Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 2101 to 2125 of 4934 results

2101. The Path of Discipleship

Mark 8:31--9:1

Teach the Text

Grant R. Osborne

Big Idea: Jesus’s role as the suffering Messiah (8:27–33) provides a model for his disciples. The path of true discipleship is one of self-denying and cross-bearing. Understanding the Text The previous section developed the necessity and meaning of Jesus’s suffering (8:27–33). Jesus then uses his messianic suffering as the model for discipleship. The sayings in 8:34–9:1 define the implications for true followers, with the thesis statement telling how to follow (v. 34) followed by two clarifications telling ...

2102. “The Lord Is My Light and My Salvation—Whom Shall I Fear?”

Psalm 27:1-14

Teach the Text

C. Hassell Bullock

Big Idea: Our lives, guided by a single purpose, find their security in our relationship to God. Understanding the Text This psalm has two distinct parts, which leads some interpreters to suggest that it was originally two separate poems.[1] Part 1 (27:1–6) has the qualities of an individual psalm of trust (see the sidebar “Psalms of Trust” in the unit on Ps. 16),[2] while part 2 (27:7–13) takes the form of a complaint[3] or lament. The difference in genre cannot, of course, be the definitive word, since ...

2103. What Can I Get By With?

Luke 17:5-10

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

A son at college was seeking to apply pressure for more money from his dad. In a letter home he wrote: “I can’t understand why you call yourself a loving father when you haven’t sent me a check for three weeks. What kind of love do you call that?” The father wrote back, “That’s unremitting love!” [1] We smile at that. Some of us may even chuckle, though not out loud, because we have all been there. But who has ever really defined love that way? Unremitting. We usually think of it in completely opposite ...

2104. When All Is Said and Done

Acts 16:9-15

Sermon

Charley Reeb

Life has a way of presenting us with defining moments. I re- member facing a defining moment in my ministry. I went to see a man in the hospital who was dying. He was not active in the church I pastored, but I knew who he was. When I entered his hospital room, his whole family was standing in a semi-circle around his bed. They greeted me, and then the man told his family that he wanted a moment alone with me. So they left us alone. As soon as his family had left, he began to cry. I sat by his bed and began ...

2105. Elephants in the Room: Sexploitation

1 Thessalonians 4:3-8

Sermon

Charley Reeb

One of the great things about preaching on sex is that I don’t have to work very hard getting your attention! I was in Leesburg this past week doing work for the Board of Ordained Ministry. A colleague asked me what I was preaching about today. I said, “Sex.” He replied, “Are you for or against it?” I said, “I am very much for it! I enjoy sex a lot!” You may be surprised to hear me say that, but it needs to be said from the pulpit. Why? Because over the years the church has done a pretty terrible job ...

2106. Pop Verses: Romans 8:28

Romans 8:28

Sermon

Charley Reeb

Today I continue our series “Pop Verses.” We are taking a closer look at some of the most popular Bible verses. We are going to find out why they are so popular and how they apply to our lives. What you might discover is that some of these verses don’t mean what you think they mean or they mean a lot more than you think they mean. You see, quite often our favorites verses are just that – they’re verses. They’re not read in light of the passage in which they appear. This can lead to a misunderstanding about ...

2107. Jesus Predicts His Death

Mark 8:31--9:1

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

8:31–9:1 This passage completes the scene begun in 8:27–30, gives us the first of three predictions by Jesus of his impending suffering and death (cf. 9:30–32; 10:32–34), and sets the terms for discipleship as a following of him even to death. We must understand that in ancient Judaism there was no concept that the Messiah would suffer the sort of horrible fate that Jesus describes in 8:31. Thus Peter’s response in 8:32 is in one sense fully understandable. All definitions of the nature and function of ...

2108. Woes and Judgments

Isaiah 5:8-30

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

Judgment Missed and Demonstrated: In length and theme chapter 5 pairs with chapter 1 and closes a bracket around 2:2–4:6. Chapter 5 comprises a mock love song; a series of woes that will be completed in 10:1–4; and a warning about Yahweh’s outstretched hand that will continue in chapter 9. In contrast to 1:1–2:1 and 2:2–4:6, no positive note is struck at the beginning or the end. Chapters 1–5 come to a close as bleak as their opening. Rebellion and darkness ultimately bracket them.In length and theme ...

