In Sermon Illustrations: "1 Peter 4:1-1:3"

Never Give Up  PRO

Contributed by Mark Stepherson on Oct 27, 2011

NEVER GIVE UP Have you seen that cartoon with the pelican having a frog for dinner? His dinner is not agreeing with him. The frog’s head, shoulders, and most of his body are in the pelican’s beak. His back legs are outside, kicking for all they’re worth. His front legs stick out from both sides ...read more

Scripture: Luke 18:1-8, 1 Peter 1:6-7, Luke 11:5-13

Tags: Perseverance, Prayer, Prayer Persistence

Denomination: Baptist

Don't Quit

Contributed by Richard Tow on Jul 18, 2017

Ignace Jan Paderewski, the famous pianist, was scheduled to perform at a great concert hall in America. It was a high-society extravaganza. Present in the audience that evening was a mother and her fidgety nine-year old. She had brought him in the hopes that when he heard the great composer play, ...read more

Scripture: Genesis 18:9-15, 1 Peter 4:12, Hebrews 11:11

Tags: Discouragement, Disappointment, Perseverance

Denomination: Charismatic

Adoption: We Want This Child!

Contributed by Ron Freeman, Evangelist on Jan 11, 2018

A young couple visited a boarding care home which housed children for adoption. The care taker brought out all the children who were clean (recently bathed), well dressed, properly schooled in manners; for this couple’s inspection and selection. As they passed down the line and spoke to each child, ...read more

Scripture: Romans 8:15-17, Galatians 4:4-7, 1 Peter 1:3-5

Tags: Blessings Of God, Adoption, Eternal Life, Children Of God, Heirs In Christ, Love And Hope  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Satanic Duplications

Contributed by Dr. Ronald Shultz on Jul 29, 2020

A cartoon when I was a kid showed a group of aliens called Meeks who came to earth and said they only existed to serve others and wanted to give everyone the desires of their heart. The world voted to allow them to do it and everyone only had to ask and it was done. With no work to do humans ...read more

Scripture: Jeremiah 17:9, Proverbs 16:25, 1 Peter 5:8

Tags: Lion, Deception, Satan, Lies

Denomination: Baptist

Dealing With Stress

Contributed by Richard Tow on Oct 19, 2020

When I was a kid, we raised chicken for our food. At first, we only had a few in a large pen. It was a fairly natural environment for them with lots of grass to scratch around in for insects and seeds. Those chickens were very healthy in that environment. Then we dramatically increased their ...read more

Scripture: Philippians 4:6, Jeremiah 2:13, 1 Peter 5:7

Tags: Healing, Sin, Addiction, Habits

Denomination: Charismatic

Dogs Are Our Link To Paradise.

Contributed by Roy Fowler on Nov 4, 2020

“Dogs are our link to paradise. They don't know evil or jealousy or discontent. To sit with a dog on a hillside on a glorious afternoon is to be back in Eden, where ...read more

Scripture: John 14:27, 1 Peter 5:8, Ephesians 6:10-20

Tags: Love, Calm, Endurance Of Being Ignored

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Tests Of True Humility

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Dec 8, 2020

Tests of True Humility - this is "tricky" 1. Do you feel joy when others are honored? 2. Do you honestly and openly admit sin? 3. Do you seek truth from others regarding your weaknesses? 4. Do you accept criticism graciously? 5. Do you turn all worry, anxiety and concern over to the ...read more

Scripture: 2 Timothy 3:1-3, 1 Peter 5:5-11

Tags: Godliness, Humility, Honesty, Brokenness

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

A Great Testimony Of Salvation

Contributed by Rick Crandall on Apr 20, 2021

A Great Testimony of Salvation *William MacKay had a great testimony about how God rewrote the story of his life. In the mid-1800s, as a teenager in Scotland, William left home to go to college. *His mother was greatly concerned about his spiritual life, so she gave him a Bible and printed a ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 1:23-25, Romans 1:15-17, Romans 10:8-15

Tags: Salvation, Gospel Power, God's Work, The Bible, Christian Testimonies, William Mackay, Revive Us Again  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Baptist

The Cost Of Redemption - Hosea Buys Back Gomer

Contributed by Martin Spoelstra on Feb 27, 2022

One man started the bidding: “12 pieces of silver!” “13!” Said Hosea. “14 pieces of silver!” Hosea’s bid was “15!” The low bidders were beginning to drop out, but one man continued bidding: “15 pieces of silver and five bushels of barley!” Hosea said, “15 pieces of silver, 5 bushels of barley and a ...read more

Scripture: Hosea 3:1-5, 1 Peter 1:18-19, Romans 8:38

Tags: Hosea, Redemption, Covenant Love

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Blind Man Learned To Read Bible With Tongue

Contributed by Rick Crandall on Jun 28, 2008

A man in Kansas City was severely injured in an explosion. The victim’s face was badly disfigured, and he lost his eyesight as well as both hands. He was just a new Christian, and one of his greatest disappointments was that he could no longer read the Bible. Then he heard about a lady in ...read more

Scripture: John 15:1-8, Proverbs 3:1-10, 1 Peter 2:1-3

Tags: Bible Study, Bible Influence

Denomination: Baptist

Caterpillar Ugly, Butterfly Beautiful  PRO

Contributed by Terry Laughlin on Aug 11, 2008

Caterpillar Ugly, Butterfly Beautiful It is a well-known fact that a caterpillar changes into a butterfly. The butterfly can truthfully say as he looks at the caterpillar, "Such was I, but now I am changed." Every Christian has once been a sinner, living for self and the momentary pleasures ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 5:17, 1 Peter 4:7-11

Tags: Resurrection, Salvation, New Life, Born Again, Christian Witness  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Ten Rules For Improving The Church

Contributed by David Parks on Jun 3, 2022

TEN RULES FOR IMPROVING THE CHURCH 1. Tell yourself over and over that since you are not perfect you would not fit into a perfect congregation, if one existed. 2. Instead of picking out the worldly members to point to, pick out the sincere, dedicated, spiritual members and thank God for them. You ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 6:1-2, 1 Peter 4:8, Matthew 7:1-5

Tags: Church, Encouragement, Judgementalism

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

God's Preservation Of His People Through Two Dreams

Contributed by Richard Tow on Aug 1, 2022

The amazing story is told by the historian Josephus.xxxviii When Alexander began his campaign against Phoenicia, he sent messengers to Juddua, the high priest in Jerusalem, “demanding aid from the Jews and the payment of the tribute which they used to pay to the King of Persia.”xxxix Not wanting to ...read more

Scripture: Zechariah 9:1-8, Romans 8:28, 1 Peter 5:7

Tags: Faith, Protection, Jerusalem, Obedience, Favor, Deliverance, Dream, Alexander The Great  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Charismatic

Redemption Through His Blood - Yellow Fever Story

Contributed by J Jeffrey Smead on Mar 3, 2023

There is a story...that may help Illustrate redemption...what Christ ...has done for us. In 1927, ...in West Africa... a blood specimen was taken from a native man named Asibi, ...who was sick ...with yellow fever. A vaccine ...was made ...from this original strain of the virus... obtained from ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 1:7, 1 Peter 1:18, Hebrews 9:22

Tags: Blood, Salvation, Redemption

Denomination: Anglican

Prayer Check-In

Contributed by John Bright on Feb 16, 2025

A simple “check-in” to see where a person is in their prayer life: • For everybody – what are you praying for? Too often, we pray for the circumstances (E) to change when the Response is what needs to change so this is the right prayer – “Lord, change me.” James 4:3 • For everybody – do you ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 3:7, James 4:3, James 5:16

Tags: Husband, Wife, Prayer

Denomination: Methodist

[059]. A Message From A Poem – Distressful Times Will Come Upon Us

Contributed by Ron Ferguson on Mar 13, 2025

[059]. A MESSAGE FROM A POEM – DISTRESSFUL TIMES WILL COME UPON US Are you battling in life because of some problem that won’t go away? Are you weighed down by a stressful matter and can’t shake it? Does your life feel like it is starting to come apart? Do you feel the storms are thundering ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 28:20, 1 Peter 5:7, Matthew 11:28-30

Tags: Anxiety, Anxious, Distress, Cast, Heavy Laden, I Am With You Always, Stressful, Stressful Living  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

[209]. A Message From A Poem – Our Pilgrim Journey Home

Contributed by Ron Ferguson on Sep 23, 2025

[209]. A MESSAGE FROM A POEM – OUR PILGRIM JOURNEY HOME Here is an explanation – The title of this poem expresses the walk and life of a Christian who lives for a short time in this world and then is called home. There is a slight touch of Bunyan’s Pilgrim Progress here. The KJV is the only ...read more

Scripture: Philippians 1:20-21, Hebrews 11:13, 1 Peter 2:11

Tags: Sojourners, To Live Is Christ, Aliens, Light, Journey, Opposition, Crowd, Strangers, Pilgrims  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Tending Your ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 1, 2010

Tending Your Garden Suppose 2 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, ...read more

Scripture: 2 Peter 1:5-9

Tags: Disciplines General

Evidence For The Resurrection Is Reliable And True

Contributed by Timothy Lueking on Apr 3, 2023

It was the middle of the 1800s and a man by the name of Simon Greenleaf was teaching a class on evidence of law at Harvard University. Greenleaf was considered by many to be the greatest expert on evidence of law the world has ever known. He had been praised for his knowledge and when it comes to ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 15:3-8, 1 Corinthians 15:12-20, Matthew 28:1-10, 1 Peter 1:3

Tags: Reliability Of Truth, Jesus The Risen Savior, Easter, Resurrection, Evidence  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

What's Wrong With Slandering Someone?

Contributed by Rev. Matthew Parker on Aug 29, 2014

I was speaking with someone this past week who has spent a great deal of his life travelling around the world, much of it for a mission agency. He spoke of a time when he visited an extremely remote, forested part of India where people live very primitively. He stayed there for a while. This fellow ...read more

Scripture: 2 Peter 1:5-7, 2 Peter 1:5

Tags: Godly Character, Transparency

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational