In Sermon Illustrations: "Absent From The Body"

Not Much Help

Contributed by Richard Tow on Jul 18, 2017

In his Peanuts strip, Charles Schulz had an amazing talent for communicating truths like this in humorous, memorable ways. In one strip Charlie Brown rests his head in his hands while leaning on the wall and looking miserable. His friend, Lucy, approaches. “Discouraged again, eh, Charlie Brown?” ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 7:1-5

Tags: Criticism, Critical, Judging

Denomination: Charismatic

N.t. Wright Quote On Christian Artists

Contributed by Matthew Redder on Sep 21, 2018

I love this quote as I believe it is hard for the Christian artist to always understand their place in the church. Truth be told, artists have an incredible gift and responsibility in the community to illuminate the realities of the Word and of this life we live. Wright puts it well: "The ...read more

Scripture: Colossians 3:23, Exodus 35:35, Proverbs 22:29, Romans 12:2, Romans 12:6, 1 Timothy 4:14, Ephesians 2:10  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Christian Artist, Musician, Painter, Poet, Dancer, Music, Creator, Dance, Art, Creative, Artist  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Complaint Department

Contributed by Dr. Fred W. Penney on May 29, 2019

A gentleman decided to withdraw from society and its busyness. He joined a monastery and took a vow of silence.At the end of each year he could say two words. At the end of the first year of absolute silence, he met with his supervising monk and was given the opportunity to say two words. With ...read more

Scripture: James 3:1-12, James 1:19-21, James 1:26

Tags: Words, Complaining, Tongue

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Jesus Came For Others.

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Dec 21, 2020

Just as the Old Testament priest would take an innocent lamb and slaughter it on the alter for the sins of the nation of Israel, so Jesus came to offer Himself for the sins of the world. His entire reason for coming from Heaven to others was for "OTHERS" and not Himself. o He was born ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 5:21, Luke 19:10

Tags: Evangelism, Christmas, Sacrifice, Jesus, Birth Of Christ, Others, Unselfishness  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Judgement And Mercy - 2 Sides Of The Same Coin

Contributed by John Bright on Apr 27, 2021

Mercy and Judgement are two sides of the same coin – We often put different parts of God’s character (attributes) into conflict. If we declare God as merciful, can He still bring righteous judgement? Let me share an example to help you understand the connection between mercy and judgment. If you ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 25:31-46, Matthew 7:13-14

Tags: Mercy, Judgment, Attributes Of God

Denomination: Methodist

Missing The Point

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Aug 2, 2021

A minister decided that a visual demonstration would add emphasis to his Sunday sermon. Four worms were placed into four separate jars: The first worm was put into a container of alcohol. The second worm was put into a container of cigarette smoke. The third worm was put into a container of ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 11:23-26, 1 Corinthians 10:1-5

Tags: Error, Perspective, Failure, Interpretation, Conclusion, Misunderstanding  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Sin Changes You

Contributed by Glynda Lomax on Apr 21, 2022

I heard a quote many years ago that I believe is from a movie I do not recommend called 8mm. (it is about human trafficking or some other awful thing). The quote is so true: If you dance with the devil, the devil dont change. The devil changes YOU. We can see this principle illustrated so ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 5:8, 1 Peter 5:9

Tags: Temptation, Compromise, Sin

Denomination: Charismatic

The Power Of Unity

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 3, 2022

In one of Aesop's fables, he describes an old man who had several sons, who were always falling out with one another. He had often, but to no purpose, exhorted them to live together in harmony. One day he called them together, and he gathered a bundle of sticks and tied them together, and asked ...read more

Scripture: Ecclesiastes 4:12

Tags: Fellowship, Community, Small Groups

Why Peter Wanted To Walk On The Water

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Nov 7, 2022

Peter said to Jesus, "Command me to come to You on the water !" He wasn't getting out of the boat until the Lord called him to do that. Don't go and jump out of your boat and then expect a miracle from Jesus if He hasn't called you out of the boat in the first ...read more

Tags: Faith, Fear, Jesus, Obedience, Peter, Miracles, God's Voice  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

The Holy Spirit Had A Monopoly On Moody

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Nov 13, 2022

Dwight L. Moody was a shoe salesman from Chicago who fell in love with Jesus and started sharing his faith with everyone he met. Even though he was never ordained or had formal training, God used him to reach thousands for Christ as an evangelist. There was a group of British pastors who were ...read more

Tags: Holy Spirit, Preaching, Revival, Jealousy, Moody, Critical Spirit, Preachers  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Poor Short-Term Memory

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 31, 2022

A man was working in his backyard one day when his neighbor began talking to him over the fence. He said, “Yeah, my wife and I went to one of those seminars yesterday, you know, where they teach you ways to improve your memory and such.” His neighbor commented, “Really? What was the name of the ...read more

Scripture: Luke 22:19

Tags: Communion, Lord's Supper

A Bank Named Time - New Year's Illustration

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Jan 2, 2023

If you had a bank that credited your account each morning with $86,000 that carried over no balance from day to day...Allowed you to keep no cash in your account, and every evening cancelled whatever part of the amount you failed to use during the day, what would you do? Draw out every cent every ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 5:15-16

Tags: Forever, Tomorrow, Today, Yesterday, Time, Time Wasted, Time Manangement  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Cheating

Contributed by David Parks on Jan 23, 2023

Cheating now more common Once upon a time in a tiny French village, the townspeople decided to honor their parish priest by each bringing a bottle of wine the following Sunday for the pastor’s empty wine barrel. The pastor was delighted, and he asked all in attendance to join him for a glass of ...read more

Scripture: James 5:12, Matthew 5:37

Tags: Truth, Integrity, Honesty, Cheating, Lying  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

He Wrote Her A Letter Every Day

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Jul 13, 2023

A few years ago, the Harry S. Truman Library in Independence, MO made public 1,300 recently discovered letters that the late President wrote to his wife, Bess, over the course of a half-century. Mr. Truman had a lifelong rule of writing to his wife every day they were apart. He followed this rule ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 5:18-25, 1 John 4:7-13

Tags: Love, Marriage, Husband, Wife, Compassion, Leadership, Kindness, Lead By Example, Presidents  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Haman Is A Type Of The Antichrist

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Aug 28, 2023

Some Bible students have seen in Haman an illustration of the “man of sin”, or the Antichrist, who will one day appear and ruthlessly rule over humanity (2 Thess. 2; Rev. 13). Haman was given great authority from the king, and Satan will give great power to this wicked world ruler we call the ...read more

Tags: Esther, End Times, Man Of Sin, Prophecy, Second Coming, Antichrist, Rapture, Tribulation, Haman  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Reveal Your True Colors

Contributed by Wade Martin Hughes, Sr on Nov 10, 2023

TO SHOW YOUR TRUE COLORS DATES BACK TO THE 1700s. Ships were required to fly flags at sea. These flags would identify where the ship was from and the type of cargo. PIRATES OFTEN HID THEIR REAL IDENTY BY FLYING FALSE FLAGS. By doing doing this the PIRATES WOULD DECEIVE OTHER SHIPS TO NOT RAISE ...read more

Scripture: James 1:3

Tags: Faith, Flag

Denomination: Assembly Of God

If You Had A Bank That Gave You $86k Per Day....

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Mar 22, 2024

If you had a bank that credited your account each morning with $86,000 that carried over no balance from day to day...Allowed you to keep no cash in your account, and every evening cancelled whatever part of the amount you failed to use during the day, what would you do? Draw out every cent every ...read more

Tags: Time, Regret, Values, Death, Eternity, Life, Repentance  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Cost Of Giving In To Temptation

Contributed by Edward Hardee on Aug 14, 2024

Illustration: Cost of Giving in to Temptation There is a cost when we give into temptation. Here I have a sample of a wall. This is a wall of sheetrock. Looks good when painted. Most houses are made of this. What do you think would happen if I take this hammer and knock a hole in it? ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 10:13

Tags: Temptation, Character, Damage

Denomination: Church Of God

The Preacher's New Suit

Contributed by Loyd C. Taylor on Jun 24, 2025

The Preacher’s New Suit I was recently invited to preach for the Sunday morning service. Ice Breaker: For an introduction, I stated the following: I introduced myself and then shared the following. Hello, I'm LC Taylor and my wife is Kathy. My wife and I were discussing how honored we were ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 17:22

Tags: Suit, Icebreaker, Sermon Introductions, Ice Breaker, New Suit, Appearance, Humor, Laughter  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Baptist

The Goal Of Spiritual Gifts

Contributed by John Bright on Sep 24, 2025

Spiritual Gifts were documented in Class Meetings within the Wesleyan tradition. It was there that members shared their lives – the successes and the struggles. They would search the Scriptures for answers, and they would pray for each other. Those prayers included listening for a Word from the ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 4:10-11, 1 Corinthians 12:28

Tags: Small Groups, Class Meeting, Love, Spiritual Gifts

Denomination: Methodist