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 176 to 200 of 4959 results

176. Understanding What God Expects of Us

Acts 9:1-6, (7-20)

Sermon

King Duncan

... ’s true. Too many Christians are passionate about the laws of God but completely missing the love of God. If we truly desire to honor God, then the first question we must ask ourselves is, “Why do I believe what I believe?” The second question ... God in your own image when it turns out that God hates all the same people you do.” That’s a real danger for Christians, the desire to create God in our own image. It’s so easy to take Bible passages out of context, or to assume that God hates the same ...

177. Why the Cross?

Hebrews 2:17-18

Sermon

Charley Reeb

... has already forgiven you. He has already won the fight against evil. Just give yourself over to God’s love and follow Jesus. Your life will never be the same. You will find all the things you have been longing for. If you want Jesus to be your hero and desire to become a Christian, here is a prayer that may help you make that decision: “Jesus, I want you to be my hero. I need your transforming love. I accept and receive your forgiveness of my sins. I open my heart to your grace and the power of your ...

178. All in God’s Time

Mark 13:1-8

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... grace and God’s timing, we will find we have more “time” to be the people of God that Jesus called us to be. We human beings have a limited amount of focus. As Jesus once told us, we can’t serve both God and money (or any of our desires). And as Joshua challenged us: “As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord” (24:15). What about you? Can you “trust and wait?” Can your faith sustain you in the times to come? “For the harvest is plenty and the workers few” (Matt 9:37-38). Come ...

179. Return To God

Joel 2:1-11

Sermon

Douglas J. Deuel

... his family hung up the phone, his father made the comment that he almost wished his son wouldn't call home anymore. It reminded him how much he missed him and how he longed for his son to return. Isn't that the way it is for those of us desiring spiritual renewal? At some point we must turn toward God. Only then can we recognize just how far from home we are. Our Heavenly Father, too, longs for our return. Lent is the ideal time for us to begin our journey back to God. Turn To Yourself The second step ...

180. Rich Toward God

Luke 12:13-21

Sermon

John G. Lynn

... him." That's why Jesus says in response, "Man, you are trying to make me a judge and that is not my relationship to you or your brother. This is predawn stuff on your part. Your vision is murky and your desires are still in the fog of the hour of the wolf. I will not be part of your desire to aggravate your brother or your intention to self-destruct. Life does not consist in the abundance of predawn shadow dances." Later on in this same chapter of Luke's gospel, Jesus will say, "I have a fire to cast over ...

181. Our Jealous Husband

Exodus 20:1-21

Sermon

Paul W. Kummer

... the character of Jesus? Ah, it's the one who wishes he was God and got kicked out of heaven because of that damning desire. Oh, God, heal my tongue! Who is the god of your weekend? Gods like attention; in fact, the true One deserves it. What gets ... Is our love never lasting? Jesus never opened his mouth when accused ... oh, forget it, we won't go there. Who is the god of your desires? Someone gets a new car. Is your reaction, "Nice car. I'm glad God blessed you with it," or, "Nice car! Why didn't God give me ...

182. Shameless Passion

Isaiah 50:1-11

Sermon

Paul W. Kummer

... was God's will that he suffer. The majesty of it all is that God, in Jesus, was in control the whole time. He let his life be taken away. Passionately, he finished the calling because he didn't want himself or anyone else to be put to shame! He Desires That No One Be Put To Shame Have you ever had the medical opportunity to wear a Holter monitor? It's the computerized box that is attached to electrodes that are stuck to your chest to monitor your heart rhythms for a 24-hour period. It's completely painless ...

183. Holy Love and Herod's Love

Matthew 2:13-18, Matthew 2:19-23

Sermon

Mark Radecke

... of the holy innocents, the baby boys of Bethlehem. Herod's story, at one level, is the story of a frustrated desire to be loved. Herod wanted the love of his people and he would tolerate no competition, stop at nothing to eliminate ... hand, first loves his people, and seeks thereby to prime our pumps to return his love. Herod's passion is centered on himself and his own desires and needs. God's passion is centered on his beloved and on our eternal welfare. To put it as succinctly as possible: Herod's love is ...

