Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 2451 to 2475 of 5000 results

2451. Pastoral Prayer

Illustration

Brett Blair

... same time similarities. Also we understand there are many differences of opinion regarding war and conflict. So we will not attempted to contemporize or adapt the above prayer leaving that up to each pastor. Or, you may simply wish to incorporate part or all into your sermon as an historical illustration.

2452. Liberated Women

Luke 7:36-50

Sermon

King Duncan

... us eternal life. Won’t you be liberated today? 1. Timothy Anger, merry-hearts-subscribe@listmonger.net. 2. William Barclay, Good Tidings of Great Joy (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 1999). 3. Lynne Griffin and Kelly McCann, The Book of Women (Holbrook, MA: Adams Publishing, 1995), p. 2. 4. Illustrations Unlimited, p. 257. Cited by Allen G. Hern, http://www.islandnet.com/~brebc/sermons/20050910.html.

2453. Design for Discipleship

Acts 2:14-41

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... up an effective Christian life. So, we’re working on a design for discipleship, and we’re sharing with you today. It has been worked through our Council on Ministries, and we will continue to work on it. There is enough in it now to illustrate what I’m talking about. You have that design in your hand, and you will notice that there are four tracks on which we might move in our learning experience to the end that we might be reasonably informed, inspired, and reasonably equipped Christian disciples ...

2454. Characteristics of the Church

Acts 2:42-47

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... are basically circles of care which will make ours truly a sharing church, sharing our live with one another. What we need to remember is that there are occasions we are called upon to serve as “stand-ins” for God to other people. One story will illustrate it, and with this I will close: Arthur Samuel Peak was a layman who gave us some of the most searching commentaries the Old and the New Testaments. Dr. Peak once received a letter from a young man who had been his student. It contained a compliment ...

2455. Characteristics of the Church, Part 2

Acts 2:42-47

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... , not as possessions to defend, but as gifts to be shared. Did you get that? They saw themselves and their church not as possessions to defend, but as gifts to be shared. Dr. Harrell Beck, professor of Old Testament at Boston University, tells a story that illustrates this point. He met a student one day in the halls of the university who seemed to be very sad. Dr. Beck asked the student what was wrong. “Oh, not much.” But when pressed, the student told his story. “My parents are both blind; have been ...

2456. John the Baptist: Parable and Prophet

Mark 1:1-8

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... in this life. It’s not about some destiny that has you in its grip - it’s about the possibilities that are always there - that is, always there if we will behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world and repent. Let me illustrate, Ruth Gordon had a tough time getting started as an actress. Her parents were a liability to her, and she was something less than glamorous, which is considered a liability in the theater. Her early training was a discouragement. She was told at the end of her ...

2457. The World's Best-Known Widow

Mark 12:41-44

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... worshipped, he did so with integrity and conviction. Small wonder that we think of him as a man after God’s own heart.” There is a verse of scripture in II Samuel - II Samuel 24th verse that points the way for the way we are to give, and illustrates the point that if we give only what we don’t miss, we’re not showing much faith. David was “at the point where the nation” was under divine judgment for attempting to take a census in opposition to the will of God. Just why this census was forbidden ...

2458. The Measure You Give Is the Measure You Get

Mark 4:21-25

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... expressing concern for those who do not have even decent homing. Now Jerry is ardently involved, so involved that she walked a hundred miles for Habitat on their recent Walk for Humanity – and you who know Jerry know that that’s quite something. It’s a vivid illustration - that our interest, our hearts follow our money Now I know that we cannot give what we do not nave. But there’s a deeper truth, and that truth is this: We cannot keep what we refuse to give away. In the financial area of our life ...

2459. Audacious Faith

Mark 2:1-12

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... considered. They tore a hole through the ceiling and lowered their friend into the very presence of Jesus, and we all know the rest of the story. Two lessons are here for us. One, faith never says: “We cannot” or “Impossible.” Let me illustrate. Back in October or early November, of 1986, the New York marathon was run through the boroughs of that great city. Thousands and thousands of people competed, somewhere over 50,000 according to one estimate, but only 19,413 actually finished the race. One ...

