Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 1626 to 1650 of 4997 results

Acts 4:1-22

Sermon

E. Carver McGriff

... It was the fact that when you saw me you started to run." We know who those people were in Jesus' story. The father was God. The boy? He was you and me. Jesus was depicting the nature of God in a human little story, a God of long suffering kindness, of intimate generosity with wealth and judgment. A God who holds forth to us some exalted standards, yet who understands the human condition. A God who waits for the moment we decide to return, and who, when we do start up the lane, runs to meet us. Surely this ...

1627. The Sadness Of God

Isaiah 51:17--52:12

Sermon

E. Carver McGriff

... hope that such suffering would avail against the hardness of our hearts, the insensitivity of our minds. Why? To awaken in us a kindly sensitivity to each other that we would "bear one another's burdens." John wrote, "If we say that we have no sin, ... painful life situations in the hope that we'd make the right decisions. Here's what we need to understand. Our choices do matter. What kind of person I become does matter. My moral conduct does affect other people, and therefore it affects God. It's up to me to ...

1628. Standing Firm

Isaiah 50:1-11

Sermon

E. Carver McGriff

... idea of flaunting one's point of view, nor to defend inflexibility which refuses to hear other points of view. It is, however, to recognize that firm convictions often expose one to various kinds of criticism and opposition. For a moment, let's think about the kind of criticism Isaiah felt he was facing -- the wrong kind (keeping in mind that we are sometimes the critic rather than the criticized). There is a variety of reasons why people oppose those in positions of influence. An obvious one is jealousy. H ...

1629. Acquaintances Or Friends?

2 Samuel 16:15--17:29

Sermon

Arthur H. Kolsti

... , because the servant does not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father" (John 15:15). "What a friend we have in Jesus," so we sing. But ask this, what kind of friends does Jesus have in us? Are we friends or are we just casual acquaintances? Do we nourish this relationship by interacting with his words? Do we sustain it through prayer, silent or spoken? Are we there for him the way he is and always will be for ...

1630. Lasting Impressions

Sermon

Timothy J. Smith

... , and one in Colorado. It started with one, but there were too many hurting kids for one home. We just had to start more." John Croyle has helped over 1,200 children since he started.1 Blessing does not come as a reward to the person who acts kindly toward others. Rather generosity and concern for others is its own reward as John Croyle discovered in his own life. Living a life full of integrity in harmony with God is its own reward. "A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, and favor is ...

1631. Double Image

Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon

William G. Carter

... the job well and asked for a fair wage. When inferior brick became available, he refused to take shortcuts in his building materials. He never made a lot of money or received widespread fame, yet he rested in the confidence of a hard day's work done well. What kind of life does God value? We cannot really know until we follow Jesus Christ to the point that it makes a difference in how we live. God's blessing comes not to those who pursue meekness, but to those who pursue Jesus Christ and welcome God's earth ...

1632. A Blessing Behind Locked Doors

John 20:19-23

Sermon

William G. Carter

... would do anything for him."4 Of all the things they could have done for Ian, his classmates decided to pass the peace. "Peace be with you." That's what Jesus says to fearful people of every age. The word of the Risen Christ has the power to unlock all kinds of doors. His spirit sends us into the world as he was sent: to reveal that the God who gave us breath shall fill us with peace. We are under obligation to make peace with one another. "Peace be with you." Somebody may be waiting to hear those words from ...

1633. Shouting At A Storm

Mark 4:35-41

Sermon

William G. Carter

... parables he told that day: "The kingdom of God is as if someone would scatter seed and go to sleep" (Mark 4:26-27). The sower sleeps, and trusts the result to an unseen benevolence at work within a fertile soil. At the crucial moment he wakens to see what kind of crop has taken root. It was dusk when five of us went out on a boat on Cranberry Lake, in the Adirondack Mountains of New York. About four miles from the dock, a fierce storm blew in. The water turned black. The sky was full of lightning. A full ...

1634. He Shepherds Us!

John 10:1-21

Sermon

Harry N. Huxhold

... had eyes in the back of her head. She was also expert at reading the body language: a blush, the nervous twitch, the quiet movement. All were dead giveaways by which Mother knew me. And she knew me "inside and out" as she liked to say. It's that intimate kind of "knowing" that our Good Shepherd speaks of. Jesus says he knows his own. He knows them as his very own. He has lived and died to make them his own. Consequently, his own know him. We know what Jesus the Christ is like, because he did live and die ...

