Sermon Central
-
False Hope In A Gold Coin
Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 3, 2011 (message contributor)
FALSE HOPE IN A GOLD COIN
George Dixon was a lieutenant in the Confederate Army who carried around a $20 gold piece that his fiancée had given him in the early days of the war. During the battle of Shiloh, a union musket ball struck him--actually it struck the gold coin, which saved his life. From then on, that dented, gold coin went with him wherever he went. It was his good luck piece, which he was often seen kneading with his fingers.
Eventually, Lt. Dixon took the coin onto the C.S.S. Hunley, a confederate submarine he staunchly believed could break the Union blockade. After sinking the U.S.S. Housatonic, the Hunley herself sank, taking Lt. Dixon and his crew to their deaths. Recently the coin was found when the submarine was raised, a silent testimony to the fact that his golden, good-luck piece could not save him. (Scientists Find Gold Coin in Confederate Sub, www.CNN.com)
It was a false hope, a dead hope. But in the resurrected Lord, Jesus Christ, we have a living hope, a sure and certain hope. One pastor put it this way: "The world offers promises full of emptiness, but Easter offers emptiness full of promise. Empty cross, empty tomb, empty grave-clothes...all full of promise."
(Carolyn Arends, What’s So Good About Good Friday? Kyria.com, 4-10-09. From a sermon by C. Philip Green, Our Living Hope, 4/26/2011)
Related Sermon Illustrations
-
A Large Majority Of Men--Married And Single--Say ...
Contributed by Lou Nicholes on May 27, 2005
A large majority of men--married and single--say they wouldn’t have an affair, even if they were certain their loved one would never find out, says a Gallup poll commissioned by Self magazine, in the June (1992) issue. Of 500 men surveyed, 67% of married men and 60% of unmarried men say an affair ...read more
-
What My Mother Taught Me PRO
Contributed by Joel Vicente on Feb 14, 2005
Illustrate Humor: WHAT MY MOTHER TAUGHT ME My mother taught me RELIGION: When I spilled grape juice on the carpet, she instructed, "You better pray the stain will come out of the carpet." My mother taught me LOGIC: From her decisive words, "Because I said so, that’s why." My mother taught me ...read more
-
Nothing We Have Is Attributable To Our Own ... PRO
Contributed by Clark Tanner on Aug 31, 2003
"Nothing we have is attributable to our own strengths and talents. People think so. It’s an attitude that was expressed very effectively by James Stewart’s character in the movie, “Shenandoah”. He was the patriarch of a large Southern family, running a very successful plantation when the Civil ...read more
-
Movie: Pay It Forward PRO
Contributed by Michael Mccartney on Sep 14, 2004
Video Illustration: Movie Pay It Forward. Clip is from the beginning of the movie were a reporter becomes the recipient of a random act of kindness after his car is smashed at a police domestic scene. The reporter is given a new jaguar by a stranger to replace his old wrecked mustang. He responds ...read more
-
Trate Fact: In 1907 Ana Jarvis, From ... PRO
Contributed by Joel Vicente on Feb 14, 2005
Illustrate Fact: In 1907 Ana Jarvis, from Philadelphia, began a campaign to establish a national Mother’s Day. Ms. Jarvis persuaded her mother’s church in Grafton, West Virginia to celebrate Mother’s Day on the second anniversary of her mother’s death, the 2nd Sunday of May. By the next year ...read more
Related Sermons
-
-
Crucified & Risen
Contributed by Jerry Flury on Mar 31, 2013
Paul tells us that having received Christ as Savior, he was crucified with Christ. Can you say that? Do you understand what that means? It’s more than just saying “He died for me”. It means so much more to be crucified and risen.
-
In Him, We Live Series
Contributed by Keith Foskey on Apr 15, 2014
Christ is not just necessary for salvation... If we truly know Who Christ is, then we know that He is necessary for our very existence!
-
The Victory
Contributed by Allan Kircher on Mar 27, 2013
Had He never stooped to the grave, He would have been unable to help us in the supreme experiences of life!
-
The Resurrection Changes Everything
Contributed by David Owens on Apr 2, 2013
In this sermon, we look at four appearances of Jesus after the resurrection that John recorded. We see how the resurrection changed everything in the lives of the disciples.
