Sermon and Worship Resources

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Luke 23:26-43

Sermon

King Duncan

... . And I need to remind myself of that every time I am tempted to look down on another human being. Jesus doesn’t look down on them. Jesus looks upon them as a lost brother or sister who needs help. Some of you may remember the well known British actor Michael Caine. Caine wrote a book several years ago in which he described how he fought his way out of a poor South London neighborhood to pursue his dream of becoming an actor. In the ’60s and ’70s ...

2. Balancing Act

Mark 6:30-44

Sermon

King Duncan

... to be unconscious. No matter how hard they tried, they could not rouse him, nor could they find his pulse. They called a local doctor and reported the apparent death. After a quick examination, the irritated doctor announced that the man was only sleeping. Michael Caine protested that the man had no pulse and was impossible to wake. But the doctor explained that this is the way all people are supposed to sleep. 'Civilized' people, he said, who live in big, noisy cities and hold down draining, stressful jobs ...

3. The True Olympians

Romans 12:1-8

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... ’t know about you, but the Olympics has been a good antidote to the pessimism and despair of the other pop phenomenon of 2008, “The Dark Knight,” with its portrait of a world awash in decay and the lust for destruction. Alfred the butler (Michael Caine) says to Batman in “The Dark Knight” as they struggle to understand the psychology of The Joker: “Some men just want to watch the world burn.” Christians are passionista people who want to set the world on fire . . . but with love and life for ...

4. The Secret Of Happy Marriages

Ephesians 4:17--5:21

Sermon

King Duncan

... 's father. So a wedding was literally the purchase of a woman for breeding purposes. Paul is not sounding so bad now, is he? To show you how little status women have in some parts of the world, I ran across one fascinating little bit of trivia. According to Michael Caine's ALMANAC OF AMAZING INFORMATION, Hindu men believe it is unlucky to marry for a third time. If a man does wish to take a third wife, he can avoid misfortune by marrying a tree first. The tree (his third wife) is then burnt, and he is free ...

5. Walking First Class

2 Corinthians 3:12-18

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... really know what kind of seed has been planted in their hearts or the kind of seed they are planting. They don't realize that their actions really do speak louder than their words. Have any of you seen the movie Secondhand Lions starring Robert Duval, Michael Caine and Haley Joe Osmant? It's a great family film about a couple of old adventurers, purported to have millions stashed away on their farm, who are suddenly put in charge of raising a nephew they never knew they even had. There's a scene where they ...

6. How Does Your Garden Grow?

Matthew 13:1-9

Sermon

Billy D. Strayhorn

... husband seeking mother, who goes from one bad relationship to another. His mother heads out for one more of those relationships and Walter is left to fend for himself with his two extremely eccentric uncles Hub and Garth McCann who are played by Robert Duvall and Michael Caine. Mom leaves and there they are sitting on the front porch. Walter asks, "If my Mom calls, can we hear the telephone out here?" Garth gruffly says: "Don't have one." Walter is shocked: "No telephone?" Then he asks, "Is it OK if I go ...

7. Eyes To See, Ears To Hear

Matthew 13:1-23

Sermon

James McCormick

... for evil. Love your enemies!” Do you hear it? There it is, right there in the comics. It’s the gospel – the gospel according to Peanuts! God speaks to be through movies. It has been a number of years now since I first saw the movie, “Alfie”, starring Michael Caine, but I have not been able to forget it. Alfie was a man who was totally self-centered, living every moment for the self, especially in pursuit of pleasure for the self. He didn’t know how to love. Instead of loving people, he used them ...

8. The Sin and Doom of Godless Men

Jude 1:1-16

Understanding Series

Norman Hillyer

... Shepherd of Hermas, Similitudes 8.3.3), a responsibility which some angels had abdicated (Jude 6). The OT makes no reference to Michael disputing with the devil and simply states that God buried his servant Moses “in Moab, in the valley opposite Beth Peor, but ... Adam is the usual description of Enoch in Jewish writings (1 Enoch 60:8; 93:3; Philo, On the Posterity and Exile of Cain 173; Jubilees 7:39; Lev. Rabbah 29.11). The Lord is coming is lit. “came,” (ēlthen), the Greek aorist used prophetically (as ...

9. Dirty Dreams and Slick Schemers

Jude 1:8-11

Sermon

James Merritt

... are saved."6 In v.9 Jude refers to some argument that Michael the archangel had with the devil over the body of Moses. Now this is an extremely difficult passage. But the point is, that even Michael the archangel, who is the chief angel, the ruling angel, would not ... ." We are not only a people of the book, we are a people of the blood. You see, the difference between Abel and Cain is the difference between Christianity and every other religion in the world. One says we're saved by grace through faith and not ...

10. Meeting And Mastering Temptation

James 1:1-18

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

... He had taught me the faith. He blushed a bit when I told him what he meant to me, and then pulling himself up tall, he said, "Michael, don't lean on a broken reed," and walked away. He had a far greater sense of his unworthiness than I did of mine. But he ... not find another job. And reconciliation with your family may take a long time. Afraid that he might lose everything, Red Cain says to himself, "If God expects that kind of courage from anyone, then God should provide some guarantees." (quoted by Donald ...

11. Will The Real God Please Stand?

James 1:1-18

Sermon

Maxie Dunnam

12. Get a Peace of the Rock

Luke 10:1-24

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... creation, became a part of the human spirit. It's knowledge we have acted on ever since that moment. I like how a new book by Michael Howard begins--with Sir Henry Maine's dictum: "War appears to be as old as mankind, but peace is a modern invention." (The Invention of ... . The Hutus, the toilers of the soil; and the Tutsis, the herdsmen (only 15% of Rwanda's population). In a classic Cain and Abel story (which also shows also the destructive power of Hamitic ideology), in 1994 about 100,000 Hutus rose up ...

