Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: take action, take steps, take measures, take the initiative, move, make a move, react, do something, proceed, go ahead, behave, function, perform, operate, work, take effect, serve, be efficacious, play, play a part, take part, be an actor, be an actress, be one of the cast, appear, pretend, play-act, sham, fake, feign, put it on, bluff, pose, posture, masquerade, dissemble, dissimulate, deed, action, gesture, feat, exploit, performance, undertaking, maneuver, stunt, operation, venture, effort, enterprise, achievement, accomplishment, law, decree, statute, bill, Act of Parliament, edict, fiat, dictum, dictate, enactment, resolution, ruling, rule, judgement, canon, ordinance, proclamation, command, commandment, mandate, measure, stipulation, direction, requirement, division, section, subsection, portion, part, segment, component, bit, turn, routine, number, item, piece, sketch, skit, playlet, dance, song, pretense, false display, show, front, facade, charade, guise, affectation, appearance

Antonyms: do nothing

Showing 1 to 25 of 2875 results

1. God's Sneak Attack

Luke 2:1-7

Sermon

David J. Kalas

... who, bit by gracious bit, moves into the spotlight of our lives. He moves toward the center of our stage. And the God who comes into your life and mine backstage, by his mercy, becomes the star of our show. I was eight years old when I first got to play a part in a Christmas pageant during a Christmas Eve service, and that was my privilege. But it is today my greater privilege -- and yours, too -- to be a year-round nativity scene: a life that depicts both how God comes and how God reigns.

2. Finding Answers to Family Feuds

Genesis 25: 21-34

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

... I. As an adult, I continued to accept the twelve-year old interpretation of divorce, as well as the scorn and hatred of myself for years and years. What parents think play a gigantic role in what children do and how they feel for a lifetime. Parents play a part. Of course, the siblings themselves wind up in a fight. My friend, Jim Harnish, writes about his abiding rivalry with his twin brother, Jack. We shared all the intimacy of two cats in a burlap bag, says Jim. The evidence of our struggle of wills was ...

3. Break Through

2 Samuel 7:1-17

Sermon

Frederick C. Edwards

... through to us before God can break through through us. Perhaps God needs each of us as a means of bringing new life to a church which has become insular and settled, and needs to get on the road again. You see we are asked to trust that we can play a part in the purposes of God, and that there is an intent that the best in life will be furthered through us - but only if we are willing. Our willingness and trust are necessary to the fulfillment of God’s intent. That’s what this young woman did. The story ...

4. Trust in Me

Matthew 1:18-25, Luke 2:1-7

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... ’s more than just a message to Joseph. When God speaks within a dream, the outcome is not an individual token of grace, but a huge all-consuming plan for salvation for all people. When God delivers messages in dreams, you know you’re going to play a part in something huge that impacts everyone. In other words, “it’s never just about you!” The dream as metaphor is a timeless/placeless “grey area” of reality in which one is aware and yet not awake in the human sense. And yet….within the dream ...

5. The Challenge, The Call, The Cure

Matthew 9:9-13

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... of salvation and healing, we now have the Cure for the Common Coldness of Life. B. One Christmas season, members of a Church were preparing for annual Christmas Pageant. A little boy who had been crippled by polio and walked with crutches, wanted to play a part in the pageant. All of the major roles had been given out, Joseph, the Wise Men, Shepherds. The boy was disappointed. Finally, it was decided that he would play the role of the innkeeper. This boy was a very sensitive boy and it really bothered ...

6. 'Thanking" About Thanksgiving

Matthew 6:25-34

Sermon

King Duncan

... surprised when Cagney insisted on playing the role . . . for free. Here's the story: When Jimmy Cagney was just getting his start on Broadway, Eddie Foy had often taken him home for a meal. Those free meals had kept Jimmy Cagney from starving. He wanted to play a part in this movie in order to say thank you to the man who had helped him. (2) Whenever anyone does something kind for us, we have a need to express our gratitude. Sometimes even saying "thank you" seems inadequate. We need to go one step farther ...

7. Don’t Be a Hypocrite

Matthew 6:1-4

Sermon

James Merritt

... costumes or will pad their clothes to make them look bigger or stronger; they project an image that appears to be real, but it really is false. The word hypocrite soon took on the connotation of someone who treats the world as a stage on which he is just playing a part. He tries to make himself appear to be something that he really is not; his actions really don't match his words. There is the person who can quote his Bible from one end to the other, but he never lives it. There is the person who sits in ...

