Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: Levi, disciple, evangelist, tax collector, the 12, the twelve, apostle, sermon on the mount, jewish audience, beatitudes, lord's prayer, great commission, parables, olivet discourse, mount of olives, olivet, synoptic

Showing 2151 to 2175 of 3314 results

2151. Where's Your Spirit?

Acts 19:1-7

Sermon

Mark Trotter

I love that story read to us this morning as our epistle lesson from the Acts of the Apostles, telling of Paul's visit to Ephesus. The first people that he happens to run into are Christians. He asks them, "Did you receive the Holy Spirit?" They said, "We never even heard of the Holy Spirit." Paul must have slapped his forehead in despair, saying, "Do I have to ...

2152. You Will Never Walk Alone

Luke 24:13-20, 25-26, 28-35

Sermon

Mark Trotter

... to one of the twelve, then that would be reason for including it in the text, because the twelve had superstar status in the Church, and anything that happened to them was remembered and recorded. But if there is an anecdote about someone who is not an apostle, just a nobody, it is not there because this event happened to them. It is there because this event can happen to you. If it happened to them, be prepared for it to happen to you. Cleopas and Mary, or whoever it was, walking down the road, talking ...

2153. Three Small Steps in Our Faith Journey - Sermon Starter

Luke 17:1-10

Illustration

Brett Blair

... , not so that I can show him to you or offer irrefutable evidence of his existence. That means faith is all we have. We are born through faith, live by faith, and die in faith. After my death, then and only then will I know in full, as the Apostle Paul says, when I see Jesus face to face. Until then I had better understand this religion thing. Now that sounds pretty daunting doesn’t it? Here’s the good News. It’s not all that difficult. Religion is a marble slab and we have to find, like Michelangelo ...

2154. Trinity

John 3:22-36, Matthew 28:16-20, 2 Corinthians 13:11-14, 2 Corinthians 13:1-10, Exodus 34:1-28, Genesis 1:1-2:3

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... 28:16-20 Lesson 2 - You were blessed by the persons of the Trinity - 2 Corinthians 13:11-13 The Trinity is foremost in today's Lessons and Propers. The Hymn and Prayer deal with the Trinity. Lesson 1 gives the work of the first person of the Trinity. The apostles are to baptize in the name of the Trinity. In Lesson 2 Paul pronounces a trinitarian blessing.

2155. Proper 15

Genesis 45:1-28, Isaiah 56:1-8, Romans 11:11-24, Romans 11:25-32, Matthew 15:1-20, Matthew 15:21-28

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... . Old Testament: Isaiah 56:1 (2-5) 6-7 God promises to gather all people to him. Epistle: Romans 11:13-15, 29-32 The Jews' rejection of Christ results in the world's reconciliation. Paul now turns to address Gentiles, for he is the apostle to the Gentiles. He discusses the salvation of Jews and Gentiles. This aroused the Jews' jealousy who will in the end accept Christ. Their disobedience caused salvation to come to the Gentiles, a blessing in disguise. However, God has not disowned his people, for his ...

2156. Proper 17

Matthew 16:21-28, Romans 12:1-8, Romans 12:9-21, Jeremiah 14:1--15:21, Jeremiah 20:7-18, Exodus 3:1-22

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... 's confession, Jesus called him "blessed." Now Peter is Satan incarnate. This reminds us that we can be possessed of a good or bad spirit, and we are spokesperson of each. The Holy Spirit not only can come but can also leave us. Even Peter, leader of the Apostles, could be Satan's agent. Satan can possess church members, and even in the church Satan can be active. It is important to ascertain whether God or Satan is speaking when Christians speak to us. 3. Loses (v. 25). As Jesus loses his life on the cross ...

2157. Proper 26

Matthew 23:1-39, Joshua 3:1-4:24, 1 Thessalonians 2:1-16, Malachi 2:1-9

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... the dangers of religious leadership. 1. Profession without performance - v. 3. 2. Pride - vv. 5-7. b. Follow Jesus' example of humble service - vv. 11-12. 2. "I Preach To Myself" (23:1-12). Need: The lessons deal primarily with priests, apostles, scribes, and Pharisees. There are professional religious leaders - clergy people. This includes the pastor of this church, the preacher of this sermon. This gives the pastor an opportunity to preach an innovative sermon, a monologue. He could preach the sermon to ...

