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 2001 to 2025 of 2415 results

2001. David's Officials

2 Samuel 8:15-18

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

... timing of these two incidents go both ways, and it does not affect the interpretation of either incident as to which came first. In spite of the awareness of human nature that is apparent in David’s poetry, and in spite of his passionate commitment to the matter occupying his mind, David is not renowned for thoughtfulness about other people’s feelings and concerns. The sudden recollection of a responsibility to Jonathan ties in with what we see elsewhere of David’s character. Baldwin argues that David ...

2002. David and Mephibosheth

2 Samuel 9:1-13

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

2003. David Builds an Altar

2 Samuel 24:18-25

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

... nation die as a result. The writers clearly present the limitation of the effects of the plague and in particular the preservation of Jerusalem as an exercise of the mercy of God in which David had put his trust. In verse 17, David, with characteristic passion, wants to take on himself the blame for what has occurred. The writers make no further comment on this, but the implication that the people have shared his proud attitude remains. 24:18–25 Verse 25 could be seen as portraying the sacrifice, made at ...

2004. Jesus Taken to Annas

John 18:12-14

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

The arrest proceeds to its inevitable conclusion: The soldiers and temple guards, regaining their composure, take Jesus into custody. He is brought first to Annas, the father-in-law of Caiaphas the high priest. Though Annas is mentioned in connection with Jesus’ passion only in this Gospel, he is not the center of interest. The narrator calls the readers’ attention instead to the high priest himself, with a reminder of his earlier advice to the Jews that it would be good if one man died for the people ...

2005. Jesus Sentenced to be Crucified

John 19:1-16, John 18:28-40

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

... firmly convinced that We have a law, and according to that law he must die [i.e., the law of blasphemy, Lev. 24:16] because he claimed to be the Son of God (v. 7). The mention of the title Son of God for the first time in the Passion narrative recalls earlier disputes between Jesus and the Jewish authorities (e.g., 5:18; 10:33, 36). It was the understanding that Jesus was claiming to be “God,” or “equal with God,” that led all along to charges of blasphemy (10:33), attempts to stone him (8:59; 10 ...

2006. A Silver Cup in a Sack

Genesis 44:1-34

Understanding Series

John E. Hartley

... had guaranteed the safe return of his brother to ease his father’s anxiety. He concluded by entreating the overseer to make him a slave in Benjamin’s place so that the boy could return home with his brothers. He underscored his offer with the passionate plea that he not be made to see the misery that would come upon his father. In this speech Joseph learned how grievously his father mourned his absence. Judah was demonstrating the complete change in his attitude to his younger brother; he was willing to ...

2007. Materials for the Tabernacle

Exodus 35:4-29

Understanding Series

James K. Bruckner

... 10–19 Moses repeated the Lord’s request for skilled workers: “All who are skilled among you are to come and make everything the LORD has commanded.” “Skilled” (khakam leb, “wise of heart”) means “reflective and observant, integrating one’s intelligence and passion.” (See the commentary on the very similar list at 31:6b–10. On “skilled,” see the comments on 26:1 and 31:1–11). 35:20–29 The people responded with generous hearts. The response to the Lord’s forgiveness and call ...

2008. The Ten Commandments

Deuteronomy 5:1-33

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... 9). However, though the primary reference of the commandment is to false testimony in court, it also embodies a concern about truthfulness in the wider spheres of human relating. The OT, especially in the Psalms and Wisdom literature, has a passionate interest in truth, partly as a reflection of an essential characteristic of Yahweh himself, and partly out of a thoroughly practical and consequential awareness of the cost to individuals and society as a whole when lying becomes endemic. The Tenth Commandment ...

2009. Tithes

Deuteronomy 14:22-29

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... LORD is a way of acknowledging their source and their status as gifts of blessing (7:13 and 11:14)—they are not mere products of the fertility of nature, still less the gift of any fertility god of Canaan. Deuteronomy’s constant educational passion surfaces again at the end of the verse (so that you may learn . . . ), but with typical Deuteronomic human warmth. Inculcating the fear of God could be achieved during a family party just as much as during family prayers. The allowance made for long-distance ...

