In Sermon Illustrations: "John 12"

Few Who Bear His Cross  PRO

Contributed by Ken Pell on Jul 18, 2013

FEW WHO BEAR HIS CROSS In Thomas á Kempis' book, The Imitation of Christ he says, Jesus has many who love his kingdom in heaven, but few who bear his cross. He has many who desire comfort, but few who desire suffering. He finds many to share his feast, but few his fasting. All desire to rejoice ...read more

Scripture: John 12:24-26, Galatians 2:20, Luke 12:32-40, Mark 11:1

Tags: Lordship, Following Jesus

Denomination: Nazarene

The Other 19 Percent

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 9, 2009

THE OTHER 19 PERCENT Even if they’re unsure of it, most people want to believe in Heaven, and most people have some concept of it. TIME took a poll 10 years ago, and 81% of the people they surveyed said they believed in the existence of Heaven, where people lived forever with God after they ...read more

Scripture: John 12:37-50

Tags: Atheism

Newsman Clarence W. Hall Sees The Impact Of ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 29, 2009

Newsman Clarence W. Hall Sees the Impact of Missions on Okinawa in 1945 A newsman, named Clarence W. Hall, followed American troops through Okinawa in 1945. He and his jeep driver came upon an Okinawan village that stood out as a beautiful example of a Christian community! The entire village had ...read more

Scripture: John 12:44-46

Tags: Missions

Smell The Rain

Contributed by Dr. David Hallum on Sep 10, 2015

When my daughter Cynthia was a little girl, we lived in Odessa, TX. We made one of the pilgrimages that we did from time to time to see my wife, Rosemary’s family. Rosemary’s brother, Michael was in town at the time from the Navy. Now in West Texas, rain is a beautiful thing. We got one of ...read more

Scripture: John 12:1-10

Tags: Disciples, Aroma, Smell, Pleasant

Denomination: Baptist

Maturity

Contributed by Martin Spoelstra on Dec 27, 2020

Automatic behaviour is the hallmark of immature people bent on survival, they accept few challenges and experience little growth. Immature people react with a small part of themselves to a small part of the world. They limit themselves by paying attention only to what is close-up, by focusing on ...read more

Scripture: John 12:24

Tags: Maturity, Immaturity

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Gary Bettenhausen

Contributed by Davon Huss on Mar 13, 2021

We must decide what we mean by success. Gary Bettenhausen will help us to decide it. Some years ago, in an Indianapolis 500 race, veteran driver Al Unser lost control of his race car, which then skidded into the track wall and exploded into flames. Seconds later, another driver slammed his ...read more

Scripture: John 12:23-33, Mark 8:35

Tags: Success, Loser

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Losing

Contributed by Davon Huss on Mar 13, 2021

Read a book by Pat Conroy entitled My Losing Season. In that book Conroy recounts the season in 1967 when he played point guard for the Citadel college basketball team. In his book Conroy contrasts the lessons from winning from those learned from losing. “Winning,” he writes, “makes you think ...read more

Scripture: Mark 8:35, John 12:23-33, John 12:25

Tags: Character, Winning, Losing

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Albert Schweitzer

Contributed by Davon Huss on Mar 13, 2021

Dr. Albert Schweitzer was a famous musician, writer and teacher. He gave up all of this to become a medical doctor. When on October 13,1906, he sent letters to his parents and closest acquaintances announcing that he would enter Strasbourg University as a medical student to prepare for his ...read more

Scripture: John 12:24, John 12:27-28

Tags: Glory, Die, Live

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

William Wilberforce

Contributed by Davon Huss on Mar 13, 2021

Jesus is the supreme example. He cares so much about completing His mission on earth that he lets himself be killed. That total commitment to God’s will literally costs Him His life. It also saves it, as the resurrection proves. There are many examples from history of persons who have proved ...read more

Scripture: John 12:25

Tags: Glory, Die, Hate, Lose

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

He Knew The Shephard

Contributed by Ron Freeman, Evangelist on Apr 26, 2022

INTRODUCTION Story: He Knew the Shepherd 1. Three men gave a presentation from the 23rd Psalms. It went like this, a. The first man read from the Psalms with superb diction, clarity, and reverence. The audience stood up and gave him a standing ovation. b. The second man quoted the entire Psalms ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 23:1-6, John 12:31-33, John 3:14-17

Tags: Read Well, Knew The Shepherd, Quoted The Psalms, Read The Psalms, Knew Shepherd In The Psalms, Christ, Shepherd, Preaching, Lift Him Up, Christ Centered Preaching, Spoke Well  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

[002] Message From A Poem – A Grain Of Wheat Dies

Contributed by Ron Ferguson on May 2, 2024

[002] MESSAGE FROM A POEM – A GRAIN OF WHEAT DIES Not very long before the crucifixion Jesus spoke to Andrew and Philip. This is what He said – {{John 12:23-25 and Jesus answered them saying, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Truly, truly, I say to you, UNLESS A GRAIN OF ...read more

Scripture: John 12:23-25, Matthew 13:23, Romans 12:1-2

Tags: Sacrifice, Parable Of The Sower, A Grain Of Wheat, Dying To Oneself

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

The Rabbinic Understanding Of Palm Sunday

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Feb 11, 2025

In the Talmud, you can see how the Rabbis tried to harmonize some of the prophesies of the Old Testament, including Palm Sunday. They did not understand the two comings: R. Alexandri said: R. Joshua b. Levi pointed out a contradiction. it is written, in its time [will the Messiah come], whilst it ...read more

Scripture: Mark 11:1-11, Matthew 21:1-11, Luke 19:28-44, John 12:12-19

Tags: Palm Sunday, Triumphant Entry, Two Comings, Jewish Understanding

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Blindness

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Feb 22, 2025

Aero Condor was experiencing money problems in Peru and needed to cut back expenses. So, rumor had it they hired two blind pilots. Story soon spread about these pilots, but no one believed it. So one day the plane was loaded and up came the two pilots, with dark glasses and walking sticks. The ...read more

Scripture: Isaiah 6:10, Matthew 15:14, Matthew 23:16-19, Matthew 23:24-26, Luke 6:39, John 9:39-41, John 12:40, Romans 2:19, 2 Corinthians 4:4  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Blind, Spiritual Blindness, Hard Hearts, Not Understanding, Lack Of Discernment  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Independent/Bible

[042] A Message From A Poem – Christ In Me And I In Him

Contributed by Ron Ferguson on Mar 2, 2025

[042] A MESSAGE FROM A POEM – CHRIST IN ME AND I IN HIM I meant this to be a personal, yet touching poem. The title – Christ in me and I in Him” can be taken as a one-way dialogue between two people, the Lord and me. I am sharing with my Saviour the thoughts in my mind. (A personal chat). On ...read more

Scripture: John 12:24, Mark 6:49-50, Acts 18:9

Tags: Wheat, Prayer, Poem, Christ In Me, A Grain Of Wheat, Personal Chat  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Don't Let The Sun Confuse You

Contributed by Tim White on Mar 10, 2025

When Laura and I were blessed with a gift of a cruise, we had a blast. On the way back from the western Caribbean, we opened the cabin curtains to watch another sunset. But, there was no sun. I checked the television station that had mapped our trek and displayed our current location. The cruise ...read more

Scripture: John 12:46

Tags: Direction, Guidance, Confusion

Denomination: Baptist