Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: Levi, disciple, evangelist, tax collector, the 12, the twelve, apostle, sermon on the mount, jewish audience, beatitudes, lord's prayer, great commission, parables, olivet discourse, mount of olives, olivet, synoptic

Showing 2351 to 2375 of 4942 results

2351. The Exorcism of a Child Develops a Humble Model for Faith

Mark 9:14-32

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Grant R. Osborne

Big Idea: This event is another fulcrum in the book, as three primary Markan themes coalesce: (1) the power and compassion of Christ, (2) demonic conflict, and (3) discipleship failure. Understanding the Text This is a classic example of the mountaintop/valley experience. The innermost circle of disciples experienced the glory of God in Jesus, as great a spiritual “high” as anyone in history has known. Now they are about to join the rest of the Twelve as they descend into the valley and face one of the ...

2352. Possessions and Choice in the New Kingdom Community

Mark 10:17-31

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Grant R. Osborne

Big Idea: This section is about choices and the effects emanating from them. The wealthy man chooses his possessions and therefore will be “last” in God’s kingdom. Those disciples who choose to “leave everything” will be made first, blessed now and vindicated for all eternity. Understanding the Text Wives and children (10:1–16) had very little social status, and Jesus elevated their place in God’s new community. Now he turns to rich and poor. The rich man, though with high moral standards, chooses the ...

2353. The Supernatural Witness to the Significance of Jesus’s Death

Mark 15:42-47

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Grant R. Osborne

Big Idea: The taunts from the onlookers, soldiers, and leaders are overturned by God’s supernatural intervention in the tearing of the veil and the unconscious testimony of the centurion to the true nature of the one crucified. Understanding the Text The events in verses 38–41 and the burial in verses 42–47 provide the aftermath of Jesus’s death and a transition to his resurrection. The mockery and horror of his crucifixion lead to the divine affirmation of the actual significance of his death, and both ...

2354. The Birth of John

Luke 1:67-80, Luke 1:57-66

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R.T. France

Big Idea: Both the extraordinary circumstances of his birth and his father’s inspired utterance testify to John’s pivotal role in the plan of salvation. Understanding the Text The two angelic announcements in 1:11–17 and 1:26–37 are now followed by accounts of their fulfillment in the birth of John and (in the next section) the birth of Jesus. Linking this passage closely with the opening scene of the Gospel are the return of Zechariah’s power of speech, lost at the time of Gabriel’s announcement (1:20–22 ...

2355. Two Memorable Healings

Luke 5:17-26, Luke 5:12-16

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R.T. France

Big Idea: Jesus brings not only physical healing and social restoration but also spiritual liberation by the forgiveness of sins. Understanding the Text These two episodes develop Luke’s portrait of Jesus the healer, a theme that was alluded to in 4:23 and spelled out in 4:40, and that will remain a prominent feature of his ministry throughout the time in Galilee and on the road to Jerusalem. In 4:40 we learned of Jesus’s ability to heal “various kinds of sickness,” and here that bald statement is filled ...

2356. Lord of the Sabbath and Appointing the Twelve

Luke 6:12-16, Luke 6:1-11

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R.T. France

Big Idea: Jesus, the Son of Man, declares that he has the authority to determine how the Sabbath should be observed. Understanding the Text The two Sabbath incidents in 6:1–11 complete the series of confrontation stories that began in 5:17–26, and the concluding discussion of “what they might do to Jesus” sets an ominous note for the further development of the story. But alongside the official opposition, we are now more fully introduced to the contrasting group of Jesus’s committed followers. We have read ...

2357. Power over Illness and Death

Luke 7:11-17, Luke 7:1-10

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R.T. France

Big Idea: Jesus has unique authority to heal, which extends even to raising the dead. Understanding the Text After the controversies of 5:17–6:11 and the collection of teaching on discipleship in 6:12–49, Luke now resumes his account of Jesus’s public activity in and around Capernaum with two instances of Jesus’s spectacular healing power. These two healings are of men, one of whom is already dead; in 8:40–56 Luke will tell of the healing of two women, one of whom is already dead. Luke often likes to ...

2358. Discipleship and Mission

Luke 10:1-24, Luke 9:57-62

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R.T. France

Big Idea: To follow Jesus and share his mission demands full commitment. Understanding the Text Ever since 5:1–11 Jesus has been gathering disciples. In 6:13 he chose the Twelve from among a larger number. It is clear that the Twelve will be his principal companions on the journey to Jerusalem, but who else will go with them? We are not told whether the three potential recruits in 9:57–62 did in fact join the group, but they represent the difficult choice to be made. So it is surprising to find so large a ...

2359. Negative Responses to Jesus

Luke 11:33-36, Luke 11:29-32, Luke 11:14-28

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R.T. France

Big Idea: Jesus has come not to collude with Satan but rather to confront and dispossess him. Jesus is far greater than any prophets or kings who have come before, bringing the light that we now must shine to the world. Understanding the Text There have been indications throughout Jesus’s ministry in Galilee that not everyone is favorably impressed by him. Now the opposition is focused in two specific lines of attack (11:15–16). The first concerns his deliverance of those who were demon-possessed, a major ...

2360. Use It or Lose It

Luke 19:11-27

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R.T. France

Big Idea: We have opportunities to serve God while we wait for his kingdom to be fulfilled, and he expects us to use them well. Understanding the Text As Jesus approaches Jerusalem, expectations are high. He has recently been hailed as “Son of David” (18:38–39), and soon he will be acclaimed “king” (19:38). He has declared that salvation has come “today” (19:9). Is this then the moment for the “kingdom of God” that he has preached to be brought in, with Jesus as its king in his capital, Jerusalem? This ...

2361. The Death of Jesus

Luke 23:44-49, Luke 23:26-43

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R.T. France

Big Idea: Jesus dies on the cross, mourned by some and mocked by others, but confidently placing himself in his Father’s hands. Understanding the Text The crowd demanded Jesus’s crucifixion in 23:21, 23, and that now takes place, cruelly embodying Jesus’s earlier warning that to follow him would mean to “take up the cross” (9:23; 14:27). A variety of reactions on the way to “the Skull” and at the cross reflect the different ways people have responded to Jesus and his claims within the Gospel. But as the ...

2362. At the Tomb

Luke 24:1-12, Luke 23:50-56

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R.T. France

Big Idea: Jesus is given a respectful burial, but two days later the tomb is empty, and angels say that Jesus is alive. Understanding the Text This is the point at which the whole story turns around. The apparently inexorable process of Jesus’s arrest, trial, and execution has now run its course, but that is not to be the end. Earlier in the Gospel we heard Jesus’s predictions of resurrection “on the third day” (9:22; 18:33), but these seem to have barely registered with the disciples, who are taken by ...

2363. The Kindness and Sternness of God

Romans 11:11-24

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C. Marvin Pate

Big Idea: Israel’s rejection of Jesus as Messiah is the occasion for God to show mercy to the Gentiles. Their conversion, Paul hopes, will stir Jews to jealousy and thus to accept their Messiah. God is showing kindness to Gentiles but sternness to Jews who have not accepted the Messiah. In the future, however, God will show kindness to Israel but sternness to Gentiles who fall into unbelief. Understanding the Text Romans 11:11 picks up the theme of 11:1. Has God finished with Israel? Verses 1–10 provided ...

2364. Ethics and Eschatology

Romans 13:8-14

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C. Marvin Pate

Big Idea: Ethics and eschatology go hand in hand. Because the age to come has dawned, Christians participate in the new covenant; but because the present age continues, Christians must love others and not cater to the flesh. Indeed, the dawning of the age to come in Christ empowers believers to love others in the present age. The Old Testament law could not accomplish this. Understanding the Text Romans 13:8–14 resumes Paul’s discussion about Christian love in 12:9–21. At the same time, 13:8–14 anticipates ...

2365. Wisdom and Foolishness

1 Corinthians 1:18--2:5

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Preben Vang

Big Idea: Christians cannot use the commonly accepted wisdom that guides the surrounding culture as the standard for their thinking and living. Understanding the Text In the ancient world, “wisdom” was not an abstract concept unrelated to daily living. To the contrary, it was a way of living based on a given understanding of life’s purpose and of what actions reasonably would accomplish such purpose. Various philosophers (lit., “lovers of wisdom”) competed to gain a following for their particular brand of ...

2366. Leadership and Servanthood

1 Corinthians 4:1-21, 1 Corinthians 3:1-23

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Preben Vang

Big Idea: Christian leaders must remember they are mere servants who are expected to be trustworthy and eager to enhance the mission and message of their master. Understanding the Text First Corinthians 3:16 and 17 function as a bridge connecting two sides of the same argument. Still addressing the secular nature of the church’s behavior, Paul concludes his exhortation to use superior building materials with a reminder that the Corinthians are building God’s holy temple. This reminder becomes the launching ...

