Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: complain, moan, groan, whine, mutter, grouse, bleat, carp, cavil, protest, rumble, gurgle, murmur, growl, roar, complaint, muttering, grievance, objection, protestation, quibble, criticism, charge, accusation

Showing 1 to 25 of 1870 results

1. How to Handle Criticism

Matthew 11:1-19

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... and with God, not even 10,000 ardent admirers shouting “You are the greatest!” will be able to chase away my gloom.” Give life your best and noblest shot, and accept the fact that some won’t like it. THE SECOND PART OF THE STRATEGY IS THIS: DON’T LET CRITICISM IMMOBILIZE YOU. I like the way Jesus reacted when word came to him that King Herod hated what he was doing so much that he was going to have him killed. Jesus said, in our language, “Tell that old fox that I’m too busy to worry about him ...

2. Dealing with Criticism

1 Corinthians 4:1-5

Sermon

James L. Killen

... not know of anything wrong that he had done. Finally, he said that if he had done anything wrong, that would become apparent in the judgment when Christ will judge us all. With Paul's experience in mind, let's think about how we ought to deal with criticism. The first thing we need to do is to find our way into a vital relationship with God. God is that greater reality that is both in and beyond all other realities. God is ultimately the one who counts. It is your relationship with God that ultimately tells ...

3. How To Handle Criticism? Keep Moving

Luke 9:51-56

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... listen to, you won’t hear a “news report.” You’ll get an acid-etched critique of others. Real bombs and bullets are being fired off in Iraq and Afghanistan. But in the war for political power and influence, it is the constant lobbing of critical grenades that keep our own back yards blasted and barren of hope. The website complaints.com boasts on its home page: “Often a single complaint posted to Complaints.com about a business appears higher in the search-result rankings than the home page of the ...

4. When You Are Wrongly Criticized

Mark 3:20-30

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... , Jr. build his dream? His basis was his place and participation in his first family — not his American family, not even his Baptist family, but as a member of Jesus Christ’s family and the family of God. We have learned how to deal with criticism this morning from a dog, a donkey, Jesus, Gandhi, and Martin Luther King, Jr. The only one missing is Mother Teresa. So let’s end with her. Whenever Mother Teresa would meet someone who was particularly obnoxious, or hateful, or mean or disturbed, she would ...

5. Celebrate Your Critical Mass

Matthew 18:15-20

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... your heart in the morning, you can find a partner or team to help you do it by the afternoon, and you can tell us and others about it the next day." Too often our enthusiasm for organization gets us sidetracked away from the power of a critical mass of believers. We have created such a glorious system of hierarchies (ecclesiocracies) and structures of authority that we forget that Christ chose a much simpler way to be present among us. This is not to say that sometimes big jobs and big plans for the church ...

6. Cured Cripples and Crabby Critics

Luke 13:10-17

Sermon

Ron Lavin

... as it extends to more and more people, may increase thanksgiving to the glory of God. So we do not lose heart. Even though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed day by day. In other words, in spite of crabby critics within us and around us, and handicaps of our own that we can't overcome by mere human effort, we don't collapse because there is power in Jesus, the healer and suffering servant. 1. Joni Eareckson Tada, Joni (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House, 1976 ...

7. Answers To Life's Three Critical Questions

Jeremiah 1:1-19

Sermon

King Duncan

Darden K. Caylor, a pastor in Cedar Rapids, IA, says that the day he decided to become a minister is still clearly etched in his brain. He was sitting at his Grandma Rula's house when he heard a voice speak to him from a distance. At first it was muffled, but then it became clearer. It said, "You should become a minister." Caylor couldn't believe it. Was this divine intervention? Was God really speaking to him? Did God really want him to become a minister? He was so shocked he couldn't move. The voice ...

8. Foundations are Critical

Matthew 7:24-27

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

We are Christians under construction, trying to build a life that really matters. Hundreds of you are now putting God first and practicing random acts of kindness on a daily basis. I can only imagine what God might choose to do with these simple acts of devotion. I know personally the powerful impact of fervent prayers, and I continue to thank God for you each day. A first time guest at our church last week wrote me to say, “I came searching for God and discovered God was there all along searching for me. ...

9. Finish the Drill

Nehemiah 4:1-23

Sermon

James Merritt

... the wall that was being attacked. That is exactly what friends are for. That is exactly why you need to be in a small group because we all need someone who will rally to us when we sound the trumpet for help. Be Persistent It is not coincidental that the criticism took place at this point in time, because of what we read in verse 6. "So we built the wall, and the entire wall was joined together up to half its height, for the people had a mind to work. (Nehemiah 4:6, NKJV) Did you know the most dangerous ...

10. Look Who's Talking

Acts 11:1-18

Sermon

David J. Kalas

... they have to say can change dramatically during the course of a game, much less a season. Players typically do more talking when they're winning than when they're losing. The player or coach who finally wins "the big one" is often said to have silenced his critics. Talking is a major part of our story from the New Testament book of Acts. Over the course of that story, we see a dramatic and marvelous change in who does the talking and what they have to say. The first people we hear talking in this episode ...

11. You Can't Please Everybody

Luke 13:10-17

Sermon

King Duncan

... one of the all-time greats except for one problem. No one could persuade him to throw away his snack and come out of the press box to play! (1) Anybody know someone like that? They won't try to do something significant themselves, but they sure can criticize those who do. Jesus encountered people like that. He was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. A woman was in the synagogue with a spirit that had crippled her for eighteen years. She was bent over and was quite unable to stand up straight ...

12. Standing Firm

Isaiah 50:1-11

Sermon

E. Carver McGriff

... trying to teach a confirmation class of seventh and eighth graders. Her daughter was in my class and in very gentle terms she shared a concern. Her words were something like this: "You're doing such a good job in so many ways here, Reverend; I hate to seem critical. But my daughter feels she isn't getting much out of her class. Of course, it may be her fault, but I just wanted to share this feeling with you." I thanked the woman and asked if I might take a day to reflect before responding, but inwardly I ...

13. And Again I Say...Amen!

Luke 6:27-36

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... "feel good" therapies would cringe at Jesus' apparently masochistic suggestions in this week's gospel text. Why open yourself up to all that negative energy? But Jesus' advice wasn't to urge us to wallow in a sea of hurtful, negative experiences. By squarely facing the criticisms and cut-downs our enemies throw at us _ as Jesus suggests "taking it on the chin" _ we have all the more negative energies that we can put towards positive purposes _ adjusting our own attitudes. 2. Be a So-Be-It Disciple If you ...

14. Toss Your Cap Over the Wall

Mark 3:20-30

Sermon

King Duncan

... with spectacular success, and his reputation spread with amazing speed. But as his popularity increased, so did the number of his critics, especially in his home town. Some of his closest friends tried to dissuade him from his insanity, and his family was ... our hearts over the altar, so that we may follow. It is exciting to read about the early days of Jesus’ ministry. He had his critics, of course. But he never let them detract him from his call. His life is a challenge to our lives. It is time for us ...

15. Insincere Religion

Matthew 22:34-40

Sermon

King Duncan

... , stained and covered with fungus. On the roof was something that looked more like a chimney than a bell tower. In any case, there was no bell to ring. Not a single flower or blade of grass grew in the grim clay ground around. Mother and daughters criticized the church's appearance. They remarked that it was like a scene from a Gothic horror movie. Leddy's Dad looked at them rather blankly. In 1944, he had never really noticed what the church looked like. "It looked pretty good at the time," he said. "It ...

16. Righteousness Exalts a Nation - The Fourth of July

Sermon

James McCormick

... God’s Spirit is at work in us, making us look and sound more like Jesus, we become light in the darkness, salt in the food, leaven in the meal. By living above the prevailing standards, by the grace of God, we help to raise them. We must be loving critics and leavening influences in order to help our nation move from where it is, to where God is calling us to be. But, at the same time, we must not be blind to all that is right about our land. Even with our shortcomings, I must say that this nation ...

17. Disappointed in Jesus

Matthew 11:2-11

Sermon

Susan R. Andrews

... as Christians in a world of violence, in a world of increasing poverty, in a world of terrorism and intolerance. As disciples of Jesus, our text for today is calling us to follow him as those who embrace his prophetic vocation. Yes, we are called to criticize when necessary. We are called always to energize with hopeful visions of a new social order. But most of all, we are called to actualize Jesus' passionate dream of a whole and healed world. We are called to actualize God's creative plan by the way ...

18. The World’s Favorite Scripture

Matthew 7:1-6

Sermon

James Merritt

... know your own heart. As a matter of fact, you will find that oftentimes when people judge other people, what they are really doing is criticizing a fault they have themselves. That is why Jesus speaks of a person who was trying to judge the speck in one person's eye ... The word for speck is the Greek word for splinter. What is a splinter? It is just a piece of a plank. Generally when you criticize another person's fault, his fault is just a chip off of your block. That's why Jesus said in verse 2, "For with ...

19. Living to Please God

1 Thessalonians 2:1-16

Sermon

King Duncan

... : What are your commitments? Where are you going? What are you going to be? You show me somebody who hasn’t decided, and I’ll show you somebody who has no identity, no personality, no direction.” (6) St. Paul had a direction for his life. And neither his critics nor those who tried to veer him off-course with flattery or lies could make a dent in his contribution. He knew what it took to live a life pleasing to God living a life of integrity and living a life of love. Another preacher named Tony, Tony ...

20. The Art of Critique

Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... , or shut in is a symptom of an unrestful spirit inside. Jesus knows how to read people. He knows how to understand our culture and the ways that people behave. And he knows that an unhappy spirit makes for judgmental and often unsuccessful, even harmful critic. But Jesus’ answer is not just to give advice or admonishment or wag fingers in our direction. For Jesus is the Master of the Art of Critique. Instead, Jesus offers us a “yoke.” He offers to take the lead and bear the brunt of everyone ...

21. The Terrible Burden Of Judging Others

Romans 14:1--15:13

Sermon

King Duncan

... he took the oath of office as a senator, he did it with his left hand raised instead of his right because he lost his right arm in the service of his country. (5) We could save ourselves a lot of embarrassment if knew all the facts before we criticized someone else. That is the first question. Do you know all the facts? Here is the second: HAVE YOU EARNED THE RIGHT TO PASS JUDGEMENT? That is, when you are tempted to belittle someone else's efforts in the church, first ask, am I doing everything I should be ...

22. Get off the Throne and Learn Wisdom

Matthew 7:1-6

Sermon

Phil Thrailkill

... Christ to be not only my Lord and Judge, but also my fellow Christian’s Lord and Judge. ... I must not interfere with Christ's Lordship over other Christians.”4 If we give up our searchlights and stand under God’s spotlight, if we become more self-critical than others-critical, if we go to God before we go to others, if we turn in our policeman’s badge and quit issuing verbal citations, and if we learn, as Jesus counseled, to watch over one another in love, then we may have a chance in the church to ...

23. Magnanimity: The Essential Spirit of the Christian

Philippians 4:4-7

Sermon

James W. Moore

... of negative hurtful behavior. Magnanimity is the opposite of that. Magnanimity is big enough to always look for the best in other people. Magnanimity is wrapped in Grace because it realizes (as George put it) that we all have way too many faults of our own to be critical of anybody else. We all have our big share of sins and weaknesses and failures and frailties.We all have “clay feet,” so much so, that our only hope is in the amazing Grace of God. God is so kind and gracious and patient with us. How ...

24. Is It Too Late? ... Continued

Matthew 25:14-30

Sermon

George Johnson

... passed down to us from our wise elders. If we are to put a halt to the devastation taking place, we must get better informed. When you see an article in the paper about the environment, take time to read it. When you hear differing opinions, listen critically. Ask yourself who benefits from this approach. Who financed this research? Learn about the effects of our lifestyles on the third world. The servant with one talent went and hid it in the ground because of fear. That was a mistake. It is also a mistake ...

25. A Brass Cross and a Barometer

Luke 6:1-11

Sermon

Bill Bouknight

... . I am so grateful that our Lord was no shrinking violet, no portrait of political correctness. Jesus did not whisper to the man with the shriveled arm, saying, "Listen man, I want to help you and I will, but I can't do it publicly because some folks here would criticize. Just hang around after the service and I'll help you." No, right in front of God and everybody, he said to the afflicted man, "Come up here and stand beside me. I don't want anybody to miss this. Now I ask you, is it better to do good ...

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