Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 176 to 200 of 1230 results

Acts 2:42-47

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... and universities have surrendered all responsibility for the moral and ethical life of their constituencies. And it is so deceivingly subtle. There are other expressions of it. The Sex Education Policy Statement of the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction states, “At one time, sex education was based…on innocence, ideals and moral codes…but…we’re now moving toward a more humanistic approach.” (The Commercial Appeal August 5, 1986). My Lord, where are we? When we pit against innocence ...

177. By Faith

1 Peter 1:3-9

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed (I Peter1:6-7). It has been said that people are a lot like tea bags. You never know their real strength until you put them in hot water. Realism is idealism that has been through fire and gotten purified. Cynicism is idealism that has been through the fire and gotten burned. Every crisis has both danger and opportunity. It can make us or break us, refine us or destroy us. Life is determined by the way we handle the hot spots of our days ...

178. When We Are Young

Luke 12:32-40

Illustration

Donald J. Shelby

... scientist, sing like (Pavarotti), dance like (Fred Astaire), write like Camus, paint like Wyeth, and play golf like Jack Nicklaus. Every young couple who gets married is sure that theirs is going to be the ideal marriage, the perfect union. We don't have to dispute such dreaming, nor disparage ambition and idealism. In fact, give me an idealist any day over a cynic especially a 21-year-old cynic. Yet, those who have weathered turnings of the seasons know that between the dream and the reality falleth ...

179. Choosing to Love

Genesis 24:34-38, 42-49, 58-67

Sermon

Stan Purdum

... the other person as he or she really is. In other words, we may fall in love with a romanticized ideal image of the other person instead of the actual person. Then later, when the flames of romance have diminished somewhat, the blinders fall off and we ... discover that we've fallen in love with a phantom, an ideal image that doesn't exist. You discover your wife is neither a goddess nor a vixen, but a human being with both glories and ...

180. A Little Theology at Christmas

Titus 2:11-14

Sermon

John N. Brittain

... The positive aspect is that we are enabled — if we stay with the training regimen — to live lives that are self-controlled, upright, and godly, characteristics that even the greatest reprobate would admire. But arriving at these characteristics (like arriving at my ideal weight) takes some effort, and this could be considered the negative part of this message: "training us to renounce impiety and worldly passions...." Impiety, a disregard for God and God's will for our lives, is easier than it sounds in ...

181. Character Approved: Stand Up or Stand Out?

Luke 14:1-14

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... established for its own breed. So even though in the “Best of Show” assembly a Scottie might be competing against a Samoyed, the Scottie is being judged only according to Scottish Terrier standards. The “Best in Show” winner is the dog that best embodies the ideal of its own breed, the dog that is truest to type, the dog that best embodies the essence of itself. This is so different from the winner of a horse race, or a dog race. The standards of “best” are completely different. The best horse ...

182. Looking for a Savior

Luke 19:1-10

Illustration

Bruce Thielemann

Quite frankly, I'm sick to death of ideals. I have so many ideals and I've been so frustrated by them, I really don't care for them any more. What I'm looking for is a savior, not someone who will just tell me what I ought to be, but someone who will forgive me for what I am, and then with his very love will enable me to be more than I ever believed I could be. It's exactly that that Jesus does.

183. More Than A Kumbaya King

Luke 23:26-43

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... comprehend any “saving” activity that wasn’t strictly physical. Unfortunately we are not much different from our ancestors in the first century. We still want to see the “proof” of any power, of any positive force, in purely physical form. The ideas and ideals we “crown” are those that “win” at the ballot box, or in our bank accounts, or that help us achieve the social or professional status we crave. It is far too frightening to give kingship and obedience over to a “king” whose reign ...

184. Aha! An Epiphany!

Matthew 3:13-17

Sermon

King Duncan

... he read his obituary with horror, Nobel resolved to make clear to the world the true meaning and purpose of his life. This could be done through the final disposition of his fortune. His last will and testament would be the expression of his life’s ideals . . . The result was the most valued of prizes given to those who have done most for the cause of world peace. (4) What a dramatic breakthrough that moment of realization was for the man for whom the Nobel peace prize was named. There are some Biblical ...

185. Are You a King?

2 Samuel 23:1-7

Sermon

Robert A. Hausman

... should be used? Who is like the light of the morning? Here comes the core of the argument! "One who rules over people justly, ruling in the fear of God" (v. 3b). This is the kind of rule that Israel hoped for and the type of kingship that Israel idealized. One who rules in the fear of God, driven by the values of God, concerned for the widow and orphan, the marginalized and oppressed. One who rules over people justly, which is to say, one who is concerned with the public's well-being, not just with the ...

186. A Little Privacy Please

Mark 6:30-56

Illustration

Charles Swindoll

... What were the first activities to cease?" A: "The most complex activities for mice: courtship and mating." Q: What results would such overcrowding have on humanity?" A: We would first of all cease to reproduce our ideas, and along with ideas, our goals and ideals. In other words, our values would be lost." This is a parable of modern life. For many people, a simple task like getting to work is extremely draining. There are too many cars on the highway. Roads are too often under construction. Commuting time ...

187. Doing Your Own Thing

1 Corinthians 6:12-20

Sermon

King Duncan

... the wisdom of the Bible has been established over hundreds of generations. The only safe sex is sex practiced within the marriage relationship. And that relationship is to be exclusive. People make mistakes of course, even the best intended of us, but the ideal remains. As Paul cites from Genesis, “The two are to become one flesh.” Humanity has experimented for thousands of years with various other approaches to the question of sexual morality. And no approach yet has come even close to the Christian ...

188. Jesus - The Leader of Our Team

Philippians 1:1-11

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... faith. Too often, however, Jesus is forced to take a backseat to people and ideas that compete for our attention. The need for a central figure in our lives of faith is made quite obvious when we see the absolute need for a unifying part, person, or ideal that serves to hold together things without unity. Take, for example, the hub at the center of a bicycle wheel. Each of the spokes of a wheel has importance, giving structure and strength, yet it is the hub that holds the spokes and thus the wheel together ...

189. Shepherds Who Will Shepherd

Jeremiah 23:1-6

Sermon

R. Kevin Mohr

... Israel, was not really based on David, but the other way around: Leadership in Israel was a matter of growing into the ideal of God as the peoples' true shepherd. Therefore, Zedekiah, though technically in the royal line, was not a "righteous [or legitimate] branch ... have a bit of the shepherd's ministry. Our model is that "righteous branch" whom God did raise up: Jesus, who enfleshed the ideal of God's shepherding of his people. Jesus, the good shepherd, the true shepherd-king, was not born in a palace, but ...

190. Israel Rebels Against Rehoboam

2 Chronicles 10:1--11:4

Understanding Series

Louis C. Jonker

... within the context of their carrying the “heavy yoke” that Solomon placed on them. The Chronicler took over this formulation from Kings and did not bother to omit this negative reflection on Solomon (which would have been expected in the light of his idealization of Solomon). After Rehoboam asks for three days to reflect on the matter, the new king sets out to gather some perspectives from different groups in the community. After consulting the elders who had served his father Solomon (10:6–7), he ...

191. Jehoshaphat King of Judah

2 Chronicles 17:1-19

Understanding Series

Louis C. Jonker

... set out to inquire (darash) of the LORD. The whole of Judah (from every town) gathered with him to seek (biqqesh) help from the LORD. This “seeking” attitude of the king is a very positive sign. To the Chronicler, darash and biqqesh express the ideal religious inclination. The seeking of Yahweh became material when Jehoshaphat stood up before the assembly gathered at the temple of the LORD (20:5) and started praying (20:6–12). The king introduces his call to God with the invocation O LORD, God of ...

192. The High Priesthood of Jesus

Hebrews 4:14-5:10

Understanding Series

Donald A. Hagner

... was both a king and a priest (Gen. 14:18). Jesus is also king and priest, and thus corresponds to Melchizedek. There is for our author a vital connection between the unique sonship of Jesus and his role as high priest (cf. 1:2–3). He can be the ideal high priest in the last analysis only because of his identity as the Son (see 7:28). Only as the Son can he perform the definitive atoning work that the author will describe in later chapters. 5:7 This verse and the three verses that follow reveal briefly the ...

193. By Faith

Hebrews 11:1-40

Understanding Series

Donald A. Hagner

... popular in Jewish tradition. She became a beloved figure as the first proselyte to the Jewish faith. She is even found in the genealogy of Christ in Matt. 1:5 as the mother of Boaz (who married another famous non-Israelite, Ruth). Rahab’s house was an ideal hiding place for the two spies, since in addition to being readily open during the evening, it was built into the city wall. 11:32–35a The words about the lack of time to speak fully of the great paragons of faith could strengthen the hypothesis that ...

