In Sermon Illustrations: "Calling"

There Were 15 In Sunday School -- Counting Jesus

Contributed by Rick Crandall on Oct 3, 2025

A little girl returning from Sunday School was asked by her grandmother how many had been in her class that day. And she replied, "There were 15 of us, -- Counting Jesus." *Rejoice in the Lord, Christians! He is here with us, and in us this morning. And Jesus wants to change our lives ...read more

Scripture: Acts 16:16-34

Tags: Silas, Crisis, Christian Service, Philippian Jailer, Demon Possession, Spiritual Transformation, Evangelism, Paul, Salvation, Missions  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Baptist

We Weren’t Expecting That

Contributed by James Snyder on Jul 1, 2023

Sometimes things happen that you never expected. When those unexpected things happen, if they are good, that is a blessing, if they are bad, that’s a different story. I learned this expectation of good from my good old Uncle Ted. He was a truck driver, and boy, did he have the stories to ...read more

Scripture: Ecclesiastes 2:15

Tags: Expectation, Free Lunch

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

Is The Doctor Behind?" Psalm 13:1-6 Key ...  PRO

Contributed by Mark Brunner on May 30, 2005

“Is the Doctor Behind?” Psalm 13:1-6 Key verse(s) 5:“But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation.” Waiting is not something that comes natural to me. When I am put to wait, the time drags by so slowly, so tediously. While other more accommodating individuals are able ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 13:1-6

Tags: Doubt

Denomination: Lutheran

The Cane Ridge Revival

Contributed by Sermon Central on Mar 23, 2011

THE CANE RIDGE REVIVAL One of those great revivals of the American past took place in the late spring and early summer of 1801 at Cane Ridge in central Kentucky. A pastor named Barton Stone, who had been called to serve this little Methodist church by Daniel Boone, decided to call a four-day ...read more

Scripture: 2 Chronicles 7:14

Tags: Revival

Thief Gets The Bird  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 30, 2002

THIEF GETS THE BIRD A man in Ontario, Canada returned home one evening to find his more valuable and easily-fenced goodies stacked neatly beside the door. When the homeowner saw the living room was also spattered with blood, he feared the worst for his beloved house pet, a large African parrot. The ...read more

Those Little Maybe's! (08.12.05--Character ...  PRO

Contributed by Mark Brunner on Aug 11, 2005

Those Little Maybe’s! (08.12.05--Character Counts!--Romans 5: 3-4) A drought tests the metal of a man. It tests his fortitude and his faithfulness. It also tests his resourcefulness and his ingenuity. I come from a long line of “resourceful” folks who seemed to see in every bleak and forlorn ...read more

Scripture: Romans 5:3-4

Tags: Perseverance, Character, Diligence, Faith

Denomination: Lutheran

Those Nasty Redo's! (10.06.05--Beginning ...

Contributed by Mark Brunner on Oct 4, 2005

Those Nasty Redo’s! (10.06.05--Beginning Again!--Genesis 16:7-10) Time is one of the most precious commodities that God gives us daily. The time to do things is always limited. And, we need to balance the things we want to do with the things we need to do. Therein is the tension. I start each ...read more

Scripture: Genesis 16:7-10

Tags: God's Forgiveness, Promises Of God

Denomination: Lutheran

Stop The Bleeding But Heal The Wound! ...

Contributed by Mark Brunner on Oct 4, 2005

Stop the Bleeding But Heal the Wound! (10.07.05--Beginning Again!--Genesis 16:7-10) There is one good rule for starting over. If something’s broken, don’t try to fix it with anything less than your best effort. The odds are that the more you try to “band-aid” things, the longer it will take for ...read more

Scripture: Genesis 16:7-10

Tags: God's Provision, God's Forgiveness

Denomination: Lutheran

You Are My Sunshine  PRO

Contributed by Johnny Creasong on Dec 20, 2004

You Are My Sunshine Karen was expecting another child and so she worked to prepare little three year old Michael for the birth of his baby sister. Every night Michael saying to his sister in his mother’s tummy. During the delivery of the baby serious complications developed. After many hours of ...read more

Scripture: Acts 12:1

Tags: Christmas, Children

Denomination: Church Of God

The Land Of Beginning Again!" Philippians 3: ...  PRO

Contributed by Mark Brunner on Jan 24, 2005

“The Land of Beginning Again!” Philippians 3: 12-14 Key verse(s): 13-14:“Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me ...read more

