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Emphasis Preaching Journal

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Commentary

Communicating God's Love

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Emphasis Preaching Journal

Do not touch! We see... -- John 20:19-31 -- Second Sunday of Easter - B -- 1997
"Do not touch!" We see the "Wet Paint" sign, but we still have to test it.
Sometimes, God, you bless me... -- John 6:1-21 -- Proper 12 | Ordinary Time 17 - B -- 1997
"Sometimes, God, you bless me with words that spill out onto the paper in great pools of inspiratio
Sometimes we grow sentimental about... -- Mark 6:1-13 -- Proper 9 | Ordinary Time 14 - B -- 1997
Sometimes we grow sentimental about the old hometown but we need to balance this with the realizatio
Mark reminds us that the... -- Mark 6:30-34, 53-56 -- Proper 11 | Ordinary Time 16 - B -- 1997
Mark reminds us that the clamor of the friends of the sick and diseased was so overwhelming that the
Store managers put special items... -- Mark 6:14-29 -- Proper 10 | Ordinary Time 15 - B -- 1997
Store managers put special items out in a highly traveled area so that when shoppers, who are en rou
These passages deal with the... -- Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23 -- Proper 17 | Ordinary Time 22 - B -- 1997
These passages deal with the inwardness of genuine religion as opposed to religious activity which m
As different parts of Christ's... -- 1 Corinthians 12:27-31a -- Proper 16 | Ordinary Time 21 - B -- 1997
As different parts of Christ's Body, we are to function and live a productive and fruitful life.
Trucks go by our house... -- John 6:35, 41-51 -- Proper 14 | Ordinary Time 19 - B -- 1997
Trucks go by our house, and you cannot hear anything else over their rumble; a storm occurs, and yo
This teenager was a loser... -- John 6:51-58 -- Proper 15 | Ordinary Time 20 - B -- 1997
This teenager was a loser. No doubt about it.
An advertisement that has been... -- John 6:24-35 -- Proper 13 | Ordinary Time 18 - B -- 1997
An advertisement that has been played often on television is the one that says, "Just do it!" Chaos
So the gatherers of fish... -- Mark 1:14-20 -- Epiphany 3 | Ordinary Time 3 - B -- 1997
So the gatherers of fish were to be trained how to gather followers for the Master.
Though cousins are blood related... -- Mark 1:4-11 -- The Baptism of our Lord | Epiphany 1 | Ordinary Time 1 - B -- 1997
Though cousins are blood related they should be close to us. But many times they are very distant.
Genealogies are often regarded as... -- Matthew 2:1-12 -- Epiphany of the Lord - B -- 1997
Genealogies are often regarded as boring and monotonous. They have their bright spots, however.
Mother Teresa is one of... -- Matthew 25:31-46 -- New Year's Day - B -- 1997
Mother Teresa is one of the towering saints of our century.
How those words had stung... -- Mark 8:31-38 -- Second Sunday in Lent - B -- 1997
How those words had stung Peter when Jesus spoke to him, "Get behind me, Satan.
The Gospel is the story... -- Mark 1:9-15 -- First Sunday in Lent - B -- 1997
The Gospel is the story of God`s Kingdom and those who are members of it.
An old adage says: What... -- Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21 -- Ash Wednesday - B -- 1997
An old adage says: "What you don`t know won`t hurt you.
It was a luminous, never... -- Mark 9:2-9 -- Transfiguration Sunday - B -- 1997
It was a luminous, never-to-be-forgotten moment for James, Peter, and John.
Lucky was a notorious racketeer... -- Mark 1:21-28 -- Epiphany 4 | Ordinary Time 4 - B -- 1997
Lucky was a notorious racketeer who made his fame through illegal gambling and numbers games.
Italians call it Contra... -- 1 Peter 4:12-19 -- 1997
Italians call it Contra Lamontra, the "Trail of Truth." It's an athletic event of simplicity,
Time will tell if the... -- John 1:1-14 -- 1997
Time will tell if the Black and Decker "Snake Light" lives up to its claim: "I get around, around, a
A first-person dramatic monologue... -- Luke 2:1-20 -- 1997
A first-person dramatic monologue to introduce the text creatively: "How long will it last?
The Firm was... -- Luke 1:39-45 (46-55) -- 1997
The Firm was a book and movie about power and corruption.
It was near closing time... -- Luke 3:7-18 -- Third Sunday of Advent - C -- 1997
It was near closing time, about 8:45 p.m.
Rachel is an energetic little... -- Luke 3:1-6 -- Second Sunday of Advent - C -- 1997
Rachel is an energetic little girl. At age three she discovered magic markers.

