Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 2026 to 2050 of 4490 results

2026. Misunderstanding Jesus

John 6:25-59

Sermon

Once a minister was speaking of the difference between fact and fantasy. "That you are sitting here before me in this church is fact! That I am standing here in this pulpit speaking is fact!" Then he paused, and continued, "However to believe that anyone is really listening to me may be fantasy." You know, sometimes it is fun to be a preacher. After his return from church one Sunday a small boy said, "You know what, Mommie? I’m going to be a preacher when I grow up." "That’s fine," said his mother, "but ...

2027. Lent 1

Genesis 3:1-24, Romans 5:12-21, Matthew 4:1-11, Genesis 2:4-25, Psalm 130:1-8

Sermon Aid

THEOLOGICAL CLUE The structure of the church year determines, in all three years of the lectionary, that this Sunday is, in part, a "pattern" Sunday; it shows that Lent is a forty-day retreat by the faithful, "patterned" after Jesus' solitary sojourn in the wilderness immediately after he had been baptized in the Jordan. As a spiritual journey, Lent is observed in public and in private, in corporate worship and in individual devotions and actions. But, in the use of the Gospel for the Day, again in all ...

2028. Do You Believe In Easter?

Luke 24:1-12

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

What a thrill it is to be a preacher on Easter morning! It’s better than being Irish on St. Patrick’s Day or a child on Christmas morning or Tiger Woods at the Master’s or a Duke basketball fan on April 2nd of this year. (You knew I would mention that sooner or later, didn’t you?!) The great New Testament scholar C.H. Dodd said, "The resurrection is the epicenter of belief. It is not a belief that grew up within the church. It is the belief around which the church itself grew up." (1) Billy Graham has ...

2029. Reach Out and Touch Someone

Acts 2:1-13

Sermon

Peter Rudowski

I doubt there is a person in this sanctuary who doesn’t know the AT&T ad which says, "Reach out and touch someone." Cincinnati Bell plays it for us all the time. It is on the television and on our car radios. We are bound to run into it at one of the commercial breaks. If we do not watch television or listen to the radio but we go to the ballgame, there it is on the big scoreboard in centerfield between the innings. In great big letters comes this great big sign, "Reach out and touch someone." The music ...

2030. Will My Ship Sink or Float?

Romans 8:28-39

Sermon

Robert G. Tuttle

For the key verse in this Scripture reading, like best the King James Version: "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God." No! Not everything that happens in life is good (much of it is very bad). But when you add all the happenings of life together and look at the whole of life, for the person who has faith in God, for the person who loves God and shares the love of God, that life is good. The whole of life, its ups and downs, are good when we see them interrelated in a ...

2031. The Impartiality of God

Acts 10:23b-48

Sermon

Hubert Beck

There are more saviors in the world than the mind can comprehend. Bookstores have shelf after shelf of books that promise to save us from anything we can name - anxieties, fears, personal difficulties, or whatever else may be causing us distress. A whole range of people - some of them reliable counselors but all too many of them little more than hucksters - offer themselves to the troubled (for a fee, of course), usually with implicit or explicit promises of remedies for whatever problems one may have ...

2032. "Can Do" Christianity

Philippians 4:10-20

Sermon

Raymond Gibson

Those who lived through the long years of World War II remember a remarkable group of men called the Seabees. "Seabees" was their nickname, based upon their official designation as the U.S. Naval Construction Battalions. These were the men who went ashore right behind the Marines during the Pacific island battles, constructing the new facilities necessary for the support and establishment of our nation's combat forces. They referred to themselves as "can do" people, and were often quoted as saying, "The ...

2033. Little Things Affect Little Minds

Sermon

Harold Warlick

A prominent executive entered his secretary’s office for a confrontation. He was there to raise an unpleasant issue. For several days his discomfort and anger had built up like an internal volcano. It bothered him when he ate and prohibited restful sleep. Like an unfriendly ghost, the problem haunted him. He had talked about it with his wife and his friends. Finally he could take it no more. So there he stood, at his secretary’s desk, ready for the attack. He jerked himself up on his toes and, pointing his ...

2034. Worn Out? Tired? Weary?

Matthew 11:25-30

Sermon

Louis H. Valbracht

In both his Letter to the Galatians and his Letter to the Thessalonians, Saint Paul, without equivocation, admonishes us all NOT to be weary. And then, paradoxically almost, in 2 Corinthians, we find that he is after all, human himself, and he admits that he himself has often been weary. Perhaps it’s the most used expression in our conversation: "I’m tired! I’m beat! I’m dead! I’m weary! I’m worn out! I’ve had it!" Christian people are supposed to feel beneath them the everlasting arms. Instead, they feel ...

2035. Molehills and Mountains

Matthew 6:25-34, Mark 8:31--9:1

Sermon

Louis H. Valbracht

The story is told of George Bernard Shaw that he was once seated beside a Duchess at a dinner party. In the course of their conversation, he asked: "Tell me, Duchess, would you live with a man for a million pounds?" "Well," replied the Duchess, "I suppose I would" Then Shaw asked her: "Would you live with a man for five pounds?" The Duchess was insuited: "What do you think I am?" "We’ve already established that," said Shaw, "now we are just determining the price." Long before the coming of Christ, the ...

2036. God So Loved the World

John 3:1-21

Sermon

Richard A. Jensen

For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16) That is John 3:16, one of the best known and often-quoted verses in the entire Bible. Martin Luther once called it the "Gospel within the Gospels." If you watch any sporting events on television, you will almost always see a banner strategically placed so the camera will include it that simply reads: "John 3:16." Some group of people has chosen this method to hold up the ...

2037. Behold! Chariots of Fire!

2 Kings 2:1-18

Sermon

Richard L. Eslinger

Elisha had been with Elijah for what seenied like a long time. It began in the most dramatic way: Elijah lamenting that the people of Israel had all forsaken the covenant, everyone in Israel bowing the knee to false gods; Elijah complaining, "And I, even I only, am left." But the Lord God refused to let the prophet just hide out there in the wilderness. So Elijah was sent back to do battle against the idolatry of Israel and to anoint a new king. And Elijah was also given a successor who would be anointed ...

2038. The Gospel in Two Words

Mark 7:31-37

Sermon

The healing of the deaf and mute person becomes a metaphor for a deeper and more difficult healing, the changing (if not the character, then at least the attitudes) of those touched by the Healer. And all have been touched. This sermon suggests that being deaf (being closed) happens in more than one way. Biblical and contemporary examples flavor the meaning of the biblical "Be opened," and the contemporary "Be open." The fluidity of response to the crucified and Risen Christ breaks barriers, which, if ...

2039. Questions Without Answers

Job 42:1-6

Sermon

Alton F. Wedel

The Word today is the bottom line in the book of Job, the story of the man from the land of Uz who was blameless and upright and who feared God and turned away from evil. The man had prospered. He had seven sons and three daughters, 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, 500 she-asses and very many servants. We could say that he belonged to the affluent society, a rather rare type in his day because the record makes it clear that he was the greatest man of all the people in the East. We will take the ...

2040. The Shadow Ascending

John 21:15-25

Sermon

Gregory J. Johanson

I. Denial by Any Other Name John 21:15ff GREG JOHANSON is a United Methodist minister who has brought to ten years of parish experience a special training and interest in Clinical Pastoral Education and Pastoral Counseling. He has worked in a variety of clinical settings, taught in a number of colleges, served recently as Chaplain and Director of Counseling Services at the Plaza Santa Maria Hospital, Ltd. in Baja, California, and led workshops as a certified trainer in Hakomi Therapy. He presently lives ...

2041. Advent 3: Won't You Let Him Into Your Gift-Giving?

Matthew 2:1-12

Sermon

James W. Moore

This sermon is based on Matthew 2:7-12. Not the Luke text above. Many of you will recognize the name of Robert Fulghum. He is the author of the popular book, “All I Really Need To Know I Learned In Kindergarten.” In a later book, he told a wonderful story about his daughter Molly. When Molly was seven years old, she liked to help pack lunches each morning for her brothers, her dad, and herself. Into each bag, she would put a share of sandwiches, apples, milk money, and sometimes she would add a surprise ...

2042. The Spirit Has Landed

Luke 3:1-38

Sermon

Brett Blair

On January 3, 2004, the Mars rover named “Spirit” began its diligent exploration. It began sending back so many photographs that NASA figured out a way to teach the little rover how to detect changes in images, so that it sent only images back to Earth with new information. For example, if Rover was taking photographs of dust devils, it would pause and waits until the image changed before taking the next photo. That meant less work for the scientists sifting through the many, many amazing photographs ' ...

2043. The Ten Commandments: One God, Only One

Exodus 20:1-21

Sermon

David E. Leininger

A few weeks ago, you no doubt saw or heard about a list of the 100 best English-language novels of the past hundred years. It got quite a bit of comment because virtually no one agreed with the list-makers in their selections, and virtually everyone agreed that the number one pick, James Joyce's Ulysses, is a miserable read. Still, no one could agree on a new number one, nor, for that matter, any substitute list either. About all anyone would grant is that Americans do love lists. In fact, the Arizona ...

2044. The Ten Commandments #5: Honoring Parents

Exodus 20:12

Sermon

David E. Leininger

The family. "The basic building block of society," they call it. We are born into families, cared for by family until we can begin to take care of ourselves. We share the same roof, the same table, even the same faith. Nothing unusual there. It is expected...despite the differences of individual personalities, interests and abilities that are gathered into the family unit, it is a unit. The basic building block of society. The joy I have in living with my wife and children I would not have were it not for ...

2045. The Best Birthday Ever

Psalm 90:1-17

Sermon

David E. Leininger

St. Paul's 40th Birthday. And some of you here in 1998 were here in 1958. Things are different now, of course. Churches change and neighborhoods change and even whole societies change. We know that WE change as we get older. I remember the days when it seemed that Christmas or a birthday would NEVER get here; and now I think, "Is it here again ALREADY?" You too? LOTS of things change with age. Not long ago, someone noted some of the more obvious adjustments.(1) It was entitled, "YOU'RE NOT A KID ANYMORE ...

2046. Grace and Golf

1 Corinthians 9:1-27

Sermon

David E. Leininger

"Beatin' balls and beatin' balls." That title comes from our fair city's attention to golf this week with the presence of the PGA Tour here for the Greater Greensboro Chrysler Classic. (It will always be the GGO to me though.) "Beatin' balls and beatin' balls." Whoever happens to win this afternoon will undoubtedly offer a phrase like that to anyone looking for advice about how to win at golf. Get out on the practice tee and spend hour upon hour upon hour upon hour "beatin' balls and beatin' balls." As ...

2047. Giving Dangerously

Malachi 3:6-18

Sermon

David E. Leininger

Next week is Consecration Sunday as you know. For several weeks you have been getting mail from First Presbyterian reminding you of the event. We have a special guest speaker coming - David Oyler, the Stated Clerk of our Lake Erie Presbytery - a celebration banquet following worship, all in all, a very exciting day. Our leaders are providing you the opportunity to estimate your giving for the coming year so they might wisely plan the mission and ministry of this growing church. Well, I am about to commit ...

2048. God and Hurricanes

Matthew 5:43-48

Sermon

David E. Leininger

A scary few days, eh? Just a week ago we were hearing about this incredibly powerful Hurricane Floyd in the Atlantic that might be heading in our direction - almost a Category 5 with sustained winds near the eye of 155 miles per hour. And it cut a wide swath too, hundreds of miles in diameter. Fool that I am, I normally do not worry much about hurricanes. I have come through a few. During my years of living on the coast, I evacuated in the face of oncoming storms along with everyone else. I still have a ...

2049. Hang in There!

Matthew 15:21-28

Sermon

David E. Leininger

What do you think of that story? Not much, I suspect. For those of us who are followers of Jesus Christ, this might make us wonder what we have done. After all, at first blush, this lesson makes the Lord sound like something of a jerk. My first reaction is to want to "rescue" Jesus, find some way of explaining away this conversation that will put him in a bit more flattering light. The commentators are all over the lot on this one. Some have said that Jesus was just having a bad day - he and the twelve had ...

2050. Peace in the Midst of the Storm

Mark 4:35-41

Sermon

David E. Leininger

Fear Factor. Do you watch that show? Neither do I. In fact, of all the so-called reality shows on TV these days, that is the one I would be least likely to watch. It is based on the premise of seeing what can be done to make someone "lose it" in front of millions of people. Up to your neck in snakes, rats, maggots, whatever, and how long can you last. Oh goody. Fear, of course, is something that is common to all of us. Truth be told, many of our fears are baseless - we are afraid of and worry about things ...

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