Scripture: Philippians 3:12-14

Tags: God's Provision

Denomination: Lutheran

Order Of The Bath

Contributed by Gary Kins on Jun 25, 2007

Order of the Bath "The Most Honorable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. However, the origin of the Order is said to be medieval, the earliest mention being in 1128. The name derives from the ancient ceremony wherein individuals participated in a ...read more

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

They Will Give You Up  PRO

Contributed by Bruce Landry on Mar 31, 2008

THEY WILL GIVE YOU UP Donald Grey Barnhouse led the son of a prominent American family to the Lord. He was in the service, but he showed the reality of his conversion by immediately professing Christ before the soldiers of his military company. The war ended. The day came when one of the ...read more

Tags: Friendship New Friends

Denomination: Baptist

Consistent Christians

Contributed by Paul Dietz on Sep 20, 2008

Consistent Christians I was getting ready to do some research for my weekly sermon so I entered my office and flipped the light switch to the "on" position. It seemed that as soon as I had touched the toggle there was an instantaneous burst of bright light from the light bulb for a millionth of a ...read more

Tags: Discipleship

Denomination: *other

Francis Chan: Radical Christian Living

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 1, 2010

FRANCIS CHAN: RADICAL CHRISTIAN LIVING Pastor Francis Chan, the senior pastor of Cornerstone Church in Simi Valley, California wrote in his latest book entitled, "Crazy Love". He has already sold one million copies worldwide; a figure he says demonstrates the extent to which he is not alone in ...read more

Scripture: Mark 8:34-38

Tags: Discipleship

Joe Bayly, A Christian Author And Leader, Had A ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 2, 2012

Joe Bayly, a Christian author and leader, had a son named Tim who was not following the Lord. This caused great tension in the home until one day Joe told his son he had to move out. Taking Tim aside, he said, "Tim, you're not living for God and you need to leave our home." Tim left, but his ...read more

Scripture: 1 Timothy 3:4-5

Tags: Parenting

The Myth Of More

Contributed by Sermon Central on Mar 14, 2014

Society is trying to sell us stuff all the time...and it's not all that difficult to do because we're so unsatisfied with what we have. Would you agree that discontentment is our default setting? Capitalizing on our inherent dissatisfaction, the worldwide marketing machine spends around $450 ...read more

Scripture: Exodus 20:17

Tags: Covetousness, Contentment, Satisfaction, Discontentment, Advertising, Ten Commandments  (view more)  (view less)

A Big Party Is Waiting For You At Home! (The Modern Prodigal Daughter)

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Mar 15, 2022

I think you are all familiar with the parable that we call the “Story of the Prodigal Son.” Well, I want us to consider it again with a little different twist. Listen to the story in a modern setting as told by Philip Yancey in his book “What’s so Amazing about Grace?” Yancey tells of a prodigal ...read more

Tags: Prodigal Son, Luke 15, Grace, Mercy, Forgiveness, Parables, Lost  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Miracles Through Prayer In China

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Apr 15, 2024

In his book Sit, Walk, Stand, Watchman Nee describes a preaching mission to an island off the South China coast. There were seven in the ministering group, including a sixteen-year-old new convert whom he calls Brother Wu. The island was fairly large, containing about 6,000 homes. Nee had a contact ...read more

Scripture: Jeremiah 33:3

Tags: Elijah, Missions, Prayer, Miracles, China, Rain  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Boli Zhang, A Young Chinese Writer, Was Born In ...  PRO

Contributed by Dana Chau on May 26, 2002

"Boli Zhang, a young Chinese writer, was born in Heilong Jiang Province in China. He studied writing at the Department of Chinese Language and Literature at Beijing University. His news reporting had won several literature awards in mainland China and Taiwan. In 1989, Zhang participated in the ...read more

Tags: Assurance Of Salvation, Sharing Your Faith, Humility

Denomination: *other

On A Rather Insignificant Sphere  PRO

Contributed by Steven Simala Grant on May 28, 2002

ON A RATHER INSIGNIFICANT SPHERE A senior angel is showing a very young angel around the splendors of the universe. They view whirling galaxies and blazing suns, and then flit across the infinite distances of space until at last they enter one particular galaxy of 500 billion stars. As the two ...read more

Scripture: Philippians 2:6-8, 1 Peter 1:12

Tags: Christmas Advent

Denomination: Baptist