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 1726 to 1750 of 2173 results

1726. Final Instructions

1 Thessalonians 5:12-28

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

5:12–13 · Community leadership: After responding to the Thessalonians’ questions (4:9–5:11), the apostles take up a variety of issues, starting with the church’s relationship with their emerging leadership: “Now we ask you, brothers and sisters, to acknowledge those who work hard among you, who care for you in the Lord and who admonish you” (5:12a). In calling the church to respect the new leaders, the apostles literally call the church “to know” them, which means they should “recognize” who the legitimate ...

1727. Thanksgiving and Appeal

2 Timothy 1:1-2:13

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

1:1–2 · Salutation: The apostle discerns that Timothy needs fortification beyond the words of 1 Timothy. The distinctive terms of this second greeting provide further strengthening for Paul’s protégé. Paul’s own call is by “the will of God” himself, and his call, like Timothy’s, serves the “promise of life that is in Christ Jesus.” In addition, here Paul calls Timothy “my dear son” (literally “my beloved son”). Timothy is thus reminded, first, that he ministers under an authority that he ought not to ...

1728. Why Are Christians So Judgmental?

Matthew 6:2, 5, 16, Matthew 23:1-39

Sermon

Charley Reeb

“I love your Jesus. I just don’t see many Christians who look like him.” Ghandi said that to E. Stanley Jones, a famous Methodist Missionary, many years ago. It was a prophetic statement because a large percentage of people in our world today feel just like Ghandi. United Methodist minister Martin Thielen writes about a good friend who stopped going to church. He was going through a bitter divorce and just stopped attending worship. He didn’t want to answer all the questions from others and was just going ...

1729. Jesus Feeds the Four Thousand

Mark 8:1-13

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

8:1–10 This is the second feeding account in Mark (cf. 6:30–44). The repetition of the same sort of miracle in so compressed a narrative as Mark and the similarities of the two accounts have provoked a great deal of scholarly study. Since our objective here is to try to understand what Mark intended by including these two accounts in his Gospel, we shall not discuss the various suggestions about the oral or written sources that Mark may have used for these stories. Mark 8:14–21 makes it evident that Mark ...

1730. Dead to Sin, Alive in Christ

Romans 6:1-14

Understanding Series

James R. Edwards

In Romans 6 we note a shift in the argument. The quotation from Habakkuk 2:4 in Romans 1:17, literally translated, “The one who is righteous by faith will live,” provided Paul with a general outline for the epistle. Until now his primary concern has been with the first part of the quotation, “The one who is righteous by faith.” But being right with God is not the end of the matter. Chapter 6 evinces that righteousness is a commencement, not a commemoration; reveille, not taps. In chapters 6–7 Paul takes up ...

1731. Love, for the Day Is Near

Romans 13:8-14

Understanding Series

James R. Edwards

Love is the Sum of the Law Paul now returns expressly to the theme of love which dominates chapters 12–13, although more noticeably at some points (12:9–21; 13:8–10) than others (12:1–8; 13:1–7, 11–14). The idea of owing taxes (Gk. opheilē) in verse 7 reminds him that there is one debt (Gk. opheilō, v. 8) which can never be paid. The debt of love always remains outstanding. It is the only mortgage which can never be burned. In returning to the personal ethics of agapē in verses 8–10 Paul recalls that good ...

1732. Propriety in Worship

1 Corinthians 11:2-16

Understanding Series

Marion L. Soards

This section of the letter takes up a disruptive situation in the life of the congregation at worship. Paul addresses the men and the women in the congregation concerning their manner of dress, although he comes to that point via a complicated route. While the issues are practical—dress and behavior at worship—Paul frames the matters in genuinely theological terms, not only mentioning God and Christ but also bringing into consideration the meaning and implications of creation and nature. In brief, Paul ...

1733. The Lord's Supper

1 Corinthians 11:17-34

Understanding Series

Marion L. Soards

Problems in the Assembling These few lines are vitally related to the verses that follow, verses 23–26 and verses 27–34, although the weighty traditional nature of the ensuing verses distinguishes verses 23–34 from verses 17–22 and suggests the separation of the discussion of the Lord’s Supper into smaller, more manageable parts. Paul’s words and his concerns are straightforward, nearly self-evident, although the energy of his argument causes the discussion to shift about in a way that might be difficult ...

