In Sermon Illustrations: "Luke 2:11-11:11"

At First I Saw God As My Observer, ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Mar 2, 2004

Illustration: At first I saw God as my observer, my judge, keeping track of the things I did wrong, so as to know whether I merited heaven or hell when I die. He was out there sort of like the president. I recognized His picture when I saw it, but I didn’t really know Him. But later on when I ...read more

Scripture: Luke 22:45-51, Ephesians 1:19-20, Luke 7:1-10

Tags: Great, Benefactor, Servant

The True Nature Of Spiritual Life  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Mar 22, 2004

THE TRUE NATURE OF SPIRITUAL LIFE Christian spirituality isn’t about sitting at the feet of some guru for a seminar at a retreat. It isn’t about having a nice comfortable, safe dose of spirituality in your life to make you feel good whenever your thoughts run deep about ultimate questions and ...read more

Scripture: Luke 9:1

It Was Pentecost Sunday. As The Congregation ...  PRO

Contributed by Bruce Howell on Mar 23, 2004

IT WAS PENTECOST SUNDAY. As the congregation filed into church, the ushers handed each person a bright red carnation to symbolize the festive spirit of the day. The people listened attentively to the reading of the Pentecost story from the Book of Acts about how the disciples had heard “what ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 9:7, Philippians 4:19, Luke 9:23, Romans 12:1

Tags: Gifts Giving, Giving General, Stewardship, Tithes, Tithing  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Wesleyan

Evangelism Quotes And Illustrations  PRO

Contributed by Paul Fritz on Apr 19, 2004

Evangelism Quotes and Illustrations 1. Paul Harvey said, "Too many Christians are no longer fishers of men but keepers of the aquarium." 2. Paul Little in his book "How to Give Away Your Faith" defines witnessing: "Witnessing is that deep-seated conviction that the greatest favor I can do for ...read more

Scripture: Luke 5:1-11

Tags: Men, What Is Evangelism?, Wise

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Effects Of Sin

Contributed by Donnie Martin on Jun 28, 2004

Effects of Sin How does a worm get inside an apple? Perhaps you think the worm burrows in from the outside. No, scientists have discovered that the worm comes from inside. But how does he get in there? Simple! An insect lays an egg in the apple blossom. Sometime later, the worm hatches in the ...read more

Scripture: Luke 6:45

Tags: Sin Deceptive

Denomination: Baptist

Not Long Before She Died In 1988, In A Moment Of ...

Contributed by Donnie Martin on Jun 28, 2004

Not long before she died in 1988, in a moment of surprising candor in television, Marghanita Laski, one of our best-known secular humanists and novelists, said, “What I envy most about you Christians is your ...read more

Scripture: Luke 7:36-47, Mark 14:3-9

Tags: God's Forgiveness, God's Provision

Denomination: Baptist

Broken Branches!" Luke 6: 36-43 Key Verse(S): 36 ...  PRO

Contributed by Mark Brunner on Jun 28, 2004

“Broken Branches!” Luke 6: 36-43 Key verse(s): 36 “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.” Recently, one of the most severe storms in many years pounded our five little acres. It came out of the northwest embedded in dark, angry clouds. We saw it approaching in the twighlight and could hear ...read more

Scripture: Luke 6:36-43

Tags: Forgiveness For Others

Denomination: Lutheran

Questions For Mary  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 30, 2004

QUESTIONS FOR MARY Max Lucado has twenty-five questions that he wants to ask Mary the mother of Jesus, here are a few of my favorites. What was it like watching him pray? When he saw a rainbow, did he ever mention a flood? Did you ever feel awkward teaching him how he created the world? ...read more

Scripture: Luke 2:1-20

Tags: Divinity Of Christ, Annunciation, Mary, Mary Jesus Mother, People In The Gospel  (view more)  (view less)

The First One

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 30, 2004

THE FIRST ONE “Mary was the first person in the world to carry the Gospel.” SOURCE: Rodney Buchanan in ...read more

Scripture: Luke 2:1-20

Tags: People In The Gospel, Mary Jesus Mother

It's Hard Being...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 30, 2004

IT’S HARD BEING... Pastor Ben Patterson, tells the following story: My 5-year-old niece, Olivia, and her best friend, Claire, were participating in a nativity play at school. Claire was playing Mary, and Olivia was an angel. Before the show, a young boy was going around the dressing room ...read more

Scripture: Luke 2:1-20

Tags: Mary Jesus Mother, People In The Gospel, Humanity Of Christ

Do You Believe?  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 30, 2004

DO YOU BELIEVE? Americans are three times as likely to believe in the Virgin Birth of Jesus (83 percent) as in evolution (28 percent) Not only do 91 percent of [American] Christians say they believe in the Virgin Birth, but so do an astonishing 47 percent of U.S. ...read more

Scripture: Luke 2:2-20

Tags: Humanity Of Christ, People In The Gospel, Mary Jesus Mother

A Cow Gets Lost  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Sep 12, 2004

A COW GETS LOST Mike Yaconelli writes in The Wittenburg Door: I live in a small, rural community. There are lots of cattle ranches around here, and every once in a while a cow wanders off and gets lost.... Ask a rancher how a cow gets lost, and chances are he will reply, “Well, the cow starts ...read more

Scripture: Luke 8:4-15

Tags: Parable Lost Sheep

In Order Of Importance  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Sep 12, 2004

IN ORDER OF IMPORTANCE After months of working overtime as a financial analyst for a large corporation, I returned home one night at 12:30. As I crawled into bed, my wife awoke. "You’ve got to alphabetize," she commented. "What do you mean?" I ...read more

Scripture: Luke 8:4-15

Tags: Parable Sower And Seed, Idiot, Dumb, Come

Too Afraid To Plant  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Sep 12, 2004

TOO AFRAID TO PLANT A Georgia farmer, ragged and barefooted, was standing on the steps of his tumbledown shack. A stranger stopped for a drink of water and just to pass the time of day he asked: "How is your cotton coming along?" he asked. "Ain’t got none," replied the farmer. "Did you plant ...read more

Scripture: Luke 8:4-15

Tags: Parable Sower And Seed

The Four Soils: A Physical Illustration  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Sep 12, 2004

THE FOUR SOILS: A PHYSICAL ILLUSTRATION (The following physical illustration is taken from “Heno Head’s Simple Science Object Talks.” If you decide use it, take note that you need to carefully measure out how much baking soda you use, and how much vinegar you place in each jar. Since we have ...read more

Scripture: Luke 8:4-15

Tags: Parable Sower And Seed

Sowing The Seed: A Comparison  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Sep 12, 2004

SOWING THE SEED: A COMPARISON In the 13th Century, Nicolo Polo (father of Marco Polo) was visiting the court of the grandson of Ghengis Khan - Kublai Khan. Kublai Khan was the Emperor of China and he had never met Europeans before. He was delighted to meet this visitor from Venice AND he was ...read more

Scripture: Luke 8:4-15, Psalm 1:1, Numbers 1:11

Tags: Parable Sower And Seed, Happiness

Sin Separates. Sin Divides. Sin Brings Death To ...  PRO

Contributed by Clark Tanner on Sep 23, 2004

Sin separates. Sin divides. Sin brings death to relationships and destroys fellowship. God unites. God brings oneness and unity. On the day of Pentecost, God reversed the Babel process, and with one language from heaven, He demonstrated that all in Him will be sharers of one divine ...read more

Scripture: Luke 2:11

Tags: Gifts Tongues

Denomination: Orthodox

A Newspaper Held A Competition To Find Out How ...  PRO

Contributed by W F on Sep 27, 2004

A newspaper held a competition to find out how people would describe friendship. The winning answer was, “A friend is someone who’s walking in when everyone else is walking out.” You and I have a friend that will do that, a friend who will stick closer than a brother. Jesus said, “Surely I am ...read more

Scripture: Luke 10:38-42, Proverbs 18:24, Luke 24:13-35

Tags: Friendship New Friends, Friendship General

Denomination: *other

When Orville And Wilbur Wright Finally Succeeded ...  PRO

Contributed by Charles R. Swindoll on Sep 27, 2004

When Orville and Wilbur Wright finally succeeded in keeping their homemade airplane in the air for fifty-nine seconds on December 17, 1903, they rushed a telegram to their sister in Dayton, Ohio, telling of this great accomplishment. The telegram read, "First sustained flight today fifty-nine ...read more

Scripture: Luke 2:13-14

Tags: Communication General, Christmas, Isaiah

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Keep Asking, Keep Seeking, Keep Knocking  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Oct 11, 2004

KEEP ASKING, KEEP SEEKING, KEEP KNOCKING There is a progression in this persistence: asking, seeking and knocking. Now let’s consider their meaning, “asking means making a simple request. Seeking implies a stronger desire and a more definite kind of request. It is something that takes time. It ...read more

Scripture: Luke 11:5-13

Tags: Prayer Persistence, Parable General