Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: touch, feel, sense of touch, tactile sense, tactility, contact, using one's hands, sensation, sense, suspicion, sneaking suspicion, notion, inkling, hunch, fancy, apprehension, presentiment, premonition, foreboding, love, care, affection, fondness, tenderness, warmth, warmness, emotion, sentiment, emotional state, compassion, sympathy, empathy, fellow feeling, understanding, concern, solicitude, solicitousness, tender-heartedness, brotherly love, sensibilities, sensitivities, self-esteem, ego, pride, opinion, belief, view, impression, intuition, instinct, estimation, guess, theory, hypothesis, thought, way of thinking, point of view, atmosphere, ambience, aura, air, mood, climate, character, overtone, undertone, tenor, spirit, quality, flavour, colour, aptitude, knack, flair, bent, talent, gift, skill, art, trick, faculty, ability, propensity, inclination, sensitive, warm, warm-hearted, tender, tender-hearted, caring, soft-hearted, sympathetic, compassionate, empathetic, responsive, receptive, intuitive, thoughtful

Antonyms: bad feeling, acrimony, animosity, animus, antagonism, antipathy, aversion, bitterness, detestation, disgust, dislike, disrelish, enmity, friction, grievances, grudges, hatred, hostility, loathing, malevolence, malice

Showing 1726 to 1750 of 4340 results

1726. The Upside-down Kingdom of God

Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon

Johnny Dean

... . Might makes right, you know!" But Jesus says, "Blessed are the peacemakers…" Am I missing something? I have to confess that my reading of the Beatitudes is somewhat corrupted by the scene in the Monty Python movie, The Life of Brian. In the film, the character who is supposed to represent Jesus is speaking to his followers, and a large crowd has gathered. A few folks in the distance are having a hard time making out what he is saying, exactly who he is blessing. They think they hear him say, "Blessed ...

1727. Just Who Do You Think You Are?

Matthew 15:21-28

Sermon

Johnny Dean

... . Somebody else is in charge of doing ministry with YOUR kind of people, not me. That’s not my job." I’ll be honest with you. Every time I read this passage of scripture, the hair on the back of my neck begins to prickle! This is so out of character for Jesus, so harsh and empty of compassion. It reminds me of the story of the church member who stopped by to visit his pastor on a hot summer afternoon and found the minister drinking a cold beer on the patio. He was shocked, and he said so. The pastor ...

1728. Exasperating Grace

Matthew 20:1-16

Sermon

Johnny Dean

... could think of to say about Jesus was? "This man eats and drinks with sinners." He’ll party with ANYBODY! He’ll have fun with the riffraff and the losers! As Tony Campolo says, the kingdom of God is a party, and the guest list includes some pretty shady characters – people like you and me. Finally, at the end of the day, when the judge puts on the wig and robe and bangs down the gavel, calling the court to order, to pass judgment on our lives – in the end our only hope, no matter what time we ...

1729. Making Christmas Last

Luke 2:21-40

Sermon

Brett Blair

... scriptures with more than a cursory glance, is strikingly foreign to that first Christmas. Who of us is not warmly moved when we hear the famous birth narrative. It occurs in the Gospel of Luke just before the text we just read. The events and characters are so familiar: Caesar Augustus and the census, Mary and Joseph’s delicate situation of a child outside of wedlock. A very pregnant Mary riding a donkey on a three days journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem to fulfill a government edict, The birth in the ...

1730. That All-Pervasive Snake

Genesis 2:4-25, Genesis 3:1-24

Sermon

Joann Hary

... an idea?" we might ask. "Is the devil at work inside his head?" Lest we quickly decide that the devil only works inside the minds of children, let's take a look at the following vignettes to shed some light on how temptation works: (Assuming the character for each) 1. "Wow, I have really studied hard for this test! I spent hours and hours and have read the whole unit three times, besides writing all the answers to the questions. I have written imaginary test questions and answered them. I really feel good ...

1731. And Who is my Neighbor?

Luke 10:25-37

Sermon

Johnny Dean

... show which aired at the end of the 1998 TV season received a lot of flack for being disappointing. Perhaps the reason so many were disappointed in the show is because it moralized. It wasn’t very funny; in fact, it was self deprecating. All of the characters receive a one year sentence for failing to help someone who was robbed. What happens is this: Jerry plays a comedian on the show and he has just received a contract from NBC to do a sitcom and the network is flying Jerry, Elaine, George and Kramer ...

