Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: captured, trapped, catch, took, arrested, grabbed, taken, seized, stuck, apprehended, picked up, entangled, nabbed, jammed, abducted, acquired, got, bagged, gotten, netted, cornered, appropriated, tangled, snared, ensnared

Antonyms: free, freed, unconfined, loose, unrestrained, set free, uncuffed, emancipated, enfranchised, released, ambiguous, flaccid, let go, discharged, unbound, uncaged, unchained, unfettered, unleashed, unshackled, untied, avoided, discounted, disregarded, missed

Showing 1 to 25 of 145 results

1. No Little Bit

Luke 19:11-27

Sermon

... our own country. While others may lament the facelessness of our daily life and keep withdrawing into their shells still further, don’t discount the value of just your smile. As you get up each day, you’re conscious of your name, "Child of the King," and ... and Southern halves of the globe, 10 cents will give two cups of dried milk to some undernourished child. Doesn’t that mean something? Never discount the value of your coin when you invest it with the Lord. To sum up: Am I just a bunch of holes in a ...

2. Mending Fences

Luke 16:1-15, Luke 16:16-18

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... not happy! You know you’re going to lose your job. And you know you deserve to. But what can you do to at least make up for what you have done? Before your last week, you take the extra money saved from those you have cheated of their discounts, and you announce a profit-sharing plan that will be distributed to all of the company’s loyal customers. You meet with them personally to hand over the checks and present them with a personal gift from the company, and the CEO. People are happy. The CEO commends ...

3. Seeing as the Lord Sees

1 Samuel 16:1-13

Sermon

... the youngest. He was probably the smallest and the weakest. He may have been one whom Jesse had decided was capable of doing only what David was doing, that was watching the sheep. It is interesting to consider how, from time to time, people have been discounted because of their size, their age, or their stature. As a matter of fact, I believe it would be interesting to do a historical survey of the great leaders of the world who have significantly impacted life to see if there is any consistency in terms ...

4. Take Time To Say Thanks

Deuteronomy 8:1-20

Sermon

King Duncan

... to tell about a man named Harry, who ran a small appliance store in Phoenix, Arizona. Harry knew that many of the young couples who came to his store asking detailed questions about appliances would leave his store and head for one of the discount appliance dealers to make price comparisons. Nevertheless, Harry would patiently answer all their questions, even though it took more than a half hour at times. But when the couple would announce that they were going to look around at some other places, Harry had ...

5. Jesus' Most Perplexing Parable

Luke 16:1-15

Sermon

R. Robert Cueni

... as much wheat as you do. I know you can afford to pay your debt to my boss, but after I told him what a valued person you are, he gave me permission to offer you a deal. Today and today only, you can have a twenty percent discount." The wheat farmer jumps at the opportunity. Like Ruben Levine, the Olive Oil King of Galilee, Sam Shapiro, the wheat farmer, owes this conniving property manager a big favor. Each of those fellows has also come to think very highly of the generosity of the rich landowner. The ...

6. Odd Ducks in a Rubber-Ducky World

1 Thessalonians 4:13--5:11

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... you go “online” there is a great sale outfit called “Odd Lots.” Obviously some huge commercial retailer buys up “left overs” from major manufacturers and then re-sells them at discount prices on the internet. “Odd Lots” are discount heaven. Christians might be “odd” but there is nothing “discount” about our discipleship. In fact, our “oddness” was bought at the most expensive price ever paid. Our “oddness” was made possible by the most outrageous sacrifice ever made — the ...

7. Clever Christians

Luke 16:1-15

Sermon

Richard Patt

... ! Very clever, indeed. When the manager finishes clearing his desk, he is about to walk out into the Friday afternoon sunshine. His wealthy boss stops him for a parting shot. "You know, you were a lousy manager; but I have to hand it to you: your little farewell discounts to the workers were a shrewd stroke. You are a clever one, aren't you?" At this point Jesus ends the story and tells his hearers, in effect, how wonderful it would be if the people of God could be that clever when it came to their religion ...

