Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 1 to 25 of 97 results

John 20:19-23

Sermon

William G. Carter

Every Sunday morning, the people of a church in the Pacific Northwest say, "Peace be with you." They begin the worship service with a hymn of praise. The people confess their sins together, and hear of God's forgiveness. Then they are invited to turn to others around them and pass the peace. It has become an exuberant moment in an otherwise sober occasion. Friends leave their pews to embrace one a...

2. A Breeze In The Dark

John 3:1-21

Sermon

William G. Carter

In his autobiography, actor Alec Guinness tells a story that might keep every pastor and church school teacher awake at night. He was a teenager and it was the morning of his confirmation. The classes were finished. The students' heads had been filled full of Bible stories and theological doctrines. Guinness says Holy Trinity Church in Eastbourne was crammed with confirmation candidates, their par...

3. A Name Not Taken in Vain

2 Corinthians 13:11-13

Sermon

William G. Carter

In the middle of March, 1961, a minister named Duffy splashed water on my head in the middle of a Sunday morning worship service. I was only one of a half dozen "Baby Boomers" whose parents had recently petitioned the Session for the sacrament of baptism. Having recently moved to a trailer park in Akron, Ohio, my parents thought the time seemed right to make their firstborn infant a Presbyterian. ...

4. A Taste Of Life

Mark 14:12-26

Sermon

William G. Carter

The workshop was winding up. About 25 pleasant church people had gathered in central Pennsylvania to take part in a workshop on worship. The better part of a Saturday morning had dealt with a variety of topics, such as the order of worship, the role of music, the place of preaching, and whether or not children should come to the Lord's table. A few stomachs were growling for lunch when I asked, "D...

5. Affirming What We Believe

John 3:14-21

Illustration

William G. Carter

In his autobiography, actor Alec Guinness tells a story that might keep every pastor and church school teacher awake at night. He was a teenager and it was the morning of his confirmation. The classes were finished. The students' heads had been filled full of Bible stories and theological doctrines. Guinness says HolyTrinityChurch in Eastbourne was crammed with confirmation candidates, their paren...

6. All Is Calm, All Is Bright

Luke 2:1-7

Sermon

William G. Carter

What a time for an angel to forget his lines! It was the Christmas Pageant at Gravesend, New Hampshire. The Episcopal Church was packed with worshipers, well wishers, and relatives of the cast. Attendance was up, thanks to a positive preview in the local newspaper. The drama critic had reported, “The quintessential Christmas tale, the luster of which has been dulled by its annual repetition, has ...

7. An Invasion of Privacy

John 20:24-31, John 20:19-23

Illustration

William G. Carter

8. And On the Third Day...

John 2:1-11

Sermon

William G. Carter

The story of the wedding at Cana is one of the most famous stories in the Bible. It has been the basis of many sermons and numerous misinterpretations. In fact, there are so many good misinterpretations of the text, I am not sure which misinterpretation I like the best. I recall hearing a sermon based on this text. The preacher said, “In Cana, everybody was having a good time at the wedding banqu...

9. Anybody Listening?

Mark 6:1-6

Sermon

William G. Carter

His name was George, and he sat in the back row of the sanctuary on the preacher's right. A permanent scowl was chiseled on his face. His posture announced to all that he was a man not easily pleased. Ushers tip-toed around him. Whenever his name came up in conversation around church hallways, someone would always ask, "Why does a grouch like that keep coming to worship?" No one ever came up with ...

10. Anything Better Than the Golden Rule?

Luke 6:27-36

Sermon

William G. Carter

A few years ago, I accepted an invitation to preach in a church in upstate New York. The sermon was based on Matthew’s version of what we have just heard from the Gospel of Luke: “Turn the other cheek. Give to everyone who begs from you. Pray for those who curse you. And love your enemies.” These are nearly impossible words to put into practice, much less hear, and I said as much in my sermon. Jes...

11. At War with Myself

Romans 7:15-25a

Sermon

William G. Carter

In a certain church, a woman was leading the congregation in the prayer of confession. She called the people to confess, reminding them of the sin within their hearts, and then all joined in reading the prayer of confession. She paused for the silent confession, and she kept pausing for a good long while. So long, in fact, that the people began to rustle as they waited for the next part of the ser...

12. Between The Parentheses

Revelation 1:4-8

Sermon

William G. Carter

Whenever a preacher announces a sermon text from the book of Revelation, a lot of people grow nervous. Revelation is widely regarded as the most confusing book in the Bible. The book is chock-full of strange visions, eerie sounds, and jolting images. Wild-eyed interpreters have offered curious interpretations of the future, turning to Revelation and neglecting the rest of the Bible. In short, the ...

13. Beyond Our Sight, Within Our Hearing

Luke 9:28-36

Sermon

William G. Carter

I wonder what they were thinking as they started up the mountain. Peter, James, and John were tagging along. I’m sure Jesus was a few steps ahead. After all, he was the only one who knew where they were going. Those three disciples had put in a lot of miles. Every one of those miles was spent following wherever he went. It had been that way since the first day, when they got in step behind him o...

14. Can Christians Dance?

Sermon

William G. Carter

Mark 2:23--3:6 (C, RC) Mark 2:23-28 (L) A few years ago, I was asked to serve as the worship leader at a regional church conference for teenagers. The enthusiastic recruiter told me about the wonderful experience I could expect from the gathering. "Every summer," she said, "the conference brings together about a hundred or so young people at a camp that has no swimming pool. We gather during the d...

