Sermon and Worship Resources

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1 Samuel 15:1-35

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

... and 14 and ch. 15. The incidents are not directly related, but there is a continuing interest in obedience and disobedience, with an underlying reflection on why some apparent sins can be overlooked or atoned for and others cannot. D. Gunn has a full discussion of this issue (The Fate of King Saul: An Analysis of a Biblical Story [JSOTSup 14; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1980], pp. 44–56, 123–31) that is worth following up. 15:2 The language is parallel to that in Deut. 25:17, and this chapter ...

2. Christ, Our King

John 18:33-37

Sermon

Thomas C. Willadsen

Today is the last day of the church year. The church year starts four Sundays before Christmas, so next week when I wish you all a happy new year, I hope to get a better response than blank stares. The last Sunday of the church is called both “Christ the King” Sunday, and “Reign of Christ” Sunday. This festival goes all the way back to 1925, when Pope Pius XI added it to the calendar. It was set as the last Sunday of the church year in 1970. When I learned this I was a little surprised. I love looking into ...

3. Déjà Vu or Divine Revelation?

Luke 23:35-43

Sermon

King Duncan

... and every bystander who laughed at him, and then everybody would know the truth and we would all believe in Him.” Two thousand years later, and the question is the same. As Yogi Berra once said, “Déjà vu all over again.” “If you are the Son of God . . .” So maybe it’s the question that needs answering this morning on Christ the King Sunday. If Jesus is the Son of God, why didn’t he save himself? And if Jesus is the Son of God, why did only a very few people in this passage recognize him? And ...

4. Tyre, Sidon—and Israel

Ezekiel 26:1-21, Ezekiel 27:1-36, Ezekiel 28:1-19, Ezekiel 28:20-26

Understanding Series

Steven Tuell

... , 36; 39:6, 14, 30). Carol Newsom (“Maker,” p. 162) regards the priestly image as a metaphor, applied to the king of Tyre. John Strong understands the close parallels to Jerusalem’s temple traditions in this lament to reflect what Ezekiel regards as Tyre’s mimicry of Zion ideas and ideals (“Ezekiel’s Oracles against the Nations within the Context of his Message” [Ph. D. diss., Union Theological Seminary in Virginia, 1993], pp. 175–76). However, neither of these arguments does justice to the ...

5. Poem: In Memoriam

Eulogy

Alfred Lord Tennyson

... The centre of a world’s desire; Yet feels, as in a pensive dream, When all his active powers are still, A distant dearness in the hill, A secret sweetness in the stream, The limit of his narrower fate, While yet beside its vocal springs He play’d at counsellors and kings, With one that was his earliest mate; Who ploughs with pain his native lea And reaps the labour of his hands, Or in the furrow musing stands; ‘Does my old friend remember me?’ LXV Sweet soul, do with me as thou wilt; I lull a fancy ...

6. Christ the King

Lk 23:35-43 · Jn 12:9-19 · Col 1:11-20 · Jer 23:2-6 · 2 Sam 5:1-5

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... or living room but not in the bedroom or kitchen? The Christian life is one of growth where we open a new area of our lives to Christ's kingship. Outline: Is Christ the king of every area of your life? A. Is he king in the area of race? B. Is he king in the area of finances? C. Is he king in the area of sex? D. Is he king in the area of self? 3. A Sour Note in the Hallelujah Chorus. 12:19. Need: When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the people spontaneously began to sing praises and cut down palm branches. It was ...

7. The Bridge

John 1:1-18, Matthew 2:1-12, Luke 2:8-20, Luke 2:1-7, Luke 1:26-38, Genesis 3:1-24

Drama

H. J. Hizer

... can I? Why can't she see that? If I allow one I'll have to allow more -- who knows where it will end? Wife: You'd have thought I'd given them the bridal suite! They thanked me for my kindness. Me! I have been called a hundred things, but no one ever called me ... trouble sooner or later. I wonder if Herod knows of the treasure we carry. It's important to have some gifts to give the new king. We have protected our gifts from robbers all along the way -- I hope we won't have to use them to bargain for our lives ...

8. Star Miracle

Matthew 2:1-12, Isaiah 60:1-22, Ephesians 3:1-13

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... . It would be a miracle if we stupid folks would get smart. Following the example of the students of the stars, we can learn how to become wise. A. Ask the right questions: "Where is he?" - v. 2 B. Have insight: "born king of the Jews" - v. 2 C. Follow guidance: "We have seen his star" - vv. 2, 10 D. Worship Christ: "Have come to worship him" - vv. 2, 11 2. The Significance of the Star Miracle (2:1-12). For the astronomers in Jesus' day, the new star was not just one of a million in the sky. This star was ...

