Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 2226 to 2250 of 2962 results

Zechariah 6:9-15

Understanding Series

Pamela J. Scalise

... in this messianic prophecy: the priest who will be by or on the throne. Jeremiah 33:19–22 pairs the Branch prophecy with prophecy about the eternal line of Levitical priests. God had made, and would honor, perpetual covenants with both family lines. Psalm 110:4 designates the king in Jerusalem as “a priest forever, / in the order of Melchizedek,” the ancient king and priest of Salem who blessed Abram (Gen. 14:18–20). Second Samuel 8:18 mentions at the end of a list of King David’s officials that ...

2227. The Day of the Lord

Malachi 4:1-6

Understanding Series

Pamela J. Scalise

... (3:17). To “remember the law” one must live under its authority and guidance. This combination of verb and object are unique in the OT, but Numbers 15:39–40 and Psalms 119:51–56 and 103:18 use similar expressions. The terms decrees and laws designate particular requirements, such as the ones listed in 3:5 and the decrees regarding tithing (3:8–10). Malachi 3:7 accuses all Israel in every generation of turning away from God’s decrees and failing to keep them. This admonition to remember the law ...

2228. Staying Close to Christ

John 13:31-38

Sermon

King Duncan

... once fired a babysitter because his sons were starting to care for her too much! Not good for you, boys! Don’t get too attached to anyone! (2) Perhaps the quality of his relationships was one reason Hemingway took his own life. We were never designed to live detached from other people. Even football coaches talk to their players about loving one another. Vince Lombardi, one of the toughest NFL coaches who ever lived talked about that. He said on one occasion, “There have been a lot of coaches with good ...

2229. Teach Them To Your Children

Deuteronomy 11:18-21, 26-28

Children's Sermon

King Duncan

... body that can't be replaced, but if it could, might be worth millions. What part is it? It's my brain. Our brains could be worth more money than we could ever even imagine. For example, with you brain, you might someday find a cure for cancer, or design a new kind of rocket, or write beautiful music that will inspire people for centuries. The brain is priceless. Did you know that a lot of people never use their brains, though. They drop out of school. They never try to learn anything new. How sad. Today is ...

2230. The Healing at the Pool

John 5:1-15, John 5:16-30

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

... pool … which is surrounded by five covered colonnades. The description is probably intended for readers unfamiliar with the city. The text has supplied the word Gate, because the Greek word probatikē is simply an adjective meaning “of sheep.” When the Gospel writer wants to designate a location as being called something, he normally uses either the actual word “place” (as in 19:13, 17) or a more specific word, such as “town” (4:5, 11:54). In this case he is describing a pool, and it is on the ...

2231. The Last Day of the Feast

John 7:45--8:11, John 8:12-30

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

... there was such a complete merging of the Mosaic Prophet with the Davidic messianic king. More likely, the Pharisees are saying that a prophet is not arising out of Galilee now, i.e., this Galilean called Jesus is no true prophet. 8:1–11 This section (designated as 7:53–8:11 in standard editions of the Greek text and in most English versions) is not found in the earliest manuscripts, and therefore cannot be regarded as an original part of John’s Gospel. Most of the later manuscripts that do contain the ...

2232. Jesus and Those Who “Believed”

John 8:31-41, John 8:42-47, John 8:48-59

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

... temple during the Feast of Tabernacles, and now he goes back in hiding again. Additional Notes 8:31 The Jews who had believed him. The grammatical construction is different from v. 30 (i.e., “believe” followed by a dative, rather than by a preposition designating Jesus as the object of their faith). But in context the two constructions are equivalents. In this Gospel, to believe in Jesus is to believe what he says, and believing his message means believing in him as God’s messenger. There is no way ...

2233. Spiritual Blindness

John 9:35-41

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

... of Man? This is the only place in the entire New Testament where Son of Man is used as a confessional or creedal term. The reader anticipates instead “Son of God” or “the Christ” (cf. 1:34; 11:27; 20:31). Son of Man was Jesus’ own self-designation, but there is little evidence in the Gospels that he expected others to use it or that his contemporaries knew what it meant. It seems originally not to have been a title at all, but to rest on the Aramaic expressions ar nāšb (indefinite, “a son of ...

2234. The Death of Lazarus

John 11:1-16, John 11:17-37

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

... in the story with whom the readers of the Gospel (i.e., the Christian community at large) can identify (cf. the royal official in 4:43–54). 11:4 For God’s glory: see note on 11:40. God’s Son may be glorified. Jesus in his glorification can be designated God’s Son (as here), “Son of Man” (12:23; 13:31), “your Son” (17:1), “Jesus” (7:39; 12:16), or with a first person pronoun (17:5). This verse is one of the few instances in which the full confessional term God’s Son occurs on the lips ...

2235. The Jews Continue in Their Disbelief

John 12:37-50

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

... loved praise from men rather than praise from God (v. 43; cf. also 5:41, 44). The only feature possibly distinguishing this group from the others is that they are leaders among the people. But “the Jews who had believed him” in 8:31 are designated by the term often denoting Jewish authorities, whereas the one named example of the “many” who believed according to 2:23 was “Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish ruling council” (3:1; cf. 3:10). The somber reference to these secret (and therefore false ...

2236. Jesus Washes His Disciples’ Feet

John 13:1-17, John 13:18-30

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

... , he now showed them the full extent of his love) centers attention on what is immediately to follow, the washing of the disciples’ feet (vv. 4–20), while the accompanying remark about the devil’s power over Judas (v. 2b) sets the stage for the subsequent designation of Judas as the betrayer and his exit into the night (vv. 21–30). The procedure by which Jesus washed the feet of each of his disciples is described in very few words (vv. 4–5). Attention centers less on the act itself than on Jesus ...

2237. The Impending Departure I

John 14:1-4, John 14:5-14, John 14:15-31

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

... place for believers was regarded as implicit in such passages as 6:39; 10:16; and 12:32. 14:6 I am the way and the truth and the life. The main thrust of the context is carried by Jesus’ claim that he is the way; the other two self-designations are corollaries of this (cf. NEB: “I am the way; I am the truth and I am life”; but Moffatt’s “I am the real and living way” goes too far in this direction). 14:7 If you really knew me you would know. The NIV makes the condition contrary ...

2238. Crucified, Dead, and Buried

John 19:17-27, John 19:28-37, John 19:38-42

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

... and well-known reverence for the written word with the terse reply: What I have written, I have written (v. 22). Jesus, “glorified” in the presentation as king at Gabbatha, the “Stone Pavement,” has now been “lifted up” as king—and so designated in writing—at the place of the Skull (… called Golgotha) (v. 17). The narrator’s careful concern about the time (v. 14) and the exact place (Gr.: topos, vv. 13, 17) of these great redemptive events may reflect the beginnings of Christian ...

2239. The Second Appearance and Its Sequel

John 20:19-23, John 20:24-31

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

... preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem” (Luke 24:47). 20:24 Now Thomas (called Didymus), one of the Twelve: See note on 11:16. Thomas was actually introduced more abruptly in his first appearance in the Gospel than he is here. The designation of him as one of the Twelve is supplied here to emphasize the point that he normally would have been present for the incident recorded in vv. 19–23 but was not. The Twelve (though now only eleven because of Judas’ departure) are still being ...

2240. The Third Appearance

John 21:1-14

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

In contrast to a series of careful time designations reaching back at least to 19:14 (“it was the day of Preparation of Passover Week, about the sixth hour”) and continuing through 19:31, 42; 20:1, 19, 26 (“the day of Preparation,” “the Jewish day of Preparation,” “early on the first day of the week,” “on the evening ...

2241. Jesus, Peter, and the Beloved Disciple

John 21:15-25

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

... the Christian community (whether in one congregation or over a wide geographical area) is more characteristic of the Epistles of John than of the Gospel (e.g., 1 John 3:14, 16; 3 John 5), though it may be regarded as a natural extension of Jesus’ designation for his disciples in 20:17. But Jesus did not say: The Greek includes the words, “to him,” at this point. NIV probably left the phrase untranslated because its antecedent is unclear. It could refer to Peter—as v. 22 and the direct quotation of ...

2242. Imitating Christ's Humility

Philippians 2:1-11

Understanding Series

F. F. Bruce

... Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One,” occupying, that is to say, the position of highest honor in and over the universe. In thus raising Jesus, God gave him the name that is above every name. This is most probably the designation, “Lord,” in its most sublime sense. In the Greek OT this word (kyrios) is used, over and above its regular meanings, to represent the personal name of the God of Israel. This personal name, usually spelled Yahweh, had come to be regarded as too sacred to ...

2243. Shining as Stars

Philippians 2:12-18

Understanding Series

F. F. Bruce

... ouranou, ‘will shine like luminaries of heaven’]; and those who lead many to righteousness like the stars forever and ever.” But now those who share in Christ’s risen life anticipate the ministry of the resurrection age and bear their shining witness already. For the designation “sons of light” or “children of light” applied to followers of Christ cf. Luke 16:8; John 12:36; Eph. 5:8; 1 Thess. 5:5. 2:16 That I may boast: Gk. eis kauchēma emoi, “for a (ground of) boasting for me”; cf. the ...

2244. Timothy and Epaphroditus

Philippians 2:19-30

Understanding Series

F. F. Bruce

... to visit them. The phrase in the Lord has much the same force as “in the Lord Jesus” in verse 19. There is no means of knowing whether Paul’s confident hope of seeing them soon was realized or not. Additional Notes 2:19 The designations “travelogue” and “apostolic parousia” have both been suggested for such a section as Phil. 2:19–30 by R. W. Funk—the former in Language, Hermeneutic and Word of God, pp. 264–74, and the latter in “The Apostolic Parousia: Form and Significance,” in W ...

2245. Pressing on Toward the Goal

Philippians 3:12-4:1

Understanding Series

F. F. Bruce

... them the gospel. Additional Notes 3:15 Mature: Gk. teleioi, “perfect.” W. Lütgert (Die Vollkommenen im Philipperbrief und die Enthusiasten in Thessalonich, p. 19), W. Schmithals (Paul and the Gnostics, pp. 99–104), and others take the people so designated to be those of a Gnosticizing tendency, like the self-styled “spiritual persons” (pneumatikoi) at Corinth (cf. 1 Cor. 2:13, 15; 3:1, etc.). According to them, Paul’s ostensible association of himself with them in the first person plural ...

2246. Exhortations

Philippians 4:2-9

Understanding Series

F. F. Bruce

... . He is “the author of peace and lover of concord”: dissension and strife are “acts of the sinful nature” (Gal. 5:20). To have the God of peace himself is even better than having the peace of God (v. 7). “The God of peace” is a recurring designation of God in the NT—especially in Paul’s letter closings (Rom. 15:33; 16:20; 2 Cor. 13:11; 1 Thess. 5:23) and also in Hebrews (13:20). Additional Notes 4:8 Finally, brothers (Gk. to loipon, adelphoi): the pronoun “my” (Gk. mou) is absent here ...

2247. Walking in the Light

1 John 1:5--2:14, 1 John 2:15-17

Understanding Series

Thomas F. Johnson

... the special Johannine use of the term ekeinos appears. Ekeinos means “this one,” “that one,” or simply “he.” In 1 John it always refers to Jesus (3:3, 5, 7, 16; 4:17; cf. also John 1:18; 3:30; 7:11) and “was common as a designation in the circle of the author” (Bultmann, Epistles, p. 26). 2:7–8 These verses contain typical Johannine antitheses: new/old and light/darkness. New/old occurs only here and in 2 John 5, and never in the Fourth Gospel. Light/darkness is more frequent, occurring in ...

2248. Let Us Love One Another

2 John 1:1-13

Understanding Series

Thomas F. Johnson

... congregation and its members were called “the chosen lady and her children” (v. 1), so the author’s church and its members are called the children of your chosen sister. Thus, the two verses form an inclusio which frames this epistle. Such designations reflect the intimate, “Christian family” (cf. John 1:12; 19:25–27) relationships among Johannine Christians and their self-understanding as God’s chosen people (John 15:16, 19). While the wording of this closing (and its companion verse in the ...

2249. Joy at Believers’ Walking in the Truth

3 John 1:1-14

Understanding Series

Thomas F. Johnson

... among the Johannine Christians is evident from the writer’s language in vv. 1–4. He calls Gaius his “dear friend” (lit., “beloved,” vv. 1–2). He refers to the messengers who have told him of Gaius’ loyalty as “brothers” (v. 3). This is a common designation for members of the community in these epistles (1 John 2:9–11; 3:10–17; 4:20–21; 5:16; 3 John 5, 10) and certainly for them goes back to Jesus’ post-resurrection reference to his disciples as his “brothers” (John 20:17; cf ...

2250. The Beginning

Genesis 1:1-2:3

Understanding Series

John E. Hartley

... to receive forgiveness and reconciliation. Male and female he created them. The Hebrew emphasizes the phrase “male and female” by placing it before the verb. This third and final part of the verse contains four important ideas. (a) It ascribes sexuality to God’s design for humans. Thus, an essential aspect of human nature is quite different from God’s nature. An implication of this is that we need to draw on the outstanding qualities found in each gender to have a full view of God. If we imagine ...

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