1635. Easter Consecration

John 17:6-19

Sermon

Harry N. Huxhold

... persecuted and crucified him. In his prayer Jesus said to the Heavenly Father, "Now I am coming to you, and I speak these things in the world so that they may have my joy made complete in themselves." The joy of which Jesus speaks, of course, is not the kind of joy of which the world speaks. The world would have you believe that joy comes when you win the state lottery or the Ed McMahon Sweepstakes. Joy on the world's terms is supposed to come to you with the new neighborhood, the new car, or the executive ...

1636. Jesus Transfigured

Mark 9:2-13

Sermon

Harry N. Huxhold

... marvelous signs that they had witnessed Jesus perform. This was something done for him and to him. Their fear was not unlike that of the children of Israel at Sinai. Sinners who stand in the presence of the holy and righteous God run for some kind of cover. Peter tried to make the most of the moment by trying to prolong it. Even temporary shelters could house these sacred people for a time. They could decide later how to continue with this remarkable experience. Whatever Peter had in mind, we can identify ...

1637. Strength In Meekness

Matthew 5:5

Children's Sermon

B. Kathleen Fannin

... Jesus and that mends his heart. When we're nice to each other, it mends his heart too." I thank the children for sharing their thoughts and bring our time together to a close: "Sometimes Jesus was called 'meek.' But, as you can see, there's a different kind of strength in being meek, a quiet strength that people seldom see. It's a strength that can bend when it needs to and bind together the broken places in our lives." 1. I demonstrate this "mending" by tying the two pieces of grass together as I continue ...

1638. Earthen Vessels

2 Corinthians 4:6-7

Children's Sermon

B. Kathleen Fannin

... one of them, but I don't think that's what the scripture is talking about. I think the scripture is talking about the earthen vessels that are people. "Remember? God took that clay from the earth and made human beings. So, according to the scripture, there's some kind of treasure inside of each one of you. I think that treasure is the spirit of Jesus Christ. Just as I might put a gold coin inside this earthen jar, God has put Christ's spirit inside of every one of you as a very precious treasure. "What does ...

1639. The Merciful

Matthew 18:21-35

Sermon

John A. Terry

... Upon the place beneath: it is twice blest; It blesseth him that gives and him that takes: 'Tis mightiest in the mightiest: it becomes The throned monarch better than his crown. (The Merchant of Venice, Act IV, scene 1) In our practice of "mercy" there is a kind of "I'll scratch your back -- you scratch my back" philosophy. Be decent to others and they will be decent to you. It is like the story on which George Bernard Shaw based his play Androcles and the Lion. Androcles was a Roman slave who lived in ...

1640. God, The Son

Matthew 2:1-12

Drama

Jerry Eckert

... that seemed to be all around us that said, "This is my beloved Son." Jerry: That is hard to believe. Marshall: Told you. In our religious training, the bird, the white dove, was a sign of the purity of spirit all people are supposed to have. The doves are the kind that are sacrificed at the Temple. And we were told that if we ever heard a voice saying something good, we were to believe it was God's voice. Jerry: God's Son? That's what the voice said? Marshall: Those of us who knew Jesus had no problem with ...

1641. John Prepares the Way

Mark 1:1-8

Sermon Aid

Richard A. Jensen

... these few verses. One might take the opening quotation from the Hebrew Bible (vv. 2-3) and tell the story of the source(s) of this quote. Secondly, one can show that the ministry of Jesus takes up the themes of these verses. This will serve as a kind of introduction to Mark's story of Jesus. There is much good news that can be proclaimed from such stories. Or, one might focus one's stories around John the Baptist. Story One might be the story of Elijah which sets the scene and establishes the importance of ...

1642. Calming the Storm

Mark 4:35-41

Sermon Aid

Richard A. Jensen

... Jesus get into a boat for a trip to the other side of the lake. Wind and sea rose up in fury. The disciples were afraid they would perish in this storm. Jesus, on the other hand, was not afraid. He was asleep! One wonders if this is a kind of flash-forward to Gethsemane, when it was the disciples who could not keep watch. They fell asleep three times (Mark 14:32-42). After the disciples awoke Jesus, he spoke a personal word to his friends, the wind and sea, and the storm subsided. There are Old Testament ...