1734. The Woman and the Dragon

Revelation 12:1--13:1a

Understanding Series

Robert W. Wall

With the exaltation of the slain Lamb, the heavenly temple has been opened and the promise of salvation has been fulfilled (11:19); a new age of salvation’s history has begun. According to the eschatology of the earliest church, Christ’s death and exaltation constitute the penultimate moment of salvation’s history and look ahead to the ultimate moment, the parousia of the Lord Jesus Christ, when the salvation of God’s people and the restoration of God’s creation will be completed in full. The church’s ...

1735. Praying Hands

Luke 2:21-40

Children's Sermon

Edward G. Hunter

Object: Albrecht Durer's "Praying Hands" (either a small statue of "Praying Hands" or a picture) Our minister will talk this morning about Simeon, one of the people who knew Jesus as a baby. Simeon was also one who prayed a great deal, and it was through prayer that Simeon found out that Jesus was the Son of God and the Savior of the world. But I want to talk this morning about another man who prayed a great deal, and was honored for his prayers by his friend drawing a picture of his hands folded in prayer ...

1736. Raison d’Etre

Matthew 5:13-16, Matthew 5:17-20

Sermon

Dean Feldmeyer

“The most terrifying fact about the universe is not that it is hostile but that it is indifferent...” Most people think that it was Don Draper, the main character in the TV series, Mad Men, who first introduced and spoke of the idea of an indifferent universe, and he did, in fact, use that phrase. But he wasn’t the first. Others believe that the first was Carl Sagan, and he did say that “the universe seems neither benign nor hostile, merely indifferent.” But he was only paraphrasing another great thinker. ...

1737. The Foot-board of the Pulpit and the Floor of the Parlor

Ephesians 3:1-12

Sermon

Ron Love

Aldhelm, at the age of 65, was appointed as the bishop of Sherborne, in England. Aldhelm lived from the year 640 to the year 709. As an English scholar, Aldhelm studied Roman law, astronomy, astrology, Hebrew, and Greek. His fame as a scholar rapidly spread into other countries across Europe. After Aldhelm was appointment as bishop, he spent the next four years walking from one end of his parish to the other preaching in every village and town until his death on May 25, 709, at the age of 69. Aldhelm died ...

1738. Knowledge

Genesis 3:1-19 · Psalm 90

Sermon

Will Willimon

It's a story, primitive story, primordial, which means basic, deep; a true story. It's from Genesis, the beginning book of the Bible, beginning of humanity. Genesis means "in the beginning." In the beginning, God made man and woman and put them in the garden. God will keep the good garden. All man and woman must do is to enjoy, to "be fruitful and multiply" -- which sounds enjoyable. It's a story like the ones told to and by children -- naive, fairytale-like, deep, true, like the fairytales told to you ...

1739. Going Into Labor

Mark 13:1-8

Sermon

Frank Ramirez

The Baldwin Hills dam was built on a steep hillside in Southern California overlooking a packed residential community. It was considered an architectural wonder, at least by its designers. It also rested squarely on an earthquake fault. The designers insisted that the fault line would not affect their structure. Nestled away on a hillside, where it would not interfere with development, it served as a storage facility for the waters that follow in the form of rain and snow melt. Then, on December 14, 1963, ...

1740. The Baptism of the Lord

Luke 3:15-17, 21-22

Sermon

Derl G. Keefer

Rummaging through some of my old memorabilia I rediscovered a post card with the picture of a church on it. I well remember the church because it was the one where I was baptized. As a child of eight I asked Jesus to come into my heart at the altar of my small local church. It was an important time in my life and it started me on my Christian walk. The small church where I put down my spiritual roots did not have a baptistry in it. My pastor told us that it was important for new Christians to be baptized ...

1741. Finding Your Place

Romans 12:1-12

Sermon

Will Willimon

“Some days the world is a tuxedo and you are a pair of brown shoes.” Do you know the feeling? You are the extra wide tie when everyone else has gone narrow, the three piece suit when everyone else heard that it was to be casual, the only one who didn't weep during E.T. Is it too much to simply find a place, to be like others, to, chameleon-like, blend with the landscape? So Ernest Becker sees humanity caught between the tension to, on the one hand, make something out of ourselves, to “stick out,” be ...

