Sermon Central
-
Forgiveness: No Ugly Pictures
Contributed by John Petty on Jan 18, 2008 (message contributor)
FORGIVENESS: NO UGLY PICTURES
I was approached by the station manager of a local television station in Pensacola, Fl to contribute a 50-second devotional for his program transition period. I was reluctant to agree, since I struggled to limit my sermons to even 30 minutes. But feeling impressed by the Lord to accept it, I did.
I sat back in my office chair and began to struggle with what I would share, when the Lord spoke to me: "a picture is worth a thousand words." Immediately I thought, "Wow, that's great. I can hold an object in my hands and I'm already a thousand words ahead. But what object, Lord?" He said again, "A picture is worth a thousand words."
Then the thought came...what could "picture" mean? The Lord said, "What takes a picture?" A camera, of course I'll hold a camera. But what for? The Lord then taught me a beautiful illustration of forgiveness. He asked me how would I like for someone to be waiting to take my picture first thing in the morning before I had time to shave, shower and get myself together. My reaction was "No way." He then said, "When we refuse to forgive others, it's like taking a picture of them when they are their ugliest, never letting them be anything else but the person who offended us."
Forgiving others allows us to tear up those ugly images, and it sets them free to be all that God created them to be. None of us want to be remembered only for the bad.
Related Sermon Illustrations
-
John Wesley Provides The Most Convicting Analysis ... PRO
Contributed by Kenneth Squires on Jul 20, 2004
John Wesley provides the most convicting analysis on what it means to be a true servant: “Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as you can.” Rick ...read more
-
The First Day Of School Our Professor Introduced ... PRO
Contributed by Davon Huss on Oct 21, 2004
The first day of school our professor introduced himself and challenged us to get to know someone we didn’t already know. I stood up to look around when a gentle hand touched my shoulder. I turned around to find a winkled, little old lady beaming up at me with a smile that lit up her entire ...read more
-
And Starting Today, You Are Beginning To Turn ... PRO
Contributed by Peter Schmidt on Nov 13, 2003
And starting today, you are beginning to turn into adults. While your parents still are going to make a lot of choices for you, you are just beginning that Phase where you begin to make some life-changing decisions. You will learn that mom and dad won’t always be there to tell you what to do. I’m ...read more
-
Over The Long Run, Love's Power To Forgive Is ... PRO
Contributed by Michael Mccartney on Dec 1, 2004
"Over the long run, love’s power to forgive is stronger than hate’s power to ...read more
-
I Was Fascinated When I Read The Following ... PRO
Contributed by Tim Richards on Dec 1, 2004
I was fascinated when I read the following research a number of years in Dennis Waitley’s, Empires of the Mind. Waitley reported that although there are approximately 450,000 words in the English language, about 80% of our conversations use only about 400 ...read more
Related Sermons
-
Forgive Or Not To Forgive
Contributed by Anthony Zibolski on Feb 28, 2012
Forgiveness is the way the Lord releases us from guilt and sets us free to continue loving God and others.
-
Getting Over Your Hang-Ups Series
Contributed by Chris Kelly on Oct 31, 2006
Learn with Esther how to understand and follow the invisible God through the incredible trials and challenges of life.
-
Family Forgiveness Series
Contributed by Jim Drake on Aug 18, 2009
Because everyone has sinned, everyone needs forgiveness. That is especially true within families. How does forgiveness play out in our families?
-
The Power Of Reconciliation Series
Contributed by Anthony Zibolski on Oct 25, 2011
Unforgiveness and biterness will destroy your relationship with God and others.We must reconcile with God so that we can live the life that God intends for us.
-
Reconciliation?
Contributed by Gordon Curley on Nov 18, 2010
Jacob Meets Esau. (PowerPoint slides to accompany this talk are available on request - email: gcurley@gcurley.info)
