Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: thirstiness, dryness, parched, craving, strong desire, longing, yearning, avidity, hunger, voracity, keenness, eagerness, lust, appetite, passion, love, crave, want, covet, desire, hunger for/after, lust for/after, hanker for/after, have one's heart set on

Antonyms: aversion, distaste, apathy, dislike, hatred, antipathy, disgust, disregard, abhorrence, acrimony, wet, animosity, animus, antagonism, bad feeling, bitterness, be averse to, detestation

Showing 151 to 175 of 5000 results

151. Christmas Is On Top Of A Steep Hill

Luke 2:21-40

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... other than Mary and Joseph, I would have liked to have known Simeon. The way the scripture talks about him is so beautiful. He was a simple man, he was devout and righteous, and he was always doing exactly what the Lord told him to do. All his long life, he had looked for the consolation of Israel – that is the coming of the Messiah. So when Mary brought the baby Jesus to the temple in Jerusalem for the act of purification and sacrifice, old Simeon led by the Spirit, was there waiting, acting as a priest ...

152. Who Are You Waiting For?

Isaiah 40:1-31

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... shall mount up with wings as eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.” This is an Advent shout. Long before Jesus arrived on the scene to flesh out this dream of Israel, the prophet had a clear idea as to who this God was and ... prophet Isaiah, so when the time came, when the time was right, he sent us his son to show us who he was, to fulfill our longings, to answer our questions about who he is, and what he is like. This is what, this is what advent is all about. And if we ...

153. I've Been To The Mountain

Luke 9:28-36

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... Rufus Jones was one of the great spiritual giants of this century -- a Quaker, a great champion of the inner-life. He went through a long period of illness -- illness of body and mind. A friend of his, Violet Hodgkins, gave him a parable. She said to him, "Isn't ... and cutoff from all renewing while the tide rises and falls just out of reach. That's the most tantalizing part. And then at long last...the real Spring-tide comes and floats even one's tired-out starfish of a body out into the full-flood of life ...

154. How To Fail Successfully

Mark 6:7-13

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... the story about the fellow who went as a guest preacher to a church? When the sermon was over he was being greeted by people -- they stood in line to express their appreciation. In the line there came a young man who shook his hand and said, "You preach too long." That's all he said and it unnerved the guest preacher a bit. He continued to greet the people but in a moment this same fellow was in the line again. He took the preacher's hand and said, "You didn't say very much.” Well that really unnerved the ...

155. My Prayer For You: Barefoot Days of the Soul

Galatians 5:1-15

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” (Ephesians 3:14-19 NIV) What a prayer! This is theology on its knees. What you believe ...

156. The Privilege and the Price

Matthew 5:13-16

Sermon

Phil Thrailkill

... attempt to lay out the way of salt and light gave this memorable exhortation to the early Methodists: “Do all the good you can By all the means you can In all the ways you can In all the places you can To all the people you can As long as ever you can.”12 The salt and the light are still at work. And finally, a blessing from the Franciscans. As I read it aloud you should taste salt and see light: “May God bless you with discomfort at easy answers, half truths, and superficial relationships so that ...

157. While You Are Waiting

Matthew 25:1-13

Sermon

Mark Trotter

... get what we expect in this life. Now that is not an absolute either, but I think it is truer to reality than saying we get what we deserve. We get what we expect. That is backed by some interesting data. Doctors have known about placebos for a long time. You take something that doesn't cure your problem physically or medically, but you think it does. As a result, you feel better. That's a placebo. They have now come up, especially psychologists, with a new word called "nocebo." It is the opposite of placebo ...

158. Manual Labor Is Not the President of Mexico

Proverbs 6:6-8

Sermon

James Merritt

... upright is a highway." (Prov. 15:19) When the sluggard looks out the front door of life, he doesn't see a highway of opportunity, he just sees one big briar patch. He sees a dark lining in every silver cloud, an obstacle in every opportunity. The hours are too long, the pay is too little, the job is too hard, the people are too demanding. Solomon said, "The lazy man will not plow because of winter..." (Prov. 20:4) It's always either too hot, too cold, too wet, or too dry to work. The point is, he always has ...

