Sermon and Worship Resources

Antonyms: keep, claim, continue, stick by, self-control, power through, achieve, defend, bear, hope, acquire, quick visit, adopt, continue along, adhere, remain, pursue, support, take up, keep up, reuse, advocate, stay, persevere, cherish, keep going, carry on

Showing 1551 to 1575 of 4943 results

1551. AAA=A

John 6:35, 41-51

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... say, God’s expectation for a loyal covenant participant, for this is about relationship. It’s about our role in a “new” and final covenant! Jesus tells us that our first step is belief, our second to abide, our third to get on board as a servant and continue his mission. Let’s look at what that means. In a sense, Jesus is giving his disciples a kind of equation. At least I like to think of it that way. It also helps us to understand and remember the substance of God’ eternal gift: I call it ...

1552. Badger or Bonobo?

Mark 9:38-50

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... , those we deem family or friends and those with common interests or opinions feel far more welcome to us than those who differ. This is the root of all bias. At base, human beings are instinctively territorial. In our scripture for today, Jesus continues to teach his disciples what I like to call “Lessons in Leadership.” Last week, Jesus redefined the meaning of leading as being the servant of others, lifting others up instead of one’s self. This push back against our human penchant for individualism ...

1553. We Build the Tomb

Hebrews 10:16-25

Sermon

Bonnie Bates

... within us in our everyday actions and our everyday interactions with one another. Jesus reminded us that the thought of the sin, the attitude of the sin, is as egregious as the sin itself. Thus it is our attitude that we need to change, that we need to continually re-center on God. It is in our hearts that the divine will of God and the human will intersect. I don’t know about you, but I recognize that my thoughts are sometimes more human than faithful. When I am driving and I am cut off in traffic ...

1554. The List

John 6:27-38

Sermon

John B. Jamison

... may be some people whose names you don’t know, or have never even met, but for some reason they have become list material. Just add them to your list with a brief note, or anything that will remind you of them. Okay, if others come to mind as we continue, just add them as we go. Now, let’s go to the hillside. We remember that the crowd that had come to the hillside to hear Jesus was a wide mix of people. There were people from nearby towns, as well as foreign travelers who had come from the nearby ...

1555. The Grey Zone

John 21:1-19

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... in a covenant relationship, means taking on the mission God has planned for the world, just as Jesus had. With a shared life comes shared responsibility for a common future. For Jesus, that means that the mission cannot end with him but must be continued by all those who love him and share life with him. That’s really what a relationship is –life shared in the most intimate and important ways. Caring about mutual goals. Forging on even when life gets tough. Staying in connection, even when one partner ...

1556. Wait for It...

Luke 24:44-53

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... says that she now makes sure to rest between performances, so as to ensure the resiliency of her career.[1] I imagine waiting all that time for someone who loves the violin as much as Hilary must have been a difficult period. Yet, in order to continue to be the dynamic performer she is, she knew the value of that time of healing, restoration, and preparation. The truth is, life is filled with periods of waiting and preparation. For every dynamic experience, we first typically have a time of waiting. We buy ...

1557. A Gift With YOUR Name On It

Romans 1:1-7

Sermon

Heather Sugden

... news in their own time. And in each new generation, these gifts insist on coming up close, being born into our very world, and daring to say our particular names out loud. The truth is that the gifts Paul described in his letter to the Romans continue — even today. They are not limited by time or place, education or religious expertise. They are gifts of cosmic proportions that are simply unstoppable! They are also gifts that we know and can name personally. The baby about to be born will change the world ...

1558. Prayer Power

Luke 18:1-8

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... world –and inside and outside of ourselves. But this requires us to do something radical –to give up our sense of control in order to call upon and rely upon God’s power! Jesus’ power! The power of the Holy Spirit! And this for many, both then and now, continues to be one of our greatest challenges! Why? Because in order to do this we must 1) sublimate our own power, 2) suspend the idea that we can control our own outcomes better than anyone else, and 3) hand over our power (as well as our hopes for ...

1559. Investing Our Inheritance

Deuteronomy 26:1-15

Sermon

Douglas J. Deuel

... of the bondage of Egypt was offered. The first fruits were given to God as a token of God's faithful provision for God's people and the bountiful blessings they received. There is an often-told story about an immigrant shopkeeper who had a son who continuously complained to him. The son would say, "Dad, I do not understand how you run this store. You keep your accounts payable in a cigar box. Your accounts receivable are on a spindle. All your cash is in the register. You never know what your profits are ...

1560. Allowing God To Do A New Thing

Isaiah 43:14-28

Sermon

Douglas J. Deuel

... the Israelites to cross and then God allowed the sea to swallow up the Egyptians who pursued them. God's promise of something new draws power from God's history of being true and faithful to God's people. God has fulfilled promises in the past and God will continue to do so. I know a young man who experienced some success as a high school athlete. He played on the school basketball team. In fact, the coach gave him one of the team's scorebooks at the end of the basketball season. He still has that scorebook ...

1561. Suffering And Service

Isaiah 51:17--52:12

Sermon

Douglas J. Deuel

... Christ had sustained her and carried her, even in the face of great despair. Can we say that? Can we trust in God's will and direction so completely that even when life becomes difficult we continue to know that God is with us? Can we see God's hand in all life has to offer? The servant suffered but he continued to trust in God. When we maintain our faith in the face of adversity, it is our greatest opportunity to bear witness for Christ. The Servant Restores God ultimately has one purpose: to redeem God's ...

1562. Witnesses For The Lord

Acts 10:23b-48

Sermon

Douglas J. Deuel

... to death by hanging him on a tree" (Acts 10:39). Peter had begun his sermon by detailing the good Jesus had accomplished for the kingdom of God. He identified that Jesus had been sent by God and had preached a message of good news and peace. Peter continued by asserting that Jesus had been empowered by the Holy Spirit and that he had gone about doing good and healing. In fact, according to Peter, since God had been with Jesus, Jesus even opposed the devil. Here was Jesus, identified by Peter as the Lord of ...

1563. Who's The Neighbor

Luke 10:25-37

Drama

Robert F. Crowley

... After all, I'm a certain man, aren't I? WIFE: You certainly are. CERTAIN MAN: Certainly. WIFE: (KISSING HIM) Since you're certain you have to leave, good-bye. CERTAIN MAN: Bye. (WIFE EXITS. MAN CROSSES STAGE, THUMBS A RIDE BUT IS NOT PICKED UP. HE CONTINUES WALKING) ANNOUNCER: He fell among thieves. (TWO OR THREE THIEVES ARE SHOOTING DICE ON THE FLOOR. CERTAIN MAN, WITH HIS NOSE BURIED IN A ROAD MAP, STUMBLES OVER ONE OF THE THIEVES AND FALLS AMONGST THEM) CERTAIN MAN: Oops! Pardon me. I'm terribly sorry. I ...

1564. You Are My Witnesses

Luke 24:36-49

Sermon

Harry N. Huxhold

... election was the fact that Mr. Mandela had patiently endured 27 years of imprisonment because he protested the system of apartheid. He had refused freedom when he was offered the opportunity to return to his home province without the opportunity to actively continue his protest. His patience and hope were rewarded by those who saw fit to remove the racial barriers in order to create a truly democratic election for all the peoples of South Africa. President Mandela is hopeful that ethnicity shall never again ...

1565. Sent From The Mountain

Matthew 28:16-20

Sermon

William G. Carter

... exactly the boundaries of the church, and the attempt to do so always ends in an unevangelical legalism. But it is always possible and necessary to define the centre. The church is its proper self, and is a sign of the kingdom, only insofar as it continually points men and women beyond itself to Jesus and invites them to conversion and commitment to him.4 Sisters and brothers, we have a Word to speak, a message to proclaim, and a story to tell the nations. Jesus Christ is risen, with authority from beyond ...

1566. The Rebirth

John 3:1-21

Sermon

Ron Lavin

... as God's son or daughter. You were made a child of the heavenly Father by water and the Spirit when you were baptized. You came into the kingdom of God by baptism. You began the process of being reoriented to God in baptism. This reorientation continues and matures by faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Faith is a three-sided triangle with the three sides being knowledge, decisions, and trust. We must know about God before we can believe in God. The educational ministry of the church in Sunday school ...

1567. The Fear Of Taking The Plunge

Luke 12:35-48

Sermon

Richard Patt

... isn't broken, why fix it? But the fact is that in many respects people today do regard their current lot as being precisely that: fragmented, broken, disgustingly status quo and going nowhere. Longing to walk in the sweet-smelling lilies of the field, they continue groveling in the paralyzing pollution of their own anxiety: They are afraid to move. That last statement can be taken quite literally. I once was in a conversation where one person in the group announced that he and his wife were moving to a more ...