1732. Repentance - King David and Peter

Luke 22:54-62

Drama

Martha L. Leach

Characters: Narrator David Peter Narrator: Tonight we will give some thought to the first of the attributes of Lent repentance. Throughout the Scriptures, the prophets and others have reminded people about their sins and have encouraged repentance. It's a word which conjures up negative feelings because none of us likes ...

1733. Sacrifice - Hannah and Mary, the Mother of Christ

Luke 2:41-52

Drama

Martha L. Leach

Characters: Hannah Mary, the Mother of Christ Narrator: This week the second attribute of Lent - sacrifice - will be highlighted in the dialogue. There are many in the Scriptures who made sacrifices for God and his purposes. Two women Hannah and Mary, the mother of Christ - are tonight's examples of sacrifice ...

1734. Commitment

John 19:17-27

Drama

Martha L. Leach

Characters: Ruth John Theme: Commitment Narrator: Commitment is the attribute of this Holy Season which will be the focal point of this evening's worship. Someone once said, "God does not ask about our ability or our inability, but about our availability." Ruth and John are two personalities from the Scriptures ...

1735. Faith -- Abraham and the Centurion

Luke 23:26-43

Drama

Martha L. Leach

Characters: Narrator Abraham Centurion Narrator: Faith is the attribute of Lent which perhaps should have been considered before all others. For repentance, sacrifice, commitment, humility, and service are all the results of faith in our lives. Tonight Abraham and the Centurion meet. As the Centurion returns to his tent and prepares ...

1736. Service -- Rahab and Mary of Bethany

John 12:1-11

Drama

Martha L. Leach

Characters: Narrator Rahab Mary Narrator: Tonight Rahab, the Canaanite, meets Mary of Bethany. Their means of "service" were quite different, but each served in her own way. Each of us has some way or ways we share our faith through service. In his description of the last judgment, the Master said ...

1737. Oh, Lord, It's Hard To Be Humble

Luke 18:9-14

Sermon

Johnny Dean

... own wretchedness, his acknowledgment of his shortcomings and his need for forgiveness is. Neither the Pharisee nor the tax collector is the hero of this parable. There is no hero here. Jesus does not end this parable with "Go and do likewise." Both of the characters in the story are sinners. One sins knowingly and the other unknowingly, but both come to the altar of prayer as sinners, just like us. What’s going on in this parable is that God is transforming reality, changing our expectations. God is being ...

1738. The Women

John 20:1-9

Drama

William Grimbol

Setting: Five women gathered in a courtyard garden for conversation Time: Christ's ministry Characters: Shirlee Diane Nancy Carol Karen Patti SHIRLEE: Nonsense! DIANE: Quit acting as though you are the only intelligent person present (Pause) ... please. SHIRLEE: Oh, good grief, don't be so offended, but really, miracles? Every year there is some new magician, some new mystic, some awesome miracle worker. (Standing, assuming ...

1739. Have You Talked to Jesus Lately?

John 4:1-26

Sermon

Johnny Dean

... has come to Jacob’s well to tetch water, and instead she finds "living water." And the well is deeper than she could possibly imagine, because this story is recorded in the Gospel of John, where words have double meanings, deeper meanings, and the character of Jesus is portrayed as ultimate mystery, confusing, larger than life. Now, on the surface, the story appears to begin innocently enough, with Jesus simply asking the woman for a drink of water. But to those who lived in Jesus’ day, it most likely ...

1740. There's Blindness, and There's Blindness

John 9:13-34, John 9:1-12

Sermon

Johnny Dean

... healing of the man born blind. The one who was born blind learns to walk in the light, while those who were gifted with normal sight choose to remain in darkness. When we consider our own calling to "walk as children of light," it’s easy to recognize which character in the story we ought to imitate. Like the man born blind, we too have been restored by our encounter with Jesus. We too have been saved by God’s free grace, and our eyes have been opened to see the world in a new, counter-cultural way. The ...

1741. The Meaning of Life

John 17:6-19

Sermon

Brett Blair

In Act 5 scene 5 of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the character Macbeth has heard that the queen is dead and he knows his own death is imminent. At this time he delivers his famous soliloquy: Tomorrow, and tomorrow and tomorrow creeps in this petty pace from day to day, To the last syllable of recorded time, And all our yesterdays have ...

