Sermon and Worship Resources

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2276. Reconciliation: Refusing to Retaliate

Matthew 5:38-42

Illustration

Steven Molin

... . After school, Billy and his friends face Joey and his friends, and they call each other names. Somebody gets hurt. Somebody else gets hurt worse. And then there is no telling when or if these conflicts will ever end. Sound familiar? We have all experienced this sort of escalating pettiness and we readily admit that it is silly. But I would suggest to you that we can remove the names "Billy" and "Joey" and insert the words "husband" and "wife" and the story is much the same. Or we could insert the names ...

2277. Hear Him

Matthew 17:1-13

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... and overwhelmed Jesus’ disciples, Peter responded to the appearance of Moses and Elijah with what appears to be a quaint suggestion. Since Jesus and Israel’s two greatest dead prophets were pow-wowing on the mountaintop, shouldn’t he quickly put together some sort of shelters for them? Peter doesn’t skimp on facilities. He offers to build three shelters — one each for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah. But perhaps Peter is more savvy than we give him credit for. This is an event steeped in symbols and ...

2278. That First Longing

John 4:5-42

Illustration

Robert Bachelder

... a perfect model of ourselves." C. S. Lewis made the same point when he observed: “Most people, if they had really learned to look into their own hearts, would know that they do want, and want acutely, something that cannot be had in this world. There are all sorts of things in this world that offer to give it to you, but they never quite keep their promise. The longings which arise in us when we first fall in love, or first think of some foreign country, or first take up some subject that excites us, are ...

2279. Get Down and Dirty for Lent

John 9:1-12

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... But from Jesus he first received sight. And then from Jesus he received insight, the insight that led him to faith. All it took was the infusion of divine love to transform dirty stuff into the stuff of a redeemed life. There are all sorts of “questionably clean” things that spread love and give meaning to our lives. Does anyone this morning remember a grandma or great-grandma swathed in a big all-enveloping apron? Not some perky little decorative thing worn on Christmas. Not some manly “barbecue guy ...

2280. The Conversion of Chuck Colson

John 20:1-18; 21:15-25

Illustration

Ray Pritchard

... foolish thing that people often say about Him: "I'm ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don't accept His claim to be God." That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a great moral teacher and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on a level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this Man was, and is ...

2281. God Loves You

John 20:1-18

Illustration

Steven Molin

... up to leave, the counselor said the only thing he should have said when she first sat down; "Jenny" he said, "God loves you, even when you don't believe that God exists." Tears filled her eyes, and she said "I know he does." Faith, it seems, comes in all sorts of shapes and degrees. Maybe that's why you're here today; you've come to see and hear the story once again. You aren't certain that it's true; like Jenny, you struggle to wrap your brain around it. But you're here. Thank God you're here ...

2282. John 20:19-31

John 20:19-23

Sweet

... Lord “sends back” his own disciples into this world so that they may be the continuation of Jesus’ mission in the world. The next verses in John’s resurrection narrative have driven commentators into a frenzy, especially those who have tired to find some sort of harmony between John 20:22-23 and Acts 2. Among the more popular attempts to find a way of balancing these apparently contradictory accounts of the disciples receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit is that offered by John Calvin. Calvin argued ...

2283. The Five-a-Day Rule

John 20:24-31

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... His doubts have not caused him to leave the other disciples. His doubts have not led the believing disciples to throw him out of their fellowship. The doubter and the doubtless live together as a community of disciples. Thomas and his doubt were not some sort of cancerous tumor that needed to be excised from this tiny shiny body of faith. In fact, it seems that this doubtful disciple is the impetus for Jesus’ second visit to the locked-in faithful. The moment Thomas experiences for himself the presence of ...

2284. Will You Dance the Metanoia with Me?

Acts 2:14-41

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... , hot heads, and blowhards. Jesus didn’t keep the Sabbath as strictly as he could have. He walked too far, he healed some sick folk, he did some things the religious authorities considered work. Jesus ate and drank and hung out with all sorts of questionable characters. All these unexpected behaviors were highly suspected. But Jesus’ “bad behavior” was the fulfillment of the mission he had been given in this world. Jesus as “the Life” offered a vision of a life lived in alignment with God’s ...

