Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: contest, tournament, match, game, round, heat, fixture, event, meet, encounter, rivalry, competitiveness, vying, contesting, opposition, contention, conflict, feuding, battling, fighting, struggling, strife, war, opposing side, other side, other team, field, enemy, foe

Showing 1 to 25 of 44 results

1. A Glorious Fixture

Illustration

Editor James S. Hewett

Years after her concentration camp experiences in Nazi Germany, Corrie ten Boom met face to face one of the most cruel and heartless German guards that she had ever contacted. He had humiliated and degraded her and her sister. He had jeered and visually raped them as they stood in the delousing shower. Now he stood before her with hand outstretched and said, "Will you forgive me?" She writes: "I stood there with coldness clutching at my heart, but I know that the will can function regardless of the ...

2. A Few Remaining Tremors

Matthew 18:21-35

Sermon

James Merritt

... the bank, the bank said that account had been closed. We called Ray and got no response. Not long after that, we got a call from the lighting company telling us that their bill had not been paid, so we wound up not only having to pay for the light fixtures that he had promised us, but we were also left holding a check for a good sum of money that to this day has never been paid back. As you can guess, we haven’t heard another word from Ray and don’t even know how to contact him. It ...

3. Children Of The Light

1 Thessalonians 5:5

Children's Sermon

King Duncan

... light of God's love to everybody. We are supposed to be like lights in the darkness that spread hope, and peace, and joy, and love to the whole world. But just like light bulbs can't produce any light unless they're connected to a lamp or a light fixture, we can't share the light of God's love unless we stay connected to God. How do we stay connected to God? That's right, through praying, and reading our Bible, and coming to church, and doing nice things for other people. Those are all good ways for us ...

4. Forgiveness and Reconciliation at Last!

Genesis 45:1-15

Sermon

Arley K. Fadness

... to a rural Lake County, South Dakota, Lutheran church in August of 2000. Vandals attacked the fieldstone St. Peter Lutheran Church building with vengeance -- breaking windows, smashing light fixtures, flipping over the baptismal font, slashing a large "Jesus the Good Shepherd" painting, scribbling, and carving obscenities into the sanctuary walls and fixtures. The golden altar cross had been swung like a bat to gouge pews and walls. In the basement, kitchen dishes were broken and objects flung hither and ...

5. There Is No Condemnation

Romans 8:18-27

Eulogy

Deborah D. Steed

... 's life. He brought to us a definite ____________ slant on things. He jumped into committee work and long-range planning with the enthusiasm of a life-long member, even though he'd only been with us a short time. At every congregational dinner, he was a fixture in the kitchen, helping to prepare and clean up, because that's just what you do. Each of you has some memory of ____________, or perhaps of knowing him through ____________. How good it is to have those dear memories of him. But memories alone will ...

6. Friendship Arms or Cold Shoulders

Mark 6:1-6

Sermon

James Weekley

... misery he never knew existed. By reflecting less upon ourselves and more upon the aloneness of others, the possibilities for more intimate friendships are enhanced. True friendships blow no fuses. Jesus lived in a world where human exploitation and regional hatreds were common fixtures. It's easy to see why there wasn't a high trust factor among people. There was no love lost between Herod and the Jewish populace. So you can see why that eastern Mediterranean society wasn't ready for an honest and open ...

7. Dim Visions And Blind Guides

Sermon

Harold Warlick

... existence in profound ways. Nowhere is this more critical than in our own dreams and visions. Dreams and visions are important in life. Every action we take in life was designed by someone. Every piece of clothing, every building, every hymn book, every chair, every light fixture, and every automobile existed first in someone's vision. Someone had to have the idea or the dream to turn out the product. The same holds true for the way we act. As Jesus said, "The eye is the seat of the body." If you cannot ...

8. What You See Is What You Get

John 14:5-14, John 14:1-4

Sermon

Johnny Dean

... Where exactly is Heaven? What’s my mansion going to look like? And what’s my expected move-in date? Did my father get a mansion or was it one of those fixer-upper types? I think he would have enjoyed that more. Will my mansion have bathrooms with golden fixtures? If so, what for? Will it have a kitchen with all the modern conveniences? If so, what for? But besides those questions, I have other concerns, as I’m sure you do also. If I heard Jesus correctly, what he said was the only thing we have to do ...