1643. A Lack of Faith

Mark 6:1-6

Sermon Aid

Richard A. Jensen

... the narrative has yet to answer." 1 The hometown folk don't get it. They can't figure out the identity of their local carpenter's son. (Note the questions of identity raised in Mark 6:14-16.) Those who should be the real insiders prove to be outsiders. What kind of "soil" are these people? Are they like the seed sown on the path or seed sown on rocky ground? Jesus left Nazareth and went on a preaching tour. On tour he called to himself the twelve and sent them out in mission. Are the twelve sent out because ...

1644. The Power Source

2 Corinthians 4:6a

Children's Sermon

... electricity or a battery. Our lesson today from Corinthians talks about a light shining in the darkness. Paul said that people are like lights. Do I look like I'm shining like a light? (Let them respond.) No, but if you could see inside me you would see a special kind of light. My heart shines! Not like this light bulb does when we connect it to electricity. But it shines with the love of God. I know God loves me, so I can share that love with others just like we share a flashlight in the dark. God is my ...

1645. The Bread Of Life

John 6:33

Children's Sermon

... gives life to the world. Which one of these breads comes from heaven? (response) None of these came from heaven. Some of them I baked. Some of them came from a grocery store. But none of these is God's bread. Jesus wasn't talking about any of these kinds of bread or crackers. We think Jesus was talking about himself. He said God sent him here on earth to teach us very important things about life like loving and taking care of each other. Jesus said this was the most important thing in our lives. What Jesus ...

1646. The Living Bread

John 6:51a

Children's Sermon

... respond.) The bread does! If you don't have the bread on the outside, you don't have a sandwich. Bread is an important part of any sandwich! Our verse today is about bread again. Jesus says that he is the living bread that came down from heaven. It's kind of hard to understand what that means. Try to think of it this way. If Jesus is the bread, then we are the inside of the sandwich. We might be wild like some of the sandwiches we talked about. Or we might be sweet like sugar or sticky like peanut ...

1647. Mission Ready!

Mark 6:7-13

Sermon

Charles R. Leary

... with the recalcitrant. Do not get bogged down with non-essentials. The subject of time seems to inspire some preachers to conjure up all kinds of apocalyptic scenes, predicting a near end-of-time, in their anxiety that we be saved before it is too late. Is that ... or bowling league member would say, “You and I carry the ball, baby!” It’s up to us to put the Jesus kind of vitality into our lifestyles in our time. Begin with the bare essentials. Avoid Excesses rid out of your life anything and everything ...

1648. Speaking Truth to Power: The Ministry of Nathan

2 Samuel 11:1-27

Sermon

Robert Noblett

... been Nathan? When he realized what it was that God wanted him to do, it must have inaugurated more than a few anxiety attacks. I know it would have for me. Not that kings should be given that kind of power, or in fact have that kind of power, or even on the inside, feel they have that kind of power. However we often attribute such power to them and act deferentially, whether that king is mother, father, boss, professor or whomever. Still for most of us, talking to the king is a knee-knocking business unless ...

1649. Leading as Loving

Sermon

Robert Noblett

... man paid off his debts, he had only four coins left. Feeling obligated, he spent the last four on a dinner for his father’s ten closest friends. When the meal was over, the old men said to each other, “This is the only child who treats us with kindness. Let us return his affection.” The next day each of the ten sent two cattle and a small purse of money to the youngest son. Some of the old men provided assistance in breeding the cattle. Soon he had a huge herd. Others of the ten offered advice on ...

1650. Adam’s Prime Rib

Genesis 2:4-25

Sermon

John R. Brokhoff

... toward each other in the marriage relationship. When events tend to drive them apart, they do not try hard enough with God’s help, or pray earnestly enough, to overcome those threats to their marriage by exercising unprecedented forgiveness and love and kindness. They do not freshen their commitment toward each other before God. Think of God’s eternal commitment toward us, even though we must exasperate him no end. Let us model our commitments after God’s. Every human relationship needs to be nurtured ...

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