1568. Called To Pull Down; Called To Rebuild

Jeremiah 1:1-19

Sermon

Robert A. Hausman

... that it contains not only the alien words of wrath, but also the proper words of grace. God comes not only to pluck up and tear down, but to build and to plant. God said to the people, "I have loved you with an everlasting love, therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you. Again I will build you, and you shall be built." We can hear this message of hope when we acknowledge that we are burdened with insecurity and anxiety, fear of illness and dread of death. There are the wise who are tired of their ...

1569. Named And Claimed

Isaiah 43:1-13

Sermon

Tony Everett

... you and me. We are not forgotten. We, too, have been elected and selected to bear God's creative and redeeming word to all the world. What a text for baptism this is! What a text to remind us that God has chosen us! The word of the Lord continues: "Fear not, for I have redeemed you" (v. 1b). No more bondage to the forces that separate and humiliate. No more bondage to the power of sin. Here is deliverance. "I have called you by name, you are mine," says the Lord (v. 1b). Here is precisely what happens ...

1570. Dabar Adonai

Jeremiah 1:1-19

Sermon

Tony Everett

... of the Lord is a powerful, active, dynamic force. Dabar Adonai, the vital power of the Lord, came to Jeremiah, moving him to accept a new task and a new relationship which he was reluctant to assume. It was this word of the Lord that continued to be a driving force for Jeremiah throughout his forty-year ministry. There are more than fifty references to Dabar Adonai in the book of Jeremiah. For Jeremiah, for us, the word of the Lord moves, challenges, supports, and compels. It permeates our existence. It ...

1571. Roots Near The River

Jeremiah 16:1--17:18

Sermon

Tony Everett

... " (Romans 7:15). So then, what hope do we have if even Paul cannot help himself? Like the godly person described by Jeremiah, we need roots near the river -- the river of the water of life in Jesus Christ; the river of the water of baptism. Paul continues: "Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord" (Romans 7:24-25). It is the cross of Christ that expands our perception of reality. When you are overcome by the pressures and anxieties ...

1572. Looking Back; Moving Forward

Exodus 34:29-35

Sermon

Tony Everett

... promised to be with them throughout the journey. And so Moses instructed the people to construct the Ark of the Covenant, which was to be the throne of the Lord and the container of the commandments. It would serve as a reminder of God's continuing guidance and power on that marvelous day when they finally entered the promised land. Now the people could carry with them on their journey of promise the very presence of the Lord God. Jesus brought the disciples down from a glorious mountaintop experience to ...

1573. Fruit of the Spirit

Galatians 5:16-26

Illustration

John R. Steward

... right where they were. Then they were commanded to bend down and pick up the pebbles that were around them in the dry creek bed and put them in their pockets. After they did this they were told to leave and continue on their way and not to camp near the creek bed. The voice from the darkness continued to tell them that in the morning they would be both happy and sad. Being very frightened by all of this, they traveled through the night and did not stop until they could see the sun. With the arrival of the ...

1574. Proper 10

Luke 10:25-37, Colossians 1:1-14, Amos 7:10-17, Psalm 82:1-8

Sermon Aid

William E. Keeney

... Colossians for their faithfulness and love for all the Christians. They have a good reputation about living according to the truth of the gospel which was taught to them by Epaphras. It is from him that Paul has received the good report. Paul urges them to continue steadfastly and assures them that he is praying that for them. Gospel. (Luke 10:25-37) Jesus responds to a series of questions from a lawyer. The persistence of the lawyer in wanting to know the meaning of the law leads Jesus to tell the parable ...

1575. Proper 22

Luke 17:1-10, 2 Timothy 1:1-2:13, Lamentations 1:1-22, Psalm 137:1-9

Sermon Aid

William E. Keeney

... the saying about having faith the size of a mustard seed. Then comes the parable, which is less a story than a series of rhetorical questions about the expectations of rewards for a slave's doing the normal duties required of such persons. The chapter continues with the story of the healing of the ten lepers. It has some association with the parable in that only one leper expresses gratitude to Jesus for his good work. The others take it for granted that healing is Jesus' normal activity. The chapter ends ...

Showing results