Sermon and Worship Resources

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Acts 6:8-15; Acts 7:54-8:1

Sermon

John E. Harnish

... pulpiteers are the countless people who have filled the pews and the community with their lives of faith and service. Friends and family, husbands and wives, sons and daughters, those who have lived and died. We are all connected, growing out of their lives, rooted in the past. Stephen's sermon (which you will need to read in its entirety) traces God's movement through the past and connects it with the word of Jesus and the resurrection. He takes them back to the beginning and says that this "new faith" is ...

2. The Cost of Being Christian

Acts 7:54--8:1a

Sermon

... what you are looking for in Jesus as to how you see him and to how you respond and react to his coming. Stephen was one who had taken the words of Jesus seriously. He counted the cost and decided to continue to follow. Stephen was the first Christian martyr because he determined that he would rather die for his faith than deny it. They stoned Stephen primarily because he was attacking the root causes of evil and oppression in his day as his master had done. He was saying to them that Jesus had come to ...

3. Rooted in the Scripture

Mark 4:26-34

Illustration

Edward F. Markquart

... from the Magna Carta and England in the year 1215. Who was one of the primary authors of the original Magna Carta? Stephen Langdon. Who was Stephen Langdon? The Archbishop of Canterbury. Archbishop Stephen Langdon was one of the principal authors of the Magna Carta and he had his roots in the Bible, his roots in the Word, his roots in the Book of Galatians and his roots in the freedom described in the Book of Galatians. The book of Galatians is about freedom, Christian freedom which has implications for ...

4. The Church Persecuted and Scattered

Acts 8:1b-3

Understanding Series

David J. Williams

... Pharisee (23:6; Phil. 3:5), now abandoned the milder stance of his teacher and took the lead in a concerted attempt to root out the new teaching. His prominence is indicated by the mention of his name three times within the space of a few verses ... be properly buried, it was forbidden that they should be publicly mourned (m. Sanhedrin 6.6). The fact, then, that these devout men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him might furnish an argument in support of the view that he was not legally put to death but ...

5. Stephen’s Speech to the Sanhedrin

Acts 7:1-53

Understanding Series

David J. Williams

... to the building of the second temple after the exile (v. 48; Isa. 66:1f.; cf. John 4:21; Acts 17:22ff.). The passage cited is one of the few in the Old Testament that seems to denounce the temple root and branch. The text of the LXX is used with only a few minor changes. The position to which Stephen had come in these verses went far beyond any other that we find in the New Testament. Elsewhere we meet with the idea of the temple’s role being now fulfilled by Christ and, therefore, of the temple’s ...

6. Easter 5

John 14:5-14, John 14:1-4, 1 Peter 2:4-12, Acts 7:54--8:1a, Psalm 31:1-24

Sermon Aid

Marion L. Soards, Thomas B. Dozeman, Kendall McCabe

... our hurt." What is effective is God's grace working through us. The preacher might wish to underscore the fact that the Greek word for witness is the root of our English word martyr, and to explore some of the implications of that for the Easter faith. If our identification with the death of Christ was not pursued via last week's epistle, the example of Stephen can open the way for it now. Worship leaders might rummage around through some old hymnals and resurrect the hymn "The Son of God Goes Forth to War ...

7. What Is Success?

Matthew 7:24-29

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

... had no width or height. Even the length of his life was cut short by an assassin's bullet. But he had depth. Foundation. Roots. Because of that, he has endured to become the greatest president the United States has ever had. Such depth is no accident. It ... sturdy. Conclusion Carol, a friend of mine, was a reporter with a Florida television station. She once confided in me, "Stephen, I've interviewed them all. Ford, Carter, Mondale, Reagan. I've talked to judges, athletes, beauty queens, and millionaires. But ...

8. Tenders Of The Sacred Fire

Acts 2:1-13

Sermon

R. Robert Cueni

... the trivializing of religion in general and Christianity in particular in America. In his book, The Culture Of Indifference, Stephen Carter builds an outstanding case for the fact that religious belief and practice are excluded from serious public discourse ... problem when the fear of crime is never far from our every waking thought. And certainly it is our spiritual crisis at the root of the fact that the nation is so racially divided we are terrified of those who are different. As the church, we need to ...

9. A Niche For Every Itch

Matthew 13:1-23

Sermon

King Duncan

... what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet such a person has no root, but endures only for a while, and when trouble or persecution arises on account of the word, that person immediately falls away. As for what ... by their work and their witness bear fruit that does not perish. What kind of soil are you? Congressman Stephen Largent was speaking at Oral Roberts University for their 1995 Commencement. He told about walking one afternoon in February ...

