Fall 2024 Preaching Plan
New Sermon Series Now Available
Everything you need for your next series
AI Sermon Generator
Generate sermon ideas with a safe, secure tool for solid preaching.
Biblical Sermon Calendar
Customizable sermon manuscripts for verse-by-verse preaching
Sermon Research Assistant
Free custom sermon in 5-10 minutes!
Topical Sermon Calendar
Preach with creativity and impact throughout the year
I Desire Mercy Not Sacrifice
Experiencing the mercy of God in our lives
Ready & Faithful
Looking to Jesus for help now and hope in the future
Why Suffering?
Help your church understand God's plan in pain
COST OF DISCIPLESHIP I recently read the true story about a preacher who was standing at the door shaking hands as the congregation departed. He grabbed one man by the hand and pulled him aside. The preacher said to him, "You need to join the Army of the Lord!" The man replied, "I’m already in the ...read more
Scripture: Matthew 16:24-25
Tags: Discipleship, Follow, Deny, Gross
MISUNDERSTOOD It's easy to be misunderstood. Misunderstanding happens all the time. It is very, very easy to be misunderstood. One way to be misunderstood is to be vague and hazy. Just mumble under your breath and utter ambiguities, and I guarantee that you will be misunderstood. Some of you are ...read more
Scripture: Matthew 11:2-19
Tags: Communication Speech
All Roads Lead to Heaven, Travel Agent Max Lucado in a video program based on his book 3:16 Stories of Hope, has a wonderful lesson on the oft heard statement, "All roads lead to heaven". He then gives us an imaginary discussion with a travel agent. " You tell him you need a flight to Rome, Italy. ...read more
Scripture: Matthew 7:21-23
Tags: Universalism
Hurricane Katrina--FEMA Leadership Failure On August 31, 2005, FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) regional director Marty Bahamonde emailed the FEMA director regarding the situation in New Orleans immediately following Hurricane Katrina. Bahamonde wrote: “Sir, I know that you know the ...read more
Scripture: Matthew 9:36-38
Tags: Compassion
Prayer for Compassion Then we can pray a prayer like David Mains prayed years ago. He was once pastor of the Circle Urban Church, an inner city church in Chicago, and one day, in the course of his ministry among such great need, he prayed, “Lord, let me see the world as you see it, and break my ...read more
A MOVEMENT TO JESUS WITHIN ISLAM In an article entitled, "A Movement to Jesus Within Islam" this story is told: There was a Muslim holy man, a Sufi master, named Isaac. He lived in a remote region of a Muslim country, where he had a large following. Several thousand people looked to him for ...read more
Scripture: Matthew 28:18-20
Tags: Islam
KEEP THE LOWER LIGHTS BURNING We must live as children of the light, not as children of the darkness. If we are dark and sorrowful, how is the world to know that we are children of peace, and joy, and gladness? Our determination must be to keep our lights burning. A few years ago, at the mouth of ...read more
Scripture: Matthew 5:16
Tags: Christian Witness
THE OLD JUDGE CONVERTED I remember, as I was coming out of the daily prayer meeting in one of our American cities a few years ago, a lady said she wished to speak to me; her voice trembled with emotion, and I saw at once that she was heavily burdened by something or other. She said she had long ...read more
CHRIST'S PRESENCE: A FACT, NOT A PROMISE Dr. G. Campbell Morgan told about an experience in his early Christian life. He would visit several ladies once a week to read the Bible to them. When he came to the end of Matthews Gospel, Morgan read, "Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the ...read more
Tags: Great Commission
Christians Give In Too Easily to the Devil in Spiritual Warfare In his book Fuzzy Memories, Jack Handey writes: There used to be this bully who would demand my lunch money every day. Since I was smaller, I would give it to him. Then I decided to fight back. I started taking karate lessons. But then ...read more
Scripture: Matthew 8:28-34
Tags: Spiritual Warfare, War
Supernatural Realities Ignored by Current Culture Francis MacNutt quotes theologian Walter Wink in his book “Deliverance from Evil Spirits" and writes: "...if you want to bring all talk to a halt in shocked embarrassment, every eye riveted on you, try mentioning angels, or demons or the devil. You ...read more
Tags: Supernatural
The Battle is Over Theologians tell a story to illustrate how Christ’s triumph presently benefits our lives: Imagine a city under siege. The enemy that surrounds the city will not let anyone or anything leave. Supplies are running low, and the citizens are fearful. But in the dark of the night, a ...read more
Man from Slums of N.Y. Converted and Ordained by Jim Cymbala Jim Cymbala preaches at a church in the slums of New York. He tells the following story: It was Easter Sunday and I was so tired at the end of the day that I just went to the edge of the platform, pulled down my tie and sat down and ...read more
Scripture: Matthew 9:10-13
Brother of John Wilkes Booth, Edwin Booth, Saves Abraham Lincoln’s Son The story is told of two brothers. One of them would carry a letter to the grave that could have set the record straight, but I will tell you about that later. There was a man whose name was Edwin Thomas, a master of the stage ...read more
Scripture: Matthew 12:11-12
Tags: Heroism
I'D RATHER HAVE YOU A father and his young daughter were great friends and much in each other's company. Then the father noted a change in his daughter. If he went for a walk, she excused herself from going. He grieved about it, but could not understand. When his birthday came, she presented him ...read more
Scripture: Matthew 11:28-30
Tags: Family
Persecution in Uganda, Story of Kefa Sempangi Kefa Sempangi (whose story is told in the book A Distant Grief, Regal Books) was a national pastor in Africa and barely escaped with his family from brutal oppression and terror in his home country of Uganda. They made their way to Philadelphia, where ...read more
Scripture: Matthew 10:16-24
Tags: Persecution
Time Magazine on the Benefits of Religion Some time ago, Time Magazine ran an article that reported on the benefits of religion and the church, and some of the observations included: 1. Heart-surgery patients who draw comfort from their religious faith have a significantly higher survival rate than ...read more
Scripture: Matthew 9:1-8
Tags: Religion
Osceola McCarty, African-American Philanthropist The late great African-American laundry woman, author, and philanthropist, Osceola McCarty (1908 - 1999), did one thing all of her life: laundry! For decades, Osceola, a frugal Christian woman who never bought a car - who never got married - who ...read more
Scripture: Matthew 26:6-13
Tags: Giving General
LOVE GIVES TO THE LIMIT The late great Scots Church of Scotland theologian, educator, author, and radio and television presenter, William Barclay (1907 - 1978), once said, "Love never calculates; love never thinks how little it can decently give; love’s one desire is to give to the uttermost ...read more
Hypocrites Do Things for the Show During my childhood - as I was growing up - anything "modern" was considered good! Whatever the current fad was, it was something that I wanted to have - and, I was convinced, like everyone else, that the new item was better - even when it came to "modern food;" if ...read more
Scripture: Matthew 6:1-5
Tags: Hypocrisy
Sermon Central