Sermon and Worship Resources

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1. Go With Positive

John 2:1-11

Illustration

Brett Blair

In his second year at college, Martin Short lived at home, helping to care for his sick father. Listen to what he says about this tragic moment: "When my dad died at the end of my sophomore year, I stopped and took stock of my life. There was this real sense that my childhood was officially over. I ...

2. A Radical Faith

Matthew 6:25-34

Sermon

Mark Trotter

... plagues. Luther will lose two brothers to the plague, but it was nothing like what had preceded them. But the memory was there, that taught that life was brutish and short. So the purpose of life, they believed, was to prepare for death, and to insure by the way you live that you would get into the next life. That was the environment in which young Martin Luther grew up. There was one clear message. Christ had come to save us for the next life. The Church was the continuing presence of Christ here in this ...

3. Obedience Is Better Than Sacrifice

1 Samuel 15:1-35

Teach the Text

Robert B. Chisholm Jr.

... with God is possible only if one loves fellow human beings in tangible, practical ways. Literature: “Where Love Is, God Is,” by Leo Tolstoy. This short story was made into a wonderful Claymation called “Martin the Cobbler” (1977). Martin, an old cobbler, has lost his family and all interest in life. He lives now only for his work. But one day in a dream, Martin hears a voice, which he assumes is the Lord’s, promising to come and visit him the next day. The following day, various people in need ...

4. Even Our Business Belongs to God!

Jeremiah 32:1-44

Sermon

Mark Ellingsen

... Theology of the Cross). Work, your job, is a wonderful gift of God (even if it does not always seem to be). Believe it! As Martin Luther has put it: Your work is a very sacred matter. God delights in it, and through it he wants to bestow his blessing on ... sacrifice, giving up your will to the will of God; and continually aiming, not at ease, pleasure, or riches, not of anything “this short-enduring world can give,” but merely at the glory of God. Now, can any one deny, that this is the most excellent way ...

5. King of Atlanta

Romans 8:28-39

Drama

Michael L. Sherer

... blacks to use separate facilities or to sit in the back of buses and surrender their seats to whites if seats run short. On Thursday of last week, a black woman, Mrs. Rosa Parks, tired after a long day at work and running errands, remained ... of me does not fear. Christ and his strong love casts out all fear. Pray for us. Christ’s peace and power be with you. Martin. LECTOR: I am certain that nothing can separate us from Christ’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor other heavenly rulers or ...

6. We're On the Move Now!

Sermon

Ronald Love

... though the sun is shining, the birds are singing and the air is cool, we must remember that the days for Christ return have “grown short.” This is the since of immediacy that Paul wanted to instill in his readers. This is the sense of immediacy that Jesus wanted to ... so we can be outspoken against oppression. But the days are too short for us not to be witnesses to the gospel message. March 25, 1965. The Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King Jr. led a procession of 25,000 demonstrators into Montgomery, ...

7. Luther of Wittenberg

Drama

Michael L. Sherer

... from all distractions, so that I can get things straightened out between God and myself. I can hear you saying what you always used to: "Martin, you’re too introspective. Don’t be such a gloom-pot. Live a little." I wish I could feel a little more the way you ... is not a matter of exchanging money for a certificate, but rather an activity that takes a lifetime - and a repentant heart. Short-range effects of the move are expected to be a drastic dropping off of money collected to rebuild St. Peter’s ...

8. An Attitude of Gratitude

1 Thessalonians 5:12-28

Sermon

David E. Leininger

It was almost exactly five years ago. Just before Thanksgiving, a Friday morning, shortly after 5:00 AM - I was awakened by a shout from our kitchen, "OH, NO!" A moment later, the cry ... of God in Christ Jesus for you." We read it...and we try to live it...but we do admit that it is tough sometimes. I know it was tough for Martin Rinkert (1). Martin Rinkert was a minister in the little town of Eilenburg in Germany some 350 years ago. He was the son of a poor coppersmith, but somehow, he managed to work his ...

