Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 2376 to 2400 of 4962 results

2376. In the House of the Lord

Psalm 23:1-6

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... . Everyone who figures in the movie drama is seated there in the pews. The camera moves in on the preacher at the pulpit, and he reads the moving cadences of the apostle Paul’s great hymn on love from 1 Corinthians 13.-We hear again how faith, hope and love outlast everything else. Then the ushers begin to pass communion trays. The camera follows the tray down the pew persons take the elements and pass the tray to the one sitting next to them, the camera focuses on their faces. Then each person passes the ...

2377. Jesus' Baptism: Affirmed by God

Mark 1:9-13

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... one distal joint, the middle finger of his left hand, and he lives in excruciating and horrible pain all the time. Yet, he sits at the keyboard with a smile on his face, and plays some of the most incredible music that the human ear could ever hope to hear. “How do you do this?” asked Barbara Goldsmith, the woman who interviewed Janis for Parade. Listen to the verbatim word of this great virtuoso. “What helps me the most, I cannot explain. You see, I developed a very personal relationship with God. I ...

2378. Peter, Our Folk Hero

Mark 14:27-31

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... homes and calling you to pray for this Capital Stewardship Emphasis to pray that the will of God will be done in this church — our congregation in our individual lives. They’d probably get into your home - if possible. If you’re not visited, although, I hope you will still pray. I’m calling you to it now. And, again, please read the material that comes to you by mail from the church. We’re not simply talking about raising 6 million dollars. We’re talking about this congregation as a people bound ...

2379. Touching Hearts and Transforming Lives

2 Corinthians 5:11--6:2

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... raise a child, it takes a church to form a village. We had better be in the business of creating safe places for the children of the world. We cannot ignore the young ones inside and outside of our church that long for safety, security, and a word of hope in a broken community. Some have little or no family to surround them. It is not the school's job, it is the church's job to create safe places where children can be nurtured, loved, touched, and held in appropriate ways. “Let the children come." As our ...

2380. Making Wise Investments

Matthew 25:14-30

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... Let me ask you a question. What have you done with what you have been given in life? Just as audits are necessary for business and evaluations are essential for employment, so accountability is critical to abundant life. I hope you have somebody in your world who loves you enough to tell you the truth. I hope you have somebody in your circle of contacts and friendships who is honest enough with you to help you lift up the floorboards of your very soul and look at the foundations by which you have built your ...

2381. Unusual Joy

Psalm 126:1-6

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... I've realized enough of my dreams, thank God, To make me want to dream on. I've prayed many prayers when no answer came, When my hopes and faith were almost gone. But answers have come to enough of my prayers, To make me keep praying on. I've drained the cup of ... spark in your step, a focus to your faith, a purpose to your being that this world has yet to dream of. C.S. Lewis says, “I hoped to find joy in a place. Instead I found real joy to be in a person, the person of Jesus Christ." Like a child who has ...

2382. Dreaming Impossible Dreams

Genesis 37:2-11

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... the crime by concocting a lie to tell their aging father. Martin Luther King in his sermon, “Shattered Dreams,” says, “One of the most agonizing problems within our human experience is that few, if any, of us see our fondest hopes fulfilled. The hopes of our childhood, the promises of our mature years are unfinished symphonies” in the orchestra of life. (italics added) The world has never treated dreamers very well. Remember the movie Jerry McGuire? McGuire is an agent for professional athletes. One ...

2383. Why Do People Suffer?

John 9:1-7

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... screeching and you could feel the thud when it finally stopped. For the next two hours we became intimately acquainted with people we hope to never meet again. What was going on there? Was God trying to teach Howard a lesson on patience? I do not think ... , which says, “Dad, you are a better person and a more effective preacher after cancer than before." And I said to God, “I hope so, I hope so." Never let a trouble go to waste. You see, as one of life's crossroads, suffering will change you by doing one ...

2384. Embracing an Endless Line of Servants

1 Corinthians 3:5-23

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... have lived and moved and had our being. There were times we never thought we would and nearly didn’t make it. There were times we almost hoped we wouldn’t make it and we were ready to give up on the whole thing, but we didn’t. We hung in there and that ... you such an anchor that keeps the soul steadfast and sure while the billows roll? How is it we sing it sometimes? Our hope is built on nothing less Than Jesus blood and righteousness I dare not trust the sweetest frame But wholly lean on Jesus Name. ...

2385. Finding Our Place In All Creation

Job 38:1-18

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... and he invited me to move in with him, which sure beats dorm life a lot. He's extremely smart even though he dropped out of high school. I really like his long hair and tattoos. The weekends are a real blast when we get high on drugs. I especially hope you like him since I may be expecting our first child soon. Love, Your daughter. P.S. There was no accident, no paramedic, no love affair, no drugs, no baby. However, I am anticipating getting two D's and one F this semester. When my grades arrive, I wanted ...

2386. Crying Out of the Depths

Psalm 130:1-8

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... its challenge; he knew you could not rush the dawn. You can only wait for the sunrise. I wait for God, and on his work, my hope relies. My soul still waits, until the lights arise. I look for him to drive away my night, Yea, more than watchmen wait for morning light ... a child to come home, a marriage to be better, a break to come at work, a healing to happen. I just want to say: keep hope alive. In God's time, He makes all things beautiful in His time. “Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord. Lord, hear my ...

2387. The Door of Celebration

Luke 19:36-44

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... Aslan. “I know grief is great. Only you and I in this land know that yet. So let us be good to one another and take care of one another." Wherever people grieve, Jesus weeps. Wherever children suffer, Jesus weeps. Wherever lives are torn apart, and hearts are empty, and hope dies, Jesus weeps. I am told that the signed name for Jesus is a tap of the fingers on the palm of each hand, indicating the marks of the nails. His wounds tell us who He is. Jesus weeps. That's what the cross is all about. When Jesus ...

2388. Does Christmas Make Any Difference?

Titus 2:11-14

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... to be reserved for the privileged, where company profits are more important than company employees, you have to wonder, can good people just stand there? With every power to say, “No,” may we find the courage to say, “Yes.” Yes to goodness, yes to justice, yes to peace, yes to hope, yes to love. Dare I remind you on this holy night of the motto of our founder, John Wesley: Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, In all the ways you can, in all the places you can, To all the people you can ...

2389. The Dynamics of Being a Dad

Ephesians 6:1-4, Ephesians 6:10-20

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger. Do not aggravate them to death. Do not break the spirit of those committed to your care. Fathers, your words have more power than you imagine. Become an encourager to those who are committed to your care. Do you get it? I hope so. It’s critically important. III. DADS ARE TO BE STRONG IN THE LORD. Of course, that applies to the rest of us as well. Verses 10-11 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can ...

2390. Positive Living

Galatians 5:1-15

Sermon

King Duncan

... and think only of the wonder of the message she is singing, she will be all right.” The night came. This lovely young woman stepped forward and began singing, “I know that my Redeemer liveth.” The music flowed in great beauty from her lips. And the best hopes of her teacher were fulfilled. She forgot the audience and the occasion, and sang as one who knew the meaning of it all. She sang in the strength of the living Christ whom she knew intimately and who was in power within her own life. As she sang ...

2391. From Envy to Gratitude

Matthew 20:1-16

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... foreman to pay the workers starting with the last hired and pay them first. Now you know something is going on in this story, that's exactly the opposite of the way things would normally happen. The one hour workers receive a denarius, the normal daily wage for a laborer. Hopes rise in the hearts of the others. “We hit the jackpot today, we've been here three, six, nine hours. If he's going to give somebody a whole day's wage for one hour of work, think about what we're going to make." But when their turn ...