8. Come Holy Ghost, Our Hearts Inspire

Acts 10:23b-48

Sermon

E. Carver McGriff

... destiny in life. Yet the Bible strongly suggests that life does have a purpose and each of us is here to play a part in that purpose. Until we discover our particular and individual role in that purpose, we are destined to live aimless lives, ... clear for now: we are each on this earth to learn to love and to make this a better world, and each of us is equipped to play a part in that. How ever society may establish heirarchies of social value, in God's eyes each of us is of equal worth if we do what ...

9. Wanted: A Lasting Marriage. Only Good Chemists, Bad mathematicians, Expert Soul-O-Flexors Need Apply

Mark 10:2-16

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... found out too late that without trust, there is nothing. Mistrust is a cancer that rots away relationships. Faithfulness in a relationship is measured in more ways than monogamy; trust is the key component of faithfulness while mistrust always plays a part in unfaithfulness. * Bend the knees of prayer. The connection between complete, genuine trust in one another and faithfulness is perhaps what underlies one final finding about lasting marriages that shouldn't be a surprise, but is. Andrew Greeley says ...

10. Playing One Hand

Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23

Sermon

Tom Garrison

... final outcome, they would play a crucial role as well as his effort. In addition to the sower and the seed and the desire for a full harvest, there was also the beaten path, the rocky soil, and all that undergrowth of thorns, and these too would play a part in the eventual outcome of all this action. It is noticeable that the uttering of this parable is at the midpoint of his career, and Jesus has a clear recognition that human existence really is a complicated affair. To get anything done in our kind of ...

11. Can It Be Sin to Be Shy?

2 Timothy 1:1-14

Sermon

King Duncan

... genetic. It’s nothing to be embarrassed about. It’s simply who you are. There can be environmental factors that can cause shyness, too, of course. Perhaps you grew up in a non-nurturing home environment. Maybe you have been bullied by your peers. Multiple factors can play a part, many of them over which we have no control. Please know this. God loves shy people. If you’re shy, God made you just as you are. There are virtues that grow out of shyness. In fact, there is a best-selling book by Susan Cain ...

12. The World's Best Kept Secret

Matthew 6:25-34

Sermon

Harold Warlick

... poor widow who rather naturally and unassumingly approached the treasury of the synagogue. She quietly cast in all that she had. Although the amount was far less than others had given out of their abundance, she was the only person who seemed not to be playing a part. She was the only one who gave out of her natural goodness. The others gave out of their concern how they might look to others. You know how that goes. Many people go to symphony concerts not because they like classical music but because they ...

13. Faces of Failure: Peter

Matthew 26 (selections)

Sermon

Don Tuttle

... t bring himself to say that when he wrote his Gospel. Whatever the case, Peter soon hears the cock crow and knows he has failed. He has failed to keep his promise to never deny Jesus. And so he goes out and weeps bitterly. I’m sure fear plays a part in Peter’s failure. Seeing Jesus arrested, he has reason to be anxious. But fear is only part of the problem. The real issue is Peter’s arrogance. When Peter sits across from Jesus and promises to remain faithful, he assumes he has it within himself to do ...

14. Church As Redemptive Community

Acts 4:32-37

Sermon

E. Carver McGriff

... possible. That empowering Spirit makes it possible. When that bishop spoke about "pastor crunching" congregations, he was referring to churches where everyone expects the ministers to do all the ministering. That's not how it is supposed to work The minister plays a part in the overall life of a local congregation, but it's all of us, with our sharing and generosity of spirit and judgment, and our willingness to give -- that's what makes a church the Church. Some time ago, a distinguished psychotherapist ...

15. John the Baptizer

Isaiah 40:1-31, Luke 1:67-80, John 1:19-28

Sermon

Warren Thomas Smith

... moment ..." John the Baptizer’s head. How unfair that one so young should die. His mission was seemingly unfulfilled. But is this not part of preparing the way? John was denied a role in Nativity just as he was not present at Easter. Yet he played a part in both, indirectly, from the wings rather than center stage. John is one, who, having fulfilled his concise, dynamic, and dramatic role, is seen no more. But he is forever talked about, his memory vivid and his name real: "... for the people all held ...

16. I Never Promised You a Rose Garden

John 16:17-33

Sermon

James McCormick

... me. That was painful. And, I’m convinced that that experience by itself was not helpful. When I went home, I had to have someone tell me that they still believed in me; that there was still hope that I could learn to preach. But that painful experience played a part, too. I was shamed into harder work than I had ever done before. I coped with the sarcasm, eliminated the rabbits, and made an “A” in the class! And I am convinced that that painful experience helped to make me who I am! What I am talking ...

