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First Sunday in Lent - C

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Emphasis Preaching Journal

The German language contains a... -- Romans 10:8b-13 -- First Sunday in Lent - C -- 1995
The German language contains a word for which there is no comparable English equivalent: Gottesdiens
Corrie ten Boom, in her... -- Romans 10:8b-13 -- First Sunday in Lent - C -- 1995
Corrie ten Boom, in her book, The Hiding Place, tells the story of one day of interrogation while in
A book that commends itself... -- Romans 10:8b-13 -- First Sunday in Lent - C -- 1995
A book that commends itself purely on the basis of style, charm, wit and pure reasoning is I'm Dysfu
What does it mean to... -- Luke 4:1-13 -- First Sunday in Lent - C -- 1995
What does it mean to be tested?
Remember your roots, offer your... -- Deuteronomy 26:1-11 -- First Sunday in Lent - C -- 1995
"Remember your roots, offer your fruits." Remembering roots is our link to the heritage we have w
A leader of a mainline... -- Deuteronomy 26:1-11 -- First Sunday in Lent - C -- 1995
A leader of a mainline Protestant body deplored the problem of church closings in his denomination.
It often seems as if... -- Deuteronomy 26:1-11 -- First Sunday in Lent - C
It often seems as if this old creedal formula from the people of Israel has no merit in the modern a
And behold, now I bring... -- Deuteronomy 26:5-10 -- First Sunday in Lent - C
"And behold, now I bring the first of the fruit of the ground, which thou, O Lord, hast given me." (
A teenager came home from... -- Deuteronomy 26:1-11 -- First Sunday in Lent - C
A teenager came home from school announcing that she wished to travel with her class across country
The ugliness of open ingratitude... -- Deuteronomy 26:1-13 -- First Sunday in Lent - C
The ugliness of open ingratitude is graphically portrayed by the story of a young army captain who w
It is dangerously easy to... -- Romans 10:8b-13 -- First Sunday in Lent - C
It is dangerously easy to begin to assume that God is our personal possession.
Never was the adage that... -- Romans 10:8b-13 -- First Sunday in Lent - C
Never was the adage that confession is good for the soul so true as it was in the following fable en
A terribly heinous crime... -- Romans 10:8b-13 -- First Sunday in Lent - C
A terribly heinous crime was committed in a big city and the police had some good leads as to
I have a problem for... -- Romans 10:8b-13 -- First Sunday in Lent - C
I have a problem for you. It is an easy problem.
In his article, How to... -- Luke 4:1-13 -- First Sunday in Lent - C
In his article, "How to Handle Temptation," Dr. Smiley Blanton states:
The best way to drive... -- Luke 4:1-13 -- First Sunday in Lent - C
The best way to drive out the devil,if he will not yield to texts of Scripture,
You shall worship God alone... -- Luke 4:1-13 -- First Sunday in Lent - C
You shall worship God alone and serve God only. How easy that is to say!
Acid rain, toxic waste, pollution... -- Luke 4:1-13 -- First Sunday in Lent - C
Acid rain, toxic waste, pollution --all are common words in today's vocabulary.
Beware of people who quote... -- Luke 4:1-13 -- First Sunday in Lent - C
Beware of people who quote Scripture at you in order to upset your faith!
Jesus quotes the word of... -- Luke 4:1-13 -- First Sunday in Lent - C
Jesus quotes the word of God, "Man shall not live by bread alone." But we still succumb to the tempt
Self-contribution flows out of... -- Deuteronomy 26:5-10 -- First Sunday in Lent - C
Self-contribution flows out of a grateful heart.
Scientists have reported the discovery... -- Deuteronomy 26:5-10 -- First Sunday in Lent - C
Scientists have reported the discovery of a quasar sending out light more than ten billion years old
B.P. Gore said in verse... -- Romans 10:8b-13 -- First Sunday in Lent - C
B.P. Gore said in verse nine, "lay hid all that is essential to the Christian creed.
Whom do we call upon... -- Romans 10:8b-13 -- First Sunday in Lent - C
Whom do we call upon to be saved? What name spells "salvation" for each of us?

The Immediate Word

Are You Tempted To Be Offended? -- Luke 4:1-13 -- George L. Murphy -- First Sunday in Lent - C
Jesus is getting plenty of media coverage these days.