15. Can You See Where We're Going

Mark 10:46-52

Sermon

William G. Carter

A cigar-chomping realtor was driving around a young couple to search for their first dream house. After listening to their concerns about mortgage points, maintenance costs, and school systems, he decided to give them a bit of advice. "I've been selling homes for 23 years," he said, "and I've discovered only three things matter when you're buying a home: location, location, location." To prove hi...

16. Catholic

Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52

Sermon

William G. Carter

It never fails. Say it’s a Sunday morning when we have a baptism. There is a mixed crowd of long-timers and newcomers. The baby is beautiful, the family is all smiles, the Presbyterians are delighted. And then at the door, one of the newcomers says, “Why in the world did you say, ‘We believe in the catholic church?’” She is referring to the Apostles’ Creed , of course, and curious why we would sa...

17. Cleansed by the Light

John 1:1-18

Illustration

William G. Carter

Pastor William G. Carter tells the story about a boy named Tom, and a particular night when he was a teenager. He and his friends were walking around the neighborhood. It was a warm night and very dark. Suddenly one of them saw a police car and shouted. They hadn’t done anything wrong, but they didn’t want to be seen, either. So they began to run. The police car saw them and watched them turn down...

18. Commitment Beyond Calculation

Mark 12:38-44

Sermon

William G. Carter

Here she is again: the widow who goes up to the temple treasury to put in her two cents. Every year she shows up at stewardship time. Teachers and preachers love to point and say, "Look at her! Truly I tell you, she has put in more than all the others." That is not literally true, of course. In terms of quantity, many people in that line put a lot more money in the temple offering. Certainly she ...

19. Converts Or Disciples?

Matthew 28:16-20

Sermon

William G. Carter

Whatever else we want to say about this story, it is an Easter story. At dawn on the day he was raised, the risen Christ said, “Tell my brothers to go to Galilee.” When they did, they saw him, just as he promised. Our text is the only Galilee appearance that Matthew reported. It sounds like other Easter stories. Christ is present...and the disciples have mixed feelings. As Matthew noted, “When th...

20. Day of Pentecost

John 20:19-23

Sermon

William G. Carter

One Sunday after Easter, some children were playing in a Sunday school room. The class was about to start. The teacher was pulling together a few things for the lesson, and he heard them playing over in the corner. They had built a small wall out of cardboard bricks, and one of them was hiding down behind it. Apparently the little guy was playing the role of Jesus after Easter, which he must have...

21. Division of the House

Matthew 10:24-39

Sermon

William G. Carter

The more we read the Bible, the more we see things we might wish Jesus never said. This passage is one of them: “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.” Did any of us come to church today to hear him say that? This is the season for family reunions. Most of us have been in gatherings that include fathers, mothers, grandparents, and ...

22. Don't Give Me that Bible Stuff

Luke 4:14-21

Illustration

William G. Carter

Clarence Jordan, founder of Koinonia Farm in Georgia, started a peanut farm and tried to run it the same way he thought Jesus would run it. He believed in a good wage for an honest day's work. He believed in taking care of the land and those who work it. And he believed that all people— black and white — could work together and stand together. It was the early 1950s, and his local Baptist church d...

23. Double Image

Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon

William G. Carter

"You know why I want to join the church?" The speaker was a father in his thirties, holding an infant on his shoulder. A red Land's End diaper bag was slung over his other shoulder. His wife stood next to him in the church narthex, holding the hand of a cranky two-year-old with a runny nose. The father said, "We began to worry about raising our children. There are too many opinions about what's ri...

24. Exchanging Our Eschatological Heritage

Luke 21:5-38

Illustration

William G. Carter

Neill Hamilton, who taught at Drew University for many years, once observed how people in our time lose hope for the future. It happens whenever we let our culture call the shots on how the world is going to end. At this stage of technological advancement, the only way the culture can make sense of the future is through the picture of everything blowing up in a nuclear holocaust. The world cannot...

25. Eyes to See

Mark 10:46-52

Illustration

William G. Carter

There's a woman who received eyes to see. A few years ago, with the help of Presbyterian mission money, she helped to establish a halfway house for women who are recovering drug addicts. She schedules twelve-step groups, arranges for child care, and generally tries to get the women back on their feet. In a lot of ways, you would never expect her to be involved with such work. She is even-tempered,...

Showing results

Showing 1 to 25 of 97 results

1. A Blessing Behind Locked Doors

John 20:19-23

Sermon

William G. Carter

2. A Breeze In The Dark

John 3:1-21

Sermon

William G. Carter

3. A Name Not Taken in Vain

2 Corinthians 13:11-13

Sermon

William G. Carter

4. A Taste Of Life

Mark 14:12-26

Sermon

William G. Carter

5. Affirming What We Believe

John 3:14-21

Illustration

William G. Carter

In his autobiography, actor Alec Guinness tells a story that might keep every pastor and church school teacher awake at night. He was a teenager and it was the morning of his confirmation. The classes were finished. The students' heads had been filled full of Bible stories and theological doctrines. Guinness says HolyTrinityChurch in Eastbourne was crammed with confirmation candidates, their paren...

6. All Is Calm, All Is Bright

Luke 2:1-7

Sermon

William G. Carter

7. An Invasion of Privacy

John 20:24-31, John 20:19-23

Illustration

William G. Carter

8. And On the Third Day...

John 2:1-11

Sermon

William G. Carter