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 1876 to 1900 of 4967 results

1876. Deus Interruptus

Mark 6:45-56

Illustration

Jerry Goebel

... what is to happen, and that he functions like the Spirit, who “drove” Jesus out to be tested in the wilderness (1:12; note the amount of wilderness imagery in 6:31–44). This is to be the disciples’ test. It is also possible that there are unruly elements in the crowd, and Jesus does not want his disciples caught up in any messianic fervor (in John 6:14–15 we are told the crowd tried to make Jesus “king by force”), but there is no hint of that in Mark (Baker Publishing Group, Teaching the Text ...

1877. Fishing Buddies

John 1:35-42, John 1:43-51

Sermon

James Merritt

... God, serving God, but only here and only now do we have the chance to fish for people and to reach people for Christ. We are in the middle of a series that I've entitled "Deep Soul Fishing." I told you last week that Jesus said to his first disciples, "Follow Me and I will make you become fishers of men." He was telling us that followers fish. The reason that this subject is so important is this. Everybody is going to spend eternity somewhere. We have been left on this earth to try to get as many people as ...

1878. Get Real

John 15:1-11, 16

Sermon

James Merritt

... . (John 15:1-3, NASB) Most likely, Jesus had just left the Upper Room, where He had the Last Supper with His disciples and He was walking to the Garden of Gethsemane. When He made this statement, it would have been very easy to understand ... from Me you can do nothing. (John 15:5, NASB) "My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples. (John 15:8, NASB) In this passage, keep three things in mind and then you will begin to understand what it means. God is the gardener. ...

1879. Five Differences between a Franchise Faith and an Authentic Faith

Mark 9:38-41

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... miraculous acts of healing, Jesus pointed to gestures as simple as giving a cup of cold water. Instead of closing ranks, Jesus opened the door to others, to all who would work in Christ’s name. Instead of being a funnel, Jesus told his disciples to be a fountain. One more thing about fountains: one word originality. Fountains have an original source; funnels are derivative and unoriginal and merely redirect from one location to another. Followship can look different on the outside as long as at its heart ...

1880. The Freedom to Interpret

John 8:31-36

Sermon

John Wayne Clarke

... beings, not a lot of time passes before we find ourselves once again, saying, "I'll never do that again, really!" Going back to verse 31, "Then Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, ‘If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.' " One of the single most important things about freedom in Christ is that it allows us to continue the Reformation each and every day. The Reformation is not something that happened and then died ...

1881. Operation Omega

Mark 10:35-45

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... . They want the honor that they think should come from following Jesus. But Jesus turns their hoped-for hierarchy on its head. It is the world, the Gentile “tyrants,” Jesus insists, that adhere to a “top-down” power structure. Jesus commands his disciples to be different: “it is not to be so among you.” Discipleship isn’t about attaining a special place of great honor. Discipleship is about embracing the identity of servant and offering service “to all.” Here is a tale of two restaurants ...

1882. Plenty Good Room

John 14:1-4

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... as I’ve looked at this scripture, there are two insights that I find here, which tell us something about Heaven. First, the language is clearly relational language, and that says something to us about Heaven. I go to prepare a place for you, Jesus said. Jesus is promising the disciples and us that as He stands with us in our presents, in the present moments, so He stands with us at our future and we have nothing to fear. As He is with us now, He will be with us in and beyond death. I heard a story about a ...

1883. Startled By Jesus

Luke 24:36-49

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... to God through baptism just like you and me. C. It's startling that after His baptism, Jesus is driven or lead into the desert where He is tempted for 40 days. The only witness we have of that is Jesus. But obviously it was something He shared with His disciples. They probably didn't understand it at the time but it's startling how significant it is for us. Jesus did not give into temptation but instead, triumphed over it. And what's so startling is that He promised to help us do the same if we simply call ...

