Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 2326 to 2350 of 3852 results

Luke 10:25-37

Sermon

David R. Cartwright

... on the screen. But, let's not go overboard, not just yet. For there's still one character in the story that we haven't checked in with yet. And that's the response the rich, young lawyer had after he heard Jesus' story. Going back to the man's original question, "And who is my neighbor?" (Luke 10:29). Jesus takes a twist on his question and asks the young man, "Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?" (Luke 10:36). The man's answer is revealing ...

2327. Counting the Cost of Discipleship

Luke 14:25-33

Sermon

Ron Lavin

... but the language to convey the thoughts was Greek. An additional factor in trying to get at what Jesus really meant is that we have the words in English. That complexity of translation makes it more difficult to know what Jesus was really saying. The original Greek word used here is misei from the root word, miseo. Miseo literally means to regard with less affection, to love less, or to esteem less. It doesn't mean animosity, ill will, or revenge, which our English word, "hate," suggests. Miseo doesn't mean ...

2328. Building God’s Kingdom: The Christian Challenge

Romans 10:8-13

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... community to place its efforts in solidarity with other believers. As he wrote to the Ephesians (3:6) that the Gentiles were co-heirs with the Jews, as inheritors of God's promise, so now Paul rejects those who make distinctions in the community. One's origins have no bearing; all that matters is belief in Jesus. Salvation comes through Christ. Again, Paul seems to have learned what Jesus told his apostles in response to Thomas' question (John 14:6): "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes ...

2329. Standing Tall in the Lord

Philippians 3:17-4:1

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... this struggle through a righteous and dogmatic campaign. His greatest nemesis, however, was the Arians, who although condemned, continued to grow and attract many to their theological perspective. In fact, the number of Arians was so great that Saint Jerome, the original translator of the scriptures into Latin (the Vulgate), once wrote, "The world awoke and found itself Arian." Between 335-366, Athanasius, one of the few bishops in the eastern church who held the orthodox faith, was exiled on five different ...

2330. Carrying the Burdens of Others

Philippians 2:5-11

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... significant period of Holy Week, Saint Paul challenges us to emulate the Master, Jesus, by humbling ourselves and to willingly choose to suffer for others. Scripture scholars tell us that this famous passage was an ancient Christological hymn, probably of Jewish-Christian origins, that was appropriated by Paul and placed into the body of his letter to the Christian community at Philippi. Paul asks the Philippians to consider the humility of Christ and to follow his lead. Even though he was God, Jesus did ...

2331. Repairing Our Lives

1 Corinthians 15:19-26

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... is the power of Christ's resurrection that restores all things. The king felt all was lost, but then the old gem master came upon the scene quite unexpectedly and magically all was restored. Yes, things were different, the diamond was not as it was originally, but it was more beautiful. In a similar way, Jesus rose from the dead, destroying death and restoring life. When Jesus' friends had lost all hope, the Lord restored life in every way. Jesus' resurrection gives joy to the whole Christian world, but it ...

2332. Jesus Brings Hope

Revelation 1:4-8

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... hope of what Christ can do for us if we remain faithful. Today's lesson from the book of Revelation clearly demonstrates this same hope. During this special season we will hear each Sunday from this last book of the Bible. Revelation, or as it was originally titled, Apocalypse, meaning "the message must take place soon," is a confusing book in many ways. It is filled with symbols, namely words and numbers, that have special meanings. In some ways, one needs a list of signs and a road map to negotiate the ...

2333. Enduring the Trials of Faith

Revelation 7:9-17

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... where the message will be revealed, suffers a severe heart attack. As he clings to life in a London hospital, Jean Marie receives a strange visitor. The man is young, about thirty years old, tall, strong, and speaks with a Middle Eastern accent, although his origin seems a mystery. He wears a beautiful and ancient ring which has inscribed on it the Christian symbol of a fish. This man calls himself Mr. Atha. The stranger tells Jean Marie that he must persevere but that the message which he feels must be ...

2334. The Difference between Knowing and Doing

Galatians 2:15-21

Sermon

John Jamison

... that circumcision was non-negotiable, and the only way into the salvation of the church. Those preaching from other corners of the world insisted that such laws were unjust, and the acts of false believers. At one point, Paul met the Apostle Peter, one of the original disciples, and ended up in a yelling match with him. It seems that Peter, who was one of the Jerusalem boys, had had a dream about the laws regarding cleanliness. In Acts 10, we read that Peter had a dream about a big white sheet being ...

2335. God’s Grammar

Galatians 3:23-29

Sermon

John Jamison

... faces now. As we did last week, it might be wise for us to keep an ear tuned to the conversation, and see if Paul's words have any meaning for our attempts at church-building here today. Let's begin by accepting the reality that the church was originally created by a group of good Jewish boys. I mean absolutely no offense in making that comment, but it is important to start there as we try to understand what is to come. The twelve disciples selected by Jesus were all from the Jewish tradition, and all from ...

2336. Bystanders or Standbys

Genesis 2:4-25

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... to the feet. God goes right to heart of “adam.” God removes a rib from “adam’s” mid-section, thereby exposing “adam’s” heart to this new creation. This enables God to construct a new being who is neither higher nor lower than the original. This new being is “kenegdo,” “in front of,” or “in full view of,” a side-by-side being who can meet “adam” face-to-face. Third, God created not just “woman.” God created a new kind of relationship. These are relationships between equals ...

2337. The Good News about Marriage

Mark 10:1-12

Sermon

King Duncan

... wonderful, devout couples are unable to bear offspring. Life tests us in many ways. And some couples decide that their situation does not lend itself to effective parenting. Jesus understands all this. What he wants us to see, however, is how beautiful God’s original plan is for the propagation of the race: One flesh, a couple before God with their offspring, a family in which God’s love abides. For those who choose to marry, this is what God wants a lifetime partnership. Having said that, however, we ...

2338. Children in Reality

Mark 10:1-12

Illustration

Donald B. Strobe

Two theologians were walking across a seminary campus when one asked the other, "Do you believe in Original Sin?" The other said, "Yes, I do. We have a child." "Do you believe in Total Depravity?" asked the first man. "No, I don't. That is an excess of Calvinistic theology," replied the second. The first replied, "Just wait until you have two children!"

2339. Called by a New Name

Isaiah 62:1-5

Sermon

Mary S. Lautensleger

... generations ago, the only women who did not take their husbands' names after marrying were movie stars and a handful of professional women. Today, many women choose to retain their maiden names, so as not to lose identity with their families of origin. Husbands and wives also combine their names. I know one person who refers to these couples as "the hyphenated families." Some couples even become creative, combining syllables of both surnames in order to form an entirely new name. Children who are adopted ...

2340. Who?

Acts 5:27-32

Sermon

Frank Ramirez

... 29). The Rabbi Gamaliel cites two instances in which false teachers were eventually discredited and their followers scattered. "So in the present case," Gamaliel says, "I tell you, keep away from these men and let them alone; because if this plan or this undertaking is of human origin, it will fail; but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them - in that case you may even be found fighting against God" (Acts 5:38-39). There's a little mystery involved in this scene. Luke is a careful historian ...

2341. What Church Looks Like

Acts 16:9-15

Sermon

Frank Ramirez

... to Rome in times past. She would have had a great deal of social importance, for normally in that time women were not named in public, but what she seems to have craved more than anything else was acceptance into the family of God. The original Greek text makes it clear that these women did not gather together by accident. They gathered together in a structured manner to worship. The women had active church lives, but their church could never meet under the strictures of Judaism. There was nothing to stop ...

2342. Wisdom's Delight

Proverbs 8:1-4, 22-31

Sermon

Stan Purdum

... those intriguing language puzzles in this statement. As it stands, Wisdom, being beside God "like a master worker" makes it sound like Wisdom helped with the creating process. And I understand that "master worker" is an acceptable translation of the original Hebrew. However, many Bible scholars think that the intent of the Hebrew word, which is admittedly difficult to translate, may instead be more like "little child."1 TheRevised English Bible follows that possibility when it renders this section this way ...

2343. The Smell of Bread

2 Kings 2:1-2, 6-14

Sermon

Stan Purdum

One of the most popular television shows ever was M*A*S*H, which ran for eleven seasons, from 1972-1983. If you didn't see it when it was originally on network television, you've probably seen it in reruns on cable stations. The show was about life in a mobile Army surgical hospital during the Korean War, and the reoccurring characters included the surgeons. One of those surgeons, named Charles Emerson Winchester III, was a pompous, upper-class doctor ...

2344. When Nothing More Can Be Done

Amos 8:1-12

Sermon

Stan Purdum

... hears a new word from God. In a vision, Amos sees a basket filled with summer fruit. God then explains to Amos the meaning of the vision, saying, "The end has come to my people Israel." Actually, we'd have to be able to read this passage in the original Hebrew to make the connection. The Hebrew word for summer fruit is qayits, and the word for end is qets. The two words are not related in meaning, but they sound similar, and that is the basis for the association.1 The message Amos hears is, "Israel's summer ...

2345. The Hard Task of Truth-telling

Jeremiah 1:4-10

Sermon

Lee Ann Dunlap

... to which we ourselves belong — that is tough duty. The spiritually wise have learned that, usually, the harder it is to speak words of judgment — the more ache that pronouncement brings to our hearts — the more likely it is that the message is of godly origin instead of human vindictiveness. The harder it is for a prophet to speak the message, the more it is likely that the prophet speaks the truth. To speak the truth even when it breaks our hearts — such a divine calling prompts few volunteers. Yet ...

2346. God's Eminent Domain

Jeremiah 18:1-11

Sermon

Lee Ann Dunlap

... survival in their desert wanderings, and shaped by judges, prophets, and kings under God's watchful eye and attentive hand. But this vessel proved to be less than intended. Marred by religious idolatry and political corruption its shape was contorted and now useless for its original purpose — to offer praise to God, and justice and hope to humanity. It was time to redesign. "Am I not free to do with this vessel as I choose?" God asks. God's claim of eminent domain runs contrary to our twenty-first-century ...

2347. Listening for the "Ching-ching"

Jeremiah 8:18-9:1

Sermon

Lee Ann Dunlap

... or so since its first episode, the familiar "ching-ching" sound and opening credits of Law And Order have become cultural icons equivalent to Archie Bunker's All In The Family living room or the scrambling medical staff of M*A*S*H. Since the original Law and Order debut Special Victims Unit, Criminal Intent, Trial By Jury, and Conviction have been added to the lineup with others on the storyboard. Predictably, each series has its own website where fans can log-in for the latest script details and chat about ...

2348. What a Deal: Investing in Hope

Jeremiah 32:1-3a, 6-15

Sermon

Lee Ann Dunlap

... of some local coal tycoons and a congressman from the area; and for nearly two generations, it served the community well until it was swallowed up by a much larger financial institution from a much larger city. Instead of the local farmers and businessmen who originally constituted the board of directors, financiers who have likely never set foot in the town, and probably couldn't even find it on the map, now operate the bank. The story of this little bank is not much different from a lot of community banks ...

2349. Song Sung Blue

Lamentations 1:1-6

Sermon

Lee Ann Dunlap

... "lamentation" is a written form musicians might call a dirge, such as would be used, or sung at a funeral. The book of the Bible we know as "Lamentations" was just such a dirge, adapted to fit the public forum. Scholars tell us it was originally written to corporately grieve the fall of Jerusalem after eighteen years of siege warfare. The city had been surrounded by Babylonian enemies and its inhabitants left to starve or die of pestilence or violence. Imagine that, if you can — a city, say New Orleans ...

2350. Preaching God's Reformation

Jeremiah 31:31-34

Sermon

John Wayne Clarke

... the sense that she or he is constantly fed by the Word and is charged with reminding all who will listen that it is God's desire to bless and not curse! The prophet Jeremiah was a preacher. He was a youth from the village of Anathoth, one of the original thirteen cities assigned to the Levites (1 Chronicles 6:60), three or four miles northeast of the city of Jerusalem. The Bible tells us that the Word of God came to Jeremiah in the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah (1:2), which was in 627 B.C.E ...

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