Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 2001 to 2025 of 5000 results

2001. Earthquakes, Tsunamis, and Disaster: Why do the Innocent Suffer?

Psalm 69:1-36

Sermon

James W. Moore

On a Christmas card we received this year, we discovered these powerful words: When the song of the angels is stilled, When the star in the sky is gone, When the Kings and Princes are back home, When the Shepherds have returned to new flocks, The work of Christmas begins: - To find the lost, - To heal the broken - To feed the hungry, - To release the prisoners, - To rebuild the nations, - To bring peace among people, - To make music in the heart. Or, in other words, to do the work of Christ. These words ...

2002. Changed Lives - Mary Magdalene

John 20:10-18

Sermon

King Duncan

A pastor went to a nursing home to offer communion to the residents. This was not one of those upscale places called a retirement center. This facility was for the poor and its residents were mostly in various stages of dementia. When the pastor arrived she was told by a volunteer, who was wheeling patients into the room, that since it was late afternoon, everyone’s medication seemed to be wearing off. Some would sleep through the service as usual, but for the most part, her little congregation would be on ...

2003. Jesus Wuvs Me and Dat's Dat

John 15:1-5

Sermon

James W. Moore

Rosemary Brown is a highly respected minister in Tennessee. She has been featured a number of times on The Protestant Hour National Radio Broadcast. She tells a story about a little girl in her church named Mickey. Mickey is four years old. She is a precious, adorable, out-going little girl who loves to sing. One Sunday morning, Mickey ran down to the front of the Sanctuary just before the start of the morning worship service and with great excitement, she said: “Miss Rosemary Brown, can I sing a song this ...

2004. That's What Jesus Does for Me

Psalm 139:7-12

Sermon

James W. Moore

Her name is Pascale. She is five years old. She is a very important part of our church family. She is here in the 8:30 service most every Sunday morning. One evening recently, Pascale was watching television with her mom and dad. Suddenly, a news flash showed President Bush walking to a meeting. The President was surrounded by a group of men in dark suits. Pascale asked her parents: “Who are those men with the President? Why are they with him?” Her parents answered: “They are members of the secret service ...

2005. Magnanimity: The Essential Spirit of the Christian

Philippians 4:4-7

Sermon

James W. Moore

Someone once said: “You can call me anything, if you let me define the terms.” This morning, I want us to define the term “Magnanimity”…because it was such an important word to the Apostle Paul… and such a key characteristic in the life of Jesus. Writing a long time ago to the Philippian Christians, Paul called the spirit of magnanimity the essential spirit of the Christian. He told the Philippians that a Christian should be characterized by his or her magnanimity… and that the spirit of magnanimity should ...

2006. When We Are Caught in a Storm

Matthew 14:22-33

Sermon

James W. Moore

A man once came to a farmer and asked to be taken on as a hired hand. “What can you do?” the farmer asked him. The man replied: “I can sleep when the wind blows.” The farmer thought that was a strange answer, but he needed a worker so he hired him. Soon after, the farmer went away on a trip. A couple of weeks later, the farmer returned home one night and went to bed. But, a storm came up. Winds were blowing and lashing. The farmer woke and heard the winds and he remembered – the broken barn door – the weak ...

2007. The Handshake

Illustration

King Duncan

We live in a divided world. Nations are divided. We see it in the Middle East, across Africa, and even in the United States of America. All over the world nations not only are striving against one another, but they are torn by strife within. It is a problem as old as humanity itself. I was interested to read somewhere about the origin of the custom of handshaking. In ancient times, men always carried daggers. When a traveler met a man he didn't recognize, he automatically reached for his weapon, as did the ...

2008. To Tell The Truth

Exodus 20:16

Sermon

James Merritt

"Nearly everyone will lie to you given the right circumstances." Do you know who said that? None other than Bill Clinton, the President of the United States. But guess what? Apparently he is right. In the groundbreaking work, The Day America Told the Truth, by James Patterson and Peter Kim, we find that in America honesty has gone out the window. 91% of Americans lie regularly at home and at work. In answer to the question, "Whom have you regularly lied to?" 86% said, to their parents; and 75% to their ...