2158. Lessons for Year A Proper 27

Joshua 24:1-3a, 14-25, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, Matthew 25:1-13

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... for us. But, the day is also a day of judgment, a day of darkness, for the wicked will experience the wrath of God. For those in Christ, for the spiritually prepared, the Parousia will be the greatest day of history. Accordingly, we can pray with the apostles, "Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly." On the other hand, the evil-doers, the unbelievers, and all who love the world more than God will find the day of the Lord to be a terror. Repent! 2. Hate (v. 18). Through Amos God is speaking, "I hate, I despise ...

2159. Worry and Wonder

Matthew 6:24-34

Sermon

Susan R. Andrews

... pervasively, magically sustain him. Yes, we watch his soul striving for the vision, the kingdom of God beyond his Jewishness, beyond the evil of Hitler. Yes, he lives - spiritually and emotionally - in an inner place of trust and hope that no anxiety can control. The Apostle Paul writes: "It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God." But the terror he talks about is not the terror of anxiety. It is the terror of awe. Worry replaced by wonder. Fear replaced by faith. Trembling replaced ...

2160. Jesus Breaks Our Chains

John 11:1-45

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... of dying. Lazarus was caught in the trap of physical death and maybe other forms of death of which we are not aware. The Hebrews were victims of the death of despair, hopelessness, and isolation. Through the action of Christ, the one who brings the light as he reminds his apostles in today's gospel, we are released from all that chains us. All we need is to be open to the action of God in our lives. We can be certain that God is active, for the Spirit sent into the world to guide and direct our every action ...

2161. Jesus Transforms the Darkness into Light

John 20:1-18

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... . It is difficult to accept the moment. However, if we empty ourselves somewhat, then we can make room for God and God's works. In order to make room we must have the hope that God can fill our needs and desires. I have often questioned why the apostles were running to the tomb. After all, Jesus had died, was there any need to run? They must have had the hope that Jesus' promise, namely that he would rise, was true, and, thus, they ran to find the resurrected Christ. The reality of Jesus' resurrection is a ...

2162. Jesus, Our Rock Foundation

John 14:1-14

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... do not value more than the things of the earth, if we consider how easily we are swayed away from this one and only life of truth. Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life; he is the font for the Father. The Lord goes further and tells his apostles that if they have seen him they have seen the Father. The truth of this statement forces us in our contemporary context to go one step further and declare that if we, the presence of Christ in our world, are true disciples, then we must take up the cross and ...

2163. Sick and Tired of Being Sick and Tired?

Matthew 9:35-10:8

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

... or well. We are told God made Adam's physical body out of the clay of the ground. Then God blew his Divine Spirit into the man, and Adam became a living soul. That means he had an emotion, a will, and an intellect. In 1 Thessalonians 5:23, the Apostle Paul writes to the Greek church, and he prays for their health saying, "May the God of peace himself sanctify you wholly; and may your spirit and soul and body be kept sound and blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ." So, you see, good health is not ...

2164. In Our Pastor's Success, So Is Our Own!

Matthew 10:40-42

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

... vulnerable relationship. But many rewards are literally "out of this world." For there are rewards for sure Jesus himself will give out in heaven. One unsung hero of the Bible is Onesiphorus. He is forever known as a minister to the minister, the one who kept the Apostle Paul on his feet. In 2 Timothy 1:15-18, Paul confided, "You are aware that all who are in Asia turned away from me, among whom are Phygelus and Hermogenes. May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me ...

2165. Do You Get It?

Matthew 16:21-28

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

... brought to understand what had happened and passed the message on to us. On the Day of Pentecost Peter told the crowd in Jerusalem that Jesus had been crucified "according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God." We owe our faith and knowledge to the witness of the apostles who didn't get it to begin with. If you haven't gotten it yet, there's still hope for you. Why was the cross necessary? It was to deal with the problems of sin and evil in the world - really to deal with them and not simply to ...

2166. A Guide to Christmas

Matthew 21:23-32

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

... for the Messiah. Few recognized him. Some actually threatened his life. He had to spend his first years in exile, and when he did return, it wasn't long before he was killed. Have you ever wondered why people reacted so violently to Jesus and the apostles and pastors and prophets? Why were they persecuted? What did Jesus ever do to make people hate him? Was it because he healed and restored? Because he fed people, raised the dead, and preached the truth? If you try an experiment I think you'll understand ...

2167. History: His Story

Matthew 21:33-46

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

... was stoned. Amos was murdered with a club. John the Baptizer was beheaded. And the Son sent from God? He was Jesus, and him we impaled upon a cross outside the city near a garbage dump. It still has not stopped. Which of the original apostles escaped persecution and death? Peter was crucified upside down. Paul was beheaded. James was put to the sword. Stephen was stoned to death. History goes on down through the twenty centuries of Christendom. Huss was burned at the stake. Wycliff was exiled. Luther was ...

2168. Influence!

Matthew 23:1-12

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

... got the title but not the towel. They've got the authority but not the basin of water to wash dirty feet." In the text Jesus urges his leaders to "practice" (v. 3). "He who is greatest among you shall be your servant" (v. 11). Read how the Apostle Paul introduced himself to the church at Rome in Romans 1:1. "Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ...." Not Doctor Paul, or Reverend Paul, or published author of sixteen books, or pastor of the country's largest parish, or even the most sought-after speaker of our day ...

2169. What If the End Is Near?

Matthew 25:1-13

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

... ark. He did that job well ahead of time. David didn't just go out and fight the giant Goliath as his first foe. As a shepherd, he rehearsed his rock slinging for years on wolves and bears that threatened his flock. Then there is the Apostle Paul. For fourteen years after his conversion, the man labored in obscurity sewing tents and sails and pondering the scriptures. Then began his first mission journey. We each are given resources and time to prepare for our assigned tasks, as well. Yes, here in the church ...

2170. A Life Well Lived

2 Timothy 3:10--4:8

Sermon

King Duncan

... havoc in our world in recent years. Bombing abortion clinics, bombing office towers, taking thousands of innocent lives. Paul had only one innocent life on his record, but that one was more than enough to condemn his soul to hell. He was there when the apostle Stephen was stoned to death. He even held Stephen’s cloak while the mob did its work. Not only did Paul not intervene, he helped create the climate that brought about Stephen’s death. Paul knew all about “hate speech.” He had been guilty of ...

2171. Three Ways to Know a Saint

Sermon

King Duncan

... ; Voted that the earth is given to the Saints; Voted that we are the Saints.” Christians may not agree on what constitutes a saint. And I doubt that we could get together on a list of the top ten saints, especially if we omitted the original twelve Apostles. What is it that makes a saint in the first place? Is it personal virtue and discipline? Or is it concern for the poor and the outcast? Is a saint pious and austere? Or is a saint merry and outgoing? We have had examples throughout history of both ...

2172. Los Posadas

1 Thessalonians 5:12-28

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you" (verses 16-18). Wow! Let me read that again: "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." Notice how the apostle's directives are mobile words - words that take us through the Advent journey, however long it is, however difficult the path. There's an Advent tradition in Mexico known as Las Posadas. This celebration highlights the journey of Advent because it extends over both ...

2173. Prime Time Waiting

2 Peter 3:1-18

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... of waiting. The false teachers in some Christian communities had started questioning the promised parousia - the return of Christ and the final judgment and re-creation - because it seemed so long in coming. The first generation of Christ-followers, even the apostles themselves, were dying. Still Christ didn't return. As some Christians grew restless with waiting, these false teachers began to suggest that since there was no day of the Lord coming, there was no need to practice a strict morality or public ...

2174. The Holidaze Craze

1 Corinthians 1:1-9

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... the charisma) that have already been bestowed upon that community (verse 4). The two types of gifts the Corinthians are most proud of - gifts of speech (logos) and gifts of knowledge (gnosis) - Paul also singles out for special thanksgiving. As the apostle thanks God for all these gifts, and for their presence in the Corinthian community, he rescues these gifts from the ugly smudges and stains these bickering believers have tried to permanently stick on these spiritual gifts. Paul's thanksgiving reminds the ...

2175. Redundant Love

Matthew 22:34-40

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... would wish our country harm. We CAN love those aligned against us, without approving their back-stabbing and back-sliding ways. We CAN love Red states. We CAN love Blue states. We CAN love those, who along with us, fall terribly short of God's ideal blueprint of love. The Apostle Paul even said that "We Can do ALL THINGS . . ." because of God's amazing, abundant, redundant love.

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