Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: Levi, disciple, evangelist, tax collector, the 12, the twelve, apostle, sermon on the mount, jewish audience, beatitudes, lord's prayer, great commission, parables, olivet discourse, mount of olives, olivet, synoptic

Showing 1526 to 1550 of 4942 results

1526. Jesus Appears to the Disciples

Luke 24:36-49

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

The appearance to the disciples in Jerusalem constitutes Jesus’ third resurrection appearance. Of the first two only one is actually narrated (the appearance to the two on the road to Emmaus, vv. 13–28), while the other is merely reported (the appearance to Simon Peter, v. 34). The appearance to the Eleven disciples will be Luke’s second narrated appearance of the risen Christ and it, like the first one, will culminate in an explanation of the relevance of Scripture for understanding the person and ...

1527. No One Is Righteous

Romans 3:9-20

Understanding Series

James R. Edwards

With devastating finality Paul now concludes the long discussion of the guilt of humanity which began in 1:18. The passage falls into three parts: a summation of the argument of 3:1–8 (v. 9); a series of proof texts from the OT on the moral failure of humanity (vv. 10–18); and a conclusion that the law is powerless to save (vv. 19–20). Paul enters the final round against his fellow Jews who suppose that the advantage of the law (3:2) secures favor with God. Since 2:1 he has attacked Jewish presumption to ...

1528. Expel the Immoral Brother!

1 Corinthians 5:1-13

Understanding Series

Marion L. Soards

The move from chapter 4 with its discussion of the ministry of the apostles to chapter 5 with the focused discussion of immorality may seem to be an illogical leap on the part of Paul. Quick shifts in focus such as this one have led a few interpreters to suggest that the document called 1 Corinthians is not a unified composition; but that reading of the text is an overreaction to the diversity of Paul’s remarks. Indeed, in 4:18 Paul confronted some of the Corinthians because they were arrogant (ephysiōthē ...

1529. The Believer's Freedom

1 Corinthians 10:23--11:1

Understanding Series

Marion L. Soards

Once again Paul broaches the subject of merely eating idol meat, but now he seems concerned with the eating of such previously sacrificed foods outside the confines of the pagan temple. The section is challenging to translators and interpreters because Paul writes in a vigorous style that takes abrupt rhetorical turns that can be and often are lost in the reading of the text. Identifying Paul’s line of thought is crucial to comprehending this otherwise confusing passage. Paul gives a helpful hint when he ...

1530. The Three Angels

Revelation 14:6-13

Understanding Series

Robert W. Wall

14:6–7 The function of angels throughout Revelation is to facilitate God’s redemptive program; this is the role, then, of another angel that John saw flying in midair (cf. 8:13; 19:17). In particular, this first of a triad of angels proclaims the eternal gospel … to those who live on the earth. John uses the technical word for gospel only here in Revelation; its use is made more striking since the angel intends it for the lost inhabitants of earth rather than for the saints who have trusted its claims and ...

1531. Seven Angels With Seven Plagues

Revelation 15:1-8

Understanding Series

Robert W. Wall

According to the apocalyptic view of history, the spiritual and societal conditions of human existence will continue to deteriorate, and there is nothing any sociopolitical institution can do to reverse them. Salvation comes from outside of history, from God’s heavenly abode. In returning to the theme of divine judgment, already so vividly drawn in his visions of seven seals and trumpets, John is making this same point more keenly: salvation is from God and not from Babylon’s rulers. John’s is an ...

1532. The Fall of Babylon

Revelation 18:1-24

Understanding Series

Robert W. Wall

In chapter 18, John describes a variety of responses, from heaven (18:1–8, 20) and on earth (18:9–19), to the shocking news of Babylon’s destruction. These responses constitute the climactic scene of the seventh trumpet-plague and the “third woe” that precede the inbreaking of God’s reign on earth. Drawing upon biblical “doom-songs” and laments that were written of other city-states (cf. Beasley-Murray, Revelation, p. 262), John composes a dirge about Babylon’s destruction which deepens the significance of ...

1533. The Grain Offering

Leviticus 2:1-16

Understanding Series

W. H. Bellinger, Jr.

This chapter describes the ritual of cereal or grain offering for the worshiper and gives alternative possibilities for the details of the offering. The first section on the cereal offering (vv. 1–3) presents the basic regulation for the offering, and the second section (vv. 4–10) gives additional instruction on cereal offerings baked in an oven, on a griddle, or in a pan. The procedure consists of preparation of the offering, presentation of the offering, offering up part of the grain, and burning it. ...