2460. Two for the Price of One

Mark 5:21-43

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... in some high and holy endeavor, there are going to be those who will seek to divert you, to turn your head in another direction So we must brace ourselves against prophets of doom. But the second thing to note here is that these prophets of doom illustrate a type of inadequate faith: “Why trouble the Master any further?” they ask. Pay attention to this. The faith of others — or the lack of faith – can have a significant impact on us. And many of us fall into the category of these friends of Jairus ...

2461. Simon

Mark 15:21-32

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... October”, November 3, 1986) That brings a smile, if not a chuckle — but beneath the surface humor, is a serious realization. How often does our seeking what we want, bring chaos and confusion, even suffering to others. Also, there ironic accident, a perfect illustration of how our lives are often interrupted by forces beyond our control, by the fallout of other people’s decisions and actions, by what we often call “natural catastrophe.” And it’s not just big things that make a difference in our ...

2462. Chaos or Christ: Dreams Which Calm our Fears

Matthew 1:18-25

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... the lineage of King David. By simply standing there, Jesus the Christ had an earthly father. When he wanted to teach us something about God in Heaven, he said you ought to pray like this, “Our Father who art in Heaven." By simply standing there, Jesus had illustrations of life flowing into the realities of faith. He told stories of wise men building houses on rocks and foolish people building houses on sand. If you are going to build a tower, you should first sit down and count the cost. He did not learn ...

2463. When It's Time For Forgiveness

Matthew 18:21-35

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... enemy in the eye and offer forgiveness. The world is a better place and we are better people because others have tempered justice with mercy and faced the facts with a forgiving heart. There are hundreds of places we could go to illustrate it. I think of Nelson Mandela emerging from 26 years of imprisonment in South Africa. He could have released revenge upon the supporters of apartheid and turned loose hatred in that country. Instead, this Methodist Christian stepped forward with a message of forgiveness ...

2464. How to Make Heaven Our Home

Philippians 3:17-4:1

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... do. Imitate me as I imitate Christ. Can you say that? Dare we live with such character, with such integrity, with such honesty in our lives that we could look to someone else and say, “Don’t do as I say, just do as I do”? Will Willimon illustrates it this way: At confirmation one year, Joe, a young adult, became a mentor for Max, a 14-year-old kid. Joe took his responsibility seriously, saying to Max, “Drop by my apartment anytime. Let’s be friends.” About three weeks later, Max did stop by Joe ...

2465. Watch!

Matthew 24:36-44

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” Who of us is smarter than Jesus? Jesus didn’t even know. Why should we try to second guess the Savior? It seems to me that the three parables told in Matthew, Chapter 25, illustrate what Jesus is trying to teach in Chapter 24. The first parable He tells at the beginning of Chapter 25 is the parable of the five wise and five foolish virgins. It is the story of the bridegroom coming to claim his bride. It’s not a war, but a ...

2466. By Enduring

1 Peter 2:19-25

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... least. Maybe that is why the creators of the lectionary omitted the verses about slaves obeying masters and wives submitting to husbands. Some parts of the Bible ought not to be read in church. But it is hard to make Peter's point and ignore his illustrations. Before I got sick last weekend and cancelled a few days vacation, the mantel was hanging over Kaye's shoulder to preach this sermon. She is a Vanderbilt graduate. I was confident she could handle it. About ten days ago she walked into my office with ...

2467. The Loving Friend

John 4:1-15

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... a friend. The Jesus I want to know is a loving friend. The longest conversation recorded in the Bible is this dialogue between Jesus and the woman at the well. It's a story of spiritual transformation couched in the context of living water. It is an illustration of divine friendship that cuts across culture and transcends time. Come, let us take a closer look. I. A FRIEND COMES IN AS THE REST OF THE WORLD IS GOING OUT. When the Pharisees started comparing the number of baptisms that John was having with the ...

