Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 1551 to 1575 of 4935 results

1551. Enemies of the Cross

Philippians 3:17 - 4:1

Sermon

Steven E. Albertin

Whenever I lead an inquiry class for those who want to learn more about my congregation and the faith we confess, I try to keep things very simple and boiled down to the basics. I call it an inquiry class because by exploring their questions I hope to help them to see what is at the heart and core of the Christian faith. What is that heart and core? It is revealed by a shocking answer to a simple question. It is a question that every human being asks: What do I have to do to be saved? It is a question that ...

1552. The Baptism of Jesus

Luke 3:21-38

Sermon

King Duncan

Our lesson for this First Sunday after Epiphany is the baptism of Jesus. Speaking of baptism, I understand that it was so dry in Texas this past summer that the Baptists were starting to baptize by sprinkling, the Methodists were using wet-wipes, the Presbyterians were giving out rain-checks, and the Catholics were praying for the wine to turn back into water. Now that’s dry! We are in our series of messages on “Discovering God.” One place we discover God most powerfully is in remembering our baptism. You ...

1553. Surprise in a Graveyard

John 20:10-18

Sermon

King Duncan

On February, 27, 1991, at the height of Desert Storm, Ruth Dillow received a very sad message from the Pentagon. It stated that her son, Clayton Carpenter, Private 1st Class, had stepped on a mine in Kuwait and was dead. Ruth Dillow later wrote, “I can’t begin to describe my grief and shock. It was almost more than I could bear. For 3 days I wept. For 3 days I expressed anger and loss. For 3 days people tried to comfort me, to no avail because the loss was too great.” Every parent here can relate to her ...

1554. Just-Say-The-Word Disciples

Luke 7:1-10

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

How many of you here this morning came from “the wrong side of the tracks?” [Draw out some stories about being from “the wrong side”] Did the “wrong side of town” have a name? [I was born on a street known as “Hungry Hill”] Guess what? Every one of us here has come from the “wrong side of the tracks” at one time or other. Whether you grew up on a swanky estate, a ritzy mansion, a standard suburban “splanch” (split level ranch), a shanty in the woods or a slum in the city, you were on the “wrong side of the ...

1555. How to Forgive

Matthew 18:21-35

Sermon

King Duncan

Old Joe was dying. For years he’d been at odds with Bill, formerly one of his best friends. Wanting to straighten things out, he sent word for Bill to come and see him. When Bill arrived, Joe told him that he was afraid to go into eternity with such bad feelings between them. Then, very reluctantly and with great effort, Joe apologized for things he had said and done. He also assured Bill that he forgave him for his offenses. Everything seemed fine until Bill turned to go. As he walked out of the room, Joe ...

1556. Consecration of the Priests

Exodus 29:1-46

Understanding Series

James K. Bruckner

Instructions: Aaron’s Consecration, the Altar Consecration, and Daily Sacrifices: “After you put these clothes on your brother Aaron and his sons, anoint and ordain them. Consecrate them so they may serve me as priests” (28:41). Exodus 29 contains specific instructions for the priestly consecration and ordination ceremony, including three sacrifices and the consecration of the bronze altar. It also includes instructions for the ongoing daily sacrifice of two lambs. Verses 1–9 describe methods for the ...

1557. Disaster from the North

Jeremiah 4:5-31

Understanding Series

Tremper Longman III

A Lion from the North (4:5-10): 4:5–6 The prophet announces future judgment by insisting that warnings of the impending attack be issued. Other prophets also utilized the call to battle to warn of impending judgment (see Nah. 2:1). He evokes a sense of urgency when he urges that the trumpet be sounded and a signal be raised. These were signs of an attack (see Amos 3:6). Warning of an attack from the north first appeared in 1:13-14 (see commentary and notes). 4:7–8 The threat is described as a lion coming ...