2009. Honor To Whom Honor Is Due

Exodus 20:12

Sermon

James Merritt

Out of all of the Ten Commandments, only one contains no negative word whatsoever. The fifth commandment is a totally positive commandment. All of the other nine commandments tell us not to do something. This is the only commandment without one negative word. It is also the only commandment that comes with a promise. The first four commandments dealt with our relationship to God. The second six commandments deal with our relationship to others. It is not coincidental that God begins with our relationship ...

2010. When God's Rule is Taken Out of the School

Job 21:22

Sermon

James Merritt

There is a story about two neighbors who grew up in a farming town. They had suffered through a long dry season, and there wasn't enough hay to keep the cows fed. So one of the neighbors came up with the idea that the two of them ought to go into the hay merchandising business. They bought a truck, drove to another state where they bought hay for $3.00 a bale. They then brought it home and sold it for $2.50 a bale. After about two months in the business, one neighbor looked at the other one and said, "You ...

2011. God Knows Exactly How You Feel

John 19:28

Sermon

James Merritt

One of the most powerful pieces of prose that I have read in a long time is a little playlet entitled: "The Long Silence." Listen to it: "At the end of time, billions of people were scattered on a great plain before God's throne. Most shrank back from the brilliant light before them, but some groups near the front talked heatedly not with cringing shame, but with belligerence. ‘Can God judge us? How can He know about suffering?' snapped a pert young brunette. She ripped open a sleeve to reveal a tattooed ...

2012. Going the Second Mile

Matthew 5:38-42

Sermon

James Merritt

Mark Twain once said this about the Bible: "I have no problem with those parts of the Bible I don't understand. It's those parts of the Bible I do understand that gives me fits." The passage that we are going to study certainly fits into that category. This passage illustrates something I bet most of you have never thought about before. One of the easiest things in the world to do is to become a Christian. It is ridiculously easy. All you have to do is confess you are a sinner, repent of your sin, believe ...

2013. You Can Take It to the Bank

2 Peter 3:1-10

Sermon

James Merritt

I read a story about an angel of the Lord who telephoned the editors of five major newspapers with this message: "God says the world will end tomorrow." The New York Times carried a front page headline which read: "The World Will End Tomorrow Reliable Source Says" A box read: "Analysis on page 11." The Wall Street Journal's front page headline read: "World Ends Tomorrow; Market Plunges" The headline in USA Today read: "We're Gone!" The Headline in the LA Times read: "World Ends Tomorrow; Bill Clinton says ...

2014. I Believe in Easter

Acts 9:1-29

Sermon

James Merritt

On April 9, 1996, Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia delivered an address to the Mississippi College School of Law. What he said generated a firestorm of criticism in the liberal press. He gave a brilliant and blistering portrayal of a society that now mocks religious belief, and especially the beliefs of Christians. Here is what he said that was so "controversial." The worldly wise do not believe in the resurrection of the dead. It is really quite absurd [to them]. So everything from the Easter morning ...

2015. Better To Be a Loner than a Loser

Daniel 1:1-21

Sermon

James Merritt

Cassie Bernall. With one word this teenage girl became a household name and a part of God's Hall of Fame. On April 20, around 11:30AM, two gun-wielding teenagers at Columbine High School confronted her, and with guns raised, one of them asked her this question: "Do you believe in God?" After a momentary pause, she looked him squarely in the eye and said, "Yes." After he replied simply, "Why?" he shot her and killed her instantly. But at that one moment, with that one word, Cassie Bernall illustrated a ...

2016. Doing Right When You Have Been Done Wrong

Ephesians 4:31-32

Sermon

James Merritt

I have been ordered by Dr. Freddie Gage to speak on the topic of bitterness and forgiveness. Now like most preachers, I don't like to be told what to preach, but in Freddie's case I gladly acquiesce because I knew if I didn't, Freddie would get bitter and never forgive me. Now some people might think it strange to speak on a topic of bitterness to a bunch of Baptists. But bitterness is certainly no stranger to Baptist churches. I heard about a Baptist businessman that was taking a business trip on an ...

2017. How to Keep Your Head When Others Are Losing Theirs (Fruit of the Spirit: Peace)

Galatians 5:22

Sermon

James Merritt

What do men want most in their homes? A survey was taken a few years ago to determine what men care about most, and what they hope their wives will understand. The results were shocking. Men did not want expensive furniture, well-equipped garages, or a private study in which to work. What they wanted most was tranquility at home. In other words, they wanted peace.1 I am convinced that everyone is looking for peace. Recently I was in Jerusalem, and I took a taxi down to the Old City. The cab driver was a ...

