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 1926 to 1950 of 2415 results

1926. Before the Sanhedrin

Mark 14:53-65

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... priest’s clothes (the Greek term indicates an inner garment) was a sign of profound consternation (2 Sam. 1:11; 2 Kings 18:37). The mockery of, spitting on, and beating of Jesus in verse 65 fulfill both the treatment of the Suffering Servant (Isa. 50:6) and the third passion prediction (10:33–34).

1927. The Trial of Jesus

Mark 15:1-15

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... to Pilate’s question in verse 2, neither an affirmation nor denial, could be rendered, “You would do well to consider the question.” Jesus’s remaining silence in the face of lies, hatred, and cruelty dominates Mark’s subsequent passion narrative. Evidently harboring doubts about the necessity of Jesus’s execution, Pilate proposes releasing an insurrectionist, whose name “Barabbas” (in Aramaic) means “son of the father.” The real “Son of the Father” will die in place of another “son ...

1928. The Soldiers Mock Jesus

Mark 15:16-20

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... flesh, often exposing bones and entrails. Its purpose was to shorten the duration of crucifixion, but it was so brutal that not a few prisoners died before being crucified. The mistreatment of Jesus by Pilate and the soldiers fulfills the final passion prediction—the “handing over” (10:33 // 15:15), “mockery” (10:34 // 15:20), “spitting” (10:34 // 15:19), and “flogging” (10:34 // 15:15)—to the detail. This took place in “the palace” (Praetorium; 15:16), most probably Herod’s lavish ...

1929. Samaritan Opposition Foreshadows Jerusalem

Luke 9:51-56

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... events are taking place. Jesus is en route to Jerusalem so that he can fulfill the things that have been written about him. On the way he teaches his followers about discipleship. The first account in this section (9:51–56) reminds us that the passion of Jesus lies ahead. The resolution of Jesus to go to Jerusalem is related to his suffering and death, and the hostility of the Samaritans foreshadows what he will experience in Jerusalem. (The Samaritans and Jews were enemies with a long history of hatred ...

1930. The Unbelief of the Jews

John 10:22-42

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... withdraws before the crucial events of his final week. He knows the region of the Jordan and Perea well (Matt. 19:1; Mark 10:1), and this is his refuge. Soon he will climb the ascent from Jericho to Bethany and inaugurate the week of the passion.In the literary format of John these verses indicate a major transition. Jesus has withdrawn from public purview. The public signs are over. The Book of Signs, which began with John the Baptist (1:18), now anticipates its completion with a second reference to him ...

1931. Foreshadowing Death and Resurrection

John 11:1-16

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... . It is the ultimate sign. Jesus, the source of life (10:28; 11:25), now gives life to one man. But even this ultimate revelation is condemned, leaving Jesus judged as worthy of death (11:50). Moreover, woven into this story are hints of Jesus’s own passion. He too will die and come forth. The Lord of life will lay down his life and return from the grave like Lazarus. Later in the same town of Bethany, Mary will anoint Jesus—figuratively preparing him for burial (12:3–8). Therefore, chapters 11 and 12 ...

1932. Jesus Predicts Peter’s Denial

John 13:31-38

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... (13:31, 32; 17:1); the cross is another time in which Jesus is glorified, and in turn so is the Father (21:19). But glorification as a process is complex: it is not just Christ being lifted up on the cross; rather, it is the entire passion, from betrayal to empty tomb—a process that inaugurates his return to the Father. Hence 13:31 states that Jesus’s glorification has already begun. The onset of “the hour” is behind him; his departure is under way (13:33).As Jesus mystified his Jewish audience at ...

1933. Struggling With Sin

Romans 7:7-25

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... of sin, with the narrative of Adam’s fall (Genesis 3) in the background. The history of the “I” begins with the knowledge of sin (7:7). Knowledge of sin is possible only in the context of the law. Paul explains verse 5—the sinful passions became effective when “I” became acquainted with the desire for what was forbidden. The commandment “You shall not covet!” (Exod. 20:17) is not only the tenth commandment; it also points to God’s prohibition of eating from the Tree of the Knowledge of ...

