Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 2076 to 2100 of 4914 results

2076. The Gift Has Arrived

Isaiah 61:1-11

Sermon

King Duncan

I read recently about a woman who had waited till the last minute to send Christmas cards. She rushed into a store and bought a package of 50 cards without really looking at them. Still in a big hurry she addressed 49 of the 50 and signed them without reading the message inside. On Christmas Day, when things had quieted down somewhat she chanced to run upon the leftover card and finally read the message she had sent to 49 of her friends. Much to her dismay, it read like this: "This card is just to say A ...

2077. The Placebo Effect

John 1:1-18

Sermon

King Duncan

When medicine was primitive years ago, doctors, not knowing exactly what to prescribe to their patients, often prescribed sugar pills or bottles of colored water with no medicinal value with the assurance that some of their patients would still experience some relief as soon as the so-called medicine was applied. This form of treatment is called "the placebo effect" and it has been noted that 30 to 60 per cent of those persons who receive a placebo, not real medicine but a harmless substitute will ...

2078. Response To The Resurrection: Christian People In A Pluralistic Society

Acts 17:16-34

Sermon

King Duncan

The Reverend Pat Robertson was being interviewed on the television program "Cross Fire" by Mark Greene, representing the political left, and Robert Novak, representing the right. They asked Robertson some very pointed questions. One of these concerned a fundraising letter that was mailed out by the Robertson Organization following his victory in the Michigan state caucus in which he said to his supporters, "The Christians are winning." Mark Greene wanted to know how nonChristians were to feel about ...

2079. The Mighty Tide Of God Rolled In

Acts 2:1-13

Sermon

King Duncan

A ship strayed off course near San Diego some years back. It became stuck in a reef at low tide. Twelve tugboats were unsuccessful in their attempts to budge it. Finally, the captain instructed the tugs to go back home. He sighed, "I'll just be patient and wait." He waited until high tide. All of a sudden the ocean began to rise. What human power could not do, the rising tide of the Pacific Ocean did. It lifted that ship and put it back into the channel. (1) Something like that happened to the early church ...

2080. Keeping Alert For Christmas

Mark 13:32-37, Mark 13:1-31

Sermon

King Duncan

As Alice sat in worship on the first Sunday in Advent her mind began to wander. She thought of the shopping she needed to do. She thought of all the church programs and neighborhood parties and school activities she would be expected to attend. She had better get those dates on her calendar as soon as possible she thought. And if they really are going to get a goose for Christmas dinner, then now is the time to order it from the butcher. Alice became consumed thinking of all the activities she would be ...

2081. The Secrets Of His Success

Genesis 45:1-28

Sermon

King Duncan

This morning we are beginning at the climax of one of the best known and best loved stories of the Bible and working our way backwards. Joseph is the second most powerful man in all of Egypt. In front of him stand the very brothers who sold him into slavery years before. They are terrified that a brother whom they treated so unjustly now has the power of life and death over them. But Joseph says to his brothers, "Come close to me." When they are gathered around him he says to them, "Don't be distressed and ...

2082. The Comfort of God

Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon

Edward Inabinet

Listen now to a great promise of Jesus: "Blessed are those who mourn: for they shall be comforted." The comfort of God--how desperately we need it. Our loss is stark and painful and the future looks uncertain, and this blessing Jesus gives becomes a reality in our mourning as we trust in Him. COMFORT COMES FROM KNOWING AN ETERNAL MERCY AND LOVE THROUGH JESUS. If we come to know his mercy and love personally in this life, we will know it on into eternity. So will our loved ones who die in Him. Jeremiah said ...

2083. The Lord's Prayer: A Surplus of Meaning

Matthew 6:5-15

Sermon

Eric Ritz

Some years ago a group of 25 Biblical scholars formed a group called, "The Jesus Seminar." About five years ago, they used a color code to vote on what words of The Lord''s Prayer they actually believed came directly from the lips of our Lord, Jesus Christ and not the editorial revisions of the Gospel writers, Matthew and Luke, and those who came after them. The color code was as follows: RED - direct words from Jesus PINK - not directly from Jesus, but close to what he might have said. GRAY - indirectly ...