1742. The Fringe

Matthew 9:9-13, 18-26

Sermon

Lori Wagner

Those of you men or women who wear protective clothing, aprons, or uniforms know that these not only identify you within a certain profession but assist you in your form of trade. A waitress wears an apron. A chef wears a kind of apron-like garb. A tradesman wears a tool belt or heavy apron. A policeman wears a uniform and belt. You would never do your job without wearing your special garb. They are an extension of sorts of who you are and what you do. Likewise, a prayer shawl has a similar purpose. Years ...

1743. I Have Been Gifted!

1 Corinthians 1:3-9

Sermon

Ronald Love

In December 2019, Grace Fellowship United Methodist Church voted to leave its affiliation with the United Methodist Church and partner with the Free Methodist Church. For several years the controversy surrounding the religious issues dealing with the status of homosexuals in the congregation has severely damaged the denomination. A number of individuals have become outspoken activists, promoting varying positions on this dispute. This has consumed a considerable amount of time, energy, and money of the UMC ...

1744. A Time

Ecclesiastes 3:1-15

Eulogy

George Reed

[Read Ecclesiastes 3:1-15] We are creatures of time. We mark it with clocks and calendars plus we celebrate special seasons and times. We remember birthdays and anniversaries - and we remember losses and deaths. We set aside special times in our lives such as infancy, childhood, and adulthood. Things that are appropriate in one time are not deemed appropriate in others. You can suck your thumb when you are six months of age but unless you just hit your thumb with a hammer people expect that you won’t do ...

1745. If God Is For Us

Romans 8:31-39

Eulogy

George Reed

[Read Romans 8:31-39] “If God is for us, who can be against us?” What a strange and yet delightful question! The answer is so obvious to us we wonder why it would even be asked. And yet all of us know that sometimes we need to be reminded of the most obvious of things. The answer, of course, is no one and nothing can stand against us if God is for us. And God is for us. God is the one who did not withhold the only begotten but gave him for us and for our salvation. The one who has given us the most ...

1746. Marketplace Christianity

John 2:13-22

Sermon

Lori Wagner

Do you employ a “market mentality” or a “relational mentality”? What does this mean? Put simply, a market mentality sees things in terms of transactions and commodities, resources, and dispensability. A relational mentality however sees things in terms of developing partnerships, relationships, long-term collaborations that benefit both parties and share a vision. The former can easily fluctuate. The latter, however, requires time and effort to develop and cultivates trust, loyalty, and commitment over ...

1747. The Power of Weakness

Mark 8:27-38 · Psalm 19

Sermon

Thomas C. Willadsen

Our lessons this morning feels like an archery target. The psalm starts with the long view, the perspective of the psalmist marveling at the beauty of creation. “The heavens are telling the glory of God,” it begins, but that translation doesn’t quite capture the essence of what is to be expressed Psalm 19:1 (NRSV). It more closely means, “The heavens are continually telling the glory of God.” It’s always happening, without ceasing. All we have to do is look up, notice the beauty of the stars, feel the ...

1748. New Wine

Acts 2:1-13

Sermon

Barbara Brokhoff

On the Day of Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit fell upon the waiting disciples, there were a number of extraordinary events occurring: there was the sound of a rushing wind, cloven tongues of fire appeared, and they all began to speak in other languages and the Holy Spirit gave them ability. The Jews who were visiting Jerusalem, from all nations, hearing them speak in their own tongues, were amazed at this startling phenomenon. They came to the hasty, false conclusion that the disciples must be drunk, and ...

1749. The King On A Cross

Luke 23:26-43

Sermon

J. Will Ormond

Have you ever looked into the face of a real king? You may have seen phony kings, such as the king of the homecoming parade or the king of the Mardi Gras. Doubtless these make-believe kings were dressed in elaborate, elegant robes and wore gilded crowns on their heads. If we ever think of kings we picture them sitting on golden thrones, dressed in ermine and velvet and jewel-encrusted crowns. They are surrounded by high-ranking courtiers and cheered by an adoring people. Therefore, it can come as something ...

1750. The Taught Can

Mark 8:31--9:1

Sermon

George W. Hoyer

You have heard that it has been said in old times, "Those who can, do; those who can't, teach." But I say unto you this morning, "Those who are taught, can do." As one who has been taught, I say this unto you as to those who have been taught by God, "Having been taught, we can." All this is pertinent to us all because as the Preacher in Ecclesiastes wrote, "For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven" (Ecclesiastes 3:1). Are we aware of what time it is? There is a time to be ...

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