Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 1726 to 1750 of 4933 results

1726. On Not Knowing What to Say

Mark 9:2-13

Sermon

Donald B. Strobe

It is said that a good secretary is one who often “covers” for the boss, and makes the boss look good when the boss does something stupid. Hence, St. Mark, the secretary to St. Peter, tells us that Peter’s dumb remarks on the occasion of Jesus’ transfiguration were caused by fear. But Mark’s report of this incident reinforces Peter’s reputation for only opening his mouth to change feet. As Halford Luccock says in the Interpreter’s Bible: “This was not a particularly bright remark of Peter’s and Mark ...

1727. Feasting and Fasting for Lent (Part III)

Luke 13:1-9

Sermon

Eric Ritz

Dr. William H. Willimon, our minister at the historic Duke Chapel at Duke University, shared an insight to the Lenten season while he was a pastor in South Carolina. He was called to the hospital to be with a couple who belonged to the congregation he served. The wife had given birth to a child. Word had drifted out of the delivery room that all was not well. Dr. Willimon then shared how the doctor spared few words. "Your baby is afflicted with Down''s Syndrome, mongolism. I had expected this. But things ...

1728. How To Fail Successfully

Mark 6:7-13

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

It's amazing what we do with funny stories. We apply them to whomever we wish. For instance, you might hear one funny story with the legendary coach Bear Bryant as the primary actor. When you hear it again, the primary actor may be Johnny Majors. I heard a marvelous story sometime ago about Thomas Wheeler, Chief Executive Officer for the Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company -- in fact, he told the story on himself. Lately I've been hearing it about President Clinton. So the story goes with the new ...

1729. What Do You Call Success?

Luke 10:1-24

Sermon

King Duncan

Humor writer Ed McManus said one day he was late leaving home for work. There was a knock at his front door. It was wet and cold outside. He opened the door and there stood two Jehovah’s Witnesses, damp and shivering in the cold. They asked if they could come inside. Well, he couldn’t leave them standing there, so he said okay. He brought them into his living room and offered them a chair. They were quiet for a long time, so he asked, “What happens now?” The older one said, “We don’t know. We never got ...

1730. Removing Obstacles

1 Corinthians 1:10-18

Sermon

James L. Killen

Our church has an important mission. Our church was called into existence to witness to the good news of God's love that was shown to us in Jesus Christ. Our church exists to share God's love, to bring people into a fellowship in which God's love is shared, and to help people grow into followers of Jesus. There are people, perhaps many people, within the reach of our church who are hungry for the love of God that we were given to share. Our church has been commissioned to teach the way of love that is the ...

1731. Proper 17

Exodus 3:1-22, Matthew 16:21-28, Romans 12:9-21, Psalm 105:1-45

Sermon Aid

Marion L. Soards, Thomas B. Dozeman, Kendall McCabe

OLD TESTAMENT TEXTS Exodus 3:1-15 is the call of Moses, which ends with the revelation of the divine name, while Psalm 105:1-6, 23-26, 45b adds an alternative section (vv. 23-26) to the historical hymn of praise that was also the psalm for Proper Fourteen. The replacement section recounts Israel's oppression in Egypt and the calling of Moses and Aaron to save them. Exodus 3:1-15 - "Deciphering God's Call" Setting. Exodus 3:1-15 is best characterized as a call narrative. The call narrative is an established ...

1732. Earthquakes, Tsunamis, and Disaster: Why do the Innocent Suffer?

Psalm 69:1-36

Sermon

James W. Moore

On a Christmas card we received this year, we discovered these powerful words: When the song of the angels is stilled, When the star in the sky is gone, When the Kings and Princes are back home, When the Shepherds have returned to new flocks, The work of Christmas begins: - To find the lost, - To heal the broken - To feed the hungry, - To release the prisoners, - To rebuild the nations, - To bring peace among people, - To make music in the heart. Or, in other words, to do the work of Christ. These words ...

1733. My God Is Real

Psalm 14:1-7

Sermon

James Merritt

Charles Haddon Spurgeon, the prince of preachers, a master theologian, one of the greatest pastors in the history of the church, once said: The proper study of the Christian is the Godhead. The highest science, the loftiest speculation, the mightiest philosophy which can ever engage the attention of a child of God is the name, the nature, the person, the work, the doings, and the existence of the great God whom he calls his Father.1 From time immemorial the human race has been filled with questions about ...

