Sermon and Worship Resources

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John 9:1-41

Sermon

Lee Griess

Sometimes you have to wonder. Sometimes all you can do is shake your head about the things people say and the things people think and the things they reveal to us about them. A friend of mine has multiple sclerosis (MS), a chronic disease that gradually weakens and paralyzes the body. She tells me the things people say to her, the advice she gets, and you wouldn't believe it. Here a short samplin...

2. A Life in God’s Great Adventure

John 3: 1-17

Illustration

Lee Griess

Pastor Lee Griess recounts a childhood memory of having a little, old motorcycle. It was primarily designed for off-road use, but sometimes he'd ride it on the streets of the town where he grew up. Going twenty miles an hour (because that's as fast as the old thing would go) down the smooth streets in town was pretty boring. There wasn't much risk involved in that. But when he'd take that old scoo...

3. A New Command

Sermon

Lee Griess

John 13:1-17, 31b-35 In his book Life Looks Up, Charles Templeton remarks how ironic it is that the course of human history has been affected so positively and negatively by events that have occurred in two small upper rooms. One of them is a drab flat in London's Westside, dirty, curtainless, with stacks of articles on the table and worn manuscripts, aborted attempts wadded up in the trash can. ...

4. A New Command

John 13:31-38

Sermon

Lee Griess

In his book Life Looks Up, Charles Templeton remarks how ironic it is that the course of human history has been affected so positively and negatively by events that have occurred in two small upper rooms. One of them is a drab flat in London's Westside, dirty, curtainless, with stacks of articles on the table and worn manuscripts, aborted attempts wadded up in the trash can. Seated at the table a ...

5. A Place of Peace

John 14:15-31

Illustration

Lee Griess

Jesus was preparing his disciples for tough times. He was about to ascend to the Father and they would be on their own left to find their way through this world alone. And yet, they would not be alone. For he would be with them in the presence of the Comforter, the Counselor, the Holy Spirit. In 1520 Ferdinand Magellan battled for an entire year to find a passage around South America. There at th...

6. A Salvation Army Parade

Matthew 21:1-11

Sermon

Lee Griess

Different churches celebrate Palm Sunday in different ways. At one church in Chicago, there is a tradition for worshipers to gather outside the church. Palm branches are distributed, and when the time comes, another group of worshipers emerge from the front doors playing instruments and together they march around the block, singing the songs of Palm Sunday. One year as the procession made its way ...

7. A Shepherd To Lead Us

John 10:22-42

Sermon

Lee Griess

Numbers. Our lives are filled with numbers. Each year we file our income taxes. Now that's an exercise in numbers to end all numbers games. Pages upon pages of numbers: earned numbers, spent numbers, invested numbers, and saved numbers. When it is finally prepared, we send it off to the Internal Revenue Service with our Social Security number on it. And the IRS takes all those numbers and puts the...

8. A Simple Answer

John 12:1-11

Illustration

Lee Griess

Could that have been Judas' greatest downfall, the inability to see himself as a sinner and hence receive God's forgiveness? For without that sense of forgiveness, life holds little joy and the future is hopeless. Someone once said that the person who knows himself or herself to be a sinner and does not know God's forgiveness is like an overweight person who fears stepping on a scale. There once ...

9. Always with Us

John 14:15-21

Sermon

Lee Griess

On a hot southern night, some 150 years ago, a weary slave sat before a tar-paper shack and lifted his voice in a song of lament — a mournful, deep song whose words gave expression to the pain of having been taken from home, separated from family, and subjected to slavery. With hurt and longing he sang these words: Sometimes I feel like a motherless child, Sometimes I feel like a motherless child...

10. Behind Closed Doors

John 20:19-31

Sermon

Lee Griess

There are some jokes that are just too terrible to tell from the pulpit. A pastor would have to be nuts to try to slip such a story by his congregation. For example, there is a story of a man who went to a psychiatrist one time with a sleep disorder. "Doc," he says, "I've been having trouble sleeping because of weird dreams. For example, last night I dreamed that I was a wigwam." "Oh yes," the ps...

11. Brought Together and Sent Forth

John 13:1-17, 31b-35

Sermon

Lee Griess

There once was a majestic cathedral in Northern Europe that was known for its magnificent organ. Unlike the pipe organs and electronic organs of our day, the organs in the old churches of Europe depended upon air pumped by hand to produce sound. When they had services or wanted to play the organ, an assistant to man the pumps was needed in addition to an organist to press the keys. There is a sto...

12. Connected to God

Luke 24:44-53

Sermon

Lee Griess

It's one of those stories that circulates around the internet. I don't know if it's true or not but it's so interesting that I have to share it with you. It seems that a woman came home to find her husband in the kitchen, shaking frantically with what looked like a wire running from his waist toward the electric outlet in the wall. Intending to jolt him away from the deadly electricity, she grabbe...

13. Connected To God

Sermon

Lee Griess

In his book On a Wild and Windy Mountain, Dean of the Chapel at Duke University William Willimon tells of being in New Haven, Connecticut, as a student in 1970, during the famous Black Panther trial. Perhaps you remember those days the 1970s? It was a turbulent time for our country a time of strife, discord, and agony that threatened to tear our country apart. Much of the unrest of those days ...