Political Pulpit

Sermon

The Political Pulpit

UPCOMING WEEKS
In addition to the lectionary resources there are thousands of non-lectionary, scripture based resources...
Proper 28 | OT 33 | Pentecost 23
30 – Sermons
160+ – Illustrations / Stories
30 – Children's Sermons / Resources
29 – Worship Resources
34 – Commentary / Exegesis
4 – Pastor's Devotions
and more...
Christ the King Sunday
29 – Sermons
160+ – Illustrations / Stories
27 – Children's Sermons / Resources
20 – Worship Resources
29 – Commentary / Exegesis
4 – Pastor's Devotions
and more...
Thanksgiving
34 – Sermons
80+ – Illustrations / Stories
24 – Children's Sermons / Resources
20 – Worship Resources
24 – Commentary / Exegesis
4 – Pastor's Devotions
and more...
Plus thousands of non-lectionary, scripture based resources...

New & Featured This Week

The Immediate Word

Mary Austin
Christopher Keating
Dean Feldmeyer
Thomas Willadsen
George Reed
Katy Stenta
Nazish Naseem
For November 16, 2025:

Emphasis Preaching Journal

David Coffin
Another natural disaster has flattened a number of coastal communities. Despite the weather and major television station warnings, and government disaster preparations, the dystopian destruction nightmare of Luke 21 has decimated another community. Also, it is reasonable to believe that this is not the last year for hurricanes, Tsunami’s, wildfires, mudslides and tornados. They will occur again. However, as weary citizens are interviewed in one group of people with the background of homes in rubble and streets still draining flood waters, they will not leave. This is their home.
Mark Ellingsen
Bill Thomas
Frank Ramirez

Isaiah 65:17-25 and Isaiah 12

StoryShare

John E. Sumwalt
“The wolf and the lamb will feed together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox, and dust will be the serpent’s food. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain,” says the LORD. (v. 25)

A week after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, country singer Toby Keith — who died Feb. 5, 2024 — wrote a patriotic ballad titled “Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue.” It was filled with populist fighting rhetoric that matched the mood of a nation shaken by the shocking death and destruction of that day.

CSSPlus

John Jamison
Object: A blood pressure monitor. It is actually called a sphygmomanometer, and is pronounced “sfig·mow·muh·naa’·muh·tr”.

* * *

The Village Shepherd

Janice B. Scott
Prayers usually include these concerns and may follow this sequence:

The Church of Christ

Creation, human society, the Sovereign and those in authority

The local community

Those who suffer

The communion of saints


These responses may be used:


Lord, in your mercy
Hear our prayer
Lord, hear us.
Lord, graciously hear us.

SermonStudio

Stephen P. McCutchan
With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.
-- Isaiah 12:3

John W. Clarke
No reading of Luke is complete without coming to realize that Luke is concerned that the world understands that Jesus is the hope of the world and that any teaching that leads away from that fact is a false teaching. No matter what, no matter when, Jesus will be there to give us life.

Scott Suskovic
Whoever does not work should not eat!
-- 2 Thessalonians 3:10 (NLT)

Wow! Kind of takes your breath away, doesn't it? Not a lot of ambiguity in that rule. "You don't work, you don't eat." For a religion based on grace, it seems a bit unyielding.

Mark Ellingson
Freedom is such a lovely word, a compelling image. What is freedom? How would you define it? What does it mean to you? Webster's New World Dictionary defines freedom as being exempt from control or from arbitrary restrictions. Freedom is said to be the ability to choose or determine one's own actions.

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