Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 2176 to 2200 of 4976 results

2176. Pilate's Dilemma

John 18:28-40

Sermon

King Duncan

... crime was, he was weak. And friends, that is true of so many of us. If we do wrong, it will probably never be because we are brutal, or greedy or even hard-hearted. It will probably be because we are weak morally weak, spiritually weak. We will keep quiet when we should have spoken up, we will give in when we should have walked away, we will strike a bargain when we should have remained true to our values. You know about weakness, don’t you moral weakness, spiritual weakness? The kind that wrecks families ...

2177. Two Sinners

Luke 7:36-50

Sermon

King Duncan

... But he can find me. He can find what’s inside of me just by listening to my thoughts. I ask him to help me and keep me going. A lot of people think working girls don’t have any morals, any religion. But I do. I don’t steal. I don’t ... said, “Hey, wait a minute. You forgot something. If you’re going to be robbing people all night, you might as well take my coat to keep you warm.” The young man looked at him like he was crazy, and asked, “Why are you doing this?” Diaz replied, “Well, if you’ ...

2178. Waiting for Christmas

James 5:7-12

Sermon

Timothy J. Smith

... wait but instead continue to participate in what Jesus calls us and expects us to do. Ours is an active waiting. The year had been a difficult one for Rae Smith who lost her job for the second time in two years. Without a severance package to keep her afloat, time was her enemy. “I was feeling really down,” she says. The one Saturday near the end of November her mother called with more bad news. The annual community Christmas program had fallen on hard times. Donations of food and gifts for the children ...

2179. The ME and the WE

Luke 15:8-10, Luke 15:1-7

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... movement and for decades of legal and social changes to come. The power of one man at one moment, the potency of that one speech, was a beacon of change and hope for the nation and the entire world. But it almost didn’t happen. King was determined to keep his remarks brief that day. Toward that end he had a carefully written out speech that was to go no more than ten minutes. At the end of nine minutes King was done with his script and the crowd was still waiting for . . . something. Then from behind him ...

2180. Lost, But Not the TV Show!

Luke 15:1-7

Sermon

King Duncan

... his life looking for his brother in the war-torn jungles of Vietnam, until he obtained proof from the Viet Cong that his brother died in captivity. (3) The Pharisees and the teachers of the law took great pride in their righteousness. They worked very diligently to keep themselves separate from those who were not as fastidious as they. But this is not what Jesus wants out of his people. He wants us to reach out to the sinner, to embrace those who have wandered into the far country, as if they were our long ...

2181. On Speaking Terms

Exodus 33:12-23

Sermon

Argile Smith

... significant features of the places we visit. We can rest in the assurance that the guide will take us where we need to go and will keep us from places that would be a waste of our time. Who wouldn’t prefer a guide over a map? When we pray, we tend to ... journey more rewarding. Of course, God is the guide. We can rest assured that he will lead us where we need to go, and he will keep us from places that won’t be good for us or guide us through them so we can arrive at our destination safe and sound. God ...

2182. Be Shrewd

Luke 16:1-15

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... sky. Jesus preached an inside-out, upside-down, “inverted” gospel — the last would be first, the first would be last; the exalted would be humbled, the humble exalted. But the sky is important in Christian theology, and should not be blanked out. The gospel keeps your heart humble (heart in the kitchen), your head confident (head in the sky), and your hands courageous (hands in the dirt): “I can do all things (you can’t get more confident than that) through Christ (you can’t get more humble than ...

2183. Luke 16:1-13

Luke 16:1-15

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

2184. You Never Noticed

Luke 16:19-31

Sermon

King Duncan

... I am in agony in this fire.’ “But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony . . .” If there ever was a parable of Jesus that should keep us awake at night, it is the story of the rich man and Lazarus. Why? Because, compared to most of the people in the world, we are quite rich. That is why most of us would prefer not to think too much about this parable. “We’re saved ...

