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Sermon
Erskine White
But when the Counselor comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth ... (John 15:26) Many of the pentecostal and charismatic churches place entirely too much emphasis on the Holy Spirit. In fact, the Holy Spirit seems the only part of the triune God some of these churches pay attention to. In their worship, their preaching and their faith, they nearly abandon God the ...
Sermon
Easter ends and the season of Pentecost begins with the singing of an old and much beloved hymn: Come, Holy Ghost, our souls inspire And lighten with celestial fire; Thou the anointing Spirit art Who dost thy seven-fold gifts impart. Thy blessed unction from above Is comfort, life, and fire of love. Enable with perpetual light The dullness of our blinded sight. Finally, we pray: Teach us to kn...
3. Uncovering Cover-Ups
John 15:18--16:4
Sermon
Maurice A. Fetty
For some it is ancient history. For others it is as fresh as yesterday. I speak of 1972 when the word "cover-up" came into our consciousness in a big way -- the cover-up by then President Richard Nixon regarding the Watergate scandal. Assured of a landslide victory in his election for a second term, Richard Nixon, overborne with anxiety, apparently felt that was not enough. So he authorized the so...
Sermon
Donald B. Strobe
“If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have sin; but now they have no excuse for their sin.” (John 15:22) What strange words are these!  Especially the part where Jesus says, “If I had not come...” What would it be like, I wonder, if Christ had not come?  Would it really make that much difference?  Are we right in dating all human history from the birth of Christ, so that everything...
5. The Quiet Day of Pentecost
John 16:5-16, John 15:18--16:4
Sermon
George Reed
Pentecost is a celebration of the church's beginning. The coming of the Spirit brought great excitement and power to those early disciples of Jesus. In an extraordinary way, the presence of God was heard, seen, and felt as the rush of mighty wind, the tongues of fire, and the speaking in various languages which came upon them. As the story unfolds that day, there are about 3,000 souls added to the...
6. Learning to Live Without Jesus
John 16:5-16, John 15:18--16:4
Sermon
William G. Carter
Everywhere you looked, you saw people in tie-dyed t-shirts. Mothers gave drinks of apple juice to their children, while men in gray pigtails sipped Budweiser and tossed the empties beneath somebody's car. Teenagers spread blankets on the asphalt and took naps in the summer sunshine. Middle-aged hippies danced freely throughout the Philadelphia parking lot. Hundreds of mourners spontaneously gather...
7. The Persecuted
John 15:18-27
Sermon
John A. Terry
Jack Cahill, an advertising executive from Kansas City, Missouri, has suggested new marketing techniques which can help to tap the appeal to popular blessings. Beginning with the Roman Catholic Church (24 percent of the U.S. market), he suggests a strategy of market segmentation, a clear positioning of the church identifying specific subgroups within the brand name. For the contemporary branch of ...
8. The Bramble King
John 15:1-17, John 15:18--16:4, John 16:5-16
Sermon
Lori Wagner
“Here are their names: Simon (whom he named Peter), Andrew (Peter's brother), James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James (son of Alphaeus), Simon (who was called the zealot), Judas (son of James), Judas Iscariot (who later betrayed him). "A good tree can't produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can't produce good fruit. A tree is identified by its fruit. Figs are never gathered from thor...
9. Walking with God
Acts 2:1-21 · John 15:26-27; 16:4b-15
Sermon
Lori Wagner
How is your “Spirit Awareness Meter”? Do you know when the Spirit is beside you? You cannot see the Spirit. But you know when the Spirit of Christ surrounds you. Maybe you had a significant experience in your life, in which you could feel Christ walking with you. Maybe in times like these, at Pentecost, you become aware of the Holy Spirit’s presence more than you do when you are going shopping or...
10. Breaking Through
Acts 2:1-21 · John 15:26-27; 16:4b-15
Sermon
Lori Wagner
And it shall come to pass in that day, that his burden shall be taken away from off thy shoulder, and his yoke from off thy neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing. (Isaiah 10:27) Summer is coming soon! And with it, all of God’s creatures come out to work their magic in and among us on the earth. One of God’s fascinating creatures is the spider. How many of you have been goi...
Sermon
Alexander H. Wales
The hours were passing rapidly. Time was running out. Jesus was trying to get everything in before the end of his ministry. He had so much to say, and yet, he was aware of the fact that the disciples were just not ready to take it all in. Up to this point, they were struggling just to understand what he had been trying to tell them. They were still stumbling over the meaning of the parables, atte...
Sermon
Maurice A. Fetty
The Festival of Pentecost long has been neglected within American Protestantism. Often coinciding with Memorial Day weekend, it tends to be overshadowed by parades and visits to cemeteries and memories of those loved long since and lost a while. Even more than that, it is overshadowed by the official opening of summer for those of us in northern states. Memorial weekend is for opening cottages, la...