1534. Introducing Job

Job 1:1-5

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

1:1 The first chapter serves as a prose prologue to the dialogue sections that form the core of the book. The focus from the very first word is on the main character. Hebrew word order (lit., “a man there was in the land of Uz”) intentionally emphasizes the man, Job. This word order signals that the reader should pay particularly close attention here to the introduction of this man and his circumstances, for he will play an important role in what follows. Because the OT elsewhere associates Uz with Edom, ...

1535. Eliphaz

Job 4:1-5:27

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

Trust in Your Piety: Here what is commonly known as the “first dialogue cycle” begins, taking the reader through Job 14:22. Having been unable to find words to respond to the extremity of Job’s physical suffering earlier, the friends are much less reticent in replying to Job’s angry monologue. Job’s words, and not his situation, spark the dialogue and debate. The first to speak is Eliphaz, who appears to be the eldest and is given pride of place as well as space (regarding Eliphaz’s seniority see Pope, Job ...

1536. Holding to the Lord’s Paths Amidst Threatening Stalkers

Psalm 17:1-15

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

This prayer psalm of the individual concerns Yahweh’s judgment and enemies like a pride of lions who threaten the speaker. It opens with a prayer to have a hearing with God and for him to pass his final judgment or verdict (vv. 1–2). It then declares the speaker’s innocence by confessing that Yahweh has already “examined” him (contra NIV; vv. 3–5). The next section prays for refuge (vv. 6–8), and the following lament makes the reason plain: the wicked hunt him down (vv. 9–12). The final section prays for ...

1537. Deceived Deceivers, and the Feasting Followers of the Lord

Psalm 36:1-12

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

Initially verses 1–4 and 5–9 appear to share little in common, and their abrupt change of subject matter may suggest they were artificially spliced together. What connection is there between describing the character of the wicked and praising Yahweh’s love and righteousness, along with the riches of his house? Interpreters have struggled with this issue, particularly, because the psalm does not fit the standard form-critical categories. Kraus has thus described it as “didactic poetry” (Psalms 1–59, p. 397 ...

1538. A Prayer for the Sick

Psalm 38:1-22

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

This prayer psalm of the individual suits the special needs of sickness (cf. Ps. 41). It reflects the typical predicament in which the sick found themselves. It was common in ancient Israel (Job is the most notable OT case) and elsewhere in the ancient Near East to assume the sick person was suffering divine judgment for some sin against God or the gods (for a graphic portrayal of this world view in the ancient Near East, see Keel, Symbolism, pp. 79–81). As a result, acquaintances kept their distance from ...

1539. Turn Your Gaze from Me before I Am No More

Psalm 39:1-13

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

Psalm 39 is most akin to the prayer psalms of the individual but it is unlike any other, as its closing petition alone shows: “Look away from me, that I may rejoice again before I depart and am no more.” It resonates with Job and Ecclesiastes more than with other psalms. The refrain, “each man’s life is but a breath” (Hb. hebel, vv. 5, 11), echoes that of Ecclesiastes: “Everything is a breath” (Hb. hebel, NIV “meaningless,”Eccl. 1:2; 12:8). Unlike most psalms, this one has a ring of autobiography (esp. vv ...

1540. Threats from Personal Attackers, Urban Unrest, and Foreign Nations

Psalm 59:1-17

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

Psalm 59 contains the motifs typical of prayer psalms, but it uniquely combines threats from personal enemies, urban unrest, and foreign nations—all within a structure whose development is more complex than what we find in most individual prayers. Verses Form-Critical Motif Opponents: 1–4: petition and lament individual’s enemies 5: petition all the nations 6–7 (refrain A): lament urban/foreign prowlers 8: confession of trust nations 9–10 (refrain B): confession of trust those who slander (lit. “lurk for”) ...

1541. God's Chosen Servant

Matthew 12:15-21

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

Opposition Mounts: In chapter 12 Matthew relates a number of incidents that reveal the basis for Pharisaic opposition to Jesus and his ministry. Jesus vindicates his disciples’ plucking grain on the Sabbath (vv. 1–8), restores a paralyzed hand on the Sabbath (vv. 9–14), moves away when he hears of a plot against him (vv. 15–21), refutes the Pharisees’ claim that he drives out demons by the power of Beelzebub (vv. 22–32), calls his antagonists “snakes” who will be held accountable on the day of judgment (vv ...

