Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 201 to 225 of 609 results

201. Seeking the Presence of God

1 Corinthians 10:1-13

Sermon

Bonnie Bates

It is a well-known cliché that “God never gives us more than we can handle”, but I have sometimes found that not to be so. When my youngest brother died of brain cancer at age five, it was more than I could handle. When my first husband was emotionally and physically abusive, it was more than I could handle. When my second husband and I lost our twin sons at birth, it was more than I could handle. The COVID pandemic was more than we could handle. Wars and violence are often more than we can handle. ...

202. God Is Faithful To Godself

2 Timothy 1:1-2:13

Sermon

Richard A. Jensen

His hands were surely trembling as he lifted his hammer to nail his theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany. The year was 1517. The man was Martin Luther. Luther had lived through many a crisis in his personal relationship to God. Out of his struggles he came to believe that much of what his church had taught him was simply wrong. It was wrong teaching that had caused his faith crisis. Luther decided to go on the offensive. The topic for his offensive was the matter of "indulgences ...

203. Proper 19

James 3:1-12, Proverbs 1:20-33, Mark 8:31--9:1, Mark 8:27-30

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

Theme: Seek true wisdom; follow Christ. COMMENTARY Lesson 1: Proverbs 1:20-33 (C) Wisdom personified warns the fool to heed its words of wisdom and instruction or face dire consequences. The foolish will be destroyed by their own devices; when they call for help on the day of trouble, it will not be granted to them. However, those who listen to the voice of wisdom will dwell secure. Lesson 1: Isaiah 50:5-9a (RC); Isaiah 50:4-9 (E) (See Sunday Of The Passion) Lesson 2: James 3:1-12 (C) Chapter 3 revolves ...

204. Captive To The Word Of God

John 8:31-41

Sermon

Theodore F. Schneider

The Zealots had made a courageous stand, holding off General Silva and his elite Roman legion for more than a year. Jerusalem had already fallen months ago, and the mesa named Masada, along the west coast of the Dead Sea, was the site of the last pocket of Jewish resistance. Come morning, that, too, would change. The wooden walls were burning, and within the day's first light the Roman battering ram would begin again and make its final assault upon the weakened walls and gates. The leader of the 960 men, ...

205. The Narrowness Of The Christian Way - 1950 (date estimated)

Matthew 7:13-14

Sermon

Kent Moorehead

It is perfectly possible to tell a lie without saying anything untrue. As a matter of fact, the most effective liars are those who never deliberately say anything that is not so; they simply tell a piece of the truth and refuse to tell all of it. Let me illustrate the lying power of partial truth. I know a man who, with two other men, deliberately planned to get a fourth man in a particular situation where he would be utterly at the mercy of the three men. It would then be possible for them to kill their ...

206. Twenty-First Century Reformation

John 8:31-41

Sermon

Warren Thomas Smith

"So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed." (v. 36) On October 31, 1517, the eve of All-Saints’ Day, at high noon, Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses to the door of the Castle Church at Wittenberg. (We acknowledge that some scholars consider the story to be a pious legend.) It is easy to over-dramatize the event, but one cannot be unmindful of those hammer blows which echoed around the world. The Reformation had begun! Precisely, what was Luther doing? Existentially, he was listing 95 reasons ...

207. Liberty And Civility

Galatians 5:1-15

Sermon

Brett Blair

The United States of America will be 247 years old on July 4. That's a long time for a nation to remain free. But, when you look at our history in the context of world history America is just a CHILD among the nations. Egypt, China, Japan, Rome, Greece all make America's history seem so short. Consider what a brief time we've really been here as a nation: When Thomas Jefferson died, Abraham Lincoln was a young man of 17. When Lincoln was assassinated, Woodrow Wilson was a boy of 8. By the time Woodrow ...

208. Don't Fence Me In!

1 Corinthians 6:12-20

Sermon

Fredrick R. Harm

Goodspeed translates our text: "I may do anything I please but not everything I do is good for me. I may do anything I please but I am not going to let anything master me." So Saint Paul is saying, "I am free and yet I am not free; I rejoice in my freedom, and yet I recognize that there are limits to my freedom." With these inspired insights we come face to face with one of the most critical issues in our world -- and in your life and mine. How do we interpret and how do we exercise our freedom? This is an ...

209. Comfortable Christianity Is a Big, Fat Lie

Matthew 7:15-23

Sermon

Phil Thrailkill

“Thus you will know them by their fruits.” Matthew 7:20 In his novel A Painted House, John Grisham describes a pious Sunday school teacher eulogizing a character named Jerry Sisco. He was a mean guy who’d been killed just the night before in a back alley fight after picking on one person too many. In the words of the little boy who’d seen the fight with his friend Dewayne: "She made Jerry sound like a Christian, an innocent victim. I glanced at Dewayne, who had an eye on me. There was something odd about ...

210. Taking Something Up for Lent

John 3:1-21

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

Sometimes, not often and never intentionally, the secular calendar and the sacred calendar mesh. The liturgical calendar has us in the midst of Lent. Lent is traditionally a time of fasting, prayer, reflection, and study, leading up to the solemn events of Passion week. Lent is usually associated with giving up something, making some small personal sacrifice in order to better understand the immense sacrifice made by the Son of God. But this is also a season of sacrifice for secular society as well. ...

211. Are You a Taker or a Giver?

2 Corinthians 8:7-15

Sermon

Maurice A. Fetty

It was quite a picture — on the front of the New York Times magazine. There were the "Little Big People" as the cover article names them — "little big people" who are precocious, even out of control, with affluent parents who have only themselves to blame. The picture shows a yuppie- dressed eight- or nine-year-old boy, stylish, cool with his own cellular phone in hand. In the center is a modishly over-dressed twelve- or thirteen-year-old girl, stylish, sexy, and eating high priced Chinese take-out food. ...

212. God Is Like...a Comforter

2 Corinthians 1:3-7

Sermon

Kenneth L. Gibble

If you were asked to name the invention that has had the greatest impact on daily life in the past century, what would you say? The electric light bulb, the automobile? You could make a strong case for either of them. I’d add another to the list: central heating. Some of you, like me, grew up in homes that had no central heating. You may remember gathering around the kitchen stove to change clothes in the morning and going up the stairs at night to a frigid bedroom. You’d crawl between icy sheets and then ...

213. Telling The Truth

John 8:31-41

Sermon

Steven E. Albertin

You catch your child with his hand in the cookie jar just after you have told him, "Hands off!" But instead of a confession all you hear are excuses: "But, Dad, I thought you said I could have one." Terror strikes in your heart as you suddenly look up in your rear view mirror and see those flashing red lights. "But, officer, I'm sure I wasn't going over the speed limit!" The recent fiasco surrounding the White House has been met with such comments as, "Everyone lies about having an affair. It's no big deal ...

214. The Danger of Being Religious

Jeremiah 30:1--31:40

Sermon

John R. Brokhoff

"But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it upon their hearts; and I will be their God and they shall be my people. And no longer shall each man teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, 'Know the Lord'; for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord; for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more." Two young boys were close friends ...

215. God of Wrath and Grace

Genesis 6:1-8:22

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

There is a certain character on a British TV situation comedy who is always saying to someone else, “I have good news and bad news for you. Which do you want first?” Somehow the bad news always turns out to be worse than the good news is good. One day a hospital surgeon told his patient, “ I have some good news and some bad news. Which do you want to hear first?” The patient said, “Give me the bad news.” The doctor said, “We are going to have to amputate both of your feet.” The patient said, “Oh, that’s ...

216. Must Jesus Bear the Cross Alone?

Luke 9:18-27

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

In Douglas Southall Freeman’s classic biography of the famous Southern commander, Robert E. Lee, he tells about a young mother who brought her baby to him to be blessed. General Lee took the infant in his arms, looked at it, and then said to the mother, “Teach him that he must deny himself.” Both of our scriptural texts for today agree wholeheartedly with General Lee. The prophet Joel declared, “Return to the Lord with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.” Jesus said, “If any want to become my ...

217. Neighbors Who Never Met

Luke 16:19-31

Sermon

Brett Blair

What parable would make a man with three doctoral degrees (one in medicine, one in theology, one in philosophy) leave civilization with all of its culture and amenities and depart for the jungles of darkest Africa? What parable could induce a man, who was recognized as one of the best concert organists in all of Europe, go to a place where there were no organs to play. What parable would so intensely motivate a man that he would give up a teaching position in Vienna, Austria to go and deal with people who ...

218. The Waiting Father

Luke 15:11-32

Sermon

King Duncan

A teenager came to his pastor for advice: "I left home," said the boy, "and did something that will make my dad furious when he finds out. What should I do?" The minister thought for a moment and replied, "Go home and confess your sin to your father, and he'll probably forgive you and treat you like the prodigal son." Sometime later the boy reported to the minister, "Well, I told Dad what I did." "And did he kill the fatted calf for you?" asked the minister. "No," said the boy, "but he nearly killed the ...

219. Too Good to Miss

1 Peter 3:8-22

Sermon

Paul E. Robinson

C. S. Lewis, in his famous book Mere Christianity, tells the story of a school boy who was asked what he thought God was like. He replied that, as far as he could make out, God was "the sort of person who is always snooping round to see if anyone is enjoying himself and then trying to stop it!" Those who see God as that kind of a deity would then most likely see Lent as one long God-filled forty days, when we are to make room in our hearts and our homes for this fun-bashing divine guest, who checks out ...

220. Servants Of The Servant Who Was Lord

Mark 10:35-45

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

If I had to designate one big idea that has characterized the mood and the movement of people during the past ten or 15 years, I would say that this has been a time of aggressive self-expression. Perhaps the most graphic reflection of it is the advent of assertiveness training. This has been formalized in books, seminars, and workshops. For many people, winning is everything, even if you win by intimidation. In fact there is a book by that title, Winning by Intimidation. Success is measured by achievement ...

221. Draw Nigh To God

James 4:1-12

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

An older couple was driving down the road on Sunday afternoon. She was leaning against the door on her side -- some would say polishing the chrome -- and he was driving. They were eager to get where they were going, but were slowed down dramatically by a young couple, who were cuddling in the car before them -- the young woman was almost sitting in his lap, rubbing his face, and now and then kissing him on the cheek, and ever now and then -- though it was dangerous -- he would turn around and kiss her. ...

222. The Lost And Found Collection

Luke 15:1-7

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

Every place where the public gathers has to have a lost and found collection. The church is no exception. Worshippers are always leaving things. We have volunteers at Christ Church who tidy up the worship areas after each service. They bring me interesting things they find. Often they find notes written on bulletins. Surely these were not written during sermon times. A typical message will say something like, “Don’t you think Beth is cute?” or “Go Vols!” Occasionally we find a bulletin with a beautifully ...

223. The Acceptable Time

2 Corinthians 6:1-2

Sermon

Maurice A. Fetty

When Paul arrived at the city of Corinth, Greece, the middle of the first century A.D., he knew he had a challenge on his hands. Located on the isthmus between the Gulf of Corinth and the Saronic Gulf, Corinth was a prosperous port city where boats were transported overland from the Aegean to the Adriatic, thereby cutting many dangerous miles off their voyage. The marketplace abounded with goods and traders from many lands. Though never known as a center of learning, traveling philosophers and teachers ...

224. Looking in All the Wrong Places

Romans 3:19-28

Sermon

Lee Ann Dunlap

The song has long been relegated to the "Golden Oldies" category, but occasionally it can be heard on the airwaves. Long before one-name singers like Cher, Blondie, or Madonna made their mark in pop music, a little-known and even less-remembered singer named "Charlene" topped the charts. The song was addressed within the lyrics to the "frustrated mother" and "unappreciated wife" from the perspective of a woman who has been everywhere and "seen a thousand things a woman ain't s'posed to see." Yet for all ...

225. First Class Freedom

Galatians 5:1-15

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

Freedom. Freedom is the last word spoken by Mel Gibson in the epic movie Braveheart. It is also the first word spoken when he voiced the character, Rocky, in the claymation movie "Chicken run." I've always liked the irony and humor of that, even though I'm not sure anyone else ever noticed. Freedom, it's what we celebrated with parades and fireworks yesterday. Freedom, it's what makes this Nation so unique. In a sense, it's what brings us here today. Our freedom of religion allows us to gather and worship ...

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