Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 1676 to 1700 of 1967 results

1676. Humility Gate

John 14:5-14

Sermon

Allan J. Weenink

Every visitor to the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, which stands on the site of the stable where Christ was born, must stoop to enter. For the main entrance to the church is so low that no person, except a child, may walk through it erect. The door was made in this fashion to prevent medieval raiders from riding their horses into the church to persecute the Christians and disrupt services of worship. Although the threat of the medieval raiders has long since passed, the low door of the church has not ...

1677. Mother Teresa and the Dying Poor

Sermon

Jerry L. Schmalemberger

Jesus took his closest followers up on the side of a mountain for a spiritual retreat. There he tried to teach them about Christianity. One of the great promises he gave them was, "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy" (Matthew 5:7). Seventy-six-year-old Mother Teresa of India knows what Jesus meant. She knows it like few people have understood since he first said it. Not long ago this tiny wisp of tough gentleness, who won the Nobel Peace prize, visited Norristown, Pennsylvania. There she ...

1678. The Crowd That Hated Him

Matthew 27:11-26

Children's Sermon

Wesley T. Runk

Object: Bowl of water We have already found out the different kinds of crowds there are during the last three times that we have gotten together. Do you remember how it was to love Jesus and then to be afraid of him? How did you feel when you were part of the crowd that betrayed Jesus? That was an awful feeling wasn’t it? It is not going to get much better today because the crowds are not very friendly toward Jesus at this time. The leaders of the people were afraid of Jesus and they wanted to get rid of ...

1679. The Kingdom And The Seed

Mark 4:4-20; 30-32

Sermon

Ron Lavin

Most of us have planted a garden or lived on or near a farm. In my case, I grew up in Chicago where they have to put cows in zoos because so many city people are shielded from agricultural life and would never otherwise get to see one. But for eleven years I served as the pastor of a church in the agriculturally-oriented community of Davenport, Iowa. Davenport is located in Scott County which is Mississippi River land. It is reported to be some of the richest soil in the world. I learned a lot about ...

1680. No Huggies

Mark 10:13-16

Sermon

This preacher recognizes how crucial are the beginning moments of a sermon. If listening does not happen at this moment of high anticipation, there will often be little opportunity for hoping that listeners will still be listening when the "goodies" are passed out. The preacher makes us look at the text beyond the first superficial reading. Scholarship does what it is supposed to do for preaching: illuminate. Humor is present. "Why should the snake have all the good lines?" someone quipped. The humor grows ...

1681. Ready or Not - Here I Come

Mark 13:32-37

Sermon

John R. Brokhoff

When you were a child, did you play the game, Hide and Seek? If you did, you will remember that the person who was "it" closed his eyes while the rest went to hide. To give them time to hide, the child started counting: 5, 10, 15, 20 and up to 100. Then he would say, "Ready or not, here I come!" The point of the game was to hide oneself so well that the leader could not find you, for if he found you, and beat you back to the goal, you had to be "it" the next go-around. The secret of the game was preparing ...

1682. Celebrate Love Everyday

John 13:31-38

Children's Sermon

Wesley T. Runk

Object: An old valentine card or a heart-shaped object. Good morning, boys and girls! This morning I have with me a valentine greeting. Valentine's Day has already passed, but I wanted to share this greeting with you today. Who can tell me what Valentine's Day means? (Let them answer.) Very good! Valentine's Day is a day that we celebrate love. In school you may exchange Valentine's cards, telling people how much you like them. Boys give Valentine's Day cards and candy to their girl friends to show them ...

1683. To a Life Beyond

John 6:51-58, Revelation 7:9-17

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

The torches burned long into the night in the banquet hall. Their flickering light cast grotesque shadows across the huge table. Most of the seated revelers were slumped in their places sleeping off the effects of food and grog. There were a few murmured conversations, occasional outbursts of ribald laughter. Few but the king noticed when a tiny sparrow flew in the open window, pecked at a table scrap, circled the hall several times, then winged through another open window into the remaining night. The ...

1684. Following Summons

Acts 9:32-43

Sermon

Elizabeth Achtemeier

A number of subsidiary themes emerge in this reading from Acts, and we probably should take note of them, although they do not form the main thrust of the text. We have here a brief story of a Hebrew woman given the Aramaic name of Tabitha, which means "gazelle," or called Dorcas in the Greek. This is the only mention that we have of Dorcas in the scripture, but over the centuries, her reputation as a person of good works and charity toward the poor has been preserved. It is now not unusual to find "Dorcas ...