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UPCOMING WEEKS
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Easter 4
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34 – Commentary / Exegesis
5 – Pastor's Devotions
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New & Featured This Week

Emphasis Preaching Journal

David Kalas
In the sometimes-tiresome debate over science and scripture with respect to creation, it’s easy to become distracted. While the argument typically requires a focus on the how, we may lose sight of the what. And so, for just a moment, let me invite us to think for a moment about what God created.
Mark Ellingsen
Frank Ramirez
Bonnie Bates
Bill Thomas
Acts 8:26-40
As a local church pastor, I was often asked if I would baptize a child whose family were not members of the church. Some churches rebelled against this, but I remember this scripture — the hunger for understanding and inclusion of the Eunuch and Philp’s response — to teach and share and baptize in the name of our God. How could we turn anyone away from the rite of baptism?

StoryShare

Peter Andrew Smith
“Dad, I think you worked a miracle.” Rolf slowly walked around the tree. “After that windstorm, I assumed this tree was as good as gone.”

“We just needed to give the branches time to heal and come back,” Michael replied.

 “I know, but so many of them were battered and broken I figured that it couldn’t recover. Now though it looks just like it did before the storm.” Rolf paused. “Do you think it will bear any fruit this summer?”

CSSPlus

John Jamison
Object: A live plant that produces fruit, and a broken branch from that plant. I used a tomato plant from a local greenhouse. Ideally, find a plant with blossoms or small fruit already growing. If you use a different kind of fruit-producing plant, just change the script to fit.

* * *

Hello, everyone! (Let them respond.) Are you ready for our story today? (Let them respond.) Excellent!

The Immediate Word

Christopher Keating
Katy Stenta
Thomas Willadsen
Mary Austin
Elena Delhagen
Dean Feldmeyer
Quantisha Mason-Doll
For April 28, 2024:
  • On The Way To Gaza by Chris Keating based on Acts 8:26-40. On the way to Gaza, Philip discovers the startling ways the Spirit of God moves across borders, boundaries, customs, and traditions.
  • Second Thoughts: Abiding by Katy Stenta based on John 15:1-8.
  • Sermon illustrations by Mary Austin, Tom Willadsen, Elena Delhagen, Dean Feldmeyer.

The Village Shepherd

Janice B. Scott
Call to Worship:

Jesus is the vine, we are the branches. In our service today, let us absorb from the vine all the nourishment we need.

Invitation to Confession:

Jesus, sometimes our branches become cut off from the vine.
Lord, have mercy.

Jesus, sometimes our branches are withered.
Christ, have mercy.

Jesus, sometimes we fail to produce good fruit.
Lord, have mercy.

SermonStudio

Stan Purdum
We will meet Psalm 22 in its entirety on Good Friday, but here the lectionary designates just verses 23-31. The lectionary psalms generally illuminate the week's First Lesson, which in this case is about the covenant initiated by God with Abraham and Sarah in Genesis 17. The nine verses from this psalm, while not inappropriate, nonetheless leave us looking for an obvious connection with the First Lesson.

John S. Smylie
I think some people are natural-born gardeners. Our Lord grew up in a society that was familiar with agriculture. The images that he used to explain the ways of his Father in heaven are familiar to his audience. Growing up, my closest experience to agriculture was living in, "the Garden State." Most people, when they pass through New Jersey, are surprised to see that expression on the license plates of vehicles registered in New Jersey. Most folks traveling through New Jersey experience the megalopolis, the corridor between New York City and Washington DC.
Ron Lavin
A pastor in Indiana went to visit an 87-year-old man named Ermil, who was a hospital patient. A member of his church told the pastor about this old man who was an acquaintance. "He's not a believer, but he is really in need," the church member said. "I met him at the county home for the elderly. He's a lonely old man with no family and no money."

Paul E. Robinson
"Love is a many splendored thing...." Or so we heard Don Cornwall and the Four Aces sing time and again. Of course you or I might have other words to describe love, depending on our situation.

Love. "I love you." "I love to play golf." "I just love pistachio lush!" "It's tough to love some people." "Jesus loves me, this I know."

Love.

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