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 1801 to 1825 of 3082 results

1801. Introducing Job

Job 1:1-5

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

1:1 The first chapter serves as a prose prologue to the dialogue sections that form the core of the book. The focus from the very first word is on the main character. Hebrew word order (lit., “a man there was in the land of Uz”) intentionally emphasizes the man, Job. This word order signals that the reader should pay particularly close attention here to the introduction of this man and his circumstances, for he will play an important role in what follows. Because the OT elsewhere associates Uz with Edom, ...

1802. The Escape to Egypt

Matthew 2:13-18

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

2:13–15 As soon as the Magi left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. This is the third time thus far in the Gospel that God communicates by means of a dream (in 1:20, to encourage Joseph to go ahead and take Mary as his wife; in 2:12, to warn the Magi to return to their country by a different route). On two subsequent occasions in chapter 2 Joseph will be instructed by means of a dream (vv. 19, 22). In the ancient world people attached great importance to dreams. The dream was viewed as a ...

1803. Delivering the Helpless from Social Oppression: Part I

Psalm 9:1-20

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

Originally Psalms 9 and 10 were one psalm. Psalm 10 has no superscription, which is unusual in Book I of the Psalter. Together these psalms form an acrostic, that is, an alphabetical psalm, and Psalm 10 picks up right where Psalm 9 leaves off (Ps. 9 closes with Hb. k, and Ps. 10 opens with Hb. l, the Hebrew letters kāp and lāmed respectively). As noted below, the psalms contain numerous linguistic and thematic links. The LXX, in fact, preserves them as one psalm. But what a contrast these psalms form! ...

1804. The Would-Be Pilgrim Who Thirsts for God: Part I

Psalm 42:1-11

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

Psalms 42 and 43 were probably originally one. This is evidenced by the repeated refrain (42:6, 11; 43:5; also 42:3b, 10b; and 42:9; 43:2), by the absence of a superscription for Psalm 43 (unusual esp. in Book II of the Psalter), and by the structure of the psalm, which is incomplete without Psalm 43. Prayer psalms characteristically begin with lament, which comprises Psalm 42, and then move to petitions and a vow of praise, which comprise Psalm 43. Many Hebrew manuscripts, in fact, do join these two ...

1805. Applause for the Ascending King of All the Earth

Psalm 47:1-9

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

Applause is something most of us associate with a football stadium, not a church, but in this psalm we are directed to applaud God. This is not a quiet psalm—it also includes “shouting” and trumpets (vv. 1, 5)—but for good reason: it celebrates the great King over all the earth (v. 2). We cannot make sense of Psalm 47 in isolation; it is one of the psalms of Yahweh’s kingship and must be interpreted in light of the others. Particularly puzzling is the expression, “God has ascended” (v. 5). To what could ...

1806. Zion’s Divine Defender

Psalm 48:1-14

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

Like Psalm 46, Psalm 48 is a psalm of Zion. Both psalms begin with descriptions of Zion that are cosmic in nature and colored with familiar ancient Near Eastern imagery and then move to report political and historical events that demonstrate these claims. Here we see faith vindicated by history. This liturgy is performed “within your temple” (v. 9) and is punctuated by “we/our” confessions (vv. 1, 8, 14), perhaps sung by a choir on behalf of the congregation. The opening confession focuses on Yahweh ...

1807. Corporate and Individual Thanksgiving to the God Who Acts

Psalm 66:1-20

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

This psalm contains both corporate hymnic praise (vv. 1–12) and individual thanksgiving (vv. 13–20). Some commentators (e.g., H.-J. Kraus, Psalms 60–150, vol. 2 of Psalms, A Commentary [trans. H. C. Oswald; Minneapolis: Augsburg, 1989], p. 36), thus believe it consists of two psalms (or their fragments) that were originally separate. But several linguistic features imply they were composed together: Verses 1–12 / Verses 13–20 “Come and see what God has done, “Come and listen, all you who fear God; how ...

