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 1826 to 1850 of 2415 results

1826. Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand

John 6:1-15

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

... 12:1–36). In the present passage the effect is similarly to introduce a reflection on Jesus’ death, but this time with particular focus on its implications for discipleship. The chapter as a whole functions in much the same way as Jesus’ first Passion prediction in the synoptic Gospels, with its accompanying call to discipleship (cf. Mark 8:31–9:1 and parallels). John’s account of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes begins with the approach of a great crowd that had seen Jesus’ healings ...

1827. Jesus the Bread of Life

John 6:25-59

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

... of violent death—eating Jesus’ flesh and drinking his blood—points to the necessity, not merely to accept the reality of Jesus’ death for the life of the world, but to follow him in the way of the cross. In the Synoptics, when Jesus began to predict his Passion he added, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it” (Mark 8:34–35 ...

1828. The Unbelief of the Jews

John 10:22-42

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

... Ephraim near the desert (another place of respite, 11:54) to Bethany near Jerusalem a second time (12:1–11) and from there to Jerusalem itself. From 12:12 to the end of chapter 20, Jesus never leaves Jerusalem again, and all that happens there centers on his Passion. A certain continuity between 10:40–42 and 11:1–16 is presupposed by the wording of 11:6, he stayed where he was. The place is of interest to the narrator, not because of the coincidence of its name with the other Bethany (which he never ...

1829. Pilate and the Condemnation of Jesus

John 18:28-40, John 19:1-16

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

... firmly convinced that We have a law, and according to that law he must die [i.e., the law of blasphemy, Lev. 24:16] because he claimed to be the Son of God (v. 7). The mention of the title Son of God for the first time in the Passion narrative recalls earlier disputes between Jesus and the Jewish authorities (e.g., 5:18; 10:33, 36). It was the understanding that Jesus was claiming to be “God,” or “equal with God,” that led all along to charges of blasphemy (10:33), attempts to stone him (8:59; 10 ...

1830. Imitating Christ's Humility

Philippians 2:1-11

Understanding Series

F. F. Bruce

... truly crucified and died, in the sight of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth” (blepontōn tōn epouraniōn kai epigeiōn kai hypochthoniōn). Here too the adjectives appear to be masculine, since those referred to saw the passion of Christ. Carr may be right in thinking that by the three adjectives Ignatius denotes comprehensively “the whole inhabited universe”; but that universe is one of intelligent beings. F. W. Beare (ad loc.) holds that the reference of all three adjectives “is ...

1831. No Confidence in the Flesh

Philippians 3:1-11

Understanding Series

F. F. Bruce

... and Jeremiah 4:4 (“circumcise your hearts”), where emphasis is laid on the circumcision of the heart as what God really desires. Paul’s older contemporary, Philo of Alexandria, agrees that circumcision signifies “the cutting away of pleasure and all passions and the destruction of impious glory,” but disagrees with those who maintain that the external rite may be discontinued if the spiritual lesson is practiced (Migration of Abraham. 92). Here, therefore, Paul applies to those who insist on the ...

1832. Pressing on Toward the Goal

Philippians 3:12-4:1

Understanding Series

F. F. Bruce

... powerful hand was laid on his shoulder, turning him right round in his tracks, and a voice that brooked no refusal spoke in his ear: “You must come along with me.” Paul was conscripted into the service of Christ, but never was there a more willing conscript. The passion of his life from that hour on was to serve this new Master and fulfill the purpose for which he had conscripted him—to “lay hold on that,” as he put it, “for which also I was laid hold on by Jesus Christ” (ASV). Every phase of ...

1833. Dinah and the Shechemites

Genesis 34:1-31

Understanding Series

John E. Hartley

... this offense reveal the deep conflict between two different ways of life: shepherds in conflict with urban dwellers and worshipers of one God in conflict with polytheists. Several acrid terms in the story convey the brothers’ outrage at Shechem’s act of passion against their sister: violated (’innah, 34:2), defiled (timme’, 34:5, 13, 27), a disgrace (kherpah, 34:14), and an act of folly (nebalah; 34:7; NIV “a disgraceful thing”). The last term is the strongest Hebrew word for folly; it describes ...

1834. The Second Journey to Egypt

Genesis 43:1-34

Understanding Series

John E. Hartley

... had guaranteed the safe return of his brother to ease his father’s anxiety. He concluded by entreating the overseer to make him a slave in Benjamin’s place so that the boy could return home with his brothers. He underscored his offer with the passionate plea that he not be made to see the misery that would come upon his father. In this speech Joseph learned how grievously his father mourned his absence. Judah was demonstrating the complete change in his attitude to his younger brother; he was willing to ...

1835. The Only Place of Worship

Deuteronomy 12:1-32

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... of Isaiah 45:23 and the use of “Lord” in v. 11), then Christian concern to protect the name of Jesus Christ from being equated with any other names (for example in certain kinds of public multifaith worship) should be as keen as Deuteronomy’s passion for the uniqueness of the name of Yahweh over against all other religious manifestations. 12:5 Deuteronomy 12:5–12, dealing with the worship of Israel at the place God would choose, is the first of the two major central sections of the chapter. The ...

1836. Clean and Unclean Foods

Deuteronomy 14:1-21

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... LORD is a way of acknowledging their source and their status as gifts of blessing (7:13 and 11:14)—they are not mere products of the fertility of nature, still less the gift of any fertility god of Canaan. Deuteronomy’s constant educational passion surfaces again at the end of the verse (so that you may learn . . . ), but with typical Deuteronomic human warmth. Inculcating the fear of God could be achieved during a family party just as much as during family prayers. The allowance made for long-distance ...

1837. The Year of Canceling Debts

Deuteronomy 15:1-11

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... is the foundation stone of all else. Total love of the sole God, the God known through historical revelation and experience as Yahweh, is the only adequate basis for the demanding social program outlined in the chapters to follow. The monotheistic passion of chapters 6–13 is the foundation on which the socio-ethical compassion of chapter 15 and related laws can be built. 15:1–3 In characteristic fashion, Deuteronomy here recalls an ancient law, adds some modification, and reinforces it with motivational ...

1838. Offerings for Priests and Levites

Deuteronomy 18:1-8

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... s own people and to the political authorities. He predicted events beforehand and interpreted them afterwards. He gave to Israel the foundational theological and ethical constitution that undergirded the message of centuries of later prophets. He was faithful in intercession and passionate concern for the good of his people, as well as in declaring God’s specific judgments. He suffered with and for his people and finally died without seeing the full fruition of his life’s mission. In these respects he ...

1839. Miscellaneous Laws

Deut 23:15–25:19

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... as about idolatry, sexual perversions, and pagan cults. The reason is that it is precisely such cheating and sharp dealing in the world of trade and commerce that lies behind so much of the exploitation and poverty of those whom Deuteronomy cares so passionately about elsewhere. The same zeal to expose dishonesty because of its social destructiveness inflamed Amos (Amos 8:4–6). 25:17–19 The reason for the particular curse upon the Amalekites (which here probably does not refer to Exod. 17:8–16 but ...

1840. Firstfruits and Tithes

Deuteronomy 26:1-15

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... , God-honoring love for the neighbor. The Torah itself thus agrees with the way the prophets later pinpoint and prioritize care for the poor as somehow definitive or paradigmatic of Israel’s response to God as a whole. They argue passionately that callous neglect of the weak in society utterly invalidates all the claims of their enthusiastic religious observance. Sacred rites are no atonement for social wrongs. The prayer for continued blessing (v. 15) thus rests on continued obedience. But it should ...

1841. The Lord's Anger Against Israel

Isaiah 9:8--10:4

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... ’s personal involvement in bringing disaster to the wicked. There are thus two ways of viewing the same processes. To put it one way, wickedness sets the world on fire. To put it the other way, Yahweh’s wrath sets the world on fire, passionate in its anger and active in the exercise of Yahweh’s powerful hand. By implication, both models of understanding causation in the world are necessary to grasp how things happen. Events are both logical and “natural” and also personal and felt (see further on ...

1842. The Suffering and Glory of the Servant

Isaiah 52:13--53:12

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... shows that one must not assume this always to be the case. Second, even when people came to realize that he was taking up their sufferings and pains (v. 4a), they had not said all that needed to be said. Behind the servant’s action (or passion) lay the master’s will. But what were Yahweh and the servant trying to achieve through this act of identification? The answer is that it constituted a guilt offering, though in detail the words here are difficult to construe. You offered a literal guilt offering ...

1843. Riddles and Metaphors

Ezekiel 15:1-8, Ezekiel 16:1-63, Ezekiel 17:1-24

Understanding Series

Steven Tuell

... : the prophet is not attempting either to preserve or to express some abstract notion of divine justice. Rather, in the language of poetry and metaphor, Ezekiel brings his readers to a visceral experience of the perverse faithlessness of Jerusalem, and the thwarted passion of God. Note, though, that this is not the end of the story. Beyond Jerusalem’s bloody, shameful end lies new hope and possibility. 16:43b–58 The Lord’s harsh, unstinting message of judgment now gives way to a promise of salvation ...

