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 1926 to 1950 of 2273 results

1926. Holy Smokes! God Is Here

John 6:1-15

Sermon

King Duncan

The Rev. Thomas Bandy tells about a meeting his wife Lynne, also a pastor, once attended. The meeting was sponsored by a group in their denomination. To begin this meeting, they had a customary sharing time. Each person answered the question: “How did you experience God this summer?” “Several people in the room told how they had experienced God in nature. At the cottage, in the woods, or on the lake, they saw a sunset, heard a loon’s cry, or felt a summer’s breeze.” And as they listened, participants ...

1927. Go, Johnny, Go, Go, Go!

Luke 3:1-6

Sermon

Cynthia Cowen

Every Sunday, a church broadcasts a one-hour service over the waves of 1450 WMIQ, the local radio station. It begins with this announcement, "From the shores of beautiful Crystal Lake, we bring you Our Saviour's morning service." One Advent season, the pastor had selected an "in the sandals" sermon series. The first biblical character to be heard from was John the Baptist. As John entered clothed in the prophet's clothing, a reader announced: "Prepare the way of the Lord. Make his paths straight" (Luke 3: ...

1928. Risk Takers

Luke 6:17-26

Sermon

Cynthia Cowen

"Louise, can you and Pastor Hal come to Thanksgiving dinner at our house this Friday? I have this really, really big turkey, and I don't want a ton of leftovers," Tracy implored her friend. "Well, I'd love to, but we always invite a widower, Andy Vespa, each Thanksgiving. I don't want him to be by himself with his pork and beans. Of course, Steve and Vicki will be here, too," Louise replied. "Andy's always been a part of this family gathering." "I know Andrew! I visited his wife, Della, at the VA Hospital ...

1929. Forgive as You Have Been Forgiven

Luke 6:27-38

Sermon

Cynthia Cowen

She stood peeking out from behind the curtains. As the jogger passed her house, he recalled the hurt she had inflicted upon his mother. At one time she had been the matriarch of the congregation. His memories of her were not fond. He recalled her wicked tongue and the way she used it to cut down others. He never forgot the day she used it against his mother making her cry. That incident caused their family to leave the church where he had been baptized and confirmed. Here it was fifteen years later, and ...

1930. Hit Me with Your Best Shot

Luke 4:1-13

Sermon

Frank Ramirez

Harry Houdini (1874-1926) was an expert at sleight of hand, a skeptic when it came to the spiritualists and other psychic phonies of his day, but he was best known for his ability to escape from what seemed to be impossible situations. Straitjackets, chains, ropes, jail cells, strange devices such as a milk pail filled with water — he managed to escape from one situation after another in full view of his audience. What did him in, however, was the blow he never saw coming. While reclining on a couch ...

1931. Oh, Jerusalem

Luke 13:31-35

Sermon

Frank Ramirez

Nowadays we have 24-hour news stations, satellite radio, email alerts, and other ways of finding out breaking news pretty much the instant it is happening. But it wasn't always so. When John Adams acted as an ambassador to Europe during the Revolutionary War he could go for months without hearing from the Continental Congress. He arranged loans of millions of dollars to help the fledgling nation, but no one back in America knew. The Battle of New Orleans was a decisive victory for the new nation in the War ...

1932. The Tower of Siloam

Luke 13:1-9

Sermon

Frank Ramirez

It was over forty years ago, in the middle of December 1963, when my aging father retired from the Navy. He was only 37 years old at the time, but to a nine-year-old that sounded pretty old! He and mom packed us into the car and we moved from Norfolk, Virginia, back to our native California, taking the old Highway 66, a two-lane highway that could really cause motion sickness at times! Dad made sure we stopped at important places from the sights of Washington DC to the austere majesty of mountainous ...

1933. Veni, Spiritus Sanctus, Veni

John 14:8-17 (25-27)

Sermon

Arley K. Fadness

On this Pentecost Sunday, as we celebrate the birthday of the church, I want to teach you a simple and yet potentially powerful prayer. It goes like this ... "Veni, Spiritus Sanctus, Veni," or as the Germans would say it, "Komm Heiliger Geist, Herre Gott." In English it is simply, "Come, Holy Spirit, come." There is no prayer in German, Greek, English, Swahilli, or Latin more powerful than this — "Veni, Spiritus Sanctus, Veni." This prayer opens us to the Holy Spirit, who comes, fills, and leads our lives ...

1934. Amazing Faith

Luke 7:1-10

Sermon

Arley K. Fadness

Twice in Jesus' ministry, Jesus is flabbergasted. Once, in Mark 6:6, after Jesus is rejected in Nazareth, his own hometown, he is dumbfounded — stunned — at their unbelief! Today in Luke 7, Jesus is astonished again, this time by just the opposite — he is flabbergasted at a Roman centurion's amazing faith. Jesus turns to the crowd following him and says, "I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith!" (v. 9). Who is this man of such faith who causes Jesus to stop in his tracks and marvel? We ...

1935. Sit Up and Speak!

Luke 7:11-17

Sermon

Arley K. Fadness

The telephone rang in my office one day, and a mother, a member of my parish, blurted out, "Oh, pastor, they just found the body of my son, Kenneth. He drowned in the Missouri River over at Chamberlain!" I was stunned, and then I heard her sob. "It had been a hot day. Kenneth, driving gravel truck all day, decided to take a swim to cool off. And he didn't make it back to shore. Pastor, what'll I do?" I remember swimming at that very beach with my family over the years. As I drove over to Erna's house, I ...

1936. Sister Act(s)

Luke 10:38-42

Sermon

Arley K. Fadness

Today's gospel from Luke 10 follows the parable of the Good Samaritan. Luke positions the Good Samaritan and the Mary-Martha story back to back for good reason. The parable and the story are examples of the Great Commandment "to love the Lord your God with all your heart and your neighbor as yourself." The Good Samaritan parable illustrates "love to neighbor," whereas the Mary-Martha story illustrates "love to God." Meet the two M & M sisters — Mary and Martha. They are two peas in the same pod and yet so ...

1937. Finish What You Start

Luke 14:25-33

Sermon

I remember as I was growing up, before gas became more precious than gold, that our family would go on buggy rides, as we called them, on Sunday afternoons after church and dinner. It was a great time for the entire family to be together, to wander back roads aimlessly, and to talk about just about anything you could imagine. Most of the time my dad would surprise us but sometimes he would ask us where we wanted to go. One place I always asked my dad to drive to was the park in town. One reason was that I ...

1938. The News From Nazareth

Luke 1:39-45 (46-55)

Sermon

David E. Leininger

"Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer...." We hear a lot about old Rudy these days. Are you aware that, while male and female reindeer grow antlers in the summer each year, male reindeer drop their antlers at the beginning of winter, usually late November to mid-December? Female reindeer, however, retain their antlers until after they give birth in the spring. This is according to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Therefore, according to every historical rendition depicting Santa's reindeer, every single ...

1939. The Gospel By Starlight

Matthew 2:1-12

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... , westward leading, still proceeding, guide us to thy perfect light.[1] The annual observance of the birth of our Savior is almost over - Epiphany, recalling the visit of the wise men, is commemorated on January 6 and ends the liturgical celebration following the "Twelve Days of Christmas." No gifts of turtle doves, French hens, or partridges in pear trees; rather the more traditional gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Lots of legends have grown up around this story of the three kings, one of which is that they ...

1940. Christmas 1

1 Samuel 2:18-20, 26, Psalm 148:1-14, Luke 2:41-52, Colossians 3:12-17

Bulletin Aid

Julia Ross Strope

Call To Worship (Includes the lighting of the Christ candle in the Advent/Christmas Wreath; wreath may need to be refreshed; all candles are gone except the center large Christ candle. The Advent/Christmas tree can be left in place also, showing the symbols of the holy days and slowing down the culture’s hurry to the next buying season.) Leader: Happy New Year! 20?? is on the next calendar page! Christmas symbols are still here — until Epiphany when our images change to depict a maturing Jesus. During ...

1941. Christmas 2

Psalm 147:12-20, Jeremiah 31:7-14, John 1:(1-9), 10-18, Ephesians 1:3-14

Bulletin Aid

Julia Ross Strope

Call To Worship Leader: Welcome to this sanctuary, this place of tranquility and celebration, this place of safety and hope. God is here; God is our source of life! People: God existed before the world and this sanctuary were made! Leader: People have walked this earth before us; their words and their lives are recorded in books around the world. People: We look to Jesus, the God-Man and teacher, to his cousin, John, and to the friends of Jesus for wisdom about relationships and decisions. Leader: In Jesus ...