2285. John 10:1-10

John 10:1-21

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... unknown, un-cleared, individuals away from the sheep. Obviously anyone who avoids the gate, and the gate‑keeper, is an unwelcome interloper. Back wall climbers are not welcome and do not belong. Typically, when the herds were close enough to some sort of civilization the sheep were herded into a three‑sided enclosure, sometimes part of a home’s “courtyard,” open to the sky and with the exit guarded by only one gateway, supposedly with a “gatekeeper.” Extreme investigation of the “gatekeeper ...

2286. The 4 Words that Tell What It Means to Be a Christian

Luke 24:50-53

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... for the light-switch? How about trying to “google” some piece of information? Or longing for news-updates that you cannot access? The great blessing of local, regional, and national emergency response networks is that they are comprehensive and coordinated with all sorts of emergency services. The curse of our twenty-first century response to emergencies is that they depend upon the power grid to work. If you are really in the middle of a major emergency — like the killer tornadoes that have so ...

2287. Those Kissing Christians

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... with a holy kiss; and Peter, with a kiss of charity.” (Catechetical Lecture, XXIII, 3. From The Catechetical Lectures of Saint Cyril [Oxford, 1839], 273-74. See PG 33, 1112.) Jesus inaugurated a “kissing culture.” He accepted kisses and touches from all sorts of disreputable characters. He drew dirty, sticky children into his lap and kissed and held them. He welcomed the kisses he received from his disciples. He scolded Simon the Pharisee for not offering him a kiss (Luke 7:45). He was betrayed by ...

2288. Evangelism

Matthew 28:16-20

Illustration

Billy D. Strayhorn

Most people expect every minister in the world to witness and do the "E" word thing. You're sort of like secret agents. Most folks don't expect you to talk about your faith or be involved in this whole Evangelism deal. But you know what, you are exactly who Jesus would have chosen. Jesus called fishermen, tax collectors, and the every day ordinary kinds of people. He didn' ...

2289. An Invitation to Tired Souls

Matthew 11:25-30

Sermon

King Duncan

... as you might think. Many people who are into running or swimming or basketball or some other strenuous sport will tell you that, over time, exercise actually produces more energy than it depletes. Sitting around doing nothing is the fastest way to grow tired and out of sorts. A tired body is preceded by a tired mind. Of course I realize that exercise isn’t for everybody. One man said his doctor told him that jogging would add years to his life. The man says, “I think he was right. I feel ten years older ...

2290. One Beggar Telling Another Where to Find Food

Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30

Illustration

Steven Molin

... as being right. We have the right theology, so that makes the others wrong. We have the right liturgy, or the right political opinions, or our members act in the right way. We're not beggars! We're not even sinners! We used to be, but not anymore. And that sort of attitude is not only a myth, but it repels the people whom Jesus wants us to reach out to…the ones who know the secret; that Jesus' primary purpose in coming to the world was not to tell us to straighten up and fly right. It was to tell ...

2291. When the Caterers Weren’t Available

Matthew 14:13-21

Sermon

King Duncan

... stocks are now rigorously conserved to protect against over‑fishing, and such large catches would undoubtedly exceed the fishermen’s quotas, leading to stiff penalties. Healing a man born blind. This apparent act of kindness would lead to all sorts of problems with Medicare or Medicaid. All disability benefits would immediately be stopped, and the man in question would probably face an investigation into whether his previous claims had been genuine. Raising the dead. Environmental health officers wouldn ...

2292. Matthew 14:22-36

Matthew 14:22-36

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... lies before him. The disciples, however, are experiencing neither the lonely peace of a mountain-top nor the comfort of communion with the divine. They are in the middle of the Sea of Galilee being “battered by the waves.” It would seem that the disciples are some sort of magnet for stormy seas (Matthew 8:24), and this time Jesus is not in the boat with them. A continuous, contrary wind has driven their boat off course and far out to sea. It is a long night for the disciples, since Jesus does not leave ...

