In Sermon Illustrations: "Christian Joy"

Non-Christians Can Be Happy  PRO

Contributed by Jeff Strite on May 23, 2011

NON-CHRISTIANS CAN BE HAPPY I didn't say that non-Christians can't be happy or that they can't be content. Sure they can be happy...as long as life goes the way they want it to go. As long as our health is good, we enjoy our job, people love us and the sky is blue, anybody can be fairly content ...read more

Tags: Happiness

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Christian Conviction: Roger Williams

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 30, 2011

CHRISTIAN CONVICTION: ROGER WILLIAMS Roger Williams was a graduate of Cambridge University, where in order to receive his degree he was forced to sign articles declaring that the king was by right the head of the English Church, that worship according to the Book of Common Prayer and church ...read more

Scripture: Romans 13:1-7

Tags: Christian Witness

A Very Young Christian Family

Contributed by Richard Koskela on Oct 24, 2011

A VERY YOUNG CHRISTIAN FAMILY While traveling as a missionary on home assignment, I had the privilege of eating an evening meal with a young couple with two small children. When it was time for the children to go to bed, they asked me if I wanted to go with them to the children’s bedroom while ...read more

Tags: Family

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

Christianity Without Discipleship Is Always ...

Contributed by Gordon Curley on Dec 31, 2011

"Christianity without discipleship is always Christianity without ...read more

Tags: Discipleship

Denomination: Brethren

Ken Wales: Christian Integrity

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 2, 2012

KEN WALES: CHRISTIAN INTEGRITY Ken Wales is a TV and film producer, who has produced several, award-winning TV series and films, including Christy, East of Eden and the highly-acclaimed movie Amazing Grace. Wales has enjoyed tremendous success as a producer, but he started his Hollywood career ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:13-16

Tags: Christian Witness

Christian Man Displays Cross

Contributed by Matthew Oliver on Oct 20, 2012

Christian man Carl Behr of Baldwin, Pennsylvania received a notice on Monday ordering him to remove the 24-foot high illuminated cross he has installed in his front yard and kept lit day and night. But Behr plans to fight the order at a municipal meeting. “It’s all about my faith, and some people ...read more

Tags: Cross, Sin Deceptive, Obey God

Denomination: Episcopal/Anglican

Christ Is The Wind, Christianity Is The Sail  PRO

Contributed by Ken Pell on Mar 2, 2013

CHRIST IS THE WIND, CHRISTIANITY IS THE SAIL Does the practice of our religion reflect the God we serve? In Shane Hipps' book, "Selling Water by the River: A Book about the Life Jesus Promised and the Religion that Gets in the Way," he uses an analogy from sailing to express what has happened in ...read more

Scripture: James 1:26-27

Tags: Religion

Denomination: Nazarene

Standing Up For Persecuted Christians

Contributed by John Crowe on Oct 29, 2015

Michael Horowitz is a Jewish attorney in Washington, D.C. who has done more for persecuted Christians than almost any Christian I know. He recently wrote to me that from his long experience with efforts to help rescue persecuted Christians, his sad experience is that U. S. Christian leaders are ...read more

Scripture: Mark 9:41

Tags: Persecution, Persecuted Christian

Denomination: Baptist

Facts About Persecution Of Christians

Contributed by Garris Hudson 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

Post-It Note Christianity

Contributed by Todd Catteau on Jul 6, 2021

I’m a minister and, for the most part, the people I’m around know that. But in the church I serve we don’t wear any special clerical clothing, so on occasion I find myself in conversations with people who don’t know I’m a minister. That can create some interesting situations. I golf occasionally ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 3:3

Tags: Faithfulness, Sincerity, Faith, Commitment, Dedication  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Thoughts On The Submission Of The Christian Wife

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Aug 21, 2023

Means to follow your husband as he follows Christ. Intended to bless and protect the wife, not to enslave her. Does not mean that she is without voice in decision – making (Gethsemane). Never to be used by the man by force. Never to be used as an excuse for evil. Should always reflect the way ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 5:18-31

Tags: Wives, Marriage, Leadership, Submission, Husbands  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

The Connection Between Judaism And Christianity

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Nov 1, 2024

A Christian man and a Jewish man were debating which faith was best. The Jewish man argued, “We gave you the 10 Commandments.” The Christian ...read more

Scripture: Exodus 20:1-17, Leviticus 23:15-23

Tags: Ten Commandments, Jewish Roots Of Christianity

Denomination: Independent/Bible

How Should A Christian Walk?

Contributed by Martin Spoelstra on Jul 29, 2025

Have you ever noticed how novelists or movie directors make use of the way a person walks to highlight his or her character? Proud man walks erect, their heads held high. Beautiful women glide or float. Villains slouch, sneak, creep, or swagger. The need to describe different ways of walking has ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:1, Isaiah 57:2, 1 John 1:7, Micah 6:8, Psalm 119:106  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Light, Humble, Walk, Worthy, Word  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Stop Offering A Comfortable Christian Message

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Jan 4, 2021

Most evangelistic appeals today pitch the gospel as the way to have an abundant life. “Jesus came to offer you abundant life. Trust in Him and He will give you peace, joy, and a truly happy life.” While all of those claims are true if properly defined, what the salesman hasn’t told the potential ...read more

Scripture: 2 Timothy 3:12, Luke 9:23, Galatians 2:20, Romans 12:1-2, Romans 1:16  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Commitment, Discipleship, Truth, Suffering, Greasy Grace, Comfortable Christianity  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Dietrich Bonhoeffer Stated, "The Christian Life ...

Contributed by Richard Burkey on May 31, 2005

Dietrich Bonhoeffer stated, “The Christian life is not one of gloom, but of ever ...read more

Tags: Fulfillment

Denomination: Lutheran

Missionary Paralyzed Learns How To Thrive In ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 1, 2010

Missionary Paralyzed Learns How To Thrive in Suffering Scott Larson shared a personal encounter. “Annette and her husband were missionaries in Western Europe when she began to have pain in her back. When the pain became so unbearable that she could no longer function, even with muscle relaxants, ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 23:1-6

Tags: Suffering Joy In, Joy In Trials

It Is Clear That The Writer Of Psalm 100 Is ...  PRO

Contributed by Rex S. Wignall on Nov 28, 2002

It is clear that the writer of Psalm 100 is calling us to look up, and see the blessings of our God. Warren Wiersbe puts it well when he writes: Some people are appreciative by nature, but some are not; and it is these latter people who especially need God’s power to express thanksgiving. We ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 100:1-5

Tags: Joy, Fulfillment

Denomination: United Methodist

We're Going To Study A Book Of The Bible That Is ...

Contributed by K. Edward Skidmore on Nov 25, 2008

We’re going to study a book of the Bible that is often called the LETTER OF JOY. Paul uses the word JOY 20 times in the short little book of Philippians. What makes that really impressive is that Paul wrote the letter from a prison cell. He was not only in prison; he was literally chained to a ...read more

Tags: Suffering Joy In

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

A School Teacher Asked Her First Graders To Draw ...  PRO

Contributed by Bruce Howell on Dec 29, 2000

A SCHOOL TEACHER asked her first graders to draw a picture of something they were thankful for. She thought of how little these children from poor neighborhoods actually had to be thankful for. She reasoned that most of them would no doubt draw pictures of turkeys on tables with lots of other ...read more

Tags: Christian Love, Joy, Thanksgiving Holiday

Denomination: Wesleyan

It’s Difficult To Find Beauty In Death. ...  PRO

Contributed by David Yarbrough on Jun 18, 2001

It’s difficult to find beauty in death. It’s even more difficult to find beauty in a death camp. Especially Auschwitz. Four million Jews died there in World War II. A half-ton of human hair is still preserved. The showers that sprayed poison gas still stand. But for all the ugly memories of ...read more

Scripture: Romans 5:8

Tags: Joy, Christian Disciplines, Cross Agony

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational