Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 2076 to 2100 of 4976 results

2076. Not a Servant, but a Son

Galatians 4:6-7

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... adopted by grace, and sit on the porch and enter into the conversation with the lord and share all the abundance of God’s love. “You are no longer a servant but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ,” Paul says in verse 7. Keep that image in mind when you pray. All the riches of God, all the joy and communion, all the comfort of relationships, all the guidance a Father offers a child is ours in prayer because we are not servants but sons. III One other word now. Think what not being ...

2077. The Shepherd Lord

Psalm 23:1-6

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... the most, if not the most, holy place in the temple of scripture. Since it is the centerpiece on the table of our psalm feast, we will keep our eyes and hearts on it for three Sundays as we finish this Psalm series. Today we focus on the first line: “The Lord is my Shepherd ... its own object. It is as though the unconscious part of the mind leaps up and grasps the very idea which we want to keep out. So let me suggest a change in our normal way of praying. We ought not, to pray, “Help me not to lose my ...

2078. The Unforgivable Sin

Mark 3:20-30

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... is to say “no” to Jesus gracious appeal and pleading to be Savior and Lord of our lives. Let’s be very specific now. Keep the focus clear. Resistance to the Holy Spirit is the unforgivable sin. What form might that take in our lives? Let me list ... that relationship, a pattern of bondage developed in my life. I cried out to God for freedom and nothing I did released me. So to keep from dragging God’s name in the mud, I am giving up.” What a spiritual tragedy! It is one thing to feel cursed and ...

2079. War and the Prince of Peace

Isaiah 9:2-7

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... he stilled the tempest, calmed the angry sea. And I humbly ask if in his love, he'll do the same for me. Then I just keep quiet, and think on thoughts of peace. And as I abide in stillness, my restless murmurings cease. Peace is an inside job. II. PEACE IS A ... you going to ignore it until they get into a fist fight? Are you going to yell at your wife and say, “Why didn't you keep the kids in the house?" Are you going to grab that Big Wheel in anger throw it in the corner and saying, “Until you learn to ...

2080. Living on Full Alert

Matthew 24: 36-44

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... . Theresa is in the choir today, singing about her faith which sustains her day after day. So, never a day passes, but that someone is taken and another left. Whether swept away or left behind, let us find the kind of faith that we need to keep on keeping on. Christ is coming—be faithful. III. CHRIST IS COMING—BE READY Be alert. Watch, is the Biblical word. Since September 11th, the world has lived on full alert. Soldiers at Fort Campbell are ready to move into combat at a moment's notice. Reserves in ...

2081. On Being Faithful and Focused

Hebrews 11:1, 32 – 12:2

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... been touched by his fatherliness. He had thought they were totally disinterested and disconnected. They are here now to pay tribute, in one shining moment, to a life that had been faithful. I watched that movie and wept. It said to me powerfully, that if we keep our promises, if we do our best, if we resist the temptations to sell our self short, if we remain faithful even when it is hard, we will teach our children and our grandchildren tons about self-respect and responsibility. Will those who come behind ...

2082. Following the Footsteps of the Faithful

Hebrews 11:1-13

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... , I want to stay a little longer.” Dr. Olds: “You’re not only looking into the past, you’re looking to the future. I know you and Joy have already made a commitment to the future, to the people who will come after you. Why do you keep investing in the future?” Billy Jim: “Well, I remember the Depression. I remember it very well, when there was nothing. There was nothing. No money floating around, people wondered where to go and what to do, our church had just burned down. We really didn’t have ...

2083. The Miracle of Peace

Psalm 85:1-13

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... the first place, leans over to his friend and comments, “Adults love to say stuff like that, but kids know better. Kids know it's always better not to get caught than to admit anything." If we had no savior, all of us might be better to stuff our sins, keep a straight face, and defend our innocence all the way home. If all that juggling is making you tired, I have good news for you. Christ the Savior is born. If we confess our sins, God who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from ...

2084. Unusual Joy

Psalm 126:1-6

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... prayers when no answer came, When my hopes and faith were almost gone. But answers have come to enough of my prayers, To make me keep praying on. I've drained the cup of disappointment and pain, I've gone many days without a song. But I've sipped enough ... word in his overnight stay at our place. His friends said his mouth had gotten Jim in a lot of trouble, so he vowed to keep quiet. As Jim was leaving on Wednesday morning, warm, washed and well fed, he handed two dollars to one of our volunteers and wrote in ...

2085. Household of Faith

II Timothy 1:3-7

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... it burning. And so, Paul writes to his young friend, Timothy, fan the flame that is within you. Stir up the gift that is there. Jesus would say, if you want to keep your lamp burning you better put some oil in it. There are some means and activities by which we can keep the flame of faith burning in our lives. They are simple things really. It is like deciding as a family to worship God. If church were just a matter of sermons, you could get more effective ones on the Internet. If church were just a matter ...

2086. How to Make Heaven Our Home

Philippians 3:17-4:1

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... does any good? Why I don’t care any more for your talk than I do for the bite of a flea.” Sojourner Truth looked the man in the eye and said, “Perhaps not, but the Lord willing, I plan to keep you scratching as long as you live.” I intend to stay in there with you reminding you of the wrong of this day. I keep on keeping on. That is heaven on earth. I pledge allegiance to the Kingdom of God and the principles for which it stands, one people, under God, indivisible with liberty and grace for all.

2087. Return Home and Tell How Much God Has Done for You

Luke 8:26-39

Illustration

Scott Hozee

... verse 39, he kept on talking about what Jesus had done. Something about his ongoing witness reminds us that this is also our role: lots of people in this world try to chase Jesus away. Our task is to hang around anyway and to just keep talking, just keep witnessing to Jesus' work, and just keep hoping that at the end of the day, that witness will bring people back to the very Jesus they once chased away. "Return home and tell how much God has done for you," Jesus told this man. He tells the rest of us the ...

2088. Come to Bethlehem and See

Luke 2:8-20

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... never be thirsty." When I was in the hospital I went for two weeks without a bite to eat and only an occasional sip of water to keep my mouth moist. Then one day my entourage of caretakers announced that I could go home if I could eat and drink enough to ward off ... : “Lord, this is a lifeline for me. Help me eat this bread that I may be set free." Piece by piece I was able to keep it down. Lying in a feeding trough, we behold the bread of life. He is a life-line for our freedom; the forgiveness of our ...

2089. How Can We Stand on Holy Ground?

Psalm 24:1

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... way: Wake up you sleepyhead city Wake up you sleepyhead people The King of glory is ready to come. Don't sleep when he arrives. Lift up your head. Look up. Take a look in God's direction and catch a glimpse of the presence of the Almighty God. III. KEEP LOOKING UP! He had no money. He owned no home. He drove no car. He was not a particularly good father. He always came to church dressed in his bib overalls. Upon turning 16 it became my service to him and the church to drive him home from worship services ...

2090. What Would Jesus Say About the Media?

Mark 9:1-9

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... , and now the internet have revolutionized our way of communicating around the world. 97% of American homes have indoor plumbing, 99% have a television. 75% of American homes have a VCR, even though most of us over 50 still can’t figure out how to keep the 12:00 from flashing. It probably doesn’t matter anyway since the DVD player is rapidly making the VCR obsolete. The remote control has become the most cherished household possession, especially for men. My advice to you ladies is not to fight over the ...

2091. Finding the Courage to Believe

John 20:24-31

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... explaining it to them? Do you remember who first told you the stories of Jesus? Was it a parent, a grandparent, a Sunday School teacher, a pastor, a friend? Have you thanked God for them lately? Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep. If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take. Do you remember how easy it was back then? God was big enough to hold you tight. When we went to bed we didn't lack fear. Monsters were under the bed and even bigger ...

2092. The Down Side of Christmas

Matthew 2:13-18

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... . Escape to Egypt. Stay there. The imperatives convey the emergency. Like the Kenny Rogers song says: You've got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold ‘em, know when to walk away and know when to run. We will do whatever we need to do to keep our children safe and protected from the evil ones, including locking the doors to our day school and child care center. In certain present dangers, the best thing we can do is run for our lives. How can God help us in time of trouble? There is another thing ...

2093. The Power of a Vision

2 Corinthians 5:11-21

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... I have one last chance to get it right when it comes to leading a church. With all my heart, I want to build a congregation that honors God and ministers to people. Let me be perfectly clear. It’s not about staying ahead of the Baptists, keeping up with the Catholics, or being one of the largest Methodist churches in the country. My final report will not be made to an annual conference or to a reporter surveying the religious landscape of a growing county. To God and God alone, we must be accountable ...

2094. Habakkuk: The Problem of Evil

Habakkuk 1:1-4

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... in his book, Farewell to God, he explained his disbelief. Don't let your questions do that to you, there is a better way. II. HOW CAN WE LIVE THE QUESTIONS? We can be quiet. Habakkuk 2:20 “The Lord is in his holy temple. Let all the earth keep silence before him." People without noise are like fish out of water. We immediately start flopping around trying to find something familiar. We can't study without music. My son can't sleep without a fan running. We won't take a walk without our Walkman or Ipod. We ...

2095. From Greed to Generosity

Mark 10:17-27

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... Even more than that, we want to be greedy, it seems to me. Who wants to be a millionaire? We all do, don't we? I keep watching the reruns of that game show on the Game Channel. I know the answers to a lot of the questions. I sit there in my ... to. He was a ruler. He had power and prestige. He spoke and things happened. He was a ruler. He was righteous. When Jesus said keep the commandments, don't steal, don't commit adultery, don't bear false witness, don't covet your neighbor's possessions, this man responds ...

2096. From Lust to Love

1 Corinthians 13: 1

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... not boast, he is not proud." She didn't even let me finish. She said, "Who are you trying to kid?" There is only one way to read this passage. Listen to it. Such love is of God. God is patient. God is kind. God is not easily angered. God keeps no record of wrongs. God does not delight in evil but rejoices in the truth. God always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. God never fails. So, I read this poem with a prayer on my lips "God help me." Only you can help me put my childish ways ...

2097. Reaching Up—Reaching Out

Matthew 6:19-24

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... center of your being- as your cardiologist is concerned about the heart muscle in your body. So the Bible says: 1. "Love God with all your heart." 2. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart." 3. "Set your heart on things above." Prayer is one exercise that will keep our hearts in tune. Prayer for me is not about a Christmas list of requests or a grocery list of complaints. Prayer is a way of seeing, a communion of understanding, a vital connection with the Divine. It is a way to be enlightened and to walk in ...

2098. Be Silent

Luke 1:11-20

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... of it, all the way through. Jeremiah says the word of the Lord came to me and I became his prophet and every time I spoke I got in such trouble that finally one day I just said to God, I'm not talking any more. But Jeremiah couldn't keep his resolve. There was a fire in his belly put there by God and when he tried to be quiet, it would just burn within him. At last he laments I am weary with holding it in; indeed I cannot (Jeremiah 20:9). John the Baptist said, I baptize you ...

2099. The Humble King

John 12:12-19

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... In genuine worship we bow before our Maker. Easterners have the art of bending and bowing as a means of respect. It's hard to get Westerners to bow their heads, much less bend their knees. In genuine worship we are hushed by the Divine. “Let all mortal flesh keep silence." In our noisy world let us find a place to be quiet. In genuine worship my eyes are opened until I see a glimpse of the truth God has for me. Worship deserves our best attention and deepest devotion. We will get more out of worship if we ...

2100. Rejoicing in God’s Saints

Philippians 1:1-6

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... is—a partner in the Gospel. II. SAINTS ARE PEOPLE IN PROCESS. In verse 6 we read, “I am confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." Saints are sinners who keep on keeping on. One of our church members had spinal surgery a few weeks ago. While the surgery was successful, Pat was required to wear a large metal contraption to hold his head still affectionately called a “halo." When I went to see him in the hospital the day after ...

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