In Sermon Illustrations: "Called Out"

A Little Girl's Trust

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 9, 2011

A LITTLE GIRL'S TRUST It's a lesson we need to learn, as well. Our true security comes from God and God alone, so we must learn to trust Him. Don't trust in a lie. Don't trust in an idol. Trust in the Lord. Then and only then will you be truly secure. Five-year-old Jessica became a bit ...read more

Scripture: Jeremiah 30:1-24

Tags: Trust

The Mayor's Martyr Maid

Contributed by Curry Pikkaart on Jun 3, 2011

THE MAYOR'S MARTYR MAID "I found one!" The inquisitor held up a Bible and hollered out, "Bring in the mayor and his family. Someone is studying the Bible in this house!" In the 16th century, Philip II sent the Duke of Alba to Flanders to stamp out the Protestants who insisted on reading the ...read more

Tags: Commitment To Christ

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Forgiveness: Like A Bell Tolling

Contributed by Alison Bucklin on Jun 18, 2011

FORGIVENESS: LIKE A BELL TOLLING Corrie ten Boom once told of being able to forget a wrong that had been done to her. She had forgiven the person, but she kept rehashing the incident and so couldn’t sleep. Finally, she cried out to God for help in putting the problem to rest. She wrote this about ...read more

Tags: Forgiveness General

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

The Beautiful Sounds Of The Stradivarius

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 11, 2011

THE BEAUTIFUL SOUNDS OF THE STRADIVARIUS Years ago, there was a master violinist in Europe. He would play in concerts, and he had a magnificent Stradivarius violin, extremely expensive. He would play the Stradivarius violin in concert and everyone would whisper in the crowd, "Listen to the ...read more

Scripture: Isaiah 38:20, Isaiah 38:1-8

Tags: Born Again

Greed: The Cat And The Vase  PRO

Contributed by Josh Hunt on Feb 9, 2012

GREED: THE CAT AND THE VASE A man wanders into a small antique shop in San Francisco. Mostly it's cluttered with knickknacks and junk. On the floor, however, he notices what looks like an ancient Chinese vase. On closer inspection it turns out to be a priceless relic from the Ming dynasty whose ...read more

Scripture: Luke 12:15, Luke 14:7-14, Luke 14:1-6, 2 Timothy 2:8-15, Daniel 6:1-28, Luke 10:38-42, Romans 6:1-4, Isaiah 7:10-14, Matthew 1:18-25, Luke 10:1-11, 1 Samuel 12:1-41, John 20:18-31, 2 Thessalonians 6:1-10  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Greed

Denomination: Baptist

Forced To Kill  PRO

Contributed by Davon Huss on Jul 1, 2013

FORCED TO KILL Around the time of the Korean War, Kim Joon-gon had seen 2,000 out of 20,000 people on Chunnam Island murdered by the Communists. They dragged he and his family outside their village where Kim’s father and wife were beaten to death and Kim was left for dead. When he revived and ...read more

Scripture: Romans 12:17-21, Matthew 5:7

Tags: Mercy, Salvation, Revenge, Vengeance

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

The Hilarious Baptism Experience!

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Mar 2, 2014

I remember the time I came to the platform to officiate in a formal wedding. I had just come out of the bathroom and didn't realize until I was in front of all those people that stuck to my shoe and trailing behind was an eight-foot stream of toilet paper I remember the time I looked down in ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 28:19-20

Tags: Baptism, Easter, Humor, Pastors

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

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

Trapped By Temptation

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Dec 2, 2020

A well-known author once told this story of an account he had with sea gulls: “Several years ago our family visited Niagara Falls. It was spring, and ice was rushing down the river. As I viewed the large blocks of ice flowing toward the falls, I could see that there were dead fish embedded in the ...read more

Scripture: Colossians 3:1-4, Hebrews 12:1-2, Matthew 6:33

Tags: Vision, Temptation, Compromise, Worldliness, Things Of Earth  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Wrong Way Roy Riegels

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Nov 13, 2022

In the 1929 Rose Bowl, Georgia Tech was playing the University of California when the ball popped out of the hands of a Georgia Tech back. Roy Riegels, the University of California center, scooped it up and cut across the field. Then, finding himself hemmed in, he reversed his field. It was at this ...read more

Tags: Grace, Repent, Legalism, False Teaching, Football, Sermon Introduction  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Do You Have This Much Self Control?

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Feb 27, 2023

I heard a funny story about a stunt pilot who was selling rides in his single engine airplane. One day he got into an argument with a pastor who insisted on taking his wife along at no extra charge. Not wanting to miss out on a chance to make some cash, the pilot said, “I’ll take you both up for ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 5:22-23

Tags: Marriage, Self Denial, Fruit Of The Spirit, Works Of The Flesh, Self Control, Character Of Christ  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

How Completely Satisfying To Turn From Our ...  PRO

Contributed by Curtis Kittrell on Apr 17, 2002

“How completely satisfying to turn from our limitations to a God who has none.… For those out of Christ, time is a devouring beast; before the sons of the new creation, ...read more

Tags: Church Body Of Christ, God's Omnipotence

Denomination: Pentecostal

Haddon Robinson Says, "If You Want To Get Rich, ...

Contributed by Kent Lenard on Aug 17, 2003

Haddon Robinson says, "If you want to get rich, invest in victimization. It is America’s fastest growing industry." He points out that millions of people are getting rich by identifying, ...read more

Tags: Character, Christian Disciplines

Denomination: Baptist

The Boss Caught Calvin Sitting At His Desk ...  PRO

Contributed by Kim Huffman on Mar 16, 2004

The boss caught Calvin sitting at his desk staring out the window. “why aren’t you working Calvin?” Without much thought Calvin confessed ...read more

Tags: Second Coming

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Sex Researchers Masters And Johnson Reported In ...

Contributed by Paul Wallace on Aug 24, 2004

Sex researchers Masters and Johnson reported in their book Homosexuality in Prespective that the success rate in eighty-one gays desiring reorientation (after six-year follow up), ...read more

Tags: Homosexuality

Denomination: Wesleyan

Todd Peterson: 12-Year Nfl Kicker Now Playing For ...  PRO

Contributed by Mickey Bell on Dec 28, 2005

Todd Peterson: 12-year NFL kicker now playing for the Atlanta Falcons said this about why he shares his faith. ”It just comes down to ...read more

Tags: Grace

Denomination: Baptist

Preach Abroad….it Is The Cooping Yourselves Up ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 8, 2006

“Preach abroad….It is the cooping yourselves up in rooms that has dampened the work of God, which never was and never will be carried out to any purpose without going into the highways and ...read more

Tags: What Is Evangelism?

Rightly Conceived, Time Is The Friend Of All ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 11, 2007

"Rightly conceived, time is the friend of all who are in any way in adversity, for its mazy road winds in and out of the shadows sooner or later into sunshine, and when one is at its ...read more

Tags: Hardship Of Life

This Is The True Joy In Life Being Used For A ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 12, 2007

This is the true joy in life being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one; being thoroughly worn out before you are thrown on the scrap heap; being a force of nature ...read more

Tags: Christian Values

There Are People Who Put Their Dreams In A ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 12, 2007

"There are people who put their dreams in a little box and say, Yes, Ive got dreams, of course Ive got dreams. Then they put the box away and bring it out once ...read more

Tags: Dreams