2367. Consider Others Higher Than Yourself

1 Corinthians 8:1-13

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Preben Vang

Big Idea: Genuine knowledge of Christ causes a believer to consider how personal behavior affects the faith of fellow believers. Christian love and care for others must trump personal rights. Understanding the Text Paul now takes up the next question posed by the Corinthians in their letter (cf. 7:1).1Moving from the larger question of human relationships, with a special focus on marriage, divorce, and singleness, he now takes up another pertinent question that relates directly to the domestic situation of ...

2368. Trust versus Self-Reliance

1 Corinthians 10:1-13

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Preben Vang

Big Idea: Christians who consider themselves mature must be careful not to confuse trust in God’s grace with self-reliance. Rather than putting God’s forgiveness to the test, they should focus on passing God’s test, which will reveal that their primary and most trusted relationship is with him. Understanding the Text The key verse in this unit is verse 12: “So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!” Using an example from the Hebrew Scriptures, Paul compares the self-confidence ...

2369. Worship and Humility

1 Corinthians 11:17-34

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Preben Vang

Big Idea: Christian worship must happen in an atmosphere of humility and self-giving. Self-promoting pride desecrates Christ and brings devastation to his community. Understanding the Text The danger of an amalgamation between pagan and Christian worship loomed in the Corinthian setting. After pointing out how clothing (veiling) blurred what should have been a clear distinction between pagan and Christian worship practices (11:2–16), Paul now turns to the issue of the Lord’s Supper itself. The very rooms ...

2370. Message to Ephesus

Revelation 2:1-7

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J. Scott Duvall

Big Idea: Jesus commends his church for contending for a pure faith but challenges them to do so out of love. Understanding the Text Following the prologue (1:1–8) and the introductory vision of Christ (1:9–20), we find messages to seven particular congregations in Asia Minor (2:1–3:22). The focus in chapter 1 was on Jesus Christ, who is now the risen and glorified Lord over all. The seven messages are part of Christ’s “revelation” through John to his servants. Since every church is charged to “hear what ...

2371. Message to Pergamum

Revelation 2:12-17

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J. Scott Duvall

Big Idea: Jesus commends his church for persevering in faithfulness in spite of persecution but warns them not to compromise with an idolatrous and immoral culture. Understanding the Text The message to the church in Pergamum is the third in the series of messages to the seven churches in Revelation 2–3. Jesus commends the church at Pergamum for enduring persecution in a very idolatrous and immoral environment but faults it for compromising with false teaching that promotes the ungodly lifestyle of the ...

2372. The Beast from the Earth (The False Prophet)

Revelation 13:11-18

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J. Scott Duvall

Big Idea: Believers are called to discernment so they can distinguish true from false worship in order not to compromise with satanic powers. Understanding the Text Revelation 13:11–18 introduces the second beast, the final member of the unholy trinity. This beast appears as the “false prophet” elsewhere in Revelation, pointing to its religious role (16:13; 19:20; 20:10). Mounce summarizes the workings of this evil triad: “As Christ received authority from the Father (Matt. 11:27), so Antichrist receives ...

2373. Aaron Begins His Duties

Leviticus 9:1-24

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Joe M. Sprinkle

Big Idea: God uses imperfect ministers to lead his people to see and joyfully worship him. Understanding the Text In this passage Aaron and his sons are directed by God through Moses to commence sacrificing. Leviticus 9 continues the account of the inauguration of worship under the Aaronic priesthood that began in Leviticus 8 and goes through Leviticus 10. In Leviticus 8 the ordination of priests involves a seven-day ceremony. On the eighth day following this (Lev. 9:1), Aaron and his sons begin to ...

2374. Setting Forth with God

Numbers 10:11-36

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Joe M. Sprinkle

Big Idea: God leads and protects his people. Understanding the Text Numbers 10:11–22:1 forms a new major unit in the book of Numbers that describes the journey from Sinai to the plains of Jordan. In Numbers 1:1–10:10 Israel had prepared for resuming its march toward the promised land. The tribal camps have been counted, and their positions around the tabernacle designated. The duties of the priests and Levites have been delineated. Gifts for the dedication of the tabernacle have been received, and silver ...

2375. Gratitude, Forgiveness, and Obedience

Num 15:1-41

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Joe M. Sprinkle

Big Idea: Fellowship with God and defiant sinning are incompatible. Understanding the Text Numbers goes from a narrative about scouts (Num. 13–14) to a seemingly unrelated chapter of laws concerning sacrifices, unintentional sins, Sabbath breaking, and tassels. Why this material is placed here rather than with similar material in Leviticus has mystified interpreters. Numbers 15 does contribute one thing to the previous story. In Numbers 14 Israel is told that the adults will not enter the land (Num. 14:20– ...

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