In Sermon Illustrations: "Becoming The Church"

When The Gospel Came To America

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Mar 4, 2014

Biblical Scholar, Dr. Richard Halverson, once said, “When the Greeks got the Gospel, they turned it into a philosophy; when the Romans got the Gospel, they turned it into a government. When the Europeans got the Gospel, they turned it into a culture........ and when ...read more

Scripture: Romans 1:15-16

Tags: Church, America, Gospel

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Stephen King On Religion

Contributed by Davon Huss on May 7, 2014

Horror writer Stephen King says this: "Organized religion ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 23:1-36

Tags: Religion, Church Community

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

The Relationship We Share

Contributed by Davon Huss on Jun 2, 2014

While many people hunger for family closeness, we often miss the opportunities that stand immediately before us. Tammy Harris of Roanoke, Virginia, began searching for her biological mother when she turned 21. A year of searching proved fruitless. Tammy did not realize, however, that her ...read more

Scripture: Mark 3:34-35

Tags: Family, Church Family

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Sow Indiscriminately

Contributed by I. Grant Spong on Jul 15, 2017

In the Parable of the Sower (Matthew 13) Jesus spoke of the kingdom of heaven being like an indiscriminate sower. This contradicts theories surrounding church growth of targeting certain statistically measurable demographics. There is no such target audience in this parable. The seed of the kingdom ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 13:1-23

Tags: Sower, Church Growth

Denomination: Baptist

Lego Theology

Contributed by Davon Huss on Nov 23, 2019

Matt Proctor- Several years ago, two of my nephews accompanied their mom on a visit to a friend’s house. Ben was 8, Brian was 6. Their mother’s friend was a very neat lady- a place for everything and everything in its place. Though childless, she did have a few toys and handed Ben and Brian a ...read more

Tags: Church, Relationships, Synergy

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Eat Twinkies Together

Contributed by Davon Huss on Nov 23, 2019

A Harvard study of 7,000 people found that the most isolated people were 3 times more likely to die than those with strong relationships. Reporting on the study, John Ortberg writes that “people who had bad health habits (such as smoking, poor eating habits, or alcohol use) but strong social ties ...read more

Scripture: Romans 12:15

Tags: Church, Relationships, Synergy

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

The Power Of Singing

Contributed by Dr. Fred W. Penney on May 14, 2020

Its been observed that Singing Together Shapes Community. ***Songs are one way that a community has its identity and one way that individuals find their identity within a community. (therefore old songs –passed on to the next generation- help create community bonds) Baseball has a song – during ...read more

Scripture: Romans 12:1-2

Tags: Community, Church, Worship

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Facts About Persecution Of Christians

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Aug 18, 2020

FACTS ABOUT PERSECUTION OF CHRISTIANS: * More Christians were martyred in the 20th century than in all other centuries combined. * Currently over 200 million Christians are being persecuted worldwide. * 70 percent of the world's population lives in a religiously intolerant environment. * Every ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:1-12

Tags: Church, Persecution, Beatitudes

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

The Theology Of Sin - The Chasm Between God And Mankind.

Contributed by Dr. Fred W. Penney on Dec 11, 2024

Without a sense of sin, says Soren Kierkegaard, there is no true Christianity ..."Take away the alarmed conscience and you may close the churches and ...read more

Scripture: Romans 3:23, Romans 6:1-2

Tags: Church, Sin, Repentance

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Flawed Individuals On A Rescue Mission  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Sep 2, 2008

FLAWED INDIVIDUALS ON A RESCUE MISSION The author of the book entitled, "The Word and Power Church: What Happens When A Church Seeks All God Has to Offer," Doug Banister, writes, "The Spring of 1940 found Hitler’s panzer divisions mopping up French troops and preparing for a seige of Great ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 3:7-12

Tags: Church Body Of Christ

All For The Loss Of One Nail

Contributed by Brian Harvison on Sep 12, 2008

All for the Loss of One Nail During a battle many years ago a soldier was sent to deliver a message to the king. The soldier's horse lost a nail in one of the shoes. With that one nail gone, the shoe eventually fell off. The horse eventually went lame, and the soldier was forced to walk. The enemy ...read more

Tags: Church Body Of Christ

Denomination: Baptist

Just Enough Strength To Make It Go

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 11, 2008

JUST ENOUGH STRENGTH TO MAKE IT GO "One hot day, Herman Trueblood, all clean and cooled off by a nice swim in the ocean, saw a sweating man and his two sons trying on a hot day to push a disabled car up an incline. Two voices started yelling at each other inside him. One said, "There is an ...read more

Tags: Church Body Of Christ

Franklin Clark Fry Once Said, "A Person Who Says ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 12, 2008

Franklin Clark Fry once said, "A person who says he believes in God but never goes to church is like a person who says he believes in education but never goes to school." So, if you call yourself a Christian, commit yourself to a local, ...read more

Tags: Church Body Of Christ

Responsibility Comes With The Gift

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 16, 2008

RESPONSIBILITY COMES WITH THE GIFT As Clayton J. Schmit put it in his commentary on our text: The moment of birth is one of unspeakable joy. Yet, if parents stopped to count the cost of taking a child home (which, fortunately, they never do) they might be tempted to turn the gift down. The cost ...read more

Tags: Church Body Of Christ

As We Read This Text, According To Dr. Schmit, ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 16, 2008

As we read this text, according to Dr. Schmit, and I quote, "We know that we too are individual members of a large flock of faithful disciples who seek to live as citizens of the kingdom of heaven. In other words, the work we do is never ours alone to accomplish. We do our part and trust that God ...read more

Tags: Church Body Of Christ

In A Poem Attributed To Archbishop Oscar Romero, ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 16, 2008

In a poem attributed to Archbishop Oscar Romero, entitled "Prophets of a Future Not Our Own," he states: "It helps, now and then, to step back and take the long view. We accomplish in our lifetime only a tiny fraction of the magnificent enterprise that is God's work. Nothing we do is complete, ...read more

Tags: Church Body Of Christ

Franklin Clark Fry Once Said, "A Person Who Says ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 28, 2008

Franklin Clark Fry once said, "A person who says he believes in God but never goes to church is like a person who says he believes in education but never goes to school." So, if you call yourself a Christian, commit yourself to a local, ...read more

Tags: Church Body Of Christ

Moving The Fence

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 13, 2009

MOVING THE FENCE Millard Erickson wrote, "The church is the repository of grace...it possesses the gospel, the good news of salvation" During World War II, some American soldiers took the body of their buddy to a local cemetery. The priest stopped them saying, "You can't bury your friend here if ...read more

Tags: Church Body Of Christ

Don't Just Count Them, Look Them In The Eye

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 28, 2009

DON’T JUST COUNT THEM, LOOK THEM IN THE EYE An item in Leadership magazine illustrates the importance of giving attention to needs, not just to numbers. "During World War II, economist E.F. Schumacher, then a young statistician, worked on a farm. Each day he would count the 32 head of cattle, then ...read more

Tags: Church Body Of Christ

An Outstretched Hand

Contributed by Bruce Howell on Feb 9, 2009

AN OUTSTRETCHED HAND In Stockholm, Sweden, a woman was injured as she rushed to catch a streetcar. She stumbled in front of the moving car and was caught beneath it. The police sent for a crane to lift the car off her body. While waiting for the crane a crowd of people gathered out of curiosity. ...read more

Tags: Church Body Of Christ

Denomination: Wesleyan