Sermon and Worship Resources

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John 17:17

Sermon

James Merritt

... question - Who am I and how did I get here? The third chapter of the Bible answers the second key question - What is wrong with this world and why is there evil and suffering? The rest of the Bible answers the third question - What is the solution? How can this world be made right again and how can I be right with God? If you doubt that this book has that kind of power, listen to what John Adams, the second President of the United States wrote in his diary. "Suppose a nation in some distance region should ...

2. By Faith

Hebrews 11:1-40

Understanding Series

Donald A. Hagner

... , we do not have this Christology reflected in the reference to creation by the word. Rather than logos for “word” (as in John’s logos Christology, John 1:1–3), here the Greek word is rhēma. Our author gives no sign of a knowledge of a logos Christology. ... for translates oregomai, a rare word in the NT (occurring elsewhere in the NT only in 1 Tim. 3:1; 6:10). Better, a key word in Hebrews, is most often used to contrast the old covenant with the superior new covenant (see note on 1:4). For heavenly ...

3. Questions

Matthew 4:18-22

Sermon

John Jamison

... would he preach once he was there? He had attended school at the synagogue and had studied the law and the prophets. He had listened to John's message and agreed that it had to be continued. He was prepared to pick up John's words and add to them what only God's own Son could add to them. But when John's voice was actually silenced in that prison cell, and Jesus was actually handed the keys, I wonder if he wondered, "Can I do this? Can I really do this? If I preach these words I will end up right where ...

4. The Trumpets

Revelation 8:6--9:21

Understanding Series

Robert W. Wall

... , who lack devotion to God, are rebuked like the grumbling, unfaithful Israel of old. This passage provides a good illustration of the dual role of many of John’s key symbols. Images used here to describe destruction are employed elsewhere of the redemptive Lamb. The purpose of this literary device is twofold. First, John intends to convey an apocalyptic understanding of salvation that locates all things—good and bad—under God’s sovereign plans for creation. Most noteworthy in this regard ...

5. John’s Introductory Vision The Risen and Glorified Christ

Revelation 1:9-20

Teach the Text

J. Scott Duvall

... . Then he placed his right hand on me and said: “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.” Jesus then places his hand of power and protection on John, the same hand that holds the seven stars (vv. 16, 20). The one who sustains the churches is himself the Life Giver (note the threefold repetition of “dead/death”). The term “Hades” refers to the realm of the dead (1:18; 6:8 ...

6. The Temporary Imprisonment of Satan

Revelation 20:1-7

Teach the Text

J. Scott Duvall

... 20:3b) Interpretive Insights 20:1 And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain. John frequently uses the expression “and I saw” (kai eidon) to move from one vision to another, but ... Satan in Revelation. While the first coming of Christ certainly dealt a death blow to Satan and his empire to be sure (e.g., John 12:31; Col. 2:15), the New Testament also makes it clear that Satan continues to do extensive damage during the present age (e ...

7. Message to Philadelphia

Revelation 3:7-13

Teach the Text

J. Scott Duvall

... Old Testament to describe Yahweh and also in the Gospels to identify Jesus as one sent from God (e.g., Isa. 1:4; 37:23; Mark 1:24; Luke 4:34; John 6:69). Referring to Jesus as the “true one” shows his authenticity and faithfulness. Jesus now holds the “key of David,” an image drawn from Isaiah 22:22, where Eliakim is given the keys to the house of David. Jesus, rather than the local synagogue rulers, has sovereign control over who gets into God’s kingdom and its eternal city, the new Jerusalem (cf ...

8. What If You Truly Were Born Again?

John 3:1-21

Sermon

King Duncan

... imply that once again we would become a new person? That is, there would be some changes made in our life? The Reverend John Buchanan retired after 48 years as a Presbyterian pastor. He wrote an article in which he looked back over his half century ... what are you doing here?” she called. Frightened at the voice, the boy, whose name was Charley, turned. After a pause, he came nearer Mrs. Keys and saw that she was smiling. Charley poured out his story. In a fit of rage, he had shot a twelve-year-old girl, and ...

9. Easter 5

John 15:1-17, Acts 8:26-40, Acts 9:19b-31, 1 John 4:7-21

Sermon Aid

Russell F. Anderson

... to him, using these principles: a) He started with the man's present question (v. 34). b) He interpreted that passage in light of the whole of Scripture. c) Christ was the key to unlocking the mystery of the Word. d) He led him to commitment. 3. The Ethiopian rejoiced that he understood and received the Word (v. 39). Epistle: 1 John 4:7-21 1. Sermon Title: Love Child. Sermon Angle: Many young people turn to violence because they perceive that they are nobody's love child. They know that they were not ...

10. A Cultural Breakthrough

Acts 16:6-10

Sermon

Rodney Thomas Smothe

... 't break into God's kingdom. We can't find an alternative route into the kingdom of God. If God leaves a window open, we can't just climb through and join the party. But to enter God's kingdom we must have the key. And that key is Jesus Christ." Jesus is the key to the kingdom of God. John 10:9-10 records: I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and ...

11. Cracking the Code

Revelation 1:4-8

Sermon

Steven E. Albertin

... 's revelation tears back the veil. The window is opened. Eternity is revealed. What did John's revelation show them? The lamb who shed his blood for the world now sits triumphantly on his thrown in heaven. I am the Alpha and Omega," says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty. — Revelation 1:8 Christ is the key to cracking the code. Christ enables us to not only unlock the mystery of the book of Revelation, but he enables us to unlock the code of our life in all of its mystery ...

12. New Dominion as a Blessing of the New Covenant: Dead to Sin

Romans 6:1-14

Teach the Text

C. Marvin Pate

... in the other, it is subdued” (Question 77). The Christian must make spiritual progress. Literature: The Pilgrim’s Progress, by John Bunyan. In The Pilgrim’s Progress (1678), after Christian has been to the cross, lost his burden, and fallen ... these three tenses are sequential to the human perspective, with God they are simultaneously before him. And it seems that this is the key to understanding our union with Christ. It is in the mind of God that the believer has already been raised to the heavens ...

13. The Son Superior to Angels

Hebrews 1:1-14

Understanding Series

Donald A. Hagner

... was the writer, or any of the writers of the NT for that matter, justified in referring to his time as the last days? The key to understanding this kind of statement (see also 4:3; 6:5; 9:26; 12:22ff.), is found in the theological ultimacy of Christ. There ... is a technical term for cultic cleansing and is so used in the LXX and even within the NT, where it can signify “ritual washing” (John 2:6; 3:25) or, more generally, purification (as also in Luke 2:22; 2 Pet. 1:9). The use of the word here is no ...

14. Putting the Puzzle Together

John 6:60-71

Sermon

King Duncan

... Simon Peter who answered with one of the most beautiful statements in the scriptures, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We believe and know that you are the Holy One of God." Simon Peter knew as did John: Jesus is the picture on the box. He is the key to the puzzle of life. "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life." A small boat makes its way across the angry waters of the Mediterranean Sea. On board is a Christian woman named Monica. Tossed about by the ...

15. I Am the Alpha and the Omega

Revelation 1:1-3

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... revelation of who this Jesus is. And now we come to close that series of sermons today with a climactic claim, which Jesus shared with John when John was in exile on the isle of Patmus. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. The one who is, who ... , the living one. I was dead, but I am alive forever more, and I have the keys to death and Hades. Now that, my friend, is the middle C of the Christian Gospel. John repeats it at the close of the Book of Revelations, in the 22nd chapter and the ...

16. Jesus Made Like His Brothers

Hebrews 2:5-18

Understanding Series

Donald A. Hagner

... agree with Paul’s questions: “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” (1 Cor. 15:55). Jesus has come “to destroy the devil’s work” (1 John 3:8), and presents himself to John in Revelation 1:18 in these words: “I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.” 2:16 Jesus was not concerned with the angels, but with humankind. This serves as a reminder of the reason that Jesus became for a little while ...

17. Peace Be With You

John 20:19-23

Sermon

King Duncan

... find any security or real peace, so they just keep running. It was the evening of the first Easter Sunday. Earlier that morning Peter and John had been to the tomb. They had discovered it was empty. They saw the strips of linen as well as the cloth that had been ... be a no-brainer for followers of Jesus. “Find something bigger than yourself to believe in.” That is the ultimate key to peace of mind. On December 26, 1944, Japanese Intelligence Officer Hiroo Onoda, arrived on Lubang Island in the Philippines ...