1558. Signs, Sayings, and Oracles of Judgment

Ezekiel 12:1-28, Ezekiel 13:1-23, Ezekiel 14:1-11, Ezekiel 14:12-23

Understanding Series

Steven Tuell

Laying the Blame and Taking Responsibility: The typical Ezekielian expression “the word of the Lord came to me” recurs throughout the chapters between the second vision of the Glory in chapters 8–11 and the oracles against the foreign nations in chapters 25–32—except in chapter 19. Indeed, in the twenty-six chapters between Ezekiel 11 and 38, this is the only chapter in which that characteristic phrase does not appear. This chapter stands out, therefore, in the larger structure of Ezekiel. Further, after ...

1559. Priorities

Luke 12:35-48, Luke 12:22-34

Teach the Text

R.T. France

Big Idea: Honoring God as king, and being ready for the return of the Lord, must take priority over the ordinary concerns of life. Understanding the Text Several themes from our last section are developed here: God’s fatherly care, the absolute priority of serving God over all other concerns, and especially the tension between material concern and true discipleship—12:22–31 is a sort of commentary on 12:15 and the parable that illustrates it. This last theme of “God and mammon” will be picked up again ...

1560. 8:2–5

Revelation 8:6--9:21

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

The Seven Trumpets: Why History Belongs to the Intercessors · Prelude of prayer: During a time of silence and prayer, the priest usually made an incense offering as part of the daily sacrifices of the Jerusalem temple (Mishnah Tamid 5.1–6; 6.1–3; 7.3). The priests typically sprinkled sacrificial blood on the altars of the outer temple courts (cf. Lev. 1:5) and later entered into the inner sanctuary to burn the incense on a separate altar before the Most Holy Place (cf. Exod. 30:1–9; Luke 1:8–12). In John’s ...

1561. How It All Began

Luke 2:1-14

Sermon

King Duncan

A child’s letter to God: “Dear God, Did you think that Christmas would turn out like this when you started it? Love, Wendy, (Age 7).” (1) That is a profound question. Did God foresee crowded malls, raucous office parties, people congratulating themselves on giving and receiving extravagant gifts—people acting much like Little Jack Horner sitting in a corner, eating his Christmas pie . . .” You remember the rest of the poem, don’t you? “He stuck in his thumb and pulled out a plumb and said, WHAT A GOOD BOY ...

1562. A Divided Family

Mark 3:20-25

Sermon

King Duncan

There is a wonderful time-honored story that many of you will remember, but I don’t think you’ll mind hearing it again. Some of our young people may not be familiar with it. It’s truly a golden oldie. It’s about a country preacher who announced that on the following Sunday he would preach on the story of Noah and the Ark. He gave the scriptural reference for the congregation to read ahead of time. However, a couple of mischievous boys in the church noticed something interesting about the placement of the ...

1563. Filling the Emptiness Within

John 6:24-35

Sermon

King Duncan

A few years ago a news article came across the wires of the Associated Press. It concerned the plight of a Swedish woman who had a rare eating disorder. Because of her disease, she was forced to eat thirty pounds of food a day just to stay alive. The old amounts of food she used to eat couldn’t sustain her physically any more. She would die if she simply ate three normal meals. She always needed more. That’s sad. Some of us probably fantasize about eating a significant amount of food without gaining weight ...

1564. Being Neighborly

Luke 10:25-37

Sermon

Robert C. Cochran

As a campus pastor in Kalamazoo, Michigan, I served on a committee that supports the local Lutheran Social Services Ministry foster care program. One Thursday, we heard about a young girl who had run away from home at age fourteen. By the time we heard about her, she was sixteen, and LSSM was trying to get her some help by putting her into an independent care program. She’d lived on her own for two years, so it seemed too late to put her into a foster care family. She would receive money for living ...

1565. Get the Garbage Out!

Matthew 3:1-12

Sermon

King Duncan

For those of you who are parents or grandparents, I bet you remember your baby’s first words. Were you surprised by what those first words were? You spend the first six to nine months of your baby’s life just babbling at him and making all kinds of words and sounds. And one day, he or she suddenly responds! It’s a great feeling. Unless your baby’s first words are something unexpected. A parenting website asked parents to submit stories of the strangest first words their babies ever said. Laura Conaway from ...