2392. From Lust to Love

1 Corinthians 13: 1

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... only one way to read this passage. Listen to it. Such love is of God. God is patient. God is kind. God is not easily angered. God keeps no record of wrongs. God does not delight in evil but rejoices in the truth. God always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. God never fails. So, I read this poem with a prayer on my lips "God help me." Only you can help me put my childish ways behind me. Only you can teach me the real difference between lust and love. Only you can keep me from failing ...

2393. Reaching Up—Reaching Out

Matthew 6:19-24

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... back to normal. Possessions won't guarantee happiness. How is it George Strait puts it when a man's wife leaves him? I've got a furnished house, a diamond ring And a lonely heart full of love And I can't even give it away! Possessions won't guarantee hope. Jesus said, "What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? (Mark 8:36). Make a financial declaration today. We need the discipline more than the church needs the money. The church needs to know, so we can plan wisely. Maybe the ...

2394. Work

1 Corinthians 3:9-15

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... birthday cards I received Friday. “You don't need a silly calendar to make you feel older, that's what mirrors are for." “Do you know why old men wear their pants up so high? You will soon." Some contain Scriptures like Romans 12:12, “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer." All are saturated in love. If I have any regrets about life, it's that it has taken me so long to accept love and that it's been so difficult for me to express love. You see, those words were never spoken ...

2395. By Believing

1 Peter 1:13-21

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... . It is time to say with confidence, “I believe" and to pray that God will “help us when it is hard to believe." As Peter says to early Christians, “Believe in God who raised Jesus Christ from the dead and glorified him so that your faith and hope are in God." Let us declare our beliefs. I. WE BELIEVE THAT RIGHT IS STRONGER THAN WRONG. So we call upon people to renounce the spiritual forces of wickedness, reject the evil powers of this world, and repent of their sin. Or as Peter put it, “prepare ...

2396. Surprise

Luke 1:26-38

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... : “My Lord, God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. . .But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this, you will lead me by the right road though I may know nothing about it. Therefore I will trust you always. . .Amen." Do you ever pray ...

2397. Greed or the Gospel?

Acts 8:9-13, 18-24

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... him is the last plea, “Please pray for me." Did the Lord hear his prayer? I can't prove that he did, but I am on Simon's side at this point. At the height of his stardom, Mel Gibson realized he was empty. He had achieved everything he ever hoped for except a sense of purpose. Gibson felt he was drowning in fame, wealth, drink and despair. This led the one-time “sexiest man alive" to his knees and back to God. Of course, not everyone was ready to embrace his conversion. When his movie The Passion of the ...

2398. Hebrews 11:1-2; 8-16

Hebrews 11:1-40

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... hypostasis” of God’s image (Hebrews 1:3). Faith then is not only an inward “assurance” but has an outward substance. Faith, for this preacher, is not just a spiritual idea. It is a substantiated reality. Real faith is not directed only at “things hoped for,” but gives “elenchos” for things that can never be seen. This term “elenchos” is used nowhere else in the New Testament, but it’s usage by other writers of the era like Philo and Josephus indicates its sense is a “proof” or a ...

2399. Hard Words to Hear at Christmas

Matthew 3:1-12

Sermon

Charles L. Aaron

... prayers implored God to "Lay Thy hand upon the neck of Thine enemies."1 How does this work for us as preparation for Advent? We usually think of the Christmas season as a time for peace. During a war, both sides often honor a cease-fire around Christmas. We hope Christmas will be a kind of cease-fire in the stress and strain of life. We are used to quotes from the Bible in our Christmas cards. How often do we find Christmas cards that talk of the chaff being burned in unquenchable fire? Not only do John's ...

2400. Sneak Preview

Matthew 17:1-9

Sermon

Charles L. Aaron

... of God among us, yet they can be a kind of transfiguration for us. In these experiences we can see God's grace and power shining through the darkness of the world. All of us in this congregation pray that the church can become a kind of transfiguration. We hope that in our worship, in our service to the world, in our care for one another, we can reveal God more clearly to a world that is searching for God. Poe's inspector had nearly given up looking for the stolen letter. Just so, many have nearly given up ...

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