2293. We All Need This Boat

Matthew 14:22-36

Illustration

David E. Leininger

... on in, I was just about to fix myself a drink. Can I interest you in one?" "Sure," I said, "if it's caffeine free, diet." He poured out the drinks, offered me a seat, reared himself back in his chair, feet on the disordered desk before him. "What sort of day have you had?" I asked. "A typical day," he said, again sounding tired. "Misery." "Oh, I'm sorry. What was miserable about it?" I asked. "'My day began with my assisting a couple evict their aging father from his house so they could take everything he ...

2294. The Mouse Christmas

Drama

Frank Ramirez

... some milk. Mouse Pig I am the pig. No offense here is taken. But I am left out. I’m not here, ham or bacon, When you put a manger set here on your shelf, That’s a menagerie, but not myself! That’s why I’m here. It’s sort of exclusive. Jesus saves all, he is very inclusive. Mouse Angel Once a cold evening love journeyed on wings. Two thousand years and this angel still sings. I’ll share peace on earth and God’s grace to all people That seek for God’s will. Let it ring from ...

2295. Surprise!

Luke 1:26-38

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... get through it. God will give it to you and me, too. The message of our gospel lesson is not simply a narrative about the beginning of Jesus' earthly life. It is a reminder to us to be on the lookout for angels — heavenly messengers of some sort (maybe some celestial being, maybe a Bible verse, maybe some Christian friend, maybe even a sermon) — with an announcement ... one that could be surprising and unexpected, one that calls us to give life to Christ again. We can ignore it. We can reject it. Or we ...

2296. Understanding Bible Prophecy

Deuteronomy 18:14-22

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... is related to the word for clouds, perhaps referring to discerning events through weather. It is used of those who engage in astrology, using the positions of the stars and planets to foretell events. Divination, another general term for predicting the future, often involves some sort of holy man casting bones or arrows on the ground, so that, depending on how they lie, he can know the future. Moses says not to go there. Instead, "The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your ...

2297. God's Day Off

Mark 2:23-3:6

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... to the Lord your God; in it you shall not do any work ..." (Deuteronomy 5:12-14). And it is not a suggestion; it is a command! To be sure, many, through the years, have gone to absurd lengths in its interpretation. Ancient scribes set up all sorts of "fences" around the sabbath to assure that no one could violate the divine rule prohibiting work. For example, they said bearing a burden was work. Then as a corollary of that general rule, they said that while a woman could have a ribbon sewn onto her dress ...

2298. Cross-Bearing

Mark 8:31-38

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... go into some of the nation's worst public schools. This is Teach America's means of transforming our schools into something better. Will says, This woman stood up in front of a large group of Duke students, a larger group than I would suppose would come out to this sort of thing, and said to them, "I can tell by looking at you that I have probably come to the wrong place. Somebody told me this was a BMW campus and I can believe it looking at you. Just looking at you, I can tell that all of you are ...

2299. Look Up and Live

Numbers 21:4-9

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... people brought sacrifices. Finally, the practice became so outrageous that good king Hezekiah smashed the thing to pieces (2 Kings 18:4). It is easy to lose focus. That is a good lesson for the church —keep the focus. Look and live. And to remember how contagious that sort of thing is: look up, and everyone else wants to look up with you. What a witness! "The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing." Turn your eyes upon Jesus Look full in his wonderful face; And the things of earth will grow ...

2300. Be Careful What You Wish For...You Just Might Get It!

1 Samuel 8:4-11 (12-15) 16-20, (11:14-15)

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... provided and guided in the wilderness, who brought them victorious into the promised land. They and they alone could have shown the nations of the world that power comes from God and God alone. But no. "We want a king over us." They opted for a different sort of power. Be careful what you wish for ... you just might get it! Israel got their king. Down through the centuries that followed, some of their monarchs were good, but most were not. More battles were lost than won. There was a period during which the ...

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