Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 151 to 175 of 656 results

Acts 1:12-26

Sermon

E. Carver McGriff

... or whatever title may have been in use at the time). But there must have been some inward pain when the announcement was made that Matthias had been chosen. Joseph came in second. One thing becomes clear when we read the New Testament: those people were imperfect like the rest of us. Peter, whose courage failed him in Gethsemane; James and John, who were nicknamed "sons of thunder" and blatantly asked to be first in the Kingdom of God, which they didn't even understand; Judas himself: like you and me, those ...

152. Here Is Where It Happens

1 Samuel 2:12-26

Sermon

Arthur H. Kolsti

... t it, to think that in this world filled with shadows and uncertainties, sound and fury, that what goes on in our little church circles can have any impact. We even have trouble believing that what goes on within our little congregations with all their imperfections can have any significant national influence. In a way we can sometimes be like Eli, sort of pooped out and unexpectant. We are told about things in general then that "the word of the Lord was rare in those days; visions were not widespread." The ...

153. Choosing Your Spirituality

Sermon

Charles R. Leary

... asking myself questions. Is that the image I have been projecting? Have I been leading people to grovel in self-pity over their failures and pains? Have I been turning people’s eyes inward and backward so that they beat their breasts for being human and imperfect? If so, I must change my course. I began to discover a fuller life in a Christian spirituality that is driven by hope for the tomorrows, a spirituality that believes God is out there challenging us to move on to greater things. Personally, I need ...

154. Stilling The Storm

Mark 4:35-41

Drama

Dallas A. Brauninger

... , Peter usually acted or spoke for the group of disciples. Peter stood out among them. Peter's name is first in the inner circle of disciples (Peter, James, and John). Peter volunteered to come to Jesus on the water in another story. Even as a fearful, imperfect person, the fisher also may have taken the lead the night of the storm. GOSPEL PARALLELS Compared with Matthew and Luke, who used the common Q source, Mark is terse and to the point. The Gospel of Mark was written about a decade earlier than the ...

155. Christmas Eve

Lk 2:1-20 · Isa 9:2-7 · Tit 2:11-14 · Ps 96

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

... hope will only be fulfilled when the kingdom has fully come in the person of Jesus, the Christ. Outline: Since the glory days of King David, the Jews longed for the perfect king. Since the enlightenment, people have sought other types of perfect government. Imperfect people cannot usher in a perfect government. Christians seek God's perfect reign in the kingdom of Christ. Lesson 2: Titus 2:11-14 Sermon Title: Grace For All. Sermon Angle: The grace of God is not stingy or exclusive but generous and abounding ...

156. Advent 4

Luke 1:26-38

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

... message was one of grace (v. 29). Such a response is quite natural, as we can see from numerous accounts in scripture. When we sinners stand in the presence of the One who is eternal and holy, we are overwhelmed with a sense of our imperfection. However, for those who are open to his grace, God moves quickly to allay our fears with his favor. Beyond limits. After the angel announced that Elizabeth was also pregnant, he pronounced that nothing was impossible with God (v. 37). God remains beyond limits even ...

157. Proper 25

Hebrews 7:11-28, Job 42:7-17, Job 42:1-6, Mark 10:46-52

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

... many because they were forced to lay aside their office through sin and death. In contrast, "He (Jesus) holds his priesthood permanently because he continues forever. He is able for all time to save those who approach God." The sacrifices of the priests were imperfect because they had to be repeated but Jesus offered up himself for us as the one all-sufficient sacrifice (v. 27). All other religions are attempts to connect us with God but they are all incomplete. Jesus completes the work of salvation. He ...

158. The S & L That Didn't Fail!

Isaiah 52:13--53:12

Sermon

Barbara Brokhoff

... , the captivating feature is the exquisitely carved figure of the suffering Lord portrayed in the clarity and pain of his torturous, crucified death. That Christ as Victim has won my heart, my love, my loyalty, and my allegiance. I am keenly aware that I serve him always imperfectly, and often very poorly, but still I own no other Lord before him. The S & L That Didn't Fail Yes, the savings and loans have failed us. Man-made institutions have a way of doing that. They come and go, show profit and loss, rise ...