9. He Who Has Ears to Hear, Let Him Hear

Luke 8:1-15

Sermon

Larry Powell

... , but then not every movement is necessarily the visitation of the Spirit. Several years ago, I was preaching in a little country church which had a large pot-bellied stove at the front of the church, almost in front of the pulpit. The most prominent fixture in the church was the long stove pipe which stretched from an outside wall, elbowed, and connected finally to the old stove. The lengthy pipe probably heated as much of the sanctuary as the stove did, but it was warm outside on this particular Sunday ...

10. Repairing Your Broken Dreams

Luke 24:13-35

Sermon

Harold Warlick

Dreams and visions are important in life. Every action we take in life was designed by someone. Every piece of clothing, every building, every hymn book, every chair, every light fixture, and every automobile existed first in someone's vision. Someone had to have the idea or the dream to turn out the product. The same holds true for the way we act. As Jesus said, "The eye is the seat of the body." If you cannot dream it, cannot envision ...

11. Revival at Corinth

Acts 18:1-17

Sermon Aid

CSS

... were all tentmakers. They therefore worked together at the same trade and also shared their common faith. For a year and a half Paul remained at Corinth, preaching and teaching. By the time Silas and Timothy caught up with him, he was a fixture on the Corinthian scene and had gathered a congregation consisting both of Jews and Greeks. Among the mixed population of Corinth, with large numbers of indigenous Greeks, Romans from the west and Orientals from the east, Paul must have found ample opportunity for ...

12. The Crucified Ruler

John 19:17-27

Sermon

Richard A. Jensen

... Selassie, invited the YMCA chorus to sing Christmas carols for him and his family at his palace. We were all excited about the opportunity. As we entered the palace, we were awestruck. It was a fabulous place. High ceilings. Marvelous light fixtures. Plush carpets. Beautiful paintings. The finest furniture. And there we stood in the midst of all this pomp, singing simple Christmas carols. When we had finished singing, we were informed that His Majesty the Emperor would receive us individually. We lined ...

13. A Mountain Of Meaning

Matthew 17:1-9

Sermon

Brett Blair

... all together. Most of the pain in this world is due to man’s unwillingness to listen, to obey. Elie Wiesel tells the story of a prophet who came to a city and delivered his message every day in the marketplace. After a time his ranting became a fixture of the city's life and people regarded him with amusement when they regarded him at all. Finally, a small boy, pitying the old man, approached him and said, “Sir, why do you keep crying aloud like this every day, year after year? The people here will ...

14. Like Trees Walking

Isaiah 6:1-13

Sermon

Gregory J. Johanson

... down the street, who lives next door to "what’s her name." Are they both like trees walking or like people whose needs are as great as your own? 3) Look at the Church, your Church. Do you see an impersonal institution in which the fixtures and books and machines direct your activity, or do you see a Christian fellowship in which a group of individuals, some more congenial, some more helpful than others, are working and worshiping together by choice in spite of differences? 4) Look at yourself. Do you ...

15. Victory Over Darkness

Isaiah 9:1-7

Sermon

King Duncan

... person working on something in the opposite corner. Then the figure crept out, closed the door, and disappeared. Minutes later the room suddenly blazed with light. Someone, perhaps taking his life into his hands, had connected electricity to the broken light fixture. The darkness of the dungeon was gone. "From that moment," said the President, "my imprisonment had meaning because at least I could see." (1) CHRISTMAS EVE IS ABOUT DELIVERANCE FROM DARKNESS. What better way to describe the utter despair in so ...

16. Light Shines Into The Darkness

2 Corinthians 4:1-18

Sermon

King Duncan

... with us, wouldn't it make an enormous difference in the way we live? On the other hand, perhaps there is method to God's madness. Carroll Campbell is an educator. He says, "Try this sometime. Get a group of children in a room with a light fixture hanging just out of their grasp. Then watch what happens: One child will jump to touch it, and before you know it, every kid in the room will be leaping like Michael Jordan. They're testing their skill, stimulated by the challenge of reaching something beyond their ...