184. Proper 12

Mt 13:31-33, 44-52 · Rom 8:26-39 · 1 Ki 3:5-12 · Ps 105

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

... years of additional labor or the injustice of his father-in-law but the beloved. Old Testament: 1 Kings 3:5-12 1. Sermon Title: The Test Of Wisdom. Sermon Angle: When God appeared to Solomon in the dream and told him that he could ask for whatever he desired, Solomon confessed that God had given him a monumental task as king, for which he was not equal. Solomon admitted to being a little child (v. 7). This was a modest way of saying that he was not wise enough to wear the mantle of leadership. He asks for ...

185. John the Baptist Beheaded

Mark 6:14-29

Sermon Aid

Richard A. Jensen

... . Herod's story can be told as an example of a person in whom the cares of the world choke out the word. The rich ruler's story will be told as an example of how the lure of wealth chokes out the word. The Pilate story exemplifies how the desire for other things (popularity in this case) chokes out the word. You may decide to touch the rich ruler's story lightly in light of the fact that this text (Mark 10:17-31) will be the Gospel story for Pentecost 22. Another possibility, of course, would be to wait ...

186. Proper 20

Proverbs 31:10-31, Mark 9:30-37, James 3:13-18; 4:1-12

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

... we ask wrongly (v. 3). Then he goes on to point out the secret of unanswered prayer. He says the reason God doesn't answer our prayers is that they are self-centered. We are not seeking God but the things that will gratify our pleasures and desires. Closely related to this, God does not answer us because we have unconfessed sin and continue to live in sin. Effective prayer always possesses the attitude that Jesus had when he prayed: "Nevertheless, not my will but thy will be done." Outline: Why doesn't God ...

187. The Day Of Thanksgiving

Mt 6:25-33 · 1 Tim 2:1-7 · Joel 2:21-27 · Ps 126

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

... thanksgiving, we most commonly render thanks for the gifts of creation -- food, family, friends, and so forth. This text directs us to give thanks also for the greatest gift of all -- salvation through Christ. We need to render thanks that we have a gracious God, who desires all people to come to the knowledge of his love and grace. The best way that we can show our thanks to God is by sharing the gift of his Son. Outline: The Church has been given a ministry of prayer. We are a eucharistic community ...

188. The Transfiguration

2 Corinthians 4:1-18, 2 Kings 2:1-18, Mark 9:2-13

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

... he would no longer have Elijah's physical presence, he would have the spiritual presence of his master and teacher within himself. Outline: 1. Elisha realized that he was soon to take over Elijah's role on his own. 2. Wanting a double portion indicated his desire to be Elijah's spiritual son, the eldest son, the heir who would carry on in the father's name. 3. Elisha would succeed without his teacher; he had internalized the spirit of his teacher. 4. Who are your spiritual mentors and teachers? Have you ...

189. Prayer Clothes

Hebrews 4:14-5:10

Sermon

Mark J. Molldrem

... to create a world, he stepped out into space and willed the world into being by the power of his word. "Let there be light." And there was light. When God desired to free a people from slavery in Egypt, he stepped onto the stage of history and willed it so. "Let my people go." And they went. When God desired to save the world that had turned its back on him, he found a manger and a way to make visible the very love of his heart. "For a child has been born for us." And the Word became flesh. Jesus knew ...

190. Surprised By Joy

Matthew 13:31-35, Matthew 13:44-46, Matthew 13:47-52

Sermon

Donald Dotterer

... the soul of C.S. Lewis. Lewis says this about his transformation: "You must picture me alone in that room in Magdalen, night after night, feeling, whenever my mind lifted even for a second from my work, the steady, unrelenting approach of him whom I so earnestly desired not to meet. That which I had greatly feared had at last come upon me. In the Trinity Term of 1929 I gave in, and admitted that God was God, and knelt and prayed: perhaps that night the most dejected and reluctant convert in all of England ...

191. The Pitfalls Of Practicing Piety

Matthew 6:19-24, Matthew 6:16-18, Matthew 6:5-15, Matthew 6:1-4

Sermon

John M. Braaten

... than to be a good pastor so that people will point and say, "That's our pastor. We really like him or her." Do you think that could be anything but music to our ears? Why do we become pastors? Submission to God's will? Complete reliance upon Christ? A desire to give our lives away like a suffering servant? We trust that those things are part of a pastor's call into the ministry, but we are like you; we want to be loved and accepted and therefore must confess that our good deeds can be motivated more by a ...

192. The Needle’s Eye

Mark 9:42-50

Sermon

Thomas Peterson

... the needle’s eye. All that encumbers the soul must be excised. Look and see! Consider addictions. No amputations can cut off the desire to gain the substance which gives the fix. Human cleverness is well pictured in a television ad. A pilot is flying the latest ... others. Only my self do I bring to the Cross, my self-will and selfishness, ego and vanity, my subtle ways of keeping on with my desires. At the Cross I make a gift of myself to God. Then at last I can accept God’s gift to me in Christ Jesus. For ...

193. Great Expectations

Luke 4:14-30

Children's Sermon

Brett Blair

... have great expectations for you. They want you to grow up to be ... what? What did your parents say? (honest) What else? (disciplined) What else do they want you to be? (caring) One day I hope you will fulfill their desires. One day Jesus stood up and announced that he was going to fulfill his Father's desires. He stood up in church (the synagogue) and said, "God's Spirit is upon me. I will give good news to the poor. I will bring freedom to prisoners. I will give sight to the blind." Application: Jesus had ...

194. Divine Liturgy, Divine Play, Divine Comedy

John 13:31-38

Sermon

Carl Jech

... , one ramification of what we are saying here about the various aspects of Christian thanksgiving is that it is not necessary to say "thank you" to the person who gives us the bread or wine during communion. The gift is from God, and the only gratitude God desires is a life in which we demonstrate the same kind of grace and loving service to others that we have seen demonstrated in the life of Jesus.) One of ancient Israel's psalms of thanksgiving shows us what a short step it is from divine playfulness and ...

195. An Easter-Life

Acts 10:23b-48

Sermon

Carl Hoefler

... to us! As we witness and testify to Christ, the Gospel becomes alive in us, and Christ lives through us. This does not mean that the Gospel is dependent upon us; nor does it mean that the Gospel would be silent without our testimony. Rather, it means that God desires to use us as the means by which Christ is to live today. If we fail to serve God, rest assured that God will find other means of making that presence of the Living Lord a life-giving force in our world. This truly means that God has granted ...

196. The Mystery of God's Mercy

Acts 13:13-52

Sermon

Carl Hoefler

... plan for us and for our lives. We may not understand it. We may question God and even challenge him. We may even doubt him. Like the people of Jerusalem about whom Paul is talking in our text this morning, we may also go so far as to desire the very death of God. But, the truth remains that human knowledge and understanding are poor, at best, and are seriously limited in solving the basic meaning and purpose of life. The ultimate meaning of life is hidden in the mystery of God himself. Despite the fact that ...

197. Confessional Services

1 Corinthians 11:17-34

Bulletin Aid

G. William Genszler

... a guard before my mouth that I may not sin with my lips. Commandment: You shall not covet your neighbor's house. You shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or his manservant, or his maidservant, or his cattle, or anything that is your neighbor's. Minister: Lord, change the desires of my heart. I do covet and do want what I want when I want it, whether it be thy good pleasure to give it to me or not. Never let me covet Thy gifts more than I covet Thy good pleasure. Let me find a grateful heart in those ...

198. Proper 11

Exodus 3:1-22

Sermon

... task, and through their arrogance and lack of fear, have destroyed both themselves and their followers. A healthy dose of humility and fear tends to keep a person closer to God, more amenable to the Word that comes from the Almighty, less apt to mistake one's own desires for the command of God. Of course, to fill such a role, one must also have great faith. In the words of a later biblical writer, the great spiritual leader must be able to say, "Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him." Any person who puts ...

199. Easter Day

Matthew 28:1-10, John 20:1-18, Acts 10:34-43, Colossians 3:1-4

Bulletin Aid

... hope and joy to all who believe in him. People: We rejoice because we have been raised to new life with Christ! Pastor: Such life is full of joy because we put to death the earthly desires which contradict God's will, and become new persons in Christ. People: Christ is our life! We commit ourselves to resurrection living as we put off our sinful desires and put on our new nature. Collect Most gracious Father, whose power over sin and death raises us to a new life in Christ: Fill our minds with Christlike ...

200. One Commandment is Enough!

Exodus 20:1-21

Sermon

... were just too much, but we humans always have had more knowledge of what we are supposed to do, than the power and desire to do it. We need to reflect upon these standards and internalize their truth into ourselves. No sermon can adequately cover them all, ... parents. If we dishonor them, we dishonor God. Our parents may not be loving, the home we grew up in may leave much to be desired, the absence of mother may have left the child lonely, the lack of love from the father may have stunted the child so he/she ...

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