159. Journey To The Heart Of Christmas

Luke 2:1-7

Drama

Lois Anne DeLong

... his name? Mary: Jesus. Jordana: That’s a strange name. Why not John or Adam? David: Or, David, like me? Joseph: It’s kind of a long story. This is a baby born for a special purpose. So, he sort of needs a special name. Besides, there already was a famous David ... no longer there. That he and his family have gone home. I miss my home. I’ve lost track of time and don’t know how long it’s been, but I’m tired of sleeping on the ground. Please, Star of Wonder, show us where he is now. (pulls out a ...

160. Sentimental Slaves

Exodus 16:2-15

Sermon

David J. Kalas

... say with certainty which year was best, for they were all so good. Then rewind the tape and discover the lost era for which they long. It is not the halcyon days of high school or the vibrant years of college. It is not the simple, early days of marriage or ... Egypt. For generations, they had called out to the Lord for deliverance. Their bondage was cruel. Their labor coerced. And they longed for God to fulfill the promise he had made to their ancestors, delivering them out of their slavery and leading them ...

161. Love That Surpasses Knowledge

Ephesians 3:14-21

Sermon

Thomas Lentz

... good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example that you should follow in his steps" (1 Peter 2:20-21). If we are to approach the way of biblical love, we must spend a long time meditating on what it means when the Bible says we must deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow Christ. In the book, The Fire of Your Life by Maggie Ross, there is the story of a Jewish woman, a holocaust survivor, who every day at 4 p.m ...

162. The Bride of Jesus

John 2:1-11

Sermon

King Duncan

... Somehow they returned to Stockholm with their lives and their marriage still intact. Most of us will never have a run of bad luck quite that long. Or maybe we will. Life can be cruel. Pastor Ed Markquart tells a heartbreaking story about a woman in her mid forties visiting an elderly woman ... such a tall boy, almost six feet four.” “My, he is a tall boy.” These two women talk back with long periods of silence in between. It finally comes time to leave. The younger woman says, “I must be going now.” ...

163. Lean on the Cloud

Hebrews 11:1-40

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... our best lines because we don’t know we have them? We don’t’ know our own stuff? That happened with “Do it!” and with “No Fear” and now it has happened again with “The Cloud.” Written two millennia ago, Hebrews 12:1 got there long before the people who invented “The Cloud.” The author of Hebrews extolls the ongoing power and presence of this great “cloud of witnesses” who help us define and defend our faithfulness in our lives. We don’t live “in” the past. But we live “out ...

164. The Knot: Tied

1 Corinthians 13:1-13

Sermon

James Merritt

... Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well for a long time. Elaine (age 5): Love is when Mommy gives Daddy the best piece of chicken. Lauren (age 4): I know my older sister loves me, because ... a list in its back pocket to pull out whenever you need to remind someone of when they did you wrong. Love not only has a long fuse, but it has a short memory. Real love not only doesn’t keep a record of the wrongs that have been done to you, but ...

165. Dust Off The Throne

2 Samuel 7:1-11, 16, Luke 1:26-38, Romans 16:25-27

Sermon

David J. Kalas

... men. Some stripped the gold from the palace and temple to pay off regional bullies. Some introduced idolatry and pagan practices into Jerusalem. Some who weren’t so overtly bad still did not show the strength to oppose and undo what evil predecessors had done. It had been a long time since David’s throne had been used. An even longer time since it had been used well. Now, at Christmas, it was time to get it out and dust it off for Mary’s son. 2 Samuel 7:1-11, 16 Our scene opens with a remarkable bit ...

166. Come Home

Matthew 25:14-30

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... the one talent meant that this third servant did not look forward to, or even expect in any way, his master’s return. This third servant was simply “hunkered in his bunker” and “circling the wagons.” When the master did return it was indeed “after a long time.” A lot of water had passed under the bridge. A lot of time for failures or successes. A lot of time for worries or for wins. A lot of time for anxiousness and anticipation. Yet two of the members of his household, two of his “servants ...

167. Body

2 Corinthians 5:1-10

Understanding Series

James M. Scott

... : it is a matter of moving from one country to another, that is, moving out of here in order to move in elsewhere, leaving the body behind to gain heaven and see Christ. Here below, Christians are in exile ‘apart from the Lord.’ They live as exiles (ekdēmeō) so long as they dwell in this body, which is likened to a tent (skēnos—2 Cor. 5:1, 4—a symbol of nomadic life) because their citizenship is in heaven (Phil. 3:20).” Paul’s idea is very close to that of Philo at this point (e.g., On the ...

