Sermon Resources on Spiritual Poverty

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Author

Keywords

Scripture

1 Timothy 6:6-10, Philippians 4:11-13, Proverbs 15:16, 1 Kings 21:1-16, Ecclesiastes 5:10, Philippians 4:11-13, Luke 12:15, Matthew 6:19-21, Psalm 37:16-17

Contentment makes much of little; greed makes little of much. Contentment is the poor man’s riches and desire the rich man’s poverty.

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Distraction is the Greatest Threat to Churches

Author

Andrew Sullivan

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Scripture

1 Kings 19:11-13, Ecclesiastes 5:1-2 , Isaiah 30:15, Luke 10:38-42 , Mark 1:35 , Psalm 46:10

The journalist Andrew Sullivan has some strong words of advice for the modern church, If the churches came to understand that the greatest threat to faith today is not hedonism but distraction, p...

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Author

Etty Hillesum

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Scripture

1 Kings 19:11-13 , Ecclesiastes 5:1-2 , Isaiah 30:15 , Luke 10:38-42, Matthew 6:6, Psalm 46:10

But it’s not so simple, that sort of “quiet hour”. It has to be learned. A lot of unimportant inner litter and bits and pieces have to be swept out first. Even a small head can be piled high inside wi...

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The Importance of Listening to God

Author

Alan Fadling

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Scripture

Ecclesiastes 5:1-2, John 10:4

Over the years, I have led hundreds of retreats that have at their center a few hours to be alone and quiet in listening prayer. At one such retreat, one participant shared a conversation she had wit...

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BE SHORT

Author

Charles Haddon Spurgeon

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Scripture

James 1:19, Ecclesiastes 5:2, Proverbs 10:19, Proverbs 17:27, Ecclesiastes 3:7, Proverbs 15:23

The Puritan preacher Cotton Mather, hard at work over the business of ministry, prayer, and writing, wrote over his study door in large letters, “BE SHORT.” Today, he might well have written "MAK...

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Money is Fiction

Author

The Pastor's Workshop

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Scripture

Ecclesiastes 5:10, Proverbs 11:4, Exodus 32:1–35, Luke 12:15, 1 Timothy 6:10, Psalm 49:16–17, Matthew 6:24, Matthew 6:19-21

Jesus warns against greed and seeking wealth, because ultimately, money is fiction. Gold coins? Slips of paper? Ones and zeroes in a computer? They only have value because people think they do....

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A Biblical Approach to Conversation

Author

Steve May

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Scripture

Psalm 23:null, Proverbs 10:19, Ecclesiastes 5:2, James 1:19, Proverbs 17:27, Matthew 6:7, Colossians 4:6

I was watching the old Dick Van Dyke Show recently, and he was at a party filled with pseudo intellectuals. Dick got trapped into a one-sided conversation with a self-absorbed philosophy professor. On...

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Author

Socrates

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Scripture

1 Samuel 16:7, Ecclesiastes 5:10-12 , Proverbs 22:1, Matthew 6:19-21 , Luke 12:15-21 , Psalm 37:16

Be less concerned with what you have than with what you are.

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The Empty Chest

Author

The Pastor's Workshop

Keywords

Scripture

Ecclesiastes 5:10-11, Proverbs 11:24-25, Matthew 6:19-21, Luke 12:15-21, Psalm 62:10

There is an old legend about a rich, yet selfish old man who kept all of his wealth hidden away in a secret chest in the darkest corner of his attic. Each night, when he was sure no one was watching, ...

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Discontent is Everywhere

Author

Andrew M. Davis

Keywords

Scripture

Matthew 6:31-33, Proverbs 14:30, Psalm 131:1-2, Hebrews 13:5, Ecclesiastes 5:10, 1 Timothy 6:6-8

In this tragic world, we are surrounded by discontented people. Every minute of the day, it is possible to see evidence of this restless discontentment in the way people respond to circumstances. Peop...

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Miserable Elvis

Author

Stuart R. Strachan, Jr.

Keywords

Scripture

Romans 12:2, Psalm 119:10, James 1:14-15, Ecclesiastes 5:10, Matthew 6:19-21, Romans 7:19, Ecclesiastes 2:10-11

Like many others who find themselves in the spotlight, Elvis Presley struggled with his fame, as well as the many temptations that befell him during his time as an iconic musician. In 1958, following ...

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Author

Philip Graham Ryken

Keywords

Scripture

Exodus 3:5, Joshua 5:15 , Ecclesiastes 5:1, Psalm 95:6-7 , Acts 7:33 , Revelation 4:10-11

He also needed to take off his sandals, because God was too holy for his shoes. To this day in the Middle East, removing one’s sandals is a sign of respect.

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Author

Jim Carrey

Keywords

Scripture

Mark 8:36, Ecclesiastes 5:10, James 1:11, Matthew 6:19-24, 1 Timothy 6:9

I think everybody should get rich and famous and do everything they ever dreamed of so they can see that it's not the answer.

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Bigger and Bigger Christmas

Author

Kristen Welch

Keywords

Scripture

Luke 12:15, Ecclesiastes 5:10, 2 Corinthians 9:8, Matthew 2:11, Hebrews 13:5

Kristen Welch, in her book Raising Grateful Kids in an Entitled World , described the growing discontent their family experienced after pursuing more and more stuff. She describes it this way with ...

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Recording Your Prayers?

Author

Donald S. Whitney

Keywords

Scripture

1 Samuel 1:12-15, Daniel 6:10, James 5:16, Ecclesiastes 5:2, Romans 8:26

When prayer consists of the same spoken sentences on every occasion, naturally we wonder at the value of the practice. If our prayers bore us, do they also bore God? Does God really need to hear me sa...

