Login / Signup

Free Access

Proper 18

Worship
Proverbs 22:1-2, 8-9, 22-23
Mark 7:24-37
Psalm 125
Proper 18 | Ordinary Time 23 - B
B. David Hostetter
LECTIONARY WORSHIP AIDS
Series III
* CALL TO WORSHIP
Praise the Lord as long as you live. Sing psalms to God all your
life long.

* PRAYER OF CONFESSION
Just God, you are even-handed in your justice and in the day of
judgment will not play favorites. We confess that we are not so
fair in our dealings. We are often unduly impressed by the
powerful and the clever and excuse in them what we would condemn
in the powerless and ignorant. Forgive superficiality and
neglect of people needing advocacy and friendship, through the
friend of sinners, Jesus Christ. Amen.

* DECLARATION OF GOD'S FORGIVENESS
Hear the Good News! God has chosen those who are poor in the
eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom
he has promised to those who love him. Friends, believe the Good
News. In Jesus Christ, we are forgiven.

* EXHORTATION
Never show snobbery, believing as you do in our Lord Jesus Christ
who reigns in glory.

* PRAYER OF THE DAY
Divine Physician, heal our hardness of hearing and soften our
feelings so that we have your sensitivity to and awareness of the
needs of others, often hidden behind a curtain of words. Free
our tongues to share our innermost feeling with a trusted friend
or counselor. Make us well, Jesus. Amen.

* PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING
We praise you, God of Israel, God of the church universal. You
made the heavens and the earth, the sparrow and the gull, the
whale and the minnow. You care for people, the hungry and the
oppressed. You restore sight and help the stooped to stand tall.
You give new heart to the bereaved and hopeless. Our hopes are
in you and you will not disappoint us at the last. We praise
you, Creator, Christ, Comforter. Amen.

* PRAYER OF DEDICATION
Divine Person, beyond all human personhood, transform these
tangible but impersonal things into acts and gifts of persons-
serving-persons in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

* PSALM 125
Those who trust in the LORD are like Mount Zion,
which cannot be moved, but abides forever.
As the mountains surround Jerusalem,
so the LORD surrounds his people,
from this time on and forevermore.
For the scepter of wickedness shall not rest on the land
allotted to the righteous,
so that the righteous might not stretch out their hands to do
wrong.
Do good, O LORD, to those who are good,
and to those who are upright in their hearts.
But those who turn aside to their own crooked ways
the LORD will lead away with evildoers.
Peace be upon Israel!

UPCOMING WEEKS
In addition to the lectionary resources there are thousands of non-lectionary, scripture based resources...
Easter 2
20 – Sermons
170+ – Illustrations / Stories
26 – Children's Sermons / Resources
24 – Worship Resources
20 – Commentary / Exegesis
4 – Pastor's Devotions
and more...
Easter 3
34 – Sermons
160+ – Illustrations / Stories
32 – Children's Sermons / Resources
26 – Worship Resources
31 – Commentary / Exegesis
4 – Pastor's Devotions
and more...
Easter 4
30 – Sermons
160+ – Illustrations / Stories
33 – Children's Sermons / Resources
24 – Worship Resources
33 – Commentary / Exegesis
4 – Pastor's Devotions
and more...
Plus thousands of non-lectionary, scripture based resources...

New & Featured This Week

CSSPlus

John Jamison
Object: This message is a role-play for your children and requires no additional objects.

Note: You can use this role-play with a large or very small group. You will want one child to play Thomas, one child to play Jesus, and the rest of the children to play the disciples. When I have had only had one or two children, I have “volunteered” an adult or two to help out.

* * *

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

The Immediate Word

Thomas Willadsen
Christopher Keating
Dean Feldmeyer
Mary Austin
Katy Stenta
George Reed
For April 27, 2025:

Emphasis Preaching Journal

Bill Thomas
Frank Ramirez
Mark Ellingsen
Bonnie Bates
Acts 5:27-32
The Acts of the Apostles begins with the ascension of Jesus, and the arrival of the Holy Spirit who galvanizes them to begin the spread of the Good News of Jesus the Christ. It is not long, despite signs and wonders, that the apostles find themselves facing real opposition. Arrest and threats. However, in the leadup to this passage, they ignore these threats and continue to share the Good News. The news about this comes to the religious leaders while they’re debating what to do about them.
Frank Ramirez
Sometimes movies end with the “happily ever after moment.” Finally — Hooray! Sometimes movies begin with the “happily ever after moment.” Roll up your sleeves. The real fun is just beginning.

Acts 5:27-32

StoryShare

Frank Ramirez
Every eye will see him…. (v. 7)

The speed of news is not quite instantaneous. There’s this traffic cop called the speed of light that strictly enforces that 186, 242 mile per second speed limit built into our universe. If there’s a way around that limitation it remains the stuff of speculation — out of this world speculation.

The Village Shepherd

Janice B. Scott
Thomas had never seen his friends so excited. Peter's eyes were shining, and he could hardly contain his impatience. John was always quieter than Peter, but even he seemed full of barely suppressed eagerness. They were both tugging at Thomas, while at the same time dancing round him.

Thomas reluctantly agreed to go to the cave with them, although he continued to think they were mad. "If there was nothing there last week, how can it have changed now?" he kept asking.

SermonStudio

Schuyler Rhodes
Anyone can throw a party. It's easy to jump up and down and shout loud "alleluias." Pay the DJ, set out the drinks and the buffet table, and that's about it. At first, it's a blast! Whirling bodies and pulsing rhythms fill the night. Laughter and clinking glasses seem like an endless and joyful dialogue. But, by midnight it all starts to get a little old. People get tired of shouting and dancing and head home because they have to work the next day. The DJ was only hired for a few hours and he, perhaps, has another gig at an after-hours club across town.
Richard E. Zajac
... Unless I see... I will not believe...

I must credit the Reverend R. Maurice Boyd for this talk. Many of its ideas stemmed from "Consequences of Candor," a chapter in his book Corridors of Light.1

__________
David Kalas
When the curtain opens on Scene Two, we see a familiar scene. It is the austere, official chamber where the Sanhedrin hold court. The room is cold and intimidating. It feels even more so when the first characters begin to arrive on stage.

These are the members of the Sanhedrin: the leaders in the land who form the ruling council for the Jews of first-century Palestine. They are a distinguished looking group. They are well-dressed, well-manicured, and well-to-do. Their faces betray the seriousness of the purpose for which they have gathered.
Henry F. Woodruff
No cavalry rode to the rescue; this time the savior was technology. Here is how it happened. Longing for more intimate communication between preacher and congregation, the church purchased and installed a wireless microphone system. With an FM receiver in place and wearing a lapel microphone, the preacher could get out from behind the pulpit or lecturn and roam about, even into the midst of the congregation.

Special Occasion

Wildcard SSL