2468. Sexual Ethics for the 21st Century

John 8:1-11

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... and clothes. The mystery of our maleness and femaleness will challenge and fascinate us for a lifetime, provided we can get beyond the battle of the sexes and live in the wonder of God's creation. Our bodies are sacred. No where is that illustrated better than in the incarnation that we celebrate at Christmas time. “And the word became flesh and dwelt among us." The incarnation of Jesus Christ gave sacredness to our physical selves that most religions deny; or as Charles Wesley put it: “Veiled in flesh ...

2469. Keeping Company with the Weary

Matthew 11:25-30

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... need to know about yokes: Yokes were always custom fitted, one size does not fit all Yokes do not remove the load, they distribute the load Yoke-mates must pull together as a team Yoke-mates are no longer free to do as they please Jesus finds something familiar to illustrate his point. People walking down the roads of His day would see this again and again and so He just picks it up right out of life and says, “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me." Team up with me. If life is a game, we will be ...

2470. The Cost of Discipleship: Get Lost!

Mark 8:31--9:1

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... get into a discussion about how we have perverted this exhortation of Jesus. Jesus not calling us to self-depreciation, but to self-fulfillment. Jesus knew, as modern psychologists are beginning to learn that life is found only getting outside ourselves. The best illustration of this I know is marriage. Marriage goes against the dominant movement of modern culture, which is that if you’re going to find happiness, you’ve got to think only of yourself. That’s the advice of culture. We are bombarded by ...

2471. Holy Waste

Mark 14:1-11

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... be a responsible part of this community. If love gave all it had, indeed if it gave the world, for love the gift would still be too little. Mary teaches us the glory of abandoned praise and how sometimes it is inappropriate to be sensible. Let me illustrate my point. Sometimes it’s inappropriate to be sensible. There are mixed messages that come from the great cathedrals of the world. Some of them were built at great cost to the poor, and we loathe that. But I will never forget when I experienced my first ...

2472. When the Winds Are Against Us

Mark 6:45-56

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... with each other. They don’t know whether it is easier to go through the struggle of working their way back together again, or just to give up. They seem to run out of resources and they already feel defeated. The winds are against them. Do these illustrations strike a familiar cord? Would you like to add your own situation to the list? Most of us could, couldn’t we? We know about rowing the sea of life when the winds are against us. Let me register some suggestions that help me — and hopefully, will ...

2473. Luke 11:1-13

Luke 11:1-13

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... -promoting request. Jesus repeats this warning, to avoid “the time of trial” when he is on his knees in garden on the night of his arrest. (Luke 22:40, 46) There is no textual break between vv.1-4 and vv. 5-13, indicating that the illustration Jesus provides in these ensuing texts is still a part of his response to the disciples’ request for Jesus to teach them to pray. Words are only a part of his lesson. The attitude disciples should hold about prayer is the second half of Jesus’ equation. Besides ...

2474. Luke 12:13-21

Luke 12:13-21

Sweet

Leonard Sweet

... . Greed (“pleonexia”) is the vice that seeks after more and more possessions, and can never be satisfied. In Colossians 3:5 such “pleonexia” is rightly equated with idolatry. When you live idolatrously having “more” becomes the reason for living. To illustrate the God-giftedness of life and the transitory nature of possessions, Jesus tells a parable. As soon as he begins to speak any attentive listener would recognize that the “rich man” was to be a negative character in Jesus’ story ...

2475. Becoming Good Trees

Matthew 5:17-30

Sermon

Charles L. Aaron

... unfair for Jesus to command us to guard our anger when he never had to drive on the expressway! Jesus can command us not to lust, but he never had to go the grocery store and see eight models on the cover of the Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition! The passage speaks specifically of male lust, but women are not exempt. One of the characters on Grey's Anatomy is nicknamed Dr. McDreamy! Jesus seems to have reinterpreted these commandments so that we need superhuman strength to fulfill them. We fight all ...

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