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The Crucial Importance of Stewarding the Gift

Author

A. J. Swoboda

Keywords

Scripture

Ecclesiastes 5:19, Proverbs 3:9-10, Luke 16:10-11, Matthew 25:21, 1 Peter 4:10

The story is well known in the family: my grandparents had driven up from California the evening before. Stopping at a gas station along the Oregon border, they purchased some snacks, gas, and, as the...

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Oliver Twist and the Desire for More

Author

Mark D. Roberts

Keywords

Scripture

Hebrews 13:5, John 6:35, Isaiah 55:1-2, Matthew 5:6, Ecclesiastes 5:10, Philippians 4:11-13, Proverbs 30:8-9

In one of the classic scenes from Charles Dickens’ novel Oliver Twist, the misfortunate young orphan, Oliver, is stuck in a workhouse, laboring for long hours and getting barely enough gruel to keep h...

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Uneasy Lies the Head

Author

Greg Gilbert

Keywords

Scripture

Ecclesiastes 5:12, Proverbs 3:24, Matthew 11:28-30

It was William Shakespeare, in 1597, who had Henry IV complaining about the duties of kingship. “How many thousands of my poorest subjects,” the king lamented, “are at this hour asleep!” He goes on to...

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Author

Gustave Flaubert

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Scripture

Exodus 4:10–12, Isaiah 6:5–7, Ecclesiastes 5:2, James 3:5–6, 1 Corinthians 2:1–4, Psalm 19:14

Human speech is like a cracked kettle on which we tap crude rhythms for bears to dance to, while we long to make music that will melt the stars.

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Forever Elsewhere

Author

Sherry Turkle

Keywords

Scripture

James 1:25, Mark 4:19, Hebrews 2:1, Isaiah 55:2-3, Ecclesiastes 5:1

We say we turn to our phones when we’re “bored.” And we often find ourselves bored because we have become accustomed to a constant feed of connection, information, and entertainment. We are forever el...

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Silence Adding Days to Your Life

Author

Francis Chan

Keywords

Scripture

James 1:19, James 3:2, Matthew 12:36, Proverbs 10:19, Ecclesiastes 5:3

My friend Joi told me that when she was growing up, her parents invented a ploy to keep her from talking all of the time. They told her that people are allowed only so many words in one lifetime, and ...

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Rather be Shocked than Alone with their Thoughts

Author

Stuart R. Strachan, Jr.

Keywords

Scripture

2 Corinthians 10:5, Ecclesiastes 5:1-2, Mark 6:31, Psalm 46:10, Isaiah 30:15, Philippians 4:8

In a study conducted by Timothy Wilson, a social psychologist at the University of Virginia, researchers discovered what most of us already know: people do not like to be left alone with their own tho...

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Author

Andre Maurois

Keywords

Scripture

Proverbs 11:2, 1 Corinthians 8:2, Proverbs 15:2, Proverbs 10:19, Ecclesiastes 5:2

Conversation would be much improved by the frequent use of three words: I don’t know.

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Author

Samuel Johnson

Keywords

Scripture

Proverbs 15:1 , Job 6:24-25, Ecclesiastes 5:2, James 3:9-10, Ephesians 4:31-32, Psalm 141:3

Never trust your tongue when your heart is bitter.

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An Unforgettable Funeral

Author

Tony Campolo

Keywords

Scripture

Matthew 16:26, Luke 12:16-21, Ecclesiastes 5:10-15, Matthew 6:19-21, Luke 12:15, 1 Timothy 6:7, Mark 10:24-25

I heard of a funeral in California where a man requested to be buried seated behind the wheel of a brand new Cadillac, dressed in a tuxedo, with a two-dollar cigar in his mouth. He left the money to i...

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Author

Oscar Wilde

Keywords

Scripture

Ecclesiastes 5:10-12 , 2 Kings 5:15-27, Isaiah 55:1-2, Matthew 16:26, Luke 12:16-21 , Psalm 49:6-8

A cynic is a man who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing.

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The Census Taker and the Country Woman

Author

The Pastor's Workshop

Keywords

Scripture

Proverbs 18:13, James 1:19, 1 Corinthians 13:4-7, Proverbs 18:2, Proverbs 15:23, Ecclesiastes 5:2, Genesis 11:7-9, 2 Timothy 2:24-25

Communicating with people is often easier said than done. Take for instance this apocryphal story of the census taker who had to venture many miles down a country road to reach a cabin. As the man pul...

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The Price of the American Dream

Author

Kristen Welch

Keywords

Scripture

Matthew 6:19-21, 1 Timothy 6:6-8, Proverbs 23:4-5, Ecclesiastes 5:10, Luke 12:15

USA Today published a report in 2014 that put a price tag on the American Dream: $130,000 a year, which includes a nice six-figure salary, luxury vacations, college savings, and retirement.

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Targeting our Attention Gaps

Author

Tony Reinke

Keywords

Scripture

Luke 10:41-42, Ecclesiastes 5:1, Mark 6:31, Isaiah 30:15, Psalm 46:10

Smartphones make it possible for the attention economy to target our little attention gaps as we transition between tasks and duties. Our attention may be slightly elastic enough to fill up every empt...

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Whatever Circumstances Arise

Author

The Pastor's Workshop

Keywords

Scripture

Ecclesiastes 5:4-5, Numbers 30:2, Matthew 5:33-37, James 5:12, Psalm 15:1-4

Ira Gershwin (1896–1983), the celebrated American lyricist, was known for his collaborations with his brother George on numerous iconic songs and musicals. He was also an avid, though notoriously unlu...

Sermon Resources on spiritual poverty

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