Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 1951 to 1975 of 3160 results

1951. Genesis 2:18-24

Genesis 2:18-24

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... after each step was completed "it was good, God's first pronouncement in this rendition is that something is "not good." The problem with this paradise is its emptiness - the man God created needs companionship. Note that God intends not just any sort of companion rather a "helper" and a "partner" is the missing component. In verse 19 God seeks to remedy this divine oversight through the outpouring of a series of new creative energies. The creative process, however, remains basically the same - God once ...

1952. Luke 2:41-52

Luke 2:41-52

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... . Jesus separates himself from his family to stay on in the city, without his parents' knowledge or approval. Verse 44 explains to us why his parents initially did not miss him. As an annual outing, this trip to Jerusalem undoubtedly gathered together all sorts of far-flung family members into one great caravan. Filled with animals and children and laughter and conversation, it is hardly surprising that Jesus' parents don't realize he is not among this busy, boisterous band. We sense the rising anxiety and ...

1953. 1 Corinthians 15:35-38, 42-50

1 Corinthians 15:35-38, 42-50

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... makes the analogy to the human body more poignant. Seeds, with their protective hulls and husks, are quite durable. Human bodies in life and death are naked and vulnerable. Esteemed biblical scholar Elizabeth Achtemeier argues against those who find Paul defining some sort of enduring naked soul temporarily clothed by flesh. Indeed, the rest of Paul's discussion in this week's text seems to make clear the gaping gulf that lies between this created physical body of flesh on earth and the spiritual, heavenly ...

1954. Luke 16:1-13

Luke 16:1-13

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... and reduces their debt standings - a scheme designed to sow good will among the indebted so that they will remember the steward kindly when he later comes to them, jobless and in need. Just when this parable seems to be winding its way towards some sort of just desserts for this twice-dishonest manager, Jesus uncaps the surprise ending on us all, the ending which truly makes this tale a parable. In verse 8a the master returns to the story. Once again he confronts his wily steward - but instead of the ...

1955. John 11:1-45

John 11:1-45

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... as the seventh and greatest of Jesus' wonderworks. In John's gospel, there are no other resurrection miracles except for this one - a fact that increases the singular status John accords this story. Furthermore, this author has tucked into the story all sorts of references to events in Jesus' ministry that have either already occurred (analepsis) or have yet to occur (prolepsis). The story of Lazarus' resurrection invites readers both to mull over what they have already read and at the same time, to hold ...

1956. Romans 8:26-39

Romans 8:26-39

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... " of all humanity our inability to pray or to communicate directly with God because of the gulf that has separated creation from the Creator since that first "fall" from grace. Now, through the gift of the Spirit, Paul shows how God has established a sort of long-distance, direct-access line to the Divine. Once again, humanity can be in intimate, immediate contact with God through the Spirit's intercession. Some translations work verse 26 to make the believer, not the Spirit, the one "groaning" or "sighing ...

1957. Romans 14:1-12

Romans 14:1-12

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... abstinence of the "weak" just as he denies the "weak" the right to pass judgment on the freedom practiced by the "strong." Though the position of these "weak" believers is no longer necessary for faithfulness, Paul refuses to give those who believe as he does some sort of upper hand here. Both groups must admit that the right to judge is not theirs for both groups are "servants" of the same Master. Since God has seen fit to welcome both types of believers into divine service, they must accept one another's ...

1958. John 1:6-8, 19-28

John 1:6-8, 19-28

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... contingent within the larger Jewish community. These "Jews" will seemingly make a career out of questioning Jesus and his disciples throughout his ministry. The question put before John the Baptist is a fishing expedition. Although John could certainly have engaged in some sort of verbal jousting match at this point, instead he is eager to confess who he is not. The awkward phrasing of verse 20 is probably best translated as an indication of John's immediate, unhesitating, very dramatic answer. "I am not ...

1959. Luke 6:27-38

Luke 6:27-38

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... do to you" implies eventual reciprocity _ be nice to the enemy long enough, and the enemy will become a friend. But verse 35 repeats Jesus' initial order to "love your enemies" and now adds on the disappointing "expecting nothing." There is, however, an explanation of sorts for why this loving behavior should be carried out. Jesus is urging his listeners to be like God, to be "children of the Most High." For God's own mysterious reasons, God is "kind to the ungrateful and the wicked." Jesus does not try to ...

1960. Psalm 23

Psalm 23

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... in Western culture. Even the most biblically impaired have heard somewhere, sometime, "The Lord is my shepherd." Coupled with its familiarity is its continuing ability to offer deep comfort, solace and strength to a great diversity of people in all sorts of situations. But Psalm 23 does have a particular historical and linguistic heritage in addition to its cumulative spiritual lineage. Indeed, for such a familiar piece of scripture, Psalm 23 still sparks considerable debate among scholars. As a part of ...

1961. Luke 15:1-10

Luke 15:1-10

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... s decision to "leave the ninety-nine" in order to seek it out. Concerned interpreters have often volunteered that surely this shepherd must have somehow secured care and safety for those 99 while he went out searching. But Jesus' parable says nothing of the sort. What drives the shepherd out into the wilderness is a determination, bordering almost on an obsession, to find and reclaim his lost sheep. There is, of course, great significance to the number 100. It is a complete and whole number. One hundred (or ...