159. Wedding: One Husband's Counsel

Sermon Aid

John M. Braaten

... or both of the spouses think they could have done better or feel they got the raw end of the marriage. It can happen. It is very easy to take our mate for granted, to forget virtues, and to concentrate on faults. We are all sinful and imperfect people, who are difficult to live with at times. Never lose the capacity to marvel at the fact that your mate chose to marry you, warts and all! Then Peter counsels you to be forgiving. Forgiveness is the heart of happiness. We know that hostility upsets our bodies ...

160. Proper 10

Colossians 1:15-23, Colossians 1:1-14, 2 Kings 2:1-18, Deuteronomy 30:11-20, Psalm 69:1-36, Psalm 25:1-22, Luke 10:25-37

Sermon Aid

George Bass

... the commandments of God, even to claim that one loves God, but unless one loves all other human beings and actually comes to their aid and assistance, particularly when they are in trouble or need, that love for God is in vain, because it is imperfect, at best. SERMON SUGGESTIONS Luke 10:25-37 - "The Mugging." It happened in the downtown section of one of our major cities, where numerous people are on the streets, especially in the lunch hour. A man was lying on the sidewalk, partly in an alley, outside ...

161. Proper 14

Hebrews 11:1-40, Jeremiah 18:1--19:15, Genesis 15:1-18, Luke 12:35-48

Sermon Aid

George Bass

... 's words. And sure enough, as Jeremiah watches the potter at work, the word of the Lord comes to him, telling him that God is working like the potter to shape his children into people who are worthy of his blessings. Just as the potter shatters and discards imperfect pieces of his work, so God will reject and destroy the people, if they are evil. But if they repent of their sins and return to him, God will have mercy, receive them, and bless them. He directs Jeremiah to speak to the people, tell them of God ...

162. Straight Talk, Due Process and Grace

Matthew 18:15-20

Sermon

William J. Carl

It never ceases to amaze me how periodically someone joins the church thinking with great naivete that he or she has now left the imperfect, money-grubbing, power-hungry secular world and entered some holy, monastic community where everyone is good and kind and loving and no one ever gossips or spreads rumors or disagrees on any subject. When this happens, I usually watch to see how long it takes before this person’s whole ...

163. Jesus’ First Sign

John 2:1-11

Sermon

James Garrett

... in the grace of Jesus Christ. Grace always does more than expected. Look at the symbolism. The miracle involved six stone jars which held the water for the Jewish rites of purification. The number six meant incompleteness, as the number seven meant completeness. Jesus took an imperfect vessel for purification and used it as a sign for the new wine of the gospel of grace. The steward of the feast pronounced the new wine better than the wine they already had. In Jesus there is a new gospel of grace, new wine ...

164. The Proof Is In The Fruit

Luke 6:39-49

Sermon

James Garrett

... gotten along with his wife, a very difficult woman. He said Wesley was constantly taking to the road, preaching, as much to get away from his wife as to convert the wicked. She was, he said, Wesley’s “thorn in the flesh.” In an imperfect world, criticism and moral superiority can come easily. The judgmental approach costs nothing and is worth as much. To hunt for ways to praise others can do far more good. It has been said, “A compliment is verbal sunshine.” Praise awakens hope and the desire ...

165. A Conquered Enemy

1 Corinthians 15:1-11

Eulogy

W. George Easson

... life are quite permanent. Changes which we know must some day cease seem so remote as to be unreal. But we all know that at any moment something can happen to totally alter the pattern of life for us. In actual fact, nothing is permanent in this imperfect world. Life is always changing. Most of these changes we take more or less as a matter of course. We replace the furniture in our homes, change jobs, or even move from one place to another. We think of most of these changes as advancements or improvesnents ...

166. Endorsing The Future

Sermon

Harold Warlick

... Thus life was possible because of the principle of life itself: some died that others might live.52 That principle of life has made possible the transmission of genuine faith from generation to generation. It has enabled humankind to purify itself from the imperfections of society and to lift its soul toward the realm of God. This principle, for Christians, has been eternally embodied in the truth of the cross of Christ. In that truth, hopefully we citizens of the twenty-first century can liberate ourselves ...

167. Dim Visions And Blind Guides

Sermon

Harold Warlick

... somehow immune from human temptation and realities, that they have no limits with which to grapple theologically. One of the most important aspects of an education is learning to see our leaders, whether governmental, religious, or educational, for what they are: imperfect human beings. Conversely, if we can learn to have faith in the political process, the church, and in education in spite of setbacks to our myths about preachers, teachers, and politicians, then we have learned much. Leaders are people who ...

