Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: young, youth, son in the faith, pastor, genuine faith, committed, guidance, practical, sound teaching, pastors, church leaders, instruction, good conduct, reputation

Showing 1 to 25 of 4947 results

1. Growing in Faith

Deuteronomy 6:1-25

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... people of God have is that of passing on the faith from one generation to the next. "These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children..." The early church understood the same thing. Paul wrote his son in the faith Timothy: "If you point these things out to the brothers [and sisters]"...if you instruct them..."you will be a good minister of Christ Jesus."(2) The church TRIES to do the job. All but the tiniest of congregations offer some sort of Sunday School ...

2. Simeon's Song

Luke 2:21-40

Sermon

Mark Trotter

... thy salvation." It is an appropriate conclusion to the story of the birth of Jesus. The holy family comes to the Temple for a Jewish ritual, providing the evidence that Mary and Joseph were a devout religious family, and they intend to raise their son in the faith. I want to add a footnote here to point out most of the families, the great majority of families, in this world would observe some similar ritual. It is always a shock to many sophisticated, educated Americans and Europeans, those of us who have ...

3. It’s not what you know, but who you know!

John 1:19-28

Sermon

Daniel G. Mueller

... , his possessions and his health. Still, he confessed, "I know that my Redeemer lives ..." (Job 19:25). That Redeemer and the knowledge of him sustained Job. Nothing else could have. Saint Paul, also, persecuted and humiliated for the sake of the gospel, confessed to his son in the faith, Timothy, "I know in whom I have believed and I am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed to him safe in that day" (2 Timothy 1:12). Neither man knew as much as you and I do. They both believed ...

4. It Happens In The Best Of Families

Luke 2:41-52

Sermon

King Duncan

... the scholars in the temple with His questions when He was only twelve years of age. Scriptures were on His tongue throughout His ministry. Probably this was a tribute to Joseph. In the Jewish home the father had the responsibility of training his son in the faith. We know that Jesus came from the best of families. Yet there happened in Jerusalem during Jesus' twelfth year an incident so extraordinary that it has found a place in our Bible. Perhaps it was related by one of Jesus' brothers after His ...

5. A Word to Busy Parents

Luke 2:41-52

Sermon

King Duncan

... with his questions concerning scripture when he was only twelve years of age. Passages from the Hebrew Bible were on his tongue throughout his ministry. Probably this was a tribute to Joseph. In the Jewish home the father had the responsibility of training his son in the faith. We know that Joseph did his job well. Mary did her job well too. I read recently a humorous story about a young man who on his graduation from high school was chosen to give the commencement speech. He began by reading from his ...

6. The Most Dangerous Verse In the Bible

2 Timothy 3:10--4:8

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... is to question you? After all, "All scripture is God-breathed...." Well, try to remember this: a text without a context is a pretext. And it is probably dangerous. So what is the context here? Read it again as the apostle instructs his young son in the faith. ... continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the holy scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus ...

7. Household of Faith

II Timothy 1:3-7

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

As speaker and author, Tony Campolo, tells the story, it happened during a sophisticated academic gathering at the University of Pennsylvania which neither he nor his wife wanted to attend. During their mixing among the faculty, a sociology professor came up to Mrs. Campolo and said, “What do you do for a living?" Mrs. Campolo, feeling the compelling task of raising children, gave this reply, “I am socializing two homosapiens into the dominant values of the Judeo-Christian tradition in order that they ...

8. Clouds and Son-Shine

Ephesians 3:1-13

Sermon

Hubert Beck

Motivation is the key to life. It is not only the key to getting work done, but it is the key to living itself! Once a person loses the will to live, health suffers and death is never more than a step or two away. Motivation is hard to sustain at times, though. The cloudy moments of life cause us to say, "What’s the use of it all?" We want to chuck everything and let come what may without care or concern. That’s when we need to see again the glory of the Lord revealed, for in God’s presence among us we ...

9. On Being Faithful and Focused

Hebrews 11:1, 32 – 12:2

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

It was Henry David Thoreau who wrote: “If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost. That is where they should be. Now put foundations under them." For the past few weeks, we have articulated a new vision for this congregation focused on “touching hearts and transforming lives." We have organized our church and deployed our staff to embrace a mission of inviting, worshiping, discipling, serving, and healing. We have built castles in the air. Now it is time to put foundations under them ...