1942. Mugwumpers

1 Kings 18:20-21 (22-29) 30-39

Sermon

Stephen P. McCutchan

In certain streams of Christianity, it is common to speak of people being "born again." The phrase comes from an exchange between Jesus and a Pharisee named Nicodemus in the third chapter of John. In that exchange, Jesus contrasts being born of the flesh with being born of the Spirit. To be born of the flesh is to be shaped by the genes of your parents and their background. You come into this world with a heritage as a given. Because you live according to the demands of the flesh, you also possess the ...

1943. The Bride of Jesus

John 2:1-11

Sermon

King Duncan

Rev. Julie Ruth Harley tells about a couple in Manhattan who got hitched after meeting in a rather unusual way. They were in a car accident. They say love is blind but, according to a report in the New York Times, Joanna Greenwald really did have her eyes closed when she first met Christopher Masters. The reason she had her eyes closed was that a pickup truck had just crashed into the back of her BMW. She then sideswiped Chris’ Dodge, ricocheted onto the median and headed toward oncoming traffic. When she ...

1944. When the Drought Gets Really Bad

Isaiah 55:1-9

Sermon

King Duncan

In a book titled God’s Little Devotional Book there is a delightful story of a great drought that struck Baghdad during the reign of Abdullah the Third. Moslem leaders in the land issued a decree that all the faithful should offer prayers for rain. Still, the drought continued. The Jews were then permitted to add their prayers to those of the Moslems. Their prayers didn’t seem to do the job either. Finally when the drought resulted in widespread famine, the Christians in the land were asked to pray. Almost ...

1945. Luke 2: 22-40, Luke 4:21-30

Luke 2:21-40

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

One of the more popular online search sites is “Ancestry.com” – a genealogy site designed to enable people to research their family trees. With the ever-increasing stockpile of electronic information online, it is becoming easier and easier to find out more about our ancestors than just their names and dates of birth and death. Where they lived, what they did, whom they knew, is suddenly at our fingertips, giving a truer, more flesh-and-blood picture of our ancestral family. While both Matthew and Luke ...

1946. The Total Gift

Romans 1:1-17

Sermon

Timothy J. Smith

It is easy to get so caught up in the sentimentality and nostalgia of Christmas that we neglect the true reason we celebrate. We receive Christmas cards portraying a cute infant Jesus lying in a manger filled with straw. The Baby Jesus is pictured in the center with Mary and Joseph on one side, the shepherds and Magi on the other. We know this scene: animals are in the background, in the distance angels can be seen hovering, as a star shines brightly overhead. However, there is more to Advent and Christmas ...

1947. Spirit-Direct

Acts 10:23b-48

Sermon

Timothy J. Smith

“Growing up,” Valerie recalled, “I was involved in many of my church’s activities for children.” Recently she returned to her home church and attended an adult Sunday school class with her parents. The class included members who were active in the church while she was growing up. Many of them greeted her and reminisced about her childhood. A man stood up during the announcements and said, “We’d like to welcome Valerie to our class. Remember,” he added, “we helped train and teach her.” After this experience ...

1948. A Man of God

Matthew 1:18-25

Sermon

King Duncan

It was the day after Christmas. Dad was trying to take a nap, but his young son kept finding ways to interrupt his siesta. Finally the father lost his patience and said sternly, “Go to my room, and go now!” Hearing this, the boy’s mother asked, “Why did you tell him to go to your room and not his?” The father replied: “Are you kidding? Did you see all those Christmas presents the kid received? In his room he has a TV, an iPod, an iPad, an Xbox and 3 new electronic games. If we want to punish him, we have ...

1949. Jesus’ Prayer: The Pause in the Battle

John 17:1-11

Sermon

David O. Bales

In 1936, near the beginning of the Spanish Civil War one horrible center of fighting was the Alcázar fortress near Toledo. In the middle of horrific fighting, however, every day the firing stopped twice in order to allow a blind beggar to tap his way on the street between the firing lines. We can imagine how welcome those few minutes were to the men on both sides. They probably hoped that the blind man walked slower to give them a few more seconds of peace. Then the reprieve ended and the slaughter again ...

1950. What If Joseph Were the Patron Saint of 2014?

Matthew 2:13-18

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

The sentimental Christmas carol “I’ll Be Home For Christmas” may be the theme song for December 24 and 25. But by the 26th, many of us have changed our tune. It’s now “On The Road Again.” Whether traveling back from a family Christmas gathering, setting off on a snowy or sunny Christmas week vacation, or just returning to the routine of work and daily travel, journeying is a big part of season we call Christmastide, those Twelve Days of Christmas extending from Christmas Eve to Epiphany Eve. In this week’s ...

Showing results