18. Preparing For A Royal Visit

Mark 1:1-8

Sermon

King Duncan

... create a need, then filled it. That is precisely what God did through the thousands of years preceding the appearance of John the Baptist in the wilderness. God had been building the need for a Savior in human beings, making the need ... young man fresh out of the Navy was ready. Are you ready? General Douglas MacArthur, from his own experience once said, "Preparedness is the key to success and victory." Henry Ford put it this way: "Before everything else, GETTING READY is the secret of success." Are you ready ...

19. Israel’s Ill-Placed Confidence

Amos 5:18-27

Understanding Series

Elizabeth Achtemeier

... , now shall the ruler of this world be cast out; and I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself” (John 12:31–32 RSV). In the oracles that follow in this section, Amos will also deal with two other aspects of the day of the Lord ... 9:27; 10:27; 2 Pet. 2:9; 3:7; 1 John 4:17; Jude 15; Rev. 14:7). Jesus himself will be the judge (John 5:22). The only way to avoid condemnation is by having eternal life in the Messiah (John 5:24). Another key word in the NT is krima. It may refer to ...

20. The Agony and Ecstasy of Sight

John 9:1-12

Sermon

Richard Hoefler

... one man born physically blind and given his sight. At the same time, it is a story about many people mentally and spiritually blind to the truth of God who in their stubborn refusal will not accept the gift of sight. The key that unlocks the various aspects of this story is John’s view that Jesus is the light of the world come into the world to destroy the darkness. Laidlaw writes: The whole work illustrates not merely in general the success of Christ - the light of the world - in dispelling the darkness ...

21. To the Church in Philadelphia

Revelation 3:7-13

Understanding Series

Robert W. Wall

... s entrance into God’s kingdom (cf. Luke 2:33–34). 3:8–10 The church in Philadelphia receives unqualified commendation from the holder of the “key of David” who has placed … an open door for them into eternal life that no one else can shut (cf. John 6:35–40; 10:28–29). This is not a biblical justification of eternal security; rather, in the context of John’s Revelation, it is an image of Christ’s lordship: only the Lord has been given authority by his Father to determine for whom the door ...

22. Proper 16 & Pentecost 14

Isaiah 22:1-25, Psalm 95:1-11, Psalm 138:1-8, Isaiah 51:1-16, Exodus 5:22--6:12, Exodus 17:1-7, Romans 11:33-36, Matthew 16:13-20

Sermon Aid

... , and on this rock I will build my church, and the powers of death shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be ... -7 (C) The Roman and Episcopal lectionaries appoint this pericope as the first reading for the Third Sunday in Lent to complement the Gospel (John 4) of Jesus and the Samaritan woman he met at the well. The reading picks up the tale of the Israelites as they travel ...

23. and Forgiveness Come Easy When You’re Filled with The Spirit

John 20:19-23

Sermon

Mark Ellingsen

... Luther that I have already noted, we find Luther summing up the essence of this joyful, Spirit-filled life just right. He was commenting on Jesus' word in our gospel lesson when he gave us the power of the keys to forgive sins and gave us the Holy Spirit. He said, "As the Father has sent me, so I send you" (John 20:21). Some preachers we noted before see this as an assignment of purpose by God, an expectation that if you do not give such proofs of your purpose you don't have faith. Luther wrote in response ...

24. God's Prescription for a Healthy Christian

Jude 1:17-21

Sermon

James Merritt

... is not His." Remember an apostate is not someone who had salvation and lost it; it is someone who never had salivation and proves it. John was talking about these apostates when he said: "They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been ... for a confused Christian. But heat and light will produce a committed Christian. We are to pray in the Holy Spirit. He is the key to our prayer. Did you know the Bible teaches two wonderful things about prayer? It teaches on the one hand that the Son of ...

25. The Christian Shema: Loving God and Neighbor

Mark 12:28-34

Teach the Text

Grant R. Osborne

... New Testament Christianity. 2. Love God with all you have. Loving God (the natural response to God’s depth of love for us) is the key to both Judaism (the Shema [Deut. 6:4–5]) and to Christianity (the Christian Shema [Mark 12:30]). All worship in the end boils ... the Christian life. 3. Loving our neighbor is part of loving God. Loving our neighbor is completely connected with loving God (1 John 4:20). Truly, we cannot do the one without the other. To “praise God” at the same time we vilify his people ...

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