Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: touch, feel, sense of touch, tactile sense, tactility, contact, using one's hands, sensation, sense, suspicion, sneaking suspicion, notion, inkling, hunch, fancy, apprehension, presentiment, premonition, foreboding, love, care, affection, fondness, tenderness, warmth, warmness, emotion, sentiment, emotional state, compassion, sympathy, empathy, fellow feeling, understanding, concern, solicitude, solicitousness, tender-heartedness, brotherly love, sensibilities, sensitivities, self-esteem, ego, pride, opinion, belief, view, impression, intuition, instinct, estimation, guess, theory, hypothesis, thought, way of thinking, point of view, atmosphere, ambience, aura, air, mood, climate, character, overtone, undertone, tenor, spirit, quality, flavour, colour, aptitude, knack, flair, bent, talent, gift, skill, art, trick, faculty, ability, propensity, inclination, sensitive, warm, warm-hearted, tender, tender-hearted, caring, soft-hearted, sympathetic, compassionate, empathetic, responsive, receptive, intuitive, thoughtful

Antonyms: bad feeling, acrimony, animosity, animus, antagonism, antipathy, aversion, bitterness, detestation, disgust, dislike, disrelish, enmity, friction, grievances, grudges, hatred, hostility, loathing, malevolence, malice

Showing 2076 to 2100 of 4963 results

2076. Sexual Immorality

1 Corinthians 6:12-20

Understanding Series

Marion L. Soards

... of human beings. God founded, forms, and holds a claim on the lives of these and all other believers. No greater truth can be brought home to the church and its members in every generation. How often do discussions of personal and community affairs (freedoms? rights? responsibilities?) take their start and find their course from the reality that every aspect of the life of believers belongs to God? Nothing we have is ours to have and to do with as we please. All of life belongs to God, and it is ultimately ...

2077. The Scroll and the Lamb

Revelation 5:1-14

Understanding Series

Robert W. Wall

... by his death, the Lamb himself takes the scroll from God (5:7)—a confirmation of God’s endorsement. These witnesses to the Lamb’s worthiness settle the issue for the heavenly jury of the four creatures and twenty-four elders (cf. Rev. 4), whose choral response is a “new song” about the slain Lamb’s worthiness to open the scroll (5:9–10). Other voices are added to this chorus, first by the thousands of angels who sing about the Lamb’s worthiness to receive worship as Lord (5:11), and then ...

2078. The Priests Begin their Ministry

Leviticus 9:1-24

Understanding Series

W. H. Bellinger, Jr.

... as in Exodus 19, smoke and lightning appear. Here the fire came out from the presence of the LORD and consumed the burnt offering and the fat portions. Presumably the fire came from the Tent of Meeting. In response the people shouted for joy and then prostrated themselves as an indication of reverence and worship. This response suggests respect and awe, since if the devouring, fiery divine presence can consume what is on the altar, it can also consume the people. This manifestation of the divine glory and ...

2079. Various Laws

Leviticus 19:1-37

Understanding Series

W. H. Bellinger, Jr.

... at times in Israelite society. No partiality is shown to the poor or to the great. The term for partiality means literally “to lift one’s face,” a sign of favoritism. The prohibition in verse 16 may relate to the same setting. The responsibility of the witness is to tell the truth and not engage in gossip. The reference may well be to serious defamation of character or malicious libel. Such malicious slander could endanger the life of another. Verse 17 commends honesty from both inside and outside ...

2080. Reward for Obedience

Leviticus 26:1-13

Understanding Series

W. H. Bellinger, Jr.

... people. Yahweh will look upon the people graciously. The covenant language continues with the promise of divine presence in the tabernacle, the source of life for the community. The divine promise I will not abhor you is tied to Israel’s response; Israelites are called not to abhor Yahweh and Yahweh’s instructions. The divine presence will be gracious in this context of obedience and not threatening. God moves among the people as companion and communicator in a mutual relationship. The covenant formula ...

2081. The Kohathites

Numbers 4:1-20

Understanding Series

W.H. Bellinger, Jr.

... to organize the people, especially for the upcoming march, and an essential part of the organization of this community is the work of the Tent of Meeting. 4:4–6 In a natural progression, the work of the Kohathites is then detailed. They are responsible for the most holy objects in the tabernacle. It is important that Levites not come into contact with such holiness, and so the priests must prepare the objects when the tabernacle is to be dismantled for moving. First the priests take the shielding curtain ...

2082. Fire from the Lord

Numbers 11:1-3

Understanding Series

W.H. Bellinger, Jr.

... his complaint to God: It would take flocks and herds and all the fish in the sea to feed six hundred thousand men (and their families) meat to eat for a whole month! Moses thus refers to the census in Numbers 1 (see also Exod. 12:37). God’s response (v. 23) is rhetorical: We will see. Is the LORD’s arm too short? is a literal translation of a phrase to express a limitation on God’s power. 11:24–30 The action resulting from the dialogue concludes the chapter. First, the seventy elders gather at the ...

2083. Korah, Dathan and Abiram

Numbers 16:1-50

Understanding Series

W.H. Bellinger, Jr.

... on questions of holiness and authority. The challenge is for the next morning at the tabernacle. All parties to the controversy are to bring their censers with fire and incense in them before the LORD. God will then choose the one who is holy. Moses concludes his response with a reply to the claim that he and Aaron have gone too far (v. 3) by saying, You Levites have gone too far! Moses’ reply continues in verse 8 with an address to Korah, although the message is clearly to all the Levites. Moses reminds ...

2084. Arad Destroyed

Numbers 21:1-3

Understanding Series

W.H. Bellinger, Jr.

... chapter ends with further victories and therefore marks a kind of transition into the hopeful concluding section of the book. 21:1–3 The chapter begins with a note of defeat for Israel. The Canaanite king of Arad attacks and captures some Israelites. In response, Israel enters into dialogue with God and vows to follow the holy war procedures. They will enact the kherem, or ban. Everything taken will be devoted to destruction, removed from the human realm and given to God. God accepts the vow and gives the ...

2085. Balaam’s First Oracle

Numbers 23:1-12

Understanding Series

W.H. Bellinger, Jr.

... of the three encounters with Balaam’s donkey in chapter 22 (Numbers, pp. 145–47). Balaam is caught between God’s intention to bless and Balak’s desire for a curse, as the donkey was caught between Balaam and the angel. As Balaam’s response in chapter 22 escalated with each episode, so Balak becomes angrier as each oracle comes. Each oracle account has six elements: Balak brings Balaam to a high point to see Israel. Balak builds seven altars and sacrifices a bull and ram on each. Balaam consults ...

2086. Zelophehad's Daughters

Numbers 27:1-11

Understanding Series

W.H. Bellinger, Jr.

... lot kept by the high priest (Urim and Thummim). It is often suggested that these were stones with some kind of inscription on them. They were cast to answer a question in the positive or the negative. If both fell one way, the response was positive; if they fell the other way, the response was negative. One positive and one negative response meant no decision. The text does not give a description of the Urim and Thummim or their use. The outcome of the casting of lots is understood to be guaranteed by God.

2087. The Lord Calls Samuel

1 Samuel 3:1–4:1

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

... for a report of the message he too is wary, asking what was it he (as opposed to the Lord) said to you, needing to hear the report before he concludes that He is the LORD. Samuel’s youth does not prevent him from being given the responsibility of hearing an adult message of fierce judgment, made more difficult because it was directed at Eli. The modern tendency to protect children from hard truths is not reflected here. Samuel’s reaction was to get back to his normal duties: he opened the doors of the ...

2088. David, Nabal, Abigail

1 Samuel 25:1-44

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

... recognizes that Abigail’s message is in line with what he knows God has been saying to him. Immediately he calms down, accepts the gift, and responds positively to her request for no further steps to be taken against the farm or its workers. David’s response to Abigail’s speech has some parallels with his reaction to what Nathan had to say to him in 2 Samuel 12, although that comes after rather than before he has taken unwise action. Nabal, on hearing of his wife’s action, suffered an apoplectic fit ...

2089. David Destroys the Amalekites

1 Samuel 30:1-31

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

... a sickly slave; to leave him was an alternative to his being summarily killed, and this way he had a chance. The Egyptian said that he had come from an Amalekite party that had carried out raids against Israelites and Philistines and that had been responsible for the burning of Ziklag. He showed no particular loyalty to the Amalekites, and, seeking only an amnesty for himself, guided David’s party over the Amalekite route. His knowledge of the route (v. 16) may indicate that his master had expected him to ...

2090. Abner Goes Over to David

2 Samuel 3:6-21

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

... not insignificant. Its content is fierce, and it stood as an open, public rebuke to Joab. However, there is no provision in the law for cursing to be seen as an alternative to proper prescribed punishments. In that sense David could be seen as avoiding the proper responsibilities of kingship to ensure that justice was done and was seen to be done. 3:30 It is possible that the problem for Joab was not just that Abner had killed Asahel but that he had done so by a ruse. Asahel’s death was not heroic. Abner ...

2091. Amnon and Tamar

2 Samuel 13:1-22

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

... of those values. To Amnon, Tamar was now simply this woman, to be summarily dismissed. But to the writers, Tamar’s distress, and the fact that she remained a desolate woman, were significant. 13:20–29 Absalom seeks to comfort Tamar, and he takes his responsibilities toward her seriously. But he also plans revenge, perhaps using this incident as an excuse for getting rid of Amnon on his own account. Absalom was an ambitious young man, and there was no love lost between the two brothers. Verse 21 tells us ...

2092. David Counts the Fighting Men

2 Samuel 24:1-17

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

... . 24:18–25 Verse 25 could be seen as portraying the sacrifice, made at the threshing floor of Araunah, as the means of reconciliation and therefore possibly as the reason for stopping the plague. However, in the earlier verses (16–18) the sacrifice is presented as a response to, not as the cause of, the plague’s end. The site is chosen because it was the place where the plague stopped, presumably the point where the final victim died. The mention of the angel of the LORD (v. 16) emphasizes the writers ...

2093. Job's Reply to Bildad

Job 9:1–10:22

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

... discussion in a new direction. Up to this point in the book Job has largely been addressing the extremity of his suffering and raising the agonizing question as to how a righteous person can be allowed to suffer so horrendously. Now, however, in response to Bildad’s suggestion that the resolution of Job’s suffering lies in his willingness to “look to God and plead with the Almighty” (8:5), Job begins to consider the possibility of such a confrontation with the divine and its prospects for redress ...

2094. Eliphaz's Second Speech to Job

Job 15:1-35

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

... friends’ attempts in general—and his own in particular—to encourage Job to submit to the consensus of the sages and to give up his angry struggle with God. The implied threat is that if Job ignores these gentle words, he can anticipate a harsher response in the future. Since Job has already experienced the worst that God can offer, and since death seems like a release from his suffering, this threat has little motivating force for him. 15:12–13 Job has been carried . . . away by his heart to react ...

2095. Job's Second Reply to Bildad

Job 19:1-29

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

... wronged me.” Verse 7 uses entirely different vocabulary, however, which is much more like the cry of one attacked in a dark alley. Job says, more literally, “Behold, I cry, ‘Violence!’ but I am not answered.” Job goes on to claim that no justice comes in response to his call for help. God comes off in this verse like an armed robber who attacks with impunity and, when hauled into court, gets off free! 19:8–9 This image of armed robbery under cover of the dark continues in the following verses as ...

2096. Entering the Lord’s House

Psalm 5:1-12

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

... the descriptions of the righteous, who may sojourn in his tent, in Psalms 15 and 24. Thus, Psalm 5 probably belongs to the same “rite of passage” as Psalms 15 and 24. They are the voice of the priests, and Psalm 5 contains the confessional response of pilgrims. As the description of the “doer of righteousness” in Psalms 15 and 24 does not refer to a particular person or group but portrays a character profile, so the description of the wicked in Psalm 5 is probably also a character profile. Thus ...

2097. The Lord’s Refined Words and Humans with Double Tongues

Psalm 12:1-8

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

... �I”)—make best sense in a liturgical setting. The opening petitions address Yahweh directly with the psalm’s chief concern (vv. 1–2). This is expanded in the form of a wish that refers to him in the third person (vv. 3–4). In response, Yahweh speaks and promises to intervene (v. 5, perhaps through a prophetic voice, cf. Hab. 1). A liturgist then responds to Yahweh’s words with a confession of their purity to the congregation (v. 6). In closing, he addresses Yahweh directly regarding the security ...

2098. How Long, O Lord?

Psalm 13:1-6

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

... later (see, e.g., A. Weiser, The Psalms [OTL; Philadelphia: Westminster, 1962], p. 163). But as argued in the Introduction, a psalm is not an autobiographical poem reflecting on a poet’s recent personal experience. It is written for other worshipers to guide their responses to their own experiences. As we have just seen, this psalm reveals an intricate, tightly knit structure that moves logically from one verse to the next. When we try to pick out one poetic line, we find it attached to every other line ...

2099. The King’s Thanksgiving for Military Victories

Psalm 18:1-50

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

... 24) by the experience of others (vv. 25–27). He has invoked no special privilege either here or in the preceding thanksgiving. 18:28–45 Now the psalm shifts from a testimony of one’s character to a military victory song. Implicit here is the moral responsibility of those who bear the sword. Key terms in verses 30–31 link this section to others (Yahweh’s “way” is first mentioned in v. 21; perfect [Hb. tāmîm] is the same term as “blameless” in v. 23; shield, refuge, and rock are epithets ...

2100. Jesus and Beelzebub

Matthew 12:22-37

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

... oneself”; in Mark 3:21 the same word is used of Jesus by his family: “He is out of his mind”). They kept saying (elegon in v. 23 is imperfect), “This man could not possibly be the Son of David, could he?” The Greek construction expects a negative response but allows for the possibility that the answer could be yes. Matthew uses Son of David eight times as a title for Jesus. It has solid roots in the Old Testament (2 Sam. 7:13–15; Amos 9:11) and had become a popular messianic title by the time ...

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