8. Welcoming Christ

Romans 14:1--15:13

Sermon

Frank Luchsinger

... Room." It is a few weeks before Christmas. I stand in a long check-out line in a store which advertises discount prices. Listening to Christmas songs mostly audible above the din, we inch forward. Finally it is my turn. As item after item sweeps before the scanner ... , I wonder if the prices rapidly displayed on the screen correspond to the discount I thought I was to pay. The magic total is announced and I reach for my checkbook, at which time the man behind ...

9. The Robe

John 6:25-59

Sermon

Robert Salzgeber

... Josh, the clothing store is my business. If I took a suit out of the store every other day, I could not make a livelihood and provide for Sarah and Tommy. But you're right, I do have the opportunity to get a lot of clothes because of my buyer discounts. But I learned a long time ago that clothes and things can never finally make one happy and fulfilled. If you want to know the truth Josh, there is a garment that does ultimately bring me happiness. Do you want to know what the garment is?" "David, I'd do ...

10. The Robe

John 6:25-59

Sermon

Robert Salzgeber

11. The Dimensions of the Decalogue

Exodus 20:1-21

Sermon

... day of the week, Sunday, the day after Christ rested in the bonds of death in the tomb. My wife and I drive by a large discount store every Sunday on our way to and from our parish church. On most Sundays, the parking lot of that store is jammed with cars by ... from church. It has occurred to me that some kind of a parking lot ministry ought to be developed for supermarkets and discount department stores, similar to the kind of ministry at one of our shopping malls, which has a preaching dimension included in ...

12. Chapter III

Exodus 20:1-21

Sermon

Frank H. Seilhamer

... to misuse his name and treat him as though he is nothing better than a fall-guy. A third misuse of God’s name that this Commandment entails is the living of a style of life by those who bear his name that leads the world to discount us, and because of us, to discount God himself. To a greater extent than we may realize, the people around us draw many conclusions about who God is, and how he operates, by watching the people who are marked out as his followers. As they see the way we relate to one another ...

13. Heaven on Earth

John 6:25-59

Sermon

Richard Patt

... In fact, I want to tell you that God is just as much present and working here on earth as he ever was in heaven. Never discount the possibility that even I, the man of Nazareth, can bring you heaven on earth. Oh yes, I am the bread that came down from ... Can we take to heart and serve all the people? Or do we as Christians continue to judge a book by its cover? Do we discount and discard certain persons in society, just because they are sons of Joseph, just because they grew up in Nazareth? Who are some of ...

14. To Catch a Thief

Exodus 20:15

Sermon

James Merritt

... fixing that doesn't need fixing. A doctor advises you to undergo a procedure that really isn't necessary. A salesman skips over the fine print. Someone sells you a car and doesn't tell you that it is leaking oil. How about this? You ask for a student discount at the movies when you flunked out at the University of Georgia three years ago. I still haven't hit any of us yet. Let's try this. How about pirating copies of computer programs, video tapes, CDs or DVDs? I've heard all kinds of rationalizations, but ...

15. A Double Portion

2 Kings 2:1-2, 6-14

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... about their health problems at our church. "My new doctor doesn't just treat the symptoms, he treats both the mind and the body." "Hmm," the second man grunted and thought for a moment; then he asked, "Does he give a discount if the mind is already gone?" (4) You don't have to look for a discount today. God's Grace is abundant. And God's Grace in healing is there for everyone. Joey and Dennis the Menace are leaving the Wilson house with cookies in hand. Dennis says to Joey, "Mrs. Wilson gives you a cookie ...

16. Welcome to the Center of Life

Ephesians 1:3-14

Sermon

Gibson “Nibs” Stroupe

... many unresolved issues individually and communally in our lives. So, many of us seek to hide from God in fear, seeking to avoid God, as Adam and Eve did, because we have an awareness that we aren't holy or blameless. At this place in our lives we discount the depth of the grace of God by deciding that God's grace is not powerful enough to bring us into the center of life, not powerful enough to overcome our shortcomings. This language is also dangerous because one of the ways that we cope with our awareness ...

