In Sermon Illustrations: "Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21"

Carpe Diem." Seize The Day. Make The Most Of ...  PRO

Contributed by David Flowers on May 4, 2005

“Carpe Diem.” Seize the day. Make the most of every opportunity. Seize – the day. Notice the phrase is not “with utmost care and caution, after you have worked out the cost/benefit analysis and determined that there is no logical reason why all systems should not be go, and have assured ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 25:14-30

Tags: Giving Yourself

Denomination: Free Methodist

Suppose Two Women Were Planting A Vegetable ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 21, 2005

Suppose two women were planting a vegetable garden. On the same day, they prepared the earth and planted their seeds. One then neglected her garden and waited for her vegetables to grow. The other woman worked in her garden regularly. She put cages around the young tomato plants, she drove in ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 7:24-27

Tags: Jesus, Midst

Love Does Not Seek Its Own, But Hurt People ...

Contributed by Greg Yount on Jul 30, 2005

Love does not seek its own, but hurt people become more and more self-seeking and self-contained. In this climate the love of God waxes cold. A natural example of this is the two seas in the Holy Land. The Sea of Galilee freely receives and gives out water. It has an abundance of life, nurturing ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 24:1-12

Tags: Unconditional Love

Denomination: Baptist

Got My Life, Got My Jesus! (09.07.05--The ...  PRO

Contributed by Mark Brunner on Sep 6, 2005

Got My Life, Got My Jesus! (09.07.05--The Temporal Things!--Matthew 5:3) In order to have all things, you must forsake all things. Tell that to those struggling with forsakeness in flood-ravaged New Orleans or storm-crushed Gulfport this morning! My guess is that few if any would understand the ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:3

Tags: Basics Of Christianity

Denomination: Lutheran

The Most Toys? (09.08.05--The Temporal ...  PRO

Contributed by Mark Brunner on Sep 6, 2005

The Most Toys? (09.08.05--The Temporal Things!--Matthew 16:26) The world teaches this--You can never have too much of a good thing! We must always have enough or we are being somehow cheated of that which we truly deserve. If one were to ever wonder why we live in such a greedy world, this tenet, ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 16:26

Tags: Finding Fulfillment

Denomination: Lutheran

This Story Comes From P131-133 Of The The Lion, ...  PRO

Contributed by Pat Cook on Sep 14, 2005

This story comes from p131-133 of the The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe in The Chronicles of Narnia series. Peter, the great king, has just slain the evil wolf general Maugrim. Aslan tells him he has blood on his sword. Peter looks down and sees that t is true. He bends down and wipes the blood ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 18:21-35

Denomination: Baptist

But It's More Like The Student In School Who Was ...  PRO

Contributed by Pat Cook on Oct 7, 2005

But it’s more like the student in school who was asked to write a paper called, "What I’m thankful for on Thanksgiving." This one student wrote, "I’m thankful that I’m not a turkey." He had nothing to do with it, but he was still thankful what God had done. Listen: you are who you are today, not ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 6:25-33

Tags: Peace, Anxiety, Thanksgiving Holiday, Thanks, Thanksgiving  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Baptist

They Kingdom Come" Means "I Am Willing To ...

Contributed by Jeff Simms on Oct 9, 2005

“They kingdom come” means “I am willing to surrender everything I possess in order to possess God. God demands our all or our nothing at ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 6:9

Tags: Lord's Prayer

Denomination: Baptist

Making God-Hugs Possible! ...  PRO

Contributed by Mark Brunner on Oct 10, 2005

Making God-Hugs Possible! (10.12.05--Sacrifice!--Matthew 19:21) Does God place limits on how far He wants us to go when it comes to committing to His will? If His will is our sacrifice, can there be any limits? Is our God reasonable when it comes to our ability to forbear or to bear? God, of ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 19:21

Tags: Hardship Of Life

Denomination: Lutheran

I Read One Time About How Shipbuilders Back In ...  PRO

Contributed by Brian La Croix on Oct 15, 2005

I read one time about how shipbuilders back in the days of sailboats would prepare the masts for their ships. They would go to the forest and find an appropriate tree, then they would clear out all the surrounding trees and leave that one standing, leaving it exposed to the wind and storms. As ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 8:23-27

Tags: God In The Hardships

Denomination: Wesleyan

Somewhere I Read The Story Of A Family With A ...  PRO

Contributed by Jelle Horjus on Nov 1, 2005

Somewhere I read the story of a family with a small boy, his parents and his grandfather. It happened that every evening when the family was having dinner at the table, the old grandfather spilled the food on his clothes. He was old, his hands were trembling and he could not move the spoon to his ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 25:35-45

Tags: Mercy, Judgment, Forgiveness For Others, Forgiveness, Compassion  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Baptist

Strong Emotions

Contributed by Mark Brunner on Nov 16, 2005

There is nothing wrong with strong emotions; even those that center squarely upon ourselves. Witness the story of missionary Adoniram Judson. He sweated out Burma’s heat for 18 years without a furlough, six years without a convert. Enduring torture and imprisonment, he admitted that he never saw a ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 10:38

Tags: Prayer Persistence

Denomination: Lutheran

Time Check  PRO

Contributed by Mark Brunner on Nov 21, 2005

Sometimes finding the right path depends greatly on friends that you have in high places. An airline pilot flying over the southeastern U.S. called the local tower and said, “We are passing over at 35,000--give us a time check.” The tower said, “What airline are you?” “What difference does it ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 16:23

Tags: Dealing With Conflicts

Denomination: Lutheran

Jesus Was Crucified, Not In A Cathedral Between ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 20, 2005

Jesus was crucified, not in a cathedral between two candles, but on a cross between two thieves. - George F. MacLeod The cross cannot be defeated, for it is defeat. - Gilbert K. Chesterton There are no crown-wearers in heaven who were not cross-bearers here below. - Charles Haddon Spurgeon We ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 28:5

Tags: Lordship Of Christ

National Religious Broadcasters Has Written To ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 10, 2006

National Religious Broadcasters has written to its 1,200 members decrying a recent FCC ruling that allows the federal agency to influence religious programming content. The ruling states, programming “primarily devoted to religious exhortation, proselytizing or statements of personally held ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 20:29-34

Tags: Character

For The Love Of Work  PRO

Contributed by Mark Brunner on Jan 18, 2006

The story goes that when the company founded by Andrew Carnegie was taken over by the U.S. Steel Corporation in 1901 it acquired as one of its obligations a contract to pay the top Carnegie executive, Charles M. Schwab, the then unheard of minimum sum of $1,000,000. J.P. Morgan of U.S. Steel was in ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 25:21

Tags: Workplace

Denomination: Lutheran

When I Was In Kalkaska Mi, Working As A ...  PRO

Contributed by Bob Soulliere on Mar 10, 2006

When I was in Kalkaska Mi, working as a volunteer fireman, we once went to help someone who had fallen through the ice. When we got there he had already been rescued by some bystanders. What happened was he wandered to far out on unsafe ice, not knowing that there was an underground spring feeding ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 28:18-20

Tags: Evangelism Fear Of

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Charles Swindoll Gives Us Some Interesting Advice ...  PRO

Contributed by Michael Mccartney on Mar 21, 2006

Charles Swindoll gives us some interesting advice when he states: When you live in darkness, you not only have no ray of light, you don’t even know where home is. That is the way it is for the majority in the world. Some folks are born, raised, and die in cultures that have never seen their first ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:14-16

Tags: Basics Of Christianity

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

No Treachery Is Worse Than Betrayal By A Family ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 10, 2006

No treachery is worse than betrayal by a family member or friend. Julius Caesar knew such treachery. Among the conspirators who assassinated the Roman leader on March 15, 44 was Marcus Junius Brutus. Caesar not only trusted Brutus, he had favored him as a son. According to Roman historians, ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 26:14-55

Tags: Crucifixion

In His Book, Science Speaks, Peter Stoner Applies ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 17, 2006

In his book, Science Speaks, Peter Stoner applies the modern science of probability to just eight prophecies regarding Christ. He says, "The chance that any man might have ...fulfilled all eight prophecies is one in 10 to the 17th. That would be 1 in 100,000,000,000,000,000." (one hundred ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 2:1-2

Tags: Christmas