1734. Fatal Attraction

Matthew 5:27-30

Sermon

James Merritt

A teacher was working with a grammar lesson and she said to one of her students, "Willie, what is it when I say ‘I love you, you love me, he loves me?'" Willie replied, "That's one of those triangles where somebody gets shot." Well, it used to be a situation where somebody would get shot—with a gun. Today it's a situation that gets shot with a television camera. Television refers to adultery, to sex outside of marriages, 13 times more frequently than it mentions intimacy between a husband and a wife. There ...

1735. Won't You Come Home, George Bailey?

Luke 2:1-7

Sermon

This being the MotorCity, let's start with a pair of transportation tidbits. Several years ago, I told you that since the gospel makes nary a mention of camels, I was willing to speculate that the three kings drove to Bethlehem in a Honda. For tradition has it that "they were of one accord." But now I am able to offer an eyewitness report that Santa Claus (or his brother who dresses like him) drives an Audi ... a beige Audi ... a beige Audi wagon ... complete with a cell phone. For I followed Santa south ...

1736. The Treasure Principles

Matthew 6:19-24

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

The story is told of a man who, while walking on a beach, found a used magic lamp. He rubbed the lamp and the genie appeared, inviting him to make a wish. The man pondered for a moment and then had a great idea. He requested a copy of the stock page from the local newspaper, dated exactly one year into the future. With a puff of smoke, the genie disappeared and in his place was a copy of the stock page, dated exactly one year into the future. Gleefully, the man sat down to peruse his trophy. Now he could ...

1737. Resurrected Following (Series: Living on the Resurrection Side of Life)

John 10:1-21

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

A famous actor was the guest of honor at a social gathering. As people gathered around, they asked the actor to recite excerpts from various literary works. He obliged and did so brilliantly. Finally, an elderly pastor asked the author to recite the 23rd Psalm. The actor hesitated at first and then agreed on one condition. The pastor would return the favor. The actor’s recitation was brilliant and eloquent. People responded to the actor with lengthy applause. The pastor’s rendition was feeble and frail. ...

1738. Jesus’ Trail of Tears (Series: Questioning Our Values)

Luke 19:28-44

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

If you happen to love basketball as much as I do, March Madness is a strange mixture of cheers and tears. Wins and loses are determined in split seconds leaving fans in the arena shouting for joy or crying in pain. Such is life. Palm Sunday is a little bit like that. Children are singing. Hosannas are ringing; even the rocks begin to roll a little bit for joy. But not everyone this Palm Sunday is happy. Hear this scripture that has been shared from the Gospel of Luke from the Palm Sunday narrative, “As ...

1739. The Day God Voted

1 Samuel 15:34-35, 16:1-13

Sermon

David E. Leininger

Are you ready to vote? These days it seems as if that were a perpetual question. One campaign is hardly over before the next one begins. The political commercials on television are endless: the charges and the countercharges, one side "pointing with pride," the other "viewing with alarm." Someone once said, "Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it everywhere, diagnosing it wrongly, and applying unsuitable remedies." Sounds like a perfect description of what we get with all these thirty- ...

1740. The Living Advent Wreath (The Manger: White Candle of Peace)

Luke 2:1-7

Drama

Frank Ramirez

Note: Pilgrim and Guide have minimal singing parts. Attendant carries the candlelighter and lights the candles in the Advent wreath each week. Faith, Hope, Love, and Trust, representing the four candles of the Advent wreath, enter one per week, then remain through the final weeks. They have mostly singing parts. Mary, Joseph, and Infant have nonspeaking parts and are seated behind a curtain in the final week of presentation. Cast Pilgrim Guide Attendant Faith Hope Love Trust (three people) Mary Joseph ...

1741. A Christmas Program

Luke 2:21-40

Drama

Arley K. Fadness

Narration: We begin our Christmas worship and pageant tonight with the wondrous images of Luke, chapter 2, dancing in our eyes and warming our hearts. We gather to worship. We gather to honor. We gather to celebrate the birthday of Jesus at Bethlehem, the Messiah, our Christ. Christmas Puppet Play (skit provided below) Narration: Jesus Christ is the gift of gifts. How amazing when the prophets Isaiah, Micah, and others foretold of the coming of the one who would bring deliverance to the people of Israel. ...