10. Tough Faith In Tough Times

Luke 18:1-8

Sermon

Larry R. Kalajainen

Two qualities which we Americans value highly and in which we take pride are speed and efficiency. Think of how many products or services which all of us use that are built principally around one or both of these qualities. Hundreds of thousands of microwave ovens have been sold, not because they make food taste better, but because it's possible to cook much faster in them. Since so many people lead such busy lives, anything that shortens time in the kitchen has an instant appeal. A colleague told of ...

11. The Victory Of Faith

1 John 5:1-12

Sermon

Mark J. Molldrem

Planes drop out of the sky, killing all passengers. Mini-dictators initiate programs of genocide against neighbors. Forces of nature storm across the landscape, leaving devastation in their path. Bizarre individual behavior leaves heads shaking, "How can anyone do such things?" Accidents at home and on the highway steal loved ones away. All this gives credence to the sardonic line of a poem, which begins, "It's a wonderful world to be born into, if you don't mind a touch of hell now and then." How do we ...

12. The Son Makes Us Free

John 8:31-41

Sermon

Larry R. Kalajainen

On a television movie about a family of Virginia plantation owners during the Civil War, one of the sons married a woman whom his family despised because she was not of their class. She was the daughter of a poor "dirt farmer," without the privileged education, carefully cultivated social graces, or the wealth of the family who lived in the big house on the plantation. She became pregnant with their first child shortly before her husband went off to war with Jeb Stuart's calvary, and reluctantly, the ...

13. The Other Prodigal Son

Luke 15:11-32

Sermon

Brett Blair

In 1986 Henri Nouwen, a Dutch theologian and writer, toured St. Petersburg, Russia, the former Leningrad. While there he visited the famous Hermitage where he saw, among other things, Rembrandt’s painting of the Prodigal Son. The painting was in a hallway and received the natural light of a nearby window. Nouwen stood for two hours, mesmerized by this remarkable painting. As he stood there the sun changed, and at every change of the light’s angle he saw a different aspect of the painting revealed. He would ...

14. Following the Footsteps of the Faithful

Hebrews 11:1-13

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

Faith. By faith, Noah built an Ark. By faith, Abraham fathered a son. By faith, John Wesley formed a movement called Methodists. By faith, Frances Asbury came to America. By faith, Green Hill built a home in Brentwood, Tennessee. By faith, Robert I. Moore led this church to this location. By faith, what are you and I going to do for the sake of those who come behind us? That’s the question I want to pose today. According to the writer of Hebrews, there are two or three things about faith that you and I ...

15. Simple Faith?

Mark 1:9-15

Sermon

John Jamison

It all sounds so simple. It’s just so nice, so easy, and so straightforward; almost comfortable. And we’ve heard the story told so many times that many of us know it by heart. “This John the Baptist guy was standing in the middle of the Jordan River, yelling at people and baptizing them. He was yelling at some of the priests who didn’t like him, when suddenly Jesus stepped out of the crowd, walked into the water, and stood next to John. At first, John wanted Jesus to baptize him, but finally, he went ahead ...

16. Facing Our Fears with Faith

Matthew 10: 27-31

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

“Americans will never taste security and safety unless we feel security and safety in our land," said Osama bin Laden a few weeks ago in a video shown around the world. It is the purpose of terrorists to terrorize and it appears these criminals have succeeded in making Americans more fearful than ever before. Never again will we board a plane, open a letter, or enter a stadium with the kind of innocence we assumed before September 11th. How will we learn to live with this kind of fear? To fear or not to ...

17. Why Should I Read The Bible? (Series: Real Faith for Real People)

2 Timothy 3:10--4:8

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

A cartoon in the New Yorker magazine portrays a man making an inquiry at a large metropolitan bookstore. The clerk begins tapping on her computer, spelling out the word B-I-B-L-E. “Yes,” said the clerk, “we have it. You will find it in the self-help section of the store.” Sometimes I wonder if that cartoon is all too true. Have we who read the Bible reduced the Bible to nothing more than another book in the self-help section? When we ask new members to affirm their faith in the scriptures as found in the ...