2010. Detestable Practices

Deuteronomy 18:9-13

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... s own people and to the political authorities. He predicted events beforehand and interpreted them afterwards. He gave to Israel the foundational theological and ethical constitution that undergirded the message of centuries of later prophets. He was faithful in intercession and passionate concern for the good of his people, as well as in declaring God’s specific judgments. He suffered with and for his people and finally died without seeing the full fruition of his life’s mission. In these respects he ...

2011. The Prophet

Deuteronomy 18:14-22

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

2012. Warning Against Adultery

Proverbs 6:20-35

Understanding Series

Roland E. Murphy

... measured by her marital status, not by her own self; hence a prostitute is, as it were, expendable and dealing with her is not all that harmful. The appropriate rhetorical “impossible” questions in verses 27–28 suggest perhaps the fire of sexual passion. These questions point out the danger and stupidity of such conduct. Verse 29 confirms that the adulterer will not go unpunished. Although it is not described, the following verses would seem to indicate that the injured (male) party will seek revenge ...

2013. To Us a Child is Born

Isaiah 9:1-7

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... NIV). It resembles a song of thanksgiving for what Yahweh has already done (cf. Isa. 12), until the promise in verse 7b makes explicit that in real time the whole lies in the future. Its reference to Yahweh’s zeal further illustrates the importance of Yahweh’s passion to Israel’s reaching its destiny (see on 5:25–30). The birth of another son, explicitly David’s rather than Isaiah’s, is the key to the move from death to life. The words in verse 6a are the words used to announce a child’s ...

2014. Sin, Confession and Redemption

Isaiah 59:1-21

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... as much like a response to the self-exhortation in 51:9 as a fulfillment of the vision in 52:13–53:12. The commitment to deliverance has as its other side the commitment to punishment (vengeance: see comment on 1:24–25a), pursued with passion. We might have thought that the turn in chapters 52–53 from divine power manifest in violence to divine power manifest in martyrdom was a once-for-all turn, but here the former reappears. The relationship between these two manifestations is more dialectical and ...

2015. Deathbed Confessions

Matthew 20:1-16

Sermon

King Duncan

... it as a child, as a teenager, or at 98 years of age after a life of total degradation? In questioning God about such matters, what we fail to see is how valuable a human soul is to God. That is the important truth here. God’s primary passion is to save people--whenever that might happen. That is the Gospel. Leslie Weatherhead puts that truth in a beautiful way in his book, Key Next Door. When Weatherhead was visiting some friends he noticed that they had an old dog named “Pete.” Pete, Weatherhead said ...

2016. The Ultimate Mountaintop Experience

Mark 9:2-9

Sermon

King Duncan

... of men were able to be present for Colson’s address, and, for the most part, they were already Christians. In despair Colson thought he might just give a short devotional, ten minutes or so, then move on to his next appointment. It is really difficult to preach with passion for a long time to such a small group. He really thought God had brought him to this place. Now he was uncertain. And then he spotted a video camera in the far end of the room. Perhaps, he thought, this is being recorded for the chapel ...

2017. About Donkeys and True Greatness

Mark 11:1-10

Sermon

King Duncan

... have a hard time believing that we are. Only a God of absolute infinite love could accept us just as we are. But do you know what is sad to me? There are a lot of people who feel that they deserve God’s grace poured out in Christ’s passion. That robs the cross of its power. The only way we will ever feel the saving power of the cross is when we realize that we could never be worthy of Christ’s sacrifice any more than that little donkey he rode on could be worthy of Christ’s grace ...