1808. The Parable of the Hidden Treasure and the Pearl

Matthew 13:44-46

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

Parables of Jesus: In chapter 13 we come for the first time to Jesus’ favorite method of teaching, the parable. The seven parables recorded in this chapter form Jesus’ third discourse as arranged by Matthew, There are in the first three Gospels about sixty separate parables. In the LXX the Greek parabolē almost always translates the Hebrew māšāl, which denotes a wide variety of picturesque forms of expression, including the proverb, metaphor, allegory, illustrative story, fable, riddle, simile, and parable ...

1809. A Prayer for the Afflicted and for the Ruins of Zion

Psalm 102:1-28

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

A Prayer for the Afflicted and for the Ruins of Zion A distinctive feature of this psalm is its blending of prayer and praise. Its structure makes clear the central issue. Juxtaposed are “my days,” which are cut short (vv. 23–24), and Yahweh’s years, which go on through all generations (v. 24). The speaker’s days are a leitmotif appearing at key turning points: twice in the introductory petitions (“in the day of my distress” and “in the day I call,” v. 2, though not evident in the NIV), in the verses ...

1810. The Maker of Heaven and Earth Praised and Invoked to Bless Israel

Psalm 115:1-18

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

The Maker of Heaven and Earth Praised and Invoked to Bless Israel For Psalm 115 the major categories of form criticism, namely prayer and praise (or lament and hymn) do not exactly fit. It does have features of laments. Verse 1 is formally a petition, although it is explicitly not for the petitioners’ sake but for Yahweh’s. Verse 2 forms part of a complaint in 79:10, even though it also introduces a satirical contrast between “our God” and “their idols.” Additionally, the psalm does have hymnic features. ...

1811. The Baptism and Temptation of Jesus

Mark 1:9-13

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

1:9–13 In this passage Jesus appears for the first time in the narrative, and the direct relevance of the introduction of John the Baptist earlier in the story becomes clear, for here Jesus is baptized by John. This of course means that Mark’s narrative not only associates John with Jesus as an endorser of Jesus but also associates Jesus with John as one who accepted John’s message and obeyed his call to be baptized. A relationship between Jesus and the Baptist is attested in all four Gospels, but in the ...

1812. Jesus Walks On the Water

Mark 6:45-56

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

6:45–52 Mark ties this incident closely to the preceding account of the feeding of the five thousand by noting in 6:52 that the disciples’ fearful collapse here was caused by their failure to understand that the feeding miracle revealed Jesus’ true significance and power. Since Mark thus ties together these two incidents, it is likely that he wants his reader to see them both as complementary revelations of Jesus. This means that this sea miracle is another manifestation of the divine significance of Jesus ...

1813. Jesus Questioned About Fasting

Luke 5:33-39

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

Jesus’ Fellowship with Tax Collectors: The unifying theme that runs throughout the story of Levi’s call (vv. 27–31) and the discussion about eating and fasting (vv. 32–39) concerns fellowship and lifestyle. In the minds of the Pharisees, Jesus’ chief critics thus far in Luke’s Gospel, Jesus has chosen to have fellowship with the wrong kind of people. Since they were the party of “separatists” (see note on 5:17 above) who believed that redemption would come about by separating themselves from every impurity ...

1814. The River of Life

Revelation 22:1-6

Understanding Series

Robert W. Wall

22:1–5 The phrase, Then the angel showed me, seems to indicate John’s decision to add a separate “paradise tradition” into his vision of the new Jerusalem. The reasons for this are clearly theological: he thereby indicates that God’s redemption returns the new creation—the community of overcomers—to the Garden of Eden and to the creator’s intentions for humanity (Caird, Revelation, p. 280; Boring, Revelation, p. 218). These intentions, already indicated by the “new song” at the Lamb’s exaltation, are ...

1815. The Claims of Jesus About Himself

John 8:48-59, John 8:31-41, John 8:42-47

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

The reaction of many of the Jewish authorities with whom Jesus has been speaking is to believe in him (v. 30), and the remainder of the discourse is focused on this group of “believers.” The prediction that they will realize later who Jesus is (v. 28) appears to be coming true even before they lift him up on the cross. It sounds, and it is, too good to be true. Their faith is not genuine (cf. 2:23–25). Jesus has directed their attention toward the future, but they will have none of it. The present is good ...