168. An Overwhelming Promise

Eulogy

Joe Barone

... Let’s not forget that one of them is hope. God’s promise in the Bible is overwhelming. From the rainbow to the Christ, God has been faithful, and God’s will has been to bring us salvation. Remember that. As we say good-bye to our good friend, an imperfect person, as we all are, but a good and faithful Christian, we should hear God’s words through Isaiah: “For you shall go out in joy, and be led forth in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall break forth in singing and all the trees of ...

169. Our Dwelling Place In All Generations

Psalm 90:1-17

Eulogy

Joe Barone

... says, and value the days and hours you’ve been given. * did that, I think, at least as well as many people do, and better than most. In some ways there’s a lot to be said for one who, such as *, lived not as a saint, but as an imperfect and yet hopeful human being. “Satisfy us in the morning with thy steadfast love, that we may rejoice and be glad in all our days.” Psalm 90 is a prayer for deliverance from pain. It’s a psalm prayed by the nation asking God for better days. “Make us glad ...

170. Wedding: The Most Excellent Way

1 Corinthians 12:12-31

Sermon Aid

Joel W. Kreger

... . Now our vision is dim,mere shadows we see,of life in such love, of what we can be. We feel so young, inadequate, not sure. We struggle like children to be faithful and pure. We live in his love but it’s like we’re half there. It’s imperfect and broken, this life we live here. God’s promise to us, in this way of his love, is that life will be wholewhen we come to his home high above. In the marriage covenant,the most excellent way is the way of God’s love. In your marriage covenant ...

171. Death of a Newborn Infant

Luke 18:15-17

Eulogy

Walter A. Schmidt

... . Even nature' suffers. Sin always leaves behind a damaging residue - lingering pain and suffering, shattered lives and scarred spirits." Dr. Brownfield's words speak to us. It was no one's fault that Jason was born with a defective heart. Because of our imperfect world even something as normal and natural as procreation is all too often adversely affected. But we are also reminded that the innocent suffer and our lives are filled with pain and sorrow and grief. We all can identify with that today. And ...

172. Called in From Off-stage

1 Samuel 16:1-13

Sermon

Donald Zelle

... It is this Jesus whom God jerked on to the center stage of life, when people were looking for someone different. It is this Jesus who changed the entire course of human history. It is Jesus who teaches us that we are still living with imperfect standards in regard to human worth and importance. Take children, for example. The large number of reported child-abuse cases in the homes of Americans is alarming. It tells us that we have yet to understand the words of Jesus about the importance of children. Jesus ...

173. Candle Lighting · all five services

Matthew 3:1-12, Psalm 119:1-176, Luke 2:1-7, Luke 2:8-20, 1 Peter 1:1-12

Bulletin Aid

J. B. Quisenberry

... to wash their sins away, and to make their hearts fit to receive Christ. Today, on this first Sunday in Advent, he calls to us too, but what he asks isn't easy. John wants to us see ourselves as we truly are, with all of our weaknesses and imperfections. He wants us to take the responsibility for our own sins. He'll accept no finger pointing and no "passing the buck." It would be much easier for us to rest comfortably in the shadows, and ignore John's call. It would be much easier to busy ourselves with ...

174. Lent 1

Sermon

Betty Lynn Schwab

... Hosanna joyfully because they knew that one day God would do just that. And God did - through the birth and life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Youth: Let us pray. All: Holy God of the Booths, we are like the people in Jesus' day. We confess our imperfect church, our political and economic oppression, and our own feelings of guilt. So we cry out to you, "Hosanna! Save us!" Yet we know Jesus is already with us. By His life and death and resurrection Jesus shows us the Way. So we pray help us be ...

175. The Seven Last Words of the Church

Luke 20:27-40

Sermon

Johnny Dean

... you do," Jesus says, "you would know that God’s power to provide is far greater than our greatest longing. If resurrection is a gift of God – and who else has the power to grant new life? – then the resurrection life cannot possibly be a continuation of the imperfect life we live here. God is not the God of the dead, but of the living! Marriage is appropriate in this life, but do you really think we’ll need that to cement our relationships in the next life? Tradition is fine, as far as it goes, but ...

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