10. A Demon Speaks Out in Church

Mark 1:21-28

Sermon

King Duncan

... works requires tough love. Confrontation. No more excuses. Hard, cold truth. The second step is to get help. Help for the person who has the problem and, perhaps, help for yourself. Stephen Brown tells about a man who was sitting on a tack, and it was hurting. A psychologist came along and said, “Sir, the reason you are hurting is rooted in a childhood trauma. You need therapy.” A sociologist then came along, saw the hurting man, and said, “You’ve got a problem, and it is obviously the result of the ...

11. Shiny Objects

Matthew 4:1-11

Sermon

King Duncan & Angela Akers

... God’s will is to question our identity. “If you are a child of God. . .” When you know who you are, when your identity is rooted in your worth as an image-bearer of God, then it is a lot easier to endure times of testing without giving up. And the final ... years ago, the director of a local Boy’s Club in Atlanta called one of his members, a businessman named Jack Stephens, and asked if Stephens could pick up a young boy and his mother and take them to the hospital. The boy was dying of leukemia. The mother ...

12. The Law of Unintended Consequences

Matthew 5:13-20

Sermon

King Duncan

... God. That’s the first thing we need to see. Conversely, a relationship with God helps us understand the purpose of the law. God’s law has always been rooted in love and freedom. A woman was married to an abusive husband. After they were married, he gave her a list of all the things he expected her to ... 4-10, 1998. Cited by Steven J. Cole, . 6. Stephen Sheane, http://www.sermoncentral.com/sermons/the-older-brother-stephen-sheane-sermon-on-attitude-general-151943.asp. 7. “Lamb Over Me,” by Brother ...

13. Dry As Toast

Matthew 12:15-21

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... flowers fall, but the word of the Lord endures forever.” And this is the word that was preached to you.” (1 Peter 1:24-25) Ephraim is blighted, their root is withered, they yield no fruit. (Hosea 9:16) Prop: a cast or arm in sling / potted plants (one withered and one healthy) How many of you are right handed? ... recognizes the Messiah. *For further information, see the Expository Dictionary of Bible Words by Stephen D. Renn on xeros / xeraino. See also the Jewishvirtuallibrary and the jewishencyclopedia.

14. Running From God

Jonah 3:1-10

Sermon

King Duncan

... were no telephones. And for that matter there were no bombs. These were simpler times, but the problems were the same as today. They all had their root in human nature. JONAH'S PROBLEM WAS HE DIDN'T WANT TO DO WHAT GOD WANTED HIM TO DO. God wanted Jonah to go preach to the ... was on the paper, and he laid it on top of the piano. The Judge then said, "If you want to start a Society of St. Stephen, then you should contact this woman by 11:30 tomorrow morning. If you are not able to help her, don't worry, I'll be ...

15. The Bloodline of Christ

John 20:19-23

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... . Although adopted by a wonderful people, and raised in a loving home, the man finally decided he needed to seek out his biological roots and connect with the bloodline that he shared. Not only did he locate his mother. He discovered that he had a family of ... scoring, merit-awarding rigmarole of religious systems that try to control God and limit heaven to people like us.” (Stephen Cottrell, Do Nothing to Change Your Life: Discovering What Happens When You Stop [London: church House Publishing, 2007], 36). ...

16. Martyrdom Chic

Acts 7:55-60

Sermon

Schuyler Rhodes

... they are or where they come from. As our world spins seemingly out of control, we have answers that emerge from lives rooted in the self-giving love of Jesus. As social fabric frays and extremism rears its contorted countenance, we have the clarity and ... disguises and be real with one another about taking this faith life and living it fully. My own suspicion is that this is what got Stephen into trouble. Sure, he was a bit of a loud mouth. It's likely that they couldn't get him to keep quiet about this ...

17. Seven Habits Of Highly Effective Christians

2 Kings 5:1-27

Sermon

William L. Self

... the death of our civilization -- not so much from atomic bombs but in the spirit of people. A civilization always dies first at the roots. It dies in the death of all the forces that make people good, loyal, right, and strong within. Civilizations die as they are born ... that. 1. Russell Dilday, Communicator's Commentary, Vol. 9, p. 307. 2. Stephen Covey, Seven Habits of Highly Effective People (New York: Fireside Books, Simon & Schuster, 1989), p. 30. 3. Covey, p. 31.4. From unpublished material shared with me ...

