Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 2126 to 2150 of 4884 results

Matthew 5:1-12

Bulletin Aid

... Gracious God, we confess that we do not desire or emulate sainthood as we should, and that we do not invest ourselves in the sanctification process that, by your grace and the help of your Spirit, would increase us in holiness and lead us toward the perfect image of the Christ. Forgive us, we pray, and let us not be so contented and complacent. Stir our souls and stimulate our spirits, so that we shall be restless and dissatisfied until we exhibit all of the marks and gifts of sainthood described in your ...

2127. Easter 4

John 10:1-21

Sermon Aid

... the Father/Mother God first loved us and invited to love the creation. Pastor: I invite us to keep worshiping in spirit and in truth, knowing that we are new persons in love through Jesus Christ our Lord. Did you hear that? New! Not perfect, sometimes not even nice. But New! Act of Recognizing our Humanness and Receiving New Life Suggestion: Remind the people of the biblical meaning of sin, as alienation, I-centeredness, praying "my will be done," living off-center and shooting at the wrong basket. Then ...

2128. A Glory Revealed as Eternal Life

John 5:16-30

Sermon

... last hour draws nigh. Those eyes, new faith receiving, From thee shall never move; For he who dies believing Dies safely in thy love.6 Suggested Hymn: "Christ Jesus Lay in Death’s Strong Bands" (vs. 1-3) 1. The Greek verb used here is in the perfect tense, inferring that the present state of things is the ongoing or permanent result of an action in the past. 2. Hebrews 2:9. 3. "A Hymn of Praise for the Easter Festival," translated by Richard Massie. I have altered his rendering slightly to conform it more ...

2129. Dry Bones And Live Hope

John 11:17-37

Sermon

Charles Curley

... as he was weeping for his lost friend, against all the evidence that Lazarus was gone forever, Jesus trusted in God’s promise and proclaimed life. "Lazarus, come out!" And it was so. It made no sense in the natural order of things, but it made perfect sense in terms of who Jesus was. Jesus prayed to his Father. The tense of Jesus’ prayer is important. He did not pray, "Father, hear me." Rather, "Father, you have heard me." "I thank you, you have heard me." This was not intercession for the lost life ...

2130. Hail! Your King!

Mark 15:1-15

Drama

... violated their commandment against graven images. (Shrugs) Day after day crowds were demonstrating and raging on, until finally I ordered my troops to draw swords to scare them off. But, get this, they literally bared their necks like this, (Demonstrates) perfectly willing to be slaughtered like chickens rather than have Roman standards inside their gates. Since then I’ve learned religion is a very serious matter with these people. Same thing with this incident with Barabbas and Jesus. Recently there was ...

2131. My God, My God, ... Why?

Mark 15:33-41

Drama

... it’s not unusual to rough prisoners up a little or make sport of them. Sometimes they deserve it, believe me. With Jesus, however, it was more than that ... like revenge, if you know my meaning. (Clenches fist, intensely) This so-called "King of Judea" made a perfect target for us to get even with Palestine. (Then lightens up) (Moves to middle stage) But what was amazing was not just that this man survived the beating, and all the humiliation that went with it, but it was how he suffered. Not once did I ...

2132. Steadfast and Faithful

Genesis 9:1-17

Sermon

... conserve the good earth which God has given us. God has committed himself to the natural order. Our part of the bargain is to covenant to work for God’s creation, not against it, to work with the Creator, in order to bring creation unto perfection. Baptism marks this aspect of the Covenant. It commits us to environmental awareness and responsibility. If through Baptism we enter God’s Covenant, it is in the Eucharist that this Covenant is renewed. As a priestly community we offer, at the Lord’s Table ...

2133. The Precepts of the Lord

Exodus 20:1-21, Psalm 19:7-14

Sermon

... wrote that even the believing Christian has need of the Law - not to earn God’s grace, which cannot be earned, but rather to respond in gratefulness to God’s grace. The psalm for today expresses this as well: The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul; the statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple; The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes; The fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever; the ordinances ...

2134. Christ Our High Priest

John 18:28-40, Isaiah 52:13--53:12

Sermon

... ponder the cross from this perspective, we note that it has a strange power over us. It captures our imaginations and hearts, prompting changes within us. We are moved by this "old rugged cross," so moved, in fact, that we resolve to live better lives, to follow the perfect example of the Ideal Man, Jesus Christ. No longer are we afraid of God and God’s justice, for the Cross shows us that God loves us, that God would even go so far as to sacrifice his own Son for us. What a powerful demonstration of God ...

2135. Leadership: the Moses Model

Numbers 27:12-23

Sermon

... in more than denominational terms and will guide their people accordingly. Join me for a look at a third characteristic. Persistence Moses was a persistent fellow. Christian unity loses its vitality and focus unless it has those leaders who will persist. Perfect planning and impeccable academic degrees do not necessarily see us through the quicksand of ecumenical dialogue; it always takes persistence. At any of many points in his ministry, the Lord of the universal church could have quit. He didn’t. The ...

2136. Acceptance: The Keynote

Ruth 2:1-23

Sermon

... executive telling a young associate pastor he could learn what not to do by being amenable to the senior pastor. The irony of life is we probably learn more from our mistakes and failures than our successes. Of course, at the deeper levels, to be related perfectly to Jesus the Christ is total success. The world did not and does not understand this. Christians misunderstand this at their own peril. There is a need to be reminded from the high priestly prayer: "I have given them thy word; and the world has ...

2137. Success: Ultimate and Unlimited

Revelation 7:9-17

Sermon

... of grace, courage in the struggle for justice and peace, His presence in trial and rejoicing, and eternal life in His kingdom which has no end." No one who is close to what happens before and after church unions would maintain perfection - theologically and ecclesiastically - has been attained. What is evident is the work of the Holy Spirit, continually enabling Christ’s Body to be One. J. Ralph Shotwell, in his book, Unity Without Uniformity, says: "The postdenominational community Church movement is not ...

2138. Security: Deeply Personal

Ezekiel 34:1-31

Sermon

... ’s Body, the church. The security that is inherently imbedded bids us to come and die - if need be for the cause of Christian unity. The times are exciting and our blessd Lord has timed the excitement of the fulfillment of his call to be One perfectly. In a modest way, these values for Christian unity provide a lighted candle in the darkness which remains with us, intended to keep His Body torn asunder. Come with your cross and follow him on the pilgrimage that leads to a visible "one, holy, catholic and ...

2139. Faithful People in a Fiery Furnace

Daniel 3:1-30

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... ’s great command in Romans 12 is well worth memorizing: "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." (Romans 12:02) Here is the third life-lesson: When the Heat IS On, Jesus is Close! When you don’t get a promotion because you don’t play office politics, Jesus is close. When you don’t get elected cheerleader because some ridicule you as ...

2140. "Gone Fishing!"

Luke 5:1-11

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... the door, got on my knees and prayed, "Lord, what’s wrong with those amplifiers?" Suddenly the idea came to me to cross two particular wires. It made no sense to do it but I went back and tried it. It worked. All those sets were delivered in perfect working order. It suddenly occurred to me that Jesus knew more about electronics than I did." (1) Then in verse 8, Simon Peter falls to his knees before Jesus and addresses him with a different title. No longer does he call Jesus "Master." Now he is "Lord ...

2141. Train Whistle In The Night

Matthew 25:1-13

Sermon

... goods and services in unprecedented quantities. And the desire to have was satisfied as never before. The followers developed a strong worship pattern of buying, consuming, disposing, and buying more. The religious formula appeared to be working perfectly - worshiper attendance remained high, the first commandment was followed religiously, and the worshipers themselves seemed comfortably satisfied. Oh ... some changes could be seen in both the service and the worshiper, but you could expect change to come ...

2142. Striking Silversmiths Start Riot

Acts 19:23-41

Sermon Aid

CSS

... on the same voyage. Their victim could then be assaulted under cover of darkness in a night-time attack, killed and tossed overboard. Such events were not uncommon. Passengers at sea had little protection and the blackness of a moonless night at sea was a perfect cover for such dirty work. Sailors and sea captains were likely to overlook this sort of thing. They did not want to have any conflict with Roman authorities or even arouse their suspicions. Even if a captain knew about such a devilish plot, he ...

2143. A Church That's All it Ought to Be

Illustration

Unknown

I think that I shall never see A church that’s all it ought to be; A church whose members never stray Beyond the straight and narrow way; A church who has no empty pews, Whose pastor never has the blues. A church whose stewards never "stew" Or shirk the job that’s theirs to do. Where gossips never peddle lies, Or make complaints or criticize; Such perfect churches there may be, But none of them are known to me; But still, we’ll work and pray and plan To make our church the best we can.

2144. Put Something in Its Place

Matthew 12:38-45, Luke 11:14-28

Illustration

Howard Thurman

One day Jesus told a parable about a man out of whom a devil has been cast. When the job has been completed, he felt perfectly safe and secure. He may have said to himself, "Now that is done. He is gone and my house is at peace. I shall buy new furnishings, put up fresh curtains, and give to the entire place a new look." This was done. Late in the afternoon, largely by force ...

2145. It Isn’t Fair!

Matthew 20:1-16

Sermon

... Or, suppose the law of gravity should be repealed, except for those whose love for God matched God’s love for creation. What if rain fell and crops grew only for those folks who were pure in heart? Suppose forgiveness were meted out only to the perfectly contrite? (Which, as we learned last week, includes forgiving others to a fault)? What if God gave everlasting life exclusively to those who never ever yielded to the Prince of Darkness? Where would we be? In fact, God gave up trying to be "fair" with us ...

2146. Mary's Revolutionary Song (Sermon Series No. 3)

Luke 1:39-56

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... and give to charities. I wouldn’t hurt a soul on purpose. I believe that God will accept me on that basis.” Bill took out a legal pad and said, “Let’s make a grading scale for all people, from one to ten, with ten being just about perfect. Who are the best people in the world?” The man thought for a moment and said, “Mother Teresa and Billy Graham.” “Okay,” said Bill. “But we must allow them to place themselves on our chart. Each of them has said, ‘I am a sinner and have no chance ...

2147. Naming the Divine Baby

Matthew 1:18-25

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... two important convictions: this Jesus, born in Bethlehem, is our friend who understands our every need, hurt, frustration and joy. He is Emmanuel, God with us. The second conviction is this: This Jesus, born in Bethlehem, is the Son of God who sacrificed his perfect life so that we could be saved. If those two truths cause your heart to beat faster and a tear to occasionally moisten the eye, then you have the real Christmas spirit. Over 100 years ago Father Damien deVeuster, a Belgium priest, began working ...

2148. He is the One We are Looking For

Matthew 11:1-19

Illustration

John Thomas Randolph

... the Stradivarius and broke it. Cropper's pleasant dream was turned into a horrible nightmare. He was, inconsolable. Then a London violin dealer told him of a master craftsman who could repair the Stradivarius. To make a long story short, the repairs were so perfect they could not even be seen, and the soaring notes of the instrument were more beautiful than they had ever been before -- all because the broken parts were placed in the hands of a master craftsman who then applied his healing touch. Yes, Jesus ...

2149. For He Shall Save His People

Matthew 1:18-25

Sermon

Staff

... we resist salvation is that we feel uncomfortable with the biblical image of power. What is the Biblical image of power. It is a small baby in a manger. It is Christ dying on the cross. It is Paul saying that God’s grace is being made perfect through his physical handicap. In short, power is made manifest through vulnerability. We see it just the opposite. We see power as being invulnerable. There was a song that came out a number of years ago by the singer Helen Ready that rather typified what many ...

2150. Are There Two Baptisms?

Acts 2:14-41

Sermon

Barbara Brokhoff

... that he would drown. Besides, the water smelled to high heaven, and what seemed like a good idea a few days before had now lost a lot of its enchantment. He said to Dr. Ward, "You won’t let me drown, will you?" Dr. Ward assured him he would be perfectly safe. "You really think this is necessary?" Again Dr. Ward told him it was a vital part of his new relationship with Christ. "You think all of this is going to make a new man out of me?" Dr. Ward said, "Yes, I promise you, you will be different when ...

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