18. Does Love Really Make the World Go ’Round? (Series: Real Faith for Real People)

1 John 4:7-21

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

What makes the world go ’round? Do you ever ask yourself that question? In our global economy, many people would say that money makes the world go ’round. How else can one explain our obsession with the stock market and the federal manipulation of interest rates? Some might say that power makes the world go ’round. That might be why two smart men would spend 2 million dollars each trying to be elected mayor of Nashville. A job, mind you, that pays $136,000 a year! Hunger for recognition and status is in ...

19. Could We Start Again, Please? (Series: Real Faith for Real People)

John 3:1-21

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

It’s been said of Jesus that whenever he met a person it was as if that person were an island around which Jesus sailed until he found the real problem. And there he landed. He did that with the wealthy tax collector Zacchaeus and landed on the question of integrity. “All that I have stolen, I will repay four-fold.” He did that with the woman at the well and landed on the subject of marriage. “Go call your husband.” And here in John 3, Jesus does that with the powerful, prestigious, political Nicodemus by ...

20. When We Get Where We’re Going, Where Will We Be? (Series: Real Faith for Real People)

2 Timothy 3:10--4:8

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

It was the middle of the summer. We loaded our family in an old station wagon, the one with wood paneling down the side, and headed to Florida for a vacation. About ten miles into the trip, we heard the chant that all parents hear when they take children on vacation. “Are we there yet?” “How much longer?” “If you keep asking we will never get there.” You know, normal family conversation. Then about 50 miles into the trip, our 10 year-old son, Wes, posed a question I can never forget. “Dad, when we get to ...

21. Is God For Real? (Series: Read Faith For Real People)

Acts 17:16-34

Sermon

J. Howard Olds

Sooner or later it is bound to happen: A child or grandchild will pop the question, a young adult will want to know, a person dying will need the assurance. Sooner or later everybody asks, “Is God for Real?” It is the central, critical question confronting the Church and the world today. If I were a theologian, I could give you ontological arguments for God’s existence, but I am not a theologian. If I were a sociologist, I could remind you that 95% of Americans say they believe in God, but I never see that ...

22. Fast Forward Faith

Mark 10:46-52

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

In the traffic court of a large Midwestern City a young lady was brought before the judge to answer for a ticket given to her for running a red light. She explained to the judge that she was a school teacher and requested an immediate disposal of her case so she could get to school on time. All of a sudden the judge began grinning from ear to ear. The judge said: "So, you're a schoolteacher, huh? Well, Ma'am, I finally get to realize one of my lifelong dreams. I've waited years for the opportunity to have ...

23. The Promise of a Son

Genesis 15:1-18

Sermon

Carlyle Fielding Stewart

A son was a symbol of the strength of the inheritance. A son would carry on the family name and continue the family line. A son represented the promises of a realizable future amid clear and present dangers. A son would be the embodiment of hope and opportunity for future generations. A son would understand the meaning of sacrifice, fortitude, vision, and courage. Abram wanted a son so he could place his mantle upon him. Here was a man whose faith had been tested. He set out as a man of 75 years to leave ...

24. Justification By Grace Through Faith

Galatians 2:11-21

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

Now I’m aware of the fact that it is Mother’s day. But I’m not going to preach a traditional Mother’s Day sermon. In the early days of the Methodist Church, as a part of worship, the preacher not only preached a sermon, he usually exhorted the congregation. An exhortation is different from preaching, so just to let you know I know it is Mother’s Day before I preach I want to exhort you for a moment. There’s a marvelous verse of scripture in II Timothy, the 1st chapter, the 5th verse. Paul is writing to ...

25. The Simplex Faith of 3:16

John 3:1-21

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

If I were to say three numbers, “3:16,” what would you say? Wow! Some of you didn’t even say “John 3:16,” you just started quoting the verse: “For God so loved the world . . . “ If there is one Bible verse both locked down and totally lapsed Christians might know, it is John 3:16. Thank you, Tim Tebow. John 3:16 is held up at half –time in sports arenas. It is flashed on cardboard placards on freeway off-ramps. Tim Tebow found a creative new place to assert John 3:16 when he scraped out the three numbers ...

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