Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 1776 to 1800 of 4977 results

1776. A Faith that Works with a Victorious Attitude

Philippians 2:12-18

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... a cent." Paul lived out of the rich resources that came from his relationship to Jesus Christ. He never allowed any circumstance to clog the pipeline of this relationship. Paul''s life was always marked with gratitude and thanksgiving. Paul knew that in every circumstance if he could keep his focus on Christ by looking up, he would never have to look down. I love the story about a very poor Jewish man who lived in a small farming community. He was at the end of his rope and didn''t know what to do. So he ...

1777. Tripping the Tempter

James 1:1-18

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... --the Bible. We do not need to yield to sin''s power. We can be victors--not victims. Temptation''s hold has been broken and Christ is now Lord of our lives. By faith, we can count ourselves dead to sin and temptation and rely on God''s power to keep us. Let me explain it this way. A missionary in Africa was riding his horse along a narrow path through the jungle. Suddenly the horse stopped and refused to proceed. The missionary got down from the horse to see what was wrong. He saw a huge snake lying in the ...

1778. A Glimpse of Eternity

Mark 9:2-13

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... even when the powers of darkness attempt to strip human life and existence of beauty and purpose. God allows Peter, James and John this special glimpse so that when the clouds of crucifixion would descend upon the landscape in the future, they could help to keep the Christian movement going, for they had seen the grandeur of Heaven and knew of its truth and beauty. Yes, when the clouds descended on them again it hardly seemed to matter, for they had seen the mountain. Every disciple except John the beloved ...

1779. Living with the Aches and Alleluias

Luke 21:5-38

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... of our lives from both the inside and the outside. There''s a great story about Saint Francis of Assisi that illustrates this very well. One winter night there was a raging blizzard, and the man who was supposed to wake up every couple of hours and keep the fire going at the monastery was unable to find Francis. So he went outside into the storm and found him kneeling at the side of a hill wearing his ordinary clothing. His arms were outstretched; he was praying, oblivious to the wind and biting cold snow ...

1780. Singing in the Storm

Mark 4:35-41

Sermon

Eric Ritz

... be afraid, for the forces against which you are sailing are greater than you. You may sail through one storm, or even two, but sooner or later, you will meet a storm for which you are no match. Christian people are those who have committed their destiny to the keeping of Jesus Christ. He is the master of our ship. Our master isn't afraid of the storm. Quite the opposite is true: He guides us through the storm to land safely on the other side. Our safety in the storm doesn't come from having larger boats or ...

1781. Preparing for Something Big

Mark 13:1-31

Sermon

Paul E. Flesner

... experience when you think about the so-called "end of time"? I would venture to say that far too many devoted Christians have "doom and gloom" images about this future. It's no wonder that we tend to ignore this dimension in our Christmas preparations. Keep two things in mind: First, the early Christians looked forward eagerly to the return of Jesus. They were not frightened by it. In fact, they expected it to happen in their lifetime. If there were any problems, it was disappointment when Jesus' return did ...

1782. Reverse Direction

Mark 1:1-8

Sermon

Paul E. Flesner

... new direction -- a new hope. How can we prepare ourselves for an encounter with the Holy One? Allow me to take you back to this morning's Gospel. The main character is none other than John the Baptist. I will grant you that his appearance is not in keeping with Christmas. A camel hair outfit is certainly not as festive as a Santa suit. Nor does his message ring with the "holiday spirit." However, he does address the matter of preparing to meet the Holy One, for that is what his message of repentance is all ...

1783. What Gets Into People?

Mark 1:21-28

Sermon

King Duncan

... closed off within us, they fester and lead to diseased behavior and attitudes. (6) We need to find a safe outlet for our emotions. A trained counselor is usually best, but anyone who has our confidence--and will keep our confidence--is better than keeping it locked inside. When our minds are tortured, a physician may be needed; a counselor may be needed. Regardless of our situation Christ is always our best friend. Through the whole process of working our way through a difficult problem we want to enlist ...

1784. Heart Transplant

John 8:31-41

Sermon

Cathy A. Ammlung

... , constantly hearing what God has done that we could never do for ourselves and what he wants to do for all his people, and receiving his presence in bread and wine, his promise that we're forgiven all our attempts to 'reject' him -- that's what keeps us healthy after this great heart transplant. And we're promised that it will last not in our physical lifetime, but forever. As Jesus said, if the Son makes you free, you're free indeed. Forever!" Dear friends in Christ, that isn't a hypothetical conversation ...

1785. Anxious Thanks

Matthew 6:25-34

Sermon

Cathy A. Ammlung & staff

... We know the words: Now thank we all our God with heart and hands and voices; who wondrous things has done, in whom his world rejoices ... O may this bounteous God through all our lives be near us with ever thankful hearts and blessed peace to cheer us; and keep us in his grace and guide us when perplexed, and free us from all harm in this world and the next. Pastor Rinkhart knew, deep in his bones, the truth of Jesus' words about worry and trouble. More importantly, he knew that in every circumstance, God's ...

1786. The Road Less Traveled

1 Thessalonians 5:12-28

Sermon

Fredrick R. Harm

... to pray!" There is a great lack of resources for facing life when one has not been taught to pray. You, fellow Christian, have been taught to pray. How we need to thank God for those who taught us. But, please remember that if we do not keep up the practice of prayer, all the lessons we have had will soon drop from us. Is it any wonder Saint Paul exhorts us, "Pray without ceasing"? Earlier I suggested that prayer was perhaps the foundational quality in the Christian journey out of which the other important ...

1787. The Face that Launched a Thousand Lives

2 Corinthians 4:1-18

Sermon

Fredrick R. Harm

... , for the Bible tells me so." A pastor friend was greeting his congregation at the close of a morning service. One young woman, after shaking his hand, drew closer and said softly, "Please keep telling us how very much we mean to God; it has changed my life!" Yes, and it will keep changing the lives of any who will believe it, so we keep on sharing. Without question, it is the most important news our world has ever heard! This is the message brought to us by the "face that launched a thousand lives." It is ...

1788. The World's Still Point

1 John 5:1-12

Sermon

Paul E. Robinson

... vital issues of our time. If we are to avoid more wars, then we as Christians must gently argue about how best to do it, but keep our eyes on Jesus. We must put our shoulder to the wheel and work for peace at home, at school, at work, at play, but we must keep our eyes on Jesus. We must struggle against racism and greed and immorality as we understand them, but we must keep our eyes on Jesus. The writer of a commentary on 1 John wrote this: "If Christ occupies the center at which faith comes into focus ...

1789. Grace in the Midst of Weakness

2 Corinthians 4:1-18

Sermon

Glenn McDonald

... containers of human lives is God's ministry. How pathetic and dangerous it is to conclude the work that God has uniquely placed within each of us is our responsibility -- that the kingdom of God is no more than 24 hours away from collapse if we don't keep all the balls in the air. Die-hard basketball fans know the name of Stacey King, former power forward from the University of Oklahoma and a role player in the NBA who won a world championship ring as a member of the Chicago Bulls. When King announced his ...

1790. Grace in the Midst of Unanswered Prayer

2 Corinthians 12:1-10

Sermon

Glenn McDonald

... thing about being a twelve-year-old is that you can fall asleep out in the backyard without resolving those questions, and when you wake up the next morning the world is just fine. But Christian believers don't get off so easily. Unresolved questions have the power to keep us up at nights. Can God really do everything? Then why is it that we can tick off a laundry list of things that an all-knowing, all-loving, all-powerful God ought to do -- yet they aren't getting done? Are there rocks out there that are ...

1791. Good News!

Isaiah 61:1-11

Sermon

Curtis Lewis

... deep roots for the purpose of displaying God's glory. The people will now be able to repossess the land that was destroyed and taken from them. All of their ruin and brokenness will be restored. We have in these scriptures a picture of the hope of Advent. God will keep his word. Our redeemer will come and take away the funeral dirge from our lips. In its place he will give us a song of praise. Too many people are living dressed in the garment of death, but the good news of Advent is that there is one coming ...

1792. Building a House (Mother's Day)

Luke 6:46-49

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... close to the Lord. In fact, I was going through a rather dry time in my spiritual life -- that is, in the feeling dimension of my spiritual life. This is confession time. I had come to a place in my prayer time, where it was difficult to keep my thoughts centered, and either verbalize or center my thoughts on persons and issues about whom I was concerned to bring those persons and issues into a prayerful relationship with God. I had begun a practice which is very meaningful to me. When I would be struggling ...