168. Paul's Charge to Timothy

2 Timothy 3:10--4:8

Understanding Series

Gordon D. Fee

... : Presbyterian and Reformed, 1948), pp. 245–96. For a brief overview of the understanding of inspiration in contemporary Judaism see Warfield, pp. 229–30, and the entry on theopneustos by E. Schweizer in TDNT, vol. 6, p. 454. Final Charge to Timothy Paul now brings to a conclusion the long appeal that makes up the larger part of this letter. This appeal began in 1:6 and was picked up again in 3:10 after the interlude on the false teachers in 2:14–3:9; but it now takes the form of a solemn charge (v. 1 ...

169. Distress and Help

Isaiah 33:1-24

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... to live on high (24:21; 26:5). Yahweh dwells on high, whence spirit is poured down (32:15). Whereas Zion is currently filled with silver and horses and images, Yahweh will fill Zion with just judgment. Yahweh has been their sure foundation in doing things planned long ago (25:1, NIV “faithfulness”). He is thus the sure foundation. Whereas Tyre will not be able to hoard its profits (23:18), Yahweh will be the people’s rich store (the same word). The wisdom and knowledge to find the way of salvation in ...

170. Sermon on the Mount: Giving, Prayer, and Fasting

Matthew 6:1-4, Matthew 6:5-15, Matthew 6:16-18

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... tyranny of the opinions of others? How might this help them refocus on the only reward that is important: belonging to the kingdom and the King and having the honor that this affords? 2. Jesus’ disciples are given a pattern for prayer that centers on a longing for the coming of God’s reign. In the middle of Jesus’ first discourse in Matthew focused on the coming of God’s kingdom, it is not surprising that Jesus offers his disciples a prayer that centers on God’s reign becoming a reality in this ...

171. The Four Horsemen

Revelation 6:1-17

Teach the Text

J. Scott Duvall

... perfect character qualities for executing justice (cf. Rev. 3:7; 16:7; 19:2), they question his timetable. God’s people have often asked him, “How long?” as a matter of pleading for justice (e.g., Pss. 79:5–10; 89:46; 119:84; Isa. 6:11; Hab. 1:2; Zech. 1:12 ... churches in Revelation 2–3, the vision of Revelation 6 presses readers to choose a side. Neutrality is not a long-term option. God in his sovereignty exercises patience even as his people suffer injustice. But delayed judgment should not be ...

172. Proclamations of Judgment and Reward

Revelation 14:6-13

Teach the Text

J. Scott Duvall

... –11). We are called to do the same. What do we need in order to endure? A mind-set that celebrates the “little-by-little” nature of growth. A heavenly perspective. A community that provides examples, support, and forgiveness. Personal habits that foster long-term character transformation. The Christian life is more like a marathon than a sprint. To endure is to overcome; to persevere is to win. If there is one focal point in this call to endure, it’s worship. Interestingly, the nations are called to ...

173. Job Feels Both Confidence and Terror

Job 23:1--24:25

Teach the Text

Daniel J. Estes

... He will not abuse his power to do what is evil, but his goodness means that he can be trusted to use his power for blessing, just as the Lord does. Job Asks Why God Allows Sin to Continue Unpunished Big Idea: Rampant injustice in the world prompts Job to long for God to bring justice. Understanding the Text Job’s final point in chapter 23 was that the Sovereign God is free to act in ways that may not fit into a tidy formula of retribution. In chapter 24, Job builds on that point by demonstrating that the ...

174. Elihu

Job 32:1--37:24

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

... Although Elihu denies any heavy-handed attempt to force a reaction from Job, nor should my hand be heavy upon you, his words increasingly reflect just such a coercive attitude. Summary of Job’s Claims 33:8–9 But you have said . . . I heard. At long last Elihu begins his substantive critique of Job’s claims with a quote. The question arises immediately whether Elihu’s quote fairly represents Job’s statements. This precise quote is found nowhere in the book of Job and so can only be a loose summary ...

175. The Ten Commandments

Deuteronomy 5:1-33

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... what they say as good. But awareness of their past and their likely future generates a divine wistfulness, Oh that . . . , which surfaces quite often in the OT (cf. Isa. 48:18f.; Jer. 2:1–3; 3:19–20; Hos. 11—the climax of such divine longing is reached when Jesus himself weeps over Jerusalem, Luke 19:41–44). 5:30–31 The people’s commissioning of Moses to be their mediator is now complemented by God’s personal invitation to him, thus authorizing his role and status from both parties. There is ...

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