17. The Utmost Patience for the Foremost Sinner

1 Timothy 1:12-17

Sermon

Charles L. Aaron

... , a United Methodist pastor in Dallas, Texas, survived breast cancer. Heroically, she shared her journey with others through a series of articles in The Dallas Morning News. In one of the articles, she told of how unresolved anger may have played a part in the growth of her cancer. She named an oppressive situation that caused her to internalize her anger. She found forgiveness difficult. Nevertheless, she wrote the following, "The missing link in my healing process is confronting my anger and getting ...

18. I Wonder about the Miracles in the Bible

John 2:1-11

Sermon

Charley Reeb

... she said, “Pastor, I am enjoying every moment as a gift, and I am on my way to heaven to be with my Savior. Why shouldn’t I be happy?” That day I witnessed a miracle. Miss Thompson also experienced a miracle. She had no idea that she would play a part in a miracle, but she did. Miss Thompson was a hardworking 5th grade teacher in the mid-west several years ago. She tells of a poor student she once had named Ted. He was very sloppy and unattractive. The kids would always make fun of him. Miss Thompson ...

19. Acting on Faith

Genesis 17:1-27

Sermon

King Duncan

... Sheen describes that turning point in his life, “I tore up the scholarship and went to the seminary. I have never regretted that visit and that decision.” (6) What I am saying to you is this. When you follow God’s leadership, you not only play a part in God’s great plan for creation, but you find the most fulfilling life for yourself as well. Abraham and Sarah did as God commanded and God rewarded them far beyond their wildest dreams. Not as quickly as they might have thought . . . God’s timetable ...

20. The Rite of Remembrance

Luke 22:7-38

Sermon

Edward Chinn

... who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery." (Exodus 6:12, NEB) Physical reminders helped people to remember. The teaching of the commandments was to be bound to the forehead, to the arms, and to the posts of the doors. Such tangible signs play a part in stirring the memories of other persons. There was, for instance, a little girl who looked upon her mother as the most beautiful woman in the world. Often, she would say to her mother, "I love the beauty of your face and your eyes and your hair ...

21. As You Go, Remember…

Matthew 28:16-20

Sermon

Tom Garrison

... come to counter 26 immediately. Your child is safe and waiting here." In a matter of minutes, my friend witnessed the coming together of distraught parents and a frightened child. As they grasped each other joyfully, my friend reported genuine satisfaction at having played a part in this event of reuniting. This little episode mirrors exactly what I have wanted to facilitate. You see, I happen "to recognize" each one of you. I know who you are. Jesus is the name of your species, and none other than God ...

22. Despair, Hope, Easter, and Pentecost

John 20:10-18

Sermon

Tom Garrison

... dawn, worrying about the grave stone and how they were going to move it. It presented a challenge far beyond their resources. But when they got there — what did they find? It had been rolled away! Why? Because there is also God in the drama of history! He too plays a part in what is possible and impossible out there ahead of us, and what kind of God is he? The Easter-event speaks directly to this. Saint Paul sums it up by describing him as "the one who can make the things that are out of the things that ...

23. For His Eyes Only

Matthew 6:1-4

Sermon

James Merritt

... , they would put on heavy makeup and specially designed costumes to project an image that appeared to be real, but really was false. The word hypocrite soon took on the connotation of someone who treated the world as a stage on which he was just playing a part. A hypocrite is someone who tries to make himself appear to be something that he really is not. Its someone whose actions do not really match his words. In other words, these were people who are playing a game of religious make-belief. Churches today ...

24. The Fork in the Path

Matthew 10:24-39

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... in the outcome but in the journey. Our mission is ours to carry out no matter how the bricks seem to fall. For we only see a fraction of the picture. We only carry out our fraction of the mission. God calls each and every one of us to play a part. When we do, we contribute to the amazing transfiguration that Jesus began and that his followers continue –to bring kingdom truth to earth “as in heaven.” When the mission will be completed, no one but God knows. But each and every one of us will do our part ...

25. To Touch The Untouchable

Luke 5:12-16

Sermon

... touch our lives, if we come to him in faith and prayer. This season of Lent, let us open our hearts, minds and bodies to the love and power of God so that we may be healed, and that God's power may work through us so that we might play a part in the healing of others. Benediction: Our Lord and our God, we this day have come to worship you because we love you. We have also come because we all, in one way or another, need to be healed. As we go from this place, may we be constant in ...

Showing results