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 1801 to 1825 of 1838 results

1801. Love And Boundaries

Matthew 15:21-28

Sermon

William G. Carter

... seems inclined to keep her nationality before us. Matthew calls her a “Canaanite woman.” When Mark told the story, he merely called her “a woman.” But Matthew insisted, “She was a Canaanite.” That word Canaanite is an old word. An angry word. A bitter word. When the Jews came to the promised land, they drove out the Canaanites. For years, the Jews kept the Canaanites up north, near the Mediterranean, and wiping out more than a few along the way. They pushed the Canaanites to the other side of ...

1802. Master Teacher

Matthew 15:10-28

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... t you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart, and these can defile them.” Their words and actions can be sweet as honey or bitter as horseradish. Evil thoughts and deeds that derive from a heart that is not rooted in God –these are what defile. Unwashed hands do not defile. A person’s pedigree does not defile. A person’s illness does not defile. A person’s nationality does not defile ...

1803. The New Family

Acts 8:26-40

Sermon

Will Willimon

... , and expectation later, she is not a minister. Her denomination does not ordain women. In her letter to me she said, "What you say about the church not judging people by labels of black, white, male, female may be good, but I can tell you from bitter experience, the church does judge people that way, with the same labels by which the world judges people. I don't think it will ever change." We are now five Sundays after Easter, that day, that bright Sunday morning when once dead Jesus burst the bonds ...

1804. Imperfect Pastors

Exodus 32:1-14

Sermon

King Duncan & Angela Akers

... much of the theology his family embraced did not align with the teachings of Jesus. He recalls the day he studied John 5—Jesus’ healing of a man at Bethesda—that completely refuted his family’s teaching about healing. He writes, “I wept bitterly over my participation in greedy ministry manipulation and my life of false teaching and beliefs, and I thanked God for his mercy and grace through Jesus Christ. My eyes were completely opened.” Today, Costi Hinn serves as a pastor in California. (6) We ...

1805. Click to Unfriend

Hebrews 10:16-25

Sermon

John B. Jamison

... Jesus’ back to make sure the rough pole pressed against the still open wounds. Mary stayed and watched it all. She heard the words Jesus spoke. She saw someone hold the damp sponge to his dried lips, promising the relief of cool water but delivering instead bitter vinegar. She was there when he died. She watched as the soldiers dropped his body from the cross and Joseph of Arimathea and others picked it up before the soldiers could throw it from the column into the trash pile below as they usually did ...

1806. What Time Is It?

Matthew 24:32-44

Sermon

Will Willimon

... flash, the roar, the rush of wind and rubble and, for the whole race, there is no tomorrow. Is that why not everyone thinks it's such a grand idea to return for Homecoming and Class Reunions? These occasions make time seem so, linear, life so finite, the bitter-sweet realization that the ever-rolling stream of time bears all our dreams away? It was at the funeral of her beloved husband when she asked if she could say a word to the gathered congregation: If you are going to love somebody, she said with tears ...

1807. The Serpent's Tongue

John 3:14-21

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... . Paul quotes Psalm 53 in Romans 3:13, speaking of all people: “There is no one righteous, not even one; …Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit. The poison of vipers is on their lips. Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.” Yet, Paul says, “…Righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through ...

1808. The Christian Mother

John 15:9-17

Sermon

King Duncan

... , but it would be somthing precious, something perhaps even better than love, a friendship for which I had been and must ever be grateful. "I squared my shoulders and saluted and held out the book to the woman even though while I spoke I felt choked by the bitterness of my disappointment. ˜I'm Lt. John Blanchard, and you must be Miss Maynell. I am so glad you could meet me, may I take you to dinner?' The woman's face broadened in a tolerant smile. ˜I don't know what this is about son,' she answered, ˜but ...

1809. Soul Testing Kits

John 15:1-8

Sermon

Mary Austin

... when God feels distant, and we struggle to get the connection back. That’s the pruning that Jesus is talking about — the life events and experiences that cut away our false selves, test our character and reveal our flaws. Life prunes us all, and we can become bitter and resentful, or we can use it for growth. The events that shape our spirits, rein us in or stretch us are the very things that make for growth. God comes along, too, to prune out the old habits that don’t work anymore, or the character ...