1742. How the Lord has Covered the Daughter of Zion

Lamentations 2:1-22

Understanding Series

Tremper Longman III

The Lord Is Like an Enemy: 2:1 Alef. The opening word (How) invites the reader to contemplate the extent of Judah’s destruction. It also strikes a tone of lament over that same suffering. One can hear a note of disbelief that God would bring such a horrific judgment on his people. Indeed, it is total as expressed by the fact that the cloud of his anger has engulfed all of the Daughter of Zion. The expression Daughter of Zion is an intimate way of referring to Jerusalem by its most sacred space and then ...

1743. Three Things You Can Count On

Mark 13:24-37

Sermon

Charley Reeb

One summer I took a month off for a much needed time of renewal. During my time off I decided to do a little research. I wanted to get the perspective of folks who don’t go to church. Preachers are very insulated in a church bubble. Everything we do revolves around church culture for the most part and that is not all bad. But here is the thing — if the church’s main task is to reach those outside of it then it would be wise for me to get the pulse of those outside the church bubble. How can we be effective ...

1744. Shuttered

John 20:19-31

Sermon

Lori Wagner

In the last year and a half during the worst pandemic of the last two centuries, doors were shut, businesses closed, and communities became ghost towns. People became shadows of their former selves, as they hid away from a virus that could kill them and their loved ones and friends. The world drew in and shuttered itself from danger. And lethargy set in. Professionals are calling it covid burnout: malaise, lethargy, low-grade stress, depression, lack of focus, lack of energy, faulty memory, lack of ...

1745. Because We Are Chosen

Ephesians 1:3-14

Sermon

King Duncan

What would you do if tomorrow you found out that you had inherited an unexpected fortune? What problems would it solve for you? What problems would it create? How would a surprise inheritance affect your life? There was a wealthy bachelor from Portugal named Luis Carlos de Noronha Cabral da Camara. By our standards, that’s a long name. Luis had inherited a large amount of money which he spent on motorcycles, shooting, and drinking. The rest he wasted, as the old joke goes. Being a bachelor, he didn’t have ...

1746. The Lonely Prophet

1 Kings 19:1-4, (5-7), 8-15a

Sermon

King Duncan

One of the great concepts that has come out of the sobriety movement and organizations like Alcoholics Anonymous is the acronym HALT—H. A. L. T. The word, of course, literally means “to stop.” But in sobriety circles, the acronym HALT serves as a reminder to be careful how you react when you are Hungry, Angry, Lonely or Tired. Researchers have found that, for someone with addiction issues, these four states leave you particularly vulnerable to temptation. They suggest that, before you take a drink or pop a ...

1747. Fear and Blessing

Psalm 128:1-6

Sermon

Will Willimon

It is Parents' Weekend in the University. But it is the Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost here in the chapel. In the interest of continuity, we ask our preachers to follow the ecumenical lectionary which assigns certain scripture for each Sunday. I immediately expected a conflict. To my surprise, the assigned Psal1n for today is Psalm 128: Blessed is every one who fears the LORD, who walks in his ways! you shall be happy, and it shall be well with you. Your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your ...

1748. Why Christianity?

Romans 1:1-7

Sermon

Charley Reeb

I went to Florida Southern College in Lakeland, Florida. It was a wonderful experience. After seminary, I was appointed as an associate pastor at First UMC of Lakeland and had a good relationship with the college. In fact, one of my favorite professors once invited me to be a guest speaker in his class. It was a sociology class, and they were studying religion and society. He wanted a local pastor to come and speak about the church and community. I was still a little wet behind the ears, but I thought I ...

1749. His Own Knew Him Not

Luke 4:14-30

Sermon

Will Willimon

“And he began to say to them, 'Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”' Luke 4:21 I would wager that this text, Luke 4:14-30, has been preached more than any other here in Duke Chapel. If you're a regular worshipper here, you have heard it used as a text for sermons at least three times in the past two years. Its proper place is here, on the third Sunday after Epiphany. But it's always in season in the Chapel--with young and fearless prophet Jesus in the pulpit, giving the establishment ...

1750. Life's Final Flight

2 Kings 2:1-18

Sermon

Barbara Brokhoff

Some of the largest ads in newspapers, and some of the best commercials on television, deal with flying. Some people think that flying is "the only way to go," others fly only because they must and "white-knuckle" it all the way, and some simply refuse to fly at all, claiming that "if God intended us to fly he would have given us wings." Some delightful stories come out of airplane experiences. One such tale deals with the time when the passengers in a large jet plane were already anxious because of bad ...

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