1742. Episode 1: The Holy Spirit

Acts 2:1-13

Sermon

Brett Blair

In 1977 two teenagers walked into a movie theatre in Memphis to watch a movie that was then virtually unknown. The name of the movie was Star Wars. The characters were unknown to my brother Todd and I. In fact, the movie was virtually unknown to many. Star Wars was not expected by anyone to be a smash hit let alone the biggest grossing movie of all times. We did know it was science-fiction. That’s the reason we ...

1743. Mom Taught Me to Share

Acts 17:16-34

Sermon

Johnny Dean

... conceivable god or goddess. And just in case they might have missed one along the way somehow, they even had a shrine to "the unknown god." You have to be careful about these things, you know. You wouldn’t want to slight a god, would you? It’s like the character in the play, "Stop the World, I Want to Get Off," who wears a cross, a Star of David, a star and crescent, AND a lucky rabbit’s foot. You have to be sure you have all the bases covered! Having gotten the attention of his audience with his left ...

1744. The Inaugural Address

Luke 4:14-30

Sermon

Brett Blair

... aids can supply every human defect . . . No people can be bound to acknowledge and adore the Invisible Hand which conducts the affairs of men more than those of the United States. Every step by which [the people] have advanced to the character of an independent nation seems to have been distinguished by some token of providential agency... George Washington's First Inaugural Address, Thursday, April 30, 1789 ********* Here is the second: My countrymen, one and all, think calmly and well upon this whole ...

1745. Is He Really Coming?

Sermon

Rolf E. Aaseng

... of the world is almost here: It is only a minute or two before the stroke of midnight. Some have even announced the exact date when Jesus would come again. But nothing has happened; the world goes on as it always has. We seem to be like the character in the drama, Waiting for Godot, who throughout the whole play is expecting a visitor. But when the curtain falls Godot has failed to appear. Because Christians have been waiting in vain so long, most of us rarely think about the Second Coming. No longer are we ...

1746. The Crowing of a Rooster

Matthew 26:31-35, Matthew 26:69-75

Sermon

Wallace H. Kirby

... feelings. Perhaps this sound of a rooster crowing may help us do so. Erich Segal's novel, Love Story, was popular reading some years ago and was made into a movie which became a box office hit. There is one scene in which the two main characters, Oliver and Jenny, recently married, have an argument. Jenny rushes out of the apartment. After a while, Oliver goes out looking for her and finds her on the front steps of a classroom building. In a very moving and touching way, Oliver apologizes to Jenny. She ...

1747. WHAT IS MAN?

Sermon

Larry Powell

... " of one mightier than he was presumptuous, arrogant, and offensive. His scathing denunciation of Herod's marriage to Herodias, Herod's own sister-in-law, exceeded all tolerance. Although Herod respected John, Herodias found his outspoken attacks upon her character both damaging and bothersome, so she arranged a subtle scenario with her beautiful daughter, Salome. Salome would dance for Herod at his birthday banquet. Her performance so pleased Herod, his lords, and high captains that he told her that ...

1748. In Quest of a Treasure

James 1:1-18

Sermon

Larry Powell

... . The headliners of today are the footnotes of tomorrow. Again, there will be someone else now, who will descend into the snake pit to out-sit the snake-sitting record; Someone will emerge to try and better the underwater breathholding record, and doubtless, some character will mount the pulpit someday and drone on and on in quest of the world's longest sermon. Lord, have mercy! Two thoughts: (1) longer is riot necessarily better. A cigarette that is longer does little to improve one's breath or health ...

1749. Time and Stewardship

Sermon

Larry Powell

... and LIFE are. One of my favorite books is Nietzche's "Thus Spake Zarathustra." I don't expect that many of you will have read it as it is a weighty, relatively unfamiliar text. It consists of the pronouncements of Neitzche's ficticious character, Zarathustra, in the celebration of life. Zarathustra was himself the original "Superman," who by achieving his human potential, rose above the common herd and beckoned others to do the same. Although I do not agree with all the pronouncements, I salute the concept ...

1750. Loving

1 Corinthians 13:1-13

Sermon

Larry Powell

... to say things which otherwise might not have been said. Several years ago, an old minister was presiding over the last rites of one of his dear friends. The deceased was a long-time fishing companion of the minister and was known to all as a rather colorful character. The old minister began, "Jim was a loud-mouthed, windy, obnoxious old man ..." I almost fell out of the pew, but soon noticed that the minister had a tear in his eye, and the memories of years and years of friendship lodged in his throat. He ...

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