Sermon and Worship Resources

Antonyms: keep, claim, continue, stick by, self-control, power through, achieve, defend, bear, hope, acquire, quick visit, adopt, continue along, adhere, remain, pursue, support, take up, keep up, reuse, advocate, stay, persevere, cherish, keep going, carry on

Showing 1926 to 1950 of 4933 results

1926. Epiphany 4

Psalm 71:1-24, Jeremiah 1:1-19, Luke 4:21-30, 1 Corinthians 13:1-13

Bulletin Aid

B. David Hostetter

READINGS Psalter—Psalm 71:1-6 First Lesson—The uncertain modesty of the prophet is overcome with a sense of divine calling to a particular if difficult mission. Jeremiah 1:4-10 Second Lesson—Here is the classic definition of Christian love. 1 Corinthians 13:1-13 Gospel—Jesus does not hesitate to tell the truth at the expense of causing controversy that is life-threatening. Luke 4:21-30 CALL TO WORSHIP Leader: The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. People: And also with you. Leader: Young and ...

1927. Climbing the Right Ladder

Genesis 28:10-19a

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

How do you define success? I would like to talk about that today. Robert Raines says, “Success is a moving target. Every time I make my mark, somebody paints the wall,” go the lyrics of a country song. Oliver Wendell Holmes at age 90 said, “The secret to my success is that at an early age, I discovered I was not God.” Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “To leave the world a bit better, to know that even one life has breathed easier because you lived, that is to have succeeded.” We catch up with our Old Testament ...

1928. Hearing the Questions of Children

Genesis 22:1-14

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

David Harju, a senior at Centennial High School, took the SAT test and scored a perfect 1600 on it this Spring. How did David feel about it? “Ecstatic,” said Tennessean staff writer, Barbara Moore.[1] The Old Testament story we step into today is the life and death test of one man’s faith and obedience. Father Abraham feels directed by God to sacrifice his only son as an act of worship on Mt. Moriah. Suddenly, this boy who has brought laughter to a couple in their elder years, is surrounded by a trail of ...

1929. Whosoever Will

Acts 2:1-21

Sermon

Stan Purdum

Pentecost is considered the birth date of the church universal. There was also planted that day, in the preaching of the apostle Peter, an important seed — the fruit of which was almost lost at one point in the church's history. That seed was in this statement by Peter: "Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Acts 2:21). Actually, Peter wasn't being original with that statement. He was quoting Joel 2:32, but that ancient prophet was talking about the salvation of the people of ...

1930. A Holy Kiss (Father's Day)

2 Corinthians 13:11-14

Sermon

King Duncan

I heard recently about a young couple at a very conservative Bible college who were very attracted to each other but they had been brought up to believe they needed some scripture verse to justify all their actions. One day the young man said to his girl, “Boy, do I want to kiss you, but I just can’t find the right Bible verse.” He said he tried the verse from Corinthians that said, “Greet each other with a holy kiss,” but he knew that applied to greeting each other at church. He was stymied. Finally, ...

1931. Saul Forfeits a Dynasty

1 Samuel 13:1-15

Teach the Text

Robert B. Chisholm Jr.

Big Idea: God’s people can forfeit their privilege and blessing by foolishly disobeying the Lord’s word. Understanding the Text As chapter 12 concludes, one hopes and may even expect that Saul will succeed. After all, empowered by the Lord’s Spirit, he defeated the Ammonites, and the rebellious people responded positively to Samuel’s call to covenantal renewal. Yet there was unfinished business. The Ammonites have been defeated, but the Philistine problem remains. The Lord announced to Samuel that the new ...

1932. Worse Than It Sounds

Luke 16:19-31

Sermon

George Reed

The story of the rich man, often called Dives, and Lazarus is a heartrending tale of suffering on the part of the poor man and indifference on the part of the rich one. If that was all the story was about it would be dreadful enough but it also shows us the horrors of society when it is divided into classes. We see this clearly in the attitude of the rich man. While the rich man is comfortably situated in his luxurious home there is a beggar outside his gates who is starving to death. He is a miserable ...

1933. Lord of the Sabbath

Mark 2:23-3:6

Sermon

George Reed

The Gospel Reading shows Jesus in a position of conflict with the religious leaders of his day, a position we find him in repeatedly. This time it is over the observance of the sabbath. This is a story we need to hear, not only to understand the life of Jesus, but to apply it to ourselves as religious folks. In Jesus' critical encounters with the Pharisees or scribes or the Jews, we must avoid the temptation to look down on them by placing ourselves above them. The faults of the religious people of Jesus' ...

1934. Should We Wash One Another's Feet?

John 13:31-38, John 13:1-17

Sermon

King Duncan

A pastor named Kwanza Yu tells a beautiful story of the death of his father in Seoul, Korea. All six of Pastor Yu’s brothers and sisters were present for his father’s last hours. He says that all of them could feel the pain of his struggle as he tried to communicate with them. But their father had lost the ability to speak. Finally, says this pastor, their father motioned toward their oldest brother as if to say, “Get me a glass of water.” So the oldest son went over to the sink and filled a glass with ...

1935. The Wedding Planner's Worst Nightmare

John 2:1-11

Sermon

King Duncan

If you were to make a list of jobs that require the ability to think on your feet and handle extreme levels of stress, which jobs would make your list? Fighter pilots, police officers, kindergarten teachers, perhaps? They’d belong on that list, right? What about wedding planners? Surely not, you say, but think about it. Wedding planners juggle hundreds of tiny details while also managing the emotions of the wedding party. Their job is to create the perfect day for the bride and groom. That’s a huge ...

1936. Second Sight

Matthew 17:1-13

Sermon

David Belgum

What was the experience high up on Mount Hermon, which we have come to call the Transfiguration of Jesus? When we modern, technologically-oriented westerners read, we expect to receive objective information that will benefit us and answer questions. We become uncomfortable when what we read raises questions or throws us for a loop. All the symbolism of inspiration is packed into this short story. A bright light represented God's holiness and his blessing on those whom he had called. It is said of Jesus ...

1937. The Expectant Parents--And An Unexpected Baby

Isaiah 11:1-16

Sermon

Thomas A. Pilgrim

Some time ago I read a story in a church newsletter written by a pastor in Tennessee. He told about his congregation's being in a new sanctuary for their first Christmas there. It was going to be a great Advent Sunday. The choir had put in extra time working on their music. He had prepared a sermon on "The Unexpected God." The church was full that Sunday, and the service began with the singing of "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing." Just as the affirmation of faith ended, a boy announced from the back of the ...

1938. God Sends Us Ahead

Genesis 45:1-28

Sermon

This is it. The moment we've all been waiting for. The moment when all the people who thought you'd never amount to anything watch you come out on the stage. The spotlight hits you. The audience stands and the entire hall reverberates with their applause. This is that moment when a man dressed in the finery of the Egyptian court makes himself known to his impoverished brothers. "It's me, Joseph! It's me! Remember me? The brother you threw into a pit? Don't you remember me, Judah? You suggested that you ...

1939. The Righteousness Of God

2 Corinthians 5:11--6:2

Sermon

Mark J. Molldrem

"Hardships ... beatings ... imprisonment ... sleepless nights ... hunger ... in dishonor ... in ill repute ... unknown ... sorrowful ... poor." It sounds like a street person being described. Wrong! These are word snapshots of the life of the apostle Paul that picture what a follower of Christ must be ready to bear. Paul was a "street person" of sorts, pounding the pavement in the first century from Jerusalem to Damascus to Rome. His task was not survival, but salvation. Paul preached the salvation from ...

1940. When The Boat Keeps Rocking

Psalm 46:1-11

Eulogy

Robert Noblett

Congregation Experiencing Several Deaths In A Brief Period On a fourth of July weekend when I was a fairly young man, a friend of my father's invited a friend of mine and me to go on a boat ride with him on Conesus Lake, one of the so-called Finger Lakes in central New York state. Even as a young man I recognized this person to be one who trafficked with what is dicey, but for some reason we capitulated to pressure and got into the boat. To make short a long story, it was a frightening experience. The man ...

1941. Pie in The Sky

Acts 1:1-11

Sermon

Erskine White

[People] of Galilee, why do you stand looking at heaven? (Acts 1:11) When people are confused or afraid, when they feel that things are out of control, or when they feel helpless to overcome the problems which confront them, they often resort to "pie in the sky" religion. They look for Jesus to come and fix what they can't fix for themselves. They figure that one day, as if by magic, Jesus will make everything right for them in the "sweet bye and bye." That's a bit like what the disciples are doing in our ...

1942. Come and Find Rest

Matthew 11:25-30

Sermon

Salvidor Dali, the famous artist, reported that when he needs a short nap, he puts a tin plate on the floor. Then he sits on a chair beside it and, holding a spoon over the plate, relaxes into a doze. As he falls asleep, Dali relates, the spoon slips from his fingers, clatters onto the plate, and he snaps awake. Dali claims that he is completely refreshed by the sleep which occurs between the time the spoon leaves his hand and the time it hits the plate. We really do need rest from time to time don’t we? I ...

1943. Kindness That Makes You Sorry!

Joel 2:12-17

Sermon

Barbara Brokhoff

"... Now return to the Lord your God, For He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in lovingkindness, and relenting of evil." (NAS) A gentle Christian of the Society of Friends, a lady by the name of May Haviland, lived alone. One night as she entered her bedroom, she found a burglar rifling through her bureau drawers. When she turned on the light, he pointed a gun at her heart. She gently said to him: "Put that thing away. If there’s one thing I can’t stand, it’s guns. Besides, if your ...

1944. A Prophet Like Me

Deuteronomy 18:14-22

Sermon

Frederick C. Edwards

Most people have a rather warped view of the biblical prophets. We have tended to see them as rather like a man I saw outside Saint Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna, dressed in what looked like bed sheets, wearing a beard, with a sign around his neck, and carrying a staff, and shouting things to anyone who happened to look his way. He reminded me of some of the cartoons I had seen in the New Yorker magazine, depicting long-bearded characters in similar dress, usually announcing the end of the world. Certainly ...

1945. The Kingdom of God Is At Hand

Mark 1:9-13

Sermon

Richard A. Jensen

Tears streamed down Elmer Johnson’s cheeks as he watched pickup truck after pickup truck drive out of his farmyard ... filled with things he had treasured dearly. It was the day of his auction. Like many other American farmers, Elmer Johnson just could not make ends meet any longer. The farm had been in the family for three generations. First his grandfather and then his father had made their livings off this land. Elmer was glad they were not around for the auction. He felt ashamed enough the way it was. ...

1946. The Call of the Trumpet

Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21

Sermon

George Bass

"Blow the trumpet in Zion; sanctify a fast ..." (Joel 2:15) As they do on Easter morning to announce the resurrection of Jesus Christ, a few trumpets blow at the beginning of Lent to call the people of God together for the annual forty-day fast. Lent is that peculiar period of the year when those who are most dedicated to the faith observe the rigors - public and private - associated with this sacred season that is connected to Good Friday and Easter, the very heart of the gospel and our salvation. But the ...

1947. Why Must We Carry A Cross?

Mark 8:31-38

Sermon

Brett Blair

You might remember comedian Yakov Smirnoff. When he first came to the United States from Russia he was not prepared for the incredible variety of instant products available in American grocery stores. He says, "On my first shopping trip, I saw powdered milk you just add water, and you get milk. Then I saw powdered orange juice you just add water, and you get orange juice. And then I saw baby powder, and I thought to my self, What a country!" Smirnoff is joking but we make these assumptions about Christian ...

1948. Job - A Probe Into the Shadow World of Despair

Job 6:1-7:21

Sermon

In Robert Frost’s The Masque of Reason God tells the "Easy Answers Committee" that it is mistaken. This sermon does the same. Its probing, illuminating force conforms to the terrain of human experience. It conforms to the terrain of God’s experience in Emmanuel - God with us. Rich textual reference, literary allusions, carefully chosen language, experience common to all keep the listeners listening, the readers reading. An atheist is expected to ask the "Why?" of things. It’s part of the practicing atheist ...

1949. How to Profit from Prophets

Luke 1:67-80

Sermon

Maurice A. Fetty

Many would claim the profit motive to be one of the stronger motives of our humanity. Though purists may snub their noses at it, and socialists may sneer at it, capitalists say profit and the profit motive are the driving force of any successful economy. Welfare recipients might criticize the high profits of some persons and businesses. But those same persons and businesses would gladly quote former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher that any welfare system presupposes that someone, somewhere, is ...

1950. A Note to Fearful Hearts

1 Corinthians 15:12-34

Sermon

Harold Warlick

The frail, tired woman had experienced a sleepless night in her hospital bed. Aged wrinkles marked her face as she prepared to greet another day of tests, medications, and well-meaning visitors. It was early. The little rays of sunshine had just begun to dance through the cracks in the window blinds. She heard him next door. Every morning he practiced the same routine. He was a preacher. His clerical collar and oversized cross hanging from the big chain around his neck informed everyone of his status. He ...

Showing results