1566. Desperate Times Call For...

Matthew 15:21-28

Sermon

King Duncan

This week marks the point in the year when most of us have wrapped up our summer vacation plans, and we’re getting back to our normal routines of work. Let’s all share a collective sigh as we say goodbye to summer vacation. I don’t know how much planning you put into your vacation. Some people like to go to the same places every year. Some people like to pack up and head out for a weekend, just to clear their heads. And some people spend hours, even weeks, obsessing over the perfect trip. But we all share ...

1567. It Helps If You Laugh

John 15:9-17

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

Here it is, "Mother's Day," a day to celebrate the women who raised us and the women who are raising our children. On this Mother's Day I want to make a confession: "I HAD THE MEANEST MOTHER IN THE WHOLE WORLD" That's right. I had the meanest Mother in the world. While all the other kids ate candy or cookies for breakfast, I had to eat healthy stuff like cereal, eggs or pancakes. When they got cokes and chips for lunch, I had to eat a sandwich. And to top it off, I had to eat supper with the family. My ...

1568. If It Helps You Laugh

John 15:1-17

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

1569. Haunted

Mark 6:14-29

Sermon

Lori Wagner

Ok…How many of you have had the experience of looking back at your life and lamenting (perhaps over and over) a mistake you wish you wouldn’t have made? I think we’ve all done that at one time or another. How many of you have had it keep you up at night? That nagging, awful feeling of blame and guilt that just won’t let you go. The nightmares, the sleepless nights! We can be awfully hard on ourselves sometimes. Wrestling in itself is not bad. It helps us discern right from wrong. It helps us learn and grow ...

1570. 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 ...

1571. Made Alive in Christ

Ephesians 2:1-10

Understanding Series

Arthur G. Patzia

Christ and the Salvation of Believers Chapter 1 of Ephesians is dominated by the theme of praise and thanksgiving. In verses 3–14 the apostle utilizes a redemptive eulogy to praise God for all the spiritual blessings that he has bestowed upon the believer. These blessings are mediated through the Son and are confirmed in the believer through the inner witness of the Holy Spirit. The use of baptismal themes suggests that the hymn may have been connected with the celebration of baptism in the early church. ...

1572. Marriage, Sexual Intimacy, and Spiritual Devotion

1 Corinthians 7:1-40

Teach the Text

Preben Vang

Big Idea: Husbands and wives must protect each other from sexual temptation and recognize their obligation to take care of each other’s sexual needs. They are co-owners of each other’s bodies. Understanding the Text Although Paul’s discussion on sexual immorality in chapter 6 makes the transition to his discussion on sexual obligations in marriage smooth, chapter 7 introduces a new section that continues through 11:1. After his extended discussion of the Corinthian Christ followers’ troublesome allegiance ...

1573. The First Two Days: John the Baptist’s Message

John 1:19-28, John 1:29-34

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

The narrative portion of John’s Gospel begins by referring yet a third time to the message of John the Baptist (cf. vv. 6–8, 15–16). The difference between this section and the references in the prologue is that attention now focuses on a particular testimony of John the Baptist given on a particular occasion when the Jewish authorities, later designated more precisely as Pharisees (v. 24), sent a delegation of priests and Levites from Jerusalem to question him. This occasion stretches out to at least a ...

1574. The End Times

Daniel 12:1-13

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 ...

1575. A Kingdom Investment Policy

Matthew 6:19-24

Sermon

Phil Thrailkill

It is by chance that Damian discovers a huge bag of money near his home. It is just days before British pounds are converted to Euros and the old money is worthless. In the scenes that follow, Damian and his brother spend money as fast as they can, with Damian giving to the poor. Their father eventually discovers their secret, and Damian learns that the money was stolen. This is the moral dilemma and plot of the movie Millions. The thief who lost the money soon figures out that Damian is the finder. They ...

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