1685. Taking You Up with Him

Colossians 3:1-4

Sermon

Richard W. Ferris

"If I go down, I'm taking you down with me." We've all heard that line. It's been used in movies and on television shows. We've seen it written in books and even in real-life news articles. Maybe we've even had it said directly to us. Somebody is in big trouble, and they are not going to face the punishment without involving someone else in their suffering. Sometimes there's even a line that follows: "That's not just a threat; it's a promise," just to let us know that they are not bluffing. If they are ...

1686. Epiphany 5

Matthew 5:17-20, Matthew 5:13-16, 1 Corinthians 2:6-16, 1 Corinthians 1:18--2:5, Isaiah 58:1-14

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

COMMENTARY Old Testament: Isaiah 58:1-9a (9b-12) A comparison of proper and improper fasting. The passage, written by Trito-Isaiah in the sixth century B.C., deals with the returned exiles in Jerusalem where conditions were deplorable. In those days fasting was used to express great sorrow or supplication. This encourages many fasts, but God seemingly did nothing! Why not? What kind of fasting is acceptable to God? One type of fasting produces no divine results: ceremonial fasting without regard for human ...

1687. The Curse of the Cross

1 Corinthians 1:10-17

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

It's one of our more questionable rites of passage as we grow into adolescence and early adulthood. Suddenly it's cool to curse. I know I'm the only one who went through this rite of passage as a teenager. I admit it. I didn't just sow wild oats. I planted a prairie. And that prairie was planted partly by words that my Appalachian gramma would wash my mouth out with soap for saying. Those same swear words that as a child caused me to gasp - and when my brothers would use them, I'd get the culprit into big ...

1688. The Origins of Passover

Exodus 12:1-30

Sermon

Elizabeth Achtemeier

The Gospels tell us that on the night that he was betrayed, our Lord first celebrated the Passover with his disciples. Thus it is important for us to go back in Exodus to the founding of the Passover celebration and its meaning. There have been numerous scholarly speculations about the origin of Passover. Some have thought it was originally a semi-nomadic spring celebration that petitioned the deity’s favor and protection during the migration of flocks from one pasture to another. Others have connected it ...

1689. Nine Winners

Matthew 21:1-11

Illustration

Here is an example of a different kind of power: Jesus, a young carpenter, riding into Jerusalem on a donkey. His disciples vie for the best seats and he takes a towel and basin to wash their feet. On the cross he meets their evil with a prayer of forgiveness. The one-time Methodist Bishop of Mississippi Jack Meadors tells a wonderful story of an incident that occurred during the Special Olympics. Nine children lined up for the 100 yard dash. The gun sounded and the race was off. But only a few yards into ...

1690. Building According to Code - Sermon Starter

Matthew 7:21-29

Illustration

Brett Blair

It is significant that Jesus ended the Sermon on the Mount with the parable of the Wise and Foolish Builders. Throughout the long day Jesus had been preaching to the vast multitude. They listened to him with amazement and awe. But Jesus warned them that that was not enough. It is never enough simply to listen to the words of Jesus, even though we may listen with reverent approval. If His words are to have any genuine effect in our lives we must not only hear them but also act upon them. We must incorporate ...

1691. Truth And Action

1 John 3:11-24, Acts 4:1-22

Bulletin Aid

Frank Ramirez

Call To Worship One: This Jesus is "the stone that was rejected by you, the builders; it has become the cornerstone." Two: There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among mortals by which we must be saved. (Based on Acts 4:11-12) Collect Lord, Lord, we say, Lord, Lord, with our eyes to the heavens, but you are not to be found in the skies, Heavenly Father, but in the unloved, the suffering, the marginalized, the oppressed, the forgotten. We turn our eyes away from the ...

1692. Philippians 2:5-11

Philippians 2:5-11

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

Philippians 2:5-11 offers what may very well be one of the oldest Christological reflections in the entire New Testament. Because of the poetic splendor of these verses, there is considerable suggestion that these texts make up an early Christian hymn, which Paul has skillfully incorporated into his letter to the Philippian church. If this is indeed the case, the theology behind this hymn represents not only Paul's own thoughts, but also the Christological convictions of the first generation of believers. ...

