Sermon and Worship Resources

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Romans 8:18-27

Sermon

Glenn McDonald

... and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed." At the doorway to our text in Romans, Paul declares the same truth: "I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory about to be revealed to us" (8:18). The present may seem hopeless. But take heart. God is gracious. Our future is secure. The invisibility of our ultimate security may appear to be cause for concern. But Paul counters in verse 24, "Hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has? But if ...

2. Paths Of Desperation

1 John 5:1-12

Sermon

Richard A. Jensen

... of cancer. Before long Dick's mother was housed with that doctor in the far away town. Dick made the drive with his father to see his mother quite often. This trip was this family's only hope. They knew of nowhere else to go with their hopelessness. They had to drive an hour to get there. They would have gladly driven any amount of miles it took to nurture hope for a mother and wife with cancer. Many families have experiences like this. A negative medical diagnosis comes into the family. The situation looks ...

3. It's A Wonderful Life

Isaiah 35:1-10

Sermon

King Duncan

... break at school. On Christmas Day they ate Spam and crackers and drank Pepsi. Don says it was wonderful! (5) Why? Because they were with their Dad. Nothing else meant as much. That is the way believers feel in the presence of Jesus. His coming means hope for the hopeless, help for the hurting, and unutterable joy for those who call him Lord. And that is what Christmas is all about. Christ has come to our world in the form of a tiny babe. No wonder we sing, "Joy to the world, the Lord is come." 1. Reprinted ...

4. Only the Lonely

Luke 14:1, 7-14

Sermon

Ron Lavin

... and lonely, and know it, we are in the proper place to turn control of our lives over to God. That's what accepting the invitation to come to the kingdom banquet means — accepting that God is in control. Only the lonely who acknowledge that they are hopeless as to their own power in their search for God, discover that God is seeking them. Only the lonely hear the call of God: "Come up higher." Only the lonely. Take those three words home from church today. 1. Henri Nouwen, The Wounded Healer (Garden City ...

5. Deep Depression Or High Hope?

1 Kings 9:1-9

Sermon

Barbara Brokhoff

... to be worrying about tomorrow, maybe we should think only about today." Charlie Brown interrupts him to say, "No, that's giving up. I'm still hoping that yesterday will get better!" A lot of people have no hope for today, and are sure that tomorrow will be just as hopeless. Indeed, in our time "hope" has become a bad word. When the doctor calls us in to say of our sick loved one, "At least we can still hope," it doesn't seem to cheer us up, but rather depresses us. When we sigh, "Well, here's hoping," the ...

6. Life Always Springs New!

Ezekiel 37:1-14

Sermon

Donald Zelle

... that the worst was yet to come. And it did! In 586 B.C. the Holy city was demolished. The temple of Yahweh God already stripped of its gold, which was sent as tribute money to Babylon, was burned. The worship of God by means of animal sacrifice ceased. Hopelessness struck the hearts of most Jews, as also Ezekiel. The vision of the valley of dried bones is symbolic of the feelings of the people. The nation was gone! The city was gone! The temple was gone! The Ark of the Covenant was gone and the people came ...

7. In Times Of Need

1 Kings 17:7-24

Sermon

Carlyle Fielding Stewart

... was a time of need for Elijah, as well as a time of need for the widow. Several points are significant in this text about how God acts in times of great need. At a time of desolation, God can bring consolation to those in need. In the midst of hopelessness, God can provide hope. The scriptures say there was drought in the land. There was not much food to eat. The inhabitants of the land prayed and prayed for rain, to no avail. The woman had lost her husband. Her son was "dead" and she had no prospects for ...

8. When Will The Pain Go Away?

Matthew 24:1-35

Sermon

George Johnson

... with the faith that God is with us and can forgive us if we are wrong. In the midst of this action we discover hope which in turn energizes us to hang in there. Zacchaeus climbed up into a sycamore tree to see Jesus. He could have said, "It's hopeless. I'm too short. I'll never see him in this crowd." Instead he acted without the full assurance that it would bring worthwhile results ... before all the the evidence was in. It paid off. He met Jesus and his life took on new dimensions. Hope is kept alive when ...

9. Take Off The Grave Clothes!

John 11:38-44

Sermon

Carlyle Fielding Stewart

... on Larry King's television talk show who said, "Life is a B grade movie. You don't want to leave in the middle of it, but you don't want to see it again." The point is many people have lost hope and have developed a pessimism and hopelessness which places them among the living dead. All this week Ed Love of WDET celebrated the life of the late, great Dizzy Gillespie who died on January 6. One thing about Diz, besides being a great musician, was his zing for life. He imparted joy through his personality and ...

10. People Jesus Loved

Mark 7:31-37

Sermon

King Duncan

... most of us have is one between our ears. We whine that our lives haven't turned out like we would like them to turn out. Do you have someone who cares about you? Are you willing to open yourself to Jesus? Then, my friend, your life is far from hopeless. In fact, if you allow Christ to have his way with you, you may be amazed at what you can do. 1. Contributed by Susan Daurelle, "Virtual Hilarity," Reader's Digest, March 2002, p. 60A. 2. Source: Sure As The Dawn, by Donald E. and Vesta W. Mansell, Copyright ...

11. Desperation to Hope

Mark 5:21-43

Sermon

Dean Feldmeyer

... by the death of our ability to recognize the joy and beauty that is inherent in it. But death is not the final word. Throughout the gospels, Jesus Christ proved that death, even death, need not be a barrier for us. Even death need not lead to hopelessness. Even death — any kind of death, be it physical, emotional, moral, or spiritual — need not be the ending of our lives but can, indeed, be the beginning of them. For I am convinced, as is Paul in chapter 8 of Romans, “that neither death, nor life, nor ...

12. Losers, Weepers

Isaiah 49:8-16a

Sermon

Tony Everett

... social standing. Even worse, they had lost their homeland and were now living as captives in Babylon, more than 500 miles to the north. They were losers in every sense of the term. It seemed as if even God had abandoned them. Losers! Weepers! Their losing cry of hopelessness is found in these words: "But Zion said, ‘the Lord has forsaken me, my Lord has forgotten me' " (Isaiah 49:14). Perhaps this is the cry of many of us now. We have experienced so many losses in our lives that we have begun to think of ...

13. Can These Bones Live Again?

Ezekiel 37:1-14

Sermon

King Duncan

... wilderness where he watches his father-in-law’s sheep. God comes to him and he becomes the vehicle by which his people escape slavery and he becomes the one by whom God’s law is transmitted to humanity. Never say that any person or any situation is hopeless. Then there was David, a man after God’s own heart. But he gave into lust and adultery and deceit and, ultimately, murder. He paid a terrible price, his family paid a terrible price, but God never gave up on David. We read his psalms and we know ...

14. God Has the Last Word

Acts 10:34-43

Sermon

Charley Reeb

... and struck at the depths of people’s emotions. In fact, I would venture to say that for most of us these two notes translate into two words: (E) NO (F) HOPE! (E) NO (F) HOPE! (E) NO (F) HOPE! (E) NO (F) HOPE! What are the sounds which evoke hopelessness within you? Perhaps it is the sound of a certain song that spurs a haunting memory. Maybe it is the sound of a door slamming shut. Maybe it is the sound of a particular person’s voice. Maybe it is the sound of footsteps coming down the darkened hall ...

15. New Tendons for Dry Bones

Ezekiel 37:1-14

Sermon

King Duncan

... you up from them. I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the Lord have spoken, and I have done it, declares the Lord.’” Ezekiel brought a word of hope in a hopeless time. In 1665, the bubonic plague swept through the city of London. In his book A Journal of the Plague Year, Daniel Defoe described the devastation we would have seen if we walked the streets of London back then. People who had the means to escape the city did so ...

16. Choosing Your Spirituality

Sermon

Charles R. Leary

... for the future? Why be concerned about yourself, anyone else or this wonderful planet? How can one appreciate himself or herself if, hour by hour, day by day, week by week, all one hears is “You are totally depraved”? Total depravity, to me, is a hopeless and helpless concept. That ideology supports slavery, child labor and keeps women in the delivery room.4 In my struggle with the Garden of Eden, I see its truth in a different perspective. My departure from Eden is an advance, not a retreat, a step up ...