1542. The Sign of Jonah

Matthew 12:38-45

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

1543. The Appointing of the Twelve Apostles

Mark 3:13-19

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

3:13–19 Clearly one of the major features of Mark’s Gospel is an interest in the twelve disciples and the associated theme of discipleship. Already Mark has told us of the calling of four disciples (1:14–20) and of controversy over the conduct of Jesus’ disciples (2:18–28), and he has pictured these men as close associates of Jesus in his ministry (1:21, 29, 36–38; 3:7). Here, Mark describes twelve men as chosen by Jesus for a special role in which they are assigned essentially the same activities as Jesus ...

1544. The Day and Hour Unknown

Mark 13:32-37

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

13:32–37 Finally, in these verses, Jesus comes to the question concerning the time when the end will appear, but his answer is likely to be disappointing to anyone wishing to be able to calculate the end, as is the fashion of some ancient and modern so-called prophecy experts. In the preceding verses (vv. 28–31), Jesus has assured his disciples in the strongest terms that the prophecy of the fall of Jerusalem (which triggered the whole discussion) and the attendant distresses of verses 5–13 will be ...

1545. To the Church in Pergamum

Revelation 2:12-17

Understanding Series

Robert W. Wall

2:12 Continuing north up the coastline of the Aegean Sea, then moving inland, brings one to Pergamum, the capital of the Asian province. The city was built around a great acropolis on which the first temple of the imperial cult was built to Augustus in 29 B.C. For Christians, Pergamum symbolized secular power and civil religion; indeed, Christ identifies it as the city “where Satan has his throne … where Satan lives” (2:13). The Lord possesses the sharp, double-edged sword, again repeating what John had ...

1546. To the Church in Philadelphia

Revelation 3:7-13

Understanding Series

Robert W. Wall

3:7 Located near to Sardis, Philadelphia was a relatively new city, founded during the second century B.C. by Attalus II Philadelphus. This may be in John’s mind when he writes to the Philadelphian church about the new Jerusalem (3:12). The “new” Philadelphia had been planned as a center for the hellenization program that was encouraged and financed by Attalus. The more conservative voices of the vibrant Jewish community in Philadelphia no doubt tried to thwart such a program and may have resisted ...

1547. The Great Multitude in White Robes

Revelation 7:9-17

Understanding Series

Robert W. Wall

7:9–12 The second group of believers, who also receive the salvation of God, should be distinguished from the first in two critical ways. In the interlude’s first scene of the 144,000, John addresses a particular concern of his readers about the status of martyred believers (cf. 1 Thess. 4:13–18). In his subsequent vision of a great multitude, John shifts his pastoral concern to the situation of the unbelieving world, which seeks to know how to survive the eschatological wrath of God. In responding to ...

1548. The Thousand Years

Revelation 20:1-7

Understanding Series

Robert W. Wall

20:1–3 The next two consequences of Christ’s parousia envision the destiny of the final and most powerful member of the evil trinity, Satan. Because Christ’s first advent resulted in Satan’s banishment from heaven (cf. 12:9), the reader assumes that Christ’s second advent will have a similar effect on earth—and so it does, as we will soon find out. At first, John sees not the dragon, but rather an angel coming down out of heaven to earth where the Evil One now lives. This angel comes as Satan’s jailer. In ...

1549. The Disciples Rejoin Jesus

John 4:27-38, John 4:1-26, John 4:39-42

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

The transition begun in 3:22 is continued in 4:1–4. Jesus moves from Jerusalem to the Judean countryside and from there to Galilee by way of Samaria. The intervening material (3:23–36) enables the reader to make sense of this cumbersome introduction to chapter 4. That Jesus was gaining and baptizing more disciples than John (v. 1) has already been intimated in 3:26. That the Pharisees noticed this is suggested by the fact that John’s disciples seem to have been reminded of it by a Jew (3:25). What has not ...

1550. Titus Sent to Corinth

2 Corinthians 8:16--9:5

Understanding Series

James M. Scott

8:16–24 Having exhorted the Corinthians to complete the collection that they had begun (8:7–15), Paul recommends the emissaries he will send to take it to Jerusalem (8:16–24; cf. 1 Cor. 16:3–4, where Paul’s original plan was different). In doing so, Paul takes up where he left off in verse 6, with the sending of Titus. Paul wants to send Titus back to Corinth with two companions in order to bring the collection to a fitting conclusion. Paul did not need letters of recommendation to or from the Corinthians ...

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