1810. Processing Grief

Lamentations 3:1-66

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... spiritual isolation. Access to God has been stonewalled, blocked with huge boulders. Other images follow to make graphic the individual’s plight: wild animals mauling their victims (3:10–11); a hunter in target practice (3:12–13); a dietician administering bitterness (literally “poison”) (3:15). Like Jeremiah, the individual is the object of ridicule. A Western idiom corresponding to 3:16 would be: “He made me eat dirt.” The tension is severe. God, who might have been his hope, has become his ...

1811. Daniel Interprets the Dream of a Tree

Daniel 4:19-27

Understanding Series

William Nelson

... sin, asks for forgiveness, and worships God in Samuel’s presence (1 Sam. 15:24–31). On the other side, we recall the familiar story of Jonah and Nineveh. Jonah predicts the Assyrian capital’s destruction in forty days (Jon. 3:4). He then complains bitterly when God relents and changes his mind in response to Nineveh’s repentance (Jon. 4:1–3). In another case, God decides to destroy the people because they have made a golden calf, but he changes his mind through the intercession of Moses (Exod. 32 ...

1812. The Dream is Fulfilled

Daniel 4:28-37

Understanding Series

William Nelson

... Dan. 4:35). God may question us, but we must be careful how we address him. There is a fine line sometimes between the lament psalms and murmuring in the wilderness. Lamenting is not only allowed but encouraged, while murmuring is not. The believer who is suffering may complain bitterly to God (e.g., Ps. 22), but he or she must come meekly, as a supplicant. It is possible to complain in a faithless way (Exod. 16:7–8; Num. 14:27, 36; 16:11; 17:5); those who did so were condemned to die without entering the ...

1813. The Lord Abhors the Pride of Israel

Amos 6:8-14

Understanding Series

Elizabeth Achtemeier

... into poison: When the oppressed have turned to the courts, the one place where they could expect to find relief, they have experienced deadly injustice instead. And when righteous acts have been expected to bear fruit in the society, they have been rewarded only with bitter disappointment, in a terrible reversal of ethical standards. The normal, God-given order of Israel’s society is out of whack, distorted by corruption and sin (cf. Jer. 5:7; Jer. 2:31–32; 8:6–7; 18:13–15). A mysterious force of ...

1814. A Basket of Ripe Fruit

Amos 8:1-14

Understanding Series

Elizabeth Achtemeier

... , with their hymns of rejoicing, will be turned into fasts of lamentation (cf. Ezek. 26:13; Lam. 5:14–15), with the donning of sackcloth and the shaving of the head (cf. Ezek. 7:18; see Joel 1:8, 13 and the comments there). Rather than sing, Israel will weep—bitterly, as if weeping for the loss of an only son (cf. Jer. 6:26; Ezek. 27:30–31; Zech. 12:10). At the time of Amos, and indeed, up until the time of Daniel in the second century BC, Israel had no formal belief in life after death. The essence ...

1815. The Lord's Answer

Habakkuk 1:5-11

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... the world in general. Through verses 6–9a Yahweh’s characterization of the Babylonians focuses on their might rather than their vices until the characterization eventually comes to critique in the last line. The word ruthless (mar; v. 6) is often translated “bitter,” but in contexts like these it suggests “fierce.” Impetuous comes from a verb that suggests they get on with things quickly (mahar); they do not wait around. In this connection they cross the breadth of the earth to appropriate homes ...

1816. The Power of Weakness

Mark 8:27-38 · Psalm 19

Sermon

Thomas C. Willadsen

... out the fate of their children. The surgeon read the names of those killed, expressed his sympathy to the parents, and then said that as a Christian he believed God understood the parents’ grief and was with them in their time of need. One father bitterly responded: “What does God know about losing a son?”[2] This is what we need to remember: that the God of the earth and stars loves us, passionately, personally, deeply — and that love changes us, makes us into creatures who are strong and brave ...

1817. Good News from the Threshing Floor

Mark 12:38-44

Sermon

Thomas C. Willadsen

... Naomi stopped arguing. Bethlehem was buzzing like a beehive when Naomi returned, but Naomi was a changed woman. She was a widow with her widowed daughter-in-law in tow and she told the community to call her “Mara” then. “Mara” means “bitter.” “Naomi” means something like “sweet” or “pleasant.” The Lord “has brought calamity on me,” Naomi said. Ruth 1:21 (NRSV). Ruth and Naomi returned to Bethlehem at the time of the barley harvest. In the second chapter Ruth, the young foreign ...

1818. Steadfast Change

Mark 13:1-8

Sermon

Thomas C. Willadsen

... kings, they wanted one too. At this point in the story we are introduced to Hannah, a woman with a lot of problems. In our Old Testament lesson today she is described as “deeply distressed,” “severely provoked,” “barren.” She “wept bitterly,” and was mistaken for a “drunken spectacle,” although she explained that she was “deeply troubled,” and in “great anxiety and vexation.” She “poured out her soul in prayer.” I don’t watch TV shows that bring people before live studio ...

1819. God on the Move

Luke 3:1-6 · Isaiah 40

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... torture you? Does meaning elude you? Are you caught in web of deceit either with others or yourself? God will set you straight and help you learn how to walk a new path in a brand new direction. Do you feel rough around the edges, angry or bitter? Has your grief made you hard, prickly, or heavy-hearted? Do you struggle with a past that seeks to consume you? Have you built fortresses of protection around yourself that no one can vanquish? God will smooth your rough exterior and allow you to be vulnerable and ...

1820. A Portion of Thyself

Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21

Sermon

Wayne Brouwer

... it for me? What do I get out of it? Will anybody notice? Do I get the “Good Citizen of the Year” award? Will there be a write-up in the papers? One man I know served in the church all his life. In his senior years, however, he became bitter. Nobody had ever really thanked him! None of the younger people in the church realized how much he had given! So he pulled back and wrapped himself in a security blanket of self-pity. One woman’s face was wet with tears when she came to see me. All these ...

1821. In the Mirror

Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32

Sermon

Wayne Brouwer

... are not so much the younger son, the scandalous wastrel, as we are the old brother, the indignant, godly, righteous, holy, sanctified church people who have always done the right thing! We suddenly lock eyes with the older son and see our deeply dark and bitter and self- righteous souls. And we are shocked! We are indignant! And we complain to our Father that “grace is free, but it is not cheap,” — that God should not lavish unrequited love on these terrible nasty folks who do not deserve it, like we ...

1822. Famine of the Heart

Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... is this: Are we able to celebrate the blessings of others? Are we able to celebrate God’s mercy upon others? Or are we so anchored into our “measurement mentality” and our imperial instincts that we feel only resentment, anger, envy, and bitterness when a “sinner” commits to change? What does your inner landscape look like? Is it the lush, green landscape of acceptance and growth? Or the barren, dry desert of resentment and envy? Is your heart beating with Jesus’ resurrection promise? No matter ...

1823. Religion in the Valley - Religion That Works

Luke 9:28-36

Illustration

James W. Moore

Bishop Arthur Moore loved to tell the story of a man who had been away from his home church for some years, involved in all kinds of shady practices and criminal activities. But when he came back to his home church and testimony-time came, he was ready. He stood and said, “I’m so glad to be back in my own church, and I want to tell you that while it’s true that I have beaten my wife, that I have deserted my children, that I have stolen and lied and done all manner of evil and served several terms in jail— ...

1824. The Blessing Of Bondage

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

Sermon

Barbara Brokhoff

The Bible’s story of Creation and the Fall gives rise to all sorts of stories, like this one: Adam and Eve were walking near the Garden of Eden, showing it to their son, Abel. Abel saw that it was a very beautiful place, and asked, "Daddy, why don’t we live there?" "Well, son, we once did," Adam replied, "but your mother ate us out of house and home!" It is an old story, a story of trees, a man and a woman, a garden, a serpent, rules kept and rules broken, and of God. God formed a man, Adam, of the dust, ...

1825. Faith isn’t Easy - But it Works!

Genesis 12:1-8

Sermon

Barbara Brokhoff

Now the Lord said to Abram, "Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who curses you, I will curse; and by you all the families of the earth shall bless themselves." So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. And ...

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