17. A Penny For God

Mark 12:41-44

Sermon

King Duncan

... be so easy if we gave according to our income. Then we would set up an automatic withdrawal program at the banks around town and each month 10% of each member's income would automatically be taken out. Then your pastor could drive a new Mercedes and the fixtures in the church bathrooms would be gold-plated. We would have more money than we would know what to do with, if everyone gave their fair share. But someone would complain that this system wouldn't be fair. The person at the bottom needs their 10% more ...

18. Gathered Around The Throne

Revelation 7:1-8

Sermon

King Duncan

... place in the year of my birth, 1939. One of the events mentioned was the building of the Hearst mansion that was the most elaborate and expensive private dwelling in America. The mansion included over a hundred rooms and cost $30 million in 1939. The gold fixtures in it were spectacular. But," says R. C. Sproul, "the Hearst mansion is a doghouse compared to the New Jerusalem." That's the description we get from John's Revelation. We celebrate the lives of those who served God on earth and now surround God's ...

19. The God Who Must Be Pursued

Matthew 7:7-12

Sermon

Phil Thrailkill

... challenged young man named James Robert Kennedy (played by Cuba Gooding Jr.). He was nicknamed Radio by a high school football coach (played by Ed Harris) who befriended him. Coach Jones made Radio part of the practices and a regular fixture on the sidelines during games. Some were uncomfortable having Radio around, despite the fact that he showed kindness to everyone. When treated cruelly, he refused to identify the guilty ones. After receiving a generous outpouring of Christmas gifts, Radio shared ...

20. Don't Sweat the Sin Debt

John 19:30

Sermon

James Merritt

... prophecy had become a reality. Every picture had become a fact, every prediction had become truth in the Lord Jesus Christ. III. The Payment for Sin Was Finished On 43rd Street in New York City there is a 25 x 10 sign that has become both a fixture and a tourist attraction in downtown Manhattan. It is called the National Debt Clock. It was designed by a real estate developer named Seymour Durst in 1989 when the debt was $2.7 trillion. It is now flashing the staggering total of $5 trillion. Each family's ...

21. This Little Light of Mine

John 1:1-18

Sermon

King Duncan

... person working on something in the opposite corner. Then the figure crept out, closed the door, and disappeared. Minutes later the room suddenly blazed with light. Someone, at the risk perhaps of his own life, had connected electricity to the broken light fixture. “From that moment,” explained Cevallos, “my imprisonment had meaning because at least I could see.” (2) Anyone who has ever been lost on a dark night knows what a welcome relief light is. Luci Swindoll tells about a friend who, along with ...

22. Is There Room for One More?

Matthew 25:31-46

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... were already present, there was always room for one more. Even if there wasn't physically an "empty chair," there was an extra plate and extra portions in case an unexpected visitor showed up. The tradition of the empty chair is also a fixture at the greatest Jewish thanksgiving feast of the year the Passover seder. An empty chair at the seder table and a front door left slightly ajar, symbolically welcomed Elijah to join in the feast. Yet, as families have moved geographically farther and farther apart ...

23. Stone Testaments

Deuteronomy 26:1-11

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... of your first date, or moving into your first apartment, or even your wedding day. We are not allowed to forget to commemorate the big, now heavily commercialized holidays in the calendar year. We put out jack-o-lanterns for Halloween, Pilgrim fixtures and turkey fixings for Thanksgiving, decorations and trees for Christmas. At Easter, there are bunnies and eggs and crosses to remind us of spring, new birth and eternal life. But some holidays have deteriorated badly over the years. Memorial Day is now ...

24. Heirs of the Promise

Galatians 3:23-29

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... Despite all the red tape, the relationship between bank and borrower still basically comes down to this: We promise to pay you back. It is a promise that extends even beyond our lifetime and can easily involve our children as well. Making mortgage payments becomes a fixture in our lives a monthly demonstration that our promise is still good. What we have borrowed we will pay back. There are other facets of our lives where our borrowing has not been in such good faith. Yes, we've borrowed from the bank. But ...

25. Why Do You Keep Crying Aloud?

Mark 9:2-9

Illustration

Scott F. K. Kober

Elie Wiesel tells the story of a prophet who came to a city and delivered his message every day in the marketplace. After a time his ranting became a fixture of the city's life and people regarded him with amusement when they regarded him at all. Finally, a small boy, pitying the old man, approached him and said, "Sir, why do you keep crying aloud like this every day, year after year? The people here will never listen to ...

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