Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: thirstiness, dryness, parched, craving, strong desire, longing, yearning, avidity, hunger, voracity, keenness, eagerness, lust, appetite, passion, love, crave, want, covet, desire, hunger for/after, lust for/after, hanker for/after, have one's heart set on

Antonyms: aversion, distaste, apathy, dislike, hatred, antipathy, disgust, disregard, abhorrence, acrimony, wet, animosity, animus, antagonism, bad feeling, bitterness, be averse to, detestation

Showing 2451 to 2475 of 3108 results

2451. Ready for Jesus?

Romans 13:11

Children's Sermon

Wesley T. Runk

Object: A cereal box, some school clothes, tooth brush, wash cloth, lunch box, books, comb, and any other items that might apply to getting ready for school. Good morning, boys and girls. How many of you have ever had to rush to get ready for school? Some of you have. It’s very interesting to watch young people get ready for school. First of all, if is really hard to get up isn’t it? [Let them answer.] Right. I remember how it was when I was a boy. [Show the objects.] After you get up, you must wash your ...

2452. But Men Loved Darkness

John 3:1-21

Sermon

Louis H. Valbracht

If you should ask the question: "What is wrong with our world today?" you would probably get as many answers as there are persons who are interrogated. Indeed, it is often like the lady foreman of the all-woman jury who was asked by the judge whether the jury had reached a verdict. "Yes, your Honor," she replied, "we have reached twelve verdicts." I suppose I’m considered a male chauvinist pig for using that story, but it could apply in either men or women. Yet the writer, Glen Drake, has placed his finger ...

2453. Chapter I

Exodus 20:1-21

Sermon

Frank H. Seilhamer

"I am the Lord your God ..." Exodus 20:2 A few years ago I had the opportunity to return to the homestead where I spent some of the happiest days of my youth. It is a farm situated in the midst of the wheatgrowing country of Pennsylvania, where my grandparents once lived. Shortly after I arrived, I walked out to a little knoll that overlooks the fields and sat down beneath the huge old walnut tree that has stood there for over a hundred years. From there I looked out over the fields. The wheat at the time ...

2454. Are Your Tears Too Late?

Luke 19:41

Children's Sermon

Wesley T. Runk

Object: A bottle with some water in it representing tears. Enough for all the children (get them at a pharmacy) Good morning - or, I think it’s a good morning, boys and girls, but I have a very sad story this morning. Have any of you ever been sad before, I mean really sad? You have! What do you do when you’re really sad? (Wait for the reply - CRY). What do you do when you cry - I mean, is there anything that drips on your face and sometimes off of your face? What do we call them? (Wait for TEARS) That’s ...

2455. SANTA CLAUS OR CHRIST?

Drama

G. William Genszler

This little drama can be presented effectively in chancel or on stage with just one short rehearsal. The parts are so short that they can be read or memorized in a flash. This play is well-suited for a group of people numbering anywhere from fifteen to thirty persons. ***** Reader: (at lectern or at mike on side of stage) Good evening, dear friends, we’ll endeavor to show The meaning of Christmas through contrasts you know. Some parts of this play are funny, yet sad When Christ is forgotten, the results ...

2456. The Seeds of Social Conflict

Genesis 4:1-26

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

One day a little boy just got out of bed on the wrong side. He was having a very bad day. He disobeyed his mother several times, and then had a violent argument with his playmate. So, his mother told him he would have to have some time alone. She turned on the light in her large clothes closest, put a little chair in it, and told her son to sit there for thirty minutes. Thirty minutes later, she returned to find the closet was a real mess. All her clothes were in a pile. “What have you been doing?” She ...

2457. A Large Fish Story

Jonah 1:1-17, Jonah 3:1-10

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

Someone please explain a great mystery to me. Why is it that a person who is generally honest in all things cannot give you an accurate description of the fish he has caught? I mean, if you asked this person to tell you his net financial worth, he would tell the truth. If asked to describe his wife he would do so objectively, noting her strengths and weaknesses. But for the life of him he cannot give an honest, accurate description of a fish he caught. When showing you the length of the fish, he cannot ...

2458. We Are More Than Laborers - Labor Day

2 Thessalonians 3:6-15, Ecclesiastes 5:8--6:12

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

On this Labor Day weekend, I think it appropriate to tell an old story about a man named Smith. He died and then regained consciousness in the next world. He looked out over a vast expanse of pleasant country. After resting comfortably for a while in a delightful spot, he called out, “Is anybody around here?” An attendant, dressed in white, appeared and said gravely, “What do you want?” Smith asked, “What can I have?” The attendant replied, “You can have anything you want.” Smith named some of his favorite ...

2459. Our Scheduled Appointments with God

Hebrews 10:19-39

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

That epic movie "Titanic" is breaking attendance records at the theaters, proving yet again that the awful tragedy of 1912 continues to fascinate people. 1645 passengers died that night in the frigid waters of the North Atlantic. Over 600 were saved. As the movie demonstrates, most of the survivors were people who stayed close together and encouraged one another. That same principle applies in our faith journey. The evil one (Satan, the devil) is angered by every profession of faith in Christ. Each person ...

2460. How Could A Love So Right Go Wrong?

Genesis 24:1-67, Genesis 27:41--28:9

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

My sermon topic for today sounds like a question: “How could a love so right go so wrong?” It sounds like a country song, like this one, “I’m miserable without you, it’s almost like having you here.” Then there is my favorite, “If the juke box took tear drops, I could dance all night long.” That one makes me cry every time. How could a love so right go so wrong? The Old Testament story of Isaac and Rebekah starts out so beautifully, but it has a tragic ending. Isaac was a 40-year-old bachelor who implored ...

2461. My Colors Will Be Clear

Matthew 14:22-36

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

Because I am an American history buff, I pick up lots of historical data that may never help me unless I'm caught in a tight game of trivial pursuits. For example, what would you think was the most dangerous position on a Civil War battlefield? No, it was not the company or brigade commander. It was the regimental flag-bearer, the one who carried the colors. After all, he had no weapon and his flag attracted lots of enemy attention. The casualty rate for flag-bearers was horrendous. But note this. There ...

2462. Fear

Matthew 14:22-36

Sermon

Brett Blair

In the story of creation found in the Book of Genesis, we read where Adam and Eve had partaken of the forbidden fruit, something which had been specifically denied them. Knowing that God is searching for them, they attempt to hide. It is a scene perhaps reminiscent of many of our childhoods when we had done something that we were not supposed to and we literally hid from our searching parents. Finally God finds them, as we know that He will, for, after all, where can we go to hide from God? God asks them ...

2463. Great Is Your Faith

Matthew 15:21-28

Sermon

Brett Blair

What would you think if I told you that on your tombstone would be inscribed a four-word epitaph? Well, you might respond, it would depend on who would write this epitaph an enemy or a loved one. It might also depend, you might say, on how well this person knew and understood you. If a newspaper critic wrote of a concert pianist the four words: "He was a failure," you could always say: That was his opinion. But if one of the world's great musicians wrote, "He was a genius," then you are apt to take the ...

2464. Golgotha

Matthew 27:24-44

Children's Sermon

Wesley T. Runk

Object: None or picture of a skull. Good morning, boys and girls. Have you ever seen a picture of a skull? How does it make you feel? Not very good. A skull is just the bone of the head, but when there are no eyes, ears, lips, nose, skin or hair, a skull is pretty frightening. I have a picture of a hill that looks like a skull. If you look closely you can see the place for the eyes, nose and mouth. That skull-like hill is just outside the gate of old Jerusalem, and it is the place where many people believe ...

2465. Finding Fault

Psalm 1:1-6

Illustration

Hugh Drennan

A singer in the choir has joined a group of complainers at a school board meeting. They complain about poor teaching and bad administration. They grumble about the sports program, losing seasons and poor coaching. They find fault with the taxes, which are too high, and the budget which is too low to allow for the programs they want. They criticize, gripe and whine about a myriad of issues and people. The Singer’s voice is among the loudest and most vocal. The board surprises the complainers by inviting ...

2466. What Does God Expect Of You?

Micah 6:1-8

Sermon

Robert Allen

Ben Powers is the name of a man that may not be familiar to you today. But, several years ago, he made headlines around the world. For the last fourteen years, Ben Powers has worked for NASA. He has been working on the solid rocket motor design and is considered an expert in his field. In 1987 the ill-fated Challenger blasted off for outer space. This was a special mission which included six astronauts and one school teacher, Christa McAuliffe. The astronaunts were to carry out scientific experiments and ...