2109. The Bramble King

John 15:1-17, John 15:18--16:4, John 16:5-16

Sermon

Lori Wagner

“Here are their names: Simon (whom he named Peter), Andrew (Peter's brother), James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James (son of Alphaeus), Simon (who was called the zealot), Judas (son of James), Judas Iscariot (who later betrayed him). "A good tree can't produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can't produce good fruit. A tree is identified by its fruit. Figs are never gathered from thornbushes, and grapes are not picked from bramble bushes. A good person produces good things from the treasury of ...

2110. Christmas Is Out of Control

Matthew 24:36-44

Sermon

John Jamison

After hearing the scripture reading, the thought going through your head may be, “What the heck does that have to do with Christmas? Isn’t this the first Sunday of Advent? Why are you talking about Noah? And didn’t Jesus say those things during holy week, like on Palm Sunday? Where is the Christmas story?” Let me try to explain. There is a thing called the lectionary; some of you are probably familiar with it. The lectionary is a list of scriptures for each Sunday of the year, and other special days as ...

2111. Stay Awake

Matthew 24:36-44

Sermon

King Duncan

Have you ever fallen asleep at the wrong time or in the wrong place? That’s so embarrassing, but it’s a common experience. It’s hard to fight off sleep when your body decides to shut down. During the 2019 Super Bowl game, Karisa Maxwell, deputy editor and producer with Sporting News, spotted a man sleeping in the stands and took a photo. She kept an eye on the man and reported that he slept through the entire first quarter of the game. She posted the photo of the Super Bowl sleeper to Twitter that ...

2112. God's Ridiculous Commitment

Acts 2:14a, 36-41

Sermon

King Duncan & Angela Akers

Let me ask you a question: how many of you would like to trade places with me on a Sunday morning? How many of you wish you could preach a few sermons instead of sitting and listening to them? I read about one pastor who was shaking hands with his parishioners after worship. At the end of the line was a church member who always had something to say about his messages. The woman shook the pastor’s hand warmly and said, “Pastor, today your sermon reminded me of the peace and love of God!” The pastor beamed ...

2113. Good News, Bad News, Good News

John 13:1-17

Sermon

Thomas Long

I forget now whether it was a famous football coach, a former president, or a positive-thinking teacher who put on his wall the motto, "When the going gets tough, the tough get going" -- probably all three of them. In any case, I am aware of the fact that there are some people who pride themselves on being able to get motivated in tough situationns, to face head-on the tough issues. "Give it to me straight, Doc," they say to the surgeon, "I can handle it." They sign up for courses from the roughest ...

2114. The Mystery of His Presence

John 6:25-59

Sermon

Richard Patt

"How can this man give us his flesh to eat?" (v. 52, TEV) In these times of world hunger, when many even within our own prosperous land find it difficult to put food on the table, we ought to be careful when complaining about our daily bread. But some of the "come-ons" that so-called quality restaurants advertise these days can irk any of us. The other evening my wife and I visited a local restaurant that had an attractive advertisement, claiming the "best of everything" in town. The meals were offered for ...

2115. In Search Of A Reason For Being

Hebrews 4:1-13

Sermon

King Duncan

What is your one great goal in life? The one vision that fires you up and stirs you to transcend the daily grind? Well, for John Searing, an arts-supplies salesman from New Jersey, it was to yell, "He-e-e-ere's Johnny!" on the old "Tonight Show" with Johnny Carson. Searing had watched "The Tonight Show" since he was a child, and he had always thrilled to the sound of Ed McMahon bellowing the introduction. So, in 1980, John wrote to "The Tonight Show," asking if he could have the chance some night of ...

2116. On "supersizing" Our Vision

Mark 12:41-44

Sermon

Siegfried S. Johnson

"SUPERSIZE IT!" Fast food operations hear that word thousands of times a day, giving the word "SUPERSIZE" a new meaning in the ever-expanding English lexicon. Why buy a regular combo meal when, for a few cents more, you can have it SUPERSIZED? More french fries to clog your veins. So much Coke that the colossal cup won't jam into the car's console holder. Perhaps nowhere is the American SUPERSIZED appetite for soda pop better evidenced than at 7-11. Thirsty on your way to work? Stop in and buy a 64-ounce ...

2117. It's All God's Doing

Ezekiel 17:1-24

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

"A few years ago, a little boy was diagnosed as having a terminal illness. When he was told the situation and that he would soon die, he retreated fearfully into a cocoon of total silence. No one...not his doctors or nurses, not even his parents could get through to him. No one could penetrate the wall of silence the little boy had erected around himself. He would not speak to anyone. The only way he would communicate was through drawings he scratched out on a legal pad. One drawing showed a beautiful ...

2118. The Messed Up

John 4:1-26

Sermon

James Merritt

In 2006, Alitalia Airlines, the official airline of Italy, made a slight mistake on its website regarding international airfare from Toronto, Canada, to the island of Cyprus. They advertised business-class seats for $39. It was supposed to be $3900, but somebody left two zeros. Two thousand tickets were immediately snapped up and it cost the airline $7.7 million. Somebody messed up. In 1990, 75 million phone calls across the United States went unanswered after a single switch at one of AT&T’s Switching ...

2119. “Human Help Is Worthless”

Psalm 60:1-12

Teach the Text

C. Hassell Bullock

Big Idea: When life’s defeats have no explanation, we must affirm victory by God’s help, for all human help, without God, is worthless. Understanding the Text Psalm 60, judging from the first-person plural pronouns (“us,” “our,” “we”), is a community lament, prayed by the congregation after Israel’s daunting defeat in battle, perhaps by the Edomites (60:8b). In the psalms of lament, the complaint can take one of three directions, or any combination: against God, against oneself, and against one’s enemies. ...

2120. Third Day

Genesis 1:1-2:3

Sermon

Lori Wagner

[Alternative personalized opening: Mountain culture used to refer to heaven as “the sweet by and by.” Anybody remember that phrase? Or the old gospel song “In The Sweet By and By . . ?“ It was made a signature song by three of the greatest country and western singers of all time --- Loretta Lynn, Johnny Cash, and Dolly Parton. Here are the lyrics: [You may have the congregation sing the song as the beginning to your sermon, or have someone sing it for your people.] There's a land that is fairer than day, ...

2121. Doors Are for Entering

John 10:1-21

Sermon

Donald B. Strobe

“I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture.” (John 10:9) That’s the way the New Revised Version translates the more familiar words of Jesus, “I am the door.” Let us consider these words in the light of the customs and pastoral imagery of Jesus’ day to see if new light can be shed upon them. We might begin by considering a Palestinian shepherd. In the East, the shepherd goes before the sheep, leading them, not driving them from behind. The shepherd leads ...

2122. Oh Say, Can You See by the Dawn’s Early Light?

John 20:1-18

Sermon

Robert Leslie Holmes

Across the street from the walls that surround the city of David there is a tomb. It looks like any other ancient tomb in that area. Step inside and you will quickly realize that this tomb is different. Someone of status and wealth once owned this tomb. You can tell that it belonged to a person of means because this is a double tomb with two side-by-side burial spaces. What is more, this tomb once contained a body but now it lies empty. The evidence of its having been used is seen in the way that the sides ...

2123. All In

Exodus 3:1-22

Sermon

Lori Wagner

We hear a lot about covenants in scripture. Anyone know what a covenant is? How would you define it if someone asked you, “What’s a covenant?” That’s right. It has “legal” connotation. It’s actually ancient legal language. You might call it a kind of agreement or contract between two or more parties in a legally binding promise or vow. If you look at our marriage liturgy, you can see it there! You can also see it in our communion liturgy. In the marriage contract, the covenant of marriage refers to the ...

2124. Big Spender

1 Kings 10:14-29, 1 Kings 11:1-13, Luke 15:11-32

Sermon

Lori Wagner

Shopping addiction is right up there with drug and alcohol addiction. In fact, addicts shop for the same reasons that other addicts do what they do –the “high” of escaping negative feelings, the inability to cope with problems emotionally or spiritually, the need to fill an inner void, or a way to deal with anxiety caused often by approval seeking. The more the inner need to feel good or salve depression or anxiety, the more extravagant and flagrant the spending. The truth is, the lavish spender may be ...

2125. The Journey

Mark 8:27-36

Sermon

Will Willimon

A few years ago, we had a representative from ''Teach America'' visit our campus. Teach America tries to recruit this nation's most talented college graduates to go into some of the nation's worst public schools. This is Teach America's means of transforming our schools into something better. This woman stood up in front of a large group of Duke students, a larger group than I would suppose would come out to this sort of thing, and said to them, ''I can tell by looking at you that I have probably come to ...

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