194. The Covenant Confirmed

Exodus 24:1-18

Understanding Series

James K. Bruckner

... had led the people out of Egypt, suffered their complaints, and received the Lord’s instructions on the mountain many times, was required to wait. Not until the seventh day did the Lord call to Moses from within the cloud. 24:18 Durham calls Exod. 24 an ideal end rather than the real end, which comes in Exod. 32–34 (Durham, Exodus, p. 247). I would suggest that chs. 32–34 are also short of the real ending, which comes after the Lord’s forgiveness in Exod. 34. It even comes after hearts were moved ...

195. The New Residents of Jerusalem

Nehemiah 11:1-36

Understanding Series

Leslie C. Allen

... west, in the mountains north and northwest of Jerusalem, and on the coastal plain in the far west. Since eleven of the Judean settlements are also found in the list of tribal towns in Josh. 15:20–62, the list has been credited to imaginary idealization. But in that case one would have expected close conformity with the list of Benjaminite towns in Josh. 18:21–28, which is not the case. Y. Aharoni, The Land of the Bible: A Historical Geography (2d ed.; tr. A. F. Rainey; Philadelphia: Westminster, 1979 ...

196. Further Benefits of Wisdom

Proverbs 3:1-35

Understanding Series

Roland E. Murphy

... some kind of motivation. Thus the command in verse 1 is followed by a promise of long life and prosperity, which is the ideal goal envisioned by the wise. It has been said that the kerygma of the book of Proverbs is life (cf. Murphy, “Kerygma”). The ... terms (Hb. ḥesed and ʾemet). They are associated with royal rule (20:28) and also social relationship (14:22; 16:6). These ideals are to penetrate deeply, written on the tablet of your heart (cf. Jer. 31:33). The result will be favor and prestige ...

197. Proverbs of Solomon

Proverbs 16:1-33

Understanding Series

Roland E. Murphy

... gap between thought and deed. See the comment on verse 1 and also Jeremiah 10:23. 16:10 Synonymous. The “king” sayings begin here. Verse 10a reads, literally, “an oracle is on the lips of the king.” This is not a statement of fact, but rather an ideal picture (cf. the widow of Tekoa and David in 2 Sam. 14:17–20) that expresses the reverence with which the king was honored. Verse 10b should be rendered, “his mouth does not err in a decision (mšpṭ)”; see also “decision” in verse 33. While ...

198. Proverbs of Solomon

Proverbs 21:1-31

Understanding Series

Roland E. Murphy

... about the rewards of the righteous (cf. 3:2, 16). Many modern versions eliminate prosperity (see also the marginal note in the NIV) as redundant. It is also lacking in the Greek. 21:22 Synthetic. See also 20:18; Eccl. 9:14–15. The saying fits the ideal of the sages: wisdom is valued above strength. 21:23 Synthetic, with juxtaposition of participles. Control of the tongue is essential for wisdom (cf. 13:3; 18:21). There is a neat play on keeps/guards (Hb. šōmēr) and the rhyme ending (-o), his tongue (Hb ...

199. Sayings of the Wise

Proverbs 22:17--24:22

Understanding Series

Roland E. Murphy

... lack the means to marshal a strong defense. Thus, they are vulnerable, but on their side is the LORD, who will turn the tables on their oppressors. 22:24–25 The warning against the hot-tempered occurs several times in Amenemope (ch. 9; ANET, p. 423). The ideal “silent” person is counterpoint to the “heated” person (e.g., Arnenemope ch. 4; ANET, p. 422). See also 15:18; 29:22. 22:26–27 This admonition against going surety for another is frequent in Proverbs (6:1–5; 11:15; 17:18; 20:16), but it ...

200. More Proverbs of Solomon

Proverbs 28:1-28

Understanding Series

Roland E. Murphy

... one who is a person of integrity, in contrast to one who hastens (NIV, eager) to get rich. Haste is always suspect, often implying wrongdoing of some sort (19:2; 23:4–5; 28:22). 28:21 Synthetic. A legal ideal is affirmed in the “not good” sayings (cf. 18:5; 24:23). The ideal, however, can be transgressed for even the slightest profit. 28:22 Antithetic. Literally, “one evil of eye” (cf. 23:6 as opposed to 22:9) is stingy, but somewhere in the future there awaits an unexpected reversal, poverty. On ...

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