In Sermon Illustrations: "Ephesians 4"

What A ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 7, 2009

WHAT A COINCIDENCE... A man was out on walk when he saw another man about to throw himself from a bridge into the river. He ran over to save him. "Why do you want to kill yourself?" the man asked. "I’ve nothing to live for." "Don’t you believe in God?" "Yes I do." "What a coincidence--so do I! ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:4-6

Tags: Unity, Unity In Christ

Giving Up Cussing  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 15, 2009

GIVING UP CUSSING A little boy was sitting sadly on the curb beside his lawn mower, when along came a minister riding a bicycle. The minister noticed that the boy appeared discouraged, so he thought he would try to help. "Hello there!" said the minister. "How would you like to trade your lawn ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:29

Tags: Anger

The Enemy Of Anger: Itself

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 25, 2009

THE ENEMY OF ANGER: ITSELF Anger is its own worst enemy. Some people criticize the Bible and reject it as a bunch of dos and don’ts. The Bible is a common sense book that is given for our good. Anger is one such example. It causes high blood pressure, sleeplessness, stomach problems, and ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:26-27

Tags: Anger

General Lee And The Bitterness Tree

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 25, 2009

GENERAL LEE AND THE BITTERNESS TREE In his book, Lee: The Last Years, Charles Bracelen Flood reports that after the Civil War, Robert E. Lee visited a Kentucky lady, who took him to the remains of a grand old tree in front of her house. There she bitterly cried that its limbs and trunk had been ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:30-32

Tags: Anger

My Opinion Of Him

Contributed by Davon Huss on Aug 3, 2009

MY OPINION OF HIM Robert E. Lee was asked what he thought of General Joe Johnston, a fellow officer in the Confederate Army. Lee rated him as being very satisfactory and made glowing comments about him. The person who asked the question seemed perplexed. "General," he said, "I guess you don’t know ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:29

Tags: Judgment

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Addicted To Unkind ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Oct 19, 2009

Addicted to Unkind Words Joseph Telushkin, author of Words That Hurt, Words That Heal, lectures throughout our country on the powerful and often negative impact of words. He often asks those in his audience if they can go 24 hours without saying any unkind words about or to another person. ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:29

Tags: Words

Words Of Discouragement From Lucy To Charley ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Oct 19, 2009

Words of Discouragement from Lucy to Charley Brown Charley Brown says to Lucy, still dispensing sage wisdom for the pre-inflationary price of five cents, "Nobody likes me, Lucy. Everybody hates my guts. Do you see that plane up there, Lucy? It’s a plane full of people going somewhere else. That’s ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:29

Tags: Words

Dale Carnegie In Yellowstone  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Oct 27, 2009

DALE CARNEGIE IN YELLOWSTONE Ephesians 4:32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. This command is again repeated by Paul to the Colossians in 3:13, 13Bear with each other and forgive... The alternative to forgiveness is bitterness and ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:32

Tags: Forgiveness For Others

Spurgeon Shown Grace By Fellow Minister

Contributed by Sermon Central on Oct 30, 2009

Spurgeon Shown Grace by Fellow Minister Charles Spurgeon and Joseph Parker both had churches in London in the 19th century. On one occasion, Parker commented on the poor condition of children admitted to Spurgeon's orphanage. It was reported to Spurgeon however, that Parker had criticized the ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:29-32

Tags: Grace

Man Learns To Forgive His ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 14, 2009

Man Learns to Forgive His Enemy The apostle Paul said, “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you” (Ephesians 4:32). We don’t serve in order to merit God’s forgiveness. We serve because we have already received God’s forgiveness. And our service is ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:32

Tags: Forgiveness, Forgiveness For Others

Lyrics Of Many Secular Songs Are Detrimental To ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 16, 2009

Lyrics of Many Secular Songs Are Detrimental to Character Development The University of Pittsburgh did a study a couple of years ago where they examined 279 of the top songs on the radio in 2005. They ONLY looked at references to drugs and alcohol but what they found is instructive: • Gangster ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:29

Tags: Music

The Purpose Of The Holy Spirit  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 16, 2009