9. Are You Successful Or Do You Just Have Money?

Acts 1:1-11

Sermon

King Duncan

... He wrote under a pen-name, a disguise, to keep anyone from knowing that it was a convicted felon who wrote the intriguing short stories with the surprise endings which made him famous. His famous pen name? Many of you already know ” O. Henry. (1) One of ... hearing was coming up soon, and Billy suggested that Ron consider a career in baseball when he got out. Ron looked up Billy Martin the moment he left prison and a place was made for Ron on the Detroit Tigers roster. Many of you baseball fans will recognize ...

10. The Family

Genesis 37:1-36

Sermon

Will Willimon

... velvet long sleeved robe in the graduation procession into the stadium -- I'm at the head of the procession. Is it a wonder that shortly thereafter, when Daddy sent Joseph to the fields to check on his brothers, they said to one another, ''Here comes this dreamer! Now comes ... him and we'll see what becomes of his dreams!'' You know the verse. It's the one inscribed on the tomb of Martin Luther King. Away with this dreamer! But they thought better of it. So they threw him in a pit, then they sold him as ...

11. Baptized...and Baptized

Luke 3:1-20

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... in these United States. But even there the story doesn't stop, does it? No, because then you've got to ask how it was that Martin Luther King was motivated and who inspired him to do what he did. Then you come to an insignificant black lady who was a seamstress in Montgomery ... one who tells the story, a wonderful story about a 15-year-old girl at a Youth Conference some years ago. The girl was short and a bit overweight. She was not pretty and she was also crippled. And so when a dance was held one night at the ...

12. Oh, The Things We Worry About!

Matthew 6:25-33

Sermon

... that, I predict that there will be a lot of worrying today. Children will worry that their favorite pie will be in short supply and they will have to eat Grandpa's mincemeat! Football fans will worry (unnecessarily, I might add) that the Vikings will ... God and his righteousness, and all the other stuff will be taken care of." That is, I think, what the Pilgrims did. It is what Martin Rinkart did. It is also what we have been invited to do: to seek first the kingdom of God, and not worry about anything else ...

13. God Loves An Underdog

Luke 14:1, 7-14

Sermon

King Duncan

... Gibraltar, which lasted from 1779 to 1783, the Queen of Spain sat on a hill facing Gibraltar and, believing that the siege would be a short one, declared that she would not move until she had seen the Spanish flag flying above Gibraltar. As the days passed and there were no ... need to heed this word of warning. Leo Tolstoy wrote the story of a Russian cobbler named Martin Avdyeeich. Martin lived in a cellar with a single window. From his vantage point he saw mostly boots of those who passed by. Few there ...

14. Imitating Christ's Humility

Philippians 2:1-11

Understanding Series

F. F. Bruce

... and compassion and can therefore the more readily show the same qualities to one another. All the conditions, in short, exist within the believing community to foster a sense of oneness and a common purpose, not only with one ... contrast is intended here between Christ and Adam see O. Cullmann, The Christology of the New Testament, pp. 174–81; R. P. Martin, Carmen Christi, pp. 161–64 (Martin traces this view back to G. Estius in 1631). D. H. Wallace (“A note on morphē”) argues against it that the ...

15. What We Want for Our Children

John 14:15-31

Sermon

King Duncan

... we give them inner peace when we help them develop a sense of responsibility. There is an old short story titled “Beth Martin’s Pretty Mother” that has a surprisingly modern theme: a daughter decides that her mother needs a makeover. Beth Martin’s mother used to be quite a beauty. But that was before Beth’s father died, and Mrs. Martin was left to run the farm and care for Beth all by herself. Mrs. Martin was determined to give Beth every opportunity. She let her own clothes wear out and turn gray ...

16. Mirror, Mirror ON The Wall . . .!

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

... for our lives. The problem comes when we do not accept that which we are. We grumble because we were born too late, too short to be a basketball star, too homely to be a movie starlet, or too slow mentally to be a doctor. In a Peanuts cartoon ... a moment, thought, then said, "If Christ can love me and live in me, then there must be something lovable about me!" From that point on Martin Luther began not only to love God and his neighbor, he also began to love himself. The cross became a divine plus-mark on his ...

17. The Lamb of God

John 1:29-34

Sermon

William B. Kincaid, III

... I'm not fearing any [man]. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord."1 Those words, spoken by Martin Luther King, Jr., the night before he was assassinated in Memphis, still haunt us. To this day, they generate speculation and debate. Some ... its ways. It may even kill you...."7 That is not speculation, but a summary of the evidence. Consider those whose lives have been cut short by the assassin's bullet and then ask why. The Lamb of God has shown us what selfless acts look like, and it is his ...

18. The Joy of Being a Caring Person

Mt 25:31-46 · Lk 16:19-31

Sermon

Robert G. Tuttle

... no advantage at all. Christopher Frye paints a tragic world picture: "Those fabulous wings, unused, folded in the heart." And Martin Luther adds his verbal insight, "Sin - the heart all crushed up inside itself - that is sin; that is hell." All ... cold water is in the name of Jesus. It isn’t just water - the combination of hydrogen and oxygen that supplies body fluid for a short time - this water given with the love of Christ, given in love and compassion, given because the love of God is real to us - this ...

19. Building a House (Mother's Day)

Luke 6:46-49

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost. As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. Amen." To the top of their lungs, Granddaddy Dick Murray and grandson Martin sang the "Gloria Patri" over and over and over...and they had a marvelous time. A short time later, they took Martin to "big church" for the first time...and when they got to that place in the service where the congregation stood together and began to sing boldly the "Gloria Patri"...Dick Murray said he felt a tug ...

20. Building A House

Luke 6:46-49

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

21. How Jesus’ Friendship Makes Your Burdens Light

Matthew 10:1-42

Sermon

Mark Ellingsen

... the modern media and make them the criteria for organizing worship (contending it's got to be "entertaining" and "sound-bite short"). Jesus reports that the people of Israel in his day had complained about John the Baptist for living a life- ... is "gentle and humble in heart" (Matthew 11:29), that in him we can find rest. He wants to give you rest from your burdens. Again, Martin Luther in the same sermon I shared with you says it so well about this gentle Lord of ours. And Christ makes a special point of ...

22. Affluence and the Afterlife

Luke 16:19-31

Teach the Text

R.T. France

... most often told in connection with his name. As the story goes, he ran into a beggar who, in need of clothing, touched Martin’s heart. He then cut his military garment in half and gave the beggar the other part. That night he dreamed of Christ, ... and philosopher Dante Alighieri (1265–1321). It is about the specific judgments awaiting those who violate God’s law. In one short passage he describes the punishment of one group of “souls.” This miserable state Is reserved for the dismal souls of those ...

23. The Post Launch Slump

2 Cor 8:10-11

Sermon

Robert Noblett

... with what goes on down the street at their local church, you and I both know who is going to win their attention. Asks Martin Marty, "Are they to turn off that very set and then make their way down the block to a congregation of real believers, ... , he declares of his knights, "They want revenge! Revenge! That most worthless of causes ... The Table is dead. It exists no more." And a short time later Arthur comes upon a young lad, Tom by name, who wants to be a knight, but Arthur has something else in mind ...

24. Christmas and the Condensed Bible

John 1:1-18

Sermon

Donald B. Strobe

... Person. In a Person who was tempted and tested, a person who hungered and thirsted, a person who arrived first as a baby, who, as Martin Luther loved to say, cried, who nursed at Mary’s breast, who burped after meals, and who had to have His diapers changed on a ... covers of the book we call the Bible, can be condensed down...not just into a shorter book, not into just one short paragraph, but into one simple sentence: “And the Word became flesh, and lived among us.” At this point, prose spills over into ...

25. Admitting the Real Truth

Romans 3:21-31

Sermon

Patrick J. Rooney

... , about murder and mayhem, who states the obvious to us when he says "For there is no distinction, since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (vv. 22b-23). All have sinned. Can you believe it? All have sinned. You, me, everyone! Yet we who ... those who live without hope in Christ, this seems as though there is no hope. We are sinful, lost, and alone. But now, as blessed Martin puts it in our great battle hymn: But now a champion comes to fight, Whom God himself elected. You ask who this may be? ...

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