14. Cut Down And Lifted Up

Luke 22:66--23:25

Sermon

Lee Griess

Let me tell you an ancient parable from the Orient. Once upon a time in the heart of a certain kingdom, there lay a beautiful garden. And of all the dwellers in that garden, the most beautiful and beloved to the master of the garden was the noble Bamboo. Year after year, Bamboo grew yet more beautiful and lovely. Bamboo was conscious of the master's love, and yet he was still modest and in all th...

15. Do Not Be Doubting But Believe!

John 20:24-31

Sermon

Lee Griess

What a week it had been for the disciples. Everything had happened so fast! One moment the crowd welcomed Jesus into Jerusalem with shouts of hosanna, palm branches, and a hero's welcome. And then suddenly, a couple of days later, he was arrested, taken to the cross and crucified. The disciples must have been shell-shocked. They had been taken to the heights of joy and expectancy, only to have the...

16. Faith to Follow

John 3:1-17

Sermon

Lee Griess

How much faith does it take to follow? How much trust in God must we have? What does it mean to be part of the kingdom? How can we be born again? That's the question that Nicodemus asked. That's the theme for our time together this morning. How much faith does it take to follow? I came across an interesting idea this past week. I read an article about businesses that reward their employees when th...

17. Forgiven!

Sermon

Lee Griess

John 12:1-8 On a recent religious talk show the hostess was interviewing a young woman who had just recently come to know Christ and had been received into the church. Until her recent conversion, she had lived on the wrong side of the tracks, lived in the fast lane, and teetered on the brink of destruction. So overwhelming was the sense of forgiveness that this young woman practically gushed w...

18. Forgiven!

John 12:1-11

Sermon

Lee Griess

On a recent religious talk show the hostess was interviewing a young woman who had just recently come to know Christ and had been received into the church. Until her recent conversion, she had lived on the wrong side of the tracks, lived in the fast lane, and teetered on the brink of destruction. So overwhelming was the sense of forgiveness that this young woman practically gushed with joy as s...

19. Giving While We Are Alive

John 17:1-11

Illustration

Lee Griess

I'm sure you've heard the old story of the conversation between a pig and a cow. The pig is complaining to the cow that nobody ever has a kind word for him. "Look at the way I give of myself," he says. "I produce bacon, ham, and pork chops. The bristles of my skin are used for brushes, my hide for luggage. Why, some people even pickle my feet and consider them a delicacy. Why is it then that every...

20. God Doesn't Ask A Fig Tree To Produce Bananas

Luke 13:1-9

Sermon

Lee Griess

A man borrowed a book from an acquaintance. As he read through it, he was intrigued to find parts of the book underlined with the letters YBH written in the margin. When he returned the book to the owner, he asked what the YBH meant. The owner replied that the underlined paragraphs were sections of the book that he basically agreed with. They gave him hints on how to improve himself and pointed ou...

21. Hope to Carry On

Luke 24:13-35

Sermon

Lee Griess

It is perhaps one of the most compelling narratives in all of the scriptures. So fascinating is this scene, in fact, that the gospel writer Luke includes it in detail near the end of his gospel writing. It is a story known well and beloved in the church — the story of two disciples walking down a dusty road to the village of Emmaus, the evening of that first Easter day. Their talk centers around ...

22. It's People I Can't Stand

John 13:31-38

Illustration

Lee Griess

Lucy stands with her arms folded and a resolute expression on her face, while Charlie Brown pleads with her. "Lucy," he says, "you must be more loving. The world needs love. Make this world a better place, Lucy, by loving someone else." At that Lucy whirls around angrily and Charlie goes flipping over backwards. "Look, you blockhead," Lucy screams. "The world I love. It's people I can't stand!"

23. Lead Us Not Into Temptation

Luke 4:1-13

Illustration

Lee Griess

Jim Grant in Reader's Digest told about an overweight businessman who decided it was time to shed some excess pounds. He took his new diet seriously, even changing his driving route to avoid his favorite bakery. One morning, however, he showed up at work with a gigantic coffee cake. Everyone in the office scolded him, but his smile remained nonetheless. "This is a special coffee cake," he explaine...

24. Lead Us Not Into Temptation

Luke 4:1-13

Illustration

Lee Griess

Jim Grant in Reader's Digest told about someone else who faced temptation. An overweight businessman decided it was time to shed some excess pounds. He took his new diet seriously, even changing his driving route to avoid his favorite bakery. One morning, however, he showed up at work with a gigantic coffee cake. Everyone in the office scolded him, but his smile remained nonetheless."This is a spe...

25. Leading the Way

John 10:1-21

Illustration

Lee Griess

A new kind of plane was on its first flight. It was full of reporters and journalists. A little while after takeoff, the captain's voice was heard over the speakers. "Ladies and gentlemen, I'm delighted to be your pilot for this plane's historic first flight. I can tell you the flight is going well. Nevertheless, I have to tell you about a minor inconvenience that has occurred. The passengers on t...

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