THE PURPOSE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT N T Wright, the famous New Testament scholar talks about the task of Christians in the world. He says, "Many say, 'Oh yes, the Holy Spirit came in his place to live in us.' Yes, but for what purpose? The Holy Spirit came to empower us to be God's life in the world. ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 2:8-10, Ephesians 4:2-10

Tags: Holy Spirit In Believers

Chief Justice Of Supreme Court Humble Enough To ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 17, 2009

Chief Justice of Supreme Court Humble Enough to Stand Next to a Chinese Laundryman As Christians, we are to trust God the Holy Spirit by being completely humble. Let me share a story which gives us a picture of humility; maybe you will see yourself in this story: When Charles Evans Hughes was ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:1-6

Tags: Humility

The Agitator

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 26, 2022

Does anyone know what that piece in the middle of the washer is called? The part in the middle that moves back and forth and shakes the clothes back and forth? What is that called? I’m going to call it an Agitator. What is the purpose of the Agitator? As far as I can tell, its sole purpose is to ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:17-24

Tags: Holy Spirit, Sanctification

Lesson On Kindness

Contributed by Wade Martin Hughes, Sr on May 11, 2022

WHAT LESSONS ARE WE TEACHING ON KINDNESS? I love the story of a women’s softball game between CENTRAL OREGON and WESTERN OREGON. Central Oregon had the lead and Western Oregon had scored and made the game much closer. A freshman player girl from Western Oregon stepped to the plate. Her name ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:32, John 15:13

Tags: Help, Kindness

Denomination: Assembly Of God

Appetite Killers

Contributed by Richard Tow on Mar 27, 2023

If we want our appetite for righteousness to grow, we must avoid appetite killers. This is true in the natural. Every parent knows that kids who eat too much candy will not have an appetite for the healthy food at dinner time. The same is true with our spiritual appetite. If we snack on the things ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:6, Colossians 3:2, Ephesians 4:24, Psalm 81:10, Psalm 42:1-2, Luke 6:21  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Worldliness, Entertainment, Seek, Hunger, Desire, Righteousness  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Charismatic

Power Of An Encouraging Word

Contributed by Richard Tow on Apr 4, 2023

Mark Eklund was a student in Sister Helen’s nineth grade math class at St. Mary’s School in Morris, Minnesota. He was much less talkative than he had been years earlier in her third-grade class. One Friday Sister Helen sensed the class’s frustration with trying to learn “ne math.” So, she asked ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:7, Ephesians 4:32, Luke 10:25-37, Micah 6:8, Matthew 9:13  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Hope, Encouragement, Friendship, Kindness, Esteem, Love, Mercy  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Charismatic

Understanding Mercy

Contributed by Richard Tow on Apr 4, 2023

There was a young soldier in Napoleon’s army who committed an offense worthy of death. The day before he was scheduled for the firing squad, the young man’s mother went to Napoleon and asked him to show mercy for her son. Napoleon harshly replied, “Woman, your son does not deserve mercy.” “I know,” ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:7, Micah 6:8, Matthew 9:13, Luke 10:25-37, Ephesians 4:32, Matthew 18:23-35  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Kindness, Mercy, Forgiveness, Compassion, Leadership, Relationships, Merciful  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Charismatic

Growing Together In The Body Of Christ

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Aug 2, 2023

If we are going to be spiritually healthy, we need all the encouragement and support we can get. And in this section our "trainer" is telling us that spiritual fitness calls for team effort. Yes, we are to be oaks of righteousness, but God desires us not to be isolated oaks but growing ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:1-13, Philippians 2:1-11

Tags: Unity, Encouragement, Pastors, Networking, Healthy Churches, Fellowship, Church, Support, Revival  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Willie Stargell And The Pittsburgh Pirates' Family

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Aug 2, 2023

Teammates of the late Willie Stargell called him "Pops" because of his leadership both on and off the baseball field. In 1979, when Stargell led the Pittsburgh Pirates to their second World Series title, the team was nicknamed "The Family" because of their close relationship and ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:1-11, Philippians 2:1-11

Tags: Prejudice, Diversity, Body Of Christ, Baseball, Family Of God, Love, Fellowship, Holy Spirit, Team, Unity  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational