Sermon Resources on Going Through The Motions

liturgy

Holy God, we confess that we have been

Author

Keywords

Scripture

Ephesians 4:22-24, Colossians 3:1-2, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Galatians 5:22-23, James 2:17, Romans 12:1-2, Revelation 3:15-16

Holy God, we confess that we have been lukewarm about living our faith in Jesus each day. We put off to tomorrow what we know in our hearts you want to happen today. We go through the motions of relig...

lectionary

New Year's Day

Author

Stuart R. Strachan, Jr.

Keywords

Scripture

Revelation 21:1-6a, 2 Corinthians 5:17

Preaching Commentary A New Heaven and a New Earth In this well-known passage from Revelation, John receives a vision of the New Heavens and New Earth that will come with the return of Jesus (The Se...

Quote

Author

Gordon T. Smith

Keywords

Scripture

Exodus 14:10-22 , Joshua 1:1-9, Matthew 4:18-20, Acts 9:1-19, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Psalm 121:1-3

Transition is one of the givens in our lives, and we only live well, we only manage our lives well, when we manage these transitions well. Our world changes; the circumstances of our lives change. The...

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The Great, Perfect Box

Author

Jerry Seinfeld

Keywords

Scripture

Ephesians 3:1-2, James 4:13-14, Job 14:1-2, 2 Corinthians 5:1, Philippians 3:13-14, Psalm 90:12

To me, if life boils down to one significant thing, it’s movement. To live is to keep moving. Unfortunately, this means that for the rest of our lives we’re going to be looking for boxes. When you’re ...

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Author

D. Michael Lindsay

Keywords

Scripture

Genesis 12:1-4 , Psalm 23:1-4, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Matthew 4:18-22, Joshua 1:1-9

At their core, transitions are the internal adjustments by which we reorient ourselves to new environments, new experiences, and new seasons of life.

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Reading the Bible as Drama

Author

Brian Dembowczyk

Keywords

Scripture

1 Corinthians 4:9, Acts 19:29, 31, Galatians 2:20, Romans 6:6, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Ephesians 4:22-24, Colossians 3:3-4, Matthew 5:14-16, Philippians 1:27, Romans 12:2

Kevin Vanhoozer draws on 1 Corinthians 4 to argue powerfully for reading and teaching the Bible as drama. As Paul talks about his apostolic ministry, he says this: “For, I think, God has exhibite...

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Remembering We Have Bodies

Author

Ruth Haley Barton

Keywords

Scripture

Genesis 1:31, 1 Timothy 4:4-5, Colossians 1:16, Romans 1:20, 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, 1 Corinthians 15:42-44, 2 Corinthians 5:1

Surprisingly enough, it was in the process of staying faithful to the spiritual journey that I first began to face my profound ambivalence about life in a body. At the ripe old age of thirty, I could ...

liturgy

Modern Ash Wednesday Service

Author

Lisa Ann Moss Degrenia

Keywords

Ash Wednesday

Scripture

Psalm 51:, Genesis 3:19, Psalm 103:8-14, 2 Corinthians 5:20-21, 2 Corinthians 6:1-2, Joel 2:1-2, Joel 2:12-17

A contemporary Ash Wednesday service integrating music and scripture with the imposition of ashes. Service Order Prelude People are encouraged to enter in silence. Lights are dim. As people ...

liturgy

jobs concluding, stages finishing

Author

Ted Loder

Keywords

Scripture

Isaiah 43:18–19, Lamentations 3:22–23, John 12:24, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Galatians 4:4–5, Psalm 40:1–3

jobs concluding, stages finishing, grieving over, grudges over, blaming over, excuses over. O God, grant me your sense of timing. In this season of ...

scripture guide

Scripture Guide, 2 Corinthians 5:20-6:10

Author

Allen Thompson

Keywords

Scripture

2 Corinthians 5:20-6:10, 2 Corinthians 5:20-21, 2 Corinthians 6:1-10, Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21, Isaiah 58:1-12, Ezekiel 9:1-4, Revelation 7:1-4, 9-10, Revelation 13:16-17

Regarding Ash Wednesday Note: This passage appeared as part of the lectionary for Ash Wednesday. It starts with the gospel passage for that day, but attends to the other passages and themes, so it...

lectionary

Ash Wednesday

Author

Allen Thompson

Keywords

Scripture

2 Corinthians 5:20b-6:10, Isaiah 58:1-12, Ezekiel 9:1-4, Revelation 7:1-4, 9-10, Revelation 13:null

Excursus on Ash Wednesday The Meaning of Ashes Ashes represent many things. The heaped up ashes in a hearth may indicate the benefit of warmth on a cold winter’s night. The charred remains of a per...

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Follow the Bubbles

Author

Stuart R. Strachan, Jr.

Keywords

Scripture

Romans 8:26, John 14:26, Psalm 139:9-10, 2 Corinthians 5:7, Isaiah 42:16, Psalm 119:105

When I graduated from college I was given one of the greatest opportunities of my young life. A group of my friends were told that if we were able to purchase a flight to the Cayman Islands, we would ...

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Playing for His Master

Author

Steven C. Roy

Keywords

Scripture

Colossians 3:23-24, Galatians 1:10, 2 Corinthians 5:9, 1 Corinthians 4:3-4, Romans 12:1, John 12:43, Matthew 6:1

A story is told of a young violinist who lived in London many years ago. He was a superb musician. He loved his music and enjoyed playing before small groups of people in the homes of friends. But he ...

scripture guide

Scripture Guide, 2 Corinthians 4:13-5:1

Author

Bud Thoreen

Keywords

Scripture

2 Corinthians 4:13-5:1, 2 Corinthians 4:13-18, 2 Corinthians 5:1, Acts 9:1-18, Hebrews 12:2, Psalm 116:null, Romans 12:2, Colossians 3:9-10

Notes on the Passage Besieged from All Angles: The context of this passage is best summed up with the words recorded throughout the letter: Trouble, Distress, Suffering, Hardship, Death at work, Ja...

Quote

Author

Alicia Akins

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 139:7-10, Isaiah 41:10, John 3:8, Hebrews 11:1, 2 Corinthians 5:7, Psalm 66:10-12

We can rest knowing the Lord’s presence transcends what we feel. Just like the flow of the air, he is moving even if his movements cannot be perceived. And where God is not just felt but known, faith ...

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From Dropout to Disciple-Maker

Author

Bobby Harrington

Keywords

Scripture

Ephesians 2:1-10, Psalm 40:2-3, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Luke 15:20, John 1:5

I (Josh) know a young man named Mark who was on the brink of self-destruction. He partied away his first semester of junior college and was later kicked out of school. He was devastated by his loss an...

Quote

Author

Robert Quinn

Keywords

Scripture

Genesis 12:1-4, Exodus 13:17-18, Matthew 4:18-22, Psalm 119:105, 2 Corinthians 5:7

In embarking on the journey, we must leave the world of certainty. We must courageously journey to a strange place where there are a lot of risks and much is at stake, a place where there are new prob...

Quote

Author

Dave Miller

Keywords

Sin

Scripture

John 10:28-29, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Romans 6:6-7, Galatians 2:20, Isaiah 43:2, Psalm 34:17-18, Romans 7:24-25

“What’s wrong with me is me. Somebody needs to pull me from the raging waters I call ‘me.’

lectionary

23rd Sunday after Pentecost

Author

C. Hassell Bullock

Keywords

Scripture

Isaiah 65:17-25, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Revelation 21:4, Revelation 21:5

preaching commentary Scripture’s proclivity for a new creation Some people have an aversion to describing a future day when the troubles of this world will have passed into oblivion, the kitchen-ta...

liturgy

Adapted from “A Cry for Deliverance” in The Valley of Vision

Author

Dustin Ray

Keywords

Scripture

2 Corinthians 5:21, Philippians 3:9, 1 Corinthians 10:13, James 4:7, Matthew 6:13, Romans 12:2, 1 Peter 1:15-16, Galatians 2:20

Pastor: Heavenly Father, save me from sin! I know I am righteous only through Jesus’ righteousness, but I greatly desire to be more like him! I am your child, so help me to resist the temptation to si...