Sermon
Larry Powell
Clarence Macartney tells of a certain Canadian river which flows through a forbidding chasm. Looming on either side of the river are rugged, uninviting crags which bear the names "Eternity" and "Trinity." Macartney suggests that the opposing crags invite an analogy (you understand of course, that to a preacher, most everything invites analogy). "Inseparable from any true conception of God," he say...
Sermon
T. A. Kantonen
Trinity Sunday focuses our attention on the doctrine of the Holy Trinity, the distinctive Christian teaching on God. The Athanasian Creed, in which this doctrine was first set forth in detail, declares that no one can be saved unless he believes it. But it places a severe burden on our understanding. It is not easy to believe that God can be one and three at the same time. A contemporary theologia...
Sermon
Brett Blair
School’s out. Summer’s here. My kids have been waiting for this for weeks. All summer and nothing but swimming, riding their bikes, endlessly playing video games, and vacations. While our kids live in that world this summer we adults will be living in another. There is the economy and the struggle to keep Wall Street and Main Street happy and accountable at the same time.  There are conflicts with...
Sermon
Maurice A. Fetty
When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth. — John 16:13 For some it is ancient history. But for others it is as fresh as yesterday. I speak of 1972 when the word "cover-up" came into our consciousness in a big way — the cover-up by then-President Richard Nixon regarding the Watergate scandal. Assured of a landslide victory in his election for a second term, Richard Nix...
Sermon
Donald B. Strobe
Some time ago I read in the paper that the United States Treasury has a "conscience fund," which was created for those who have lied, cheated or stolen, and who now wish to salve their consciences by returning to someone the money which they had gotten dishonestly. The "Conscience Fund" was established by Congress in 1811 when an anonymous donor who claimed to have defrauded the government sent fi...
18. A Mystery
John 16:12-15
Sermon
Robert C. Cochran
Of all the theologians I read regularly, I think the religious writer who most consistently delights me is Peter Marty, son of long-time Lutheran writer Martin Marty. Like his father before him, Peter appears in The Lutheran magazine every month. For me, his article is usually the highlight of the magazine. One month, Pastor Marty spoke of prayer as a conversation with God, not as much a chance t...
Sermon
Larry Powell
Someone has astutely observed that our culture does not handle "endings" very well. "Beginnings," on the other hand, seem to come off quite nicely. Weddings, beautiful and memorable in themselves, are also occasions for parties, bridal showers, gift bearing, and other happy kinds of experiences which we usually associate with the celebration of two persons in love beginning a new home. When a home...
Sermon
James Weekley
But when the Counselor comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness to me; and you also are witnesses, because you have been with me from the beginning. "I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you. But now I am going to him who sent me; yet none of you asks me, 'Where are you going?'...
Sermon
James Merritt
I heard about a pastor who left the pastorate after twenty years, and decided to become a funeral director. Somebody asked him, "Why did you do that?" He said, "Well, I spent about twelve years trying to straighten out John. He never did get straightened out. I spent fourteen months trying to straighten out the marriage of the Smiths, and it never did get straightened out. I spent three years try...
Sermon
King Duncan
Robert Lewis in his book Real Family Values tells a fascinating story about a remarkable, heartwarming discovery workers at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, Ohio, made in the winter of 1993. While renovating a section of the museum, they found a photograph that had been hidden in a crevice underneath a display case. The man in the picture had a bat resting on his shoulder; he was wearing...
Sermon
King Duncan
Kay Strom was teaching third grade in a large elementary school. One morning all of the teachers were called to the teachers' room for an emergency meeting, and they hurried over, leaving their classes unsupervised. Everyone was worried, but none as much as Mrs. Whiting, because her class of first graders was especially mischievous and unruly. When they got to the teachers' room, Mrs. Whiting sai...
Sermon
King Duncan
One of the strangest plays in baseball took place years ago at Ebbets Field, home of the old Brooklyn Dodgers. The Dodgers had men on first and second with no outs. The batter hit a towering fly to right center. The runners stayed close to their bases, thinking the ball would be caught. The batter, however, ignoring the men already on base, lowered his head and charged around the bases like a stam...
Sermon
King Duncan
An aging Jew was crossing the street in front of a Roman Catholic church. He was knocked down by a hit-and-run driver. As he lay there, half conscious, a priest hurried out, and prepared to administer the last rites. "Do you believe in God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost?" the priest asked. "I'm dying," cried the old man, "and he's asking me riddles!" Peppermint Patty steps up to...
Showing 1 to 25 of 46 results