hers to launch Paul’s mission to Spain. Understanding the Text Romans 16:1–2 continues the document clause of Paul’s covenant letter to the Roman Christians (15:14–16:27). Romans 16:1–27 divides ...

1507. The Mechanics Of Prayer

Matthew 6:5-15, Luke 11:1-13

Sermon

John R. Brokhoff

Note: This isn't a sermon but it's a good primer if you are preaching on the subject. Our goal is to pray like Jesus. We want to improve the effectiveness of our prayers. That is our objective, but what are the means of reaching the goal? We have come to the time when we need to consider the nuts and bolts of Christlike prayer. What do we say? When do we say it? Where do we say it? How long should we pray? How often? These are some of the mechanics of prayer. They are important as means to the end. The ...

1508. The Kings of the South and the North

Daniel 11:2-35

Understanding Series

William Nelson

The Final Revelation--The Body: We enter now into the body of the last main revelation of the book of Daniel. There has been some progression in the visions of the book from a more general scope, encompassing larger blocks of history, to a more narrow focus on shorter periods of time. So, for example, Daniel 2 spans four and a half centuries by outlining the four human empires of Babylonia, Media, Persia, and Greece, which are swept away by the fifth—the eternal kingdom of God. Aside from the fact that the ...

1509. The Heart of an Intimate Matter

Matthew 5:27-30

Sermon

Phil Thrailkill

Convictions and opinions are not the same, are they? Someone has said, “Opinions are many, convictions are few; opinions change often, convictions rarely do.” Opinions live on the surface; convictions go deep. Opinions thrive around the gossipy edges; convictions live near the center of life. One way to tell the difference is to ask, What would you make a sacrifice for- of real money, of significant time, of patient suffering, even of life if necessary? The more you would pay, the closer you move to the ...

1510. The Work of An Evangelist

2 Timothy 3:10--4:8

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

I was driving down Poplar Avenue, one of the main thoroughfares in Memphis, when I noticed a bumper sticker on the car in front of me. In large letters, it said, “I AM A GENERIC CHRISTIAN.” Well, that got my attention. I never thought about anyone being a generic Christian. I saw that something else was written on the bumper sticker and I wanted to know what it was. I’m afraid I got dangerously close to the rear end of the fellow, so that I would be close enough to read what was there. It said, “Ask me ...

1511. The Sin and Doom of Godless Men

Jude 1:1-16

Understanding Series

Norman Hillyer

Writer and Readers 1 By custom, Hellenistic letters began with a threefold formula: (a) the name of the sender; (b) the name of the recipient; and (c) an opening salutation. Greek writers followed the pattern “(a) to (b): greetings.” A NT example is the letter of Claudius Lysias to Felix (Acts 23:26). Jewish letters were introduced slightly differently. The opening sentence gave the names of writer and recipient. A second sentence invoked a blessing upon the reader. The three elements of (a) author, (b) ...

1512. It’s Hard to Eat While Lying

John 13:18-30

Sermon

Donald B. Strobe

Judas Iscariot has always been an enigma to us. One preacher, writing many years ago said, “No minister, at the time of his ordination, ever entertained more pleasing prospects for a brilliant career than had Judas Iscariot.” For one thing, Judas was given a good name. The names Judas means “praise of God.” One of the eleven sons of Jacob bore that name. So did one of the brothers of Jesus; the one who, by tradition, wrote the book of Jude in the New Testament. He was probably named after one of the most ...

1513. Up Close & Personal: Coming Into Focus

1 John 1:5--2:14

Sermon

James Merritt

This is what most of us know as an “eye chart.” The actual name for this piece of paper is a Snellen Chart, and it is used to test your vision. More specifically, it is used to test how well your eyes can focus. At a distance of 20 feet, if you can read the red line on this chart, then you have 20/20 vision. Now, if all you can read is one of the larger letters, then this tells the eye doctor that your vision is out of focus. [Pastor’s Note: A PowerPoint slide of a Snellen Eye Chart is included in your ...

1514. Oracles of Restoration

Ezekiel 34:1-31, Ezekiel 35:1-15, Ezekiel 36:1-38, Ezekiel 37:1-14, Ezekiel 37:15-28

Understanding Series

Steven Tuell

Ezekiel’s Message of Hope and Restoration: Ezekiel 34–48, the second major part of this book, is concerned with a message of hope for the exiles and with the promise of Israel’s future restoration. That message has broken through in a muted sense in chapters 1–33 (11:14–21; 16:53–63; 20:33–44; 28:25–26), but it now becomes the central theme. These fifteen chapters fall into three sections. The first, chapters 34–37, is a series of seven oracles dealing with the restoration of Israel. The second section ...

1515. A Few Remaining Tremors

Matthew 18:21-35

Sermon

James Merritt

I will call him “Ray.” I met Ray back when I was a student pastor, in another church, here in Atlanta. He and his wife kind of took me in and we became the best of friends. As a matter of fact, he was instrumental in helping me and Teresa finally get together. I never dreamed I would tell you this story about Ray. It had been almost 25 years since I had seen or heard from Ray and out of the blue he called me when we were moving into the home where we now live and graciously offered to purchase the light ...

1516. A Faith for the Uncharted Way

Matthew 1:18-25

Sermon

Leonard Mann

A few summers ago my family and I made a motor trip west from our home in Ohio to the Pacific coast, and returned. We crossed the prairies and the plains, the Mojave Desert and the great salt flats of Utah; we drove through the Badlands and the Grand Tetons, and crossed the Sierra Nevadas and the Rocky Mountains twice. We followed the trails of the pioneers, the Mojave, the Wyoming, and the Santa Fe. We traveled on good roads in a good automobile with a good road map. We had never been in any of that ...

1517. False Teachers and Their Destruction

2 Peter 2:1-22

Understanding Series

Norman Hillyer

Watch Out for False Teachers Peter began this letter by speaking of the divine provision for a godly life (1:1–11). He went on to stress the divine inspiration of Scripture truths (1:12–21). Now he warns against those who are threatening the church’s spiritual well being by the way they falsely treat these matters (2:1–22). 2:1 In some respects times do not change. All prophecy, whoever gives it and in whatever circumstances, needs to be interpreted. Furthermore, just as in the period of the OT there were ...

1518. Lost

Luke 15:1-7

Sermon

James Merritt

Have you ever lost something of value that was really, really important that really mattered to you and you couldn’t find it? Once you realized it, what did you do? You dropped everything you were doing and immediately went looking for it. Do you remember when you found it? Do you remember the joy, the relief and the happiness that you felt? Maybe it was your car keys or your wallet or a credit card or even a wedding ring. How many of you have ever lost a kid? I can tell every one of you this. If you have ...

1519. Miracle In the Bethlehem Inn

Drama

Program for Worship Bulletin "And she gave birth to her first-born son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn." (Luke 2:7) Welcome Prayer Carol "O Little Town Of Bethlehem" Scene I Joshua, Miriam, and their children Adam, Lela, Lydia and Susanna arrive in Bethlehem where they expect Joshua's brother, Aaron, to put them up in his inn. They, like most people in town at that time, are there to be enrolled for the census. They arrive outside ...

1520. It's Time to Go to Work

Matthew 25:14-30

Sermon

James Merritt

Do you ever get tired? If the answer is yes, you may have a good reason for it as the following story illustrates: Somewhere in the world there is a country with a population of 220 million. 84 million are over 60 years of age, which leaves 136 million to do the work. People under 20 years of age total 95 million, which leaves 41 million to do the work. There are 22 million employed by the government, which leaves 19 million to do the work. Four million are in the Armed Forces, which leaves 15 million to ...

1521.

Drama

David E. Ullery

CAST (in order of appearance) Claudia: The wife of Pontius Pilate, Procurator of Palestine. She has been influenced by Jesus. Rachel: A Jewish servant-girl in Pilate’s household. Joanna: Wife of the chief steward in Herod’s household. She is a follower of Jesus. Pilate: Pontius Pilate, the strong-willed Procurator, symbol of the hated Roman conquerors. Sergius: A Roman soldier, personal body-guard of Pontius Pilate. Caiaphas: Chief Priest and leader of the Jewish Sanhedrin, an evil and crafty man - a ...

1522. Daniel’s Vision of a Man

Daniel 10:1--11:1

Understanding Series

William Nelson

The Final Revelation: Prologue: Chapters 10 through 12 form one long unit containing the last apocalypse of the book. This unit can be subdivided into three smaller sections: the prologue (10:1–11:1), the body (11:2–12:4), and the epilogue (12:5–13). The proper divisions do not line up with the chapter breaks in our modern Bibles because those chapter breaks are not original; they were inserted long after the Bible was completed and not always in the most helpful places. The prologue sets the stage for the ...

1523. Chapter VII

Exodus 20:1-21

Sermon

Frank H. Seilhamer

"You will not commit adultery" Exodus 20:14 If I had my "druthers" I would skip this Commandment and go on to the next one, because this "word" speaking about sex is a difficult one to deal with frankly and directly. What makes it so hard to do that without beating around the bush is the fact that most people are still skitterish about the subject. Oh, most of us are able to talk about sex with a few choice friends, or in some small groups, but a lot of us still start to get up tight when the subject comes ...

1524. The House on The Rock

Lk 6:12-49 · Mt 5:1-12

Sermon

Lori Wagner

I love you, Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. (Psalm 18) Props: river stones (rocks) passed out among the people at the beginning of the service or beginning of the sermon OR small tools (such as small hammer, nails, concrete trowel) OR bricks Setting: Consider holding your service outdoors on the lawn today. One option may be to read the entirety of Jesus’ sermon (scriptures ...

1525. The Other Side of Worship

1 John 1:1-4

Sermon

James Merritt

I want you to turn to the person sitting next to you and do something you may have already done before, but I want you to do it again. I want you to shake hands with them. I tell you why you did that, though you didn't realize it. The custom of handshaking originated in primitive times. Men carried their weapons in their right hands, and when a man extended his empty right hand to take the hand of the other person, it meant he was coming in peace. Over the centuries the act of shaking hands, which prevents ...

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