2018. Gentle On My Mind (Fruit of the Spirit: Gentleness)

Galatians 5:23

Sermon

James Merritt

I don't know of anyone that disputes the fact that John Wooden is the greatest basketball coach who has ever lived. His UCLA basketball teams won ten NCAA National Championships in twelve years, including seven in a row. In his book entitled Wooden, he begins with this story: My Dad, Joshua Wooden, was a strong man in one sense, but a gentle man. While he could lift heavy things men half his age couldn't lift, he would also read poetry to us each night after a day working in the fields raising corn, hay, ...

2019. Don't Forget to Remember

Jude 1:5-7

Sermon

James Merritt

There was a young preacher who was going to preach his very first sermon, and he wanted to have a smashing introduction. So he went to an older pastor he knew, and said, "Do you know of any surefire introduction that is guaranteed to get everybody's attention?" The old preacher said, "As a matter of fact I have an illustration that works every single time." He said, "When you walk to the pulpit, make this statement: ‘Some of the greatest days of my life I spent in the arms of another man's wife.'" He said ...

2020. Seeing the End from the Beginning

Numbers 13:1-2, 17-33

Sermon

James Merritt

Disney World. It is the most popular tourist attraction on the planet. The four theme parks, The Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney MGM, and Animal Kingdom individually rank among the top ten theme parks in all of the world. In 1998, forty-two million people went through the turnstiles at Disney World alone. It sits on forty-three square miles of some of the most prime property in the entire state of Florida. It is twice the size of Manhattan Island. Originally, it took seven years to plan, and four and one-half ...

2021. God's Favorite Day

Psalm 118:24

Sermon

James Merritt

Do you know what God's favorite day is? I can tell you unequivocally, and without hesitation, that God's favorite day is today. Now I don't mean Sunday. I would say that if today were Monday or Thursday or Saturday. You see, I trust that God did work in your life yesterday. I know He wants to work in your life tomorrow. But the only day He can work in your life is today. The only day you can better the past, or prepare for the future, is today. Listen to this statement: Our Lord knows that the most ...

2022. Whatever It Takes

1 Corinthians 9:19-23

Sermon

James Merritt

A tourist was vacationing on the Island of Malta, a Mediterranean island which is hot every day of the year, and very sunny. He was appalled by the chaotic traffic; cars and buses were darting every which way with no apparent order whatsoever. The tourist asked a policeman why the traffic was so disorderly, and the policeman said, "Well, in some countries they drive on the right side of the road; in other countries they drive on the left side of the road; here we drive in the shade. This world is full of ...

2023. Bitterness: How to Overcome What You Undergo

Hebrews 12:14-15

Sermon

James Merritt

It is the mother of all family feuds. It is known as "The Hatfields and the McCoys." It started in 1878; it ended in 1890. It was a twelve- year war between two neighbors that killed three Hatfields, seven McCoys, and two outsiders. What was the feud over—a hog! Bitterness over one hog stole twelve years and twelve lives. I'm going to talk to you today about a subject that I believe probably afflicts everyone at some time in their life, and it is the subject of bitterness. Many people who are hearing this ...

2024. What Excites God

Mark 2:1-12

Sermon

James Merritt

As a pastor I can really relate to the story of a pastor who was candidating at a church, and they told him that they wanted to call him provided he would agree to live by faith. When he asked the six men on the committee what they meant by that, they said, "Well, what we mean by that is, you're not going to have any stated salary, but you're just going to trust God to meet your needs." The man thought about it for a minute, and though it cost him the church, he gave a good response. He said, "I've got a ...

2025. Murder in the First Degree

Matthew 5: 21-26

Sermon

James Merritt

We are in the middle of a series of messages I've entitled "The Only Way to Live." It is based on the greatest sermon ever preached in history – the Sermon on the Mount. Up to this point in the sermon, Jesus has been very general in his comments but now he gets very specific. He addresses six critical areas where what goes on in the inside of a person is far more important than what occurs on the outside of a person. He is going to be dealing with murder, adultery, divorce, honesty, revenge, and loving ...

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