Sermon and Worship Resources

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Mark 1:9-15

Sermon

David T. Ball

Do you all have your compasses with you? What? You don’t have compasses? Well, I guess neither do I. How about your watch? Okay! A much better response that time. I have my watch, too — but don’t get your hopes up that I’m planning to keep a closer eye on how long my sermons are taking! I really just wanted to make a point about how much we rely on our watches in comparison to our compasses. And I...

2. Beware: Hypocrites on Premises

Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21

Sermon

David T. Ball

Whenever I happen to be in a conversation with someone about why they don't go to church, it seems like the reason that they almost always give is that they can't stand all the hypocrites. I don't take this personally -- they aren't saying that all churchgoers are hypocrites -- just that there are usually too many hypocrites for their liking. I guess their reaction is understandable. Who would wa...

3. It’s About God

John 3:14-21

Sermon

David T. Ball

I don’t know how many foreign films you’ve seen — subtitled in English, so that you hear the foreign language and read the dialogue at the same time. I’ve seen a few, and for the most part I’ve been impressed by how well the English subtitles seem to flow. They must have translators who are pretty good at expressing in English what is being said in another language. But sometimes the subtitles see...

4. Momentous Moment

Mark 14:12-26

Sermon

David T. Ball

When visiting another church one time, a thought occurred to me as I waited in my pew for communion to be served. It was during the Advent season, and the service had warmed us with words of hope and light. It was also the first Sunday of the month, which in that church meant communion Sunday. As the service shifted from Advent to communion, it struck me that, you know, we do this fairly often. Ce...

5. No Substitute

John 2:13-22

Sermon

David T. Ball

Jesus in the temple — oh, didn’t he show those money-changers who were desecrating the temple grounds with their money-grubbing business? Not to mention the mess that all the livestock were making! Out! Out! Out! He cleared them all out, those traders in things that didn’t belong in God’s house. And he had every right to do it, we tend to think. Serves them right, despoiling sacred space with thei...

6. Seeing and Not Being Seen

John 12:20-33

Sermon

David T. Ball

Toward the end of the last presidential campaign, I heard an amusing report on one of the cable news networks about the candidates’ determination to get out their “talking points” in all of their interviews, regardless of what question they were asked. They had obviously decided, in their closed-door strategy sessions with their inner circle of campaign strategists, that they needed to try to brin...

7. Unacceptable

Mark 8:31-38

Sermon

David T. Ball

Going off to college can be an unsettling experience for Christian students. Somewhere, sometime, college students are going to encounter, and many for the first time, the notion that there is no such thing as absolute truth. Truth with a capital “T.” We may wish that the situation could be otherwise. Parents may especially wish, after all they’ve invested in trying to instill positive values in ...

8. Where Are You From?

John 18:1-19:42

Sermon

David T. Ball

Whenever we travel, we come into contact with new people. Often these interactions remain basic and simple, with us exchanging just the bare minimum of information necessary to complete our interaction, like when checking in for a flight. "Good morning, traveling to San Francisco today?" "Yes." "May I see your photo ID?" "Sure." "Any baggage to check?" "Yes, two pieces." "Two pieces." "Yes." "Okay...

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