1844. Jesus Tempted in the Wilderness

Matthew 4:1-11

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... via Jesus’ three citations of Deuteronomy that attend to Israel’s lack of loyalty to Yahweh during their wilderness journey (Deut. 6; 8). Matthew displays Jesus as representative Israel who is faithful and true to God’s covenant. Later, in the Passion Narrative, Matthew will highlight Jesus’ faithfulness at Gethsemane (26:36–46), when Jesus resists the temptation to pursue his own will and remains faithful to God’s missional plan for him. Interpretive Insights 4:1–2 Jesus was led by the ...

1845. Jesus as God’s Wisdom Is a Hidden Reality

Matthew 11:20-24, Matthew 11:25-30

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... . Film: The Mission. In this 1986 movie, Rodrigo Mendoza (played by Robert De Niro) is a mercenary slaver who makes his living off of kidnapping the natives from the Guaraní community and selling them to plantations. Mendoza murders his brother in a fit of passion and is then overcome by depression after the murder. A Jesuit priest, Father Gabriel (played by Jeremy Irons), who is ministering to the Guaraní, challenges Mendoza to take on a penance for his actions by carrying a large net full of heavy armor ...

1846. Parables Discourse: The “Already and Not Yet” of the Kingdom

Matthew 13:24-30, Matthew 13:31-35, Matthew 13:36-43, Matthew 13:44-46, Matthew 13:47-52

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... , experts appraise garage-sale purchases, family heirlooms, and recently found articles to determine their value. Often, individuals discover that they have “hidden” treasures, items worth a great deal more than their appearance suggests. In one episode, a man with a passion for collecting Chinese rhinoceros-horn cups discovers that the set that he spent about $5,000 to acquire—a large amount of money to him—is worth at least $1 million. The appraiser notes how, simply by pursuing something he ...

1847. The Disciples Confess Jesus as the Messiah

Matthew 16:1-4, Matthew 16:5-12, Matthew 16:13-20

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... ministry (4:17–16:20). Matthew highlights themes of revelation (16:17; see 11:25; 13:35) and the promise of authority for Peter and the Twelve (16:18–20; see 18:18; 28:18–20). Yet the placement of this confession immediately before Jesus’ first passion prediction (16:21) and Peter’s subsequent rebuke (16:22) indicates that Peter and the other disciples do not understand the kind of Messiah Jesus has come to be. In 16:21–28:20 Matthew will make clear the nature and destiny of Jesus as Israel ...

1848. Through His Faithful Death, Jesus as Messiah Redefined Brings Life

Matthew 27:27-31, Matthew 27:32-44, Matthew 27:45-56, Matthew 27:57-61, Matthew 27:62-66

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... Jesus (also 27:47). 27:50 he gave up his spirit. Matthew has expanded Mark 15:37 (“breathed his last”) to “gave up his spirit.” Matthew’s rendering might suggest a deliberate action on Jesus’ part, more like the voluntary act in John’s Passion Narrative (John 19:30; cf. Luke 23:46). 27:51 the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The curtain referred to here could be either the outer curtain separating the temple from its courts (making the event publicly accessible ...

1849. The Resurrected Jesus Is Vindicated by God and Given All Authority

Matthew 28:1-10, Matthew 28:11-15, Matthew 28:16-20

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... earthquake (seismos) attends his resurrection. Matthew thereby indicates the cosmic implications of Jesus’ death and resurrection. 28:6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. This affirmation of Jesus’ prediction of his resurrection picks up the three passion predictions in 16:21; 17:22–23; 20:17–19, each of which mentions Jesus’ resurrection. 28:7 go quickly and tell his disciples. It would have been noteworthy to Matthew’s original audience that women were the first witnesses to ...

1850. Jesus Inaugurates the Disciple Band and Conquers the Unclean Spirits

Mark 1:14-20, Mark 1:21-28

Teach the Text

Grant R. Osborne

... , whom would you tell? Most of us love to share good news with other people, particularly with the people closest to us. But are you just as excited to share the gospel with others? If “gospel” really does mean “good news,” shouldn’t you be passionate about telling others? Are you so excited about what God has done for you through faith in Jesus that you cannot keep quiet? If not, why not? Challenge your listeners to think about two people they love and care about who need to hear the “good ...

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