9. Christ the King A King Worth Having

John 12:12-19

Sermon

... gave the blind their sight or the lame full use of their limbs, he sternly told them not to tell anyone. He shrank from being called their Messiah, because to them this meant the wrong kind of king, the type not worth having. But now the time had come to take off the wrappings; the Messianic secret needed to come out. He’d do as several prophets before him had done, express himself in symbolic action. An example is when Ezekiel once took a sharp sword and used it as a razor to shave his head and his face ...

10. Life's Four Big 'Ds' and One Bigger 'D'

Galatians 2:11-21

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... , and put a right spirit within me." After reading Psalm 51, Harvard philosopher William James said: "I would sin like David, if only I could repent like David." Second, David trumps the Four D's with a bigger D. Nathan declares that God's judgment upon David will be that the child Bathsheba has borne him will die. King David repents of his sinful ways and then refuses to eat, or drink, or sleep while the child languishes in its seven-day illness. Although all his servants are sure David will go completely ...

11. Daniel’s Training in Babylon

Daniel 1:1-21

Understanding Series

William Nelson

... say that these were the first three years of his reign. To which of Nebuchadnezzar’s campaigns, then, does 2 Kgs. 24:1 refer? According to the Babylonian Chronicles, in 605 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar, who was not yet king, met the Egyptians at Carchemish in Syria and defeated them (D. J. Wiseman, Chronicles of Chaldaean Kings [626–556 B.C.] in the British Museum [London: Trustees of the British Museum, 1956], pp. 23–28, 67–69). While it is possible that the campaign of 2 Kgs. 24:1 refers to the battle of ...

12. The Writing on the Wall

Daniel 5:1-31

Understanding Series

William Nelson

... America, 1948], p. 25) has suggested that they refer to Nebuchadnezzar, Evil-Merodach, and Belshazzar. D. N. Freedman (“The Prayer of Nabonidus,” BASOR 145 [1957], pp. 31–32) prefers Nebuchadnezzar, Nabonidus, and Belshazzar. If we understand the weights to be mina, shekel, and half-mina, Freedman’s order is a little puzzling: why would Belshazzar weigh more than Nabonidus? F. M. Cross agrees on those three kings, but rearranges the weights, arguing that they should be in descending order as in the ...

13. Christ, Our King

John 18:33-37

Sermon

Thomas C. Willadsen

14. Joey and Nicky at Skull Mountain

Mark 15:42-47

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... , and the people had laid down their cloaks for him just like they had for Jehu. They really thought he was a King . . . .King of the Jews! They had waved palms not for the high priest and his paschal lamb, but for this man, who went to ... all did! No one really believed Jesus would be resurrected. Sure, he told them that. Sure, they listened. Sure, they kind of believed that they’d see the kingdom in their death…or in the last days. But would this man, whom they just saw killed, just come back from the ...

15. Oracles of Restoration

Ezekiel 34:1-31, Ezekiel 35:1-15, Ezekiel 36:1-38, Ezekiel 37:1-14, Ezekiel 37:15-28

Understanding Series

Steven Tuell

... ” (v. 31). This unit is used in the Common Lectionary; 34: 11–16, 20–24 are to be read on the feast of Christ the King in Year A. Unlike the false shepherds, the Lord says, “I myself will search for my sheep and look after them” (v. 11). Some have ... LXX, Syr., and Vulg. all read instead “watch over,” assuming an original Heb. ʾeshmor. The two words are nearly identical in Heb. (d and r look a great deal alike), so it is easy to understand a scribe mistaking one for the other. The reading the ...

16. Vetted

Luke 3:21-38, Luke 4:1-13

Sermon

Lori Wagner

... Tank could be put up for adoption. Luckily, my colonel is a dog guy, too, and he knew where my platoon was headed. He said he'd do it personally. And if you’re reading this, then he made good on his word. Well, this letter is getting too downright depressing, even though ... that he had inherited from Adam (given to him and Eve by God directly). In fact, many rabbis identify Shem with Melchizedek, King of Salem (the early Jerusalem). In fact it is said to be Shem who met with Abram bringing wine and bread. The ...

17. Christ the King

Colossians 1:1-14, Jeremiah 23:1-8, Luke 23:26-43

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... of the lives of our members? This sermon is needed to convince Christians to allow Christ to have total lordship over their lives. Outline: Is Christ sovereign over your entire life? a. King in the area of race? b. King in the area of finances? c. King in the area of sex? d. King in the area of self? Old Testament: Jeremiah 23:1-6 1. A dream come true (23:5-6). Need: Jeremiah sees his nation falling apart and going into captivity because the rulers ("shepherds") misled the people. He sees the solution in ...

18. Sunday Of The Passion (Palm Sunday)

Isaiah 50:1-11

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... was killed by his people. The theme of the trial was his kingship. All that happened was based on the charge that he was king of the Jews. Outline: The killing of Christ the King – a. Tried as a king v. 2. b. Rejected as a king vv. 9-13. c. Mocked as a king vv. 16-20. d. Crucified as a king vv. 25-32. 4. What will you do with Jesus? (Mark 11:1-10; 15:1-39). Need: Pilate's question, "What then shall I do with Jesus?" makes everyone responsible to give an answer. How we answer depicts our faith in Jesus ...

19. Samuel Was the Search Committee

1 Samuel 15:34-35, 16:1-13

Sermon

William J. Carl, III

... who were older and bigger and stronger, but for some reason this young lad was the one who could do it. This little one who Merlin called Wart would be crowned the king of England. Who'd have thought it? Neither the young boy nor Cinderella ever imagined that he or she would be chosen. In a way, this story of Samuel searching for a new king is a kind of Cinderella story, isn't it? Samuel is the emissary who comes looking for the one whose foot fits the glass slipper. Samuel comes looking for the only one ...

20. Being Different

Daniel 3:1-30

Sermon

Harold Warlick

... try it, too." The Bible contains a story of three people who did not mind being different, even in the face of death. A certain king east of the Suez had just won a notable victory over his enemies. He wanted to celebrate. He set up a golden image, most ... to do. The evil which I want to refrain from doing, I seem to be doing more and more." If being different were easy, we'd all do it all the time and we certainly would not need preachers. Where do we get the momentum to be different? Basically, we are ...

21. A Colt Is Not A Horse

Mark 11:1-11

Sermon

King Duncan

... hymn, "Tell Me the Stories of Jesus," ironically expresses this: "Tell me the stories of Jesus, I love to hear; things I would ask him to tell me, if he were here. Into the city I'd follow the children's band, waving a branch of the palm tree high in my hand, One of his heralds, yes, I would sing loudest hosannas, ˜Jesus is King.'" Well, it's a great hymn, but though the hymn ends there, the story of Jesus in Holy Week doesn't end with the Palms. It ends with the Passion, with the death of the innocent ...

22. The Seventy “Sevens”

Daniel 9:20-27

Understanding Series

William Nelson

... any scheme, we might just as well espouse the messianic interpretation. However, if God in the sixth century B.C. wanted to predict the death of Jesus in the first century A.D., one would expect him to be more accurate. On the other hand, if an apocalyptic writer of the second century B.C. was using history to denounce the evil Seleucid king Antiochus IV, he might very well have guessed too high for the number of years between Jeshua and the death of Onias III. In fact, there are examples of ancient writers ...

23. Keeper of the Keys

Matthew 16:13-20

Sermon

Lori Wagner

“And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder, so he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open.” Isaiah 22:22 Remember those old, beautiful “master keys” that used to unlock every door in the house? The old doors had a large, fish shaped opening filled with secret crevices, and the master key was a large, ornate device with unique edges that would somehow activate each one. I’m including an image of one here: Because it could open any door, the master key was ...

24. A Promised Ruler from Bethlehem

Micah 5:1-4

Understanding Series

Elizabeth Achtemeier

... back the attack of those who are already besieging them. In light of verse 3, which refers to exile (cf. 4:10), the Babylonian siege of Jerusalem in 588 BC is probably intended. However, the humiliation of the king mentioned in verse 1c–d probably has to do with the earlier treatment of the Davidic king, Jehoiachin, who was forced to surrender to Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia and who was carried into exile in 597 BC (cf. 2 Kgs. 24:10–12). For the humiliating custom of striking on the cheek, see Job 16:10 ...

25. “The King Rejoices in Your Strength, Lord”

Psalm 21:1-13

Teach the Text

C. Hassell Bullock

... challenge, we forget to take the opportunity to thank God. Psalm 21 was written as a psalm of thanksgiving upon the return of the king. Take a few moments of silence to give the listeners time to reflect and give thanks to the Lord for the great things he has ... about Jesus. I think about how good he’s been to me. He’s been awfully good to me in my life, you know. . . . I’d rather have Jesus. He’s all the world to me.” And then Mabel began to sing an old hymn worshiping God for his amazing love ...

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