17. A Lesson From Prayers Overheard

Luke 18:9-14

Sermon

Theodore F. Schneider

... and spiritual lepers. Though he necessarily "stands far off," we overhear his prayer. His head is bowed and his hands beat upon his breast, clutching at his heart, the seat of one's soul and of its sin. Holding to Psalm 51, he cries the prayer of a helpless and hopeless man: "God, be merciful to me, a sinner!" This man is telling the truth, too. He is a sinner! And what's more, he makes no offer either of repentance or of reparation. He cannot offer to repent, for he would have no way to earn a living or ...

18. The Preposterous Prescription

2 Kings 5:1-27

Sermon

... those who have not seen and yet believe." (John 20:29) A strong conviction comes because of what you have seen or experienced, or learned or verified from a reliable source. You and I can gain a strong conviction of faith in God’s Word, knowing that our hopeless condition of sin is forgiven by an amazing cure - the grace of God in Jesus Christ. I hope that you have a strong conviction of faith. And I also hope that you are perceptive enough to see God’s help in both preposterous and in very simple ways ...

19. Who Needs a Shepherd These Days?

John 10:1-21

Sermon

Charles L. Koester

... , a guide, a wayshower. Lost because of sin. Eternally lost! Who needs a shepherd these days? Who else? We do! We need God’s "Good Shepherd" very badly, very desperately. Into our times and into our moments comes the voice of God through his only Son. Look, you lost and hopeless children of the Father, dumb as sheep. I am your shepherd. I came into this world to seek and save you who are lost. I lay down my life for you; you who are as lost as a sheep without a shepherd. Here, you see, is the love and ...

20. Jesus, Our Hope

Luke 2:1-7

Sermon

Darrick Acre

... . You see, we are foolish. We are disobedient. We are deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We live in malice and envy and hatred. That’s us! We are foreigners to the covenant of promise. We are far away, and without hope. We are hopeless! We are a hopeless cause. We can’t fix ourselves. We can’t make our day better by trying harder. We have no future. We have no promise. We have no hope! That’s us! We couldn’t change if we wanted to. Try as hard as we might, no matter how ...

21. A Love For All Seasons (ii) (communion Meditation)

1 Corinthians 13:1-13

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... dies on third. There's no one to share his hope, no one to encourage his dream. Paul says, "Love hopes all things." Again, another translation speaks to us and brings out the meaning of hope. Barclay provides this insightful rendering: "Love never regards anyone or anything as hopeless." It has been said that there is a road that leads to Hell even from the Gate of Heaven. As true as that might be, it's equally true, and far more comforting, to know that there is a road to Heaven, even from the Gates of ...

22. The Lord of the Harvest

Matthew 9:35-38

Sermon

James Merritt

... they ever wander away from the flock; and if they ever get scattered, only a shepherd can bring them back together. Almost 3,000 years ago the prophet Isaiah said, "All we like sheep have gone astray." (Is. 53:6) When Jesus saw these hurting, helpless, hopeless sheep, these "walking wounded", the Bible says, "He was moved with compassion." Compassion is the missing jewel in the crown of the modern day church. It has been well said many times, "The world will never care how much we know until they know how ...

23. The Great Depression

Psalm 42:1-11

Sermon

James Merritt

... better. An idea that no one cares or under-stands. A sense of rejection. An emotion of “I would be better off dead.” A desire for death itself. More than anything in the world I want this message to be a help for the hurting, and a hope for the hopeless. One of the greatest heroes of the Old Testament, King David, battled depression, and he wrote about it in the 42nd Psalm. In fact, he asked in Ps. 42:5 a question all depressed people ask at some time or another: “Why are you cast down, O my soul ...

24. The Curse of the Impossible

Mark 9:14-32

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... you can.’” Then He gives us that ringing text, that bold affirmation, “All things are possible to him who believes.” Let’s understand two big truths that are here. I First, note a universal truth. “To approach anything in the spirit of hopelessness is to make it hopeless. To approach anything in the spirit of faith is to make it a possibility.” The tension within us is the sense of the possible struggling with the curse of the impossible. That’s going on with some of you in relation to the ...

25. The Desperate

John 9:1-12

Sermon

James Merritt

... American author and philosopher once said, “The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation.” Today, we are going to study an encounter that Jesus had with a man who was desperate. He had reasons to be desperate. He was hurting. He was helpless and he was hopeless. He was in the same place some of you are right now. You are listening to this message right now via the Internet or you are watching us on our media broadcast, Touching Lives and you are desperate. You are about to file for bankruptcy, in the ...

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