2185. Let Them Eat Cake

2 Timothy 1:1-2:13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... had literal “chained books” — a more metallurgic remedy to unwanted book borrowing. After the Reformation the most commonly chained volumes were the Bible, Foxe’s Book of Martyrs, and the Book of Common Prayer. Not only was this chaining done to keep valuable volumes from being permanently purloined; but the practice also kept Jesus’ more radical words about the power of the poor and God’s tenderness toward bad characters out of the hands of the poor and bad characters. But Paul’s proclamation ...

2186. He's Back

John 20:19-23

Sermon

David O. Bales

... don’t know to whom they pray. Jesus got to them before you did. Jesus is on the loose, from the morning of his resurrection until that evening that starts our text, and now beyond. Jesus is smack in the middle of our life again. We can’t keep him out. He obviously returns Sunday after Sunday. But he comes on weekdays too. So our house stands permanently accessible to Jesus. No matter what difficulties assault us from the outside or what fears grab us from the inside, Jesus is risen and we can’t divest ...

2187. On the Road with Jesus

Luke 24:13-35

Sermon

David O. Bales

... gesture of disgust and said, “That’s it. We’re outta’ here!” Even though they don’t know it, they’re still on the road with Jesus. He just walks up and joins them but for the moment as the grammar of verse 16 implies,[1] God keeps them from recognizing Jesus. He asks them what they’re discussing as they walk and they’re astounded that he hasn’t heard what’s just occurred in Jerusalem. With Jesus’ next question they go on and pour out their hearts, as airplane passengers often do when ...

2188. Be Patient

James 5:7-12

Sermon

King Duncan

... was on, the teacher had worked up a sweat. She almost cried when the little boy said, “Teacher, they’re on the wrong feet.” She looked and sure enough, they were. It wasn’t any easier pulling the boots off than it was putting them on. She managed to keep her cool as together they worked to get the boots back on, this time on the right feet. The little guy then announced, “These aren’t my boots.” The teacher bit her tongue rather than get right in his face and scream, “Why didn’t you say so ...

2189. A Faith that Works

2 Thessalonians 3:6-15

Sermon

King Duncan

... : “I owe, I owe, so off to work I go.” St. Paul had difficulty with the church at Thessalonica. Some of the members were refusing to do their share of the work. He writes, “In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we command you, brothers and sisters, to keep away from every believer who is idle and disruptive and does not live according to the teaching you received from us. For you yourselves know how you ought to follow our example. We were not idle when we were with you, nor did we eat anyone’s food ...

2190. Remembering Jesus

Matthew 26:17-30

Sermon

David O. Bales

... asking, “What kind of car do I own?” Paul handed on the words of Jesus at his last supper in which Jesus specifically instructed his students to remember him. What were Jesus’ students supposed to remember? That they never understood Jesus? That they tried to keep people away from him, people he wanted to see? That they struggled to be top of the group while he served them selflessly? Were they to remember that on Jesus’ last night with them one of them betrayed him, one denied him three times, and ...

2191. Syncing with the Spirit

Matthew 24:36-51

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... baking cookies or wrapping packages. This “preparation” is about a truth which comes into the world, not abstract pure and antiseptic clean, but cradled in dirt and mangered in mystery. Advent is an alarm clock, a moment of truth to rouse out of the “get-by and keep-going” stupor of this world and WAKE UP! Wake up to the impending gift of a new beginning. Wake up to the first baby steps of the Kingdom entering this world through a stable of animals and a cradle of straw. Wake up from our dogmatic ...

2192. "Before" and "After"

Psalm 31:1-24

Sermon

King Duncan

... his dead friend, and for all the mourners at his grave side who still believe in the lie of death. But when he wants to enter Lazarus’ tomb, Martha protests. The tomb, she says, will be filled with unpleasant odors by now. When Martha tries to keep Jesus away from the tomb, he asks her one penetrating question: “Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?” Forget what you believe about death. Forget what you believe about suffering. Forget what you believe about failure ...