2084. The Hillside and the Basket

John 6:1-15

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

There is a certain rock known as a geode. From the outside it is but a dull-looking stone. Yet crack it open and one discovers a breathtaking array of crystals in a hollow core. I feel like I'm holding an uncracked geode in my hands when I look at a Bible text. I know there is a powerful blessing in the passage. It must simply be opened to the light by preaching. So to the text, the story of the feeding of the multitudes, we now turn. There Was a Need! Our text begins with a human need. Jesus had been ...

2085. Who Needs a Doctor?

Mark 2:13-17

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

Sometime ago Sydney Harris, the syndicated columnist, wrote a "fascinating piece about Anita Bryant that I would like to read to you this morning. As you know, Anita Bryant was a self-appointed crusader against gay rights a few years ago. Then she went through a divorce, and acquired a drug habit, and was hospitalized for a long time. And today, she's not the same person she was back then. This is what Sydney Harris wrote: He said, "Now that her world has come unstuck, and she is beginning to reglue it, I ...

2086. Soul Drain

Psalm 63:1-11

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

Some time ago, I was reading Newsweek magazine and came across an article by Herbert Gold. Now I don’t know who Herbert Gold is, but he wrote a marvelous article about his visit to the Soviet Union and his sharing with the dissenters that Soltzeneitzen after __ defection. Gold was disturbed, as I was when I was in the Soviet Union a few months ago, about the abandonment of hope he found among the people of Russia. There was a tremendously morbid sense of despair. He closed his article by sharing a personal ...

2087. Who Needs A Doctor?

Luke 5:27-32

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

2088. Jedi Christians

Matthew 14:22-36

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

Who's your favorite superhero? We've got a lot to pick from this summer. Everybody loves a superhero. Just look at the movies. Our kids' heads are filled with dreams of superhero-dom, as we fill their toy chests with action figures, costumes, and props so they can pretend they're the latest champion of the universe. This summer opened with George Lucas' newest installment in the Star Wars saga: Episode II Attack of the Clones. It re-energized the lore and lure of that extraterrestrial epic our nonlinear, ...

2089. The Counter Intelligence of the Cross

1 Corinthians 1:18--2:5, 1 Corinthians 1:10-17, 1 Corinthians 1:1-9

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

This week’s epistle text is a long one: 19 verses. It faithfully follows the precise, prescribed unfolding of Paul’s letter to the Corinthian church, which in turn faithfully follows the niceities of proper letter composition in the first century Greco-Roman world. The genius of Paul is to work within formulaic frameworks while finding a way to add his own unique touches in order to preach the gospel. In his salutation (vv.1-3) Paul asserts his own apostolic identity, his “call,” and identifies the source ...

2090. The Play's Playbook for the Game of Life

1 Peter 4:12-19

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

It is known simply as “The Play.” “The Play” is the name of the greatest game of football ever played--anywhere, anytime. Can anyone here this morning tell me who played in “The Play?” Right: California vs. Stanford. Can anyone tell me the year of “The Play.?” Right: 1982. Can anyone tell me what was so special about “The Play?” Right: With 53 seconds left in the game, Stanford was down 17-19, stuck in their own backfield. It was fourth down, 17 yards to go. But miraculously the Stanford QB (anyone? . . . ...

2091. America in the Mirror

2 Kings 17:5-23

Sermon

James Merritt

Oftentimes the question is asked, "Is America in the Bible?" Well, the answer to that question is both no and yes. No, I do not find America directly in the Bible; I know of no Bible prophecy that can be directly traced to United States. But on the other hand, I do believe we see in the Bible a parallel to America. I see a nation, which in many ways, pictures the past, the path, and the problems of America. Israel was born supernaturally, and almost instantaneously. Like America, Israel was at one time the ...

2092. Are You Ready for the Journey?

Mark 8:27-9:1

Sermon

John E. Harnish

It all begins with one emperor penguin jumping out of the water and doing a belly splash onto the ice. Then he rises on his little web feet and the rich, resonate voice of the narrator says: "Like most love stories, it begins with an act of utter foolishness. Each year at about the same time, the emperor penguin will leave the comforts of his ocean home and embark on an incredible journey. Though he is a bird, he won't fly. Though he lives in the ocean, he won't swim. For the most part, he will walk. But ...