2467. Hector’s Case Against Christmas

Luke 1:26-38

Sermon

Erskine White

"In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee named Nazareth." (v. 26) I am going to begin the Advent season this year by telling you a part of the Christmas story which is unknown to most people because it was left out of the modern Bible. Of course, ministers have known about this for many years, but we have kept it secret because we didn’t want to shake anyone’s faith. But in this age of full and complete disclosure, I have finally decided to break with my fellow clergy’s ...

2468. Can You Go Home Again?

Luke 2:3-4

Children's Sermon

Erskine White

Object: None One day not too many years ago, I decided to go back to my old elementary school and see if my third-grade teacher was still there. It had been a long time since I had been back, and I thought it would be fun to see if she remembered me and if the school was as I remembered it to be. Do you know what? Everything was different! My old teacher had retired, and someone else had taken her place. But that wasn’t all that was different. They changed the desks. The desks were now so tiny! I remember ...

2469. Coming Down The Mountain

2 Kings 2:1-18

Sermon

Frederick C. Edwards

There is a story that a university in Scotland once wished to honor a scholar who had done some significant inquiry into the life and work of one of its own most illustrious former scholars, the 16th century Scottish reformer, John Knox. The tradition in that and several other universities was that, if possible, a cap belonging to the subject of the study - in this case John Knox - would be given to the person being honored, if such a cap could be found. In that way the honoree would have something ...

2470. God’s Great Promise To Sarah!

Genesis 17:1-27

Sermon

Durwood L. Buchheim

Confession is good for one’s soul. You are about to hear a personal confession. My mother, who was a pioneer farmer’s wife, was treated as a second-class citizen. Oh, she had the right to vote and was secretary for our school district for most of my young, adult life and was in charge of family finances. She commanded respect from husband and children - yet in no way did she receive equal treatment. In my childhood on the farm, men had to do certain things, most women had to be able to do (and in many ...

2471. Courageous Preaching

Isaiah 50:1-11

Sermon

Durwood L. Buchheim

Suppose reliable word came that within hours this area of the country would be attacked by enemy missiles. Orders from the military broadcast over the emergency stations tell us to evacuate our town and literally run for our lives. Perhaps we would quickly plan some strategy of escape, maybe with some close friends and relatives. Or we might hold a hurried congregational meeting and decide to leave in some sort of protective caravan. No matter what our specific response, all of a sudden we would experience ...

2472. The Church Reaches Out!

Acts 8:26-40

Sermon

Durwood L. Buchheim

The growth of the early Christian Church has been compared to the way people grow up. Growing up is a difficult process. As we have heard these past Sundays, that was also the way it was with the young church. Growing up produced pain, misunderstandings and controversies. Some of these struggles came about because Christianity was born in a Jewish home. We Christians sometimes forget that Christ was a Jew. We owe much to the Jewish people. The debt should create a spirit of gratitude instead of suspicion, ...

2473. Wheel Within The Wheel

Acts 1:12-26

Sermon

Durwood L. Buchheim

In our text for this last Sunday in the Easter season, we are at that awkward time for the new church, the time between ascension and Pentecost. Jesus is gone, but his spirit has not yet come. In this time of waiting, we are told that the first thing the church did was to fill a leadership vacancy created by faithless Judas, a leader who betrayed the movement. Yes, the very first act of the church had to do with getting organized. So the observation has been made that at first and perhaps even second ...

2474. When God Was Nothing

Philippians 2:1-11

Sermon

Brett Blair

When I was a teenager and fell in love with a girl, which occurred often, I never knew how to tell the girl how I felt about her. Being 17 and "in love" was terrifying. Often I was simply speechless. I never had the right words to describe the way I felt. But like every boy with a bad case of infatuation, I found a way. I guess you could call it my secret weapon. I found someone who could speak for me. He always had the right words, knew exactly how to say it, and never failed me. His name was Barry ...

2475. The Marvelous Style Of Jesus: Truth And Love

Matthew 22:1-14

Sermon

Joseph M. Freeman

Jesus' use of parables is his way of communicating a striking truth with significant love. In my own journey as a Christian person, the most amazing quality of God which has been so instructive to me, is that He approaches us with equal doses of love and truth. How different He is than us. When I see someone in error and that error has personally hurt me, I go for that person's jugular, to deliver the truth, but little or no love accompanies it. Hence, the person becomes defensive and flatly refuses the ...

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