1934. Israel’s Unbelief

Romans 9:30--10:21

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... 10:1–13 · Paul asserts again that he desires and prays for the salvation of his fellow Jews (10:1; cf. 9:1–3). In 10:2–5 Paul explains why the Jewish people need salvation. He attests that they are zealous for God (10:2). They are passionately determined to do God’s will and defend God’s honor (cf. Elijah, 1 Kings 19:10, 14). But their zeal is “not based on knowledge” since they do not recognize that God revealed his righteousness in Jesus the Messiah. Paul was himself, before his conversion ...

1935. A Report of Factions within the Community

1 Corinthians 1:10-17

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... denote the common claim of each of the three groups (“I am of Christ,” “No, I am,” etc.), or Paul’s own retort to all (“You follow so and so, but I follow Christ”). With a series of rhetorical questions issuing out of passion and conviction, Paul responds to these misplaced allegiances. Do the Corinthians really suppose that the presence of Christ is somehow divided among them? Do they really mean to suggest that their allegiance is due to someone other than the one who has been crucified for ...

1936. Questions about Marriage, Divorce, and Celibacy

1 Corinthians 7:1-40

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... through the gift of marriage or the gift of celibacy. So his counsel to the unmarried and the widows is the same. It is good for them to remain unmarried, but advisable for those to marry who might otherwise be consumed with passion. Another set of questions concerns separation and divorce. This set relates to the preceding questions: if, as is supposed, celibacy was considered preferable to marriage, this could give sufficient grounds for separation or divorce. Paul, however, relies here on a “command ...

1937. Set Your Heart and Mind On Things Above

Colossians 3:1-17

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... to attitudes, including greed, which focuses on satiating physical desires. Paul concludes that if you trace back from the behavior to the mindset that led to it, you will find idolatry at the core. Paul argues that the inward focus on satisfying physical passions amounts to placing oneself at the center instead of God. Paul insists that to effect a change at the public, behavioral level, one has to ultimately kill that which led to it all—idolatry. As with weeds in the garden, merely snapping off ...

1938. Final Greetings

2 Timothy 4:9-18, 2 Timothy 4:19-22

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... cloak in case he lasts the winter. Paul closes with two phrases—one an ascription, the other a benediction—that are fine capstones to his writing career. First, the ascription: “To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen” (4:18). Paul has a passion for promoting the majesty of God. The insult to God’s dignity by Adam’s disobedience has been more than turned aside by the second man’s obedience. Christ has “destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light” (2 Tim. 1:10), restoring ...

1939. Leaders and Rebels

Titus 1:1-16

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... both positive (“encourage others by sound doctrine”) and negative (“and refute those who oppose it”). In this missionary setting, elders model God’s plan to rehumanize a humanity that tells lies about God, destroys one another, and lives with uncontrolled passions (see 1:12). Christ has come to restore knowledge of God, rightness in relationships, and integrity of persons (see 2:12). Elders exemplify all three. The second half of verse 8 is especially revealing: elders are to be “self-controlled ...

1940. Living for God

1 Peter 4:1-11

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... the difficult verse 6 with the story of Noah in mind. Noah was revered as a “preacher of righteousness” (2 Pet. 2:5), and by “the dead” Peter is probably referring to the people who died in the flood, the “dead” who ignored Noah’s passionate message about the coming judgment. Who knows what God’s purpose may have been? Yes, they died in the flood; but those waters symbolized baptism, because baptism is likewise about doing away with the flesh. Who knows whether their death in the flood might ...

1941. Gospel of Repentance

Revelation 14:6-13

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... Rome (cf. 1 Pet. 5:13; Dead Sea Scrolls, Pesher Habakkuk 2.11–12); both nations had been not only agents of God’s judgment (cf. Jer. 25:8–11) but also objects of judgment (cf. Jer. 25:12–14). God is now stopping the wine of immoral passion (14:8b; cf. 17:2) that stemmed from the Roman lifestyle of wealth and luxury. The city will be judged; its horrific end is described in greater detail in 17:1–18. The third angel declares that those who participate in the imperial cult and embrace the idolatrous ...

