Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 2176 to 2200 of 4972 results

2176. The Little Boat

Mark 4:35-41

Sermon

Ron Lavin

... raised his questions with Job instead of just listening to the questions and accusations of Job? The reversal came. With it came healing and wholeness. That same reversal happened to the followers of Jesus when Jesus stood up and commanded the wind and waves to stop and raised these two questions with the apostles: "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?" David Adam, the Celtic writer, describes the reversal like this: Think about these words of Julian of Norwich: "He did not say, 'You shall not ...

2177. The Sending Plan (Alternate title: Our Human Predicament)

Mark 6:7-13

Sermon

Ron Lavin

... and ruining many a life. Martin Luther said: "You can't keep the birds of temptation from flying over your head; but you can keep them from building a nest in your head." He was talking about sexual temptations which can become lust. When we don't stop sexual temptations early, they make their home in our minds and become demons. People are subject to the divisive invasion of the demons called lust. If you are still not sure of the reality of demons, ask a recovering alcoholic how his or her condition was ...

2178. Himself The Real Presence

John 6:25-59

Sermon

George W. Hoyer

... and his ministry. In the section given for today there is a change. He defines "bread" in a different way. "The bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh." And -- it's true, isn't it? -- that word "flesh" gives us pause. It also stopped his hearers. It started a dispute. "How can this man give us his flesh to eat?" Jesus does not explain how. Instead he becomes even more specific: "Very truly, I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life ...

2179. The Taught Can

Mark 8:31--9:1

Sermon

George W. Hoyer

... that flows from these other saints to you. Yes, we come for the assurance of forgiveness -- the better to be saints. Yes, we pray for life -- the better to live with and for others. Yes, we seek salvation -- the better to share it with others. We stop by church on the way to work. We come for teaching, because having been taught, we can! Sometimes after a great thanksgiving meal, all you want to do is take a nap. Here now is this great meal, this Eucharist, this feast of thanksgiving. God gives ...

2180. Last But Yet First

Mark 9:33-37

Sermon

George W. Hoyer

... Jesus was about to do himself. He was about to permit a disciple to betray him, about to consent to being put to death, all this to make it possible for all people to be first with God. The easy way out of this dilemma might seem to be to stop wanting to be first. Would that we could. By ourselves we can't. But God has already changed us and our wants so that what we really want is it be first with God. But that does not mean we can simply sit tight and let it happen. God supplies ...

2181. Love And Money

Mark 10:17-31

Sermon

William G. Carter

... toys filled the nursery. Behind the shining modern rocking-horse, behind the smart doll's house, a voice would start whispering: "There must be more money. There must be more money." The children could hear it all the time, though nobody said it aloud. And the children would stop playing, to listen, for a moment. They would look into each other's eyes, to see if they had all heard. And each one saw in the eyes of the other two that they too had heard. "There must be more money. There must be more money ...

2182. A Ministry Of Hospitality

Luke 14:1-14

Sermon

Richard Patt

... ...." God did not withhold hospitality from us until we straightened ourselves out. While we were sinners, Christ was hospitable toward us by going to the cross and dying for us, in our place. Noticing our sin, Christ did not refuse to acknowledge us. He did not stop talking to us. He did not withhold information from us about God's love. No, in Christ, God made eye contact with us. The Word became flesh. The face of God now faced us. Looking into that face we felt sheltered and healed. Looking at his cross ...

2183. Clever Christians

Luke 16:1-15

Sermon

Richard Patt

... as much. At any rate each worker will receive a huge discount, thanks to the manager. What a way to build instant friendships! Very clever, indeed. When the manager finishes clearing his desk, he is about to walk out into the Friday afternoon sunshine. His wealthy boss stops him for a parting shot. "You know, you were a lousy manager; but I have to hand it to you: your little farewell discounts to the workers were a shrewd stroke. You are a clever one, aren't you?" At this point Jesus ends the story and ...

2184. A New Kingdom Coming

Luke 9:57-62

Sermon

Maurice A. Fetty

... lifts us above the delusions of fading temporal power. Note first of all, the new kingdom coming is out of the future, not the past. Many Americans are amused at the quaintness of the Amish people. These descendants of Germanic pietism attempt to stop the clock, to idealize a segment of time as the kingdom of God. Almost wholly agricultural, they ride about their farms and towns in horse-drawn vehicles, avoid the modern conveniences of electricity, and disdain any instruction other than that of their own ...

2185. Called! Cleansed! Sent

Isaiah 6:1-13

Sermon

Robert A. Hausman

... know, it was some musical direction that we no longer understand, so it was rightly dropped. Still, I heard of one person, however, who was disappointed by its loss, since she said it made her feel good to say it: selah! We have also stopped using Greek and Latin terms, such as kyrie eleison and sanctus, although we have managed to keep alleluia. The trend toward clarity is important, but, at the same time, the traditional expressions, because of their strangeness, were better bearers of the awesomeness of ...

2186. Made New By Taking A Different Road Home

Luke 1:39-45, Luke 1:46-56

Sermon

Richard A. Wing

... , a little gift is on the way!" Three men were running through an airport in San Diego and knocked down the small apple stand that was being run by a boy in tattered clothes. Two men kept running to meet the plane and the third had the good sense to stop, help the boy stack the apples, buy two of them and leave him a nice tip. The boy looked at the face of this man who took the time to help and asked, "Are you Jesus?" The road to Bethlehem is hurried. The road from Bethlehem is slower and looks ...

2187. Living By The Calendar Instead Of The Clock (New Year's)

Luke 2:41-52

Sermon

Richard A. Wing

... I have observed many people who have paid attention to the body and diet and have neglected the spirit and are dying inside. Dr. Friedman gives suggestions for people to live less frantic lives by living more by the calendar than the clock: 1. Stop thinking about several things at one time. 2. Listen without interrupting. 3. Read books that demand concentration (games, too). 4. Avoid irritating people. 5. Plan for some personal quiet time each day. 6. Finally, things worth being are better than things worth ...

2188. How Long Will You Limp? (Because God Is Tired Of The Bull)

1 Kings 18:16-46

Sermon

Carlyle Fielding Stewart

... will we finally come into full realization that it is the God of Israel and Jesus Christ who have brought us, kept us, sustained us through the trials and storms of our spiritual journey? Elijah's mandate was finally to convince his people that they had better stop limping and start walking with confidence, trust, and faith in God! How long will you limp between two opinions, people of God? It is time to take the moral high ground, to stand on the pinnacles of trust and confidence in God, to put the bulls ...

2189. What Money Can't Buy

2 Kings 5:1-27

Sermon

Carlyle Fielding Stewart

... marketplace of ideas every day. People often give their lives to receive a cure for disease or affliction. One man spent his life savings to receive information about a cure for AIDS. His search for a remedy had prompted him to pull out all stops in an effort to save his life. Sadly, he had come to realize that even his life's savings weren't enough to reveal information about a cure, but, ironically, he stumbled across some invaluable information quite by accident. Overhearing a conversation between two ...

2190. A Hunger That Cannot Be Satisfied

Amos 8:1-14

Sermon

James McLemore

... His mother was killed in a domestic argument, and his father is in prison. He lives in his mother's sister's house, with his mother's sister's children. His eyes replay the scene of his mother's death over and over again. He was too young to stop his father from killing his mother, and he is too old to ever forget. And so he lives through sleepless nights and restless days. His stomach is full; his heart is hurting, from this hunger, this never ending hunger. It is a hunger that cannot be satisfied. Let me ...

2191. Fear and the Farmer

Colossians 3:1-17, Colossians 3:18-4:1

Illustration

John R. Steward

... just answer my question with a yes or a no; did you say to the officer, 'I feel fine'?" Farmer Jones then tried to answer the question again. He said, "Well, now, me and my cow Bessie were driving down the highway in my pickup truck when..." The attorney stopped him again and this time asked the judge to intervene. He said, "Your honor, would you please instruct the witness to simply answer my question with a yes or a no." The judge said, "Why don't we just let him tell his story?" So, Farmer Jones told his ...

2192. Turning Point

1 Corinthians 15:12-34

Illustration

John R. Steward

... In only two or three days, the Americans had obtained air superiority. When air superiority was achieved, there was no longer any doubt as to who the victor would be in that war. However, it was not at that moment when the war was over or when the killing would stop. It was the turning point in the war when we knew for certain who the victor would be in the end. That is how it is with the resurrection of Jesus Christ. His resurrection is the turning point in the battle with "sin, death, and the power of the ...

2193. Knowing All Things

John 14:26

Illustration

John R. Steward

... about Charlie Steinmetz that was very important to Henry Ford. Steinmetz was truly a genius in the area of electrical engineering. It was Charlie Steinmetz who had built the first generators in the Ford plant in Dearborn, Michigan. One afternoon those generators stopped running. The regular mechanics worked at solving the problem but simply failed. Every hour that the plant was not operating meant a financial loss for the Ford Motor Company. They decided that the only one who could solve their problem was ...

2194. All Tied Up

Luke 7:1-10

Illustration

John R. Steward

... . They were all bundled together inside an old sweatshirt. He was so embarrassed by how dirty his clothes were that he did not want anyone to see them. He took the bundle of dirty clothes and without untying them stuffed them into the washer. When the machine stopped running he was delighted to find that they were still all tied together in one large knot. As he removed the bundle from the washer he kept them tied together as he placed the laundry into the dryer. After they had gone through the drying cycle ...

2195. Advent 1

Luke 21:5-38, 1 Thessalonians 3:6-13, Jeremiah 33:1-26, Psalm 25:1-22

Sermon Aid

William E. Keeney

... were a sign that the prophecy about Christ's return was soon to be fulfilled. Since the Israelis now occupied all of Jerusalem, including the site of the Temple, he asserted confidently that Christ would soon return. That would be a glorious occasion. The group stopped first in Greece. When they departed from Athens to fly to Tel Aviv, the director collected all the tickets and checked in the whole group. After they were on the plane, he thought he had returned all the tickets. Shortly after take-off he ...

2196. Love And Resurrection

Mark 16:1-20

Sermon

Don M. Aycock

... who believes in me will live, even though he dies. So we begin to inch our way toward understanding the significance of Easter Sunday. Easter is the supreme day of celebration for us. It was a day deemed so important that the first Christians stopped worshiping on the traditional Jewish Sabbath, Saturday, and began worshiping each week on the day which brought Christ to life -- Sunday. John 20 tells us that Mary Magdalene was encountered by the living Christ near the tomb. So great was her relief at seeing ...

2197. God On His Knees

John 13:1-17

Sermon

Don M. Aycock

... and now, just as you are. Having faith in God is primarily trusting in the trustworthiness of our Lord. He has done all that he can do to say, "Come and be mine." Can you refuse the God who gets on his knees to show that he cares? If I stopped here, the story would be only half told. Let us return to the upper room to see the other half. 19 Jesus says that he has given a new commandment: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. All men will know that you ...

2198. Tempted By Good

Matthew 4:1-11

Sermon

Don M. Aycock

... a strong witness for Christ and preach the good news of salvation first. People can be blinded by the physical aspects of life. I used to work with a fellow named Bob. He was a nice guy, powerful of body, but weak of mind. Every day after work he would stop at a liquor store and buy a case of beer. When he got home he and his wife would sit in the backyard and kill the case. That for him was life -- a cool shade tree and a cool brew. He had no interest whatever in any talk about Christ ...

2199. A Spear, A Nail, A Cross

Psalm 22:1-31

Sermon

Don M. Aycock

... you. Although you might seek to rid my world and your consciences of me, you cannot do it. I cannot be discarded like yesterday's newspaper. I cannot be forgotten like yesterday's heroes. There is, in fact, nothing which men and women can do to make me stop loving them, and I am willing to suffer to prove this fact." This is an amazing fact! Christ, the very son of God, allowed himself to be humiliated and crucified because of what it would bring! What it brought was eternal life which begins here and now ...

2200. On The Road To The Cross

Luke 20:9-19

Sermon

Glenn E. Ludwig

... rent from the tenants he left in charge. It is a simple story, somewhat gruesome in its detail, but it tells us something about God. These three servants were beaten and thrown out. So, the landowner decided to send his son and the son gets killed. Let's stop right there -- what's the point? The story doesn't make much sense, does it? Why would anyone in his right mind, after having sent three servants in a row all of whom get beaten up, why would any loving father send his son after seeing what happened ...

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