2193. What Does Jesus Look Like?

Isaiah 52:13--53:12

Sermon

Tony Everett

... us what that victory looks like every day. Mitzi was suffering from a severe and crippling arthritis in her spine. It had become so bad that she was in constant pain, able to get around only in a wheelchair. One day her pastor asked her how she could keep going and stay so courageous in the midst of constant pain. “Well, Pastor,” Mitzi began, “Every time I hurt I think of Jesus on the cross. You know, it seems like he and I are a lot closer since the pain started.” Right on, Mitzi! Marilyn was a ...

2194. Hey, What’s that Sound?

1 Samuel 16:1-13

Sermon

Tony Everett

... to ten cords of wood a day. Well, I’ve worked myself to the bone with this saw for two days and it hasn’t even cut one cord. What are you going to do about it?” Bob exclaimed defiantly. “Let’s take a look,” said the manage keeping her voice calm. “Are you sure you kept oiling the chain?” Growing more and more exasperated, Bob snapped, “Of course I did. I oiled the chain every half hour. You could set your watch by my chain oiling. I wake up at night every thirty minutes, thinking that it ...

2195. Soiled Faith and Watered-Down Churches

1 Corinthians 3:1-23

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... our neighborhoods. For our faith communities to be infused with a living presence of God in this world, we need to lay down our hammers and nails, and pick up our hoes and watering cans. These are the “tools” of discipleship that allow us to “till and keep” our hearts grounded and nurtured in relationship with the God who not only created, but continues to create and recreate the Body of Christ for the world. If only it were that easy. But I find more and more here in the West that we have almost ...

2196. Five Ways to be "Holy" During Holy Week

Matthew 21:1-11

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... mighty. Are the people you honor by following and telling stories about . . . are they icons, people who point beyond themselves to something greater? Or have they become idols, people who point to themselves and people you end up worshiping. 5) Fifth, make it real this week. Keep near the cross. Each one of us knows how it hurts to be betrayed. Someone we trusted, someone close to us, someone in our inner circle, betrayed us. It is easy to get on our high horse, like Peter did, and say “I would never do ...

2197. Voice Recognition

John 20:19-23

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... those who never got to hear him in person. They needed, sometimes, just to be quiet and listen to Jesus’ voice, blocking out the “chatterbox,” the “twitter-patted” static of the world. A ventriloquist is someone who learns how to “throw” their voice. They keep their lips from moving to make it seem that the words they are saying are coming from some other place. A ventriloquist typically uses a puppet to be their partner in a “dialogue.” It is a pretend back-and-forth discussion, but it is ...

2198. The Life of Your Table?

Luke 24:13-35

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... the Sanhedrin and the Pharisaic power structure might have had more to spend on what they served. But they maintained the basics of Jewish faith that were practiced daily in every Jewish household. Unlike the Romans, the feast days within Judaism did not exist to keep God away, but to invite God’s presence. Whether it was a formal “feast day” or the weekly “Shabbat,” the meal that was shared was intended to invite God’s presence as well as the presence of other members of the community. It was ...

2199. Apron Up (Mother's Day)

John 10:1-21

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... a moment’s notice where she might be needed to salve a wound, coax a laugh, or comfort a hurt. What did she keep in those apron pockets? Clothing pins for the laundry. Anyone remember the sounds of her clipping sheets to the outdoors wash lines? ... from the cloth of an apron mother is to be bound up in the strings that bind us to a faith that nourishes us and keeps us always looking upward, even as we shuffle through our schedules of busyness. An apron mom was a “woman of the cloth,” and the apron ...

2200. The Nano-Punch of Pentecost

Matthew 28:16-20

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... and thought that getting a daily “shock treatment” might possibly be therapeutic. He even put in his journal a resolution to “Be electrified daily.” Maybe these experiments in getting zapped were behind, at least in part, his great hymn: “A Charge To Keep I Have, A God to Glorify.” That’s what the Holy Spirit does. Electrifies us with Christ’s resurrection power; charges us with his presence; fuels our faith for mission. You don’t think a tiny charge of the Holy Spirit has power ...

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