Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 2326 to 2350 of 2561 results

2326. The Four Scents of Adventing

Mark 1:1-8

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

A traditional accounting of the number of “senses” the human body registers is five: sight, sound, touch, taste and smell. We now know there are between 9 and 21 actual senses, depending on who’s counting. But still there are five main ones, and two biggies in the five: sight and sound. Even those of us with poor vision and tin ears still rely heavily on sight and sound to get around. Taste and touch are less obviously used, but absolutely necessary. Our sense of touch keeps us from absent-mindedly leaning ...

2327. After the Parade

Mark 11:1-11

Sermon

King Duncan

Welcome to this celebration of Palm Sunday. Today is a joyous occasion as we remember the crowds of people who lined the streets of Jerusalem to welcome our Master into their city. Ironically, today is also, of course, April Fools’ Day. Maybe that is more appropriate than ironic. For, after all, didn’t St. Paul teach us the Gospel is foolishness to those who do not believe? “A stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles . . .” is the phrase he used (1 Corinthians 1:23). So perhaps April Fools’ Day ...

2328. Red, White and Pink

Luke 24:36-49

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

Have you done time in the “pink aisle”? If you’ve been there, you know what I mean. It’s that entire section in Target or Toys’R’Us or wherever you shop, that glows with a Pepto-Bismol-bright pink haze. The corridor you trundle your shopping cart down is awash in pinks . . . there is Barbie and all her accessories, there are dolls of lesser nobility and parentage, there are fingerpaints, Frisbees, . .. Whatever sits on those shelves, they all give off a ghastly pink glow. Stores really should provide ...

2329. Why Are You So Afraid?

Mark 4:35-41

Sermon

King Duncan

Karen Fair tells about her three-year-old daughter, Abby, who was having trouble sleeping through the night. She kept waking up because she was afraid. Each time Karen tucked her into bed again, she would remind her that Jesus was with her and that He would keep her safe. The sleepless nights continued, with Abby seeking comfort in her parents’ bedroom. Finally, one night Karen asked her daughter if she had prayed for Jesus to take her fear away and help her fall asleep. “Oh yes,” Abby assured her. “He ...

2330. Advocate and Redeemer

John 14:23-29

Sermon

Frank Ramirez

Imagine the wind rushing through an open door while the roar of the propeller in an aging old Ford Trimotor airplane rattles in your ears. You can smell the smoke from a raging fire hundreds of feet below. You are dressed in thick, padded clothing, wearing an old-fashioned football helmet with a jury-rigged grille in front of your face making it hard to breathe — that is, if it weren't already impossible for you to take a breath because of what is waiting beyond that open hatch. In a matter of minutes you ...

2331. Holy, Holy, Holy

John 16:12-15

Sermon

Arley K. Fadness

On this festival, The Holy Trinity, we celebrate one of the great treasures and mysteries of the church — the Doctrine of The Holy Trinity. To begin with, one must confess that it is presumptuous on anyone's part to have the audacity, the unmitigated gall, the naiveté, to presume to explain God, the Holy Trinity. No pastor, no doctor of the church, no professor of theology or philosophy, no deacon, no bishop, cardinal, or pope can describe the indescribable, explain the unexplainable, nor comprehend the ...

2332. Appointed and Sent!

Luke 10:1-11, 16-20

Sermon

Arley K. Fadness

The wheat harvest was glorious that year on our farm in South Dakota. Our pastor even came out from town and shocked grain for us. The two men from Arkansas that my dad hired were less ambitious. When Mom brought lunch out to them she often found them resting in the shade of a shock of grain. Nonetheless, the golden sheaves of wheat were so full and heavy they seemed to bow down to us as we passed by on the road. Soon the threshing machine and crew would arrive to separate wheat from straw. It was an ...

2333. Checked the Ditch Lately?

Luke 10:25-37

Sermon

Arley K. Fadness

We were driving west on Highway 16 from Custer to Newcastle, Wyoming, when Pam and I spotted this magnificent bird along the road. It was feeding on a deer carcass, and as we approached, it sprang into the air and soared off to the south alighting on the branch of a ponderosa pine. It watched us. It waited for us to pass. Yes, it was a golden eagle with a wing span of at least six feet. The next day, we were surprised and disappointed to see on the front page of our local Custer Chronicle paper a photo of ...

2334. Don’t Be Afraid

Luke 12:32-40

Sermon

"Don't be afraid." How many times have we heard those words in our lifetime? Our parents whispered them: Don't be afraid of: thunder, darkness, branches scraping against the window. Don't be afraid of: striking out on the ball field, flunking your physics exam, or your driver's test. When those words are spoken with love and sincerity they can be some of the most soothing words we could ever hope to hear. "Don't be afraid, I'm here with you. You're going to be all right. I love you. Stop worrying. Don't ...

2335. Begging and Bragging

Luke 18:9-14

Sermon

Scott Bryte

He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt: "Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, was praying thus, ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.' But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was ...

2336. Trick Questions, Big Answers

Luke 21:5-38

Sermon

Scott Bryte

"Wars and revolutions, nation against nation, kingdom against kingdom, earthquakes, famines, and pestilence ... betrayal, hatred..." (Luke 21:10-11). Whoa! What season is approaching? What about "Peace on earth and mercy mild"? Actually, both images are at play here. Yes, Christmas is coming — a beautiful time. But juxtaposed against that is a life of great uncertainty for all of us, a time when our institutions, those entities in society upon which we have depended, our temples, are crashing down around ...

2337. Not Just Being Polite

John 6:25-35

Sermon

Scott Bryte

When they found him on the other side of the lake, they said to him, "Rabbi, when did you come here?" Jesus answered them, "Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal." Then they said to him, "What must we do to perform the works of God?" Jesus answered ...

2338. God's Picture

John 1:10-18

Sermon

David E. Leininger

An old story has it that a little boy was feeling very lonesome for his father. His dad was away from home on business a great deal, and as much as they might have wished it otherwise, there were special family times when it was not possible to be together. One of those times was the boy's birthday — the father was simply not able to break away from a business trip out of town. Of course, he had sent a card and a lovely present. He had even called to wish his boy the best of the day, but that was no ...

2339. Divine Dynamite

Acts 1:1-11

Sermon

David E. Leininger

"You will receive power ..." (Acts 1:8). Here was a ragtag bunch of people with no power, no position, no influence, no clout, being given the promise of their risen Lord that things were about to change for them. Not in the way that they might have wished, to be sure. After all, the power they were about to get was not political (even though that is what they wanted) — there was no promise of an earthly kingdom. Just divine power. And we celebrate the coming of that power every year on Pentecost, the day ...

2340. Greed

2 Kings 5:1-14

Sermon

David E. Leininger

Scripture offers a wealth (if I may use that term) of material about greed, about the love of money or possessions, and the disastrous consequences that kind of love can have. Of course, there is Judas who, in his greed, became an accessory to murder; Ananias and Sapphira who lied about the sale price of their property so they could keep some of the money for themselves; the rich young ruler who wanted to follow Jesus but could not bring himself to get rid of his possessions first. First Timothy says, "The ...

2341. Rubble and Trouble

Luke 21:5-19

Sermon

David E. Leininger

2342. The Incomparable Christ

Colossians 1:15-20

Sermon

David E. Leininger

Life was difficult. It always was for prisoners. There were meager rations and hard labor. Sometimes restrained and tortured by the stocks or collar. Left with festering wounds in damp, abandoned cisterns converted to maximum security dungeons. Why was he here? His only crime was criticizing the king for stealing his own brother's wife, Herodias. Herodias wanted John killed, but Herod Antipas was reluctant — he knew the people thought highly of John. John's ministry had begun in the wilderness where he ...

2343. Did You Come Here to Die?

Mark 8:31--9:1

Sermon

King Duncan

A man from the U.S. was on his first trip to Australia. He summoned a taxi at the airport. He was shocked when the taxi driver asked him in a strong Australian accent, “Did you come here to die?” This was unexpected and disturbing a cabbie asking him, “Did you come here to die?” What kind of ride was he in for? The man wondered. He said, “Excuse me?” The cabbie elaborated, “Did you come here to die, or yester-die?” In today’s Gospel lesson Jesus is breaking it to his disciples that he has come to die and ...

2344. Proper 5

1 Kings 17:8-24, Psalm 30:1-12; 146:1-10, Luke 7:11-17, Galatians 1:11-24

Bulletin Aid

Julia Ross Strope

Call To Worship Leader: A good summer morning to you! Are you alert, centered, and talkative? Are you joyfilled? Are you ready to sing? People: Ah, yes. We are thankful for life and we are seeking security and happiness. Leader: We have called to God many times and the Holy One has sustained us and restored us to hopefulness. People: With music and dance, with words and silence, we thank God for divine goodness among us! Prayer Of Thanksgiving God of Words and Silence — we are glad for the many ways we can ...

2345. You Provoke Me...and That's Good

Hebrews 10:1-18

Sermon

King Duncan

A three-year-old boy opened a birthday gift from his grandmother. It was a water pistol. He squealed with delight and headed for the sink to fill it. His father was not so pleased. Provoked, he turned to his own mom and said, “I’m surprised at you. Don’t you remember how we used to drive you crazy with water guns?” His mother gave him a wicked smile and replied, “I remember!” Has anyone here ever heard one of your parents say, “Don’t you provoke me!” Maybe it was when you had a water gun in your hand. What ...

2346. Two Sticker Books and a Cabbage Patch Doll

Matthew 6:25-34

Sermon

King Duncan

Welcome to this Thanksgiving service. We are grateful to God for all His gifts to us. Our text for today draws us to a gift that sometimes we take for granted. And yet it is one of the greatest gifts God has given us. There was a story in Reader’s Digest years ago about a young man who took his girl home at the end of their first date. Emboldened by the night, he decides to try for that important first kiss. With an air of confidence, he leaned with his hand against the wall and, smiling, he said to her, “ ...

2347. The Great Sacrifice of Love

Luke 9:18-27, 1 Corinthians 15:1-11

Sermon

Richard Gribble

In the fifteenth century, a rural village in Germany was home to a family with eighteen children. The family was poor, but despite the difficulty of making ends meet, two brothers in the family still held a dream, namely to pursue their talent as artists. With the financial situation bleak the two boys came up with their own solution to the problem. They agreed to toss a coin with the loser going to the local mines to work so he could support the other while he attended art school. When the first was ...

2348. God as a Consuming Fire

Hebrews 12:18-29

Sermon

Charles L. Aaron

Every pastor sees the damage that is done to people by too heavy an emphasis on God's judgment. The damage often begins in childhood. Because children can be rambunctious, adults too often try to frighten them into obedience. The church is no exception to this practice. Parents sometimes report that their children have come home from Sunday school or vacation Bible school in tears and trembling because some misguided adult had tried to frighten them into faith with horrifying images of the punishment that ...

2349. A New Resolve

Philippians 4:1, 4-9

Sermon

Scott Suskovic

Last summer, my children rode a flight simulator. Basically, they strap you into a box in front of a screen and shake it upside down. It is supposed to feel more like flying an airplane than a Disney ride. They also had a camera on the people inside the simulator so that those waiting outside can see what was going on inside the cockpit. When my daughter had the controls, the plane was level, missed the trees, and landed smoothly. When my son took over the controls, the box spun with barrel rolls, shot ...

2350. Joshua's New Diet

Joshua 5:9-12

Sermon

David J. Kalas

What do you or your family pray at mealtime? When I was growing up, our family typically recited the "God is good, God is great" prayer that so many folks use as a table grace. At Christian camp settings as a teenager, I grew accustomed to singing the Johnny Appleseed song before we ate. My children are fond of singing the doxology at the dinner table. And over the years I have heard a great many people offer mealtime prayers, thanking God for his bounty, for fellowship, for the hands that prepared and the ...

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