17. The Peace of Christmas

Philippians 4:4-7

Sermon

King Duncan

... shopping experience at a busy mall. It was far from a peaceful experience. People had been pushing, elbowing and cutting in front of her all day. Hardly able to take it anymore, she says, “During a 10-minute special [which featured a 10% discount off of the already 25% discount], a woman grabbed a lace tablecloth from my hands. I looked her straight in the eye and grunted, ‘Mine!’ and yanked it back. I won. By 4 o’clock in the afternoon, my mood was belligerent.” At a mall restaurant Ms Norman met ...

18. Moksha

Romans 8:6-11

Sermon

Dr. Ronald Love

... in celestial recognition. If one should ever question his or her worth, ask by what standard is it being measured? Is being important authenticated by having your name displayed on a marquee or a name recorded in the Book of Life? Realizing this, Jesus easily discounted the unworthiness of Satan’s offer to rule over earthly kingdoms. In so doing, Jesus directed our ambitions to focus on ministering to the lives of those with whom we are in contact with on a daily basis. Indeed, this may be a small kingdom ...

19. Look How You Listen

Mark 6:14-29

Sermon

George W. Hoyer

... out demons and anointing with oil and curing many who were sick. Others were hearing the reports as well, "for Jesus' name had become known," this passage reports. And what is terribly serious and pertinent here for all of us is how these who heard reacted. Some discounted the power of Jesus. They said, " 'John the Baptizer has been raised from the dead; and for this reason these powers are at work in him.' But others said, 'It is Elijah.' And others said, 'It is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old ...

20. Children, Just Forever

Mark 9:42-50

Sermon

George W. Hoyer

... be the result for those who stumble? You're a big boy now; you're a big girl now. The alternative that lies before those who stumble is a place where "their worm never dies, and the fire is never quenched." It's hell, little ones. The modern mind would discount all this, especially the graphic details. But just as a reward of being with God is as good as it gets, so the result of stumbles and ultimately a final fall is being without God. And that is as bad as it gets. Our only wise conclusion must be, "Don ...

21. Love And Money

Mark 10:17-31

Sermon

William G. Carter

... the assumption that religion is "free." The Christian faith is a costly faith. It demands a radical commitment to Jesus Christ. Those who would follow Jesus must pick up their crosses and give their lives as he has given his life for us. Anything less is discounted grace. That brings us to the heart of the gospel text from the tenth chapter of Mark. It begins as a success story. Jesus is preaching about the kingdom of God, traveling here and there. Somebody runs up, kneels down, and says, "Jesus, what must ...

22. How Good News Spreads!

1 Kings 8:22-61

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

In 1971 I made a trip to Russia. I was studying literature in England and hitched on to a discount side trip in November. Of special interest to me was the Russian author Leo Tolstoy. I had read his War and Peace, Anna Karenina, and Resurrection. Knowing of his Christian faith as well as his literary ability, I was drawn to all things Tolstoy. You can imagine my joy in ...

23. Coping With Heartache

Jeremiah 29:1-23

Sermon

Robert P. Hines

... with us is the first thing that helps us accept what life throws at us. The second thing is the realization that whatever exile we may be experiencing will not last forever. There is always a brighter day in store for the people of God. Although Jeremiah had to discount and refute the prophecies of those who said the exile wouldn't last long, he also assured the people that it would one day come to an end, at a time of God's choosing. In the meantime, the people had much to learn. Now, if you know something ...

24. Week Three Of Lent

Sermon

Richard Gribble

... of the Scripture that Jesus was criticized on several occasions for his failure to obey the letter of the law. When he cured on the sabbath or his apostles did not properly purify themselves before eating, they were in violation of the law. The Lord always discounted these incidents. Yet today he says that not one part of the law will be done away with until it all comes true. What does Jesus mean? I think the answer is found in understanding what Jesus means by fulfilling the law. When we hear fulfill ...

25. The Savior Life Diet

John 6:25-59

Sermon

Alex Gondola

... you how to prepare the food and the diet books tell you how not to eat any of it." So observed Sixty Minutes commentator Andy Rooney (quoted by Fred Lyon in "The Savior Life Diet," Lectionary Homiletics, August, 1997, p. 21). I made a trip to the discount bookstore this past week to see if Andy Rooney was right. I discovered he was at least partly right. There were lots and lots of cookbooks there. I stopped counting at 250 different titles -- because at 250 I was only half-way through the cookbook section ...

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