1884. A Bethany Blessing

Luke 24:44-53

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... Luke says, Jesus "lifting up his hands, blessed them." This is where I'm told we get the notion of a benediction being a blessing. We lift our hands just like Jesus did. We lift our hands and pass on the blessing of Christ which has been passed from the disciples down through the centuries to each of us. Bethany, a safe haven, a sacred place, a holy place, a place of blessing. This morning I want to take a trip to Bethany, to that place of blessing and I want each of you to go to Bethany with me. You ...

1885. They Devoted Themselves

Acts 2:42-47

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... also deals with sharing of meals. I believe there's a very rich blessing that comes from sitting down across from a friend and fellow Christian and eating together. To me, it is almost sacramental. It reminds us of the meals Jesus shared w/ his disciples; especially the Last Supper. Just think how much enjoyment there is on Wednesdays at WNO. Think how much love has been shared and given through those meals. Fellowship dinners are an important aspect of the Church. They build up the faith and they feed the ...

1886. Acts 8:14-17

Acts 8:9-25

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... (Acts 3:1,3,4,11; 4:13,19). So they are the logical ones to oversee the spread of faith into a new region. Samaria had been specifically identified by the risen Christ as part of the world that was to be missionized by the disciples once they themselves had received the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8). Samaritans held a unique place in the relationship between Jews and Gentiles. The Samaritans were not Gentiles. But their practice of the more ancient form of Israel’s religion kept them out of the Jerusalem ...

1887. WaterFire Faith

Acts 2:1-13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... in the US has lost 20% of its net worth. This is a huge hit on every family here, every person here. Anyone plan for that? Anyone got a program for that? Now consider what happened to first-century Christians. As he ascended Christ didn’t leave his disciples a “plan.” Instead he promised them the Holy Spirit and he provided them with a new identity: “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of ...

1888. Joshua People Study

Joshua 1:7-8, Psalm 119:10-18

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... dig deep and give greatly." The congregation grew quiet, and from the back, someone mumbled, "Let the church crawl, Pastor, let the church crawl." (1) This morning I want us to begin with crawling and see how we, as Joshua People, can begin to walk as Disciples of Jesus Christ. This is the third in our series titled "The Joshua Principles. We talked about how Joshua People Always Look Forward With Hope. Last week we talked about how Joshua People Obey and Serve. Today I want us to look at the third Joshua ...

1889. For Comfort, Guidance and Strength

Acts 2:1-21

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... were; to the tune of about three thousand of them. That was just the beginning. The power of God was in those words. Peter's message was more than a pep talk. It was real and drew on the power of God. That made the difference. Just like the disciples, we draw our power for living the Christian life from the same unseen presence of Christ, the Holy Spirit. In "The Korean Creed" one of our affirmations of faith, we have one of the best summations of the work of the Holy Spirit. It says, "We believe in the ...

1890. Your King Comes

Luke 19:28-44

Sermon

King Duncan

... imagine a similar distraction on the day Jesus entered Jerusalem. He was no outlaw, of course, even though the law would put him to death. But his time had now come. No use hiding his identity any longer. No use delaying the inevitable. He sends two of his disciples into a village to procure a young colt. He and his followers had probably come by foot all the way from Galilee. But now for the last two miles he wanted to ride a young donkey. Why? There is only one answer: Jesus was deliberately acting out ...

1891. Easter Heart Burn

Luke 24:13-35

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... journey. They experienced this Easter Heart Burn I'm talking about. And just as it gave Cleopas, his companion and the rest of the Disciples courage and encouragement and the impetus to carry out God's call in their lives, it did the same for them as well. II ... s just one more experience which some people find meaningful and others don't. That's why Jesus chose to reveal Himself to the Disciples in so many different ways and places. He appeared to Mary at the tomb she mistook him for the gardener. He met the ...

1892. Touch and Feel, Taste and See

John 20:19-31

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... but believe." [28] Thomas answered him, "My Lord and my God!" [29] Jesus said to him, "Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe." [30] Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. [31] But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name. I. Doubt and Faith A. During his long career as ...