Quote

Author

Robert Louis Stevenson

Keywords

Scripture

James 4:7-8, 1 John 1:9, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Psalm 51:10, Romans 8:1-2, Galatians 5:16-17

"At the very moment of that vain-glorious thought, a qualm came over me, a horrid nausea and the most dreadful shuddering…I looked down…I was once more Edward Hyde."

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How Transformation Happens

Author

James Bryan Smith

Keywords

Scripture

2 Corinthians 5:17, Romans 6:11-14, Galatians 2:20, Romans 8:1-2, Colossians 3:3-4, John 8:34-36, 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, Ephesians 4:22-24, Romans 8:15-16

In The Good and Beautiful God , James Bryan Smith describes a new Christian he happened to know who came to him one day feeling dejected. He was so excited to be a follower of Jesus, but he just co...

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The Sand Trap of the Soul

Author

Joan Chittister

Keywords

Scripture

Micah 7:19, Philippians 3:13-14, Luke 9:62, Matthew 10:37-39, 2 Corinthians 5:17

Sister Joan Chittister writes about regret in the context of aging, though I think most of us can identify with this personification of Mr. R.: Regret…comes upon us one day dressed up like wisdom, l...

lectionary

Second Sunday after Pentecost

Author

Bud Thoreen

Keywords

Scripture

2 Corinthians 4:13-5:1, 2 Corinthians 4:13-18, 2 Corinthians 5:1, 2 Corinthians 4:7-12, Acts 9:1-18, Hebrews 12:2, Colossians 3:9-10

Preaching Commentary Besieged from All Angles The context of this passage is best summed up with the words recorded throughout the letter: Trouble, Distress, Suffering, Hardship, Death at work, Jar...

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Two Wrong-Headed Views of the Body

Author

Tish Harrison Warren

Keywords

Scripture

Genesis 1:31, 1 Timothy 4:4-5, Colossians 1:16, Romans 1:20, 1 Corinthians 15:42-44, 2 Corinthians 5:1

Christians are often accused of two wrong-headed views of the body. One is that we ignore the body in favor of a disembodied, spirits-floating-on-clouds spirituality. The other is that we are obsessed...

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Getting to Do the Things She Loves

Author

Chris Spielman

Keywords

Scripture

Philippians 3:20-21, 1 Corinthians 15:42-44, 2 Corinthians 5:1-2, Revelation 21:4, Isaiah 40:31, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14

Chris Spielman was at one time a paragon of athletic performance. A two-time All-American Linebacker at Ohio State University, and later three-time all pro for the Detroit Lions, Spielman knew what it...

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A Wild Naked Man Running Towards Me Is A Very Scary Thing

Author

Brian Hardin

Keywords

Scripture

Genesis 3:10, Mark 5:1-20, Luke 8:26-39, Romans 8:1, John 8:10-11, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Hebrews 4:13

The Summer Before Junior High School was filled with anticipation. I was excited to leave elementary school behind me. Junior high sounded so robust and adult. And I felt ready—with one caveat. Physic...

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New Bodies in the New Creation

Author

John Eldredge

Keywords

Scripture

Philippians 3:20-21, 1 Corinthians 15:42-44, 2 Corinthians 5:1-2, Revelation 21:4

I love that part in The Silver Chair when old age simply vanishes from frail King Caspian, because age is the unavoidable meltdown, stripping even the bravest and most beautiful of their former glor...

Quote

Author

Max Lucado

Keywords

Scripture

Ephesians 2:4-5, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Romans 5:8, Psalm 40:2, Isaiah 61:1, Revelation 3:20, Matthew 11:28

Let him into the mire and muck of our world. For only if we let him in can he pull us out.

liturgy

Adapted from “Continual Repentance” in The Valley of Vision

Author

Dustin Ray

Keywords

Scripture

Titus 3:5, Hebrews 10:14, Romans 6:12-13, 1 John 1:9, 2 Corinthians 5:21

Pastor: O God of grace, you have taken my sin and put it on Jesus’ head, and you’ve taken his righteousness and put it on mine. You’ve made me holy and blameless in your sight; therefore, you delight ...

Sermon Resources on going through the motions

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