Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: Levi, disciple, evangelist, tax collector, the 12, the twelve, apostle, sermon on the mount, jewish audience, beatitudes, lord's prayer, great commission, parables, olivet discourse, mount of olives, olivet, synoptic

Showing 1851 to 1875 of 2273 results

1851. The Ordinary in God’s Hands

1 Corinthians 11:23-26

Sermon

David O. Bales

The apostle Paul writes to a church where he was the founding pastor. He speaks to a jumble of their moral and spiritual problems. To this diverse group of Christians in this cosmopolitan city, he first reminds them of the state in which Christ's good news came to them: "Consider your own call, brothers and sisters, not many of you were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world ...

1852. Boast in Our Suffering

Romans 5:1-8

Sermon

Steven E. Albertin

The phone rings in the middle of the night. There is only one reason why someone would call you at this time of the night, and it can't be good. The deadpan voice of the police officer tells you the horrible news rather matter-of-factly. Your imagination runs wild. You were not there, but you can hear the tires screeching, the metal smashing, the glass breaking, and the sirens whining. It was not supposed to end this way. She had so much of life yet to live. Your boss calls you into his office. Other ...

1853. A Careful Separation

Luke 14:1-14; Phil 2:5-7

Illustration

Julie Riley

Many years ago, a little girl named Sarah lived in a home for unwed mothers. She was not one of the clients; her mother was the cook there. Sarah had grown up in the home, and was the special pet of all the girls who came there. One day, a new girl, young and pregnant had come to the home. As she sat on the bench, waiting for her intake interview with the director, she wept. Sarah, now about twelve or thirteen years old, had seen many girls come and go by then, and she knew most all of them had the same ...

1854. Something Special To Share

1 Thessalonians 5:11

Children's Sermon

Marti Kramer Suddarth

Objects: Card stock printed with scripture reference and verse Pair of glasses Toothbrush Medicine bottle Toy Book Article of clothing Item of food Today, I’m going to tell you something that I imagine you never thought you’d hear someone tell you in church. Don’t share. That’s right. I’m telling you not to share. (pause) Well, actually, I’m not talking about everything, but there are some things that we just shouldn’t share. (Hold up each item for the children to see as you talk about it.) One example ...

1855. Thankful — Two

Ephesians 5:20

Children's Sermon

Marti Kramer Suddarth

Object: Calendar; Card stock printed with scripture reference and verse (Show the calendar.) What is this? (Let the children answer.) That’s right! It’s a calendar. A calendar helps us keep track of the months, days, and dates during the year. There are twelve months in a year. Let’s see if we can name them. Ready? (Show each month as you lead the children in saying the names in order.) Very good! January is the first month of the year. Now, who can tell me something that happens in January? (Show January ...

1856. Willing

Judges 6:1-40

Children's Sermon

Marti Kramer Suddarth

Object: Card stock printed with Judges 6:15 on one side and Judges 6:16a on the other Have you ever heard the story of Gideon? We find it in the book of Judges, in the Old Testament. At that time in history, the people of Israel were being attacked by the people of Midian. The Midianites would come in and kill the Israelites’ animals, steal their food, and burn their crops. One day a man named Gideon was threshing his wheat. In Bible times, a farmer would toss the wheat plants in the air, letting the wind ...

1857. Jesus the Toxicologist

Luke 16:19-31

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

Any of you know a hoarder? I don’t mean somebody who can’t throw anything away. I mean somebody who keeps to himself everything he has and can’t let go of anything. In today’s gospel parable the un-named “rich man” lives a hoarder’s life of prosperity and extravagance. He luxuriated in exhibiting the power of his wealth by hosting exquisite banquets every day. He demonstrated his wealth by dressing in the finest, most expensive clothes. Yet he also hoarded his wealth by refusing to extend alms, feed the ...

1858. Self Restraint

Luke 16:19-31

Illustration

Matt Ridley

John Hildebrand who has lived in the Artesian Valley, near Fowler, Kansas, since he was two years old, remembers why the valley has the name it does. "There were hundreds of natural springs in this valley. If you drilled a well for your house, the natural water pressure was enough to go through your hot-water system and out the shower head." There were marshes in Fowler in the 1920s, where cattle sank to their bellies in mud. And the early settlers went boating down Crooked Creek, in the shade of the ...

1859. One of the Family

Hebrews 1:1-4; 2:5-18

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

I read about a preacher whose daughter keeps a daily notebook. On one page she had drawn a picture of her father and written carefully his name and address. When asked why, she explained. She had been watching a movie about amnesia. And then she said, "If I ever forget who I am, I want everybody to know who I belong to." Belonging is very important. And knowing who we belong is even more important. This morning the author of the letter to the Hebrews talks about Belonging and our relationship with God. Let ...

1860. People of the Book

2 Timothy 3:10--4:8

Sermon

King Duncan

A group of boys and girls was asked to sum up what they had learned from the New Testament. Here is a summation of what they had learned: “Jesus is the star of the New Testament. He was born in Bethlehem in a barn. During His life, Jesus had many arguments with sinners like the Pharisees and the Republicans. Jesus also had twelve opossums. The worst one was Judas Asparagus. Judas was so evil that they named a terrible vegetable after him. “Jesus was a great man. He healed many leopards and even preached to ...

1861. 8 Signs You're Not Reading Your Bible

2 Tim 3:14-4:5

Illustration

King Duncan

A group of boys and girls was asked to sum up what they had learned from the New Testament. Here is a summation of what they had learned: "Jesus is the star of the New Testament. He was born in Bethlehem in a barn. During His life, Jesus had many arguments with sinners like the Pharisees and the Republicans. Jesus also had twelve opossums. The worst one was Judas Asparagus. Judas was so evil that they named a terrible vegetable after him. "Jesus was a great man. He healed many leopards and even preached to ...

1862. The Garden of Temptation

Genesis 3:1-24

Sermon

King Duncan

A woman tells of joining a weight-loss organization. At one meeting the instructor held up an apple and a candy bar. “What are the attributes of this apple,” she asked, “and how do they relate to our diet?” Among the answers that came from the group: “Low in calories” and “lots of fiber.” She then detailed what was wrong with eating candy, and concluded, “Apples are not only more healthful but also less expensive. Do you know I paid seventy-five cents for this candy bar?” The group stared as she held aloft ...

1863. What Kind of Pillar Are You?

Matthew 5:13-16

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

Who are the pillars of the church? If others look to you as a “pillar of the church,” what kind of pillar are you? Jesus answers that question in our gospel reading for this morning, but to get to his answer we’ve got to exercise the discipline of historical context. We’ve got to put his words and images in the context of the culture of his day. So here we go . . . Anyone who has ever had a class on Greek and Roman culture has had to recall and recognize the three distinctive types of architectural columns ...

1864. A Light in the Darkness

Mt 5:13-20

Illustration

King Duncan

Let me tell you a story about one of the most remarkable young men who ever lived. This young man had been left blind in both eyes by a childhood accident. In nineteenth-century France, when this young man lived, blind children had little help and few hopes. But then a kindly priest, Father Jacques Palluy, took an interest in the lad. He was amazed at the boy's intelligence and eagerness to learn. With his parents 'permission, Father Palluy enrolled the boy in the Royal Institute of Blind Youth in Paris. ...

1865. All Boxed In?

Matthew 28:1-10

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

Here is my thesis: the greatest public service the church can perform for its community, and for the world, is this: celebrate Easter. A true, beautiful and good celebration of Easter. Here is the proof of my thesis: last year’s “Resurrection Sunday Dance,” that took place in Budapest, Hungary, where God is up to some amazing things. This very moment on Easter Sunday Christians are “Resurrection Dancing” at various capitols and courtyards around the world. But here is my favorite one from 2010 Resurrection ...

1866. From Temple to Table

John 10:1-21

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

As the “wilderness” continues to shrink, the highly populated suburbs weirdly become the new “edges” of civilization. Why else would coyotes have become the greatest danger for small dogs and cats? Why else would deer have replaced moles, grubs, and crabgrass as the biggest landscaping challenge all over suburbia? The only thing worse than having all your flowers nipped off by marauding Bambi’s is the absolutely abhorrent smell of deer repellent. To keep deer from munching down your roses, pansies, zinnia’ ...