18. Make Up Your Mind!

1 Kings 18:16-46

Sermon

Robert Leslie Holmes

... polls were telling evidence of how our nation is spiritually adrift. We saw that many of our leaders have, in Stephen Vincent Benet’s words, “no fixed stars.” God’s standards of morality and truth possess little relevance or authority ... If you think you can delay making a choice, you have already chosen, whether you realize it or not. When we, as a nation, try to root for two teams in the spiritual realm, when we pass on no settled values of right and wrong, our children will do what the Baal ...

19. Letters Straight From The Heart

2 Corinthians 2:12--3:6

Sermon

King Duncan

... wanted to meet God. He knew it was a long trip to where God lived, so he packed his suitcase with Twinkies and a six-pack of root beer, and he started on his journey. When he had gone about three blocks, he met an old woman. She was sitting in the park, staring at some ... , 1987). 3. THE OLD FARMER'S ALMANAC 1998 (Dublin, NH: Yankee Publishing, Inc., 1997). 4. “Summits in Sight," by Stephen Madden, February 1999, pp. 63-64. 5. Brian L. Harbour, LIVING EXPECTANTLY (Nashville: Broadman Press, 1990), p. 65. 6. ...

20. When You Feel Helpless

2 Corinthians 12:1-10

Sermon

King Duncan

... 's most influential people. Since his battle with the twin aneurysms, Jones has produced and conducted the WE ARE THE WORLD recording, wrote the score for ROOTS and THE COLOR PURPLE, and also produced THRILLER with Michael Jackson, one of the most successful record albums of all time. He has been nominated for sixty-eight Grammy Awards and has won nineteen. Stephen Spielberg summed up Jones's intensity of life in a SIXTY MINUTES interview: “He finds two minutes of enrichment out of one minute of living ...

21. A Faith That Transforms, Not Just Adorns

Hebrews 11:1-40

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... on this “but.” BUT we do have “hope.” The problem with this “hope” is that too often it is rooted in “hype.” Unlikely. Unproveable. Unrepeatable. Unreliable. Hope based on hype leads nowhere at best, hell at worst. The passionate preacher ... hope and speculation. After fifty years of listening there has been no SETI contact. As an anti-hope warning voice Stephen Hawking once remarked that “Such advanced aliens might be looking to conquer or colonize whatever planets they can reach.” In ...

22. Moses Flees to Midian

Exodus 2:11-25

Understanding Series

James K. Bruckner

... the sand. Three grammatical points lead to this translation. First, the verb for the Egyptian’s and Moses’ “striking” is the same word root and stem (Hiphil). This sort of blow might or might not lead to death, but it was equal in force and meaning (see ... that there was no one, he was appalled that there was no one to intervene. (Isa. 59:15b–16a) In the NT, Stephen interprets Moses’ motivation. “Moses thought that his own people would realize that God was using him to rescue them” (Acts 7:25 ...

23. How to Affair-Proof Your Marriage!

2 Samuel 11:1-27

Sermon

Stephen M. Crotts

... man who puts time and energy into the marriage, the children, the family. On my wedding day, Joseph Paul Aiken, my grandfather, said to me, "Stephen, if you treat your wife like a queen, you'll get to be the king." He was paraphrasing the Golden Rule: "Do unto others as ... Enjoyment. Expedite. Then Expression. And suddenly you're a fool! Adultery is not purely a sexual sin. It is at its root the inability to deal with normal feelings of romance toward someone who was never meant to meet those needs. The ...

24. Staying Close

Isaiah 6:1-13

Sermon

King Duncan

... from within. There must come a time of conscious decision. And out of that decisaion will grow a life of DISCIPLESHIP. Stephen Olford tells about when the British government sought to reward General Gordon for his brilliant service in China. Gordon declined all ... devotees of the other religions and cults. That is the secret of keeping faith alive in our hearts. Author Alex Haley of ROOTS fame, was once asked if his ancestors would approve of his work. "I can almost hear my grandmother's voice," says Haley ...

25. Dare To Dream

Joel 2:1-11

Sermon

King Duncan

... by our dreams, but a great dream keeps things such as negativism and despair at bay. It's easy for a negative spirit to take root in a church. I heard about one pastor who decided to enter the mission field after a disappointing pastorate. They gave a dinner in his ... great dreams are realized, you will always discover that there was someone who was willing to pay a price. Certainly Peter and Stephen and the other disciples at that first Pentecost were willing to pay the price. And God used their devotion in a ...

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