1962. Matthew 3:1-12

Matthew 3:1-12

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... found fully embracing John's ministry a safer route than downplaying the importance of his role. The Jewish historian Josephus testifies to John the Baptist's popularity and persuasiveness, recording that it was out of fear that John might foment some sort of political uprising that Herod had the Baptist first imprisoned and then executed. The gospels disarmed the threat of a too powerful John the Baptist figure in a much gentler manner. By using Old Testament prophecies and John's own confessions ...

1963. 2 Kings 2:1-12a

2 Kings 2:1-12a

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... keep silent." Along with the sound of the "devouring fire" and the "mighty tempest" (verse 3) God's own voice "... calls to the heavens above and to the earth, that he may judge his people" (verse 4). Finally, if there is to be some sort of appropriate response to the magnificent power of God, the Psalmist acknowledges that this response should come from the heavens and consist simply of a declaration of God's ultimate righteousness (verse 6). This Psalm attempts to account for a necessary speechlessness of ...

1964. 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 ...

1965. Genesis 2:18-24

Genesis 2:18-24

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

1966. 1 Corinthians 15:35-38, 42-50

1 Corinthians 15:35-38, 42-50

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

1967. Luke 16:1-13

Luke 16:1-13

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

1968. James 5:7-10

James 5:7-12

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... over what "James" this supposedly came from). Even if this James is "the Lord's brother" (Galatians 1:19), there is little to suggest that he or any other one person wrote these texts. These five chapters refuse to hang together with any sort of coherence, making their existence as a formal letter to some community highly doubtful. Instead of seeing the work of James as epistolary then, it is more accurately described as a paraenesis - that is, a text that "strings together admonitions of general ethical ...

1969. Deuteronomy 18:15-20

Deuteronomy 18:9-13, 14-22

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... who take their own message before the people and pawn off their "stuff" as God's word. God does not choose prophets out of respect for their opinions. Prophets are called to deliver God's word, not their own ideas. Uttering false prophecies of either sort is labeled a capital crime a punishment that no doubt kept the people from being pestered by an endless stream of would-be mouthpieces. Taking up the prophetic mantle was a serious, even life-threatening move. Only those who were genuinely called by God's ...

1970. Ephesians 2:1-10

Ephesians 2:1-10

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... by the church or the believers, strong or weak, that make up the body of Christ. Verse 9 emphasizes this reality by declaring that boasting is not allowed among Christians. Boasting would, of course, suggest that we have faith in our own ability to render some sort of aid in this divine mission of deliverance. If one can "boast," this epistle writer knows, then the boaster reveals a trust in one's own self, not in God. Having constructed so convincing a case for sole gratia, sole fide to this point, it ...

1971. Luke 24:36b-48

Luke 24:36b-48

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... . As the NEB expresses it, this is a "seems too good to be true" kind of response. The text says nothing more about the disciples' thoughts, their doubts or fears. Instead, at Jesus' directive, these disciples are prodded into providing the kind of everyday sort of comfort they might offer an everyday visitor a bit of broiled fish to eat. Caught up in performing familiar hospitality rituals, they forget their fears and learn to treat this risen Christ as they might their old master. The focus of this ...

1972. Mark 5:21-43

Mark 5:21-43

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... This woman's life has been so filled with pain and misery that it is, in effect, a life full of death. Jesus' healing power delivers her from this death sentence and restores her to a whole and healthy life. This woman's restoration serves as a sort of "practice run," in this view, for the dramatic raising of Jairus' daughter. As the first story continues and runs its course, a far more literal deliverance from death is demonstrated. The little girl who had died is brought back to life. Yet the details are ...

1973. Mark 9:38-50

Mark 9:38-50

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... demons in Jesus' name, without any official disciple-designation or given authority, they command the healer to stop. The use of the phrase "in your name" suggests a technical reference (more specific than indicated in v.37): The man was practicing a sort of "word magic," invoking Jesus' name to perform healings. Mark's description makes it clear that this man had received, no direct authority from Jesus so it would seem the disciples reaction may be justified. But Jesus' response flings wide the doors ...

1974. Mark 10:35-45

Mark 10:35-45

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... by declaring "See, we are going up to Jerusalem," he immediately identifies himself as the "Son of Man." The messianic title, coupled with the theological significance of the "Son of Man" entering Jerusalem, sounded the bell in the disciples' minds for all sorts of glorious rings. Refusing to deal with the core content of Jesus' statements, James and John quite clearly hear only the final message he relays ("after three days he will rise again"). Only this image of a risen, powerful, ruling messianic Son ...

1975. Jeremiah 1:4-10

Jeremiah 1:4-10

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... up Jeremiah's background and personal history in bits and pieces. He apparently came from a family that found its niche in religious service. His father, Hilkiah, served at Anathoth as a member of the clergy class. Jeremiah himself doubtless received some sort of temple-directed religious training in preparation for following in his father's footsteps. But before Jeremiah could enter into such a safe, pre-arranged life in the quiet outpost of Anathoth, his life and work were forever changed by a charge ...

Showing results