1793. To Live Is To Dance

John 10:1-10

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... our Lord. Amen. Throughout the ages, different images have been offered to assist us in making sense out of life. So life has been seen as a battle to fight, risks to take, a game to play, a maize to grope through, a drama to enact, a flickering light to keep alive, a pilgrim’s journey, or a road to travel. Cynics have seen it has a sentence for the crime to be served as a result of our being born. And Shakespeare described it as a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing. And an ...

1794. A Forgiving Presence

John 7:45--8:11

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... they also had to reckon with the sin in their life, their stunted spiritual growth, their broken relationships, their ego-centered preoccupation with self. That’s the way it was. And that’s the way it is. The indwelling Christ continues that ministry, keeping us aware of our sin. Our sins of deception, self righteousness, sexual lust, wasted talent, callousness toward the needs of others, idolatry, making a god out of our money, out of our self image, our exaggerated ego that puts others down and puffs ...

1795. A Healing Presence

1 Thessalonians 5:12-28

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... accident, it was quite a trauma physically, mentally, and, to a marked degree, spiritually. And a kind of summing up of my ordeal came one day early in the morning in this prayer, which I wrote in my spiritual journal. “Lord, it seems as though you’ve decided to keep vivid signs from me. I suppose you know how gullible and fickle I am. Seeing is believing for me. Maybe you know that I don’t always see clearly and sign are often misread by me. I read more of me than you into them, so I quit putting ...

1796. Servants Without Portfolio

Matthew 20:20-28

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... a servant. There’s a vast difference between the way most of us and Jesus’ call to be a servant. The way most of serve keeps us in control. We chose whom and when and where and how we will serve. We stay in charge. Jesus is calling for something else. ... my life begin. I close this sermon series as I began it twelve weeks ago. I invite you to affirm for yourself, as I keep affirming for myself. Maxie, the secret is simply this; Christ in you, yes Christ in you, bringing with him the hope of all the ...

1797. Living Lightly

Genesis 45:1-28

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... in which there will be neither plowing nor harvest. And God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to keep alive for you many survivors. So it was not you who sent me here, but God. And he has made me a father to Pharaoh ... Jewish law. They had broken two of the 39 proscriptions of the Jewish law, and because of that had violated the 4th commandment by not keeping the Sabbath Holy. Now Jesus didn’t side step the issue. His answer was clear, the Sabbath was made for man, not man for ...

1798. The Fourth Day Comes

Luke 24:13-35

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... know where Emmaus is, don’t we? Don’t we? We’ve all been there in one way or another, at some time in our lives. Emmaus is whatever we do or wherever we go to salvage and sort out our feelings, to summon the courage and the desire to keep going on or to try and forget. Emmaus is whatever we do and wherever we go to reclaim our sanity when our world goes to pieces. When our ideals and dreams are violated and distorted, when we discover that the world seems to hold nothing sacred. When love and goodness ...

1799. Called To Finish What Is Finished

Colossians 1:24--2:5, Colossians 1:15-23

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... will please others. --our insatiable desire for happiness, for things, for status which makes us driven people that can't recognize happiness when it could be ours. --our fear: our fear of failure which keeps us under stress in our work; our fear for our children which keeps us on the edge of franticness; our fear for future security, which keeps us so hyper that we can't relax and enjoy life now. All of these empty and/or barren places of our lives can be touched -- made complete -- filled up by the Cross ...

1800. At Home In The Daylight

Ephesians 4:17--5:21

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... you, and I can share my Lord with you and oftentimes a prayer or two -- as on our way we go. (As quoted in You Gotta Keep Dancing by Tim Hansel from sermon "Faith Shared is Faith Alive", by Rev. Donald J. Shelby, August 28, 1988, pp. 6-7) So, remember, if ... concerned. Most of us men are victims of what I call the "John Wayne Syndrome" -- all strength, no weakness -- keep the armor on -- never risk, keep your feelings to yourself. Don't risk vulnerability. We fail to realize that what we think and present as ...

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