1693. John 9:1-41

John 9:1-41

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

John transforms this healing story into an intricately constructed framework for discussing the human condition and divine salvation. John's theology of light provides the backdrop for this text, with its images of vision and blindness. The entire chapter, as well as being a confessional text, is a tribute to John's disciplined artistry as a writer. It is such a closely woven, tightly knit narrative that 9:1-41 need not necessarily have been placed here at the end of chapter 8. However it does fit ...

1694. The Call to Downward Mobility

Isaiah 49:1-7

Sermon

Mike Ripski

I. What are you looking for? Two of John the Baptist’s disciples are with him when Jesus passes by. John declares to them, “Look, here is the Lamb of God.” The two leave John and follow Jesus. In the Fourth Gospel, Jesus doesn’t call disciples to him. The Baptist points them to Jesus. And then they point others to him. Jesus is aware of the two, stops, and turns around. He asks, “What are you looking for? What do you want?” It catches the two off guard. “What are you looking for?” Jesus asks. These are the ...

1695. Advent 4

Psalm 80:1-19, Micah 5:1-4, Luke 1:39-45 (46-55), Hebrews 10:1-18

Bulletin Aid

B. David Hostetter

READINGS Psalter—Luke 1:47-55 [OR] Psalm 80:1-7 First Lesson—Bethlehem is the unlikely birthplace of one who, though newly born, has existed from ancient days. Micah 5:2-5a Second Lesson—The coming of the Christ is the offering of the supreme sacrifice to replace any other less adequate offerings for human sin. Hebrews 10:5-10 Gospel—The meeting of Elizabeth and Mary, both mothers by special arrangement of the Creator, is an occasion of great joy and thanksgiving. Luke 1:39-45 (46-55) CALL TO WORSHIP ...

1696. Easter 3

Psalm 116:1-19, Luke 24:13-35, Acts 2:14-41, 1 Peter 1:17-21

Bulletin Aid

B. David Hostetter

READINGS Psalter - Psalms 116:1-4, 12-19 First Lesson - Peter's sermon is a call to repentance and a promise of salvation to his hearers and their children and those still at a distance. Acts 2:14a, 36-41 Second Lesson - In his letter Peter extols the sacrifice of Christ as God's gift of immeasurable worth. 1 Peter 1:17-21 Gospel - The appearances of the Risen Christ bring surprise and joy. Luke 24:13-35 CALL TO WORSHIP Leader: The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. People: And also with you. ...

1697. The “Gratitude Salute”

James 1:19-27

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

Why are you here? Why did you come to church this morning? What made you voluntarily choose to spend the last summer Sunday before the too busy, too crowded Labor Day weekend inside a church? Why aren’t you lolling on some beach? (Okay, okay maybe you will be later this afternoon!) Maybe you are here out of habit. Maybe going to church is “what you do” on Sunday morning. Maybe you are here because your parents dragged you into the car, kicking and screaming, and you would rather be anywhere else. Maybe you ...

1698. The View from Michal’s Window

2 Samuel 6:1-5, 12b-19

Sermon

Stan Purdum

When I was teenager, I worked one summer at a church camp washing dishes. One day, after cleaning up from supper, the cook, his assistant, the groundskeeper, and I ended up out behind the dining hall where there was an old tree stump on which someone had painted a target. The cook, who was always up to trying something new, had brought with him the kitchen's meat cleaver, a hatchet-like utensil, and he suggested a contest to see which of us could throw the cleaver most squarely into the center of the ...

1699. Song Sung Blue

Lamentations 1:1-6

Sermon

Lee Ann Dunlap

Some records are made to be broken — like Olympic speed skating; Cal Ripkin, Jr.'s, most consecutive baseball game appearances; and North Dakota's longest cow chip toss. Other records we'd prefer to let stand — the world's deadliest disaster, or the most active hurricane season, for instance. Years 2004 and 2005 will probably make the books as among the most dramatic in weather history. Hurricanes pounded the southern coast of the USA. Floods and blizzards battered the Midwest. Earthquakes devastated parts ...

1700. Commitment (Series: Fundamentals of Family)

Ephesians 5:22-33

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

Last September, Sandy and I celebrated our 43rd wedding anniversary. I could tell you today that it’s been 43 years of heavenly bliss, but she would correct me by saying there’s been a lot of hell in the mix. Like all couples we married for better for worse, for richer for poorer, and in recent years it has been a lot more sickness than health. Yet, relationships are held together by an invisible cord called commitment. Commitment is an island of certainty in a sea of change. We are not human butterflies ...

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