2018. The Bethsaida Boys

Mark 8:31-38

Sermon

John Jamison

... . As business leaders or zealots, they believed in winning and in overcoming any obstacle that got in the way of being successful and growing their business. That’s the kind of person Jesus needed in his group of disciples, people with that kind of passion for winning. But they needed to redefine just what winning actually meant, and this is where all the problems arose. To the disciples, winning meant becoming more powerful and rich, more secure and forcing your way to the top of the heap. Jesus talked ...

2019. Uncertain Certainties

John 20:19-31

Sermon

John Jamison

... we really sure we want that kind of clarity? And there would be other issues coming up soon after we got over the initial shock of seeing God standing here in the room. After all, we’re made of the same stuff as the disciples, with the same human passions. After a few minutes there would probably be some gentle pushing and shoving as we all tried to get just a bit closer to where God was standing. There might be some minor bickering over who got to stand the closest. Would it be decided by age or should ...

2020. Travel Arrangements

Luke 24:44-53

Sermon

John Jamison

... appeared to shake slightly, and then as if by some unseen force, Jesus began to lean forward, and his body began to do a very slow, but very complete forward somersault in the clouds hanging there over everyone’s head. The technicians behind the scenes at the Passion play were scurrying around trying to figure out what had gone wrong with the lift mechanism, and the other actors on stage were trying to figure out how to maintain some form of dignity and awe, while the lead actor tried to hold his robe in ...

2021. Would You Take the Crown Without the Cross?

Mark 1:9-15

Sermon

Brett Blair

... , we would be able to identify it with one of the three temptations Jesus faced. We will also be better equipped to answer Satan with the words and obedience of Christ. This is the first Sunday in Lent. It is a time of in-depth reflection upon the passion and death of Jesus, as well as a period of repentance for both the church and for us personally. Our Lenten journey begins this year with a review of the temptation of Christ. At the beginning of his ministry, Jesus spent forty days and forty nights in the ...

2022. The Pointer

Mark 6:14-29

Sermon

Ron Lavin

... looked up, dropped his head, and said, "Jesus died for me on the cross..." He choked on each word. The bishop who told the story, pointed to a high crucifix, and said, "I am that boy." 1. Herodias was the object of Herod the tetrach's guilty passion and lust while both were married to other people. Herod broke up both marriages to have the object of his lust. John the Baptist condemned the guilty pair. Herodias took revenge by plotting the death of John the Baptist. 2. The Baptism of Jesus is capitalized in ...

2023. And They Lived Happily Ever After... or Did They?

Mark 10:2-16

Sermon

Rick McCracken-Bennett

... candles and incense. As she began to gently dance, tapping her foot, the tiny bells on her ankle jingled. She too began to hum a tune that was familiar to the man as she danced the age-old dance of a woman before a man. As their eyes met, passion filled his heart to make this woman his lover and bride. He thought to himself that his friend had outdone himself this time. So he leaned against the stone. He pushed and pulled but the stone would not move. Again he grunted and groaned but no, the stone would ...

2024. Jesus: The Original Superhero?

John 18:33-37

Sermon

April Yamasaki

... Jesus as a different kind of Superman -- more than a Superman -- who defeats oppression and evil with love, suffering, and sacrifice. Our scripture for today might seem out of season, for it takes place after Jesus' arrest and before his execution. As part of the Passion narrative that recounts the last week of Jesus' earthly life, it might well be read in the spring, in the week before Easter. But it's also very fitting for this time of year on Christ the King Sunday, because in this text Jesus himself ...

2025. In It for the Long Haul

John 6:60-69

Sermon

King Duncan

... at that. “The moral of the story,” says Stuart Briscoe “is this: You get all kinds of people goofing off at the start, but that doesn’t count. To finish does [count], and disciples of Jesus Christ keep on going.” (5) When the enthusiasm fades, when the passion cools, when the numbers drop off, can you maintain your intensity? That is the mark of a champion. Finishing is what faith is all about. I said I am grateful to those of you who are here for the long haul. Some of you have been disciples of ...

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