Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 1926 to 1950 of 3160 results

1926. Stable-Time

Luke 21:5-38

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... story read "Spiritual Renewal Flourishes" while another story was headlined, "Religion's Influence May Be Fading." Jessica Lipnack and Jeffrey Stamps predict that "the search for soul will accelerate and move from the individual and family to organizations of all sorts and sizes" (The Age of the Network: Organizing Principles for the 21st Century [Essex Junction, Vt.: Omneo, 1995], 232). C. Jeff Woods adds a voice that should make Christians who call the church their home sit up and take notice: "Society ...

1927. The Perfect Time to Lose Your Luggage

Colossians 3:12-17

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

1928. What Are You Looking For?

John 1:35-42

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... always at hand and personal pagers always in pocket. We don't have time to wander around, to walk about or to scratch our heads saying, "Now what was I looking for?" But this culture is looking for something - desperately. There is a quest for some sort of awakening, a deep hunger for spiritual renewal, lurking behind all the scheduled chaos that fills postmodern life. Not all recognize they are even searching for something more to add to their lives. But there are a few who have become so consumed by their ...

1929. The Ride of Your Life

1 Peter 1:17-23

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... career? How many times have you opted for a late night at the office instead of a night out on the town? How many birthdays, anniversaries or vacations have you missed in order to get more "work done"? We all choose to invest in some sort of lifestyle. Only the degree of investment and the ratio of real life-substance to empty lifestyle varies. The challenge we are faced with is whether we are wisely investing in life-substance or foolishly settling for lifestyle. Steven Carter and Julia Sokol, in their ...

1930. Onward Christian Hell-busters

Matthew 10:40-42

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... out its message loud and clear as it erected barricades, strung up temporary fencing, hired mounted policemen to ride their perimeters, and posted "no trespassing" signs across church property. The "cups of cold water" St. Mark's offers on parade day have brought all sorts of thirsty neighbors inside the doors of the church once more. Membership has climbed to over 400 in the last two years, and the neighborhood feels like it has a spiritual presence in its midst again. 1. As quoted by Charles R. Page II ...

1931. What Gift Do You Have For Us?

Romans 12:1-8

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... Moses tried to avoid the reality of his spiritual gifts once his mind was filled with the transformative Spirit of God. But God had other plans. Despite his disreputable status, and even though evidence suggests he may have had a speech impediment of some sort, Moses was given the gift of leadership and called to speak out to Pharaoh on behalf of all the Hebrew people. Psychologists joke that the two most stress-inducing experiences of human life are approaching death and public speaking. When God offers up ...

1932. Celebrate Your Critical Mass

Matthew 18:15-20

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... gets accomplished. The critical mass that turns a still photograph into cinematography is 24 frames per second. In politics, the principle of "critical mass" is confused with majorities in some instances, a simple majority of 51 percent to initiate action of some sort; in other cases like a congressional override of a presidential veto a two-thirds majority before things can change. Jesus was the first to elaborate on the principle of critical mass. As this week's gospel text lays it out, the critical ...

1933. Rules for the Road

Joshua 3:7-17

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... it to watch some people. God has given us a tremendous mode of transportation the body of Christ. But too many of us forget to turn the power on. Facing the unknown future, we freeze up and then start to agonize over our inertia. All sorts of apocalyptic doom-and-gloom scenarios have been proposed for the future we face in the 2000s. I am predicting that 1998 will be even more charged with apocalyptic overtones than 2000 (Why? The Antichrist number 666 multiplied by the perfect number 3 = 1998). In fact ...

1934. Just Showing Up Doesn't Get the Job Done

Matthew 25:1-13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... bulletin." The willingness to "let go" is hard, as any parent can tell you. The wonderful surprise that God has in store for us is that when we can at last "let go" and let God take control, we do not suddenly experience some sort of stomach-squeezing free fall but a liberating freedom from fallenness. Generation X'ers like to call their parents' typical command-and-control mind-set "control freakism." Perhaps more easily than the rest of us, our children have realized that the control paradigm no longer ...

1935. Fifty-Fourth and Lexington

Mark 1:1-8

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... 's 7th Street and 1st Avenue, New York City's 54th and Lexington, and on the streets of other lonely, urban centers. In various versions of this tale, the homeless person has disappeared "mysteriously" suggesting to a hopeful culture that he was actually some sort of angel-in-residence. It is both reassuring and remarkable that when the genuine story is finally heard, it is as moving and miraculous as any of the gossiped versions that have been circulating across the globe. This story involves Gavin Bryars ...

1936. A Match Made in Heaven

Isaiah 61:1—62:12

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... beginning God created the heavens and the earth." How could two things be more different! The heavens God's realm, kept strictly separate from the earth by the firmament, a place completely unknown and unknowable. The earth simultaneously wet and dry, swarming with all sorts of creepy, crawly things. But God was able to top the divine self and to create once again two things totally different: "God created human-kind...male and female he created them" (Genesis l:27). Not only are men and women pleased and ...

1937. And Again I Say...Amen!

Luke 6:27-36

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... manifest itself? The second of a two-part sermon. When your car starts making bad noises _ banging, or whining, or knocking _ you take it in to get its carburetor, or timing, or fan belt adjusted. When some people feel achy or out-of-sorts, they get a chiropractic "adjustment." There are many Christians out there this morning who are also making whiny noises or creaking and cracking and causing pain to others around them. When Jesus urged those listening to his lengthy sermon at that "level place" to do ...

1938. Say What?

Luke 9:28-36 (37-43)

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... KGO talk radio in San Francisco conducted a call-in poll. Ronn Owens invited listeners to express their opinion. Thirty-five percent said yes, 33 percent said no and 32 percent were undecided. One listener, aghast at the large number of undecideds, protested, "It's this sort of apathy that's ruining America." The only problem with all these responses was that the radio station had never posed any question. It's not apathy that is getting most of us in trouble _ it is shooting our mouths off and shouting our ...

1939. Heads Down, Thumbs Up

Philippians 2:5-11

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... gave a thumbs up to the bowed down. Christians commemorate the strangest things. We make a big deal over the fact that Jesus was born in a cave or stable full of smelly animals, into a family of dirt-poor Jews. We tell all sorts of stories about Jesus' closest followers, his most devoted disciples focusing on their being ignorant fishermen and recalling fondly how they constantly misunderstood him, doubted him, talked back to him and betrayed him. Most of all, we actually admit that, well, yes Jesus was ...

1940. Easter Dreams

Luke 24:1-12

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... Who says Christians are supposed to be "happy?" Christians are supposed to dream dreams. We've taken too literally what Sunday school and summer camp taught us: "If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands ... stomp your feet ..." and do all sorts of other Christian calisthenics. We've put too much emphasis on looking happy and "being happy" instead of dreaming dreams. It is time for Christians to tolerate no further nonsense about "happiness." The first-century world did not say, "See how happy these ...

1941. An Action-Packed Faith

John 13:31-35

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... closer to the front." A true "Presbyterian miracle" had taken place (Thanks to Houston Hodges). Jesus urged his disciples to have love for one another so that "everyone will know that you are my disciples." The ability to love all even the most unlovable of sorts, has always been the test of this discipleship-love. After the crowds had stoned him, mocked him, spit upon him, screamed "crucify him," Jesus could still cry out in love, "Forgive them, they know not what they do." How can we hope to imitate this ...

1942. Fingerprints of the Soul

Romans 5:1-5

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... full of power and worth and healing. The difference between one who embodies virtues and one who practices virtue is made clear by examining the "characters" of those who are truly the "saints." Whereas virtuous Victorians were unfailingly "nice" (in a proper sort of way), the virtuous Christian saints were not always so. Ysenda Maxtone Graham was given a 10,000 pound advance to travel around England and study the state of Anglican churches today. In her final report, which she entitled The Church Hesitant ...

1943. By Faith Living

Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... of the Industrial Age. I see people who live in sweatshops every time I am in an airport. There you can see workers walking stooped-shouldered, absolutely weighted down by a personal computer, portable fax machine, cellular phone and all sorts of electronic devices which are strapped around their necks, stuffed under their arms and lugged around by both arms. At least our ancestors could escape the sweatshops of yesteryear. The "technological whip" held over white-collar workers, who go from place ...

1944. The Dailyness of Healing Measures

Luke 17:11-19

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... the patient is someone else's responsibility, someone else's worry. Although emergency room physicians may someday save your life, you will never know them like you do your family physician. And they will never know you. It's just not their job. We all sort of like that kind of anonymity. It saves us the trouble of feeling too dependent upon another human being for our well-being. It's not surprising, therefore, that the nine lepers healed on their way to Jerusalem responded to their restored health much as ...

1945. Life's Two Pockets

Luke 18:9-14

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... , she falsified records, and when found out, she was reprimanded and fined $250. The formal charge was, "inappropriate handling of a human heart." What a metaphor for our checkered careers in the invasive people business: ministers, politicians, therapists of all sorts, adversarial authorities of one another. Who is without sin? But at least with Wanda Condon, the butter-fingered nurse, it was accidental. I suppose we should plead mea culpa about our own "inappropriate handling of a human heart," often in ...

1946. Jesus' Bad Manners

Luke 19:1-10

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... poor, starving, little "Jamie" out on the street? No matter what your plans for a quiet family meal might have been, your child's sense of hospitality has changed everything. Children seem to be naturally hospitable. They invite friends over to play. They invite all sorts of creatures to share their room. They seem committed to leaving the front door wide open. It takes years of what we like to call "socializing" to teach our children to be inhospitable. We drill into them that they must first ask us before ...

1947. Out of the Box Gifts

Luke 1:26-38

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... skills. Odie’s phone call has been the best Christmas “gift” idea we’ve heard so far this year. What, you say? I’ve never seen a “Phone Call from Plumber” listed in a Christmas catalogue as a gift idea. Let me explain. Retailers of all sorts are frantically slashing prices on their merchandise to entice consumers to buy more stuff, to get more goodies. Here are some 2008 sample ads collected in one week: *Wal-Mart wants us to buy more so we will “live better.” (Unless, of course, we get ...

1948. Out of the Box Gifts

Luke 1:26-38

Illustration

Leonard Sweet

... -man skills. Odie's phone call has been the best Christmas "gift" idea we've heard so far this year. What, you say? I've never seen a "Phone Call from Plumber" listed in a Christmas catalogue as a gift idea. Let me explain. Retailers of all sorts are frantically slashing prices on their merchandise to entice consumers to buy more stuff, to get more goodies. Here are some past sample ads collected during one week leading up to Christmas: *Wal-Mart wants us to buy more so we will "live better." (Unless, of ...

1949. Planting the Seeds

Jn 1:1-18; Mt 11:1-19

Illustration

Brett Blair

... dissension, no more drugs. There careful use of resources. By the time she got back to the counter, she had a long list. Jesus looked over the list, then smiled at her and said, "No problem." And then he bent down behind the counter and picked out all sorts of things, and finally stood up, and laid out the packets on the counter. "What are these?" the woman asked. "Seed packets," Jesus answered. "This is a catalog store." "You mean I don't get the finished product?" "No, this is a place of dreams. You come ...

1950. John 6:24-35

John 6:24-35

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... crowd to think with their heads instead of their stomachs is a failure. Their next question does not suggest any comprehension on their part it only reveals that they are trying a different tack. Perhaps yesterday's free bread has a price tag of some sort on it today, reasons this crowd, and so they ask what is required of them: Literally they ask "what must we do to work the works of God?" John's Gospel spends considerable time discussing this notion of "work." In Johannine theology God, Jesus, and ...

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