1942. The Fall of Babylon Rome

Revelation 18:1-24

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... ). In luring the nations away from God and to herself as the source of material security, Rome has played the spiritual harlot (18:3, 7, 9; cf. Isa. 23:13–18; Nah. 3:1–7). Because she has intoxicated the kings of the earth with the wine of her immoral passion and merchants with the power of luxury (18:3), God has mixed a doubly potent cup filled with the wine of his wrath, poured it out against the city, stripped her of all wealth, sent a cycle of plagues, and judged her with fire (18:6–8; cf. 16:1 ...

1943. A Jiffy for Eternity

John 3:1-17

Sermon

Robert Leslie Holmes

... James Version, in which many of us learned and memorized it for the first time: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life" (John 3:16 KJV). Commitment God's passionate love commitment to this world he created and whose people chose to walk away from him is so great that he sent his own Son to earth with the express mission of bringing new breath to spiritually dead people. Jesus puts his mission this way in ...

1944. Live Spelled Backward

Matthew 26:14-27:66

Sermon

Robert Leslie Holmes

... easy," the son replied, "evil is LIVE spelled backward!" That is what it is! So I would speak today about LIFE lived in reverse gear, perverted goodness that does the right things for the wrong reasons. Evil is demonstrated in misplaced self-focused passion, negative, critical spirituality, love running in the wrong direction, a phenomenon that hurts our humanity and defaces our divinity. Have you ever experienced evil? Have you seen it in your own life? Or in the life of someone else? Do you know anything ...

1945. Afraid of Hope

John 20:19-31

Sermon

Robert Leslie Holmes

... of going to Bethany to heal Lazarus, Thomas alone opposed the other disciples who sought to dissuade him. "Thomas, who was called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, 'Let us also go, that we may die with him' " (John 11:16). On the eve of the passion, it was Thomas who led off the discussion with that now well-known question, "Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?" (John 14:5). Jesus spoke directly to Thomas with an answer that has directed Christians and new converts ...

1946. This Spirit Is Not Spooky

John 14:15-21

Sermon

Robert Leslie Holmes

... saints according to the will of God" (Romans 8:27). Our spiritual focus is transformed from self-centeredness into world-centered ministry. We go from maintenance to ministry, from issues to evangelism, from what used to be to what can be. In the Spirit's power, passion for Jesus is paramount. May it please God to do it with us and with our church! Please pray to that end. We read, "another Advocate." The Greek word means "another one like the first one." It stands in opposition to another Greek word that ...

1947. What Was That All About?

Matthew 3:13-17

Sermon

James L. Killen

... thought were just going through the motions of repenting, he had no patience. John was courageous in his preaching. He had even taken the governor to task for having married his brother's ex-wife. The people stood in the sun and heard John deliver his passionate message. Then they watched as John did what they had heard he would do. He invited all who were sincere about their repentance to wade into the river with him and go through a version of the Jewish rite of puriﬁcation. This was a ritual typically ...

1948. Dead Hearts and New Beginnings

John 3:1-17

Sermon

King Duncan

... concludes, not because there is no Oyarsa, but because each of them wants to be a little Oyarsa, himself or herself. Lewis as usual hit the nail right on the head. If we are not centered in God, we will be centered in ourselves--our passions, our desires, our idols. The Christian faith is about new beginnings. New beginnings are possible. Even more important, new beginnings are necessary. This brings us to the last thing to be said. When we meet Christ, new beginnings are inevitable. If we truly meet Jesus ...

1949. Need a Lift?

Acts 9:36-43

Sermon

Charley Reeb

... one another. The disciples call for help. The widows show their love and appreciation for Tabitha as they present the tunics she had made for them. Peter arrives and with loving, healing hands revives her. Then Tabitha returns to her work of charity with greater passion and love than ever before. Peter receives hospitality from a leather worker named Simon and stays and rests there for a little while. Soon he leaves in order to help the next person in need. The people in the text were all working together ...

1950. When All Is Said and Done

Acts 16:9-15

Sermon

Charley Reeb

... kind of life you want to live? Let me ask you some questions which may help: What do you enjoy doing more than anything in this world? What keeps you up at night (besides indigestion)? A conviction, a worthy wish, or driving dream? What is your greatest passion, and does it intersect at the Church’s greatest need? And my final encouragement is found in the words of Howard Thurman: “Ask your- self what makes you come alive, and then go do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive ...

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