1867. It's Not Fair!

1 Peter 2:13-25

Sermon

King Duncan

Strange things happen in this world. Surely you’ve noticed that. There was a news report about two motorists who had a head-on collision and I do mean a head-on collision. It happened in heavy fog near the small town of Guetersloh, Germany. The two motorists were guiding their cars at a snail’s pace near the center of the road in the dense fog. Each of them had his head out of the car window trying to see. And yes, before they realized it, they smacked their heads together. Both men were hospitalized with ...

1868. The 4 Words that Tell What It Means to Be a Christian

Luke 24:50-53

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

Is life becoming more complex, or what? I don’t know about you, but I’m needing some simplicity to offset that complexity. I’m looking out at some of you: we have in our midst some people who are tech-savants, up-to-the-nanosecond in every new app and digital advance, every new social media minutia; and we have in our midst some “off-the-grid,” computer-phobic, techno-anaphylactic Luddites. And then there are the rest of us, the most of us the in-betweeners. But whoever you are, we can agree on one thing: ...

1869. It’s Like Water

Matthew 28:16-20

Illustration

Thomas Tindell

I was probably about twelve when I was in my church confirmation class, and I remember asking my pastor about the Trinity. I couldn't get how one and one and one, can be One, and not three, and I definitely couldn't get why it was important to say that God is three and God is One, if it was something that by definition was a mystery, something we can't understand. The answer I remember well. I was told that the Trinity is like H20 – it can be ice or water or steam, but it's all water. Well, that makes ...

1870. Matthew 10:40-42

Matthew 10:1-42

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

We’ve all been offered the “good news/bad news” option at one time or another. It goes like this: “Which do you want to hear first, the good news or the bad news?” Throughout Matthew 10, as Jesus prepares his disciples to head out on their maiden missionary journey, he moves back and forth between offering them the “good news” and the “bad news.” The good news is Jesus gives all twelve of his disciples “authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to cure every disease and every sickness” (v.1). ...

1871. Kudzu – More Harm Than Good

Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43

Illustration

A landowner sows good seed in his field. His enemy sows bad seed. Which can happen, I suppose. I heard tell of a fraternity prank that involved "bad seed." On "Fraternity Row" at a southern university, there was a great rivalry between two of the houses. At one fraternity house, a new lawn was being prepared. Topsoil had been brought in. Seed had been laid down. But late one night, members of the rival fraternity threw kudzu seeds in the cultivated plot. Which may not mean much to you who have lived your ...

1872. Matthew 14:13-21

Matthew 14:13-21

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

For a meal with the simplest of ingredients, the story of the feeding of the five thousand has been sliced and diced, layered and ladled into a soufflé of complexity. It is true that in this story there are ties to Israel’s past, links to the future kingdom, messianic symbolism, and Eucharistic overtones, it is also true that this story is about the common humanity of sitting and sharing a meal in the companionship of others. This great miracle of feeding five thousand is the only miracle besides Jesus’ ...

1873. When the Caterers Weren’t Available

Matthew 14:13-21

Sermon

King Duncan

Today’s lesson is on one of Jesus’ best known miracles, the feeding of the 5,000. Of course, as someone has noted, if Jesus were alive today, he wouldn’t be allowed to get away with half the miracles he performed. It’s not just that we live in such a skeptical, rationalist age. It’s all the red tape as well. Here are a few examples. Turning water into wine. This would provoke immediate protests from the alcoholic beverage industry, who would argue that it was unfair competition, amounting to a monopoly. It ...

1874. Save Me, Lord

Matthew 14:22-36

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

British naturalist Alfred Russell Wallace was without peer in the 19th century except for one name: Charles Darwin. One of Wallace’s most astute observations about nature has gotten totally forgotten in the whole debate over the “survival of the fittest.” Wallace made a surprising discovery about the saving nature of struggle. One day Wallace was observing moths struggling to hatch out from their cocoons. One of the larger insects seemed to be having a particularly hard time getting out. After hours of ...

1875. The Voice

1 Samuel 3:1-10 (11-20)

Sermon

David E. Leininger

Someone has suggested that the title for a sermon about this incident in the life of Samuel should be "The Danger Of Sleeping In Church." As Bible scholars know, there is another story in the New Testament that could be titled the same way (Acts 20:7-12). Young Eutychus of Troas was at worship one Sunday evening, seated on the windowsill. The apostle Paul was the visiting preacher, and he did preach ... and preach and preach and preach. He preached until midnight. Then Eutychus dozed, and crashed. He fell ...

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