1816. Asa King of Judah

1 Kings 15:9-24

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

Abijam and Asa: We remain for the moment in Judah, with Rehoboam’s immediate successors. Abijam is the characteristically bad Judean king, indulging in the idolatry of Solomon’s later years and of Rehoboam. Asa is the characteristically good Judean king, behaving relatively faithfully like David and the younger Solomon. These two between them set the pattern for all subsequent Judean kings, who are measured in terms of whether they have been “like David” or not. 15:1–8 Abijam was just as bad as his father ...

1817. Jeroboam II King of Israel

2 Kings 14:23-29

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

Amaziah, Jeroboam, and Azariah: Second Kings 13 has ended with the description of a modest upturn in Israel’s fortunes. The LORD has saved them, even in the midst of idolatry, because of both his covenant with the patriarchs (2 Kgs. 13:23) and—remembering the context in which the chapter is narrated—his promise to Jehu (2 Kgs. 10:30). The impetus of that recovery continues now into chapter 14, as the house of Jehu brings Israel relief, not only from Aram, but also from a foolishly hostile Judah. 14:1–6 The ...

1818. Azariah King of Judah

2 Kings 15:1-7

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

1819. The Ark Brought to Jerusalem

1 Chronicles 15:1-16:6

Understanding Series

Louis C. Jonker

The Ark Brought to Jerusalem: 15:1–16:43 The Chronicler now narrates the renewed and this time successful attempt to bring the ark to Jerusalem (15:1–16:43; cf. 2 Sam. 6:19–20a as source material). The actual bringing of the ark to Jerusalem comprises only a small part of the narrative (1 Chron. 15:25–16:3; cf. 2 Sam. 6:12–19a). The remainder of 1 Chronicles 15–16 features descriptions of David’s preparations as well as the appointment of clergy and other staff to minister before the ark. The Chronicler’s ...

1820. Gershonites

1 Chronicles 23:7-11

Understanding Series

Louis C. Jonker

David Organizes the Cultic and Secular Officials: According to 1 Chronicles 10–22, David prepared everything for the building of the temple, including full instructions to his son Solomon. First Chronicles 23–27 now describes the division of the Levites for various kinds of service and gives an elaborate and intricate overview of how the cultic service was organized in Jerusalem. The short, opening comment that David made Solomon king serves as the bridge between David’s and Solomon’s reigns. From 23:2 ...

1821. Kohathites

1 Chronicles 23:12-20

Understanding Series

Louis C. Jonker

1822. Merarites

1 Chronicles 23:21-32

Understanding Series

Louis C. Jonker

1823. Judgment and Hope

Isaiah 66:1-24

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

Yahweh’s Closing Critique and Vision: In these last two chapters of the book, once more we cannot discern an order or structure. The succession of phrases that look like introductions to prophecies (65:8, 13, 25; 66:1, 5, 12, 22) and the movement between verse and prose suggest that here it is not because a prophet let a stream of consciousness have its way. It is, rather, because a number of separate prophecies have been accumulated at the end of the book. These different prophecies have overlapping ...

1824. Faces of Failure: Jesus’s Family

Mark 3:20-21, 31-35

Sermon

Don Tuttle

Have you ever noticed how some of those who should know Jesus best don’t? Take, for example, the people in his hometown of Nazareth. In Luke’s Gospel, the people who saw him play in their streets and work in his father’s shop are at first impressed with him. But when he returns to speak in the synagogue and suggests there is more faith among the pagans than among them they became furious and try to kill him. Or consider the disciples. They spend three years working with Jesus. They are there for all the ...

1825. Out of Control (Good Friday sermon)

John 18:1-19:42

Sermon

John Jamison

[Note to the preacher: As I write this message, my vision is that it is something more than just another sermon. It is written in four sections, each one presenting a step in the story of the events of that Friday. My personal presentation of this message would be in one of two ways, depending on the experience I am wanting to create. Option 1 would be to use this as the format for the entire Good Friday service, with each section of the story separated with music, liturgy, or any other activity desired. ...

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