13. Reaching Our Full Potential

Matthew 25:14-30

Sermon

King Duncan

... , his father worked three or four jobs at a time in order to support his family. In addition to his father, Herman Cain also found inspiration from Dr. Benjamin Elijah Mays, a former president of Morehouse College. Dr. Mays taught Herman a poem that has guided ... vitally important to examine your view of God, because your view of God will affect your ability to step out in faith. Pastor Michael Yaconelli used to play an unusual game of hide-and-seek with his two young sons. Yaconelli would hide while his sons ...

14. Are you a G.O.A.T.?

Matthew 25:31-46

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... used to declare the best of the best, or at least, those who believe, they are the best--folks such as Muhammed Ali, Michael Jordan, Tom Brady, Kobe Bryant--those icons of their craft, who are often universally lauded and praised by others as well as ... stories we have in scripture attribute differing personalities in this sense to attributes of sheep and goat. In the story of Cain and Abel, Cain is described as a farmer, attached to his land, jealous, rough, and challenging of God, while Abel is described as ...

15. What Makes A Family?

Mark 3:31-35

Sermon

King Duncan

... sister and mother." Interesting. That sounds a little cold. We are accustomed to encountering family strife in the Old Testament. Cain and Able. Noah and his family. Jacob and Esau. But Jesus? There were problems in Jesus' family? ALL FAMILIES HAVE ... of years ago. The first three segments show the mother tossing and turning in her bed, worrying about their son, Michael. She says, "Are we too tough on Michael? Are we not tough enough? Do we give in too often? Too seldom? Do we listen? Do we understand? Maybe ...

16. Children in the Arms of a Loving God

Mark 10:13-16

Sermon

Michael Milton

I came across some other wonderful prayers of children, which reveal their authentic way of coming to God. Maybe Cain and Abel would not kill each other so much if they had their own rooms. It works with my brother. —Larry I didn’t think orange went with purple until I saw the ... said “Let the children come, don’t hinder them, For such is the kingdom of God; Let the children come, don’t hinder them For such is the kingdom of God.”[1] [1] Michael A. Milton, “Let the Children Come,” 2005.

17. Family Survival

Genesis 37:1-11

Sermon

Stephen DeFur

... for different kids in the family based on their birth order? Parents pull out the photo album for their first child. Here's Michael when he was being born. Here's Mike when he was one hour old. Just go through pictures like that . . . pull out another ... them himself. You'd think these would be great families. Now, consider the siblings in the early pages of the Bible (pause). Cain versus Abel, Isaac versus Ishmael, Esau versus Jacob, Joseph versus his brothers--every one of them an utter disaster! But God ...

18. Moving On Up

Mark 9:33-37

Sermon

King Duncan

... stands pretty tall. In our own nation, there are those who will contend that Michael Jordan was the greatest athlete of all time. In the golden age of the NBA, also known as the Michael Jordan era, there was a television ad campaign built solely around Jordan and the ... Gretsky being the greatest hockey player of his time. (4) Seeking to be no.1, of course, is as old as Cain and Abel, Jacob and Esau, Joseph and his brothers. The drive to be recognized as the greatest even infected Jesus’ disciples. Jesus ...

19. Denunciation of the Intruding Teachers

Judges 1:1-36

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... been a murderer in Egypt) and who left judgment to God (“The Lord rebuke you!”), these others, lacking the propriety of Michael, are like animals in that they do not understand what they slander. They are also like animals in that they follow ... these impulses will in the end destroy them. The reference to the Testament of Moses, then, gives way to the second group of three: Cain, Balaam, and Korah (v. 11). This woe oracle sounds like it was pulled out of Old Testament prophecy. While the first and last of ...

20. Denunciation of the Intruding Teachers

Jude 1:1-16

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

21. Build a Bridge and Get Over It

Mark 3:20-35

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... 15 billion dollars per year on losing weight, and an extra 22 billion on beauty aids.(5) -A world where, in 1992, Michael Jordan earned $20 million to promote Nike shoes that's more money in endorsements than the entire annual payroll of all the ... to hold two opposing ideas in the head at the same time and still be able to function. Or to paraphrase James M. Cain's classic noir thriller, "The Postmodernist Always Rings Twice." Postmodern pluralism has created a world of double takes, a world that faces in ...

22. Jesus and Those Who “Believed”

John 8:31-41, John 8:42-47, John 8:48-59

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

The reaction of many of the Jewish authorities with whom Jesus has been speaking is to believe in him (v. 30), and the remainder of the discourse is focused on this group of “believers.” The prediction that they will realize later who Jesus is (v. 28) appears to be coming true even before they lift him up on the cross. It sounds, and it is, too good to be true. Their faith is not genuine (cf. 2:23–25). Jesus has directed their attention toward the future, but they will have none of it. The present is good ...

23. The Children of the Devil

John 8:42-47

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

Jesus links the theme of life and death with that of truth and lies, and both of these with the ancient conflict between God and the devil (vv. 42–47). God is the giver of life, who through Jesus makes his truth known in the world. The devil is the source of death, a murderer from the beginning and the father of lies. The references are to the snake’s denial of God’s truth in the Garden of Eden (Gen. 3:4) and to Cain’s murder of Abel, his brother (Gen. 4:8; cf. 1 John 3:12). Death and falsehood go together ...

24. The Claims of Jesus About Himself

John 8:48-59, John 8:31-41, John 8:42-47

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels