Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 2026 to 2050 of 3852 results

2026. Proper 6

Matthew 10:1-42, Matthew 9:35-38, Romans 5:1-11, Psalm 116:1-19, Genesis 18:1-15

Sermon Aid

Marion L. Soards, Thomas B. Dozeman, Kendall McCabe

... others, and that is what it means to be faithful followers. The collection of instructions in vv. 5-23 preserves a combination of time-bound traditions and "timeless truth," having mixed value for proclamation. For example, the historically specific recollection of the originally limited scope of Christ's mission in vv. 5-6 is more a matter for Bible study and the reconstruction of early Christian history than for preaching; but the pointed instructions in vv. 9-10 continue to remind us both that ministers ...

2027. Proper 9

Psalm 45:1-17, Romans 7:7-25, Matthew 11:25-30, Matthew 11:1-19, Genesis 24:1-67

Sermon Aid

Marion L. Soards, Thomas B. Dozeman, Kendall McCabe

... on of God's promise to a new generation. When preparing to preach this text, you may want to reflect on how your congregation mirrors Genesis 24. Psalm 45:10-17 - "A Marriage Song" Setting. Psalm 45 is a Song of Marriage. Scholars speculate on its original function, whether it may have been a liturgy for all marriages in the later period of ancient Israel or a celebration of the king's marriage. The latter interpretation seems more probable, which has prompted the classification of the song as a Royal Psalm ...

2028. Proper 10

Psalm 119:1-176, Romans 8:1-17, Matthew 13:1-23, Genesis 25:19-34

Sermon Aid

Marion L. Soards, Thomas B. Dozeman, Kendall McCabe

... . 1-9 may be used with or without vv. 18-23. Significance. This parable occurs in Mark (4:3-8), Luke (8:5-8), and the Gospel of Thomas (82:3-13), as well as in Matthew. Scholars are often concerned with identifying or reconstructing the "original" form of the parable, but for preaching, we are concerned with the text as it is in the canon. This does not mean that investigations into the "pre-Gospel" forms of the parable are irrelevant; rather, the insights of such critical studies are best appropriated for ...

2029. Proper 18

Psalm 149:1-9, Romans 13:8-14, Matthew 18:15-20, Exodus 12:1-30

Sermon Aid

Marion L. Soards, Thomas B. Dozeman, Kendall McCabe

... -20, 34; 13:3-10). It is not the task of a preacher to sort out the complex history of tradition in Exodus 11 -13. It is a central task, however, for any interpreter of these texts to raise the question of why these (most likely) originally distinct traditions were brought together; an answer to this question will provide the preacher with an interpretation of what salvation means. The limitation of the Old Testament lesson to Exodus 12:1-14 allows us to narrow the scope of this question to the relationship ...

2030. Proper 19

Exodus 13:17--14:31, Matthew 18:21-35, Romans 14:1--15:13, Exodus 15:1-21

Sermon Aid

Marion L. Soards, Thomas B. Dozeman, Kendall McCabe

... the first-century, in pagan contexts, much of the meat sold in the market came from the pagan temple cults where animals were offered to the pagan gods. Not all meat was from the pagan temples, but the chance was always there that meat had been devoted originally to some god(s). Some early Christians were bothered by the association of the meat with the "false gods"; some were not. For those who cared, the only safe option was to avoid meat altogether. "Weak in faith" in Romans most likely names those whose ...

2031. Proper 22

Exodus 20:1-21, Matthew 21:33-46, Philippians 3:1-11, Psalm 19:1-14

Sermon Aid

Marion L. Soards, Thomas B. Dozeman, Kendall McCabe

... the rejection of the son unacceptable, God acts both to vindicate the son and to extend the riches of his provisions to those who will cooperate with God's purposes. Told this way, from a theological point of view, the story gets us past the historical origins of the text that can render the text irrelevant for today. Yet if we are ignorant of the time-bound quality of this lesson, we will likely be either baffled about what to do with the text or tempted to lapse into a deplorable attempt to rehabilitate ...

2032. Proper 25

Deuteronomy 34:1-12, Matthew 22:34-40, Matthew 22:41-46, 1 Thessalonians 2:1-16, Psalm 90:1-17

Sermon Aid

Marion L. Soards, Thomas B. Dozeman, Kendall McCabe

... of the letter, which runs from 2:1-5:11. Thus this week's epistle lesson is the opening section of the letter's body. Structure. The verses of the lesson are a coherent but developing statement. In vv. 1-4 the apostles recall the origins and the character of their ministry in Thessalonica. Verses 5-8 clarify the character and motivations of the ministry by denying inappropriate behavior and motives (vv. 5-7) and then, explaining how and why the apostles worked as they did. Significance. Behind the remarks ...

2033. Take On Something for Lent

Matthew 4:1-11

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... , to be God’s sons and daughters — redeemed, re-dreamed, re-created, re-born. God calls us to be this true self — to be the Body of Christ on earth, to allow Christ to live his resurrection life and through us, making us more the original, one-of-a-kind person God created us to be. During this season of Lent, instead of “giving up” some indulgence, some temptation to “do” something (eat, drink, party) . . . What if we were to “take on” something? What if we were personally to “take on ...

2034. Changed Lives: Adam and Eve

Genesis 3:1-24

Sermon

King Duncan

... the heart of the apple, then eats his way out. That’s why you can’t judge whether an apple has a worm in it by looking at its skin, any more than you can judge people by looking at their outward appearance. The most deadly problems we face originate not from the outside of us, but from within. As William Shakespeare so wisely put it in his play Julius Caesar, “. . . the fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars but in ourselves . . .” There is something in the human heart that is not quite right. Left ...

2035. Romans 5: 1-11

Romans 5:1-11

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... response to the new situation, the new possibility Christ has brought to believers. Those justified by faith in Christ can “boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God.” This “glory” describes an eschatological state of being, the true, original relationship that was God’s design for divine/human interaction. Once broken and banished from this glory by sinfulness, the faithful may now look forward in “hope” to standing in this redeemed relationship with God. Paul not only finds “hope ...

2036. I Was There!

Matthew 26:14-16

Drama

Russell N. Gallimore

[This is an original first-person sermon that may be presented in period costume. It is very effective when used during Lent, especially during a Maundy Thursday service. It could be used at other communion services. Begin by standing behind the altar or communion table, speaking from memory. A money bag with several pennies ...

2037. A Personal Experience (Good Friday drama)

John 19:28-37

Drama

Russell N. Gallimore

... Scripture: Matthew 27:32, 46; Mark 15:21-22 (Mark 15:21 could be the text), 34; Luke 23:26-27, 34, 43; 46; John 19:26-30. I usually do not read a scripture so as not to “give away” too soon where the sermon is going.] [An original first person sermon, to be delivered from memory. A period costume might add to the sermon] I must confess that my first visit to this city was very unpleasant! I had long looked forward to this city’s annual celebration. Naturally, I was excited! Hundreds of others milling ...

2038. Acceptance and Awareness on Palm Sunday

Mt 21:1-11

Illustration

King Duncan

Father Henri Nouwen found a sculpture of Jesus on a donkey in the Augustiner Museum in Frieburg. He calls it one of the most moving Christ figures he knows. The fourteenth-century sculpture originally came from a small town close to Breisach on the Rhine. The sculpture was made to be pulled on a cart for the Palm Sunday procession. Nouwen found himself drawn to this sculpture. He sent postcards of it to his friends and keeps one in his prayer book. Looking at ...

2039. A Mother's Love

Mark 7:24-30

Sermon

James W. Moore

... Jews regarded the Gentiles as "unclean"… and their most notorious term of contempt was to refer to the Gentiles as the "Dogs"… the wild, filthy, flea-bitten dogs of the street. But, interestingly, (don't miss this now) Jesus does not use that word. In the original Greek text, He does not use that word "dogs." Rather, He uses the diminutive word which described not the filthy dogs of the street, but rather the little pet dogs of the house, the family's beloved puppies. When He did that, the Greek woman ...

2040. Magnanimity: The Essential Spirit of the Christian

Philippians 4:4-7

Sermon

James W. Moore

... : “I will gladly hold General McClellan’s stirrup for him, if he will only win us victories!” That’s magnanimity! Earlier, Edwin Stanton had publicly denounced Abraham Lincoln as a “fool,” “a low, cunning, clown.” Stanton called Lincoln “the original gorilla”… venomous, hateful words. But, do you know what President Lincoln did? He appointed Stanton as the Secretary of War because he truly believed that Stanton was the best man for the job. That’s magnanimity! (2) We, also, see ...