2093. Thunder in the Mountains, Silence in the Soul

1 Kings 19:9-18

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

God is both inside and outside - in the mountains and their thunder and in the quiet caves of our souls. To Moses God spoke through the mountains with a roar. To Elijah God spoke through the cave in a still small voice. God still speaks in various ways today. The multifaceted nature of God's presence before human beings is demonstrated dramatically in this week's text from 1 Kings. While the redactors have taken tremendous pains to set up a correlation between Moses and Elijah, the experience of God is ...

2094. Itchy Ears

2 Timothy 3:14-4:5

Sermon

Donna Schaper

As usual, the epistle is a little more graphic than we can quite grasp. Itchy ears: what a concept just in physical terms. Experience it for a minute. You itch, you scratch, you sort of know you shouldn't scratch because it will only make the itch worse. But still you scratch, while wondering how the itch ever got started in the first place. What a concept: itchy ears as a vehicle for spiritual truth. When we itch, we scratch. We awaken. We know we are not comfortable. We want to be comfortable. This ...

2095. Good News about Death

John 11:38-44

Sermon

King Duncan

Comedian Woody Allen once said that it’s impossible to whistle a tune while pondering one’s own death. And yet that is exactly what we want to do on this All Saints’ Day 2009. We’re not going to whistle, but we’re going to put death in its place. Every once in a while a series of epitaphs come across the Internet. I’m glad that we can find humor even in cemeteries. Here are some of the best ones I’ve seen: “Harry Edsel Smith of Albany, New York: Died 1942. Looked up the elevator shaft to see if the car was ...

2096. With Overflowing Cup

Psalm 23:5

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

In an old Peanuts cartoon, Lucy is down in the dumps & says to Linus, "My life is a drag. I've never been so low in all my life." Linus, the deep thinker and theologian of the comic strip tries to cheer her up by saying "When you're in a mood like this you should think of the things you have to be thankful for, count your blessings." Lucy replies, "That's a good one, What do I have to be thankful for?" "Well for one thing," Linus says, "you have a brother who loves you!" Lucy responds, "Sometimes, you say ...

2097. The Gospel of Marah

Exodus 15:22-27

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

I delight in hearing a great sermon. I relish reading the creative writing, of other preachers. I have a sort of insatiable appetite for preachers. I heard recently of a man who was telling of his surgery. A lot of people like to tell about their operations, though not many people like to hear about them. This fellow said that when the doctor sewed him up after surgery, he left the sponge inside. His sympathetic listener asked him if he had any pain. “No,” said the fellow, “but I sure do get thirsty.” I ...

2098. You Can't Stay on the Mountain Forever

Mark 9:2-13

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

Some years back, Desmond McCarthy, renowned drama critic for The London Sunday Times, came for his initial visit to America. His New York City host had arranged, naturally, to go to the theater the very same night that he arrived. Coming out after the performance, McCarthy looked for the first time at the dazzling lights of Broadway. He had blinked at them for a few moments without a word, then he turned to his host and said: “Tell me, what do you Americans do when it comes time to celebrate what should be ...

2099. The World According to Paul

1 Thessalonians 1:1-10

Sermon

Mary S. Lautensleger

Book clubs have become quite popular in recent years, largely due to Oprah Winfrey and her outstanding selections of quality books. The Book of the Month Club has been around for generations, but did you know that book clubs originated in the seventeenth century?1 I certainly didn't. Some readers feel that novels are a waste of time when compared with nonfiction. However, our finest novelists have a keen insight into human nature and deal with theological topics and "Christ events" regularly in their ...

2100. Speaking Peace

John 20:19-31

Sermon

John Smylie

On the evening of that day, that first Easter Day, the disciples were gathered together, but as yet none of them had seen their risen Lord. There they were behind locked doors. We can begin to imagine the thoughts they held within their minds, we can almost sense and feel the depth of their fears, and we can listen for their quiet conversation among themselves as they questioned everything. There in the middle of the room were the deepest feelings of guilt because they had scattered and abandoned their ...

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