Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 2151 to 2175 of 4942 results

2151. Commentary for Matthew 4: 1-11

Matthew 4:1-11

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

Can you believe how early Ash Wednesday was this year? Early February and the first Sunday of Lent? You are right to wonder. An Easter this early is more than a once in a lifetime event. It’s a once-in-a century event. The earliest Easter can fall is 22 March, which occurs only once every two centuries. A 23 March Easter is a once-a-century event . . .the next one is 2160. We are as unaccustomed to this early a Lenten season as we are accustomed to the temptations story beginning our Lenten journey. In ...

2152. Matthew 6: 25-34

Matthew 6:25-34

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

This week’s gospel reading includes texts from the third major section of the Sermon on the Mount. The organization of this entire unit (6:19-7:12) has been likened to that of the wisdom books (Proverbs, Sirach) wherein various short units are put together according to like subjects. Thus while this third unit combines forms (such as commands and illustrations) and a coherent summary (7:12), there are general themes that link these diverse styles together. In today’s text that theme is “faith,” ...

2153. Is Sunday Just a Fun Day?

Exodus 20:7-11

Sermon

James Merritt

It was an ad in Newsweek magazine that caught my attention because of the first two words: In bold print it said, SUNDAY MORNING; but listen to the ad in its entirety: "SUNDAY MORNING: Time to kick back, get comfortable, and perfect the art of doing absolutely nothing. The ideal companion? Pioneers new PD-M710, 6-disc CD player. Now you can enjoy up to six hours of your favorite music without lifting a finger...all of which means you can spend less time changing your music, and more time enjoying it, but ...

2154. The Church: The Health of a Godly Family

Hebrews 10:22-25

Sermon

James Merritt

The church is taking a beating. On the outside the picture looks bright. Its affluence is at an all-time high. The church is taking in more money and spending out more money than ever before in all of her glorious history. Just take for example the Southern Baptist Convention. Last year 40,000 Southern Baptist churches took in $6 billion, and now owns property valued at $30 billion. The same could be said for practically every major denomination in America. But a closer look reveals a darker picture. First ...

2155. After the Casket Is Closed

Luke 23:46

Sermon

James Merritt

I recently read a letter from the South Carolina Department of Social Services that gives great insight into how the government can sometimes look upon death. Dear Sir: Your food stamps will be stopped effective March 1992, because we received notice that you passed away. May God bless you. You may re-apply if there is a change in your circumstances.1 Circumstances do not change death, but death does change circumstances. We saw that this past week when John McSherry, a 51 year old umpire, collapsed and ...

2156. When Satan Comes Out of the Closet

2 Thessalonians 2:1-12

Sermon

James Merritt

What does 1874, 1878, 1881, 1910, 1914, 1918, 1925, 1975, and 1984 have in common? Well, these are the years that a certain religious group have prophesied as the year that the world would come to an end.[1] Let me ask another question. What do Napoleon, Joseph Stalin, Benito Mussolini, Adolph Hitler, and Ronald Reagan have in common? They have all been identified by some religious group as the Antichrist.[2] (In case you are wondering how Ronald Reagan got in there, his full name is Ronald Wilson Reagan; ...

2157. The Danger of American Express

Exodus 20:17

Sermon

James Merritt

We have all heard that famous American Express slogan, "Don't leave home without it." The problem is, if some people don't leave home without it, they are going to be without a home. The 80s and 90s are when the "Jet set" became the "Debt set." The new slogan seemingly has become "Buy now, pay maybe." Now a days people can be divided into three classes: The Haves, The Have-Nots, and The Have-Not-Paid-for-What-They Haves In 1994 Americans whipped out their plastic to the tune of $701 billion.[i] Consumers ...

2158. When in Joy, Enjoy (Fruit of the Spirit: Joy)

Galatians 5:22

Sermon

James Merritt

There is something that we all do, whether we are little babies or senior adults, that doctors say is such good medicine that it relieves stress, can cure headaches, fight infections, and even alleviate hypertension. In fact, when we engage in this activity, there are well documented physical affects, many of them akin to modern exercise. Muscles in the abdomen, chest, shoulders, and elsewhere contract; heart rate and blood pressure increase. In one burst of this activity the pulse can double from 60 to ...

2159. How to Live the Good Life (Fruit of the Spirit: Goodness)

Galatians 5:22

Sermon

James Merritt

The French philosopher, Jean Jacques Rousseau, once said, "Happiness is a good bank account, a good cook, and a good digestion." That is what he would call today "the good life." There are many today who would agree with him. There are some who say that the good life is physical. They believe it just doesn't get any better than a hot tub, a back rub, and a drink at the pub. But then there are others who say the good life is material. They think that if you've got the mansion, the Mercedes, and the money, ...

2160. Put Up and Shut Up

Proverbs 18:21

Sermon

James Merritt

"I have never been hurt by anything I didn't say." Calvin Coolidge It's a funny thing with kids: after they are born we can hardly wait until they start talking, then after they learn to talk we can hardly wait for them to shut up! Someone has observed that children go through four stages in their communication with their fathers. First, they call you "Da-da." Then they call you "Daddy." Then they call you "Dad." Then they call you "collect!" Solomon was extremely concerned that his children be wise in the ...

2161. Manual Labor Is Not the President of Mexico

Proverbs 6:6-8

Sermon

James Merritt

"It's true hard work never killed anybody, but I figure, why take the chance?" Ronald Reagan1 Two teenagers were talking, and one said to another, "I'm really worried. Dad slaves away at his job so I will never want for anything, pays all of my bills and sends me to college. Mom spends every day washing and ironing and cleaning up after me, and even takes care of me when I am sick." "So, what are you worried about?" He said, "I'm afraid they might try to escape!" That story reflects my belief that ...

2162. Tastes Great, Less Filling - Sounds Good, Not True

Proverbs 23:29-35

Sermon

James Merritt

As I approach this topic, I am reminded of a story of a Sunday School teacher who was trying to explain the dangers of alcohol to a class of little boys. She took a glass of clear water and placed it on a desk; then took a glass of alcohol and placed it next to the glass of water. She dropped some worms into the water and they just swam around. She then dropped some worms into the alcohol and they immediately curled up and died. Holding the glass of alcohol in one hand and the glass of water in the other, ...

2163. Fiscal Fitness

Proverbs 3:9-10

Sermon

James Merritt

"The trouble with the rat race is that even if you win, you're still a rat." Jane Wagner, "The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe"[1] You would expect that the richest man who ever lived would have something to say about money, and, in Solomon's case, you would be right. He has plenty to say. There is a wealth of wisdom about wealth in Proverbs. With money, there is not only much to earn, but there is much to learn. In fact, the entire Bible has much to say about money. Howard Dayton, the ...

2164. How to Turn the Ballot into a Blessing Box

Proverbs 29:2

Sermon

James Merritt

William Paterson, one of the signers of the United States Constitution, and a Justice on the U.S. Supreme Court, said that juries should always be reminded of the text I'm preaching on today: "When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; but when a wicked man rules, the people groan." (v.2) I would go on to add that not only should juries be reminded of it, but also judges, lawyers, doctors, ministers, teachers; in fact, the entire nation should remember it. There is a crisis in America, I ...

2165. Saved to Share

Acts 26

Sermon

James Merritt

A man told the following true story: A man suddenly knocked a glass off the table and stood up, his face red and his eyes bulging. A piece of steak had lodged in his throat and he couldn't breathe. I glanced around the room hoping someone would rush to him to apply the Heimlich maneuver. But everyone froze helpless. I pushed my chair back and ran to his side. When I wrapped my arms around his girth and squeezed, the meat dislodged from his throat and I could hear the welcome sound of a deep breath. Later, ...

2166. The Secret of Self-Esteem

Ephesians 1:1-6

Sermon

James Merritt

Chuck Swindoll tells the story of the time when his children were smaller and they were going on a long trip, and trying to break the boredom, they decided to play a game called "What if?" The question was "What if you could be anybody on earth—who would you like to be?" Well, one of his daughters said, "I would like to be the bionic woman." The other children followed suit and thought of someone famous they would like to be. But his youngest child, Chuck, Jr., never said a word. As they pulled up to a ...

2167. Why?

Job 3:11-12, 16, 20, 23

Sermon

James Merritt

Every generation for the last sixty years has had an event occur that they will never forget. It is a bookmark on the hard drive of their memory. The World War II generation, still living, remembers exactly where they were December 7, 1941, when they heard about Pearl Harbor. For my generation, the boomer generation, the singular event we remember occurred on November 22, 1963, when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. I still remember walking back from the library to my sixth grade class, where ...

2168. The Only Guide You Need

John 16:12-15

Sermon

James Merritt

A great preacher in our Convention once told the story of skiing in Colorado, and he noticed on the slopes some people wearing red vests. Wondering who they were, he went closer and read these words on them: BLIND SKIER. He was astounded. If you've ever been skiing or just watched other people ski, you know how hard it must be to ski with two good eyes, much less with no eyesight at all. He wondered to himself, "How do they do it?" He went to a ski instructor and asked him how a blind person could ski? The ...

2169. It Ain't Over Til It's Over

Matthew 5:31-32

Sermon

James Merritt

If you have any reason to wonder why this message is important, maybe this letter will show you better than I could tell you. About four years ago I got a letter from a little girl in Macon, Georgia. Here's what she wrote me: Dear Dr. Merritt, Hello! I was just wondering can you help me? My Mother wants to move to Sweden. I am supposed to go, but I don't trust her. She says I'll come back. I don't know. My Daddy lives here, Georgia, USA. He's American. He is not going. What should I do? If I say Sweden, my ...

2170. Romans 13:9-21

Romans 13:8-14

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

We have a lengthy epistle text for this week (Romans 12:9‑21), so let’s jump right in. At first glance the text presents a fairly unstructured, wide‑ranging series of general ethical admonitions. The generic literary description of this style of presentation is “parenesis.” Paul's apparent lack of any one theme and variety of admonitions seems to earn the description of “paranetic” for this passage. However, more recent scholars have discerned a common thread running through all of these Pauline ...

2171. Matthew 20:1-16

Matthew 20:1-16

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

The artificial division between chapters should not influence our reading of the parable in this week’s gospel text. Jesus is not introducing some new idea or topic with this illustration. He is continuing to answer the question Peter posed in 19:27: “Look, we have left everything and followed you. What then will we have?” The parable which begins in 20:1 was not so much a demonstration of “many who are first will be last, and the last will be first” as it is an ongoing discussion of the coming kingdom of ...

2172. A Clock or a Compass?

Mark 1:9-15

Sermon

David T. Ball

Do you all have your compasses with you? What? You don’t have compasses? Well, I guess neither do I. How about your watch? Okay! A much better response that time. I have my watch, too — but don’t get your hopes up that I’m planning to keep a closer eye on how long my sermons are taking! I really just wanted to make a point about how much we rely on our watches in comparison to our compasses. And I doubt that very many of us have a compass that we can carry around — we may have one on our car. We know our ...

2173. A Funeral for “I Can’ts”

Genesis 17:1-7, 15-16

Sermon

Ron Lavin

She was near retirement. Some people thought of her as being old and "over the hill," but she had an idea. The idea was fresh and memorable. She was a schoolteacher in Michigan. Many people thought that schoolteachers made little or no difference in life compared to the powerful people in business and politics. They were wrong. She told her students to write down as many "I Can'ts" as they could think of. She wrote her list as the students wrote their lists. She included: "I can't get John's mother to come ...

2174. Salvation in Jesus’ Name

Acts 4:5-12

Sermon

Ron Lavin

It is always important to consider the context of a Bible story to understand it correctly. That is certainly true of Acts 4:5-12, the story of Peter's bold speech before the Jewish religious leaders. By the power of Jesus Christ, Peter and John had healed a crippled man in the temple area in Jerusalem. This healing took place a few weeks after Jesus' death and resurrection. That's part of the front-side context of our story. The front-side context also tells us that the Jewish leaders were deeply ...

2175. MegaGrace

Acts 4:32-35

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

One of the most reassuring aspects of Christian life is the knowledge that we do not have to do everything on our own. The challenge of living a Christ-like life is made possible through the gift of great grace - megacharis - from the Spirit. Ever responsive to our needs, it appears that the more obstreperous and quarrelsome our "Christian" communities the more grace becomes available, enabling the ongoing mission of the church to survive despite itself. The focus on "great grace" as it is presented in ...

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