2041. John 20:19-31

John 20:19-23

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... he sees with his own eyes, Thomas exclaims in an exuberance of faith, “My Lord and my God!” (v.28). The last disciple to witness the risen Jesus in that small room is the first to explicitly declare Jesus as divine: “My God.” If the original ending of John’s gospel came at 20:31, as many scholars contend, this confession by Thomas would have been the final spoken confession made in John’s gospel. Jesus accepts Thomas’ confession. Yet Jesus also gently chides Thomas for having to depend upon ...

2042. Luke 24:13-35

Luke 24:13-35

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... that all future followers of his must take: finding reasoned validation for our faith from biblical texts and traditions as well as from a personal experiences of the resurrected Christ (for those of you used to Wesleyan parlance, this is the true origin of SERT---Scripture, Experience, Reason, Tradition). As the travelers approach Emmaus, Luke heightens the tension in this narrative by making it appear Jesus will leave the two disciples, walking ahead of them as though “he were going on.” But the story ...

2043. How to Live a Sizzle-When-It-Drizzles Life

John 10:1-21

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... pace. Sometimes the down and drizzly times in the abundant life are caused by allowing the world to set our pace, to set our agenda, to set our standards. Sometimes we need to clean off our grimy lenses and see beauty, truth and goodness in their original glory and splendor. “One of the most moving stories I have read in recent times is that told by Martha Beck in her book Expecting Adam. Martha and her husband John were graduate students at Harvard University well on their way to careers of academic ...

2044. Would You Make a Good Witness? (Ascension Day)

Acts 1:1-11

Sermon

King Duncan

... on Amazon.com you will find a highly acclaimed book on the care of parrots by Tony Silva, who was once the president of the American Parrot Association. Silva was well known for his warnings about the dangers of bird poaching, and of buying parrots of suspicious origin. And yet Tony Silva made the New York Times a decade ago when he confessed to a federal judge that he had smuggled more than 185 rare birds into this country from South America. One of his techniques was to drug the birds, then jam them into ...

2045. The Ability to Hear - Listening

Acts 2:1-41

Illustration

Will Willimon

... our communication due to differences in economics, education, race and class, what hope is there for us ever to understand one another? The story we have read today, the story of Pentecost, is a story about hearing. Remember the Genesis story of the Tower of Babel, that time when the original "one language and few words" of humanity was disrupted forever by the profusion of languages and speech? Some believe that this Pentecost story is meant to signify a gracious reversal of Babel.

2046. An Amazing Organization

Acts 2:1-21

Illustration

Russ Blowers

... and behavior alteration. We run hospitals, feeding stations, crisis pregnancy centers, universities, publishing houses, and nursing homes. We care for our clients from birth to death. We are into life insurance and fire insurance. We perform spiritual heart transplants. Our original Organizer owns all the real estate on earth plus an assortment of galaxies and constellations. He knows everything and lives everywhere. Our product is free for the asking. (There's not enough money to buy it.) Our CEO was born ...

2047. The 3 Rs of a Holy Life

2 Corinthians 13:1-14

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... and the forbidden fruit and the draw-down of desire. Adam and Eve eat the forbidden fruit so that they might become “like God,” knowing good from evil. Willful disobedience, a passion for power, seeking to de-throne God, this was the origin of the Devil. Our own irrationalities, hatreds, fears, and despairs bring the “devil” to life. These three evils—the world, the flesh, and the devil---look like an unbeatable team, dooming humans to a mere scratch-and-claw existence. It was subservience to ...

2048. The Beginning

Genesis 1:1-2:3

Bulletin Aid

Leonard H. Budd

... answers given by each person are different ways of answering the question "Where did you come from?" - answers on the levels of fact, experience, and faith. Discussion Questions Many people see a conflict between the scientific and biblical understanding of the origin of the world. How does the author suggest that science and faith reinforce each other? In what ways do you personally believe that science and faith conflict or reinforce each other? The author says that the main point of the biblical story ...

2049. The Handshake

Illustration

King Duncan

... 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 stranger. The two would then circle each other until they knew what the situation ...

2050. What's Holding You Together?

Matthew 7:21-23

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... the whole world in God’s hands? Every year or so a flurry of activity on eBay indicates the discovery of a new “relic.” In the first thousand years of the church, “relics” surfaced at regular intervals. Splinters off the original cross. Virgin’s milk. Fingers of the saints. Locks of hair from the apostles. Tiny bits of this and that from the “saints,” preserved in “reliquaries” with handwritten explanations called “authentics,” were the basis for church dedications and commissionings ...

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