1893. Evangelism Jesus' Style

John 1:29-42

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... I baptize with water unto repentance,” he said, “but He that is coming after me is mightier than I, he will baptize with the Holy Spirit and with fire.” The next day, after talking about Jesus in that fashion, John the Baptist was with two of his disciples: John and Andrew, when they saw Jesus coming. John the Baptist said, “Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world.” Now here we get to that revealing scene. When John and Andrew heard John the Baptist’s word about Jesus, they ...

1894. He Presented Himself Alive

Matthew 28:1-10

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... the stone removed to get out. He could have passed through that stone as he did the closed door later when he appeared to the disciples in the room where they had shut themselves up in fear and trembling, in deep despair. But God didn’t miss a trick, so he ... lay. Here we come to a pivotal element in the story. They commissioned the two Mary’s to go and tell the other disciples that the risen Jesus was going before them to Galilee. Don’t miss the big point here — the identification of the risen Lord ...

1895. The Darkness Before the Dawn

John 13:18-30, John 13:31-38

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... and stormy night." Maundy Thursday, so long ago, was a dark and stormy night. The Bible says in John 13:30, “After receiving the bread, Judas went out and it was night." If there was no storm in the sky there certainly was a storm in the souls of the disciples. Maybe all of us have been there one time or another. I suspect we have. As Dante said in the Divine Comedy: Midway through this life we've bound upon, I woke to find myself in a dark woods, Where the right road was wholly lost and gone. It was ...

1896. Jesus’ 10 Commandments

Luke 8:26-39

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... hear the voice of Christ without heeding the voice of the Scripture and being open to receive the voice of the Spirit. There is never just one side to a story. It takes four gospels to tell the Jesus story. 7) Learn A Living: The word “disciple” can also be translated as “learner.” We are called to be lifetime-learners. It was those with closed minds, who had nothing more to learn, who found Jesus to be an enemy and who ultimately condemned him. Jesus embodied “light” and when doors and minds ...

1897. When God Speaks

Psalm 29:1-11

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... GOD INTHE STORM? When the storms of life are raging, where do we find God? God is in charge. “God sits enthroned over the flood. The Lord is enthroned as king forever" (Verse 10). Following a long day of teaching, Jesus tries to catch a nap as the disciples navigate the boat to the other side of the lake. The story is told in Mark: 4. Suddenly there was trouble. The Sea of Galilee became engulfed in one of its famous and frequent storms. If you have ever visited there you may have experienced it. It was ...

1898. Checking Out the Scene

John 1:35-42

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... is no salesperson posing the question today. As John says, “This is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.” This is the second Person of the Divine Trinity who is now dwelling among us and the Son of God is asking some would-be disciples today, “What are you looking for? What are you after? What do you want?” If this same Christ were to lock eyes with you and me through the mysteries of worship and ask this question, I wonder what we would answer? What exactly do you hope to gain from ...

1899. The Curse of the Impossible

Mark 9:14-32

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... spirits that took his breath away, made him unable to talk, caused him to go into convulsions and to foam at the mouth and to grind his teeth. The young fellow would not eat, and he was wasting away. The father, in desperation, had brought his son to the disciples, asking them to heal him and to cast out the demons, but they could not. After his sharp word of disappointment “O faithless generation! How long am I to be with you?” Jesus asked that the little boy be brought to Him. In this father we have a ...

1900. Sisters

Luke 10:38-42

Sermon

King Duncan

... with a less responsible younger sister who has lived since. Some of you know what I’m talking about. Jesus and his disciples were on their way to Jerusalem. But first they take a little side trip to a little village called Bethany. There they ... to say about the coming Kingdom.” Jesus was not denigrating Martha’s role as the mistress of the house. If he had, he and his disciples would go hungry. He was simply saying that there is a time and a place for everything, and right now he needed them to focus on ...

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